It’s slightly tiresome, I know, to point to the bemusing braggadocio of contemporary mainstream hip-hop, and to the dilution of a celebrated and revolutionary art form in the mainstream by such pecuniary whores as Soulja Boy, P.Diddy, 50 Cent et al.
So it’s also a thrill that labels and collectives like Anticon exist, to give a [...]

Times New Viking are a damned good-looking band but on a cold September night, within pissing distance of a freezing winter, even their indie-licious appearance cannot help fill a half-empty room.
Having played here a few times already – the first of which was in Andrew’s Lane Theatre to a small intoxicated crowd (well, maybe the [...]

Vicar Street and Wilco go together like Pitchfork and decimal points, Tom Cruise and F14 Tomcats, Drop-D and trolling commenters…they just work.
On Jeff Tweedy’s last solo outing to Dublin, a friend and I bumped into him on O’Connell Bridge whereupon we asked him to join us for a cold beer. Alas, the saucy midget was [...]

It’s just all too easy these days isn’t it?
Get your album or single approved on a taste-making behemoth like Pitchfork and quicker than you can order a fresh pair of Wayfarers you’re on a hip European tour.

 
Barcelona – Campeone Europa. Merda.
As a Manchester United fan, my timing for arriving in Barcelona on that particular Wednesday evening was about as clever as mooning two Gardai on a public street in Galway (true story, untrue story if my parents are reading this).

Hogan have managed to catch me reviewing their new single, Jealousy, a little after its release date and suffering from a mild bout of heatstroke, hooch over-indulgence and a general overwhelming delirium at the fact that I am heading to Primavera this week to experience what promises to be the festival of a [...]

One of the country’s most impressive bands, Subplots, have finally managed to complete their long-anticipated album Nightcycles and release it into the wild after an 18-month gestation period.

Artist: Bonnie "Prince" BillyAuthor: Adam Lacey
I"m probably not the best choice of writer to do a Bonnie Prince Billy album review. I adore Will Oldham. I could listen to him sing for days" from his early croaky efforts as Palace Music/Palace Brothers" to his sparse" self"analysing I See A Darkness period to his more country"tinged [...]

Artist: Animal CollectiveAuthor: Adam Lacey
Greil Marcus: "Rock 'n Roll is a combination of good ideas" dried up by fads" terrible junk" hideous failings in taste and judgment" gullibility and manipulation" moments of unbelievable clarity and invention" pleasure" fun" vulgarity" excess" novelty and utter enervation."
Mark Archer from Altern8: "I will always love my oldskool " but [...]

Artist: The Amateurs
Author: Adam Lacey
The Amateurs are a Birmingham four”piece who specialise in the kind of MOR twaddle that should have been taken out into a field and shot in the face years ago as a lesson to all musicians to inject a bit of passion and vim into their craft and into what they [...]