Listen to Dry the River's new album "Shallow Bed"

Listen to Dry the River's debut album "Shallow Bed" here http://shallowbed.drytheriver.net/.
Commentary by the band on each tracks.
Absolutely magic stuff.
Catch them live in Whelan's Dublin on Wed 25th April. Get your tickets here http://tinyurl.com/74zt46u.

The Magnetic Fields "Love at the Bottom of the Sea"

Listen here to the brand new album "Love at the Bottom of the Sea" by The Magnetic Fields.
http://tinyurl.com/772wmtv

Dancing About Architecture - Journalism 101 - Critic School

The Dancing About Architecture Journalism 101 seminars started last Tuesday evening.
I found that it was really excellent. Got some really good insight into the world of journalism & how to get your name out there & to get paid for what you write.
The seminars take place every Tuesday for 5 weeks starting on Feb 21st in McGrattan's Bar, Baggot Street, Dublin 2 from 7.00 until 9.00pm.
Seminar 1 was entitled "Critic School" & featured talks from Una Mullally, Jim Carroll & Patrick Freyne.

Some of the main points were:

• Go to as many gigs as possible. You may notice the same familiar faces. These may be A&R guys who would be worth introducing yourself to.
• Know a little bit about all types of Music.
• You're not going to make a living just from writing. Radio or TV shows are also important.
• Read many different publications. Get used ot the type of stories they run. Take notes
• Have pride in what you write.
• Be honest. As long as you are honest people will read & like.
• Review the particular album you are given. Don't review something different, IE: just because a particular bands first 3 albums were crap does not mean that the next one is going to be.
• Be prepared for new things.
• Say "Yes" to a lot of articles. The more you say "Yes" the more people will come back to you.
• Try to build & layout you day. IE: update your blog early in the morning, write review in late morning, read through newspaper early afternoon & take notes on ideas.
• Never use a long word where a short one will do.
• Editors want "new" ideas. They want to be the first with everything.
• Editors want new people. They get new ideas & it even kicks the existing staff in the arse.
• Keep a diary with your own timetable. Find out when you work best & have yourself ready.
• Be neurotic - write to-do-lists.
• Keep all your notebooks, no matter how old.
• Have time for yourself.
• Try to never write for a publication that is making money from it - value your work - do not devalue it.
• Have a good abaility to explain something to someone no matter what the subject.

When pitching ideas to editors:

• Get used to rejection but do not take it personally.
• Be polite - do not annoy editors.
• Correct spelling & correct grammer.
• Don't be obvious, think outside the box.
• Send many ideas. Sometimes the more rubbish you send, maybe something will stick.
• Send articles to the correct person.
• All editors are different. Some may be onto you all the time & others may simply leave you alone. You may not hear a thing from them.
• Try to pitch at regular times. IE: Pitch to a certain editor at the same time every week, or month.

The next seminar entitled "New-new journalism" takes place Tuesday 28th Feb, same time, same place.

The Jezabels play Dublin's Button Factory

Australian indie outfit The Jezabels are playing Dublin's Button Factory on Saturday 19th May. Get your tickets here: http://www.ticketmaster.ie/The-Jezabels-tickets/artist/1504589?tm_link=edp_Artist_Name only €14.00 each.

Their debut album "Prisoner" is released on Friday 02nd March.

http://www.thejezabels.com/

NPR new album streams

Listen to this weeks new album releases by Sinead O' Connor, Lambchop & Grimes now streaming on NPR:

http://tinyurl.com/4hw96pf

The Horrible Crowse "Elsie" album review on High Browse

See my review of The Horrible Crows "Elsie" album on High Browse:

http://tinyurl.com/7bjmtum

Gotye "Making Mirrors" review on High Browse

See my review of Gotye's "Making Mirrors" album on High Browse:

http://tinyurl.com/8x7ftls

Sharon Van Etten - "Tramp"

Listen to the new Sharon Van Etten album "Tramp" on NPR, produced by Aaron Dessner of The National:

http://tinyurl.com/7yrouzy

Evelyn Campbell - "Overdue Review" - album review

Listen to the incredible voice of Wicklow resident Evelyn Campbell in all her glory on this, her beautiful yet strongly political debut album “Overdue Review”.

The lyrics are very to-the-point, straight up, no holds barred, similar in many ways to American singer songwriter Joan Baez from the 1960’s. There are no hidden meanings here. The songs also well represent the current situation the country finds itself in. “Gombeen Blues” has strong lyrics about the government & their failings - “we can play our game, someone else will take the blame”.

My personal favourites are the brilliantly titles “The Docker & the Shirt Factory Worker” & album opener “Poisoned Arrow” with it’s “Harvest” era Neil Young guitar sound courtesy of friend Stuart Crampton who’s playing is compliment well with bass player Garvan Gallagher throughout the album.

Evelyn has been playing the likes of The Queens Dalkey, the Martello Bray & the Hot Spot Coffee House in Greystones in the past & more recently she has brought her protest songs to Occupy Dame Street & outside The Dail.

As stated on her Facebook profile - these are songs to make you laugh, songs to make you cry, songs to make you stand up & shout. A fine achievement throughout. Enjoy.

See http://www.evelyncampbellband.com/.

The Horrible Crows "Elsie" - album review

Everyone should listen to The Horrible Crows. They are a feel good American alternative rock n’ roll band with no messing around. Just decent rock songs. This really brought me back to college days of listening to American rock bands hour upon hour, every day.

They are a side-project featuring The Gaslight Anthem’s lead singer & guitarist Brian Fallon & his guitar technician Ian Perkins. Their name derives from a poem “Tha Corbies” which translates as “Two Crows”. The poem is about two crows discussing the body of a knight lying dead behind a wall.

Obviously enough there are hints of The Gaslight Athem here. Other influences are Bruce Springsteen & Live, a band from the 90’s who released some rather under-rated albums “Throwing  Copper” & “Secret Samadhi”.

Some of the best songs here are debut single “Behold the Hurricane” & incredibly radio friendly “I Witnessed a Crime”. Somehow everyone should feel like they’ve heard it all before but in a good way. A nostalgic way. “Cherry Blossoms” has that Mark Lanegan growl thing going on. As does my favourite album track “Mary Ann” which sounds like an outtake that could probably fit comfortably onto Tom Waits’ brilliant “Bad As Me” album which was released last year.

Lets hope Brain & Ian continue with this band for a while. Great stuff.

79/100

Gotye "Making Mirrors" album review

Having previously released 2 albums in his home country of Australia, Wouter “Wally” De Backer is finally breaking into the mainstream with this 3^rd album under his stage name Gotye, pronounced Go-tee-yay, which is derived from the French translation of Wouter.

Having been released towards the end of 2011 in Australia “Making Mirrors” gets its official release in Ireland on 10^th February. It contains the absolutely brilliant lead single “Somebody that I used to know”.  An incredibly catchy & rather bitter break-up song featuring New Zealand singer songwriter Kindra on vocals. The beats & bops mixed with quiet zylophone are sublime. Some of you may of heard this on the Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show on Today FM. Ian was playing this as his song-of-the-week back in early January.

Vocals on “Somebody that I used to know” sound very similar to Sting & The Police but these are not the only influences here. The verse of “Easy Way Out” comes straight from Mark Oliver Everett of The Eels before another big look-at-me chorus kicks in. There are hints of James Morrison on “In Your Light” & a certain Mr Stevie Wonder on the up-beat, radio friendly “I Feel Better”.  “State of the Art” has very bizarre, low sounding vocal effects. Almost like Ok Computer’s “Fitter Happier” but with beats, drums & reggae bass thrown in to great effect.

There are some low points along the way too. Album opener & title track “Making Mirrors” is cut far too short, only 1min. It’s incomplete. It seems to just end as you are getting into it. The complete opposite with the  tribal drums at the end of “Smoke & Mirrors” continues for far too long, seriously outstays it welcome.

My favourite songs here are the Bell X1/Talking Heads-like“Save Me” with its great drum sound & the beautifully simplistic album closer “Bronte” with its high pitched Bon Iver vocals with the hushed refrain “we will be with you”.

I don’t expect Gotye to be a one hit wonder. As he states on “Making Mirrors” he has “dreamt of a doorway, that opened to everything”. Making Mirrors could be it. Watch him rise.

78/100

Hello Moon review on High Browse

See my review of Hello Moon's Only Count the Sunny Hours album on http://www.highbrowse.ie/

http://tinyurl.com/7w3keyv