Dublin's Hope Collective
When I wrote about the Dark thoughts gig in the Cowley club earlier this year it was my introduction to their lo-fi tuneful ramones sound at breakneck speed. I picked up their self titled lp and it has been a regular feature since. With vocals hiding at the back of their sound it seems like … Continue reading Halloween Songs from Dark Thoughts
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2octOKgJn3I In 1979 the Polydor record label released a compilation album, Twenty of Another Kind, Part 2. In addition to some of the better know acts on Polydor at the time, The Jam, The Cure, Sham 69 and Gary Numan's Tubeway Army, it contained tracks from some of the most interesting acts of Ireland's punk/new … Continue reading Thursday Tunes. Twenty of Another Kind 2
Protex were one of the great pop-punk bands from Northern Ireland during the first rush of punk/new wave. To me they were just as exciting as the Undertones, SLF, the Outcasts and the brilliant Rudi. Don't get me wrong,I loved those bands, but I loved Protex just as much. I remember my brother buying me … Continue reading Protex Interview
Russ Bestley has established a reputation as one of the great historians of popular music. His specific area is punk, post-punk and DIY music. The 2015 book, The Art of Punk which he co-authored with Alex Ogg is one of the best books ever written about popular music. It includes many of the most original … Continue reading Russ Bestley Interview. The Art of Punk
I've been listening to The Winter Passing for a couple of years now, ever since they played We Shall Overcome night in 2015. Their hardcore pop tunes have hooks, tunes and resilience. Imagine if your friends were in a band and when you went to see them it was a gathering of your tribe. That's … Continue reading The Winter Passing – interview
I saw spoilers play a couple of years ago and their punk pop blast caught my attention straight away. Their stay afloat album is a gem, capturing that punk rock community feel down to a tee. Their singer Dan keeps looking to try and get the band over to Dublin to play a gig and … Continue reading Spoilers – interview
Dublin based band the Knocking Shop are back playing sporadic gigs after 20 years. They had a place in an emerging independent scene in Dublin that wore guitars on heart. They have been described as a punk Leonard Cohen or the Fall wrestling with Go Betweens. They will be bringing their understated yet underestimated style … Continue reading Knocking Shop – interview
We had a good turnout at our PUNK!DIY!40 event last night and managed to raise €300 for Aoibhneas Womens Refuge There is a fine line in any of these events between trying to tell a story and being self indulgent. Hopefully we struck a balance with it last night Have a listen yourselves We started … Continue reading Thanks from We Shall Overcome 2017
This weeks Thursday tunes come from Noel Martin. Like many more of his Irish generation Noel's family emigrated from Ireland in the early 70's to a London that was cosmopolitan, a world away from this island. He formed Menace in 1976, 41 years and many releases later the band are still going. They were due … Continue reading Thursday Tunes..Menace
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x75EdTZi_5E This was a particularly exciting interview for me. That Petrol Emotion were one of the greatest live acts of all time, and their records captured their musicality, originality, fun, ambition, enthusiasm and ability to construct amazing unique songs. When I mentioned to one of the stalwarts of Ireland’s independent rock … Continue reading Steve Mack Interview. Stag, That Petrol Emotion and the US punk scene.
