This week’s Culture playlist mixes it up with the sweetest new Irish sounds, a tasty Danish treat, plus a tribute to the original rock n' roller...
Lowly – Mornings
The Danish five-piece return with a fresh uptempo tune; the voices of singers Nanna and Soffie are sweet and high, working off some killer percussion to give us that summer feeling - and it's only March! This song reminds us of US electro-pop duo Sylvan Esso and their song Uncatena - trust us, it's a complement.
“The song is about the moment when you realize that a person whom you used to be close with isn’t anymore,” says vocalist Nanna Schannong. “You realize that it’s better to just keep the conversation clean to avoid any struggle.”
Bantum - ReMove (Mix & Fairbanks remix)
Newbridge duo Gary O’Reilly and Rob Smyth, better known as Mix & Fairbanks, go to work on a tune by Ruairi Lynch, aka Choice Award nominee Bantum; like all great remixes, the funky results keep the essence of the original - the metallic sounds, the 'crying' guitar - while venturing into bold new territory. This is a song to chill to, a song to dance to - you choose, according to your mood.
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Paddy Hanna - Bad Boys
After Austria and Underprotected, Irish songwriter Paddy Hanna drops another timeless indie-pop winner, with a Sixties influence that simply cannot be denied. Strings in the background, lascivious voice to the forefront, Paddy welcomes you to his vintage world! Bonus points for the trumpet solo.
He's also been refreshingly upfront about his own creative process. “I allude to mental illness in my work," he told the NME. "It’s considered by many to be a neurosis that spurs on creative work, however it is nothing but a crutch on my own creativity. My time in a depressive haze is spent in complete emptiness, weeks will go by, my beard will have grown out, my pen dried up. So when indeed I allude to mental illness it would usually be during a happy period where I can function.”
Paddy is playing Whelan’s in Dublin on May 5th.
Laoise – Halfway
Rising young Galwegian Laoise might resemble a bubblegum pop queen, but as an artist but she’s much more than that. Halfway is a slinky electropop slow-burn with a seriously jazzy influence that occasionally evokes Portishead’s Glory Box - and we can think of no greater complement. She's cool with us.
The young singer explains: “I wrote Halfway about two years ago during a time when I wasn’t paying attention to my own needs and health, and I compromised my happiness for other people and their excessive expectations. Writing ‘Halfway’ was my way of pushing past this. It stands as a very important stage in my life and even though, in a way, I’m scared as f**k to release it, I’m so grateful that I can share it with people.” So are we.
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Chuck Berry – Nadine (and all his other amazing hits)
This Friday’s playlist couldn’t complete without paying tribute to the late, great pioneer of rock and roll, who passed away earlier this week: Chuck Berry. The legacy of this complete artist is huge, and we are truly grateful for it. And what better way to remember him with a classic reminder of the man at his finest - and not only could he play the guitar - Chuck Berry could move!
