Moon Looks On, ‘The West Wind Blows’

Rising folkster Moon Looks On (aka Stephen Gormley) has been carving out a name for himself on these shores and beyond,  with appearances at the likes Glastonbury, Electric Picnic and All Together Now. The title track from his upcoming album fuses sweet trad jiggery with  songwriting sensibilities evoking Ben Howard

"I was dreaming of the west of Ireland when I wrote this story,”  says Gormley.  “It’s a song about looking back over your life and holding on to optimism for things to come. It’s a tip of the hat to the past, the present, and the future in equal measure."

Moon Looks On.

Gemma Hayes feat Paul Noonan, ‘Another Love’

Mercury-prize nominated singer-songwriter Gemma Hayes teams up with Paul Noonan of Bell X1 to deliver an excellently executed and poignant duet of mutual grief, decorated by tender guitar picking, atmospheric synths and romantic cello.

“‘Another Love’ is a lament,” explains Hayes. “It deals with two characters being haunted by the ghost of someone they loved while finding comfort in each other’s arms. Both reveal that they do not love the other and that weirdly brings them closer together.”

Dylan Flynn and the Dead Poets, ‘in your eyes’

With brooding lyrics and mournful slide guitar, ‘in your eyes’ sees Limerick band Dylan Flynn and the Dead Poets cross the Atlantic to sample the sounds of Americana indie-rock. The raw vocals are unfiltered and honest, while the quietly rumbling drums create an underlying sense of nervousness throughout the track.

Flynn said that the track helped the band realise what they wanted their upcoming album to sound like, describing it as “a song about denial, and ignoring situations that are clearly making your life much harder.” The bands upcoming album, the story after they’re gone is out October 11.

Dylan Flynn and The Dead Poets, 2024

J Ryan, ‘Afternoon Love’

J Ryan delivers a pensive, feel-good tune with ‘Afternoon Love’. With layers of smooth guitar playing and a shuffling drum beat, the song has a swaying nature that invokes feelings of summertime’s best aspects. With personal, narrative lyrics, the song has a palpable sense of warmth and nostalgia to it.

With a career that has seen him performing all over Ireland, as well as the US and Dubai, Ryan explained that now felt like the right time to record his first single. “I felt these guys were on the same page as me, regarding my music, its direction, feel and vibe” he said.

J Ryan, 2024

Iann Brennan, ‘Can We Let it Go’

Irish indie rock artist Iann Brennan strips things back with the acoustic, nostalgia drenched ‘Can We Let It Go’. Opening with Brennan’s soaring lyrics and simplistic guitar strumming, he laments on the experience of growing up in his hometown of Finglas.
Joined by more instruments as the tune goes on, the song is a warm reflection on simpler times, and what it means to grow out of your childhood friends.

Releasing his debut album Start As You Mean To Go On in 2023, Brennan has seen performances at Electric Picnic, as well as supporting acts like Lisa Hannigan and Aslan.

Ian Brennan

Hozier, ‘Nobody’s Soldier’

Everyone’s favourite Wicklow crooner of the underworld is back with his brand-new EP, Unaired - taken from the Unreal Unearth sessions.

Lead single, ‘Nobody’s Solider’, comes out swinging to deliver Hozier’s rockiest offering yet. From the outset, pounding riffage and stomping drums hit the ground running to make way for the singer’s sinfully good vocals. In the lyrics, the song tenders an anthem against organisations profiting from the tragedy that comes with war.

“‘Nobody’s Soldier’ lived in the world of the album, but didn’t make it to the album,” Hozier says. “It’s a song about carrying some sense of conscientious objection of trying not to - wanting not to- fall into the systems that we live our lives in, which are invariably destructive or exploitative or have some violence in the chain, as it were. “

Hozier at Marlay Park. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

The Fae, ‘So You Said’

What do you get when you mix Slowdive with The Last Dinner Party? Your next Fae-vourite band.

Dublin alt-rockers The Fae are back with a heavy new single that boasts “a message from the true divine” in song. ‘So You Said’ is a heavenly rock banger replete with thick fuzz, howling riffage and brooding vocals from the trio. The song itself came about during a jam session where bassist/vocalist Emma Hempton started experimenting and uncovered the verse riff on ‘So You Said’. The trio then enlisted Myles Keogh to film and edit the music video, which saw the trio pouring over frames and shooting in the forest into the midnight hours.

“It was one of those songs that we all agreed was closer to where we'd like to take the band musically,” says guitarist/vocalist Jordan Crawford. “It's also way more fun to translate that harder, heavier music in a live context, as a 3 piece you can build up velocity really quickly. The lyrics were written in a daze, about my girlfriend, It's real.”

Enda Gallery, 'Water'

Forged in Berlin by Clare artist Enda Gallery, ‘Water’ is as advertised, opening with samples of flowing H20 to create a transcending, spa-like listening experience. The song evolves into a soulful and liberating electronic bop, with smooth, dreamy melodies and vocals, a driving beat and lyrics which delve into the theme of release and relief.

Gallery’s debut album, The Journey to Zero was released in 2021 to critical acclaim, with some if its tracks going on to be featured on shows like Normal People. 

Enda Gallery by Louise Wallace.

Silver Winged They Fly, ‘Cold In The Soul’

Donegal rock band Silver Winged They Fly burst onto the scene with their magnetic debut single. With ‘Cold In The Soul’, the outfit develop their unique sound, drawing from the likes of The National and Blue Nile.

The track is truly something to behold: infectious drum machines and synths meet a wash of shoegaze guitars and vocals which deliver the emotionally-charged lyrics with uncompromising fervour.

"It’s a song borne from contemplative solitude, dark nights of the soul, recognising pain. Those fleeting moments where visions of the horror and the beauty of being alive in this time arrive together, interwoven", says songwriter Ruairi Friel. "We tried to reflect this feeling in the recording which tries to capture darkness and transform it."

Silver Winged They Fly

Lucy Gaffney, ‘Sittingbugs’

Lucy Gaffney’s latest single is a haute blend of Big Thief’s UFOF scapes and Hope Sandoval-ian vocal chops. ‘sittingbugs’ is a bright, shimmering offering of delicate guitar pluckings and a feather-soft rhythm.

The same way crystal shines when held to light, Gaffney’s voice gleams and glitters in the company of the instrumental foliage. ‘sittingbugs’ thrives on its gossamer sound and the singer’s croon, while its lyrics turn from chasing selfhood to the warm flush of newfound love.

Lucy Gaffney

Alex Gough, ‘A-Team’

Waterford producer and hip-hop artist Alex Gough has unleashed his latest dreamy single ‘A-Team’. With its gentle synths, minimal beats and masterfully auto-tuned vocals, the track is a relaxed and light offering, perfectly showcasing Gough’s aesthetic sensibilities while transporting the listener into breezy night skies.

Rosalind Anketell, ‘Begin’

Rosalind Ankletell latest single ‘Begin’ is a dark, bluesy offering from the Irish-Australian singer. The track’s slow, lingering beats and Ankletell’s deep and buttery vocal performance make for a sulphurous and vivid late-night anthem, marking the artist's second offering of the year.

Rosalind Anketell / Photo: Kateryna Tomchuk

KEELEY, ‘Trans-Europe 18’

The second release for KEELEY’s upcoming album ‘Trans-Europe 18’ is an urgent and addictive track, wrapped up in the singer’s silky vocals and its layered backdrop, giving the impression of a never-ending forward motion.

Co-written with KEELEY producer Alan Maguire, the song once again recounts the tragic and fateful story of 18-year old German backpacker Inga Maria Hauser, who set off on a back-packing trip and was ultimately murdered in Northern Ireland in 1988. The song and its accompanying video recount her trip from Munich across to London via train and ferry, using original footage from that year in almost every frame.

VENUS GRRRLS, ‘Darla’

Queens of riot Venus GRRRRLS are back and this time with their Tumblr 2014 aesthetic and sick guitar line in the form of ‘Darla’. Born from Riot Grrrl, VENUS GRRRLS are an alternative rock band based in Leeds and fronted by Irish woman Grace Kelly. From twinkling synth motifs to raspy guitar lines, ‘Darla’ embodies “the sanctity of female companionship, friendship, and love” according to Kelly. A single for when you’re not sure if you want to be someone or be with someone- ‘Darla’ is intoxicating.

Venus Grrrls, Photo Credit: Misha Warren

Julie Dawson - ‘Silly Little Song’

NewDad’s Julie Dawson has given us a delicious sonic crumb before the band’s Electric Picnic set this weekend in the form of ‘Silly Little Song’. Teaming up with Belfast producer Jack Hamill, (aka Space Dimension Controller), Dawson has produced a lush cinematic single. Where NewDad’s material draws from personal experience, Dawson’s solo work seeks to be more universal, with the artist singing on the cyclical nature of a relationship. Featuring her signature sultry vocals, and plenty of distortion, ‘Silly Little Song’ feels like if Bon Iver and NewDad had a lovechild.

NewDad with Daire Heffernan at The Button Factory, Dublin, 28 February 2024. Copyright Gary Ibbotson/hotpress.com

Yenkee, ‘Hand Luggage’

A charming tune from Leesider Yenkee, ‘Hand Luggage’ is an 80s tinted indie pop single. Speaking on the track's subject matter, Yenkee says ‘Hand Luggage’ is about “moments of clarity when you realise how much you love the fundamentals of life…It’s about missing people. When we’d go on holidays when I was younger you’d always hear someone say “can you take me in your suitcase?””. Complete with a gorgeous music video, it’s an irresistible single.

Sarah Buckley, ‘Broken Wing’

Indie-folk sensation Sarah Buckley has released her pensive new single ‘Broken Wing’ ahead of her upcoming EP, due for release this autumn.

A soft and enchanting tune of poetic lyricism and subtly-crafted acoustic guitar arpeggios, ‘Broken Wing’ is made unique by Buckley’s otherworldly vocals and the ethereal quality of the track’s backdrop.

Speaking of the song, Buckley said: “[It]’s about being confused because you like a person but don’t like the way you feel when you are around them. You feel at a deficit around them for some reason and probably misunderstood.”

Sarah Buckley / credit Bernhard Eder

Check out our New Irish Songs To Hear This Week playlist on Spotify below!