JOHN SHEAHAN: A DUBLINER : MONDAY APRIL 15th RTE ONE 9.35PM

JOHN SHEAHAN: A DUBLINER  : MONDAY APRIL 15^th RTE ONE 9.35PM

The documentary film John Sheahan: A Dubliner is a revealing and beautifully made portrait of a man who was an integral part of the national institution that is The Dubliners. As Barney McKenna once said, John is the ‘memory chip’, the part of the band who never forgets, ‘the mortar between the bricks’ that kept the band together.

John Sheahan was perhaps the most unlikely member ofThe Dubliners. His quiet nature and classical music training set him apart from his fellow group members. Now at the age of 73 he has reached a major turning point in his life. All of his friends that he once shared the band with in the early days, Luke, Ronnie, Ciarán and Barney are now sadly dead and he has finally decided to close the book on the life of The Dubliners after fifty years of recording and touring.

Sheahan is a deep thinker, a quality musician, composer and a poet with a passion for words.  At the age of 25 he was set up for life with a pensionable job as an ESB draftsman. He worked by day and played music by night. In 1964, to the dismay of his father who was a member of An Garda Síochána, he packed in the day job to go full time with The Dubliners.

Now fifty years later it’s a new dawn for John.  He has all of the memories neatly packed away into different compartments and is ready to tell his side of The Dubliners story. John Sheahan is an eyewitness to a colourful chapter in Irish history that has formed a large part of our national identity. He has taken a road less travelled and thankfully has survived to tell the tale.

Produced by the award winning Scratch Films and directed by five time IFTA winning director Maurice Sweeney, John Sheahan: A Dubliner is a treasure trove of rare Dublinersarchive some of which has never been broadcast in Ireland before and contemporary performances with Damien Dempsey, Declan O’Rourke, Charlie McGettigan, Máire Breatnach, Seán Keane and Neil Martin.

Great news for Irish Music Scene as new label is announced for 2014

We just heard that music industry guru Linda Coogan Byrne who sits at the helm of one of Ireland's most successful Music PR & Marketing companies - Good Seed PR- has announced that she will be launching a Record Label in 2014. 

Coogan Byrne said she got into working in the industry to "break new Irish acts, and will follow through on that by launching the record label early next year". Already the 29 year old has established one of the leading PR companys in the country and started out in a box room of her Mothers house when she was 22 from the top of a bunk bed! Since then she has worked with Irish household names to Worldwide mega bands and acts such as Marilyn Manson, REM, Duran Duran, Ron Sexsmith, Suzanne Vega, Dropkick Murphys, The Saw Doctors, The Dubliners, Imelda May, Lisa Hannigan, Nina Hynes, Madness, Friends of Emmet, Dire Straits, Frank & Walters, Eleanor McEvoy, Groove Armada, Underworld, Cyndi Lauper, Heavens Basement, The Cult, Amanda Palmer, City & Colour... the list goes on...and on. 

Bands and Artists can send demos starting now - HERE. We have always supported GSPR with their new music and hearing this rather epic news, we feel that things are looking up in the Irish Music Scene! 

Amanda Palmer Gets Standing Ovation for TED Talk At TED2013

Amanda Palmer Gets

Standing Ovation for TED Talk

At TED2013

Compares Crowd-Funding to Crowd-Surfing

“When You Connect With People, They Want to Help You...

Maybe instead of asking ourselves how we can make people pay for music, we should ask ourselves how to LET them.”

Watch Amanda’s TED Talk, “The Art of Asking”, HERE.

Amanda Palmer has made an art out of crowd-sourcing and crowd-funding, making headlines last year for raising $1.2 million on Kickstarter to fund her latest album. Amanda says they are simply the modern day versions of the street-performing she did to support herself for many years as the 8ft Bride, and the couch-surfing she’s done throughout her years of touring.

“Couch-surfing and crowd-surfing are essentially the same thing. You’re falling into the audience, and asking your fans to catch you,” she notes. “So when it came time to put out my new album, I turned to crowd-funding, and I ‘fell’ into those thousands of connections I’d made and I asked my crowd to catch me.”

Moreover, she believes that the meaningful human relationships that develop from these acts --and the vulnerability they require – are as old as art itself. “For most of human history musicians and artists have been part of the community – connectors and openers, not untouchable stars. Celebrity is about a lot of people loving you from a distance. But the internet and the content we’re able to share on it is taking us back, and it’s about a few people loving you up close, and those people being enough.”

Lastly, she feels that the lessons she learned as a street performer might just solve the music biz’s current dilemma around trying to get people to pay for music: “Maybe instead of asking ourselves how we can make people pay for music, we should ask ourselves how to LET them.”

Read more about Amanda’s TED experience and the reaction to her TED Talk in Long Beach this week HERE on the TED blog.

Amanda’s self-released album, Theatre Is Evil, debut in the Billboard Top 10 last September, and is available for a “pay-what-you-want” price (including free) in her web store HERE.

"…one of the year’s best rock records…" – Rolling Stone

"… exactly the kind of record that makes people love music in the first place" – SPIN

“Theatre of Evil is genius, savvy pop” – NPR

"She juggles bravado and compassion... " – The New York Times

Monkeeman

There is no monkeying around with this stellar new EP from Monkeeman. For those of you with an affinity towards The Smiths and Sex Pistols, Monkeeman's EP 'Pressure' will appeal to the MOD in you. Check it out below:

Heavens Basement

Red Bull Records are currently reigning rather majestically on the epic awesomeness of AWOLNATION and their more than relative success on the label. Needless to say we can see who will be following their footsteps; Heavens Basement. With their electrifying rock bass driven guitar laden contagious as fuck soaring chorus in every song on this album, Filthy Empire is about as awesome as a debut album from an aspiring rock band can get.

The albums visceral rawness is what stands to this band as it captures the essence of true rock n roll is, which is the ability to just rock out with great musicianship equipped with an effortless front man. Its no wonder They already have song placements in hit Computer game Need For Speed.

Tracks to check out: Fire Fire & Nothing left to loose.

Rock aint dead.

The Virginmarys, are far from the religious connotations that their band name suggests. Pioneers of keeping the authenticated sound of solid rock alive while ensuring a contemporary mainstream appeal, these guys utterly impress with their staggering infectious debut 'King of Conflict' which is set to be released pretty soon. One word of warning Lock up your daughters! 

The Virginmarys channel the rawness and musicality of Led Zeppelin whilst also packing the melodic punchlines akin to Fleetwood Mac meets The Who. Listen to Tracks such as 'Out Of Mind' to get where I am going with on that last one..

From get go the album opener 'Dead Mans Shoes' - King Of Conflict demands your attention. You will be playing air guitar whilst jogging across the room with your leg lifted into the air before plummeting to the floor with your hands making a rocking V. Your pens will be tapping on the table tops mimicking the ever epic drumrolls. I reckon there will be many bands formed out of listening to this album. Why, you ask? because this music is what inspires bands to form.

Watch this space - we reckon this band are our hot rod for this year. 

Download:

Deadmans Shoes, Out of Mind, Bang Bang Bang

Game on.

Start of the year goodness.

So it's another year, another January blue month to moan and air our discontent at how utterly pointless it was fussing about one day in the year. (The 25th of December) But alas, it is now behind us and as January is fading out in its usual quite way, we beckon towards February with open arms. Here are some new releases that have already caught our attention here!

On Feb 5th legendary Country artist Tim McGraw releases his twelfth studio album titled Two Lanes of Freedom via Big Machine Records. Before we go all Daniel O'Donnell on you, its actually quite promising.... Seriously, did you think we were being real there.... Bahhhhh

Here is whats going down:

Eels, are to release their tenth studio album titled 'Wonderful Glorious' via Vagrant Records on Feb 5th. Eels have never disappointed us before and we don't think they are about to start now. Listen to the current single form the new album below. It is marvellous. We can not wait for the album!

Foals release their third studio album also - titled "Holy Fire" via Transgressive Records. 

Canadian Crooner Ron Sexsmith releases "Forever Endeavour" via Cooking Vinyl and here is a short retrospective of what to expect.

On the 26th of Feb 50 Cent releases Street King Immortal via Interscope. Looking at the list of producers on it ( there are 20!) it should at least carry one soluble radio single....He promises that it is a true return to form and will have multiple classics to come. We will see about that then.

That is about it for Feb releases worth taking note of. But before we leave you to the rest of your day - and giving that we just had Mental Awareness week in Ireland, An American/Irish band named Friends Of Emmet will be releasing a single titled "Coming Apart" on Feb 22nd via iTunes. ‘Coming Apart’, is a tribute to a chap named Kevin Hines, who attempted to take his own life at the young age of 19, yet survived after jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge! He is obviously a man with strong bones. Hines is one of the few to ever survive the suicide plunge from 245 feet above the water. And get this- he was helped out by a seal who kept him afloat until rescue squad got to the scene! Upon hearing about Hines’ story, the band found themselves inspired by the turn of events and wrote ‘Coming Apart’ in his honour, which is featured on their upcoming album (to be released later this year). Check out the single below, it caught our attention and we think this is a band to watch out for this year. They also play Dublins Sugar Club on April 11th!

Coming Apart from Friends Of Emmet on Vimeo.