Ireland's female Comedy Genius releases new single

Famed Irish comedienne Katherine Lynch has announced the release of her third single ‘Burning Sun’ on June 28th. This comes after the succesful release of her debut album Settling Dust.

“Burning Sun (Summer Mix)” has been remixed and produced by the Electric Penguins and the Japanese Popstars. Katherine is to debut the single at Dublin Pride this Saturday, also her first major musical performance. It should be a show not to be missed.

Listen to ‘Burning Sun (Summer Remix)’ below.

Senakah; Human Relations doesn't disappoint

Rob Hopes surging vocals all across this soundscope is vastly impressive. Matched in places by Yvonne Conatys lush harmonies and dual lead lines, Human Relations lives up to all expectations that their debut album 'Sweeter than bourbon' left on the listeners palate. 

The albums stand out tracks for me are Training Wheels and Ugly, but it flows so well you can make up your own mind about that one.

The video for Ugly has already attracted over 280,000 hits on YouTube and is well worth checking out. The less exaggerated hype around this band, unlike Daft Punk ( in your face best thing since sliced bread), is realised in this stunning second attempt. 

Daft Punk STREAMS NEW ALBUM.

Fans give mixed reaction to Daft Punk's Random Access Memories. What do you think ? WE think its a slow burner, a very slow, laid back transcendental to the core of epic awesomeness kind of slow burner.

An actual review coming soon, after we finish making love to this rare beast.

You can stream 

RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES here: http://bit.ly/10ElAb7

Ian O Doherty; EP review

Ian O'Doherty is a modest Kerryman who is releasing his first ever musical piece. In the form of an EP titled Never In Colour. The ep is a surprising delicate introduction to the kind of singer songwriter that channels the likes of Damien Rice and Tom Baxter in one sweeping blow. 

The opener 'The Temptation of Eve' stuck with me after I heard it driving home late one night from a gig in Dublin that I had to review. Rte Radio 1 I think was where I heard it. Resting comfortably on the airwaves, it is a song that has a rather sexualised lyrical sub context, yet is sang with such passion that it eludes any notion of vulgarity that exists in popular music today. Its not like Rhiannons sub context or Nicki Minaj thats for sure! There is a class here that is eloquent and graceful, poetic even :

"In the cool of the morning, I can feel your skin, slide as silk, guilty as sin, over my body. Oh you came without warning, I let you in, blinded by near skin, I was burdened again, and I let you go to work on me..."

Insofar as debut releases go, this EP should be a decent stepping stone to engage people and gather attention in order to gain a momentum simply on the title track as tracks 2 and 3 fall flat slightly. Last song Somebodys Hands On My Skin embodies a Fleet Foxes energy that saves the EP for me and redeems O'Doherty impressively. 

I feel this is only the beginning for this Singer Songwriter. Armed with a watered-down coffeehouse troubadour voice that will sit well as background music, O'Doherty may have to raise the bar ever so slightly to find his own identity for his Long Player as he wears his influences prominently on his sleeve. But if the ep is anything to go by, he is honing in on a craft of confessional story telling that will appeal to a certain niche. The con is with a voice that lush, a more mainstream stance would not go astray to veer away from being ostensible. 

Listen to the entire ep here.

Kodaline, getting the bejaysus kicked outta them..

Those every prolific and great lads in Kodaline have been steadily gaining epic momentum internationally, from getting their song synced in Greys Anatomy to Plays across BBC in the UK.  They Sold out three Olympia Theatre dates in Dublin, racked up millions of views on their videos to date and if you’ve been following their recent US tour, they are trying to write a song for every town they are playing in!

Check out Ste getting the bejaysus kicked outta him on their video shoot for the latest song they are releasing which is the third track on their forthcoming album in June called ‘In A Perfect World’. If nothing else this video shows us Ste can take a fair aul beating...

Check out the video below.

Irish tracks worth checking out

Our new resident blogger Linda Coogan Byrne, gave us a list of tracks she has on her playlist; all of which are Irish bands. From the powerhouse that is Fight Like Apes to the rising stars on the cusp of World domination; Kodaline, to growing electronic popsters Empire Circus. Check out the below:

I remember seeing MayKay rip up the stage at Le Cheile years ago. The electricity in the bands live performance utterly impressed me. Absolute crowd pleasers. They are going to be releasing a new album very soon and are currently asking help from their fans to do so via Fundit. If it's anything like their last album its gonna be one hell of an epic sounding record. Good luck to them with that.

Kodaline are one of them rare gems that emerge every few years out of the rubble left over from bands who tried to make the main stream and break into the market place. Somewhere between the Rhiannas, Mumford and Sons and The XX smaller bands find a little nook where they can reside and grow and prosper, hone in their talents and build their craft. Kodaline are one such band. I can only see great things for this band. And I love the fact that not only can they deliver on a heart wrenching ballads but they have fun with new tracks such as Love Like This, showing their versatility. These are not a one hit wonder band. A long career ahead of these guys.

The Hot Sprockets embody a kind of Rock N’ Roll music that is haunted by the ghost of country and blues – take the good-time revolutionary spirit of MC5, simmer it down to the sounds of Crosby Stills Nash and Young, add some rough-edged Eagles of Death Metal and you are somewhere near the sonic nugget that is The Hot Sprockets. Their new single Soul Brother is an epic example of how good this band can be.

Empire Circus will be releasing an album later this year, in the meantime this track True Believer is a great intro to the bands unmistakable stellar musicality. They write easy to listen to pop tunes that surpass their 'Indie' peers and move straight to mainstream. 

In Their Thousands are a family band comprised of brothers and close friends. The harmonies are their strong point, not to mention fantastic musicianship. The guitar playing is something that gets me everytime. Think Neil Young meeting Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers..From their demos to full on studio edits, their music just hits me. Another fine Irish band who no doubt will continue to rise. Definitely one of bands to watch this year.

Stevie Cliff is a delicate little song writer who's lyrics hit me first. Listen to the track and tell me you are NOT impressed. I dare you.

And lastly Wonder Villains... come on what is not to like about these youngsters. they write bubblegum indie pop anthems that are going to one day break this little band into the masses.

The Official Electric Picnic press release

ELECTRIC PICNIC MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL

STRADBALLY HALL, CO. LAOIS

Friday 30th, Saturday 31st August and Sunday 1st September 2013

TICKETS ON SALE: 9am Saturday 27th April

Good things come to those who wait. And the waiting is over as tickets for this year's spectacular 10th Birthday Electric Picnic go on sale from this coming Saturday, April 27th at 9am.

What began as a one-day outing to Stradbally in the late summer of 2004 ten years ago, is now an annual national treasure; the nation's favourite festival of music, art, fine food, spoken word and the wonderfully unexpected. To celebrate 10 years of turning heads and making magic in the fields this year's Picnic comes wrapped for the exceptional price of €149.50 upwards for the three day festival (** see below for more details)

And now without further ado, it's time to peak inside our treasure trove of riches and discover the first of the hidden gems spilling out into the sunshine of this year’s very special 10th anniversary of The Electric Picnic............Goodness! it’s……

BJORK; FATBOY SLIM; ARCTIC MONKEYS;

FRANZ FERDINAND; DAVID BYRNE AND ST.VINCENT;EELS; NOAH &THE WHALE; JOHNNY MARR; DISCLOSURE; OCEAN COLOUR SCENE; HURTS; MICK FLANNERY; THE WALKMEN;BAAUER; TIGA; WARPAINT; SAVAGES; THE STRYPES; POLICIA; CHVCHES; PARQUET COURTS;CLINIC; DEAP VALLEY; SOAK

From the voice of Talking Heads all the way up to Electro pop from Glasgow's Chvches, this year's Picnic delivers a time-bomb of great, first rate music from across the ages and across the globe. There are many more names to be announced in this 10th anniversary Picnic extravaganza. But these are just for starters…


BJORK caught the world of 90s pop off-guard when she scored one enormous hit after another from her albums ‘Debut’ and ‘Post’. Full of surprise and wonder came hit singles like ‘Army Of Me’, ‘Hyperballad’ and the jazz fuelled cover of Betty Hutton's‘It's Oh So Quiet’, which became Bjork's biggest hit in 1995. Always challenging current trends Bjork brought fashion and technology ever closer to the centre of her musical world particularly in later albums ‘Medulla’, ‘Volta’ and more recently‘Biophilia’. Expect the unexpected and the extraordinary at Bjork's first appearance at the Picnic since 2007.





Last seen dj-ing from the centre of an enormous octopus as part of the Olympics closing ceremony in London in August, FATBOY SLIM likes to party. And you can expect to party hard along to ‘Right Here, Right Now’, ‘Praise You’ and ‘Weapon Of Choice’ at his return gig during this year’s 10th Picnic birthday party. The hard-core Picnicers will remember his set back in 2005 and with several appearances at Glastonbury under his belt since this is sure to be a must-see/must-dance act at the picnic. Q Magazine named him one of the top 50 acts to see before you die. So book your spot on the field early!



The ARCTIC MONKEYS are coming to Laois. The Sheffield foursome are regarded as one of the most prominent bands to come out of the post – punk revival after their debut album ‘Whatever People Say I Am, that’s What I’m Not’ sold faster than any other album in British music history; to this day they hold that title. The five times Brit Award winning and twice Grammy nominated rockers promise to knock your furry monkey hats off.



If any song captured the early years of the noughties it was ‘Take You Out’ by FRANZ FERDINAND. The success of that tune, helped to set Alex Kapranos and the rest of the Ferdinands on their way to a three singles that topped the charts and winning the Mercury Prize in 2004. A constant draw on the live circuit, Franz Ferdinand are back on the road again, they’re rejuvenated and ready to rock, and with a new album about to be unveiled the Glaswegians are ready to scatter their killer pop tunes across the crowds at Stradbally. 





Post Talking Heads, David Byrne spent a lot of his time exploring different musical avenues through a variety of collaborations, from Brian Eno to Arcade Fire. His most recent partnership came to life late last year with the release of ‘Love This Giant’featuring song writer and multi-instrumentalist, Annie Erin Clark better known as St. Vincent. Originally a member of the Polyphonic Spree Annie set sail on the solo course with her first album, ‘Marry Me’ in 2007 bringing on comparisons to Kate Bush and David Bowie. This genius collaboration gives you DAVID BYRNE & ST. VINCENT, a broad soundscape of brass and keyboards with a barrel-load of bright and exciting tunes.