CD Reviews
Charlie Baker - Didn't Know (single)
Charlie Baker from Essex, United Kingdom, is a 21year old singer, songwriter and rapper who blurs the lines of genres with R&B, rap and pop tinged self penned tracks. With versatility and a fresh outlook on how music today can sound with a nod to old school R&B , Charlie can forge a path to success and make a name for himself in the music scene today. Charlie’s debut single “Better With Me” received strong airplay across the UK with BBC Introducing Essex spinning his first play and strong support from Amazing Radio. The airplay continued around the globe, hitting stations in America, across Europe, New Zealand and Australia. Charlie’s fresh R&B pop hits and rapping mixed with unique vocals seem to be a recipe for success with stations across the globe clambering for this next release. Charlie received strong streaming numbers for his debut release “Better With Me” and these figures continued within his social media presence, with his TikTok account passing 514K Likes. Bringing different takes on current chart tracks or dropping freestyles and original music, fans seem to be loving this new young and exciting artist.
Elliot Crampton - Voice of a Smoker (single)
Elliot Crampton from Greystones, in County Wicklow, Ireland, known from the Mute the TV band , is releasing his solo debut single, an original song called, ''Voice of a Smoker'', a song Elliot wrote for his mom and his two late grannies from whom he was inspired to write the song. The song which consists of sentimental lyrics, guitar, violin, piano, harmonium, harmonies, bass, percussion, and drums. In the song Elliot plays all the instruments himself, except for the violin which was played by Enda.
Kandemic - The End (single)
In the midst of a global pandemic, and what we can only call a crushing year for so many, four musicians got together to kill some time by making music. It had been their passion individually for decades. And with what felt like never-ending lockdowns, the one thing they had was time. With diverse experience and backgrounds in folk, rock, hip hop and reggae, the music started to take shape, and Kandemic was born. With everything going on in the world, it became clear from the very start that Kandemic had a lot to say and a story to tell. As one lockdown was followed by another, the band kept writing and recording music. And six months and thousands of cans of beer later, Kandemic realised they had an album in their hands and a message from far beyond the stars.
One Morning in August - A Wasted Love (single)
Following on from last year's acclaimed singles Get it Right and Lovers by Surprise, which received a massive response on the airwaves both in Ireland and internationally, One Morning in August return with their highly anticipated single, A Wasted Love.
Iva Ray - Common (single)
Iva Ray is a Bulgarian singer and songwriter based in Dublin who broke into the Irish music scene with the release of her single Click which premiered on BBC Radio UK. 2021 saw the successful release of her single Trouble and her first ever music video with Slick Bullet. Following on from the release of Trouble last year, Iva is set to release her next single ‘Common' which shows a different side to her music as a Valentine’s Day special.
Fintan McKahey - Amber (single)
Fintan McKahey is a low-fi indie singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer from west Cork, Ireland. His EPs and several singles have achieved national radio play and press acclaim. He has performed headlines and showcases in major venues across the country. Though Fintan loves performing, his true passion lies with creating in the studio. He creates music that is spacey, chill, and at times experimental and psychedelic.
Luke Clerkin - Fall in Line (single)
Luke Clerkin is a two time SCC Song Writing competition winning singer-songwriter from Dublin, Ireland. He has been playing and releasing music for the last 5 years. His music has gained international airplay and support, whilst also topping the Irish Singer Songwriter Charts on multiple occasions. Luke is known mostly for playing over 250 gigs in 2015, as a way of honing his craft. Since then he has headlined famous Dublin venues such as Whelan’s, The Workman’s Club, and The Button Factory. His music has brought him all over the world, with multiple tours of Germany, as well as festival slots in America, The UK, and Ireland.
Cat Dowling - All That I Can Do (single)
Dublin-based indie pop artist Cat Dowling will releases the fourth single to be taken from her recently released album ‘Animals’ via Forever In Financial Arrears Records (FIFA Records). ‘All That I Can Do’ while a dance song is also an intimate declaration of love. “All that I can do is give you my love” the songs opening line captures the intricate essence of this song. “Love is the greatest gift we can offer anyone and that includes ourselves” – Cat Dowling
Barry Tierney - Colours on Canvas (single)
Barry Tierney is an award-winning singer and songwriter from Kinsale, in the sunny south of Ireland. He grew up in a deeply musical family. An unmistakable voice, and a distinctly Irish penmanship, have served to gain Tierney a steady and growing supply of fans at home and abroad. Tierney has been presented songwriting awards by Robin Gibbs of The Bee Gees, and Bob Geldof of the Boomtown Rats, as well as by Jimmy Deenihan, the then-Irish Minister for Arts, after winning the IMRO sponsored Sean McCarthy writing festival award. Barry topped the Irish iTunes Charts in 2014 with his critically acclaimed album Hotel Alamar, which led to him signing a lifetime publishing deal with Universal Music Berlin. Barry has toured Russia, UK, Germany and the US, and has toured 6 months a year from 2014 until 2020. 2022 will see Tierney release his second studio album.
Victoria Keating - All Because I Could Not Sleep (single)
Victoria Keating is a singer/songwriter from west Cork, Ireland. She has worked with Christy Moore extensively since 2011, providing harmony vocals on five albums. She has also provided harmonies on Declan Sinnott’s second solo album. She has toured extensively with Christy and with Declan Sinnott playing sold out venues such as The Acoustic stage, Glastonbury and Vicar Street Dublin. She is building a loyal fanbase on her weekly show ‘Little Rooms, Big Music’ and is recording her first album of original material with Declan Sinnott and Martin Leahy