The best new Irish songs this week feature emerging tracks we’ve selected from artists from the island of Ireland, with more recommendations below.
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For more extensive Irish and new music coverage, read the Irish section for individual track features.
And He, The Fool
I’m Rich, I’m Rich
Dublin seven-piece and he, the fool’s second single continue’s on in the same vein as their debut – ultra-brite harmony melodies, a stankface bassline with the origins of the track a slowed-down jam on Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’. Add in an exuberant production and a band who sound like they are really enjoying themselves? Infectious.
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Last Apollo
Hummingbird
Lucy Rice shares ‘Hummingbird’, the second single from Last Apollo‘s debut album I’ll Walk Towards You, out Thursday September 4th.
The song was recorded during the last night of a week spent making the album live in Rice’s own living room in Dublin, backing vocals laid down at 2am, hours before she had to get the boat back to London. “It was a bittersweet moment,” she says. “An album three years in the making was coming to an end. Three years of memories, heartache and laughter were speeding past me for the last time as the tape rolled, but at the same time I was full of joy knowing that every second of those last three years had love from the voices you hear on that track woven through them.”
She calls it the album’s mission statement: “To love and have big feelings is only ever a positive thing. Pain and sadness are just signs that you were fully alive and feeling everything.”
The Wran
The Limerick Rake
The Wran, the four Dunford brothers from Waterford’s Comeragh Mountains, share their own take on the traditional tune ‘The Limerick Rake’, the fourth single from debut album Stone Man, following on from recent single ‘Fear Dearg’.
The song is an Irish ballad collected by Colm Ó Lochlainn, dating back to the late 18th century and covered by the likes of The Pogues and The Clancy Brothers.
The Wran’s version leans into main character’s reprobate rogue dispostion with a slow banjo giving away to a galloping tempo switch, with low roving bass adding drama to the jig.
The band play Electric Picnic this month, before a run of sold-out Irish and UK dates in October and November, and three dates supporting The Pogues in December, including the 3Arena in Dublin.
mischa and the bear
I Don’t Care
Dublin duo mischa and the bear bring the electro hyperpop indie sleaze vibe on ‘I Don’t Care’, a recent single on their new True Colours EP.
Shades of Crystal Castles abound here, and the song explores a type of reckless love that persists despite the chaos around it, gunshots and sirens included.
Shampain & Cruel Sister
Dream Ago
Galway’s Shampain and Dublin’s Cruel Sister share the narcotic club track ‘Dream Ago’, a collaboration inspired by Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, taken from Shampain’s CRIMES AGAINST MUSIC.
“Making this with Cruel Sister always made sense as we definitely have the same influences despite our different sounds,” Shampain says. “She joined me on the London leg of my Irish/UK tour this year and blew the roof off, so it’s nice to harness the same energy on this track.”
Cruel Sister (Faith Nico) adds: “I decided to write about the sort of melancholy I often feel when I go to clubs or gigs and how I sometimes feel desensitised to the beauty of music, how I don’t feel like I’m feeling enough at the moment, even though I could be having a really nice time with my friends.”
GNS feat. McJordan & Kendino
LOVE FORMS DEEPLY
GNS shares the beaut of a title track from new EP LOVE FORMS DEEPLY, featuring McJordan and Kendino, a love song drawing on hear-on-sleeve- alt-rap and indie R&B production. That chorus is bit of an earworm.
Sulk Hogan
Dog
There’s no denying the CMAT influence on Galway indie folk-rock band Sulk Hogan share ‘Dog’, a song about people-pleasing and growing up with a Catholic faith.
Formed in 2024 by co-writers Muireann Hogan and Rosie Connelly as a folk duo before growing into a five-piece, the band draw on Big Thief and Courtney Barnett for melodies that touch on growing up in post-Celtic Tiger Ireland. ‘Dog’ arrives as they prepare tracks for their debut EP.
Credence
The Moment I Need
Dundalk/Dublin artist Credence shares ‘The Moment I Need’, the second single from an EP Who Is Credence?, out today, a song that has some of that Weeknd / F3miii disco pop energy.
“This song came out of one of my biggest creative blocks,” Credence says. “I was questioning my sound and struggling to create, and this song was the moment that changed that. The dark, eerie production gave me space to just move, reflect and play with my sound. It became a turning point for me creatively.”
Mickzart feat. Kadillac
Caught Up
Mickzart and Kadillac share the nocturnal synth boom bap of ‘Caught Up’ which absolutely has Kojaque vibes (complementary). A tune from the D12 Custard Cream Dreamers.
Vaticanjail
BUBU
Vaticanjail shares ‘BUBU’ from upcoming EP this could have been a text, out Thursday October 1st. It’s a song that has euphoric soft glow ASMR drum and bass pop style, along with Vaticanjail’s trademark synapse-firing synthesised production. There’s even a bit of unexpected sax in there.
The EP is a reflection on a relationship ending, and the extreme lengths of emotion and response that come with that. Ahead of its release, Vaticanjail sat through a five-hour tramp stamp tattoo session, filmed as a piece of performance art, for one of the campaign’s teaser videos.
For more extensive Irish and new music coverage, check into the Irish section for individual track features…
We are prioritising Youtube / Bandcamp embeds where possible.
More New Irish music additions:
- Molly Dowling – In Loving Memory
- Francis and Gareth; Francis Harris; Gareth Quinn Redmond – Wind with Wings
- Leo Miyagee, Charlie Sloth – Fire In The Streets
- SPOOKLET – WHY? WHY? WHY?
- Sloucho; Kibo – Something Else
- Godwin.; God Knows – Heihachi Riddim
- Good Skin – South
- Sraddha – On the Fire
- Fiona Fox – Night Rain
- Z€RØ – How do we
- Fya Fox – Hometown
- Aby Coulibaly – It’s Too Late
- MuckerHood – These Here Days, Pt. 1
- lxverboy – the triumph of falling in love
- find-joy – Float Away
- Peter Vogelaar – Folk Song
- USNABOY – everything
- anna leah – Say The Word
- Softdrink Millionaire – Good Enough
- Shakalak – Hood
- Travy; Boohavinn – Keep Up (feat. Boohavinn)
- Miranda Faul – Favourite Friend
- Foam Buffalo – When I Look In Your Eyes
- Jean Pack – Baby’s in a T-Shirt
- Sorcha Richardson – Ellen Forever
- Sei Green – mountain
- Really Good Time – Best Medicine
- Florence Road – 7563
- Jazzy; Chris Lorenzo – Invisible
- Prymary Colours – Bettah Bettah – Extended Mix
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
