Phare’s newest song ‘Safer Place’ features fellow Kildare man Adultrock (and Lumo boy Gavin Elsted) on vocals. The track has a John Talabot-esque dynamic in its pacing and subtle dancefloor construction.
Get the track on Bandcamp.
Catch Phare live at Celtronic on July 1st in Derry and Castlepalooza in August.
Check out the recent 045 Recordings EP and in particular Mix & Fairbanks’ banging effort ‘Girls’.
Posted on June 13th, 2017
As I wrote recently, my hometown of Newbridge, Kildare has clearly punched above its regional weight in the music stakes in recent times.
Now, taking its name from the phone area code, 045 Recordings is a group of the new generation of artists from the town who are presenting music together. The first release is an EP out today and it’s already caught ears with Mix & Fairbanks’ Daft Punk meets Todd Terje ‘Girls’ and Phare’s deep roller ‘Night-Time’. Here’s the EP in full featuring ‘Searching’, a slow cosmic disco track from Cinema, ‘The Levy’, a hypnotic electronic instrumental from Adultrock and ‘Little And Often’, a dancefloor house track from new talent Conor C.
045 Recordings are taking over upstairs room at Lumo Club in Tengu tomorrow night too.
Buy the EP on Bandcamp.
Listen on Spotify.
Posted on April 21st, 2017
Gavin Elsted AKA Adultrock recently put out his second Bodytonic release earlier this summer featuring Push And Pull.
Last year’s release featured a remix by one half of Optimo so it makes sense then that he is supporting Optimo this Friday as part of the Bernard Shaw’s 10th Birthday celebrations alongside Mister Saturday Night, K15, Ben Bix & Feather + Bodytonic DJs. It’s free in and you can RSVP @ bodytonicmusic.com/members) and win cocktails along with it in this week’s gig guide.
In anticipation, Gav put together an End of Summer mix featuring tracks he’s digging.
Drums & Drums & Drums – Jeremy Greenspan
Believe – Parple
Diana – Fort Romeau
Your Effect – Hidden Spheres
Untitled – Unknown
Tearsh – Lauer
Out of Here (Roman Flugel Cosmic Disco Rework) – Benedikt Frey
Hussle Free – New Jackson
I Need Your Love – Midnight Passion
Gav is also one of the Lumo DJs. Catch him and us in Tengu on October 22nd.
Posted on October 11th, 2016
Follow the Nialler9 New Music playlist on Spotify. This week’s additions include new songs from The Invisible, Grace Lightman, Classixx and more.
Check out the Songs of the week Soundcloud playlist.
A firm festival DJ favourite if Body&Soul is anything to go by.
‘Operator (He Doesn’t Call Me)’ from Lapsley’s debut Long Way Home already has a laid-back disco swing to it.
DJ Koze’s version of the track beefs up the track’s club dynamics and stretches it out over 10 minutes of lush disco. Check out the extended disco remix of the track as aired on Annie Mac in a shorter forms. The official release is to come but it is a doozy.
The producer is back with a vengeance.
From his long-awaited debut album 32 Levels (July 15) which features a impressive guest list: Kelela, Samuel T. Herring (Future Islands), Joe Newman (alt-J), A$AP Rocky and Lil B. ‘All Nite’ has more bite than Clams’ entire clouded output prior to this.
Portishead dedicate their bleak Abba ‘SOS’ cover to Jo Cox.
Portishead’s dystopian and brilliantly bleak cover of Abba’s ‘SOS’, from the soundtrack to the movie High-Rise starring Tom Hiddleston is a chilling soundtrack to the very real Brexit leave vote that’s happening in the UK today. The video ends with a quote from Jo Cox, the UK Labour politician killed last week. “We have far more in common than that which divides us,” it offers. On dark days like this, strangely, the ever-bleak Portishead attempt to offer some sludged hope.
Adultrock’s Talabot-esque analogue dance cut is out now.
Gavin Elsted is my DJ cohort in Lumo Club (Body & Soul went well [video] so we’re looking forward to this Saturday), a Newbridge man (along with myself, Mmoths, DJ Deece, Knoxville Morning, Mix & Fairbanks, and Cinema to name a few, the Kildare town clearly likes its tunes), a former Super Extra Bonus Partyer and producer in his own right under the Adultrock name.
His debut EP on Bodytonic two years ago, found its way to the hands of Annie Mac, James Holden and John Talabot and this Friday, the label will release his second EP Push And Pull, three-tracks of melodic analogue electronic synth music with a chillwave haze and a dancefloor vision.
Lead track ‘Push And Pull’ is Elsted’s first vocal track with the refrain “How can you do it? How can you be so strong? Even if it all feels wrong,” set to synth arpeggios, crisp house rhythms and a rolling bassline that recalls Talabot at his best.
Push And Pull EP is out today via Bodytonic on 12″ and digitally. Bodytonic also released new music from Manzana Kicks and Ocho recently.
Adultrock plays the Nialler9 Stage at Interlude this Sunday evening.
A magical callback to their debut.
The Avalanches’ three songs from forthcoming album WildFlower have improved upon each other which is a relief.
If ‘Frankie Sinatra’ is a novelty rap song with decent guests, ‘Colours’ is effective moody psychedelia then ‘Subways’ is a magical callback to the sample tapestry of Since I Left You. It’s coincidentally the first song we’ve heard without a guest vocal. Samples include the Bar-Kays’ ‘Sang And Dance’, Chandra’s ‘Subways‘ and Bee Gees’ Warm Ride’.
Svelte Norwegian R&B.
Produced by Maths Time Joy, this new track from the UK producer features a vocal that sounds exactly like Kelela and stays on that future electronic R&B tip.
Posted on June 24th, 2016
Several years back, Gavin Elsted aka Adultrock put together a mashup of the Republic Of Ireland’s 1990 World Cup Squad classic football anthem ‘Put ‘Em Under Pressure’ (itself an interpolation of ‘An Dearg Doom’ by Horslips) with Justice’s ‘Waters of Nazareth’.
The track absolutely slays any party an Irish person is in attendance as Lumo demonstrated last Friday at Body & Soul’s Absolut Stage.
The track will likely get an airing at Lumo this Saturday night but we think you should have this for the Euros match on Sunday against France.
Adultrock’s Push And Pull EP is out today on Bodytonic on 12″. Hear the title track.
Posted on June 24th, 2016
As part of the upcoming Interlude Festival in the RHA Gallery, off Stephen’s Green from the 24 – 26th of June in Dublin city, I have curated a room on the Sunday of the festival of live electronic & DJ sets for the Tony Ryan Room.
While the likes of Grandmaster Flash, Booka Brass Band, Interskalactic play the Block party outdoors and Kelly-Anne Byrne and Dmitri In Paris have a disco ball upstairs, the Tony Ryan room on Sunday June 26th will feature:
A stalwart of Irish radio for the last 17 years through his show on RnaG An Taobh Tuathail, Cian is one of Ireland’s finest DJs (110th Street in Galway) and selectors and he doesn’t play Dublin enough.
After three albums of on Warp Records, Planet Mu and Sunday Best, Solar Bears have confirmed themselves as Ireland’s most cinematically-driven act taking in wistful Boards Of Canada-style electronic ambience, krautrock, library music, psychedelia and tough synthesizers. The Interlude show will be a live A/V set. Check out their recent Boiler Room mix for an idea of what to expect.
Ruairi Lynch is a huge Prince fan who has played his own unique take on Prince tracks live in the past. At Interlude, Lynch will air his specially remixed and mashed up tribute to the Purple One with visuals by LeTissier.
The Galway electronic pop producer with the fiddle in tow recently followed up his debut album with this smash featuring Sinead White – ‘Love’s On Top’.
With a new release on Bodytonic this week, Gavin Elsted is pushing the analogue buttons of electronica with his hazy widescreen dancefloor productions which take inspiration from John Talabot and a hardware-heavy recording ethos.
https://soundcloud.com/adultrock/push-and-pull-master
Sal Stapleton has been releasing a tune and video a month of dark-gilded electronic R&B that recalls FKA Twigs and Maya Jane Coles. Live, she’ll be flanked by dancers.
Tickets are €29 per day. Weekend tickets are sold out.
Posted on June 23rd, 2016
Gavin Elsted is my DJ cohort in Lumo Club (Body & Soul went well [video] so we’re looking forward to this Saturday), a Newbridge man (along with myself, Mmoths, DJ Deece, Knoxville Morning, Mix & Fairbanks, and Cinema to name a few, the Kildare town clearly likes its tunes), a former Super Extra Bonus Partyer and producer in his own right under the Adultrock name.
His debut EP on Bodytonic two years ago, found its way to the hands of Annie Mac, James Holden and John Talabot and this Friday, the label will release his second EP Push And Pull, three-tracks of melodic analogue electronic synth music with a chillwave haze and a dancefloor vision.
Lead track ‘Push And Pull’ is Elsted’s first vocal track with the refrain “How can you do it? How can you be so strong? Even if it all feels wrong,” set to synth arpeggios, crisp house rhythms and a rolling bassline that recalls Talabot at his best.
Push And Pull EP is out June 24th via Bodytonic on 12″ and digitally. Bodytonic also released new music from Manzana Kicks and Ocho recently.
Adultrock plays the Nialler9 Stage at Interlude this Sunday evening.
Posted on June 21st, 2016
The seventh edition of our monthly club night Lumo is back in Tengu on Saturday April 30th and to get you in the mode we’ve got a mix put together by Lumo’s Gavin Elsted.
Resident Lumo DJs are Nialler9, Simon Roche and Gavin Elsted (Adultrock). It’s a house party in a club vibe with no restrictions on genre. Lumo is a club for dancing featuring a good soundsystem, a decent bar and DJs in the corner playing classics and curveballs. Lumo is not another house and techno night. It’s a club night where you will dance with friends, old and new. Presale tickets are on sale now from Eventbrite at just under a tenner.
In the mix, we’ve got tracks from the more electronic disco end of Lumo including those you will have heard in recent months at the club from Metro Area, Fort Romeau, Damien Lynch and a preview of a forthcoming Adultrock (Gavin’s electronic project) on Bodytonic Music coming in June.
John Talabot – Machine (JT Synth Edit)
Eric Duncan – Nerve Control
Damien Lynch – The Heights
DJ Rahaan – DirtyBoyz
Da Posse – In the Heat of the Night (Black Madonna Edit)
Fort Romeau – KONTROL
Adultrock – Push & Pull
Rubber Band – Caoutchouc
Metro Area – Atmosphérique
Jacques Renault – Marilyn’s Gold
Broadcast – America’s Boy
Follow Lumo on Facebook and Twitter.
The LUMO CLUB playlist on Spotify.
Posted on April 20th, 2016
Over three days and nights in Cork the Sounds From A Safe Harbour’s programme took hold in the venues of the city that saw the likes of Lisa Hannigan, Wild Beasts, The National’s Bryce and Aaron Dessner, Richard Reed Parry, Crash Ensemble and many more contemporary artists play shows in a new festival put together by Mary Hickson of the Cork Opera House and curated by Bryce Dessner.
It was a superb first year, with bonded warehouse food, cocktail bars, gigs and talks; exhibitions and screenings and an attendance that further suggested Cork was more than ready for this unique style of contemporary/classical yet alternative-leaning festival to dock in the city.
As part of the whole experience, I curated a free music trail around 5 pubs/venues in the city including Crane Lane, Bodega, The Oval, Poor Relation and BDSM which featured shows from My Brightest Diamond, I Am The Cosmos, Rusangano Family, Bantum, Shookrah, This Is The Kit, I Have A Tribe, Katharine Phillippa, Somerville, Quiet River Of Dust, Slow Skies, Loah, Conor Walsh, Deady, Adultrock, Talos and more.
If you missed out, here’s flavour of the weekend through the lens of Bríd O’Donovan. Here’s to the hope of the return of the festival next year. Thanks Mary, Bryce and Cork for having me too.
Posted on September 22nd, 2015
Kildare producer Adultrock has put a dancefloor touch on a track from fellow Kildare project Lyttet.
Claire Nicole and Peadar Kearney’s reverb-drenched air-dried original of ‘Saint Etienne’ has a Mazzy Star feel but Adultrock’s version takes a French-spoken sample by Nicole and builds his remix on a Inner City style synth line and running pad percussion, giving it a completely different feel.
You can catch Lyttet next at Tree Haus @ Body & Soul and Adultrock at the Block T Block Party on July 4th.
Posted on June 12th, 2015
If you’re in Cork this weekend or looking for something to do nearby, then Quarter Block Party is the one you want. Three days of music, theatre and art as presented by Makeshift Ensemble and Southern Hospitality Board is promised from Friday to Sunday this weekend in venues like Triskel Arts Centre, Cork Vision Centre, BDSM and more.
There’ll be music from O Emperor, Shookrah, Adultrock, Women’s Christmas, Brigid Power Ryce, Cian Nugent, Tandem Felix, Hags, Partisan Crowds, Elastic Sleep, Ben Bix, Roslyn Steer and Chris Power.
There’s free events, Banter discussions with Jim Carroll, Young Hearts Run Free, Stevie G presents Vinyl Love 777 and some theatre shows with names like Britney Spears Custody Battle and African Baby & Dirty Donkey.
Full info at http://quarterblockparty.com.
Posted on February 5th, 2015
Niall D’Arcy is a DJ you will know from residencies at Hidden Agenda at weekends and the Somewhere? club in The Workman’s on Wednesday nights. Both club were voted top of the best club nights in last year’s poll so Niall and company are doing something right. The Newbridge, Kildare man continues to embed himself behind decks in the city and if you want to see him play over the Christmas and New Year, you can see him support Krystal Klear on Stephen’s Night and Frank B on NYE, both in Opium Rooms.
This is my track of the year. Jack J, who is also one half of Pender Street Steppers, put this out on Mood Hut back in August, and I’m pretty sure I’ve played it in every DJ set since I got my hands on it. Smooth as silk bassline and vocal, and works as well at 2am as it does at 10pm, which is always the sign of a great house record.
This guy keeps getting better and better. We’ve had him play Hidden Agenda a couple of times, and he’s one of the best DJs/Producers around at the moment, as well being a very nice guy. This track is from his mini album entitled “Music For The Uninvited”, and it samples an old Isley Brothers track called “Don’t Say Goodnight (It’s Time For Love)”, which is a sample you might also recognise from the J Dilla track “So Far To Go”. This track uses that sample just as effectively, and the result is a fantastic, peak time club track.
Two Australian dudes, who make insanely catchy dance music. They came to my attention after I watched their Boiler Room last year, and I’ve
been hooked ever since. A producer + singer duo who essentially make very well put together party music. This track is from the recently released “Drunk At The Jazz Club EP” and is one of their standout tracks.
Another one that I’ve been playing out a lot this year. Released on Bodytonic at the end of March this year, this one finally, and well deservedly put fellow Newbridge man, Gavin Elsted, on the map. It’s been played out by the likes of James Holden, John Talabot, and Pional, so it must be doing something right. This track has a gorgeous Italo feel to it, with big synths stabs building up to a massive, hands in the air, last 90 seconds or so.
I nicked this one from Kaytranada after his set at Electric Picnic, and I’ve been playing it every Wednesday in the Workman’s ever since. Massive low end, a super catchy bass melody, and a guy rapping about being a stoner. What more could you possibly want?
This track has probably been brought to a lot of peoples’ attention recently due to Wiz Khalifa putting out a version of it with him rapping over the instrumental. The original is much better though, so just stick to that. The best track, from the best album of the year in my opinion. I’ve listened to this album at least once a week since it came out back in April. It’s got this haunting synth line to just reels you in. Stellar stuff from Mac.
Probably the biggest curveball on this list. This is a hardcore punk rock track. Definitely the rawest thing I’ve heard this year. It was released on Captured Tracks, a label that has a knack for putting out great music (see Mac DeMarco track above). This might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I fucking love how heavy and raw it is.
A close runner up to that Jack J track for track of the year. Released on Kyle Hall’s label, Wild Oats, back in February, this is another one that works at 10pm, and works just as well at 2am. A hypnotic bassline, with an intricate beat underneath it, and a hint of some hip-hop influences too. There is a moment in the track about 5 minutes in where the bassline stops for a couple seconds and then drops back, and it makes me weak every time. So good.
A beautiful piece of mid tempo disco house music, that racks in just under the 10 minute mark. This is track is full of melodies, sounds, and textures that all fit together perfectly, and is best listened to on a big system with your eyes closed. A track to get lost in.
The slickest house jam I’ve heard this year. This was one of those tracks that I had on repeat for a couple of hours after I first heard it. I’ve actually just played it four times whilst writing this little description of it. It’s a track that makes you stop and listen carefully. All of the Andras & Oscar stuff is great actually, but this is the best of the bunch.
Posted on December 19th, 2014
Longitude Festival is fast approaching this weekend in Marlay Park and while you already probably know the big draws you’re going to see whether it’s Haim, Disclosure, Ben Howard, Massive Attack, Rudimental, Hozier or Chvrches, like last year, here are my recommendations for five acts per day to see that are lesser known but equally worthy of making your festival.
There’s also a Spotify playlist of Longitude artists at the end of the post along with the site map and a timetable.
You can catch me DJing at the TXFM stage on Sunday night alongside Kelly-Anne Byrne and Claire Beck. My show on TXFM on Thursday night at 10pm will be a Longitude special too.
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Spotify playlist & timetable
Red Bull Music Academy Stage, 3:15pm
When not rocking some sweet electronic funk with his partner in Ships, Simon Cullen delves headlong into elongated gilded space-disco. Last year’s Drift album collated his cosmic grooves into one place and live, recently at Body & Soul, Cullen had pushed the shapes of the songs into more hypnotic synth-laden structures.
From recent collaborations with Sinead Harnett to George Maple, London production duo have shown they have the chops to make head-nodding sunshine summer jams, halfway between R&B and electronic.
Red Bull Music Academy Stage, 15.45pm
Monochrome is one of my favourite albums of the last five years and that’s reason enough to recommend the Dublin pair. Ross Turner and Cian Murphy’s moody disco is infused with the brittle beauty of warm synthesizers of the past. Live, they expand, with members Rian Trench and Glen Keating into a propulsive and sophisticated live electronic band.
The Irish-born Manchester based DJ and producer has moved from electronic disco into deeper dancefloor weapons on his own label Cold Tonic in recent months and the sound really suits him, particularly when a tune as epic as ‘Squad’ is in his record bag. I would go for this song alone.
The Catalan producer’s 2012 album fin brought him international acclaim but he’s mostly spent the last two years DJing around the world since then with the exception of a handful of live shows. Listen to his three-hour set from the Button Factory last December for an idea.
Bonobo, Samaris, Parquet Courts, Shane Linehan.
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Spotify playlist & timetable
Posted on July 16th, 2014
I’m teaming up with Feel Good Lost for a special Monday night gig tonight, May 12th in Twisted Pepper featuring three of Ireland’s best new electronic acts. It’s €5 in with DJ set from myself and visuals from Feel Good Lost.
Playing on the night is:
Hazy hypnotic all-hardware set from Gavin Elsted who just released his new Chants EP 12″ on Bodytonic with remixes from Optimo and Ron Morelli. Plaudits and plays from Tim Sweeney, Annie Mac and more.
The debut live gig anywhere from almost instant internet-approved Cork act, consisting of Eoin French, formerly of Hush War Cry with production from Ian Ring. Debut track ‘Tethered Bones’ has had over over 200,000 plays since appearing two months ago.
Superb post-dubstep-infused electronica from singing Tipperary duo Kevin Gleeson and Padraig Ryan. Their WLVS EP was released on Champion Sound Recordings (home to Ryan Vail and UNKNWN). Listen to the EP on Noisey.
Posted on May 12th, 2014
10 bands to see at Townlands Carnival this weekend
Little Green Cars, Seamus Fogarty & Maria Kelly for Other Voices Ballina
The best gigs and clubs in Dublin this week
Alt-J announce Dublin Olympia show
Chvrches for Dublin & Belfast
Choice Music Prize-winners Ships made a special playlist ahead of this week’s Hennessy Sound Lounge
The best gigs and clubs in Dublin this week
22 years on, Little Dragon have still got it
13 gigs and clubs to see in Cork this weekend
Colm K waxes lyrical on his favourite tracks and more ahead of Hennessy Sound Lounge
