The Goo 1
Albums Matthew Devereaux - Keep Sketch - Paul Fit
zpatrick The Pale frontman releases his second solo album hot on the heels of his debut House Devil but this time he ditches all the stringed instruments for an electronic palette and it certainly suits his personal zeitgeist. Lyrically the record is a deep dive into his formative teenage years and it’s littered with wry references that anyone born in Dublin in the 60’s or 70’s will get immediately. Song titles like Northside Baths, Free House, Wheelie and Keep Sketch certainly evoked strong memories in this reviewer’s mind and Devereaux captures the phone free freedom of those days beautifully. Keep Sketch is a definite grower and signposts a direction that could see him hit real paydirt sooner than later. Jinx Lennon - The Hate Agents Leer At The Last Isle Of Hope - Éle Ní Chonbhuí The cover shows Lennon opposing a far-right rally in a dunce’s cap, highlighting his core themes: creativity, resistance, and Dundalk. This 26-song album promotes “rawness,” an unfiltered approach to meaning and music: “You need these accidents/These flaws … Makes you feel raw” (‘What Else’). Lennon applies rawness to Irish politics, the snobbery of BMW drivers, touring, ‘Bouncy Castle Catholics’, and life in general. Alongside his self-described “outsider punk folk electro” lyricism, is a keen ear for melodies; his gentle guitar and falsetto in ‘Stations of The Cross,’ RÓIS’s harmonies on ‘Scum of Dealgan Town,’ as well as madcap synths (Jamie Bishop), electric guitar (Chris Barry), and droning fiddle (Conor McAuley) throughout. “Rawness” is represented by this clambering music; roaring, hilarious and hopeful. Brian Brody & The Ghost Ensemble - Anima Animus - Paul Fitzpatrick Dubliner Brian Brody is well known on the ballad circuit as a man with a massive voice and a nifty line in whipping crowds into a frenzy. In this guise he steps right back and explores his voice as an instrument of emotional expressionism and his class shines through on a record that constantly takes risks and is all the better for it. Working with Wexford based composer Simon Quigley, the duo have fashioned a real curio, a collection of songs that skirt the classical and contemporary worlds and the avant garde, baroque pop balladry of Scott Walker. Standout track, ‘Secondary Citizen’ lashes on the Bowie vibes with aplomb as Brody elegantly captures the majesty and timbre of the Thin White Duke at his finest. 12 The Everlasting Yeah - Staying Cool, Staying Free With The Everlasting Yeah - John Brereton This slipped through the reviewing net when it was released back in March but it’s just too good to ignore. Class is permanent and this band have it in bucketloads. Featuring ex members of The Undertones and That Petrol Emotion, The Everlasting Yeah have surmounted some recent health problems to produce a fantastic record that provides manic pop thrills on every level. In fairness it’s everything you would expect from musicians who have created some of the greatest guitar based alt pop since the late 1970’s; killer riffs and catchy choruses rolled into punchy anthems but here they venture further into the sonic forest, exhilaratingly so on the sublime ‘Myself When I Am Real’, a 7 minute