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The Best of Irish Unsigned 2011

Just arriving back in the door after a long day of travelling, I feel guilty for not having updated this in the past few days. But I have no energy for a proper write up of anything horror right now and feel slightly bad for all my Victor Garcia bashing. What will I do? I should try balance the scales somehow... Well, it is the season of good will and giving, and I rarely use the 'and whatever else strikes' part of my banner, so why don't I give some excellent musicians the gift of a plug?

Below are the unsigned independent Irish musicians who have stepped up this year and released some great music, which can typically be found FOR FREE on their pages. There are a lot of indie Irish artists, so I am limiting it to the ones I like who have released something this past year, so it is almost a best of Irish unsigned 2011, I guess.

Also, the majority of these are female fronted and all but one have a woman involved in the band. Not intended, but there you go. WUNDERBRA - Wunderbra

Ok, I'm a bit biased here because I spent the majority of last year hanging with singer Sal Stapleton and edited the music video for the demo version of the opening track Improve My Bust. With music centred on boobies and the likes, it can be difficult for someone like me to have this on nonstop, but I'll be damned if there isn't a ridiculous amount of charm to the way they pronounce 'lungs' with a heavy accent in Off My Chest and talk about jugs of tea (which is Sal's MO, by the by). I do find Braless in Wunderland finding its way in to my playlists frequently. It is generally a great song, but the second verse of 'Thanks for being my queen of hearts' just gives me shivers. Oooh.
Get the EP for free here. THE DIRTY VALENTINES - 21st Century Dandies

Damn it, another biased one, as I am good friends with my 'little sister' Bev, and think these folks are just funkin' groovy as it is (ok, I won't say anything so cheesy again...). Though rough around the edges, the EP is a foot stomper with catchy hooks and memorable beats. The immediate standout is Lip Liquor, but Pavlov's Dog has come out as a real ear-catcher for me. These guys are great live and this track feels the most like their live experience for me. Keep an eye on em, I have a feeling they have some aces in the hole. Oh, a fun piece of trivia: former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic gave the guys a Twitter shout out for one of their bedroom jams.

Download the EP for free here. KATE'S PARTY - Heartbreak Song

This is an odd one for me. Out of nowhere, I casually decided to have a listen to this track, and I have yet to stop listening to it. There's not too much I can say about these guys and gals apart from the song is possibly my favourite Irish track right now. My biggest complaint? That they made a song I can't stop listening to! They either have to stop making good songs, or else make a lot more songs as good as this.

Download the sucker here (but I warn you, I cannot be held responsible if you become a junky in your ways of listening to the song). WYVERN LINGO - Wyvern Lingo

Wyvern Lingo, or the band most likely to take out a restraining order owing to my slightly stalker ways, are an acoustic trio who have been around for a good few years, dipping in to electric and seem to have found a nice home with bluesy acoustic. The EP, which is available from the girls at any of their gigs, was my soundtrack to a trip to Lithuania, and I have dissected and played the songs just about every way possible. It is wrong for people their age to write lyrics with such resonance and create music with such appeal. They have been experiencing quite good publicity with the release of the EP and have been playing regularly. I recommend you check em out, and get the EP while you can. It even comes in a very snazzy packaging.

You can hear the EP here. SOUNDS LIKE - Before The Noise

I just had to get my own shameless self promotion in here for my 'band'. Yes, my 'band' put out another collection of music, this one I'm quite fond of. Not your taste? How about checking out the new ongoing experiment that is turning into a full blown thing as time goes on? Also not your taste? Oh... Well.. Screw you. At least I recommended four bands you WILL like.

Posted by Richard Waters at 01:46 Labels: 2011, article, best of, dirty valentines, kate's party, music, sounds like, wunderbra, wyvern lingo