Keith Plunkett Announces Single Launch and Irish Tour

You may recall about a year ago, I earmarked Keith Plunkett as being one to watch in the Irish music industry. With an exceptional talent for songwriting, great stage presence and a pure love for what he does, I firmly believe that this guy has something special.

2017 could be the year that we see that "something special" come to the fore as he gears up to release a brand new single, go on a mini Irish tour and then bring out an EP in May (safe to say he's going to be busy!).

The 27th of January sees the official single launch of "100 Cracks", a track that I remember seeing him perform a while back and instantly loving. It was actually premiered on KFM Radio on Sunday night, where listeners were given an exclusive first listen, and judging by the reaction on social media, it went down a treat!

The launch takes place in Fate Restaurant in Naas and he'll be joined on the night by the well respected Mulligan Brothers, tickets are €15 and for more information, you can log onto www.downdaroad.com

Following that, Keith sets off to play some of the coolest venues around the country;

09 Feb - The Spirit Store, Dundalk
15 Feb - The Workman's Club, Dublin
22 Feb - Matt Molloys, Westport
23 Feb - Monroes, Galway

Then, as I said, he'll be putting the head down to focus on releasing his second EP later on this year! Here's a little taster of "100 Cracks", which of course, is released at the end of this month!

Snakehips & MØ Release Video For New Track "Don't Leave"

It's been a while since a music video has given me goosebumps, but as I write this, sitting in a beautiful cafe on The Isle of Man, the hairs are standing on the back of my neck.

I've always been a massive fan of MØ, having gone to review her gig in Manchester last year, where she absolutely killed it! And as for Snakehips, well they have had exceptional success in the charts in the past, so this was always going to be a great collaboration!

I don't want to spoil too much about the music video because it's pretty simple to catch onto what's actually going on, but it really does pull at the heartstrings!

Watch out for this track because I truly believe it will be making its way up the charts in the not too distant future!

Pleasure Beach Announce New Single and Irish Tour Dates

Belfast quintet Pleasure Beach yesterday announce a new single 'Burning Up' which follows up last year's 'Magic Mountain' and the Choice Song of the Year nominated 'Go', a track which has now racked up over one million plays on streaming services worldwide.

As well as supporting Bell X1 at their sold out show in the Olympia Theatre later this month, Pleasure Beach have announced that they will be playing a couple of Irish shows in the coming months. You can check out the tour dates, along with the official video for 'Go' below!

23 Feb - Whelan's, Dublin
24 Feb - Limelight 2. Belfast
25 Feb - Roisin Dubh, Galway
02 Mar - Cyprus Avenue, Cork

EP of the Week: 'Wife' by Brian McGovern

Let me tell you, this is a guy really creating a stir in the Irish music industry of late. Whether it be releasing an EP, playing a sold out gig in Whelan's or supporting Gavin James in the 3 Arena, Brian McGovern truly is a name to keep an eye on.

His EP 'Wife' was brought out a little earlier this year and I'm delighted to feature it as my EP of the Week, simply because I haven't stopped listening to it over the last few days or so!

It consists of three extremely heartfelt, emotional and exceptionally well-written tracks; Scars, Wings and the title of the EP 'Wife'.

It's available to listen to on Spotify etc. and so far, it has been really well received by the general public!

Furthermore, as I said, he's fresh from a sold out gig in the iconic Dublin venue, Whelan's (sold out in 4 days might I add!) and talking to him afterwards, he was understandably over the moon! It was so much of a success, that last weekend, he went back to play their 'Ones to Watch'!

Just to get a little taster of what to expect from the EP, check out this live video Brian recorded of my favourite track 'Scars'.

Video credit: The Ruby Sessions.

Paddy Mahon Releases Debut Track

About 6 months ago I got in contact with Paddy and told him to keep me in the loop with whatever he planned to release in the near future because having seen some of his cover videos online, I knew he had something special. As we entered into 2017, he dropped an original track called 'Position' and I have to say, I love it.

For many up and coming musicians, Facebook is a huge platform to showcase their musical talents and Paddy is no different. The amount of views and likes he gets on his videos is phenomenal and the response to his debut original was insane too!

It was produced by Will Minnock and the video, which is simple, yet effective was recorded by Paddy himself and he told me that he was working literally on a budget of zero, which, in my opinion makes the track all the more special!

I really do think this is just the beginning for this young singer/songwriter and 2017 could potentially be a massive year for him!

Check out the video below! The track is also available on Soundcloud too.

Ed Sheeran Makes Long-Awaited Comeback

Let's face it. The pressure was really on Mr Sheeran to come back with some cracking music following a year long break, and the man didn't disappoint us.

This morning saw the release of two brand new tracks called 'Shape of You' and 'Castle on the Hill' both of which are outstanding (vintage Ed).

I have to say, 'Shape of You' is definitely the catchier of the two and chances are it will get quite a lot of airplay worldwide! But for me, 'Castle on the Hill' is just special. The lyrics, the music and particularly the chorus has made an immediate impression on me.

I suppose the exciting thing about this is the fact that it's only a taster of what's to come from his
new album.

Between the two songs, at present, Ed is currently number one in over 40 countries, and that number is definitely set to rise.

If you've been living under a rock for the past twelve hours, check out the two tracks below!

James Arthur's New Track Making A Great Impression

Perhaps I'm a little bit biased because only two weeks ago I reviewed Mr Arthur's gig in Birmingham, but this new track 'Safe Inside' will definitely be heard on your radios in the not too distant future.

Released on Christmas Day, the song effectively deals with the relationship he has with his little sister and his concerns and worries about her growing up! The track has so far had a great reception with many people sharing it on social media, meaning that in just a week, it already has close to 2.5 million views.

He's heading back out on the road in March but unfortunately, the majority, if not all of the shows are already sold out, and understandably so! I honestly feel as though his new album 'Back From The Edge' was THE comeback album of 2016.

Have a listen to the new track and watch the video below!