The Thin Air

07/02/2025

A stacked round-up this week for Irish music, with new albums from Ginnels and The Wood Burning Savages, plus essential new tracks from AOIBHA, Goldbug, Saoirse, Good Skin, and more—stepping up across the island.

https://thethinair.net/2025/02/irish-tracks-of-the-week-7th-february/

03/02/2025

Ginnels return this Friday with the sublime 'The Picturesque'.

Mark Chester’s Dublin indie-pop outfit, once the jewel of Popical Island, resurfaces older, wiser, and steeped in newfound warmth. The scrappy, lo-fi rush of early releases gives way to something more measured - fuzz pedals swapped for shimmering jangle, echoing The Go-Betweens and early R.E.M.

Read Cathal McBride’s review here.

Though originally hailing from the north of England, Mark Chester has been a stalwart of Ireland’s DIY indie scene for years now. As an integral part of Dublin’s Popical Island collective, Chester has had countless production credits among the label’s roster and beyond, as well as performing i...

03/02/2025

As Imbolg signals the shifting light of the year, Dublin psych-folk master Seán Mulrooney marks the occasion with a special edition of Monday Mixtape, reflecting on tracks by Sinéad O’Connor, Domhan, Alice Coltrane, Mariee Sioux and more.

“As we are in the time of Bríd, the Goddess of poetry, art, fire, and water, I thought I would dedicate it to some of my favourite female artists,” he says.

In a special Imbolg edition of Monday Mixtape, featuring his reflections on tracks by the likes of Sinéad O’Connor, Domhan, Alice Coltrane, Mariee Sioux and more, Dublin psych-folk master Seán Mulrooney marks the festival’s cosmic turning point. Speaking about his selection, Mulrooney said: "T...

31/01/2025

The final Friday round-up of January is the best of 2025 so far. Dive into the best new Irish music—featuring Loah, Paddy Hanna, Dani Larkin, SuperValu, The Wood Burning Savages, Mob Wife, Kenayda, Gender Chores and more

https://thethinair.net/2025/01/irish-tracks-of-the-week-31st-january/

30/01/2025

RÓIS, Brìghde Chaimbeul, Trá Pháidín, Natalia Beylis & Willie Stewart, Sunil Sharpe, I Dreamed I Dream, Elaine Malone... Open Ear, Ireland’s best and easily most consistently forward-pushing summer festival, returns 29 May-1 June with its strongest line-up to date 🌊

Open Ear, Ireland’s best and easily most consistently forward-pushing summer festival, returns from 29 May to 1 June with its strongest line-up to date. Big words, we know, but very well earned. After another standout edition last summer, the Sherkin Island institution returns to the beloved and

24/01/2025

We’re pleased to announce that Edinburgh-based Spanish artist Amaya López-Carromero, better known as Maud the moth, will support EARTH at the Black Box in Belfast on 22nd May.

Tickets for the show, hosted by Strange Victory Presents alongside TTA, are available here:

https://strangevictorypresents.com/event/earth/

22/01/2025

Stendhal Festival continues to reign as one of the island's most rewarding summer festivals. Applications are now open for performers to take part in its 15th edition, running from 4th–6th July 2.

We’ve a lot of love for Stendhal Festival here at The Thin Air. When Glasgowbury took its final bow at Eagle’s Rock in Draperstown in 2013, there was, despite the sadness, a shared belief that Stendhal could pick up the baton, fill the gap and create something even bigger and better for the futu...

22/01/2025

Big news. Nine Inch Nails will kick off their Peel It Back world tour at 3Arena in Dublin on 15 June

Nine Inch Nails have announced their highly-anticipated return to Dublin. Two years on from playing the venue, Trent Reznor and co. will return for a show at 3Arena on June 15th. The show doubles up as the opening night of the band's Peel It Back world tour, the full dates of which are below.

20/01/2025

Aaron Corcoran, aka Skinner, kicks off the first Monday Mixtape of the year with favourites from The Fall, Problem Patterns, Lizzy Mercier Descloux, Leonard Cohen, Beat Happening and beyond.

Aaron Corcoran, aka Skinner, kicks off the first Monday Mixtape of the year with favourites from The Fall, Problem Patterns, Lizzy Mercier Descloux, Leonard Cohen, Beat Happening and beyond. Beat Happening - Bad Seeds One of the best bands of all time Beat Happening still encourage me not to take

17/01/2025

From every corner of the island, here's the very best music of the week, featuring brand new Mantua, Chalk, BICEP, Joshua Burnside, Cruel Sister and more ✨

https://thethinair.net/2025/01/irish-tracks-of-the-week-17th-january/

15/01/2025

"At a time when it feels like the world is collapsing around us ‘David’ suggests how the curiosity of childhood could be an almost antidote to a present so seemingly bound to AI."

Ahead of the new single 'David' and an Irish tour kicking off in Belfast this Sunday, Dani Larkin reflects on a remarkable 2024.

From international tours and collaborations with Crash Ensemble to sold-out shows with Lisa Hannigan, it was a standout year for the Belfats-based artist leading into what promises to be another special one.

Ahead of an Irish tour kicking off in Belfast this Sunday, Dani Larkin reflects on a remarkable 2024. From a headline tour across Canada and collaborations with Crash Ensemble to sold-out shows with Lisa Hannigan and a venture into folk horror filmmaking, it’s been a year defined by creativity and...

15/01/2025

Six months after its debut, Femme Fest returns to Róisín Dubh on Thursday, 27th February. Shark School have pulled out all the stops for this lineup of Ireland’s fiercest female-fronted bands: Shark School, Adore, Tramp, Cabl and Dream Boy.

Last July, Galway's Shark School hosted the very first Femme Fest at Róisín Dubh. Alongside the garage rock contenders, the event - dubbed "a collection of the most badass, rockin’, female-fronted bands in the country right now" - made a strong debut, featuring Shark School, Cruel Sister, Affect...

06/01/2025

The shortlist for the 20th annual RTÉ Choice Album of the Year Prize has been announced, with tickets for the ceremony out now.

The shortlist for this year's RTÉ Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year 2024, in association with IMRO & IRMA, has just been announced. Following yet another phenomenal year for Irish music, the list of nominees is as follows: A Lazarus Soul - No Flowers Grow In Cement Gardens Curtisy - W

19/12/2024

Our Top 100 Irish Releases of 2024 is here! This year, Irish music has truly outdone itself. From fresh new voices to seasoned legends, from bedroom producers to globe-trotting trailblazers, the output across the island has been staggering

We’ve pulled together the albums, EPs and compilations that pushed boundaries, sparked conversations and reminded us why this community is so special. With Bandcamp embeds for easy listening, we hope you find plenty of new favourites

https://thethinair.net/2024/12/the-thin-airs-top-100-irish-releases-of-2024/

18/12/2024

We're delighted to team up with Strange Victory Presents to bring Earth, one of the most seismic and influential bands in contemporary music, back to Belfast for their first show here since 2011. Catch them at the Black Box on Thursday, 22nd May 2025, with tickets on sale tomorrow at 10am.

https://thethinair.net/2024/12/earth-2025/

16/12/2024

In their final Irish show with founding member Geoff Barrow, Beak> delivered a career-spanning set at Dublin’s Button Factory that was, in a surprise to absolutely nobody, borderline alchemical. Litronix provided equally special support. Photos by Ian Davies.

In their final Irish show with founding member Geoff Barrow, Beak> delivered career-spanning set at Dublin's Button Factory that was, in a surprise to absolute nobody, borderline alchemical. Litronix provided equally special support. Photos by Ian Davies.

16/12/2024

Emerging from Cork’s world-beating scene, Cliffords are swiftly establishing themselves as one of the island’s most promising new bands.

Having played their first gig in 2022, they’ve already hit major milestones, including being handpicked by Dermot Kennedy for the line-up of Misneach, his St. Patrick’s Day festival in Sydney next year.

Following their debut at Other Voices, Ciara Byrne caught up with the band in Dick Mack’s pub in Di**le to talk about Misneach, their roots and Cork’s ever-thriving music community

https://thethinair.net/2024/12/big-things-are-coming-an-interview-with-cliffords/

10/12/2024

Adore’s headliner at Whelan’s on Sunday night cements their status as one of our finest rising bands. Tighter than a perfectly wound clock and fiercer than a match struck in the dark, it was a showcase of both swagger and purpose

https://thethinair.net/2024/12/adore-w-theatre-at-whelans-dublin/