Silences

Conchúr White is an incredibly talented musician from Armagh city, currently studying and working out of Leeds in England.

He first contacted me through the Bandwidth site when I was on holiday in the US, and I remember listening to ‘All These Crimes’ staring out over Tompkins Square park in New York’s Alphabet city for about 2 hours, feeling haunted, inspired and most of all homesick.

Words can’t describe what Conchúr’s music does to your soul. I guess that’s why he calls his musical project ‘Silences’.

Follow Conchúr on Twitter here.

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The Lost Brothers

Here’s my final installment of the series videos I filmed at this year’s South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas.

Mark McCausland is from County Navan and Oisin Leech from Omagh – together they make a great duo which they call The Lost Brothers. Weirdly they’re better known in the UK and USA than they are in their own country, which is always the way.

Hopefully that’s crime that can be rectified – especially with their latest album ‘The Passing Of The Night’, produced by another Bandwidth veteran Brendan Benson – here is the incredibly good track ‘Now That the Night Has Come’ from that same album.

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Ash

Continuing the theme of videos filmed at this year’s South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas – here’s perhaps one of Northern Ireland’s biggest names in music, Tim Wheeler, the lead singer of Ash.

I’m very lucky to have worked with Tim a few times before, and it’s always a pleasure to work with him again – and this, ‘Girl From Mars’ is one of my favourite of his tunes too.

Thanks to the incredible James Goulden for his camerawork and all round loveliness on this shoot.

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Delorentos

This year I was very lucky to accompany the Northern Irish trade delegation to a little festival in Austin, Texas USA called South By Southwest. Also in attendance were some of the most exciting new acts from Ireland north and south, some of whom I managed to nab for a few seconds of camera time.

First up, here is the incredible and all round lovely Delorentos from Dublin playing the track ‘Bullet In A Gun’, acappella, as you do, on the historic, crowded, wonderful East 6th Street in the heart of Austin.

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Duke Special

It might seem as strange to you as it does to me that I’ve been making videos for this blog for nigh on 4 years, and I have never filmed a live session with Duke Special. I’ve met Mr. Special, who’s real name it turns out is Peter, on a number of occasions, and our creative paths have crossed a few times – but we haven’t worked together ‘proper’ until now. And some things are just worth the wait aren’t they?

In a five minute break between soundcheck and doors for his gig at the Empire Music Hall in Belfast, Peter grabbed his harmonium from the front of the stage and suggested running outside to the street. “I’m going to do an Ivor Cutler song if you don’t mind..”

Why would I? What follows is the perfect example of why Duke Special is, I think, one of the greatest working creatives in the wee country at the moment – his infectious enthusiasm, endless spontaneity, an encyclopaedic knowledge of art music and culture – oh yes he can sing too. Here’s the video:

Duke Special is currently touring the UK, and will be back in Belfast on 24th April – check out the dates and get your tickets here.

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The Family Monroe

The delightfully named, and equally delightful Craig Swan and Amy Rose are together The Family Monroe. They met in Liverpool, where a mutual love of Joe Meek and all things 1950′s suburban-kitch, allowed a rather unique musical project to blossom.

They were both in Belfast over the Christmas holidays, and contacted me through the site – I loved the look, the sound, the everything, and rushed up to meet them and record at Amy’s house. Here are two original tracks and a very special cover of ‘Johnny Remember Me’ by John Leyton for good measure.

If you’re in Liverpool this week you can catch them at Leaf for their EP launch, and if you can’t make it, I urge you to buy the EP anyway, you won’t regret it.

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Timberwolves

David McConnell (no relation by the way) is from Belfast and plays music by the name Timberwolves. He initially sent me some demos last year and I just loved what I heard – his music is haunting and with the depth and maturity of someone three times his age. David also admitted to me that he is good friends with several members of another Belfast band and host of one of the earliest bandwidth sessions, Maguire & I. Again, proof that in Belfast these musical prodigies just hang out together every day – this truly is an exciting time to be here..

Here David plays two tracks in the beautifully desolate Belfast docklands, on a day of drapery related activity which provides quite the surreal backdrop to it all.

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