Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
A RECORD YEAR FOR LOCAL MUSIC
Everyone loves a nice list, right? Well – here’s a selection of stand out Northern Irish records from the past twelve months. Albums I’ve returned to many times – long after writing about them, right here. With the exception of Bicep, perhaps – every one of the acts below are relatively unestablished at an international level, which sums up the last twelve months for music here in Northern Ireland. With none of the bigger acts releasing albums (they pretty much all do next year – most notably we’ll see the return of Snow Patrol) it was nice to shine a light on the new – or the all too often overlooked. If you’re interested in sampling any of the albums – search for Sketchyrigsy on Spotify for an accompanying playlist. Whether they acknowledged it or not – there was huge pressure on Belfast duo Bicep to deliver on their debut record. They ignored all previous releases to create a coherent album, rather than a collection of songs – and that was a great call. The vibe was trippy and reflective house music, weirdly melancholic yet dance-floor friendly. – ‘GLUE’
– ORBITAL,
A GUY CALLED GERALD Like a youthful, off-kilter version of Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’, this debut album searches for love and dignity in the midst of bleak experience. Inspired by a visit to Columbia, the songs use ethnic rhythms and taut strings to convey danger and deliverance. Justifiably the NI Music Prize album of 2017.
- 26TH STREET
– SUN KIL MOON, BERIUT (S. B)