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Top Irish albums of 2006 - The Results
Dec 13 2006Thanks to everyone who voted this past week. In total we had 198 votes with 58 different Irish albums chosen. Sinéad has reliably informed me that there was 170 Irish albums released this year. The results are a little bit surprising due to the lack of mainstream and high profile acts. Where’s U2’s Singles Collection? Snow Patrol? Humanzi? Republic of Loose? Are people finally sick of Outspan and co? There’s a nice range of genres represented here - 2 hip-hop albums, breakcore, post-rock instrumentals, singer-songwriter types, indie, electronic and of course, the Warlords of Pez.
Oh also, a lot of people couldn’t come up with 3 albums to vote for, let alone 5. Is this because you don’t buy Irish or is Irish music just largely crap?
Click the album cover art to buy a copy if you like what you hear.
Anyhow without further ado, this is what you voted for:
20 - 11
- 20. Dublin Guitar Quartet - Deleted Pieces
- 19. Butterfly Explosion - Turn the Sky EP
- 18. Electric Penguins - Goodbye from the Electric Penguins
- 17. Kidd Blunt - Grey Black Grey
- 16. Patrick Freyne & His Bad Intentions - Nobody Ever Dies
- 15. Miriam Ingram - Trampoline
- 14. Warlords of Pez - Warlords of Pez
- 13. Simple Kid - SK2
- 12. Ten Past Seven - Shut up your Face
- 11. Groom - All this Happened more or less
Top 10
10. Herv - Customer
| Who: | Dublin-based Ewan Hennelly. |
| What: | Second album proper from Herv, who garnered attention over the last 3 or 4 years due mainly to his usage of a Gameboy in his live sets. Listen to “Food Ghost” for an example. Customer takes in breakcore and electronics throughout and is probably the closest Ireland has to a Venetian Snares. Despite his one man laptop live show, still manages to look like he’s enjoying himself while playing some quality tunes. |
| Where: | Myspace / Go Away Recordings |
| Next Gig: | Alphabet Set Xmas Party, 23rd December in Voodoo Lounge, Dublin alongside Lakker, Thalamus, Super Extra Bonus Party, Prince Kong , Blue Food and others. |
| MP3s: |
9. Director - We Thrive on Big Cities
| Who: | 4 piece indie band from Malahide, Co. Dublin |
| What: | Signed to Atlantic records in London, the band have been supporting Hard-Fi and the Goo Goo Dolls (I never thought those words would appear on this blog) on their UK tour. They seem to be very standard indie pop so I don’t see the appeal myself (anyone?). Single “Reconnect” raised their profile in Ireland and the album went to No.2 in the album charts when it was released in October. |
| Where: | Myspace / Official Site |
| Next Gig: | The Point - 22nd December - Supporting Snow Patrol |
| MP3s: |
8. Fionn Regan - The End of History
| Who: | Dublin singer-songwriter getting noticed world-wide. |
| What: | Despite been cited as the Irish Dylan by every lazy journalist, The End of History has gotten extremely positive reviews leading to 2 nominations for Meteor Awards. A songwriter who tells fascinating stories, his live reputation meant people were turned away at the door at a recent gig in Crawdaddy. The album was recorded with analogue equipment, in houses, sheds and a barn and has been picked up by a glowing review by popular music blog Said the Gramaphone in recent months. |
| Where: | Myspace / Official Site |
| Next Gig: | The Village - 4th Feb 2007. |
| MP3s: |
7. Deep Burial - Black Music
| Who: | Dublin hip hop instrumentalists George Brennan and Richie Howard |
| What: | Taking samples of old horror and zombie music, these guys have been making instrumental hip-hop for the last 10 years. On Black Music the album is brooding, menacing and engaging full of dark stabbing synths, 80’s samples and funky breaks. You can see my review of the album here. |
| Where: | Myspace / Official Site |
| Next Gig: | Couldn’t tell ya |
| MP3s: |
6. Crayon Smith - Stay Loose
| Who: | The pop/rock/alternative music of Ciaran Smith from Dublin |
| What: | I haven’t heard much of this myself to comment on it, but from the songs on his MySpace, it seems to be rich, fuzzy indie-pop songs with a hint of invention throughout. Citing Brian Wilson, Elliott Smith, Grandaddy, The Notwist, Max Tundra and Manitoba as influences probably explains more than I could. |
| Where: | Myspace |
| Next Gig: | Crawdaddy - 13th December with Patrick Freyne and his Bad Intentions. |
| MP3s: |
5. David Kitt - Not Fade Away
| Who: | Dublin singer songwriter released his 5th album this year. |
| What: | The Kittser’s latest album title states his intentions and with Not Fade Away we get a rockier set of songs than previous releases. There is still some of the old folksy sound on the album but by and large the album is rich in instrumentation. “Up to You” is one of the best Irish songs this year, while with “Don’t Fuck with me” sounds like Kitt has been influenced by crunk and R ‘n’ B. |
| Where: | Myspace | Official Site |
| Next Gig: | 7th December - Razzmatazz, Barcelona |
| MP3s: |
4. Messiah J and the Expert - Now This I have to Hear
| Who: | Ireland’s best hip-hop act |
| What: | An accomplished second album from Ireland’s best hip-hop duo is far more than just a hip-hop album. With original instrumentation and distinct lyrics, these boys are clearly influenced by other genres of music and it makes for an exciting unique listen. The album has guests appearances from American rapper C Rayz Walz, Leda Egri and Nina Hynes. They are great live too which helps. |
| Where: | Myspace | Official Site |
| Next Gig: | Jan 27th 2007 - Whelans |
| MP3s: |
3. The Immediate - In Towers and Clouds
| Who: | Indie rock multi-instrumentalists debut album |
| What: | Proving you don’t need a big promo budget to get an album noticed, The popularity of The Immediate has spread via word of mouth and their strong live sets. Their set at Hard Working Class Heroes was testament to this with many of the crowd wilting as the first chords of their favourite songs were played. This is inventive, melodic indie-pop with plenty of ambition from four young guys willing to wear their heart on their sleeves. |
| Where: | Myspace | Official Site |
| Next Gig: | 16th December - Whelans - All Ages Show |
| MP3s: |
2. The Redneck Manifesto - Seven Stabs
| Who: | Ireland’s post-rock kings |
| What: | The Rednecks do it again with the release of Seven Stabs. Brimming with great riffs and tight, talented interplay between the musicians, there’s also the addition of some subtle electronics which progress the Rednecks sound further. This year they played a triumphant set to a packed Vicar Street as well as the Electric Picnic, so their popularity seems to be increasing. I’m still waiting for them to capture the energy of their live performances but this will do nicely for now. |
| Where: | Myspace | Official Site |
| Next Gig: | N/A |
| MP3s: |
1. Si Schroeder - Coping Mechanisms
| Who: | Si Schroeder (previously Schroeder’s cat and Schroedersound) |
| What: | This debut album has been a long time in the making and it sounds like Si put his heart into it. Coping Mechanisms is a fragile, soft, lush album with restrained guitars, ghostly electronics informed by the old archive recordings of ethnic, folk, trad, jazz and classical music which Si has a penchant for. The vocals are whispered and touch on subjects like living in a claustrophic 21st century city, love and machines. It’s a unique and otherworldly listen which is goes a long way to explaining why you guys voted him to the top spot. |
| Where: | Myspace | TMIAMF site |
| Next Gig: | 14th December - Whelans |
| MP3s: |
Thanks to all who voted!
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Posted by nialler9 under Best of Lists, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Irish, Music, Post Rock, Rock / Alternative |
God it’s so heartening to see such a diverse list and so many independent records. A lot of my favourites are included there…
Good job, Niall.
1re: Director at no.9 - surely that’s just loads of their fans getting wind of the poll and voting? they’re not offensively bad or anything but still…
Si Schroeder definitely deserved it. Nice to see Crayonsmith and Herv in the top 10 too
albums of 2007 - new Jape and Waiting Room records.
2Seeing as Director sold 7,500 copies of their album I’m surprised they’re not higher to be honest.. Kinda glad they’re not though..
3On a completely different matter i have created a e-mail address to start irelands first flash mob and I’m looking for the help of all bloggers to spread the word. When there is enough people recruited, i reckon 30-50+, a time and venue with a chose theme will be arranged and everyone who’s e-mailed FlashDublin@gmail.com wil be given a weeks notice!
Most likely goin to be a saturday! Please include suggestions for possible themes.
Spread the word,
Thanks,
FlashDublin
4“re: Director at no.9 - surely that’s just loads of their fans getting wind of the poll and voting? they’re not offensively bad or anything but still…”
yeah, director are bland as fuck… otherwise though its a great top 20. warm congrats niall. warm, moist, quivering congrats.
5Interesting list.. I’d be in the category of people who’ve barely even listened to 10 Irish releases this year. I have half a dozen of the albums on this list and I like all of them but there’s only maybe 2 or 3 that I think I might still be listening to in a few years. Is it just me or has there been a general slowdown in the whole self-released\indie thing since 2 or 3 years back?
6Director are fine, poppy rock, I can see why they sell (for providing something like an Irish Franz Ferdinand), but yeah, they don’t really fit in with the other bands on here.
Frankly I’m shocked! But in a good way.
Thanks to all those who voted.
7Scary. I have only one of these albums (Fionn Regan). I adored Simple Kid’s debut, but wasn’t bothered about picking up the “sophomore effort”.
I am frantically downloading your mp3s in a bid to catch up. Or in a year that gave me Scritti Politti, Hidden Cameras, Joanna Newsom, Amy Winehouse, Mew, Neko Case, M Ward and Pet Shop Boys, do I need to bother?
8director my bollox, brutal record
nice one seeing kittser up there
no stef though : (
well done man, great poll , job well done
ciaran
9wow, no boxcutter. that said I don’t have any of these albums so what do I know.
10duke special?
11[...] Top 20 Albums of 2006 - 10-1Top 20 Albums of 2006 - 15-11Top Irish albums of 2006 - The ResultsTop 20 Albums of 2006 - 20-16Lick lick lick my art tit..2007 album previewsFrom the Basement mp3sDJ Shadow - The OutsiderMusic to treat your paraskevidekatriaphobia byFrom the Basement [...]
12Yeah i’d agree with this list largely. Again, Director are totally out of place.
Cool to see Crayonsmith up there.
13Really agree with you top albums, just thanks for representation of them, sometimes underrated in media. Mainstream really sucks. Dublin guitar quartet cute!Always search the web for cool music ftp mp3 is a site where one can compile perfect playlists. A cushy spot for a music addict!
14[...] Here’s one that’s been sitting on my jiggawhat for quite a while now, and probably lying around a lot longer according to it’s creator, Herv. This Dublin-based laptop wizard has been knocking about for a few years now, churning out an impressive number of quality releases (including Customer the sublime nialler9 readers top-ten Irish release), and making the hordes go spastic wherever he’s brought his electrifying one-man gameboy mash-fest. I’ve felt compelled to do a post on this for a while, but haven’t really had the time, and I’m sure you’ll think it worth the wait. What you have basically is a 31 minute mix of some of Herv’s older, less well-known tracks. A snippet from the Alphabet Set website will suffice for a description He has stepped back to the old school, back in time where melodies & rhythm combine in a open place, where electronica, techno, electro and jungle are married together through a common sentiment… [...]
15[...] Here’s one that’s been sitting on my jiggawhat for quite a while now, and probably lying around a lot longer according to it’s creator, Herv. This Dublin-based laptop wizard has been knocking about for a few years now, churning out an impressive number of quality releases (including Customer the sublime nialler9 readers top-ten Irish release), and making the hordes go spastic wherever he’s brought his electrifying one-man gameboy mash-fest. I’ve felt compelled to do a post on this for a while, but haven’t really had the time, and I’m sure you’ll think it worth the wait. What you have basically is a 31 minute mix of some of Herv’s older, less well-known tracks. A snippet from the Alphabet Set website will suffice for a description He has stepped back to the old school, back in time where melodies & rhythm combine in a open place, where electronica, techno, electro and jungle are married together through a common sentiment… [...]
16[...] While talking to Bobby outside Jeffrey Lewis last week, the question of good Irish albums released this year came up. We cited Dry County, Super Extra Bonus Party, Delorentos, So Cow and Thinguma*jigsaw as examples of well-received Irish albums (as well as the forthcoming all-ready-well-received Cathy Davey album) yet as the Irish album poll I conducted here last year proved to me, it’s hard to pick 5 Irish albums you heard never mind albums you liked. It seems EPs are where it’s at this year. Excellent Irish EPs released so far include Adebisi Shank, Halves, Fight like Apes, Channel One with more to come from Jape and Terrordactyl. That’s why I’ll be adding an EP section to this years poll. [...]
17[...] While talking to Bobby outside Jeffrey Lewis last week, the question of good Irish albums released this year came up. We cited Dry County, Super Extra Bonus Party, Delorentos, So Cow and Thinguma*jigsaw as examples of well-received Irish albums (as well as the forthcoming all-ready-well-received Cathy Davey album) yet as the Irish album poll I conducted here last year proved to me, it’s hard to pick 5 Irish albums you heard never mind albums you liked. It seems EPs are where it’s at this year. Excellent Irish EPs released so far include Adebisi Shank, Halves, Fight like Apes, Channel One with more to come from Jape and Terrordactyl. That’s why I’ll be adding an EP section to this years poll. [...]
18warlords of pez bebo band page
http://www.bebo.com/spacerockers
19Introducing the only way I know to
20[...] second annual nialler9 Irish album poll is back after last year’s success! 2006 saw Si Schroeder voted the best album by you guys and this year I’m extending the poll to include Irish EPs as there were many [...]
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