Best New Irish Music | 13 Best Tracks Of February & March 2023
It’s been a minute!
February and March were so stacked with excellent album releases that we didn’t get a chance to take a minute and recognize the best tunes of the last couple of months, so the good news is that you’re getting two for one today as we name the finest songs that have dropped around the land in recent weeks.
As always you can follow along and hear all of these quality tracks in our Best New Irish Music playlist on Spotify so be sure to hit that save button as we continuously add the best music from Irish shores all through the year.
Without further ado, here is HeadStuff’s Best New Irish Music for February and March 2023.
Lankum | ‘Go Dig My Grave’
Where else to start but with the epic new album from Lankum, which opens with a suitably haunting and majestic eight minutes in ‘Go Dig My Grave’ – the tone for False Lankum is perfectly set with traditional folk and ambient textures melded together on this spine tingling curtain raiser.
Ria Rua | ‘I Want You’
The latest track from Ria Rua is yet another example of pulsating electronica that whets the appetite for her debut album release, due for later this year.
Ezra Williams | ‘Deep Routed’
The artist formerly known as Smoothboi Ezra kicks off their 2023 with a tenderly reflective track that examines past relationships in the midst of entering a new one.
Ezra’s stirring vocals and the intricately layered instrumental build on display throughout this gorgeous single suggest that ‘Deep Routed’ could be just the beginning of a big year for the Cork songwriter, as they drop their debut LP Supernumeracies in June.
I Have A Tribe | ‘Oh Man’
Patrick O’Laoghaire eskews his typically darker atmospherics for a playful, bass-driven blast of funk on ‘Oh Man’.
Taken from forthcoming second album Changing Of The Guard, ‘Oh Man’ suggests intriguing new possibilities for I Have A Tribe.
Dashoda | ‘Sultan’
Never Enough, the debut EP of Dashoda which dropped this past month, is a four track showcase of the highly promising production talents of Gavin McDermott, with ‘Sultan’ best exemplifying this potential as the DJ enlists Jackie Beverly’s vocal chops for a super smooth blast of electronic R&B.
Don’t miss this slick live performance below from the pair.
Shy Mascot | ‘In A Way’
The return of Shy Mascot is a joy to behold as ‘In A Way’ delightfully combines jazz, funk and hip-hop on this irresistibly groovy comeback single from the Dublin based collective.
Daire Heffernan | ‘Harry’
Fresh off her excellent Wasters EP from last summer, Daire Heffernan returns with more of the hazy lo-fi rock that she does oh so well on hypnotic single ‘Harry’.
The Belfast songwriter plays Upstairs in Whelan’s on April 21st and it’s sure to be one of the best gigs around the capital this April.
A Lethal Black Ooze | ‘I Like To Feel Alright’
The sonic brainchild of former Spies bassist Andy McGurk, garage punk trio A Lethal Black Ooze arrive in style on the psych ripper that is debut single ‘I Like To Feel Alright’.
More of this, please.
Onion Boys | ‘How To Grow Up (on Tik Tok)’
The fourth single from Onion Boys finds lead singer Johnny Dublin anxiously debating the merits of Tik-Tok while fondly remembering Xtravision atop an addictive garage sound that combines iconic 00s rock anthems a la The Strokes with a modern post-punk twist.
Chalk | ‘Asking’
A regular fixture in our BNM feature at this stage, it seems that Chalk are incapable of putting a foot wrong.
Menacing mantra ‘Asking’ is the latest in an ever amassing collection of barnstorming singles from the electric punk trio.
FYA FOX | ‘Ghost’
Ahead of a summer packed to the brim with festival appearances around the country, FYA FOX unveiled ‘Ghost’ this past week, a slick slice of jazz pop that is sure to be a setlist standout at Indiependence, Sea Sessions and more.
AE MAK | ‘Shimmer Boy’
If the euphoric electronic bliss of ‘Shimmer Boy’ is anything to go by, the Berlin EP could well be Aoife McCann’s finest work as AE MAK yet.
Set to drop on April 21st, Berlin is described by the producer extraordinaire as “a collection of songs inspired by winter; harmonica, sexting, dancing, chest flames, clubs, self-destruction, rebirth and baked cheesecakes.”
Sign me up.
Uly | ’emperor’s new groove (for klara)’
Rafino Murphy’s music as Uly is fittingly described on Spotify as “sometimes sad, sometimes groovy”, and multi-instrumentalist Murphy manages to find a wonderfully subtle balance between the two on ’emperor’s new groove (for klara)’, quite possibly the standout track from March mixtape 1822.demos.
Listen to and follow HeadStuff’s continuously updated Best New Irish Music playlist below:
