SoundShapes: A Playlist by David Boland
Music

SoundShapes: A Playlist by David Boland

SoundShapes is a brand new series of collaborations with the best of Galway artists, where we ask them to curate a playlist of the songs that they love

David Boland has been one of the most influential figures on the Galway music scene for years. He curates the popular Irish music nights, Eclectics, in The Black Gate. He is the founder of Not Bad, a festival and website dedicated to original music from the west coast of Ireland. And, most notably, he creates beautiful music as New Pope and has just released a stunning new album, Love.

Read on to listen to Boland's picks and learn why he loves these Irish songs so much...

New Pope Love

Blackbird & Crow - The Witch That Could Not Be Burned

This is the best Irish song of 2019. Maighread is a force of nature. Hup Donegal.

Slyrydes - Mental Health

Galway punk with a social conscience - Mark Raftery shout-screaming “Who’s your doctor, do you have an appointment? I got a letter from the HSE” is a glorious thing to behold.

Nerves - Faces

Described recently on notbad.ie* as “a love letter to post-punk isolationism” this is a song that gets better with repeated listens. Brilliant stuff from the Mayo / Galway band.

*by Aindle from NewDad

Ushmush - Grá Mór

Reggaelton from Inis Oírr - I wasn’t sure if I liked this for the first twenty listens but then I realised I had been listening to it on repeat for an hour and I knew that yes, maybe I did like it - maybe I did like it a lot.

Caoilian Sherlock - Shades Of You

Beautiful songwriting and production from this Cork artist. Great video too.

Laurie Shaw - Dream Song

More sunny goodness from Cork city. Check it out on the SoundShapes Spotify Playlist HERE

NewDad - How

An absolute belter of a song by a band that I hope make a lot more music together. NewDad are from Galway and, along with Turnstiles, have made the city’s music scene feel cool again. Check it out on the SoundShapes Spotify Playlist HERE.

Turnstiles - Tantrum

This is a very clever song and I like it a lot. It makes me feel like it’s 2006, I’ve just discovered Bloc Party and I’m on my way to go get drunk in a park.

Static Vision - Day by Day

Online stalking of NewDad and Turnstiles led me to this Limerick band and this song could be the anthem for my life right now.

Digging David Boland's taste in Irish music? You can listen to the SoundShapes Spotify Playlist HERE, which includes some of the beautiful songs he creates as New Pope.

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