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The London Ear on RTÉ 2XM // Show 156 with Linda Em

It’s been a tough week for London but I have to say there’s a major sense of camaraderie and love in the air. Love will win.

Chat with Linda Em

On this week’s edition of The London Ear, I catch up with Waterford born, London based, roots/folk singer, Linda Em. Linda has just released a AA single Buccaneer / Stories and we had the chance to chat about the release as well as what it means to be Irish growing up in the UK.

You can find out more on Linda’s website as well as Twitter and Facebook.

The London Ear on RTÉ 2XM // Playlist June 10 2017

1. Road Wives: Miracle
2. Sinead Harnett feat Wretch 32: Heal You
3. Loah: This Heart
4. Graham Mitchell: Disappear
5. U2: 40 (Live from Madison Square Garden 1987)
6. Inca Maps: The Fall
7. Linda Em: Stories
8. Chat with Linda Em
9. Linda Em: Buccaneer
10.The Strypes: Behind Closed Doors
11. Fangclub: Bad Words

Listen On Demand to The London Ear

Thanks for listening, The London Ear broadcast on DAB radio, Saorview and outside Ireland you can listen online.You can listen to the show again on the RTE player. The show is broadcast every Saturday at 1300.

Don’t forget to check out the RTE 2XM website. You can keep up with me here.

Check out The London Ear on Facebook and Twitter

Watch the video for Linda Em’s Buccaneer

https://youtu.be/RcMe4cbgrk0

June 11, 2017
Tune of the Week // Road Wives – Miracle

This week’s Tune of the Week comes from Dublin’s Road Wives. Enter potential tune of the Summer, ‘Miracle’.

Who is Road Wives

Road Wives is Jack Quinn, who is described as ‘a DJ, producer and recording artist’. He’s from Dublin and his bro is Declan Quinn ex Republic of Loose. In 2015 got together to record some music and ‘Miracle’ is the lead track from the EP, ‘This is Happening’.

The track also features CC Brez on guitars & bass, Zamo Riffman from Sing Street and Eve Macklin (Cats, Les Miserables) on backing vocals.

It’s no surprise that there is a definite tinge of the Loose on this track. With added electronic vibes and a serious danceability, this is a tune that you’ll be hard not find yourself dancing to. In fact, it could be really hard to pin this track to a year or era. It’s modern, contemporary but there’s a serious bang of 1987 from it. In my books, that’s definitely not a bad thing.

It’s uplifting, cheery and ‘let there be light, let there be love’ just radiates positivity. That’s before you see the video. Add some politics and the juxtaposition of the positivity of the song and the downright crapness of the real world and you get something totally motivational.

Good job Mr Quinn.

You can find out more about Road Wives on Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter and Insta

June 5, 2017
The London Ear on RTÉ 2XM // Show 155 with Swimmers Jackson

Hey hey! Bank Holiday weekend in Ireland, I have to say that even though we had a Bank Holiday last weekend here in the UK, we’re still feeling a little left out. Never fear! Swimmers Jackson is here with his new single, ‘Summer’s Here’, to cheer us all up.

Interview with Swimmers Jackson

Swimmers Jackson is a London based Irish musician, he also plays in the band Bouts and is now involved with another London based band. The man likes to keep busy! If you’ve ever lived in Dublin and gone down to the canal with some mates, ‘Summer’s Here’ is the song for you!

You can find out more about Swimmers aka Niall C Jackson on Facebook and Twitter. You can buy Summer’s Here from Bandcamp. You can also keep up to date with Niall’s travel blog.

The London Ear on RTÉ 2XM // June 3rd 2017 Playlist

1. Nousom Knots: Midnight
2. Mark Geary: Battle of Troy
3. Loah: This Heart
4. Road Wives: Miracle
5. Ailbhe Reddy: Fingertips
6. Romes: Tryna Be
7. Dreaming of Jupiter: Light of my Life
8. Warsaw Radio: Still Have You To Hold
9. Saint Sister: Causing Trouble
10. Masasolo: Really Thought She Loved Me
11. Chat with Swimmers Jackson
12. Swimmers Jackson: Summer’s Here
13. The Coronas: Reel Feel

Listen On Demand to The London Ear

Thanks for listening, The London Ear broadcast on DAB radio, Saorview and outside Ireland you can listen online.You can listen to the show again on the RTE player. The show is broadcast every Saturday at 1300.

Don’t forget to check out the RTE 2XM website. You can keep up with me here.

Check out The London Ear on Facebook and Twitter

Photo of Swimmers Jackson from Bandcamp © Niall Jackson

June 4, 2017
Tune of the Week // Loah – This Heart

One of the things I really miss about Dublin is popping into town and seeing some of the great local musical acts gigging that week. I haven’t seen Loah live yet but I really can’t wait to.

Who is Loah?

Loah is Sallay Matu Garnett, who grew up between Maynooth in Co Kildare and Sierra Leone. She’s already worked with Villagers and co-wrote ‘Something New’ with Hozier, from his mega selling album. Oh yeah, they only went and won BMI award for that.

Loah describes her sound as ‘ArtSoul’, combining soul with West African influences. The first track I had heard by Loah was ‘Cortege’, a song sung in Sherbro and Mende, languages of Sierra Leone.

‘This Heart’ is sung in the English tongue and will make the track far more accessible to a radio audience. I’d like to add here that people are weird, we’ll watch the Eurovision which has the guts of 40 countries and different languages, but many don’t want to hear anything else on our radios only English. Much like ‘foreign film’, ‘World music’ seems to be a niche for the masses.

‘This Heart’ puts Loah firmly front and centre of the great soul singers of our generation. Her influences are blended together beautifully on ‘This Heart’. She’s got a fantastic tone to her voice, she reminds me of someone or something in a time of yore. Listening to ‘This Heart’ gives me the hairs on the back of my neck that I don’t feel too often and wish I felt more with some music, like the first time I heard Sade’s Ordinary Love.

I’ve listened to this song over and over in the past few days. It doesn’t dull, it doesn’t lessen the impact. Loah and ‘This Heart’, we’ve got something special.

‘This Heart’ is the title track from and EP released on June 16th and this is the first time Loah has tried the UK market. She’s going to make a splash.

You can find out more about Loah on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

May 29, 2017