Holy Ghost Fathers present.. Ballroom #42 Friday 24th of June The Lower Deck, Portobello Harbour, D8. Doors 9pm, €7 in, free CD-r to the first 100. http://www.ballroomofromance.com The Maladies Dublin 5 piece The Maladies were formed in 1999 by childhood friends, acquaintences and a guy they met at a party. Early days were spent playing shambolic gigs in every venue that would have them, while also building up a small but dedicated following. In 2003 the band decided it was time to take a serious step foward and record an album. Recorded in Richmond studios by Bobby Boughton, ‘The Maladies' was an eclectic mix of schmaltzy ballads and riotous rockers and evertything in between, leading one lazy reviewer to compare them to The Birthday Party, Coldplay, Gallon Drunk and Tom Waits. The album was well recieved and was picked up by some of Irelands coolest DJs like Dan Hegarty, Tom Dunne, Dave Fanning, Paul Clarke and eh... Pat Kenny. In October 2003 the band set out on their first nationwide tour, travelling the length and breadth of Ireland playing gigs wherever they could and getting a great reception wherever they went (except Enniskillen). In November the Band decamped to Homestead Studios in Antrim to record their second album with producer Mudd Wallace (Therapy?, Watercress). If the first album genre hopped a little, the second takes huge bounds between different styles, mixing elements of funk, folk, garage-pop, and...(whisper it)...jazz into what as an already eclectic sound. The Album, titled ‘A Whole Bunch Of Rivers’ will be released in Summer 2005. Leya Leya are a wide-screen band. At a time when most new bands pride themselves on being raw and rough around the edges, Leya are a fully realised and finely tuned musical entity. They met while studying music at the North Down and Ards College of Further Education, a course which exposed them to a wide range of musical activity from studio work to scoring soundtracks. Like the Monkees, they all moved into a house together. Unlike the Monkees, they wrote all their own songs as they continued to develop and expand on a singular musical vision from their own self-made home studio. Leya signed with Dublin based indie Rubyworks for a three album deal, but rather than squandering an advance on an overpriced studio, they bought their own equipment and re-located to the South of France, continuing their penchant for good, honest hard work. After a well-received download only single, The Dream that Money Bought, they're poised to reveal the fully bloomed fruits of their labours with a three track EP called All on the Black on June 24. Their debut album, Watch You Don't Take Off, follows later in September. Leya appear on the New Band Stage at Oxegen on Sunday July 10, where their wide-screen sound should acquaint itself beautifully with the big stage. Long Lost Brother Formed in March 2004 Long Lost Brother have quickly gelled into an intriguing mix of musical styles and ideas. Steve Melling plays bass. John Quirke plays guitars, melodica, Roland 202 synth, banjo and also sings(!) Mr. Conor O’Hara plays the drums. Mike Glennon, as well as dealing with singing and guitars, plays harmonica and (occasionally) sitar. The resulting sound is something both intriguing and accessible, refusing to stay put in any one category long enough for it to be easily labelled. Take influences from punk, country, electronica, dance, glam, rock, Dylan, Young, the Ramones, piece them together and you’re getting there. “ Long Lost Brother blend elements of country, punk and electronica into a mix somewhere between the Ramones and the Burrito Brothers” HOT PRESS “plaintive, melodic, gorgeous, and angry” EYEBALLKID.COM “ mix up smatterings of banjo and harmonica for country-tinged numbers....also conjure up plenty of rocking moments....shades of Dylan and the Cure CLUAS.COM Dark Room Notes Dark Room Notes are a 3-piece, Dublin-based alternative/electronic band that have been playing together since mid-2003. The band’s EP Something beginning with…is a representative sample of their sound, and they are currently putting the finishing touches to an album’s worth of material. Dark Room Notes are have just returned from Berlin where they showcased their music to various European labels. The band are also currently working on a soundtrack to an Irish-made short sci-fi film, and have numerous upcoming gigs in Dublin and around Ireland. http://www.darkroomnotes.com