It’s not often that two rising stars of the Irish music industry combine forces to bring us a split release. That’s just what Limerick’s favourite all-girl, lo-fi rock group PowPig and Kerry-born singer/songwriter Junior Brother have done.
Billed as a quadruple A-side release of singles, the self-titled release, PowPig/Junior Brother, features two songs from each artist.
Responsible for the release is ‘Out on a Strange Brew’ label, a collaboration between two labels: Limerick’s ‘Out on A Limb Records’ (Giveamanakick, Windings, Waiting Room and more) and Galway’s ‘Strange Brew’ (Daithi, Paddy Hanna).
It’s an inspired format for a release and it’s an alliance that makes a lot of sense. Both artists have created their own unique musical styles that are exciting growing audiences around the country and beyond, through their live shows and previous EP releases.
PowPig’s contribution include the songs Mayday and Pretty Woman, which are permanent fixtures in their live sets and act as melodic, swayable buffers to some of their more high-octane, punk-inspired songs. Both songs feature sumptuous harmonies and multi-vocalist choruses that show off the vocal ability within the group. The jangly guitars of the catchy Mayday were recently featured on RTE’s Other Voices, where PowPig featured in the IMRO Other Room, having won a viewers’ choice open call.
Junior Brother (aka Ronan Kealy) has been building a growing fan-base since the release of his last EP ‘Fuck Off I Love You’ in 2016. His unique guttural voice, plucked guitar style, captivating live performances, intriguing narrative storytelling, and highly entertaining videos set him apart in what can sometimes feel like an over-saturated singer/songwriter scene in Ireland.
The first of his songs on the release, The Back of Her, will be known to some from the wonderful Myles O’Reilly’s video. It is an intense song full of yearning, created through its plaintive refrain (“This feeling reminds me of the back of her…”) and haunting harmonies.
Full of Wine is a new song and one of Kealy’s colloquial narrative tales with accompanying tambourine, picked strings, rhythms and harmonies reminiscent of the English folk tradition but brought to new heights through the Junior Brother treatment.
PowPig and Junior Brother are embarking on a mini-Irish tour this April to promote the release, playing the Roisin Dubh in Galway on 17th, The Grand Social in Dublin (as part of MusicTown 2019) on 18th and Dolans in Limerick on 19th.
PowPig/Junior Brother is available to stream and download on Spotify and Bandcamp, with a limited-edition cassette release to coincide with the April tour available to pre-order on the Bandcamp site.
Article written by Margaret Cahill