RACE THE Flux, the Galway indie/alternative quartet, who GoldenPlec have described as being as if "Queens Of The Stone Age collaborated with ASIWYFA", and who won critical acclaim for their Olympians EP earlier this year, will kick off the Citóg nights in the Róísín Dubh.
The band, who play Citóg on September 9, have won praise for their 2013 debut LP Dutch Buffalo, and 2015's Olympians EP, particularly for how they mix heavy guitar work with hook and melodies, without sacrificing an experimental edge.
HotPress called them "expansive, energetic and anthemic, it's a Godzilla-sized monster boasting melodies that could level a mountain". Dublin's TXFM called their music "high-energy, exciting alternative rock with uplifting catchy hooks and plenty of forays into heavy guitar moments"; while The Irish Times said, "the Galway lads unassuming stage presence is the perfect foil to the assured sonic assault they're capable of unleashing. They truly are ones to watch."
Another band enjoying critical acclaim are Northern Ireland's The Wood Burning Savages who play Citóg on September 16. Stephen McCauley of BBC Radio Ulster called them "a passionate one-off" whose music mixes "snarling, bloodlust rock'n'roll archetypes with gloriously incongruous and wildly inventive melodic ideas." Singer-songwriter Tom Robinson ('2-4-6-8 Motorway' ) on his BBC 6 Music show called them "the most amazing live band I have seen all year - bar none". Last year, the Derry quartet played Glastonbury's BBC Introducing stage, and released their Boom EP that autumn. They are recording their debut album.
Also on the bill are Galway indie/blues quartet The Sandy Rats, who cite the Stone Roses and the Libertines as among their influences; and singer-songwriter Patrick Conneely.
Citóg concludes for September on Wednesday 23 with a bill featuring two of Galway's finest indie bands - Oh Boland and We Are Ruffians.
The songs of Tuam trio Oh Boland bristle with energy, sharpness, and a raw energy that draws on punk, sixties beat, and classic indie of the eighties and nineties. In band leader n Niall Murphy they possess a songwriter with a brilliant eye for slice o'life detail and an uncanny ability to mix aggression and tunefulness.
Oh Boland's debut album, Spilt Milk was recorded earlier this year. An advance copy was heard by So Cow's Brian Kelly who has declared it one of the best collections of songs he has heard from an Irish band in a very long time - high praise indeed. So when can we expect to see it released? "We were farming it out to several small American labels with interest expressed from two who unfortunately have their release schedules full until later this year," says Niall. "I can only speculate it'll be out later in the year."
The excellent Galway quartet We Are Ruffians, combine surf-rock and indie pop and play with a confidence and sophistication beyond their years. To get a taste of what they are about have a listen to this:
Support is from Ghost Rats.
All shows take place on Wednesdays with doors at 9pm. Admission is free. For more information see Citóg on Facebook and www.roisindubh.net
