BallinaPunx was born in 2003, as a collective of kindred musical spirits based in the Mayo town. The goal was to give voice to the town’s thriving alternative, punk and metal artists.
The legendary Emmett’s bar in the town became the patron of this project, hosting a diverse range of acts, from Ireland and beyond. The contract was simple: if you were an independent band with some wild, Dionysian blood and passion, you were welcome. Over the years, multiple shows have been hosted, bringing in bands from Europe and the UK.
Since its inception, BallinaPunx has been kept alive by volunteers who contribute their time and energy. Many faces have come and gone but the person who has carried the BallinaPunx torch over recent years is Conor Hickey.
Hickey has become central to what BallinaPunx do, ultimately allowing alternative, punk and metal artists to find community, to sing and have a laugh. The collective has allowed many new artists to find a voice in the town, being met with open-mindedness and support. Great music has found root that would have otherwise perished.
In 2010, Hickey documented the eclectic range of artists who comprised the BallinaPunx family and ‘From the Mouths of the Boys Vol. 1’ was released on CD-R. Since then the BallinaPunx ecosystem has continued to thrive. Some key figures like Emmett Maloney and Bob Kavanagh have unfortunately passed, but the torch of independent music burns bright in the town. With the extra free time of lockdown in 2020, Hickey was inspired to create a second compilation.
Hickey said: "I sometimes go through my CDs from over the years and I love when I find these types of compilations. It’s like a snapshot of a scene from a place and time. I guess I made something like this in the hope that, ten years from now, somebody in Hamburg or Prague or Bradford might find one of these CDs and get a kick out of it."
From the Mouth of the Boys Vol. 2 features thirteen songs from bands who have released music between 2010 – 2019. There are tracks from Nerves (recently featured on a Hot Press Live session ) and Thinkerrs (described as being ‘in thrall to Nick Cave’s dark, squallyrock’ in The Irish Times ).
Previously unreleased tracks are included from Section 4 and Televised Banana, as well as a selection of live tracks from Alps, Tension Head and Cancrusher.
There is a wildness and freedom of expression throughout as the songs move from experimental, to comedy rock, to thrash metal, punk and even some reggae. It is a rich and highly entertaining collection of independent music arising from a small town in the West of Ireland. From the Mouth of the Boys Vol.2 will be released by Wahstuff records on Friday June 11, 2021.
