ROLAND RECOMMENDS - MAIGHREAD


MAIGHREAD - Irish Eyes Are Styling

ARTIST - Maighread

FROM – Limerick, Ireland

LINE-UP – Maighread Neligan

FORMED – sometime in the 80s, never ask a lady her age...

WHY SHOULD I CARE?
The diminutive Maighread has followed the route of many a budding singer-songstress by starting out all acoustic and folky before going down the electro route. But unlike so many others, Maighread creates soulful, meaningful dance music that gets you thinking as well as moving. There are moments when Ms Neligan echoes Alison Goldfrapp’s soulfulness at the same time as mirroring Annie Lennox’s amazing vocal range. There are moments when she transports you back to the raw, cutting edge of 80s electro experimentation and you get that thrill that you imagine people getting the first time they heard Depeche Mode or when they pressed play on that C90 to hear the first strains of the Eurythmics. And then there are moments when Maighread conjures up images of packed Balearic nightclubs singing one tune, dancing to one rhythm and feeling the same emotion.

Tunes like Worth, Sea and the Disco Damage collaboration of In The Beginning show the range that Maighread possesses in terms of style and ability. There’s a subtlety to her voice that betrays her Irish roots and you can still hear the folk singer bursting to come out, no matter how hard the beats or how deep the bass notes. It’s a beautiful mix that Ellie Goulding would kill for and La Roux wouldn’t even recognise if it slapped her in her pasty face. The bottom line is that if you’re looking for a lady to lift your spirits, move your feet and keep your brain ticking over then Maighread is that lady. And then some.   

FIRST PORT OF CALL
There aren’t really any collections of Maighread’s material but if you want to dip your toes in some Irish electro water (wow, that sounds painful doesn’t it?) then head on over to her soundcloud page and check out her latest offering, What You Want. It’s a slice of swaggering, attitude filled electrodisco that Lady Gaga would sell her nose for (and boy, what a nose).

ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Maighread will be appearing at the inaugural Poptronik festival. This is a new electropop festival that promises zero mud but maximum campness (let’s face it, one of the main sponsors is Gaydar Radio fercrissakes!). The festival takes place over the weekend of 1st September in the Catalan beach town of Sitges, Spain (20 minutes from Barcelona) and, apart from Maighread, also features the audio delights Madonna’s pals Kazaky, Scissor Sisters collaborator Sammy Jo and 80’s Toy Soldier hit maker Martika. Sound like a random mix? It probably is but then again, aren’t all the best nights out? More info can be found at; http://www.poptronik.com/ .

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