Hailing from Co. Derry, ROBYN.G.SHIELS has been a somewhat notorious entity in the Northern Ireland music scene for many a year. Yet it is only now, with the release of his debut album A Lifetime of Midnights that Shiels must step to the fore and take responsibility for this talent of his.
What has been described as ‘possibly the most beautifully bleak albums to come out of Belfast’, A Lifetime of Midnights undoubtedly emits a poignant beauty which permeates through every track.
Shiels’ adept use of simple melody and markedly emotive lyrics displays a notable maturity for what is his debut album. In all he delivers a captivating melancholic honesty in his music, which is unlikely to go unnoticed.
The eleven track album also features his debut single, ‘Two nights in June’, which received critical acclaim last summer from cogs in the music industry machine such as Playlouder and Drowned in Sound.
|
Released on Belfast based indie label, No Dancing Records – headed by Jimmy Devlin and Terry Lavery – A Lifetime of Midnights is also the first CD format release to be announced by two of the hardest working men in the Northern Irish music scene.
But in saying all of the above, I feel obligated to warn you. Do not listen to this album if you feel you may be teetering on the edge of sanity and/or an all-encompassing depression. Doing so may act as the impetus for your inevitable psychological decline.
(For more info: www.robyngshiels.com or www.nodancing.co.uk)
|
