Blue Slate

Blue Slate have released their debut five track EP This Is How I Sleep At Night. The band line up as John Harney (vocals/guitar), Pierce Devine (guitar), James Hargreaves (bass) and Tim Tora (drums) and this EP marks them out as primus inter pares in a congested Irish alt music scene.

We have been working with Naas natives Blue Slate since the release of the brilliant Wipers in March 2023. At the time they were very much tagged as part of Ireland's burgeoning shoegaze scene although they said "we take a lot of influence from 90s alternative music and 60s psychedelic music, bands like Duster, Modest Mouse, Heatmiser, Grandaddy and more of this sort." As we noted then "... maybe not what everyone would expect in those reference points - I suspect Blue Slate will continue to surprise and delight with their future releases."

They have delivered on their early promise with five diverse tracks which showcase a delicacy of touch even as they embrace heaviness.

Fast forward to February 2025 as their debut EP drops and the prescience of those words is proven. They have delivered on their early promise with five diverse tracks which showcase a delicacy of touch even as they embrace heaviness. Couple this with emotional maturity, a willingness to embrace vulnerability and an impressive variance of sounds, and you have one of the most authentic releases of the last 12 months.

This sounds like a band who are going places, with a manifesto and a desire to be successful on their terms.