This week I got back into a few of the artists I used to listen to a few years ago, namely Hozier, Orla Gartland and Lime Cordiale. So I figured hey, why not take a look at each of their respective first albums.

First up Hozier, who is most certainly the most famous out of them all and is most notable for “Take Me to Church”, which was incredibly popular when it was first released. For me it is most notable for being the accompanying song to this incredible dance performed by Sergei Polunin. I remember being showed this by my dance teacher at the time and just being in awe at how powerful he was, I really enjoy the non-standard movements and breaks to build up character to the performance. My favourite move is of course the weird foot slide at 2:19, it’s genuinely incredible because I have no idea how to do it and it’s quite jarring but so smooth at the same time! What a cool video (and location!!!) and of course to such a great song too. To talk about my favourite track on the album; I love Jackie and Wilson because of the drums that are front and center with accompanying electric guitar that just feels so so great to listen to. As we pull into the chorus, we get a choral backing into Hozier’s brilliant vocals which then drop as we get back to the lovely guitar and drums. Maybe not a typical Hozier song, but it’s a really dun style and unique because of it. If you somehow have not listened to this album (what are you doing???) I cannot recommend enough a whole listen through because Hozier’s voice is just so incredible and the songs on this album are simply amazing.

Next up we have Orla Gartland. The first song I heard from Orla Gartland was actually in form of one of her music videos You’re Not Special, Babe, it’s fun and I like the choreography (the clown makeup is cool too ofc). It’s a song that has taken a little while to hit with me, because I would listen to the lyrics and think it’s just silly, but re-listening to it again recently I get it. Do what you want, you’re not special it doesn’t matter, just embrace it! Orla then subsequently released her first album and it’s a little parasocial, but I remember watching her release stream where she played a couple songs on her acoustic guitar and just thinking about how cool she was to be releasing stuff on her own label and how talented she was. The whole following summer I listened to the album on repeat, I distinctly remember it being my go to when I was on holiday. Listening back now I know so many of the lyrics just because of how much I listened to it. I remember my favourite at the time was Madison, probably just because of the lyric “Can I be …. your houseplant in the corner” which was very iconic to me at the time. I think I just liked the stripped back-ness of the song and how you could just hear Orla sing incredibly well. My favourite now is Bloodline / Difficult Things it’s a two part song and it’s so beautiful to me. The first half “Bloodline” talks about parental relationships, with an incredible leading guitar and backing drums. This leads through with a short audio clip from a video of Orla as a child into “Difficult Things”, which is much more stripped down and calmer. I really relate to the lyrics in this section, which then builds up into this cacophony of sound. It’s a really well rounded song and the two halves fit together so well.

Last but not least is Lime Cordiale. There’s not much to Lime Cordiale for me, their music is just pretty upbeat, silly and fun to listen to. They’re probably best known for Robbery a song of their second album, but they’re from Australia, so if you haven’t heard of them that’s probably why. For a few picks from the album I would choose Is He Your Man, Temper Temper, Other Way Round and Giving Yourself Over. The album is full or rocking side to forth music with some quality additions from trumpet and piano along the way.

Song of the Week:

See my friend Sof’s song of the week here!