The bad news is that Ireland have lost two in a row. The good news is that there are no Six Nations games this week, so national despair levels can't plummet any further. Actually, we may be able to raise 'em with another joyous collection of free downloads, streams, vids and trailers.

Unfortunately, FMF can't jet over to Knoxville, Tennessee next month for the Big Ears Festival, but we'll be virtually enjoying it courtesy of this amply-proportioned mixtape, which includes cuts from Andrew Bird, Angel Olsen, Nico Muhly, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Sam Amidon and Hot Press cover stars The Gloaming whose 'Fainleog (Wanderer)' is culled from their new album.

Flaming Lips paid awesome tribute on Friday and Saturday night to David Bowie with an eight-song set that included 'Space Oddity', 'Life On Mars?', 'Five Years', 'Ziggy Stardust', 'Fame', 'The Man Who Sold The World', 'Golden Years' and 'Ashes To Ashes'. The gigs took place in Aspen's Belly Up club and have already passed into local rock 'n' roll folklore.

From Tacoma, Washington come Skating Polly with their delightfully brattish brand of pop punk.

There was much rejoicing in North Norfolk this week as Alan Partridge made his Sky Atlantic return. Here's an extended trailer for the series, which includes mention of the man with "a mouth like a snare and the voice of a cat trapped in one, Shane MacGowan."

Delorentos were in fine voice this week as they gave Night Becomes Light standout, 'Valley Where The Rivers Run', an acoustic going-over in Barca. Guitar cases may very well have been injured in the making of the video...

There's more quality unplugged fare from our friends at American NPR who've recently welcomed Ben Folds and Chelsea Wolfe to their Tiny Desk.

Jake Bugg has shared 'On My One', the first music from the eagerly-awaited follow-up to 2013's Shangri-La album. It finds its maker ruing the rigours of life on the road: "I'm just a poor boy from Nottingham/ I had my dreams but in this world they're gone, they're gone/ Oh, I'm so lonesome on my one/ Three years on the road, 400 shows/ Where do I call home?/ Where do I belong?"
The boy has seriously got the blues!
Download it for free from [link]jakebugg.com[/link]

Our 2015 ALCATEL ONETOUCH winner, Ciaran Lavery, has premiered 'Return To Form'. It's a twangy treat from Let Bad In, his new album which follows on May 27. As previously revealed on hotpress.com, he's on the bill for June 24-26's Sea Sessions in Bundoran, with Primal Scream and Tinie Tempah headlining.

The Wexford Massive - we always love writing that! - feature on this killer new tune from Essex spitter Potter Payper. Production duties fall to Wexford's New Machine while the sweet soul guest vocals are supplied by New Ross' favourite son, Maverick Sabre.

To the streams now and NPR has newbies from London grunge poppers Yuck; Bonnie Raitt who's become quite the blues balladeer; the even more evergreen Willie Nelson who treats us to a collection of George and Ira Gershwin covers, and Mothers, an Athens, Georgia outfit who sound a bit like a south of the Mason-Dixon Line SOAK.

Fiach Moriarty has premiered the video for his new single, 'Mount Street Bridge'. Lifted from the Dubliner's Revolution album, it's an evocative affair that includes archive 1916 footage.

John Carpenter has debuted 'Distant Dream', one of the tunes from his Lost Themes II album which drops on April 15, and sounds like it's going to be a whole lot of fun. The veteran director has also announced UK dates in October, but sadly there's no sign of him crossing the Irish Sea.

A not in the least bit guilty pleasure of Free Music Friday's is Twisted 'Fucking' Sister who played a stormer many moons ago in Dalymount Park. This new documentary looks as riotous as they were...

We're not sure it's 100% official, but the Otaku Gang have done a brilliant job of mashing Eminem up with Street Fighter.

And that is your Free Music Friday lot for another week. We'll be spending the weekend chain-listening to the new Rusangano Family album - it's a belter! - and looking on gleefully as election hopefuls take ever bigger chunks out of each other. In the meantime, keep them links coming to @stuartclark66