Culture
08 Apr 22

Track of the Day: 49th and Main - 'Streetlights'

Photo by Tom Scales.

'Streetlights' is 49th and Main's dreamy first single with label Counter Records.

Irish indie-pop duo 49th & Main have released new single 'Streetlights' to celebrate their recent signing to Ninja Tune imprint Counter Records.

Rising Kilkenny artists Patrick King and Ben O'Sullivan have already gained attention with 20 million streams amassed on Spotify since 2020. Other successful singles include 'Don't You Like It?', 'Good Life', 'Catching Eyes', 'Party Alone' and 'Lost With You'.

The new track, mixed by Nate Burgess, is a danceable and heavily layered account of ‘wasted’ youth.

“‘Streetlights’ is a song about the eternal journey to find ‘peace of mind,” the band explain. “Whether that be through getting down ‘six pints’ or ‘getting high alone in the moonlight’ we all have our own way of going about it. Everyone deserves a fair shot at their own piece of paradise. And during times of darkness, hopefully the streetlights can be a guide and let a little brightness in."

"The song is written through internalised conversations with the voice deep inside your head. The type of conversations that nobody will ever hear and even if they did hear, they probably wouldn’t understand. In ‘Streetlights’ similarities are drawn between a troubled mind and a city fraught with strife and the resolution that can be found upon reconnecting with your ‘true self'.”

In 2021, they released their EP Good Luck, which featured a slew of fellow independent Irish artists like KEHLI, Khakikid and Fynch. The duo's wide range of influences are fully on display on the EP, with styles ranging from dreamy lo-fi to pulsing Doja Cat-esque hip hop.

Later this year, 49th and Main are among the billing for the Forbidden Fruit festival – Dublin's longest running city centre festival. Headliners include the likes of Lorde, Smoothboi Ezra and The Avalanches.

The single is accompanied by a glitchy music video (below) that sets the pop tune to contorted visuals of city night life: silhouettes, cars, and - of course - streetlights.

Catch them at their upcoming live shows:

April 16 – Workmans, Dublin charity event (UNICEF, Ukraine fundraiser)
April 22 – Trinity Ball, Dublin
June 5 – Forbidden Fruit Festival
June 17 – Sea Sessions, Festival
July 31 – Indiependence Festival