Live Report: Pastiche on the Hot Press Lockdown Sessions' Y&E Series

One of the most exciting Irish pop acts of recent memory, 22-year-old Pastiche has crafted a sound packed with attitude and empowerment. Combining elements of electronic and dark pop, the Dublin singer-songwriter released her latest single, 'Heaven', earlier this year – establishing her as a serious force to be reckoned with on the Irish scene.

Opening with her debut single 'Chasing Down The Fame', Pastiche showed off her powerhouse vocal. She segued into 'Freak', an enticing, blues-tinged unreleased track. Chatting with the audience and bringing her bubbly energy to the Hot Press Instagram, she answered questions from fans and friends.

She also performed 'Uptown', a fan-favourite from her early days, written two years prior to adopting her stage name (a French word for 'an artistic imitation'). It was followed by another unreleased track called 'Paraphernalia'.

Watch the performance below, and check out the exciting acts due to perform later this week. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Hot Press (@hotpressmagazine)

Monday, April 12: BABYLAMB
Specialising in high-energy, dancefloor-friendly bubblegum pop, Babylamb are primed to go supernova over the next 12 months. The quartet of self-described "sad, fresh-faced queers" first announced their arrival as a captivating new presence in Irish music with their debut single 'Bodyright' in 2019 – followed by 2020's 'Icky', and their explosive synth-pop anthem 'Mister Magic' earlier this year.

Tuesday, April 13: THE ZEN ARCADE
Rising from the ashes of The Strypes, three former members of the Cavan crew have joined forces once again – with a new emphasis on doing things their own way. Having launched their own zine and podcast series, The Zen Arcade announced themselves as a very serious, smart new force in Irish music with the release of their debut, ‘Don’t Say A Word’, on their own label, Dental Records.

Wednesday, April 14: FINTAN MCKAHEY
A lo-fi indie singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer from Cork, Fintan McKahey has been releasing music since 2016, and playing support slots for the likes of The Scratch, Junior Brother and Róisín O. His debut EP God Games was released in 2019 to widespread critical acclaim, followed by his 2020 single 'Platinum' – which has clocked up nearly 135,000 streams on Spotify alone.