The Budweiser Future Sounds of Irish Music

It’s day six of the Budweiser Future Sounds of Irish Music project and Hot Press is kicking back with Lethal Dialect & JackKnife-J as they await the radio debut of the just-wrapped ‘Set You Free’. The hip hop duo are just one of ten acts afforded the opportunity to spend a day in a custom-built studio – the rough-and-ready yet charming environs of the converted Speak Easy on Dublin’s South George’s Street – working alongside acclaimed producer Rob Kirwan (U2, PJ Harvey, The Horrors) before hearing the fruits of their labour played on Phantom 105.2 that very evening. It’s all quite hectic but both men seem relaxed as the time draws near.
As they should be. ‘Set You Free’ is a belter, boasting a slick chorus and a sonic edge.
Though Lethal Dialect & JackKnife-J are known for getting the maximum effect from their DIY aesthetic, both agree that the track really came alive with Kirwan on board.
“Very, very impressive,” nods J as he reflects on the day’s work. “It’s a big difference between using a laptop in the gaff ! Rob’s all about little percentages adding up to make a huge impact. Sonically, this track is better than anything I could have done. Not only that, he’s taught me more in a day than I could have taught myself in the space of a year. You can tell straight away that he can hear things that other people can’t.”
Praise indeed, coming from the man who mixed and mastered LD50 and follow-up record LD50 Part II in addition to producing fanfavourite ‘Get To My Dreams’. A key part of the experience was working with Kirwan. Lethal notes that the producer was very open to ideas and the feeling of a real collaboration quickly emerged. “He’s a ninja,” laughs J. “He’s got a black belt in sound!”
For Kirwan, currently juggling Delorentos’ eagerly-awaited follow-up to the Choice Music Prize-winning Little Sparks (which he also produced) and the next move from ‘Take Me To Church’ sensation Hozier, the Budweiser Future Sounds of Irish Music initiative represented a new challenge.
“This has been one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done, in a really positive way,” he says. “One of the reasons I took it on was the diversity of styles on offer. I wasn’t expecting the relentlessness of that diversity. One artist a day for ten days... it’s just bang, bang, bang.
It’s funny, the way I work is that I really put my head in the music and try and crawl around the songs, which is quite emotionally draining, so to do that every day single day with a different artist is so strange, but very positive.”
Has anything surprised him?
“Lethal Dialect & JackKnife-J, definitely. Mai has, too. I don’t know that much about Irish hip hop, to be honest. I’m known for ‘indie pop’ or whatever you want to call it, so when picking the top ten, that diversity was very important. I didn’t want the same act ten times. I wanted that diversity and I’ve been really blown away. It’s been the common thread between them all, really. No matter what artist they are or what genre they come
from, you want to connect to it emotionally. “If ‘Set You Free’ wasn’t mixed by a rock and roll producer, I don’t think the chorus would jump out in the same way as it does. The guys wrote it, but the presentation was quite linear when I got it. Rock and roll is about dynamics so I’m trying to impose that upon it, but you need to connect with the singer, with the character behind the song. That’s been a common thread all the way through.”