WE take a look this week at the new trends, releases and news coming out of the creative community in Ireland. We have well and truly recovered from the NI Music Prize, but as the sore heads have subsided, business as usual has resumed for our releasing and performing creatives – if by business we mean transforming a fishing village into a mini-Glastonbury.

Other Voices in Dingle inches ever closer, with a bumper headline list and music trail line-up. We see our acts at home well represented, with acts like Arborist, Chubby Cat, Conchúr White, Joshua Burnside, Mount Palomar and more. The stage at St James' church has seen many hallowed acts grace its PA system, and this year new names have been added to that list. Country-pop singer CMAT, post-punk noise makers Gurriers, Drone-folk supergroup ØXN and more will delight and destroy audiences in equal measure.

In music-adjacent news, we also see that one of our old guards in the industry has got some additional flowers in their bushel. Stuart Bailie's new book on the Belfast Godfather of punk will be released in December. It centres on the life and times of Terri Hooley, owner of the Good Vibrations record shop and label, who famously discovered and released iconic tracks from The Undertones, Rudi, The Outcasts and more. 'Terri Hooley: Seventy-Five Revolution' tells his story through a series of unpublished photos, archived interviews and chats with Hooley himself, all of which hasvebeen summed up eloquently by the man himself: “I partied a lot, and I drank a lot and I did drugs, and I had a good time. And I never killed anybody.”

Staying at home, we have plenty of new music to shout about as we head into Mariah Carey season when radio producers forget that that independent world exists. CHERYM feature on an indie punk supergroup recording headed by Brighton garage rock duo ARXX on the track 'Baby Uh Huh'. Ciaran Lavery reworks his classic single 'Shame' with the help of Lydia Luce, while folk-singer AOIBHA releases the new track 'Muddy Waters'.

However, two tracks in particular stick out above the rest. Fresh off their double win at this year's NI Music Prize, post-punk trio Chalk have wasted no time hitting the ground running. Announcing their signing to revered indie label Nice Swan earlier this week, the Belfast group released their first single. 'The Gate', this week. A tense track, filled with anxiety, pressure, confrontation and techno-infused percussion, it's a great showing from a band that has thrust itself into the conversation as one of the most exciting new acts in the country.  

On the softer side of the scale, we have bedroom/psych-pop producer Lemonade Shoelace returning to the release schedule. With his debut EP he opened the door to his kaleidoscopic landscape for us, and has continued down that route with the new single 'Soul Syndrome'. Adorned with gems of indie, pop, psychedelia and alternative traditions, this track has been described as a bridge between the two eras for the producer/songwriter and is for all fans of Tame Impala, AIR and Unknown Mortal Orchestra. The track is out now via Kartel Music Group.

As always, we end the column with a spotlight on the best releases by our independent artists this week. Anna Kilkenny has been in our ears for some time now, and her track will keep her firmly there. 'Taken Out By The Wind' blends elements of indie, country, folk and singer-songwriter genres. It's an exceptionally easy listen, a track that has me coming back for more every few hours and should be an immediate playlist addition for all of our readers.