This summer the Republic of Ireland soccer squad head to Poland to put their skills to the test against the very best in Europe. With the combined talents of Damien Dempsey, Bressie, Danny O’Reilly and The Dubliners, TodayFM have composed and recorded The Rocky Road To Poland – the official team song for the European Championship campaign. They’ve just put the finishing touches to the official video for the track and you can see it right here. The Rocky Road To Poland will be available to buy from retailers from Friday 4th May.

Today is Saturday the 21st April 2012. The evening before the semi finals of The Voice Of Ireland. I have consumed a copious amount of camomile tea to calm my nerves in preparation for the show. Doing live television does not make me nervous or anxious, having to say goodbye to one of your team however, does. It’s a killer but it’s part of the process and it’s something I have reluctantly accepted in my duty as a coach.
I just wanted to do a short blog to let ye know the state of play and how my team are holding up pre show.
Myself, Pat and Conor all decided that for their singles we wanted to do songs that represent them musically. Not pick songs we feel are big hits or everyone will know. We also decided that if we were going to do a cover of a track, it needs to come with their own personal interpretation and arrangement, not just regurgitating the original. This has always being important for me with these guys as they really ooze integrity and passion when it comes to singing.

For this reason, when we sat down in studio to work on the arrangement and vocals, we came to the agreement to strip back the tracks to illustrate their unique and honest vocals and not hide them behind a wall of production. This is no doubt a risk as they will be so exposed instrumentation wise but it’s a risk we all wanted to take and I feel in my gut will pay off and besides, I feel they have proven themselves when it comes to delivering big rock performances. I felt as a coach with these guys I was best served as a facilitator of their talents and not a dictator. These guys sincerely don’t need to be diluted. They comprehend their ability and certainly do not over think when it comes to performance and showcasing their special talent.
What I ask you guys at home to do is listen to these songs with an open mind. One of their songs is an old classic that I’m sure you all will recognise and the other is a much more obscure but equally beautiful song that has resonated heavily with myself and the artist delivering the track.
I feel very privileged to be able to coach them and since the first time I hit that red button in the blind auditions I never looked back and I am very grateful Pat and Conor have trusted my instincts and listened to my advice. They have both grown immensely. Regardless of the outcome of this show I fully intend to be writing and working with both these guys in the future and contrary to a ‘certain lead singer in a certain band’s opinion’, I am massively passionate about seeing these guys succeed as artists and have dedicated every ounce of energy I have into preparing them for this sh*t tough industry.
I said from day 1 of filming in the blind auditions that I wanted a unique vocalist that captivates me and I would love to find one. I found two. They have also become best friends with each other which is fantastic to see and be part of.

So, although I truly believe both guys could be in the final, only one will be. The way it works is, I get 100 points that I then divide between the two guys after they perform. You guys at home then get 100 points which will then be all counted and your votes will be split between them. They will then add up both the divisions and obviously the person with the overall higher average will go on to the final.
If ye guys think Conor or Pa t have what it takes to enter into the music industry and sign a record deal,write an album, record an album, tour an album, then please support them. I certainly know they both have what it takes.

Hats off, Conor and Pat.

Hi guys,
Just to let you know, save for a tiny handful of tickets left on the door, Navan tonight is now sold out.

However (good news!) some new dates have now been added –
- 4th May, Premier Hall, Thurles
- 7th July at the Kildorrery Hill Fest
- 13th July, Foroige,Mayo (Bands on the Beach)
- 15th July, Abby Hotel, Donegal

To get further information on these dates, or to purchase tickets, head to the Ticketmaster.ie website HERE!

Excuse my lack of blog love over the last few weeks. I try to put a blog together the day after the show as it’s fresh in my mind, but been so nuts on the Monday it has not really been possible.

Last night marked the final show on RTE the Voice before all teams combine and compete together on the same night. For me, this is where it’s time to step up another few notches; where performance and the Voice must be addressed. Granted the show is called The Voice but I feel that the visual aspects of performance must also be evident. I also feel there are a few singers left in the competition slightly out of their league at this point and require a little more time. I feel their personalities should be coming out in their vocals and unfortunately some singers are not grasping this and other singers have well and truly grasped it.

Last night I spoke about Musicality. I know I went on about it but I feel it’s important that the artists are not just singing karaoke and coming out regurgitating note-for-note the original. A singer must be able to interpret songs and make them their own. To be a technically great singer is just not enough at this stage. Delivery, intent and emotion must be illustrated but also the musicality I speak of. Conor Quinn’s performance of MGMT “Kids” is a great example of how a singer can take a song and mould it to suit their personality and ability and hence highlighting the melody and lyric that often ends up drowned among production. I would like to see this a little more. SIngers losing themselves in the song. Nollaig attempted this last night and I felt the start of her rendition of addicted to love was captivating, dark and a mirror to her personality but as the song progressed she lost my attention by trying to re-create the original and hence diluting her own personality. Up to that point it was the most clever and musical performance of the night to my ears.

We as coaches may seem to appear to be getting slightly harder to please at this stage but this is the nature of the music industry. It’s a sink or swim industry. Kim Hayden had an extremely poor performance of Coldplay’s “Fix You” a few weeks back but has come back so strong. I admire her massively for this as it’s not easy to be put down like she was and come back with two rocking performances. Other singers have actually gone backwards in their performances as being in the bottom two has knocked their confidence and they have struggled to deal with this. It’s showtime. The next three weeks will have a huge bearing on all their futures and they need to bring their a game and forget about what has gone before.

So, what I reckon ye guys at home should be looking for at this stage is something different from these singers. Look for their personalities in their voice. Look for them to bring interpretation to the track for whoever wins this competition will have to make an album, and in order to make an album YOU must be able to put your own stamp on it.

So the word of the day is “MUSICALITY”. I feel like a bollix repeating myself but it’s a fantastically important aspect of a top class artists (not repeating yourself….musicality).

Strawberry Fest 2011 was a new take on one of Ireland’s longest established town festivals and this year they’re back with Strawberry Fest 2012, taking place in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford on the 1st, 2nd & 3rd of June with an even bigger and better line up than last year! and you can catch Bressie perform tracks from his new album, tickets are on sale right NOW!! Purchase tickets HERE

For more info please visit www.2012.strawberryfest.ie

Check out Bressie performing with this Team on Show 5 from the Voice of Ireland….

The Voice of Ireland can be seen on RTE One every Sunday from 6.30 – 8.00pm and then the results show from 8.30 – 9.00pm.

Tickets are now on sale for Bressie’s extra Dublin date in the Olympia Theatre this September 29th. Tickets can be purchased directly from HERE! or Phoning 0818 719300

New album ”Colourblind Stereo” OUT NOW, Purchase the new Deluxe Edition HERE
New single ”Breaking My Fall” OUT NOW, Purchase HERE

BRESSIE
Live at the Olympia Theatre, September 29th – Tickets on sale this Thursday at 9am

Swiftly becoming the hottest Irish act around, Bressie has announced that he will play a headline show at the Olympia Theatre on Saturday September 29th with all tickets to his Academy, Dublin show in June now sold out!

Tickets for the ‘Voice of Ireland Coach’ Olympia Theatre show are on sale this Thursday priced €21.00 incl. booking fee from Ticketmaster outlets and online at www.ticketmaster.ie

Already a well respected and talented musician from his time fronting The Blizzards, Bressie’s debut solo album ‘Colourblind Stereo’, released last summer, reached #1 in the iTunes Album chart. From the LP he has released three singles including the airplay #1 smash ‘Can’t Stay Young Forever’ and the top three hit ‘Good Intentions’.

Bressie has been highly acclaimed and lauded as The Voice of Ireland coach, a role that he has expertly filled with charisma and professionalism. The show has reached viewership figures of 700,000+ eclipsing The Late Late Show and Saturday Night Show. It has firmly planted him in the heart of the Irish public as a true gentleman of the Irish music industry.

Bressie will tour Ireland throughout this Spring and Summer.

FULL BRESSIE TOUR DATES:
April 6: Charleville Castle, Tullamore
April 12: Clarence Hotel, Sligo
April 13: The Palace, Navan
April 18: Dolan’s, Limerick
April 19: Pavilion, Cork
April 20: Roisin Dubh, Galway
April 26: Set Theatre, Kilkenny
April 27: Forum Lounge, Waterford
May 05: Festival Of The Fires, Westmeath
June 1: Leixlip Festival
June 2: Bandon Music Festival, Cork
June 3: Strawberry Festival, Wexford
June 28: The Academy, Dublin
June 29: Curragh Racecourse, Kildare
July 14: Greville Arms, Mullingar
July 15: Summer Festival, Arklow

Tickets for Bressie live at the Olympia Theatre on Saturday 29th September are on sale this Thursday at 9am from Ticketmaster outlets nationwide.

Bressie has just announced a new hometown show in the Grenville Arms, Mullingar on the 14th July. Tickets to go on sale this Friday 15th March from www.ticketmaster.ie. Don’t forget this date is part of a long list of dates currently on sale, see list below:

April
12th – Clarence Hotel, Sligo
13th – The Palace, Navan
18th – Dolan’s, Limerick
19th – Pavilion, Cork SOLD OUT
20th – Roisin Dubh, Galway SOLD OUT
26th – Set Theatre, Kilkenny
27th – Forum Lounge, Waterford

May
5th – Festival of Fires, Westmeath

July
14th – The Grenville Arms, Mullingar
27th – supporting The Coronas, Big Top, Galway

DJ dates:

March
15th – Copan, Rathmines, Dublin
18th – Eclectic Gardens, Bray
30th – Zinc, Leixlip

April
7th – Home, Balbriggan
21st – Club Vanity, Carrickmacross

For those of you who missed it or those of you who cannot get enough of it, Watch last nights performance of ‘Breaking My Fall’ on The Voice of Ireland….

Purchase the new single from one of the following:

iTunes / Nokia / 7 Digital / Vodafone /Meteor