New Irish band Petrel release debut single ‘Existing Condition’
- Richard Blowes
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Is it a supergroup? Is it a new band? Who cares. The debut Petrel single Existing Condition is excellent
Track: Existing Condition
Band: Petrel
Released: July 11 2025
New Irish four piece Petrel have released their debut single Existing Condition. There's a strong Galway and Blowtorch Records connection as the band consists of Gerry Sheil on vocals and guitar (formerly of Scattered Ashes), ex Slyrydes guitarist Eoin Reilly, In Athens drummer Mosey Byrne (In Athens news coming soon) and on bass Ian McFarlane from Squarehead, Mick Pyro, Cruel Sister and previously Kid Karate.
The quartet share the following on their debut single: “Our main goal with this project was to truly be us, we went through a few lineup changes and different sounds until it felt right and real, it was never worth doing if it wasn’t going to sound real. We felt there are a lot of bands out right now that have a very similar voice. We didn’t want to blend in.”
Existing Condition is a tense, brooding meditation on fractured identity and the strange calm found in chaos. Built on jagged guitar textures, busy basslines, pounding toms, and stark, poetic lyricism, the track captures the band’s raw dynamic energy and obsession with light versus dark.
Recorded in Dublin in early 2025 and produced by Darragh Winters, the track juxtaposes jagged noise with melody, evoking flickers of early post-punk pioneers such as Joy Division, Gang of Four and Siouxsie and the Banshees. The edge within its instrumentation grows as the track progresses. Gerry Sheil's vocals are emotive and impassioned with an unexpected mid-track shift, haunting in its repetition, until the drop which captivates. The guitar and bass now create a runaway soundscape which seems to be heading towards an uncertain end.
Petrel are a four-piece post-punk band formed in 2025. Their name is drawn from the storm bird said to glide just above the crashing waves and reflects their sound: restless, intense and always moving forward. Each member of Petrel brings years of firepower from deep within the Irish underground. Four frontmen in one room.
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