Review of the second Pebbledash EP 'To Cast The Sea In Concrete'

As Cork five piece Irish trad/dream pop/shoegaze band Pebbledash release their second EP To Cast The Sea In Concrete, Jonah Hoy delivers his review.

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Pebbledash are coming off their sold-out Four Portraits of the Same Ugly House EP with another affecting lullaby, To Cast the Sea in Concrete.

Our review of the first Pebbledash EP noted a haunting and gloomy endeavour that put you in the coldest of winters, like a big snow that trapped you inside for days. To Cast the Sea in Concrete is surprisingly uplifting and has a lightness to it that balances with the melancholy. It's as if it's the first sunny day in Autumn, a chill is still in the air, but even in the hollow space, their vocals grab you with a light optimism.

Sentimentality can be very hard to express, thoughtfulness in its rawest form, whether it's your family giving you affection or a friend showing sincere gratitude. It can feel distasteful and anxiety-inducing. I would rather have my family mow me down like Damien O'Donovan than have them verbally express an ounce of sincere gratitude towards me. A generation like mine, raised on Mad TV and chronic irony as an expression, feels that sincerity outside of pen and paper is uncomfortable.

They are my fairy tree ... they are my entrance into the otherworld. Each Pebbledash release feels as if I tried to move it, it would curse me because it should be left as is, in all its gloomy beauty.

Uncomfortable doesn't mean bad, and Pebbledash tow the line between it and lighthearted nostalgia beautifully with their doleful, melodic beats and angelic vocals. These songs do not feel sad even if their lyrics reflect that tone, such as when the singer says, "I expire more and more each day." She recognises the passage of time not in years, not in trying to stop it, but in a simple acknowledgement of moment to moment. That tomorrow does not matter what the world has for me, but regardless of how I feel, it will pass, it will age, no matter what I think. It haunts and it hits as Pebbledash always do.

Their blending of traditional Irish folk is always a must. Sí Bheag Sí Mhór, the Celtic waltz is fastened on to an ethereal segue into the album before kicking off with an upbeat distortion on Tiles and Moss. Their mix of trad is one of my favourite staples of theirs; they are a modern adaptation of the power myth and tradition has. They are my fairy tree; as an outsider who has no Irish roots, they are my entrance into the otherworld. Each Pebbledash release feels as if I tried to move it, it would curse me because it should be left as is, in all its gloomy beauty.

Perfect for the season's weather, To Cast the Sea in Concrete lets the listener carry tradition and punk simultaneously; best for a cup of coffee in the morning when no one's about yet. No one is up in the house, the sun is is just starting to peek in and you're all by yourself watching the world. Sticking to noise and shoegaze roots, perfectly complemented by Irish folk, they once again nail it out of the park.

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