The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - The Academic

Irish music is on a bit of a tear at the minute, what with Hozier going global, Kodaline finding fame and fortune, The Strypes kicking arse and taking names, old favorites Ash releasing a new album and now these newcomers The Academic and their meteoric rise. Different (March’15) is an indie rock love song. What elevates it above the norm is the passion in it. There’s no tongue in cheek or sly winks to the audience. No overwrought love for all in the world manifest in cheesy generalizations, bubbly pop, handclaps and choral choruses.

 

 

No. Different has a singleness of purpose both in music and lyric. “I want you, I know that you’re different”. It’s passionate. It’s personal. By the second verse the girl’s clothes are off and that’s as good a metaphor as any to this tunes direct approach. Barely pausing to toss off “Ah hah hahs” this is a tune where the band goes straight for the heart just like the protagonist. Similarities to northern English bands exist but in truth the best thing about The Academic is they are rousingly unique. No messing about, Different is one of the best indie songs of 2015.

“There’s a hurricane of roses on my back”

 

The Academic are an Irish band from Mullingar, a small town in Ireland. They started making music to love in 2013. Different is the debut single off their first EP of the same name (April’15).

Shit you need to know:

Of the song Different this chap said it’s “…a short and snappy hook-laden pop rock song with a chorus that has “future festival anthem” written all over it.”

I'll be buggered if I know what their influences are but they might not hate Bruce Springsteen.

The band have been compared to Kings of Leon. Other comparisons include Catfish and the Bottlemen, The 1975 and Kodaline.

The band have opened for The Pixies and Twenty One Pilots.

Their home town Mullingar is famous for the local music venue The Stables and as the home of One Direction band member Niall Horan.

The Academic do a ‘fuck yeah it’s better’ cover of Taylor Swift Style.

The music press and the music industry are very excited about the bands future, flying lots of labels reps to their gigs and signing them to an international publishing company.

More great The Academic songs are Bear Claws, Girlfriend and Forrest.

 

Sloppy seconds is reserved for Welsh alternative rockers The Alarm and this piece of passionate gold, the live recording of Rescue Me (1987).

About 6.10 for the singalong and all in, it's of religious quality.

“The people tonight are the future of rock n roll”