Kavalier is an alternative four-piece band based in Kilkeel, Co. Down consisting of members Ryan O’ Neill(Guitar/Vocals), Tommy Rice (Guitar), James Burns (Bass) and Mark Mc Donald (Drums). Their formation was brought about in the winter of 2015, evoked by a desire to relieve boredom while simultaneously combating the cold winter climate. The loft space of an old, post-war knitting factory would later become the bands headquarters. Quickly they began to hone in on a sound that concluded the band had potential to develop beyond a means of alleviating winter boredom. As winter turned to spring and into the summer, the band had narrowed down their newly written material to 3 songs. These select tracks would later be recorded and compiled into their debut EP ‘Songs For Walter’. This year the band had the chance to play at Electric Picnic after being chosen as one of eleven acts to play the “Play The Picnic Stage” Courtesy of RTE 2FM.
‘Songs For Walter’ is a three track treasure box overflowing with luscious melodies, calming tones and some shredding instrumentation. The delicately beautiful ‘Wake Up’ kicks off the EP with sweet gentle tones ready to lull you into an elegant state of bliss. Warm ethereal guitar melodies jingle across a soft creamy soundscape. The cushioned bounce on drums and bass give a divine feathery light texture to this sublime track. The sharp injections on guitar and shredding solo pierce the calm track with a zesty sting adding acute spurts of brightness. ‘Stop, Rewind’ follows continuing with a supple tone, but this time the four-piece add a little more grit to the creamy flow of the EP. The stop start jumps give a jitter to the track while winding guitar melodies weave playfully throughout. Another delicate mind easing song that is oh so easy and delightful to listen to. ‘Drop 65’, the final track on the EP shows us the heavier gritty side to Kavalier. It’s swagger soaked attitude driven and darker. The guitars take a rough rugged approach with a choppy fuzzed aggressive element. The drums pound while the bass rumbles creating a meatier more rock infused track.
Kavalier ‘Songs For Walter’ EP displays their knack for beautiful organic melodies, slick intricate guitar work and sophisticated musicianship. It’s a tight EP that place’s these guys firmly in the ones to watch list.
Stream ‘Songs For Walter’ below
blasts out some shredding riffs. Their infectious rhythm and slick display for ‘I Don’t Know Why I Do It’ has the crowd fluctuating between grooving and moshing. The tracks are anthemic the guitars frantic and blistering and that rhythm – nimble gritty and snappy. They are compelling to watch delivering a full bodied dynamic set that leaves you craving more. They close their set with the fantastic ‘Thoughts Of You’, now this track was my favourite its intense dark and explosive all at once. It’s one to just go mad to and a fantastic mouth-watering way to end their set.
melodies its quite the deadly cocktail. The crowd loved it heavily moshing and just plain going crazy to every track. The last track sees Oisin jump into the crowd while bassist Joey (who is preforming his last show with the band) smashes his bass off the stage. The crowd swarmed on the stage to gather the remaining pieces of his guitar until nothing was left even a small splinter that was overlooked was swiftly snapped up by an audience member. They removed every trace of his guitar. Thumper’s set ignited the crowd turning the mosh pit into a blur of flailing limbs and tumbling bodies with their speed-riffing tunes.
when he does he takes on his frontman role zealously. He wastes no time in jumping into the crowd singing and playing in the middle of them. Appearing more comfortable on stage and learning a few new tricks they are adding swagger to their list of qualities. Their set is as fierce and dynamic as ever but there is a change from the first time we saw them a new confidence and slick panache with some stage help at the ready to keep things running smoothly. Kevin Keane and Dara Coleman control the audience like puppeteers by keeping a steady pounding skull bashing flexible rhythm which pummels through the audience making them head bang frantically. With his boyish smile lurking amidst the shadows King takes a sip of water from a cup with flashing lights on it saying “this is what all the strobe warnings were for” before an electric rendition of ‘Bad Words’. The crowd bellow back the lyrics to each track fist pumping the air and soaking up the trio’s dense brand of garage rock. They dedicate ‘Lightning’ to Kings younger brother who is in hospital, live this track displays the bands firm grip
on hooks and melody. They slice through with sharp guitars and strangle you with a melodic ecstasy that hooks you in with its sugar-coated buzz. ’Loner’ is announced to cheers and whoops, it’s raw unadulterated and unfiltered bliss. Naturally crowd surfing happened as King was lifted above the heads of their adoring fans while confetti fell at the end of ‘Bullet Head’. The band returned for an encore with a shredding dark eerie cover of ‘Suspicious Mind’.
layers it’s slick, suave and gritty in all the right places. Their bassist Niall Donnelly exuberantly bounces and hops complete with dramatic poses and playful interactions with drummer Sam Russell which makes for an entertaining performance. Their sound translates sublimely live from shrilling distortion and skull pounding mosh ready frenzy to oh so cool and chilled groovy moments. Their disco flavoured grunge is infectious, it’s foot tapping body movingly delicious. Zac Stephenson’s vocals add a raspy gritty texture that shakes up their luscious sound. With catchy tracks like ‘Hunter Gatherer Blues’ and ‘7am’ on their set list it’s a feverishly danceable set. Your mind might refuse to dance but your body will succumb. ‘Just Can’t Quit’ lets Stephenson’s vocals shine. It’s a slow burner and insanely melodic and passionate, letting MUNKY display a more serious side to their repertoire. It becomes quickly apparent just how talented this four piece are. When you can get the whole room to sing along with you, you know your doing well. Usually it is an “oh ohh” or “woohoo” lyric or something but this quartet got us all singing “We don’t wanna talk about it we just wanna get f*cked” and why not it was catchy. Their guitar licks and riffs were divine and blissfully sharp while the 
baseline elastically slapped rumbled and grooved nimbly. It was a thrilling set exuding fiery passion pounding drums and expressive vocals. So much energy and dynamism with glorious melodies and rich textures poured from these guys along with a few splashes of sweat. The girls left for the final track ‘Bastered Luck’. MUNKY grooved through a sultry smoky rendition of the track. It’s a heavy dark intense chilling end to their set. These guys sent funky disco rock shock-waves around the venue. It was memorable for sure.
their songs. Each track as energetic and intense as the next. Through their nostalgic melancholic melodies they possess an ability to captivate the listener enthralled in the swirling synth and guitar arrangement. Each band members expression and interaction with one another and the crowd adds another dimension from Greg Whelan’s smiley banter to Cashell’s brave jump into the crowd. Adam McCabe’s rapid tireless drumming resounded throughout as his floppy hair joyously kept time. It’s the fiery explosive ‘Disciples’ that truly ignites their set and gets both the band and the audience hyped as the crowd mosh to the heavy chorus. The hollow woodblock knock between the beats for ‘Inferno’ is just mesmerising. The crowd cheer once it starts as they begin to shimmy and dance to its infectious pulse. It’s almost hypnotic. 
‘Waiting Up’ lured in the cheering crowd with its anthemic elevated chorus that most bands could only dream of before the single that called everyone to Whelan’s that night… ‘Indigo’ was played. An immensely powerful performance of ‘Indigo’ proves the vibrant intense power of this band. It’s an energetic mammoth that leaves the crowd thirsty for more as they call for “one more tune!”. Brass Phantoms’ live performance was precisely what the majority of their songs are: vibrant, passionate, punchy and impossible not to enjoy.
