Ireland’s highly acclaimed Side 4 Collective – release sublime new sophomore album ‘When We Were Still’ ft. a host of Irish artists.

Spearheaded by internationally renowned Irish drummer Dave Hingerty, Side 4 Collective brings an eclectic array of Irish and international artists together, sculpting songs from scratch using Hingerty’s pre-written melodic and primal drum patterns.

This sophomore album by Side 4 Collective was written during the Pandemic. There are 13 songs which include themes of loneliness, domestic abuse, reflection, physical deterioration, escapism , boredom, and of the disconnection we felt. The necessity to pause our lives, be still, and face ourselves. We all still wear the scar of the time and are only starting to talk about it now. We buried it on the most part, complicated by a new moral conflict that existed even within families, and best friends falling out over the approach of an over-enthusiastic pharmaceutical industry. In the world today I think we are now seeing some madness around the world that was spawned from that awful time. Personally, I’m glad to be still alive because I ended up so ill an ambulance had to be called. They wouldn’t take me to hospital because ‘I was too sick’. Also, my marriage broke up. I feel a continuing disconnect with family and friends which still exists today because of that time. We were affected in so many ways and thankfully were able to express it through song or art in this case. But the conversation is coming back. This record deals with so many of the themes of the time and might even help people heal a little … or help them to reflect on some of the peace and serenity they might have also had or a sea change that carried them on a wave. Most of these recordings were done under the restrictions of Covid, and when time allowed, masked artists came to the studio to finish tracking, others recorded remotely and did some file sharing. I’m deeply indebted to their honesty perseverance and courage. Courageous music makers on so many levels. The difficulty of writing to pre-prescribed beats, the honesty of emotion they poured into their songs, and risking their health to finish their art. The drumbeats were, like the first record, recorded in Audioland Studios with my friend Anthony Gibney. They were based on my phone recordings from my practice or soundchecks and rehearsals. Little rhythmic sketches or seeds that have become art that we can all be proud of.

Inpact Single – ‘First’

‘First’ – in a way this song perfectly encapsulates the Side 4 project . Both in its unique songwriting process and also as a representation of how covid affected us as recording musicians. A songwriter ( Hothouse Flowers’ Peter O Toole), received a folder of grooves online, picked one and recorded a song about ‘ first’ experiences, to this odd time ‘jilted’ rhythm. Max Greenwood then added some beautiful piano runs and arranged to meet another Hothouse Flower, Liam O Maonlaí up in the Dublin Mountains with a mic and a laptop and recorded Liam improvising melodies and lyrics to the recording as it built momentum. Lastly, the hugely talented Claire Sands added viola and cello to bring urgency and passion to the composition. Dave Hingerty and Anthony Gibney brought all of these shared files into Audioland Studios , sporting masks and gloves , and Dave added a low Moog bass line and an extra drum groove to try to give this song a kind of Radiohead hypnotic feel. The song concludes with a drum solo to bring it to a climax.’