Back To Winnipeg
★ ‘Rising stars of the Irish music scene’ - Hot Press ★
Galway 4-piece Back to Winnipeg are set to release their debut album ‘Apartment Living’ on November 21st
BACK TO WINNIPEG RELEASE ‘APARTMENT LIVING’
Fresh on the heels of their latest two singles ‘Outrunning’, and ‘Oranges’, Back to Winnipeg’s debut album ‘Apartment Living’ is set for release on November 21st.
‘Apartment Living’ is the culmination of two busy years for the fiercely independent Galway group, as they gigged and recorded extensively throughout. Taking a DIY approach to the recording process, the album is the result of various bedroom, living room, and kitchen recordings from the band’s apartment.
Initial demos were put down in 2023, and incrementally replaced by recordings and re-recordings as the songs were sharpened and adjusted in live sets. Guitarist Eoghan Barrett deputised as sound-engineer and producer in collaboration with drummer Donncha Adams.
With 90s cult figures Pavement as a touchstone, the album pulses with a lo-fi, indie rock heartbeat. In particular, tracks like ‘Fencing’ and ‘Oranges’ channel that chaos and groove, but this is a broad church of an LP.
‘A Way Out’ edges into a darker, grungy space and ‘Bodies Buried’ retains that bite, albeit in a more technical, math rock structure. Ballad ‘Alcohol’ and buzzsaw live anthem ‘Jeronimo’ convey Back to Winnipeg’s storytelling abilities, both sprawling and unravelling in their narratives, while preserving an earworm, melodic core.
Uncertainty, introspection, and escapism from the mundanity of everyday life are common themes throughout. Contrary to its lighthearted, playful aesthetic, Apartment Living tackles complex topics like existential angst, reliance on substances and the tumultuous nature of renting in Ireland.
‘Sound of Rain’ and closing track ‘Level 7’ are the best examples of this ability to look inwards. There is an infectious earnestness to Back to Winnipeg that informs the feeling of community at their live gigs. Apartment Living strives to capture it.
BACK TO WINNIPEG BIO
Forming in the summer of 2022, Back to Winnipeg made their live debut at Freehouse in Galway’s Áras na nGael. It began in front of a sellout crowd, with a support slot for cult heroes of the Irish indie scene, Oh Boland. An eclectic mix of players, Back to Winnipeg are Eoghan Barrett, Cian Moran, Liam Moran and Donncha Adams.
Influences range from veteran American rockers Pavement and Queens of the Stone Age, to the contemporary indie rock of Pillow Queens and Wet Leg. The common denominators for Back to Winnipeg are the vibrancy and dynamism that inform the group’s live show.
In recent years, the band has cemented itself as one of Galway’s must-see live acts. Back to Winnipeg pride themselves on a DIY approach. ‘Apartment Living’ is the product of various bedroom, living room, and kitchen studio recordings, with the final versions coming together under the guidance of guitarist Eoghan Barrett, deputising as an able sound engineer and producer, while the band practiced and gigged steadily throughout 2024.