Maicín

Proud Corkonians, Maicín are a five-piece pop sensation making what they like to call “Channel-Surf Rock”: a flickering eclectic blend of jangle pop, folk, new wave, and even boogie woogie. Imagine the love child of Neutral Milk Hotel and Prefab Sprout. Now get your head out of the gutter and imagine Maicín.

Maicín began as a creative escape for songwriter Matt Hurley and drummer Aidan Kelleher, two young bucks worn down by London life. What started as weekly jams to escape the mundanity of corporate life quickly became a fully fledged band. Well not quite “fully fledged”. Upon returning to Ireland, the band was completed by a mix of childhood friends and family: Darragh McNamara (bass), Méabh Fitzgerald (keys), and Ryan Daly (lead guitar).

Working with producer Oli Deakin (CMAT, Elanor Moss, Swimming Bell), the band are confidently creating a sound that is entirely their own. Equal parts angular and lush, with distorted guitars and omnichord living in precarious harmony with lap steel and harmonica. It shouldn’t work but it really does.

Their rise has been fast. In 2025, Maicín won both the UCC Battle of the Bands and the Intervarsity Battle of the Bands, marking them as one of Ireland’s most exciting new acts.

That same year, they toured the UK with Amble, stepping onto legendary stages such as Barrowland Ballroom, Shepherd’s Bush Empire and Manchester's Albert Hall. At home, they’ve played Cork City Hall, Cyprus Avenue, Coughlan’s, Roisín Dubh and The Academy (supporting Cliffords).

Their singles Find Somebody New, It Is What It Is, and One Channel Television have each passed 10,000 streams on Spotify, while standout track Che Guevara has crossed 20,000.

Hurley’s songwriting ties the band’s erratic and expansive arrangements into a cohesive package fit for the consumer… I mean the individual listener. Hurley writes about the everyday experience whether that be spiralling thoughts of dread, the plight of office life or even just the sub-par stout of the UK.

For Maicín, the band is where meaning and mischief meet. They take it very seriously… sometimes.