Silk

Silk is the new project from the now defunct Virgins guitarist/songwriter, Michael Smyth, with Michael as the sole contributor in Silk, he is responsible for the writing, performing and recording of the music. For live performances Michael has a full band to bring the tracks to life. The result is a sound defined by swathes of dreamy distortion juxtaposed against beautiful shimmering passages while Michael's vocals are treated as a texture amongst the emotive soundscape. This creates a wall of sound for the listener to bathe in, equal parts heavy as it is floaty and ethereal.

The impetus for the project is described by Michael, “I constantly feel like I am rushing towards the inevitable infinite oblivion. Further exacerbated by the marking of years spent circling the sun. To that end, it’s important that I fill the time remaining with joyous, creative acts. The sharing of ideas is an essential part of that, which brings us to Silk.”

Having spent 2025 releasing three highly successful singles and touring Ireland, including festival appearances at GazeFest supporting Whitelands and Sweet Sweet Noise. In March 2026 Silk announced the release of their highly anticipated mini-album ‘Auralux’. Michael says, ‘There is no beauty in perfection, it feels fake and manufactured to me. I want the record to feel real, so this is the sound of visceral self-expression. Lead single of the album ‘Clementine’ released earlier this year, which found Silk push into darker and more abrasive territory, leaning hard into texture and density. ‘Auralux’ covers a wide range of sonic territory over its 6 tracks; celestial and euphoric guitars dove tail with impossibly thick crushing fuzz, while cascading reverse reverbs melt into one another. Lyrically the mini-album moves between themes of mortality, memory, loss, love and time. Auralux is catharsis via volume and reverb.

‘Auralux’, is released May 7th by Blowtorch Records (IRE/vinyl) and Shoredive Records (UK/CD) and will see the band embark on extensive Irish and UK tour dates, as well as an appearance at GazeFest and EU dates in early 2027.