Maria Shiel
Gaillimh, Ireland | Established. Jan 01, 2012 | SELF
Music
Press
Just discovered this 5-track EP by Maria Shiel a few days ago, but I'm completely hooked on it. Opening track "Star" is a nice song, but it gets really special at the moment "Automatic Flow" takes off. The remaining songs are intense and beautiful. Haunting and special. Made for warm Summer days and cold Winter nights. Great for staring out into the ocean all day long and painting a ceiling by the dim light of a single light bulb. The acoustic instrumental in between make this album seem longer than it actually is and is the main reason this is best enjoyed on an endless repeat.
This is why I love music. - Plug In Baby
One of the most remarkable conventions of acoustic music is the deeply rooted sound that is often delivered in the most unconventional of ways. There is something powerful about connecting a rich, organic sound with elaborate storytelling and world experiences. In a modern renaissance of sorts, Dublin-based musician Maria Shiel who is also known as MS44 has intermingled a diverse selection of elements to administer a hypnotic dose of avant garde music. Her recent collaborations from ‘Dublin Home Sessions’ available on Soundcloud encompass earthy and folk influences from around the world combined with sprightly rock sounds, contemporary vibrations, electronic components, and entrancing vocals.
Delivered in a vibrant and youthful voice, Maria’s tracks will leave one to relish in the insightful messages of inspiration and thoughtful observations shared through her music. It is a joy to encounter the spirit-filled reverie of an artist through their very own creative lens. Her colorful journey is illustrated through textured layers of sound that span across the ages, often transcending genre-specific time periods. The songs venture through a wide scope of emotions that range from light-hearted and enthusiastic to dark and pensive, feelings that everyone can relate to at some point along their path to enlightenment. It is certainly wonderful to know that artists like Maria Shiel are not afraid to dig just a little bit deeper to bring reality front and center.
The collaboration is packed with surprising twists on otherwise traditional genres, revamping the styles with tech-savvy production and unconventional engineering. A zealous endeavor for almost any artist, the tracks take a novel approach in merging folk and tribal influences with seductive Latin rhythms and contemporary pop styles. This is the type of work that exemplifies the plight of an indie artist and their innate ability to tap into their innermost feelings and communicate them to the world through music. - Soundcloud Reviews
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
MARIA SHIEL – Galway, Ireland – In the late 1990’s she
established Irish and American roots/hip-hop group Guava in
Galway, Ireland and after local success went on to release and tour
nationally sharing stages with Damien Rice and Glen Hansard of the
Frames. They held a local residency at the famed Roisin Dubh live venue and recorded for the RTE 2FM Dave Fanning Sessions receiving national airplay. In 2011 Maria set up her own label KYO Records in
order to specifically promote musical collaboration of any genre of music globally. She has since gone on to work with musicians from as far afield as China, Russia and Australia and has had releases with dutch label Atmomatix and has had an EP produced by Berlin artist Eomac (https://www.facebook.com/eomac) as electronic artist MS44 (www.soundcloud.com/ms44). Her
love of songwriting and performing in the US though go hand in hand
has played several times across the States such as CBGB’s, NY, an EP release at the Starry Plough, Berkeley, and most recently Austin, Texas at the Dripping Springs Festival. See for further live dates here: www.ms44music.com
Band Members
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