Sweeping, expansive music from talented Belfast duo Exmagician

Exmagician will play a concert in Galway City this Saturday, February 4, when they come to the Loft on Bridge Street.

The band is made up of Belfast duo Danny Todd and James Smith, both of whom were members of Cashier No 9. That band’s one and only album, To the Death of Fun, is one of the finest Irish albums of the past decade. It was recorded in Laurel Canyon, California, and produced by David Holmes, the Belfast DJ who went on to oversee the soundtrack of Oceans Eleven. To the Death of Fun  was a lush, layered album which rewarded repeated listens. Unfortunately, it didn’t get the public response it deserved, and Cashier No 9 called it a day.

Undeterred, Danny and James kept making music and Exmagician signed up to the prestigious Bella Union label, releasing their debut, Scan the Blue, last year. Danny’s voice is recognisable from Cashier No 9, and the music ambles along in a similarly laidback way, but Exmagician’s sound is a bit grittier.

This album was produced by Rocky O’Reilly, who has previously worked with the excellent And So I Watch You From Afar. The influence of David Holmes remains, too.

“David lent me a Korg MS-20 and then I bought one myself. That synth shaped a lot of the record,” Danny says.

Exmagician, making sweeping, expansive music and are a band to keep your eyes and ear on.

■ Doors at 9pm, tickets €12.