Sam GreenwoodThe Éire Wave duo Nixer pick up the pace from where they started the year off and deliver a 3-minute banger that addresses an issue we are all too familiar with in recent times, ‘Gentrification’, the title of their the fifth single.
Nixer began as a conversation online between two friends at the beginning of the global pandemic. What began as an ordinary catch-up back in April 2020, turned into something very exciting. Nixer are already five singles deep, and are forming a very distinct and unique sound that is grabbing the attention of many, despite being separated by the Irish Sea.
What started lyrically as a poem, written in a one-bed studio apartment in a relatively untouched area of London, turned into a song that is textbook Nixer. The meaning behind the track is drawn from the surroundings and comparisons to home and Dublin, where the issue of gentrification is impossible to avoid. An issue that is damaging culture across the board; forcing the closure of iconic music venues, resulting in unaffordable rental prices, and forcing young people to fly the nest to pursue their passion elsewhere; to name a few. The message in the fifth single offering from the duo is one of distaste and restlessness in a place they love dearly. Gentrification holds its heart on its sleeve, it yearns for a city full of life and culture to be left as it is.
As Gearoid Peggs of Nixer explains:
“When I first heard what Seán had done with the lyrics, vocals & guitar on top of the bass and drums I sent over, I couldn’t believe it. He managed to capture a feeling I’ve been trying to capture in my music for so long. The feeling I was on the 65 bus driving towards the city centre, but everything is sped up and I’m just looking out the window at everything that’s destroying Dublin, and what it has become. It’s very fitting because I think Seán pretty much captured exactly how I feel, without us ever discussing this idea I had for a song. It’s sad, living in a beautiful city that’s being destroyed by money grabbing developers…”
You can listen and watch ‘Gentrification’ via the Nixer YouTube channel, plus support the artist and purchase the release and their back catalogue here.