In 2006, Joe was nominated for Best Irish Male in the Meteor Irish Music Awards, and A Murder of Crows was shortlisted as one of the Irish albums of the year in The Choice Music Prize.
Reviews
The Tiny Pieces Left Behind
"The good news: Joe Chester has followed-up 2005's acclaimed debut, A Murder of Crows with a humdinger of a second album. i am reminded of John Lennon and Neil Young. It's that good. The Tiny Pieces Left Behind is a great album." - Adrienne Murphy, Hot Press.
"The Tiny Pieces Left Behind boasts the slick shimmer of a man with a fertile sonic knowledge. Impressive opener "Maybe This is not Love" is a synth-gilded and virile beauty, while the more understated, "The Bodies Start to Move" is both butter-smooth and bewilderingly addictive. Aided ably by drummer Binzer, as well as vocalists Ann Scott and Gemma Hayes, Chester's latest work is crammed with sweetly-simplistic, robust pop-rock gems. In all, The Tiny Pieces Left Behind is a delight that should propel Chester towards his rightful spot at the upper echelons of our musical food chain. - Tanya Sweeney, State Magazine.
"The devil is in the details. Rarely has that adage been more apt than in the case of Joe Chester, whose second album is packed with small moments that add up to big things. He knows his way around a good tune, and this album is full of them." - Irish Independent
"Fantastic melodies – check. Perfectly pitched harmonies – check. Emotionally wrought lyrics – check. The new Joe Chester opus? Check. Joe's back and he's turned everything up a notch on this, his second album. He might claim on Flourescent Light "You know I always like the darker side of things" but here he burns bright and on tracks like To Hold Onto Melting Love, beautiful moments fly to him like moths to a flame." - The Event Guide
"Connected to the thumping indie-pop heart at the centre of this opus are veins of bittersweet twists, electro influenced turns, and gratifying avenues. Everything breathes as one fully operational unit, yet when it is broken down individually, it has parts that could be just as compelling on their own. This is clear on tracks such as To Hold Onto Melting Love, Long Distance Friend and The Right Place." - Gareth Maher, Totally Dublin.
A Murder of Crows
Its the perfect pop record. Negative feelings, like love lost and relationship break-ups are twisted and shaped into something altogether more encouraging. Theres no room for mellow tracks of acoustic guitars and weepy vocals. Chester is much more constructive and resourceful in taking his beautifully simple songs and using his extensive production knowledge to carefully construct around them. You will be lucky to hear anything more affecting all year . A Murder of Crows is an absolute joy. Every home should have one. - Hot Press Magazine
A refreshingly accomplished debut - In Dublin Magazine
A shimmeringly lovely alt-pop affair. There are shades of Ron Sexsmith in the songwriting structures, but ultimately this record is all Chester's own, coming on as original, textured and striking. - Nadine O'Regan, The Sunday Business Post
A modern alternative pop gem, the album boasts intelligent song writing, sparkling melodies and a burning if somewhat humble confidence in its own abilities. - Jim Carroll, The Irish Times
A Murder of Crows possesses everything a good pop record should have; melodies, hooks, harmonies, attitude, confidence, simplicity, coherence and universal appeal. - Totally Dublin Magazine
My tip for the top remains, as it has been, Joe Chester. His album is, without doubt, a joy to behold. Its perfect pop, one of the best albums I ever had sent into the show. A treasure! - Tom Dunne, Today Fm.
The title track and A Safe Place to Hide (which features Gemma Hayes) are the sort of perfect concoctions that the countrys slew of singer-songwriters can only dream of emulating. A Murder of Crows really feels like a labour of love and is heartily recommended. - The Irish Independent.
With his debut solo album, A Murder of Crows, Joe Chester shows something of a divine sense of melody and a staunchly religious approach to song writing. Chester shows the kind of song writing smarts that bode well for his future royalty cheques; songs such as A Drop of Rain, Pain, Relieve, How You Wish, You Feel and I Always Think Youre Leaving Me have sumptuous yet simple arrangements and leave a trail of resignation and regret in their wake. Even a cover, Fleetwood Macs Bleed to Love Her is fully Chester-ised in a sublime wash of pop nous and rock charm. A record so good its downright criminal. - Tony Clayton-Lea, The Irish Times
Hi Joe, how’s it going? I've been working hard on a new
website & video blog for the past few months & my new website
is now online at.. I also video'd this guitar instrumental to celebrate the Equinox..
I hope you enjoy the video & that you get a chance to visit my new
website. I also hope you are keeping well & life is good.. Denis
:)
Hi Joe! I am honord to part of your friend circle. I love your songs and style. I hope you got a chance to listen to mine! Much respect to you! Kathleen
The Annesley House North Strand (Fairview) Dublin 3
The Hootenanny Launch Gig
2 Stages 7 Acts
Collaborations on the night from…
Matthew Devereux (from The Pale) Keiron Black (from The Amazing Few) Wally Page Stephen and Tony Boylan Mick Duffy and Niall O’ Shea Alan and Breda Trimble Q and more…
Kicks off at 8.30pm Admission: 5 Euro
Everyones welcome along-it's gonna be a great nite full of fun+frolicks, so come along+join us for lots of Hootenanny Maddness!!! Emma, Q and Co. at The Qube Studio:)
Happy Bealtaine to you all my Friends.. As a Gift to you on this season of new Growth & the coming of Summer I have set all my songs on my ReverbNation Player to Download so if you like my songs then you can have them for FREE!! (The player is on my MySpace page also) All I ask in return is that if you do like my songs then please leave a comment on my page.. Thank you & Bless you all!! Denis.. :)
Hello Joe, how are you? thank you so much for the add! I hope all is well... have a nice day.. with a lot of wonderful moments.. (I’m singing lisa hannigans “sea song” in this video, i hope you’ll like it)
Ah Geoffs, have had a few coffees there alright! Played the 'ol Electric Avenue there saturday with Mick Flannery, good craic. yer a busy bee aren't ya! fair play, you touring with the mundster too? g
Online Now!
