Cork-based post-punk trio Ash Red release their debut album ‘The Foreign Game’ via Blowtorch Records, available on vinyl and streaming. Following the success of their STUPID EP, which charted on the UK Alternative Albums Charts, Ash Red continue to evolve their signature dark, bass-heavy post-punk sound with this full-length debut. Singles such as “DB Cooper” and “Friends?” have garnered significant traction on Spotify and other streaming platforms, signaling the arrival of a bold, confident statement. ‘The Foreign Game’ captures Ash Red at a peak of creative evolution, blending jagged post-punk riffs, brooding atmospherics, and expansive sonic textures with Albini-esque production that emphasizes raw, live energy while allowing dynamic variation between heavy and light moments on tracks like the intense “Island’s Edge” and the more delicate “Alone Again”.
The album’s closer and title track exemplifies the band’s central approach, exploring the main themes of what it means to be an outsider: the exile, isolated and lost. Using football as its frame, the album title draws on the history of Rule 27, which the GAA used to forbid its members from playing so-called foreign games until 1971. The band uses this as an analogy for the importance of being yourself. Since forming in 2019, Arthur Murray, Tadhg O’Keeffe, and Isaac Walsh have built a devoted following through relentless live performances across Ireland, including headline shows at The Workman’s Club in Dublin and supporting major acts such as Public Image Limited.