After last week’s column promising more music and such didn’t materialise, this week’s is a wee bit of a catch-up.
However – plug, plug, plug! – we’ll kick off by putting in a shout for our Cork launch on Saturday at the Crane Lane for the mag. Issue 5 of the mag (the cover pictured) features a full-length piece on the Altered Hours, from their beginnings and debut release ‘Downstream’, to their upcoming album and time in Berlin. We’ll also have an Inbound on Leeside multi-piece groove ensemble Shookrah, among so, so much more, and it’ll be available exclusively at the show. Headlining will be death-pop merchants The Vincent(s) ahead of another brace of dates, playing a load of new tunes from their upcoming album, and post-hardcore veterans Hope is Noise airing new tunes ahead of their won big year of releases, videos and other upcoming projects. Indie-pop lads Jonny Rep are supporting, yours truly will be spinning CDs inbetween sets (CDs!), and the Crane’s own inhouse DJs will be doing their eclectic selection of indie classics, punk rock, funk and soul. The whole thing is free, as is the mag, doors at 8.30, and kickoff is at 9. Get in and say hello! Now, on with the column…
Elsewhere in a ridiculously busy town this weekend, as covered the past few weeks (and possibly the best commentary on how far our scene has come recently): Meltybrains? and Kashkao take the Triskel TDC as part of the launch tour for the post-rock/electronic meisters’ debut 12″ single ‘Donegal/IV’, in a show presented by the Southern Hospitality Board. 9pm, and a tenner in… The Rory Gallagher proceedings over at Ziggy’s kick off with the Cobh Blues Club Band covering Rory and Taste classics. Free in, 7pm… Over at Fredz, a stacked bill of local heaviness brings together That Falling Feeling, Pethrophia, Here We Stand, Toxic Frost and Damagegrows. Free in at 9, and put on by a returning Playground of Dreamss… Meanwhile, over at Bradley’s, a titanic line-up including Hornets from the North, Pariso from London, Employed to Serve, and in their last show, sadly, Cork hardcore bruisers Harboured features courtesy of Pyre Pro. Fiver in, kickoff at 9. Fucking hell, what an evening…
Thursday the 12th (gulp) next week is another silly-busy night for the town, especially for the midweek: it’s good to see local gig auteur Hugh Rose wheel out his night Playground of Dreamss (the two ‘s’es are intentional) after a long break. The lad’s enthusiasm for helping build another platform for local music helped him throw on a string of shows in smaller venues around the city, and his fine fettle continues with an alt-rock/indie-themed night at the Roundy featuring indie-poppers Lost in Mexico, Spacecake, bluesy punkers Johnny Horne and singer-songwriter Colin Foley. ‘Tis free in… Meanwhile, over at quayside winery L’Atitude, folk hero Cormac O’Caoimh launches his ‘Man of Sand’ single, from his critically-acclaimed album ‘The Moon Loses Its Memory’. He’s been in phenomenal form, and from out of nowhere has come press and radio plaudits in accordance, from RTE, Mojo (!) and The Ticket. He’ll be doing a special show with rhythm section, and Thomas McSweeney in support. €8 in… And over at Fredz, incredibly-monikered German pop-punks City Kids Feel The Beat are kicking off their Irish tour with support from Wasted Space, Boy Versus Romeo and a reuniting Kickstart the Season from Dubland. Free entry and drinks deals…
Meanwhile, next Saturday, on the 14th, the Southern Hospitality Board continues a phenomenal run of shows with Dublin garage-poppers SISSY (pictured) headlining in the charming surrounds of Mother Jones’ Flea Market, off McCurtain St. The trio’s sound is influenced by Wire, Aupairs, Siouxsie, X, The Replacements and womens’ continued struggle against the patriarchy. For instance, ‘Sail and Rail’ is a sardonic song which trivialises Irish womens’ experience of abortion, in order to highlight its unjust reality. €6 tix from the flea market in advance, €7 on the night…
Now, I did promise a look in on radio and podcasting in the area a while back and have been blowing it off since, so hopefully this gets that particular ball rolling. Room101 is an online radio station based out of Camden Palace Hotel, which features a brace of original, first-run, specialist shows weekly, from a wide variety of local DJs and selectors, from yours truly spinning Cork tuneage on Mondays 8-10 with Rebelstream Radio, Indie Arena (Tuesday 8-10) with Antonia and Brodie, and Caffeinated Frequencies‘ punk and hardcore selection on Thursday nights to Studio Sessions‘ Saturday night selection of mixes from local electronic heads and a Sunday double-bill of Rock ‘n’ Brew (blues & craft beer) and Blashyrkh (black/death/thrash metal). To sum it up: it’s the only station in Cork that caters every single night of the week for dedicated music fans. Right now, the lads are getting ready for season three, with yet more shows that we’ll discuss here shortly, and as part of Fredz’ ridiculously packed Paddy’s weekend proceedings, Pyre Pro are tipping in with a fundraiser show to help with licensing costs. Black-metal Gaeilgeoiranna Corr Mhóna (who have just landed a slot on Zero Tolerance‘s cover CD!) are headlining, with support from seldom-seen West Cork metallers Sebek and Here We Stand, a city-based hardcore quartet who have stepped up to the mark since a recent line-up change. It’ll be a cracker of an evening for sure. Monday 16th, just in time for the pre-Paddy’s mayhem, and it’s a fiver in…
Meanwhile, the rest of the Fredz long weekender is looking like a bruiser: Friday the 13th features eight-man noise menace Kawtiks & guests, Saturday 14th features the second reappearance of the reunited El Bastardo & guests. While Sunday hasn’t filled up yet, it won’t be long, and after the Room101 fest on Monday, Tuesday Paddy’s night features a cheesy rawk DJ-set to make for the perfect post-The Darkness (at Cyprus Ave., sold out, btw) afterparty. This column will have more Patrick’s night previews next week…
Can we take a moment to marvel at how Cyprus Avenue has pulled together an amazing few months for spring 2015, please? Starting this Thursday, with radio-rawk silliness from Fozzy (featuring wrestling legend Chris Jericho, €20), and carrying on through March with Domino-signed psych-rockers All We Are (the 14th, €10) and experimental/collaborative trio Cloud Castle Lake (the 25th, €8). April sees alt-rock heroes Kerbdog come back to tour new live album congregation (Saturday 4th, €17.50), Kraut-inflected post-punks Spies visit Cork (Sunday 5th, €7), and psych-pop behemoths O Emperor launch new EP ‘Lizard’ (Thursday 9th, €12.50), while May sees tearjerker dancefloor credit-rollers Le Galaxie launching major-label debut album ‘Le Club’ (Sunday 3rd, tix onsale Friday), before a double-header of metal brings ethereal blackened shoegazers Alcest to town (Tues 5th, €20), followed by Romanian black-metallers Negura Bunget, with touring support from Agamendon and Northern Plague (Thurs 7th, €12.50). It’s bloody ridiculous, like…
Back to April 3rd. Good Friday sees the bauld lads from Terriers (pictured below) be total hunks and launch their new album ‘Let’s Hear It For The Boys!’ with a sneaky BYOB gig at the Cork Community Print Shop, with support from Hope is Noise and new band Chameleon Fields. It’s going to be great craic and, sure, what else would you be at? Doors 8pm, closed soon after. Tix are a tenner from PLUGD, but Big Al can’t keep hauld of ’em at the rate they’re shifting, so get in! We’ll be streaming the album in this column closer to the time too…
That’s it for another week, folks. If I’ve forgotten anything, or even worse, don’t seem to know about it, get at me: mike (at) thethinair (dot) net, find me on Facebook, and on Twitter (@mikemcgb). Accepting gig announcements, exhibition openings, cultural events, album/single/EP streams and anything else you can possibly think to put on here. If it’s going on in Cork, it’s got a place here…
