• Music Cork 2017

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    A new, three-day event with the aim of “creating a unique opportunity in Ireland to listen to the best industry professionals talk about their work and experiences, see the best new talent perform and enjoy plenty of opportunities to network with speakers and delegates over 3 days of intimate social gatherings and shows, all in the most fun and friendly city in Ireland” Music Cork will hit Leeside this May 10-12. With more yet to be announced, speakers including United Talent Agency UK’s Head of Music Geoff Meall, Leighton Pope agent Sarah Casey, Decca Records’ Rebecca Allen, artist manager Ricardo…

  • Premiere: Milky Teeth – Sleepiness and Weary Wit

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    Currently on some downtime from Cork’s The Shaker Hymn and John Blek & The Rats, lead guitarist and vocalist Robbie Barron has been busy writing and recording his own material under the solo moniker Milky Teeth. Conjuring the likes of his main influence in The Beatles, as well as Ed Harcourt, Elliott Smith circa XO/Figure 8, Friendly Fire-era Sean Lennon and Jon Brion, debut single ‘Sleepiness and Weary Wit’  is a first-rate slice of woozy throwback-pop, propelled by hooks, harmonies and a stellar full-band production. With a full-length album primed for release, have a first look and listen to the single.  

  • Pre-Tour Preamble: Vasa & Body Hound

    February 7, 2017 - By 

    Given our island’s reputation, in what now seems to be acknowledged as ‘the days of yore’, for independently successful rock bands of math and post-prefixed inclinations, it makes sense that mainland acts would flex their considerable muscles on our shores. Our so-called ‘island tax’ often extends to a limitation on shows from any less than stadium-ready musical artists and their ilk, but there’s a growing number of thoughtful and decent promoters out there working in synchronicity – many of whom we hope to feature in coming months – with the likes of Belfast’s Solid Choice Industries, Galway’s FEAST, Dublin’s Venture Presents joining forces, uniting the corners of…

  • Pixies, alt-J and More Set For Inaugural Trinity College Park Summer Series

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    With the Irish summer festival calendar already bursting at the proverbial seams, Trinity College Park have announced a new summer series featuring headliners The Pixies, alt-J, Gregory Porter, Two Door Cinema Club, Bell X1 and James Vincent McMorrow.  Set to run from Thursday, July 6 to Tuesday, July 11, tickets for the shows – priced €44.05 incl. for Porter, TDCC, JVMM and Bell X1 and €54.65 for Pixies and alt-J – go on sale this Friday at 9am.

  • Aphex Twin Set For Forbidden Fruit

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    Set to return for its seventh installment on the June Bank Holiday Weekend (June 3-5), it’s been revealed that  Richard D James will headline the Sunday night of this year’s Forbidden Fruit festival in Dublin. With Orbital headlining the Saturday, Bon Iver topping the bill on Monday night and Flying Lotus, Lisa Hannigan, The Staves, Gordi and Paul Thomas Saunders amongst the acts for set for the Monday installment, it’s shaping up to be the strongest Forbidden Fruit line-up to date. Tickets can be bought here priced €145.50 for a 3-day weekend ticket.

  • Plastik Festival 2017 Launch

    February 9, 2017 - By 

    Returning this March is the biennial Plastik Festival. The weekend long festival was created in a collaboration with London’s LUX art agency, and is presented in partnership with Tempe Bar Gallery + Studios, the IFI and Dun Laoghaire’s iadt. 2015’s edition saw screenings, discussions and exhibitions in Cork, Galway and Dublin and featured a range of artists including Gerard Byrne and Sarah Pierce. 2017’s edition has already seen the announcement of Hilary Lloyd’s new show Woodall in Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, with the show’s opening also doubling as the launch of the festival’s full schedule. Opening tomorrow Friday at 5pm be sure to catch this…

  • Susan MacWilliams @ Highlanes Gallery

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    Opening this Saturday, February 18th, in Drogheda’s Highlanes Gallery is Modern Experiments – a look at the work of one of Ireland’s most intriguing and beguiling artists: Susan MacWilliams. The exhibition features work from MacWilliams’ extensive back catalogue, with focus on her output since 1998 when she began to use video as a medium. The show is a cross-border collaboration between both the Republic and Northern Arts Councils, which saw the show open in F.E. McWilliam Gallery & Studio prior to Christmas, before been shown here in Highlanes, and then moving onto Uilinn in Cork and Butler Gallery in Kilkenny. You can…

  • Stream: Rory Nellis – Casual Discrimination

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    Taken from his forthcoming second album, There Are Enough Songs In The World, ‘Casual Discrimination’ by Belfast singer-songwriter Rory Nellis is a song that wields subtlety like a scythe. With its wonderfully-woven alt-folk brood summoning the likes of Department of Eagles and Grizzly Bear, it’s a very timely song that tackles racism and discrimination with a poise, lyrical finesse and extraordinary harmonic command that we’ve found sets Nellis apart from many of his tale-telling peers. Having already released two singles from There Are Enough Songs In The World (which is set for release on Saturday, November 11) ‘Casual Discrimination’ is the third and latest…

  • Personae @ Butler Gallery

    February 18, 2017 - By 

    Established in 1943, and growing ever since through a combination of purchases, loans and gifts, the Butler Gallery’s permanent collection is both a broad and varied collation of artistic mediums. This year’s collection presentation is entitled Personae and features pieces on loan from the permanent collection at IMMA, with works by Diane Arbus, Louise Bourgeois, Jackie Nickerson and Thomas Ruff. As well as the artwork on display, the show also features the gallery’s on-going collaboration with Arts & Disability Ireland: Discovery Pens. A wonderful initiative that sees audio descriptive pens provided to visitors in order to allow all, regardless of sight, to engage with…

  • Fairport Convention @ Black Box, Belfast

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    Who knows where the time goes? For Fairport Convention, celebrating its fiftieth anniversary in 2017, and for its legion of fans, Sandy Denny’s song and lyric from Fairport Convention’s 1969 album Unhalfbricking has never been more poignant, or indeed, more haunting. Where indeed? Fairport has played just about every town, city and village the length of breadth of mainland UK since its first concert in 1967, but jaunts to this part of the world have been fairly rare, with this being Fairport’s first Belfast gig since 2010. All the more reason then for celebration. Fittingly, this afternoon’s matinee gig and…