• Ten to Catch at Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival 2017

    April 24, 2017 - By 

    Set to take over the quarter from April 27 to May 7, Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival returns from April 27 to May 7 with yet another exceptional programme of art, music, theatre, literature and ideas. And whilst it’s tricky even whittling it down to three times the amount, here’s our outright 10 must-see, must-attend, must-recommend-to-all-of-your-friends recommendations for this years festival. Don’t forget those tickets, you hear? William Basinski Friday, May 5 – The Black Box – 20.00 Our absolute highlight? NYC avant-garde master William Basinski (pictured above) at the Black Box. Profoundly unmissable. Discover/re-visit the extraordinary The Disintegration Loops below.…

  • More Acts Announced for Body & Soul

    April 20, 2017 - By 

    A host of new acts have been added to the bill of this year’s Body & Soul ahead of its return to Ballinlough Castle in Co. Westmeath across June 23-25. As well as Australia’s RÜFÜS, Lyra and Patrick O’Laoghaire’s I Have a Tribe are amongst the latest acts added. Deep in the woodland, Ryan Vail (pictured), Auxiliary Phoenix Trio, Dowth, PrYmary Colours and Wastefellow will play the Pagoda Stage. Elsewhere, B&S’s favourite party arena Reckless In Love will feature Byron Yeates, Automatic Tasty, Breen, Cáit, Eoin Ryan, Homebeat DJs, Lumo, DIP DJs, Major Problems DJs, Neil Flynn (Lossless), Bantum, ELLLL and John Daly…

  • Another Love Story Reveal Initial Line-Up

    April 12, 2017 - By 

    Easily our favourite small Irish summer festival, Another Love Story returns to the sublime Killyon Manor in Co. Meath from Friday August 18 to Sunday, August 20. With more acts set to unveiled, organisers Happenings and Homebeat have revealed their initial line-up of live acts and DJs including Katie Kim, Overhead The Albatross, JFDR, This Is How We Fly, I Am The Cosmos, Bantum, ELLLL (pictured), The Another Love Story Soundsystem, Bodytonic DJS, The Thin Air DJs, a very special guest and much more. Here’s the initial line-up in full: Due to unprecedented early demand, the festival is current on its last tier of…

  • Festival Mixtape: Body & Soul 2017

    April 11, 2017 - By 

    We say it pretty much every year but the line-up for this year’s Body & Soul is a thing of beauty. Returning to Clonmellon, Co. Westmeath across June 23-25, the festival will host everyone from Sleaford Mods, Austra and Metronomy to Mykki Blanco, Songhoy Blues and The Moonlandingz. With organisers opting, as ever, for sheer quality over any notion of genre-specific necessity, we’re looking forward to joining the thousands who’ll descend upon Ballinlough Castle this Summer Solstice Weekend. But first? Here’s our annual Body & Soul Festival Mixtape, featuring twenty acts we won’t be missing for anything.

  • Moira Calling Reveal Main Stage Acts

    April 6, 2017 - By 

    Arguably Northern Ireland’s most promising new small festival outside of Belfast, Moira Calling have unveiled the acts set to the play the Main Stage when it returns for its second outing later this year. Taking place in the the Co. Armagh village across September 8-9, Eliza and the Bear, Flyte, Emerald Armada, Girls Names (pictured), Stomptown Brass, Brand New Friend and Franklyn will all appear at the Main Stage on the 9th. Organiser Jillian Marsden of promoters Brown Lemonade said, “Last year when we started this we could never have imagined being here a year later, with a full-blown music festival and a host of…

  • Distorted Perspectives 2017

    April 6, 2017 - By 

    Right up there with our favourite small Irish festivals, Distorted Perspectives – easily the country’s leading bastion of contemporary sound, psych and avant-garde art – will return to Letterkenny’s Regional Culture Centre across April 28-29. Now entering its fourth year, it will host Will Carruthers (Spacemen 3/Spiritualized), K-X-P, Hannah Peel (pictured), exmagician, Robocobra Quartet, SlowPlaceLikeHome, Tuath, Scenery, The Gatefolds, Aul Boy, The Barbiturates and Free Acid Sunshine across the two days. As well as said sonic feast, there will be a host of DJ sets from the likes of Turn It On, Chromaticism and Art for Blind records, as well as free screen-printing workshops courtesy of…

  • Body & Soul Reveal New Acts

    April 4, 2017 - By 

    In just over 11 weeks, Body & Soul will return to Ballinlough Castle for its annual three-day summer solstice festival. Having already announced the likes of Metronomy, Lambchop and Sleaford Mods, today the festival have revealed a host of new acts set to appear at the Co. Westmeath event across June 23-25. As well as genderqueer performer, activist and poet Mykki Blanco, Austra, The Moondlandingz, Sinkane, Æ Mak, Mario Batkovic, BARQ, Shookrah, Le Boom, Katie Laffan and Sing Along Social will also perform. Elsewhere, Reckless In Love, Homebeat and more will also join those taking care of things as proceedings edge into evening across the weekend. Check out…

  • The xx, A Tribe Called Quest, Interpol and More Set For Electric Picnic

    March 23, 2017 - By 

    Set to return to Stradbally Estate in Co. Laois across September 1-3, the first names set to play this year’s Electric Picnic have been announced. Including headliners The xx, A Tribe Called Quest and Duran Duran, Chaka Khan, Interpol (pictured), Run The Jewels, Father John Misty, Parquet Courts, Pond and Car Seat Headrest were all amongst the announced acts. With more names set to be revealed, check out the full first line-up below.

  • Sunflowerfest Announce First Wave of Acts

    March 20, 2017 - By 

    Perhaps more than most small Irish festivals of its ilk, the evolution of Sunflowerfest has been notable over the last couple of years. Set to return to Tubby’s Farm at Hillsborough from July 28-30, the first acts revealed to play this year’s outing only serves to confirm that fact. With the theme of A Parallel Universe, Rubberbandits (pictured), Farah Elle, Damola, Le Galaxie, Malojian, R51, OR:LA, Ryan Vail, King Kong Company, Electric Swing Circus, Too Many T’s, JIKA! JIKA!, Ponyhawke, Beans on Toast and Mr B. The Gentleman Rhymer are amongst the first names to be confirmed, with yet more to be…

  • Forbidden Fruit Reveal New Acts, Day-To-Day Breakdown

    March 15, 2017 - By 

    Featuring headliners Orbital, Aphex Twin and Bon Iver, as well as Moderat, Flying Lotus, Lisa Hannigan and many more, the day-to-day breakdown for this year’s Forbidden Fruit festival has been revealed. Set to return to Dublin’s Royal Kilmainham over the June Bank Holiday Weekend of June 3-5, Nicolas Jaar, Giggs, Danny L Harle, Peggy Gou, Hybrasil and Trinity Orchestra have also been added to the bill. With more yet to be announced, here’s the day-to-day breakdown: Saturday, June 3 Booka Shade Tycho, Giggs Hot Chip (DJ Set) Jax Jones, Snakehips, Nao, Mall Grab Trinity Orchestra Sunday, June 4 Nicolas Jaar…