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IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Much to look forward to amidst the uncertainty

IT’S a mixed bag of announcements and emotions for this week’s Northern Winds. The short and long term effects of the Irish Government’s confusing decisions on the arts continue to manifest but there are new performances and releases to be excited about in the final quarter of this year (and the first of next). The week began with the latest sobering blow to the Irish nightlife industry, as iconic club-space Electric in Galway announced that it would close its doors for good. Citing struggles in the last 19 months related to the pandemic and the harsh restricts placed on them, the three-decade-old institution released a statement for its patrons and hoping for a better future for Irish electronic clubs. “We hope that this house will continue as a place for dancing and find a new owner with the same enthusiasm for bringing people together. Even though we may not be the ones to reap the rewards, we hope a brighter future lies ahead for Irish nightclubs.”

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Great new releases in the run-up to Christmas

WITH awards season firmly over, we can take stock of some of the winners of last week’s ceremonies before breezing over the last busy release period on the calendar before Christmas. On the 16th and 17th respectively, the RTE Folk Awards and the NI Music Prize (NIMP) took place in Vicar Street, Dublin and the Ulster Hall, Belfast. With Ye Vagabonds and John Francis Flynn cleaning up in the South, the NIMP saw the industry come together for a celebration of native talent after one of the most brutal years in recent memory. Nominations spanned folk, psychedelic, electronic, pop, rock and more, indications of a healthy scene that survived the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic. Performances on the night came from NI music legends such as ASH and the next wave of headliners. Ryan McMullan, New Pagans, Sasha Samara and Dani Larkin all took to the stage to the delight of the audience, who sold out the room on the evening.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Sights set on summer 2022 with so much musical ground to make up

WITH festivals such as Sound Of Belfast ensuring we are rife with gigs now that restrictions have been eased, festival promoters are already looking forward to next summer. After all, there’s ground to be made up from the past two years, and the people of Ireland have shown that we’ve done nothing but miss our artists. The first announced this week was All Together Now. Spearheaded by promoter giants Aiken and POD, ATN has established itself as a haven for native and international talent and is one of the nation’s favourite cultural gatherings. Taking place on July 29th to 31st, over the August Bank Holiday next year at Curraghmore, Waterford, following their two-year covid hiatus, Irish acts Denise Chaila, King Kong Company, John Francis Flynn, Abu Coulibaly and more take the stage alongside Nick Cave, Underworld and Jungle.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Sound of Belfast has never been so welcome as awards season kicks off

ONE of Ireland’s musical institutions looks set to celebrate its second decade in the sun this month in one of the cultural homelands of the island, whilst award season heats up and the Sound Of Belfast Festival is under way in the North. Other Voices has long served as a sort of cultural flashpoint for Ireland. Since its inception back in the early 2000s in the town of Dingle, its influence and performances have spread all over the world. With cities such as Belfast, London, Berlin, New York and more under their belt and alumni such as Snow Patrol, Hozier, Elbow, Jose Gonzales and more, the festival and its subsequent broadcasts have become one of Ireland’s greatest cultural exports. So when news broke earlier this week about a return to Dingle for the twentieth anniversary, naturally all of our hairs stood on end.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Dance floors reopen and a rise in new tour dates as industry heals

THE Irish music industry looks to continue to return to its normally hectic self with the continued easing of restrictions. With dance floors officially open and standing gigs returning in the north officially from October 3, we’ve seen a slew of new tour dates and headline shows announced. Close to home and with a high level of prestige is the year’s NI Music Prize. With the iconic Ulster Hall returning as the event’s official host, the full line-up and award nominees have also been announced in recent days – expect an excellent run of performances from nominees Amy Montgomery, TRU, Dani Larkin, New Pagans with guest performances from Ryan McMullan, ASH and Sasha Samara.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: A little Halloween encouragement as dark nights point to bright future

THERE’S plenty to celebrate for this year’s Samhain, as the darker nights of the year indicate a brighter future.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Kneecap's new project coming our way

CONFUSION continues to rock the Irish music industry as Leo Varadkar and the Dáil seem to renege on earlier promises made to the sector. With promoters, venues and artists – a staggering number of whom are independent – having charged headfirst towards the agreed date of re-opening (October 22), the Tánaiste announced last week that this date was no longer a guarantee. This has left a workforce already on the brink having to reschedule, cancel and re-innovate plans and performances that have cost thousands of Euros, now thrown into the air. To call it a disappointment is an understatement, with the likes of prominent journalist Niall Byrne taking to Twitter to express his frustration.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Exciting news from the road as live music continues its slow recovery

QUIET on set! Dancing is back, baby! Welcome, readers, to the first edition of Northern Winds on the road – coming at you from the mean streets of Bolton, England, where I type words from a hastily arranged one-night stop amidst one of the first UK tours from an Irish artist in over two years (shout-out to the Richardson clan for putting us up). And while the UK surges ahead with performances and live music, the North is not far behind. It was hard to miss on my end, but for those that didn’t get the memo, it looks like we’re out of the woods. the final number has been played and the ending dance sequence has been pirouetted, and dancing is set to return to the town of Bomont/Belfast as of the 14th of October. It was announced mid-last week that the Assembly would fully remove restrictions on indoor entertainment and that proposed gigs could go ahead without rescheduling. This was greeted with widespread acclaim and condition across both the industry and the public, with SHINE Promotions boss Alan Simms calling it “Great news” adding that he was looking forward to “finally recommence indoor music events in Belfast after a very long time.” SHINE would then go on to announce that their last event had been rescheduled and all 2021 shows would proceed as normal (barring illness). This is a load off the mental brow for a number of Irish artists who will be performing in the city going forward. Alt-folk songwriter and firebrand live act David Keenan will light up Limelight 1 on Wednesday the 13th; indie-rock quintet Brand New Friend headline the prestigious Black Box on the 16th (the first Saturday gig in Belfast with no restrictions in the longest time); and Megan O’Neill will eviscerate crowds at Voodoo on Thursday 21st. They’re just some of my recommendations, but full listings and tickets are available directly from SHINE Promotions website. The easing of restrictions also sets the stage for Irish artists with eyes further abroad while the likes of Cork’s Quiet Lights Festival (Emma Langford, Lisa O’Neill, Anna Mieke) and Sligo’s Spilt Milk Festival, which we covered last week, have a plethora of native talent. The likes of Eurosonic in Groningen – Germany is a one-way ticket to the upper echelons of the industry and the Irish are more than represented. Irish talent will be on full display for the international music industry in Germany in 2022. Online showcases will be available but if possible I’d recommend going – it's like Glastonbury without the mud. And as we approach the end of this week's Northern Wind, I can hear my touring party begin to load the equipment into the van downstairs (I think I’ll hold off on finishing until they get the amps loaded). And as such it’s only appropriate to fill this week’s spotlight session with the new Irish tracks that have kept us going through the miles of nameless, faceless English motorways.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Belfast makes itself heard – and distributes a few musical gongs

WE’RE fast approaching one of Belfast's most celebrated new festivals, which will culminate with an evening of some of the best NI music of the past year. The Sound Of Belfast festival is approaching its eighth year of existence and promises to build upon the restrained success of last year. Amidst the pandemic, as it was, several online showcases and workshops were launched that continued to platform some of our best and brightest – but thankfully this year we can return to a real-life stage.

October is Irish Music Month as we say goodbye to Steve Strange

IT’S heartbreaking news that begins this weeks column. Longtime Irish music advocate, live booking agent and drummer Steve Strange, founder of X-Ray Touring, passed away over the weekend. A statement from the social media account of his touring company, issued early on Saturday morning, read: “X-ray Touring are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Strange, one of the founding partners of the agency, has passed away after a short illness. We have lost a legendary figure in our personal and professional lives that we will all deeply miss. Steve was a unique individual within our industry, his overwhelming love of music lead to a 30-year-plus career guiding the touring of an eclectic mix of artists from all genres of music that he adored. A universally known, hugely respected and loved character – if you hadn’t already seen him at a gig or festival, you’d most certainly hear his infectious and infamous laugh.”

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Bedroom pop is all the rage

PILOT events have re-entered the discourse for live music, and here’s hoping that they contribute more positively than last time. The Irish Night-Time Economy Taskforce recent report highlighted the need for a seismic change in the legislation that concerns our arts sector. The most glaring came from a call for pubs and venues to get a 6 am closing time, bringing us up to speed with the rest of Europe. But in the more immediate future, there was the announcement of a dance music pilot event to be held on September 30th in The Button Factory in Dublin, organised by Hidden Agenda and District 8 in consultation with Give us the Night. With an aim to establish safe practices, gathering health data and improving quality-of-life systems (ventilation, ticketing systems, safety), this 450 cap event hopefully signals a ramped-up effort in returning the nightlife economy back to its professionals.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Heavy-hitters line up for festival to remember as summer ends

ONE of Ireland’s largest musical showcase festivals is set to return for its 18th year this October, having weathered the pandemic better than most. Ireland Music Week, formerly Hard Working Class Heroes, will take place this year from October 5 to 8, digitally for the second year in a row. Spearheaded by First Music Contact, the team found a way around the pandemic last year by filming several high quality pre-recorded streams in Dublin's Lost Lane venue that were then broadcast to industry tastemakers over some days. This year, it’s The Grand Social that plays host and the festival is poised to be as strong as ever.

IRISH MUSIC: New releases from Aonair and Silverbacks – get ready for a hectic live scene

IT’S easy to feel as if we’ve been stalking through a desert over the last 20 or so months. The relentless pressure of the you-know-what-19 has been bearing down on us with the force of the sun, lockdown gave each new day the sparkling idiosyncrasy of a sand dune (each one as varied as the last 100 in all the ways you don’t like), and an end goal that was as fleeting as a mirage. Indeed, the promise of a return to normal, or even a roadmap as provided by neighbouring power bodies, seemed continually within sight but further away. It would seem, though, that we’ve finally stumbled onto an oasis – or is it just another trick of the light? It was announced that from September 6, live events were to return to Ireland, whereas nightclubs were slated to return on October 22. However, there's a catch, as always. Until the 22nd, indoor shows are capped at 60 per cent capacity whereas outdoor is limited to 70 per cent, with no real indication as to whether or not late October will permit a full return for the night-time economy. These cap restrictions on outdoor events seem particularly ill-thought-out when compared to the likes of GAA attendance and their maskless masses in the filled hostelries post-show (no harm intended towards the clubs and fans, sport is equally important to our cultural consciousness).

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: It's heating up in the charts and on stage

IT seems that the whole industry is making good use of this unexpected good weather before the summer comes to a close. As I write this, hurtling down the motorway towards the rebel city, things have begun to heat up within the music industry: in the charts, on stage and in the release column. First off, a follow up from last week. Orla Gartland and Villagers battle it out as both vie for the number one slot on their hometown music charts. On one hand, the independent underdog armed with fresh energy, internet clout and an indie rock fan battalion. On the other, the seasoned artist with a decade-plus of fanbase-building around him and his most accomplished record in years. We await the results eagerly of this Ali vs Foreman-esque sales brawl. But as spectators in this fight, we are the real winners. And for those avoiding the sun, fear not for there's a number of high quality recorded concerts headed your way. Although the practice has wained given the return of the outdoors as an option, the past year and a half have seen a huge swell of competent and talented production companies present our native talent in stunning A/V instances. Take the newly announced ‘Seconds Away’ series. Spearheaded by independent promoters Singular Artists, an offshoot of the legendary Aiken Promotions, this multi-week presentation of Irish music begins on September 1. Recorded in the National Stadium in Dublin and presented by BBC R1’s Gemma Bradley, the programme will be broadcast every week of the month and features great northern talent such as CHERYM, Soak, Conchur White, Dani Larkin, Sam Wickens and more. With highlights broadcast from RTÉ 2F on Dan Hegarty’s show and visuals hosted on Nialler9’s YouTube page, there’s plenty for you to dig into this month.

IRISH MUSIC SCENE: Orla Gartland nails it with new release

AS tensions between the arts sector and the government continue to rise in the south, two powerhouses of Irish music dropped their long-awaited albums this year: one a debut, and the other a magnum opus. As the summer months and the window for Ireland's festival economy come to a close, calls have increased for the powers-that-be to establish a clear and concise plan of action for the return of entertainment. This was compounded with voices such as Festival Republic director Melvin Benn. He was on RTÉ Radio One last week, where he compared leadership between the UK and the South, voiced his concerns for the long-term damage to the industry, and compared the sector's treatment to the infamous Thierry Henry handball of 2009, stating: “Everybody knew it was wrong and yet the ref ignored it... everybody knows this is wrong.” When accompanied by the Events Industry Alliance’s statement of disappointment following a meeting with Minister Catherine Martin and news that cuts to the PUP will be incoming, one can only wonder where FF/FG’s priorities lie.

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Northern Winds by Ben Magee

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