Fresh from his stunning performance at Spirit during the recent bank holiday weekend, Subliminal Records’ boss Erick Morillo has just been added to the bill of Electric Picnic at Stradbally Hall, Co Laois on September 4th. Currently recording with P Diddy in Ibiza, Morillo has been nominated for three gongs – Best DJ, Best Label and Best Event – at the International House Music Awards. The other new additions are Mylo, whose debut album Destroy Rock & Roll was compared to Air and Royskopp when released earlier this year, and The Detroit Cobras. Already confirmed for the ‘picnic in the park’ are Groove Armada, Super Furry Animals, Jurassic 5, Grandmaster Flash, Arrested Development, Lee Scratch Perry plus band, David Kitt, Erol Alkan, Plump Djs, Soulwax, 2 Many DJs and Irish DJ John Gibbons. Tickets priced €59.50 are on sale now, and the four-arena festival runs from 3pm until midnight…
Cork’s subterranean house DJs Greg Dowling and Shane Johnson have just released a stunning new single on Dublin-based deep house label Blusoul. ‘Hey Mr California’ follows a glut of EPs the duo have released in the past two years on top international labels i! Records, Ultrasound, Inspirit, Chez, Brique Rouge and Gourmet … Jay Pigeon and Raff’s new label Crash Test Recordings has hit a major stumbling block with the sudden and unexpected closure of the BMG-owned Alphamagic Distribution company in London. The closure is a direct result of the recent high-profile merger of BMG with Sony. Over forty hard dance and trance labels, like Crash Test, are now without a distributor, and established hard dance wholesalers Tuned and Amato are presently refusing to take any of the labels on. The second Crash Test single – Alan Pullen’s ‘Disco Shit’ – had just been pressed on a promo run and the couple of hundred copies out there are now set to become collectors items… Dublin house club Bodytonic has just released its latest compilation of Irish dance music, Greenhouse Effect 2 CD. The acclaimed club will be touring the country in the coming weeks to promote the sampler. Incidentally, Mark Farina plays Bodytonic at Wax in Dublin on August 27th …
Irish ex-pat Steven React is currently the toast of London. The Derry-born DJ, one half of Madonna and George Michael remixers The Sharp Boys, co-promotes Anarchy, recently voted Best Club in the English capital by clubbing magazines, Mixmag and DJ. Anarchy runs on a monthly basis at The Fridge in Brixton, and it follows the old Trade style, with a banging hard house room adjoined by a funky tribal house room… Moby and Public Enemy’s Chuck D have just released ‘Make Love Fuck War’, the first single lifted from the Official Athens Olympic Games album… Techno legend Dave Clarke is the latest high-profile DJ to stop using vinyl… German legend Westbam is in hospital after a horrific crash smash in Japan…
The Mor Festival returns later this month, to Charleville Castle, Tullamore, Co Offaly. Already confirmed on the international front confirmed are Damo Suzuki (ex Can), Philip Jeck, Digitonal, Silvah Bullet feat. Radioactive Man, Umbrella Spokes, while representing the Irish scene are the Connect Four Orchestra, Corrigan, Life After Modelling, Stanley Super 800, Donnacha Costello, Rest and God Is An Astronaut. The event will take place on Saturday August 21st and Sunday August 22nd. Tickets, priced €65 for the weekend including camping and booking fee, are on sale now. Full details of the line-up are online at www.morfestival.com…
Felix Da Housecat and Erol Alkan play new Waterford club, Ten, tomorrow (13th). Also tomorrow, but in Dublin, James Lavelle and UNKLE play Redbox and Urban Sprawl takes over TBMC for a breakbeat and hip-hop fest featuring Storm, Splyce and John B among others… London disco-house club Hed Kandi comes to Dublin’s Redbox on September 3rd. Tickets are on sale now from Ticketmaster outlets nationwide … Dublin DJs Andy C and John Kerrigan are playing every Saturday at The Beacon in Courttown, County Wexford until the end of August… D12 – minus their main attraction Eminem – play The Ambassador on September 25th and The Empire in Belfast two nights later…
THE BEAT GOES ON!