The sixth annual Dublin Electronic Arts Festival (DEAF) will run from Thursday October 25 to Monday October 29. Since its inception in 2002, DEAF’s artistic remit has widened considerably, moving beyond the confines of its roots in club culture, but remaining true to its core ethos of highlighting experimental electronic arts and showcasing them to new audiences in Ireland.
Last year DEAF had an all-Irish theme, which proved a huge success, and for 2007 the focus switches exclusively to Asian artists and the vibrant work emerging from Japan, China, Thailand and elsewhere. For full details of this year’s calendar of events, check www.deafireland.com
There is a host of great clubby parties running during the Heineken Green Synergy festival (in Dublin from Wednesday October 10 to Sunday 14). Fresh from their storming Electric Picnic set, Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip – behind one of the year’s biggest underground tunes ‘Thou Shalt Always Kill’ – return for their debut in the capital at The Village on October 10 supported by an Irish outfit likely to get garner as much attention in the run-up to the gig.
The original Irish b-boys, Scary Eire (aka Sloosh, Ri-Ra, Mek and Mr. Brown) are promoting their recently issued compilation album The Scary Era, and their live return has the potential to be one of the most memorable events of the year.
Elsewhere during the Synergy run, city centre bars Solas, Anseo and Carnival are serving up free DJ sets by Ashley Beedle, Alex Patterson (The Orb), AIM, The Futureheads DJs, Don Letts Dub Cartel and Mala (Digital Mystikz).
Trance phenomenon John O’Callaghan’s second team-up with Discover Records founder John Askew under their Cartel moniker is out now on digital promo. The stunning tech-trance original mix is coupled by a darker techno version by the Navan-based producer in his Joint Operations Centre guise.
The new single from Dublin-based house stamp Queep Recordings is released on October 18. A.C.K. & Simon Point’s ‘Hot Love, Hot Spots’ comes in six mixes ranging in style from electro to progressive.
Former Irish DMC Mixing Champion Glen Brady, aka DJ Wool, has been living in New York for a number of years now and he is a driving force behind hotly-tipped Big Apple band The Glass. As a taster for their forthcoming debut album, the ‘Couples Therapy EP’ is out now on Plant Music. The EP includes a superb remix from Dublin duo Arveene & Misk.
Lush! has launched a new monthly Access All Areas session, sponsored by Ripstore Clothing. The Portrush venue Kelly’s opens its entire complex up for these all-Irish affairs, and admission is just £5. On October 13, Lush! resident Col Hamilton will perform a three-hour set. The club has also announced that Italian icon Mauro Picotto will be appearing on November 10. Tickets for that likely sell-out are available now at the club.
A number of Planetlove Summer Session headliners return to our shores for the October bank holiday weekend. Dave Clarke launches his I Love Techno compilation at Tripod on October 26, the same night that Lisa Lashes and Anne Savage appear at Fabric in Tralee.
While the Tidy Boys throw a full-on Tidy Trax party at Royal Theatre in Castlebar on Sunday October 28. Incidentally, the first ever Tidy Boys single is released this month. They have remixed many an anthem but ‘Swinging’ is the first tune credited to the pair (of Andy Pickles and Amadeus Mozart) and it samples a snippet of Bono’s vocal from U2 chart-topper ‘Vertigo’.
Spirit recently kicked off a new clubber-friendly student night on Thursdays, imaginatively titled Club Bash. Promising a mix of funk, soul, indie, rock and electro are DJs Nic James, Trev Radiator and Mardiva.
Meanwhile, in Belfast, the Stiff Kitten has ditched its Friday night underground dance clubs in favour of a new clued-up alternative event called FAD, which will feature a mash-up of “new indie, old skool hip-hop, classic tracks and quality dance music.” Owner Alan Simms told Hot Press recently that the decision was made following the huge success of the similar-themed Sketchy night on Thursdays.
“Putting on an underground club night is an expensive and risky business that takes up a lot of time and effort in comparison to our Thursday nights which are our busiest nights by far without the need for weekly flyers or big name guest DJs. The residents behind it consistently play great music and pull bigger crowds than any of techno or house guests even though most people don’t know who they are.”
It all reminds Beats & Pieces of the early days of acid house when people didn’t care who the DJ was, they just turned up for the tunes and the happy vibes.
As the Pet Shop Boys – who perform at the Some Days Never End festival in Kilmainham on October 27 – recently commented in an acid house 20th anniversary retrospective: “In those days the flyers didn’t have any DJs names on them, they just advertised things like the size of the sound system, the fairground rides and the type of lighting.”
Ireland’s fledgling acid house scene, of course, didn’t kick off until 1988, at the legendary Sweat parties at Sir Henry’s in Cork. And next year Sweat’s resident DJs, Greg Dowling and Shane Johnson, will mark 20 years of spinning house together with a number of celebratory events. Incidentally, they are currently putting the finishing touches to a new Fish Go Deep featuring Tracey K album for an international release on Defected in 2008… THE BEAT GOES ON!