Some good news for clubbing fans – the annual 12 hour dance marathon at Fairyhouse Racecourse is to go ahead in the summer. And this time, it’s got a brand new name.
Two of Ireland’s top electronica composers are in celebratory mood after releasing a killer collaboration – and to mark the event they’re embarking on a brief tour of the country.
t’s all going on north of the border this fortnight with a new imprint launching in Belfast and a Derry electro duo giving Beyonce a banging make-over.
One of Ireland's most beloved dance emporiums has shut its doors, blaming plummeting CD sales. But it may soon be back, as a vinyl-only store. Is the future of music retail in Ireland?
Traditionally the highpoint of the autumn music calendar, the Dublin Electronic Arts Festival takes place for the seventh time over the October bank holiday weekend.
Planetlove has always represented the best of Irish dance culture. Now celebrating its tenth anniversary, the event is going from strength to strength.
DK7’s long-awaited second album has had its release date pushed back, allowing Swede Jesper Dahlback and Cork ex-pat Mark O’Sullivan time to remix a couple of tracks.
Clubbers rejoice – the Planetlove summer festival is bound for County Meath. And the really good news is this year's event will feature some of the best in Irish DJ talent.
Superstar DJ duo The Glimmers are giving their long-awaited debut album away for free on their forthcoming tour. So it's a good thing they're swinging by Ireland.
There were no surprises here, apart from the fact that this veteran performer of 25 years twice killed the good-time atmosphere completely; with depressing ballads and obscure Elton John song covers.
Belfast’s Alloy Mental on supporting New Order at a pre-retirement gig in Liverpool ahead of the release of their debut album and the latest dance news.
Annual article: Phil Kieran and DJ Papillion were two of the outstanding names in a fantastic year for dance music, says Mark Kavanagh. Plus the dance charts of 2005.
Beats and pieces: The much-awaited October DJ and Digital Music Academy (DDMA) will be teaching this generation’s budding DJs on Saturday/Sunday October 2nd/3rd at The Digital Hub
Temple Bar Outdoors announced the launch of the first ever Latin Quarter Festival, which will run over the August Bank Holiday Weekend and features a host of international and local musicians and DJ’s as well as a street carnival experience across Dublin’s Cultural Quarter.
A couple of recent outdoor parties on a beach in north County Dublin have proved that there’s life in the old rave dog yet. We won’t mention the location in case there are any members of An Garda Siochana reading, but suffice to say global warming can’t be all that bad a concept if it enables over 1,500 techno loons to dance until dawn on a Dublin beach in April and May.
Some readers of this column may be surprised to learn that Judge Jules got one of the biggest cheers during proceedings at the recent BBC1FM One Big Weekend festival in Derry, for opening his set with ‘Teenage Kicks’, the seminal anthem from local heroes The Undertones.
Hot new Irish release this fortnight is the Vorsprung Durch Celtik EP on Belfast label Nice & Nasty Records. This quality package from Desy Balmer’s long running imprint includes a couple of deep and uplifting Irish techno soul productions from Derek Carr, Teknik and Slow Chocolate Autopsy, plus remixes by Fabrice Lig and Tomas Jirku…
Synergia 03 is an enticing, and occasionally exciting, snapshot of contemporary Irish club culture, showcasing the pristine sounds of established names and emerging talents alike.
Synergia 03 is an enticing, and occasionally exciting, snapshot of contemporary Irish club culture, showcasing the pristine sounds of established names and emerging talents alike.
First-rate rapping is not the focal point, instead you’ll be seduced by boundary-pushing productions along the lines of Common, strong songs utilising live instruments and samples, all deep-rooted in hip-hop
The End Of The Beginning pretty much picks up where Revive left off, this time without any guest vocalists to distract our attention from the compelling compositions.
The Headzinc bus takes the quickest route to destination happiness, no lengthy detours or painfully slow traffic jams permitted, and upon disembarking you’re itching to hop straight back on to enjoy it all over.
A refreshingly honest, soulful and intoxicating melting pot throughout, Cockahoop is essentially a pop album that sticks two fingers up to the sophisticated sheen and FX-laden production trickery of most of its contemporary cousins.
If the Euro-trash disco silliness of uber-hit ‘Move Your Feet’ was your (hand)bag, and you’ve a fondness for getting extremely drunk and shaking your booty to such musical embarrassments, then just maybe you’ll deem half an hour of similarly styled fusions of funk, disco, garage rock and ’60s psychedelia worth your €20.
You can’t help thinking of Johnny Cash, Tom Waits, even Simon & Garfunkel, as ultimately this is a collection of simple songs and beautiful melodies wrapped in throbbing basslines and lo-fi beats.
There are a glut of new Irish dance releases to tell you about, not least the fantastic debut album from Third Eye Surfers, also the first Irish hip-hop collection.
There are a glut of new Irish dance releases to tell you about, not least the fantastic debut album from Third Eye Surfers, also the first Irish hip-hop collection.
2FM dance guru Mister Spring has re-compiled his The Fifth Nine album, after objections to several questionable samples on the initial Spanish pressing.
In a single decade, Irish electronica and dance music has transformed the national scene. MARK KAVANAGH has been involved from the very beginning, as a DJ, activist, producer and hotpress columnist. Here, he offers a personal take on a long and winding but ultimately fruitful road, and reveals some of the new challenges he ll be undertaking as a DJ, producer and recording artist over the coming 12 months
Hard house is this year s biggest dance craze, and it was born at the most renowned
after-hours gay club in the world, Trade. MARK KAVANAGH talks to LAURENCE MALICE,
the Caligula of clubland , about excess, success and his Irish roots. Photographs: Myles Claffey
Ten years ago a trip to Japan inspired Coldcut duo Jonathon Moore and Matt Black to free themselves from the shackles of major label contracts and set up Ninja Tune, an innovative, experimental and eccentric label like no other.
Lemon Jelly are Nick Franglen and Fred Deakin. (You can see why a clever name was important.) Their first three EPs remain highly sought for both Fred’s stunning screen-printed artwork and the nine tracks now collected here on CD for the first time.
The sixteenth episode in the Global Underground story takes us to Cape Town. Seaman’s set is beautifully crafted, subtly building on CD1 from the percussive Sound 5 to the hi-NRG rhythms of Timo Maas and the staccato trance of Breeder, and taking in Moby, Ananda Project, Simon and a corker from Brothers Love Dubs along the way.
Everyone’s favourite Italian, (and the world’s most renowned reptile lover) takes the logical step and follows smashes ‘Iguana’, ‘Lizard’ and ‘Komodo’ with his first DJ mix album.
Three special singles made for much pre-release hype, and the remix commissions (EMF, Elastica and Medal to name but three) and soundtracks (Rancid Aliminium, Complicity and There’s Only One Jimmy Grimble) secured since then prove it’s not just the critics that have been impressed by Ian Davenport and Andy Lovegrove.
The second instalment of this Guy Hatfield (aka DJ Hyper) compiled series is an essential purchase for anyone even remotely interested in the burgeoning breaks scene, as all the tracks are exclusive productions and remixes.
It's been a decade since trance-meister supreme Paul Van Dyk first appeared on vinyl with the seminal Visions Of Shiva single 'Perfect Day', and four years since . . .
This is one of two seven-track remix collections that make readily available rare and unreleased versions from Leftism and, in this case, Rhythm & Stealth.
In the '90s, hip-hop moved out of the streets into the world of big business. An avant-garde street art that expressed black consciousness lost its DIY ethic and became a commercially driven industry, spearheaded by Suge Knight and Puff Daddy.
In the '90s, hip-hop moved out of the streets into the world of big business. An avant-garde street art that expressed black consciousness lost its DIY ethic and became a commercially driven industry, spearheaded by Suge Knight and Puff Daddy.
At the tender age of 20, he s already the most successful Irish DJ ever. Mark Kavanagh chats to Fergie, the first Irish DJ tipped for Premier League superstardom.
MARK KAVANAGH reports on the continuing controversy over the awarding of Dublin's dance radio licence, while, below, EAMON SWEENEY, looks at the still- vibrant world of pirate broadcasting.
MARK KAVANAGH reports on the continuing controversy over the awarding of Dublin's dance radio licence, while, below, EAMON SWEENEY, looks at the still- vibrant world of pirate broadcasting.
Ricky Simmonds and Stephen Jones made their mark with a string of hugely successful epic vocal trance singles under psuedonyms like Chakra, Lustrial and Ascension, before deciding to concentrate on their Space Brothers project and taking the relatively unusual step (for trance producers) of recording an album.
KNOCK, KNOCK. Who’s there? Gary. Gary who? Exactly.
It’s an old joke, but it still rings kinda true. It’s hard to believe now, but not too long ago the entire record industry seemed to think Barlow would be the only member of Take That to emulate that boy band’s success as a solo artist.
“I must begin by thanking the Lord above for the opportunity to share the gift of music to the world.” So says Christina Aguilera, a teen star so sickly sweet she makes you want to gag.
She can certainly pout. She can also do a pretty good Whitney Houston impression.
Hot Press, in association with ritz, presents the definitive guide to the Irish dance scene, incorporating our regular dance column Digital Beat. Your authoritative host: mark kavanagh.
Although One Dove's debut album Morning White Dove was only released in 1993, it seems like a lifetime ago that Dot Allison's sultry voice last graced a record with its Dusty Springfield-esque charm.
The end may indeed be nigh for discos and dance clubs in Ireland, with the Government s proposed changes to licensing legislation putting over 10,000 jobs and 650 businesses at risk. Mark Kavanagh reports.
A few years back, Underworld were viewed as one of the most important bridging links between the mediums of rock and dance. Album number two Second Toughest In The Infants had consolidated their enviable position as darlings of the rock press, and 'Born Slippy' had blown up the mainstream following its inclusion on the Trainspotting soundtrack.
Liverpool club Cream has, as expected, announced a major change in their DJ booking policy for 1997. From January the club will be concentrating on resident DJs in its main rooms, and guests will now only occasionally appear in the club’s Courtyard area.
