As his singular contribution to the birthday party, guest writer Elvis Costello offers a handful of stories from his ten years on the beat, which serve to illustrate why, in his own words, “I’d rather be a folk music fan than a teen idol.”
Costello is one Ireland’s most promising talents, a producer unafraid to turn his back on the 4/4 in favour of a more esoteric spin on electronic music.
Picture the scene. It's a dark room. Lots of serious looking guys. One serious looking bloke hunched over a glowing Powerbook laptop. Waves of deep electronica fall from the speakers.
Dublin producer Donnacha Costello has made the transition from dubby, minimal techno to full on acid house revivalist and this EP sees him take his love of old skool sounds to a euphoric conclusion.
This forty-two song, two CD compilation follows Costello's career from his 1977 debut album My Aim Is True, to his most recent solo hit, 'She' from the Notting Hill soundtrack.
Soul legend Solomon Burke waxes lyrical about a new album that sees him aided by a stellar cast including Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Van Morrison, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello, The Blind Boys Of Alabama... and one hundred pieces of fried chicken
NIALL STANAGE reports from the tenth Finsbury Park Fleadh, which featured performances from THE PRETENDERS, VAN MORRISON, ELVIS COSTELLO, SHANE MACGOWAN, DAVID GRAY and, er, RONAN KEATING
From child actress to Rilo Kiley frontwoman to hanging out with Elvis Costello: every day is Groundhog Day, but when you're Jenny Lewis that's not necessarily a bad thing.
The indelible images of September 11th tragedy will be for many, the key memory of these past 12 months. Music may seem lightweight in comparison, yet its healing powers were probably more needed than ever
Freebird Records owner Brian Foley explains why over the past 25 years his store has become a firm favourite with such luminaries as Sonic Youth, Elvis Costello and U2.
U2, Elvis Costello, The Pogues, The Waterboys, Emmylou Harris, Hothouse Flowers, The Everly Brothers, Christy Moore just some of the dozens of artists who contribute to an adventurous new five part TV series which traces the extraordinary return journey that Irish traditional music has made to America and beyond. Here, Liam Fay previews the programmes, talks to Philip King who originated and nurtured the project and hears many of the participants explain how they discovered the importance and influence of Irish music.
In the first part of a two part special on the vital areas of songwriting, publishing and copyright, Jackie Hayden talks to Irish singer-songwriter Kieran Goss about his craft, on the eve of the release of the Northerner's new album Red Letter Day, his follow-up to the multi-platinum Worse Than Pride.
Consider both the facts and the odds. It would be more likely that a torrent of frogs would descent from the skies to land on the Palace of Westminster and then pass through six floors down to the Parliamentary chamber to squelch upon Margaret Thatcher’s head that that King Of America would be anything other than an excellent album.
Belfast boys General Fiasco may be one of the standout acts on the Oh Yeah showcase CD, but when HP catches up with the band, they're feeling a little, um, overexposed.
One of Ireland’s outstanding violin players, Steve Wickham is a long-time member of The Waterboys and respected composer in his own right. Born in Dublin, he’s a country boy at heart.
OUT FROM BEHIND THE GREASE-PAINT THAT ADORNS HIS FACE ON THE COVER OF ‘SPIKE’, ELVIS COSTELLO EMERGES TO TALK ABOUT THE MUSIC THAT RUNS IN HIS FAMILY FROM BIG-BAND TO SPEED-METAL, HIS MUCH-TOUTED IRISH CONNECTION, WORKING WITH PAUL McCARTNEY, HIS CONTEMPT FOR MUCH OF TODAY’S POP MUSIC AND THE FEELINGS THAT INSPIRED HIS DEATH-WISH FOR MARGARET THATCHER.
Stylish purveyors of streamlined, controlled Pop, 'Til Tuesday were one of the late eighties most critically acclaimed acts. But for frontwoman, AIMEE MANN, life in that band was often a frustrating and demoralising experience. Now, however, having languished in record company limbo for far too long, AIMEE has re-emerged blinking into the daylight with an album which Elvis Costello says will have male songwriters blushing with envy. GEORGE BYRNE meets the Mann woman herself.
He's shot U2 and Madonna and numerous nudes, formulated an "aesthetic of the dick", published the perfect magazine and, most recently, hit the headlines for endeavouring to make the Queen of England look "really fresh". He's Rankin Waddell, co-founder of Dazed And Confused and probably the most renowned fashion, music and pop culture snapper on the planet
Jacek Sienkiewicz’s intricate mix is intriguing, but Daschund supplies a belter: a phased acid line and sparse beats are beefed up by a Donnacha Costello-esque bassline and percussion, topped off by reverbed, FX-heavy breakdowns.
Jinx Lennon is a true original, a rock'n'roll outsider whose music throbs to the pulse of rural Ireland. Here he talks about attending cocktail parties with David Norris and explains why Dundalk just might be the strangest town in Ireland.
Dropped by Warners, but buoyed up by mega-sales of a soundtrack hit, Nick Lowe is back with a great new album, The Impossible Bird, and lots to say about Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello and a benevolent devil with the feet of a chicken. Interview: Joe Jackson.
Violent, jizzed up, livid, political, tender, unflinching, occasionally hilarious and above all more spikily tuneful than he's been in years if not ever
When Rory Gallagher hits the stage at this year's Macroom festival gig, it'll be his last appearance in Ireland, a year that has seen him forgo some of the spotlight he's enjoyed over the previous ten years in Britain and Ireland in particular.
Two of Germany’s most in-vogue DJs weigh in with a definitive double CD mix of the acid/electro/minimal house and techno sound. Apart from US and Irish contributions – from John Tejada and Donnacha Costello - this is two and a half hours’ worth of the finest electronic music Europe from Guido Schneider, Trentemoller, Losoul, Booka Shade and DJ T.
The fire seems to be back in Costello’s belly again. All in all, The Delivery Man is close to an essential Elvis Costello record – and when was the last time we were able to say that?
It's a truism that, come the third album, an artist either puts up or shuts up. That doesn't apply here, this being 'Elvis' fifth album.
He has persistently 'put up' music with an IQ superior to his contemporaries, simply.
Hailing from the mid-west of the States, Koufax have marked out their niche in the crowded market of rock.
Coming across as Supergrass covering Elvis Costello, the cherry on the cake is Robery Suchan’s vocals, which contains an amusing faux-English accent.
Sadly the urgent, call-to-action tones of ‘Why Bother At All’ sit uncomfortably with the lyrics, which are all about the apathy. However, as an entry point for their album Hard Times Are In Fashion, it does its job admirably.
David Donohoe, along with his friend Donnacha Costello, is one of Ireland’s brightest techno hopes and ‘Statuesque’, his second album for D1, shows that he has developed a unique identity.
Elvis was first sighted in a 7-Eleven in central London, sneering at the staff while purchasing cigarettes and condoms, looking for all the world like the new king of rock'n'roll, shabbily dressed and sharp-tongued, a man with a mission. It seems such a long time ago, now.
Apart from Donnacha Costello and Dave Donohoe, Irish dance producers have failed spectacularly in their efforts to make a lasting dance album. While Swedish producer Jesper Dahlback co-wrote ‘Disarmed’, his partner in crime is Corkonian Mark O’Sullivan, and their debut is one of the freshest electronic albums of 2005. Apart from their ability to deliver timeless acid trax – ‘The Difference’ and ‘Life Is Everywhere’ – there’s the prickly indie pop of ‘Sweetness In Time’, the downbeat, Joy Division-styled doom of ‘Disarm’ and the mixture of epic dancefloor techno, brooding Dave Gahan-esque vocals and Gothic undercurrents on ‘Where’s The Fun’, ‘Heart Like A Demon’ and ‘Three Souls’. By combining music from opposite ends of the spectrum, DK7 have created something disarmingly compelling.
The first ever Spirit of Africa Festival will be held in Galway later this month, with a focus on the fight against poverty and exclusion in some of the world’s least developed countries.
His eight album in a decade sees the Toronto-based troubadour re-united with producer Mitchell Froom (Crowded House, Costello etc), who helmed his first couple of albums.
In an age when former angry young men like Elvis Costello have become all-round family entertainers and half the nation's youth seem to be blissed out on the music of Westlife et al,. . .
Shock horror! No elvis Costello album! … In certain circles 1988 will be best remembered for the King’s lack of vinyl. His soundtrack for ‘The Courier’ was all well and good and ‘Out Of Our Idiot’ filled in a few of this particular household …
Fran King was one of the finalists on You’re A Star, but don’t let that put you off. Beautification, the Terenure native’s debut album, is an assured collection of sun-kissed shimmery pop/rock, equal parts Crowded House and Elvis Costello, with a smattering of Elliott Smith and Brendan Benson thrown in for good measure.
THIS ONE was always going to be an event. Take an award wining actress/singer - one of Germany's leading exponents of Weimar Republicanism and the French chanson tradition - give her a ream of songs by Elvis Costello, Nick Cave, Neil Hannon, Tom Waits, Philip Glass, Bertholt Brecht and Kurt Weill amongst others, assign Joby Talbot the arranging chores, recruit most of The Divine Comedy as house band and allow Scott Walker and Hal Willner to produce a brace of tracks . . .. this writer was halfway sold without hearing a note.
Gideon Seifert of Joe Gideon and the Shark talks about touring with Nick Cave and Seasick Steve, and recalls his musical partner’s previous life as an Olympic athlete.
She first caught our ears as the breathy vocalist covering ‘Let’s Dance’ on the Ballygowan ad, but Miss Paula Flynn now has her own album of original songs on release.
Donal Dineen launches his latest exhibition at the Galway Arts Festival this month. as we've come to expect from the DJ, TV presenter, filmmaker and photographer, music plays a big part in the new work
The Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, has drawn up proposals for electronic tagging, which he plans to discuss at cabinet level before Easter. But with critics of the scheme insisting that it would only punish those unlikely to re-offend, does the planned legislation amount to a further erosion of our civil liberties?
A new compilation album charts DONAL LUNNY s extraordinary musical journey to date but Colm O'Hare finds that the COOLFIN founder still has his eye fixed firmly on challenges to come
Playing Live at the Marquee on Thursday 28 June: Having caused something of a sensation on the back of their smash hit single ‘Everytime We Touch’, the German-based Cascada are now bringing their infectious brand of dance-pop to Cork.
rob thomas is cautiously optimistic that his multi-million selling outfit, matchbox 20, will not succumb to the Hootie syndrome. Interview: colm o'hare.
Suzanne Vega talks to COLM O HARE about the
proliferation of serious female artists, the break-up of her marriage and incorporating spoken word into her performances
A screwball farce with a keenly observational core, Caught In The Net examines manners and mores in the 21st Century. The play’s author Ray Cooney talks about his journey from would-be matinee idol to subversive playwright.
Country music’s stock has never been higher. First Johnny Cash gained an entire new generation of fans, then Hollywood began to pepper its films with bluegrass and roots music. Now, everyone from Jack White to Van Morrison is waking up to the magic of country. Ireland's getting in on the act too, with the launch of the Midlands Music Festival, a two-day celebration of all things hatted and booted. Colm O’Hare traces the rebirth of a genre.
The inaugural Thirst event in Cork featured Paul Oakenfold, a DJ competition for some of Ireland’s best emerging spindoctors and 1,200 up-for-it clubbers determined to have the night of their lives
After his celebrated band the blades failed to make a breakthrough in the 1980s, PAUL CLEARY more or less turned his back on music for 15 years. But now unexpectedly, he’s back with a terrific solo album crooked town and more than a few tales to tell.
Interview: LIAM MACKEY
After years as son of Charles , ERIC MINGUS is forging his own musical identity. He talks to PETER MURPHY about jazz purists, hip-hop and playing bass with Nick Cave.
GEORGE MARTIN was intrinsic to much of The Beatles brilliance. Now he s coming to Dublin for a series of special concerts. GEORGE BYRNE sets the scene.
Great slogans, great scams, great music and wreckless eric too. 20 years after the label first saw the light of a record shop, richard balls gets some of the key players to reminisce about the glory days of stiff records.
How Eric Eckhart quit his swish job, sold his house and cars, split with his girlfriend and burned his picket fence in order to pursue his creative vision.
NIALL STANAGE talks to a six-months-pregnant DEIRDRE O NEILL of JUNKSTER, and hears all about the band s forthcoming album, sharing a studio with Axl Rose, and her reactions to journalistic brickbats.
But it wasn’t confined to cell block number nine. In fact the whole of Dublin city centre was engulfed as mobs of rioters were given the run of the city by Gardai, in the wake of the protest against the holding of the Love Ulster parade in O’Connell Street. Rory Hearne pieces together the anatomy of a riot.
The latest radio listenership figures suggest that the once embattled Today FM is finally emerging as a credible national alternative to RTE. In the final of a four part series, Jackie Hayden meets No Disco founding-presenter, new-music savant and legendary nighttime DJ Donal Dineen
At the end of the last decade, Philip King was best known as a founder member of Scullion and writer of the music to the Frank O’Connor translation of the Irish lyric ‘I Am Stretched On Your Grave’. However, since setting up Hummingbird Productions with his partners Nuala O’Connor and Kieran Corrigan in 1987, he has established himself as one of the country’s leading makers of films about Irish music and culture, including acclaimed series such as Bringing It All Back Home, A River Of Sound, and Sult. Here he talks to Peter Murphy about the current Irish climate for independent film-makers, his stop-start relationship with RTE, and post-Riverdance Irishry. Pics: Cathal Dawson
On top of scoring a Top 5 hit with Elbow's latest album, singer Guy Garvey recently absconded to Nashville to record with Richard Hawley and Frank Black.
Steve Cummins meets Philip King, the man behind Other Voices: Songs From A Room, the acclaimed music show which has provided an invaluable platform for Irish musicians – and which has now expanded its remit to include international artists as well.
Steve Cummins meets Philip King, the man behind Other Voices: Songs From A Room, the acclaimed music show which has provided an invaluable platform for Irish musicians – and which has now expanded its remit to include international artists as well.
Once an unwitting part of the punk movement, Squeeze have survived the vagries of fashion to become pop elder statesmen, Stuart Clark takes a trip down south London way and swaps a few yarns - but not spit - with Glenn Tilbrook.
‘Looking after number one’ was the record that kick started Ireland’s passage toward punk, and the man who penned it is still vitriolic about the time and place that inspired the song.
Edwyn Collins, late of Orange Juice and whose third solo album was recently released, gets all acidic about the state of the music business. Interview: Patrick Brennan.
In another case of “Bono made me do it”, former hotpress-er and U2 biographer Neil McCormick explains to Jackie Hayden how he ended up living near Bob The Builder and about the travails of interviewing all four U2 men on four different continents in the same evening. Photos by Mark Harrison.
The songs of Laura Cantrell are steeped in the timeless values of American country rock. But Cantrell, a former Wall Street banker, is a thoroughly modern artist.
Olaf Tyaransen sings the reunion city blues as an unhappy DEBBIE HARRY forces him to take the scenic route through the rise, fall and rise of BLONDIE. But, hey, it all ends happily ever after...
You mightn't expect to find Ireland’s sharpest new indie talents tucked away in a rural abode, but that’s where The Immediate have decamped, ready to lead the fight against MySpace while making the punters dance.
In a rare interview, Simpsons writer Mike Scully talks about the show’s A-list musical guests, his love for Ned Flanders and upsetting the entire population of Brazil. He also tells us what to expect from The Simpsons Movie, which blockbusters its way onto the big screen in the summer.
The case for and against Holocaust Revisionist and Nazi apologist DAVID IRVING being allowed to speak on a public platform in Ireland. For: GERRY McGOVERN. Against: EAMONN McCANN
Almost unheralded, in "Raintown" Scotland's Deacon Blue have made one of the year's outstanding albums. Despite extensive critical kudos, however, the first two singles from the album - "Dignity" and "Loaded" - failed to make any inroads into the charts. A third single, the excellent "When Will You (Make My Telephone Ring)" looks as if it might enable Deacon Blue to prise open the door. Nevertheless the band must be perturbed at their relative lack of success to date.
That, according to Shane MacGowan, will be the title of his next, and exceedingly long-awaited album. in the meantime there’s Sean Nós, the war, his dad, drink and Celtic football legend Jimmy Johnstone to be going on with.
The man behind the Mystery Train is a bit of a mystery himself but, at Peter Murphy's request, writer and broadcaster JOHN KELLY steps forward to talk about Enniskillen, friends in high places, the fall and rise of his broadcasting career, his lack of intercourse with Dave Trimble, "taking the soup", desert island music and Uaneen.
Broadcast Views: Cathal Dawson
They came from sunny Melbourne to Chipping Norton, England to record their debut album, and thence to Ireland on a whistlestop tour that took them from the capital to the wilds of Leap and beyond. SIOBHAN LONG urges THE KILLJOYS to put down their back–packs for a while and make time for a chat.
Frank McBrearty Jnr. is the victim of what may well be the greatest miscarriage of justice ever in the Irish State. However, having been exonerated by the Morris Tribunal, he has more on his mind than mere compensation.
Well, okay, it's SOMETHING HAPPENS, so that's overstating it a bit. Still, having taken a fair few industry beatings over the years, the band are no longer inclined to simply turn the other cheek. At the end of a year in which they toured the States with Warren Zevon, released a "Best Of ..." and are bringing it all back home for Christmas, Olaf Tyaransen finds the band can snarl as well as smile.
Actor Peter Mullan first achieved mainstream success with his brilliant leading role in 1998’s My Name Is Joe, for which he received a best actor award at Cannes. His latest project concerns the abuse of young women by the Catholic Church in the Magdalen Sisters, which he wrote and directed
All over Ireland, at any time of the day or night, hundreds of musicians are at work in recording studios, getting their sounds down for your delectation. So which are the trailblazing facilities? COLM O HARE reports.
No-one has ever asked suzanne vega before if Luka the story about child sexual abuse which made her famous was based on personal experience. Here for the first time ever the singer reveals that indeed it is and that she is still dealing with the after-effects of that traumatic experience. Interview: SIOBHAN LONG. Pix: COLM HENRY.
With Hello Starling Josh Ritter has emerged as one of the finest songwriters who's operating today. John Walshe meets the reluctant hero who's storming the Irish charts.
It was a Jubilee ago that The Sex Pistols exploded onto the world stage and changed music forever. Except little has changed, according to John Lydon and that's why he's back
RICHARD THOMPSON s new album Mock Tudor consolidates his position as one
of the most articulate and influential songwriters around. GEORGE BYRNE met him.
In a recent issue of Hot Press, John Farrell wrote critically of the Irish Museum of Modern Art exhibition, ‘Beyond The Pale’. Here, artist Nigel Rolfe answers back.
He began working in music as a drummer, but Dave Pennefather's greatest success has been as MD of Universal Music. Hot Press looks back over the life and times of a man with a larger than life reputation.
Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden? It doesn t get much
better than this. JOE JACKSON goes
backstage for a brief but revealing encounter with Joni and, from a vantage point to die for, finds two 60s legends who can still send shivers up the spine at the end of the millennium.
Basking in the warm glow of that first day's successful recording may tempt you to imagine that it's all over but for the fame and fortune. Wrong, and double wrong. JACKIE HAYDEN considers music marketing and PR.
Sharing the spotlight with only his trusty guitar, Ireland's foremost troubadour Christy Moore prepares to take on audiences at The Point later this month. Here he tells Bill Graham of his growing sense of worth and self-confidence, defends Siniad O'Connor's right to free speech and explains just why good hecklers are worth their weight in gold.
Even though he s just as acerbic and witty as he ever was, these days GRAHAM PARKER isn t what you d call the man of the moment. Which is a shame, because the veteran new-wave critics darling is currently writing some of the best material of his life, including last year s Acid Bubblegum album, which he describes as a fucking great record . And as if that wasn t enough to be going on with, he s also got plenty of short stories on the go.
Tape: Peter Murphy
WITH THE RELEASE OF HER FIRST LIVE ALBUM *LOVE FOR SALE* MARY COUGHLAN HAS PUT THE PERSONAL AND COMMERCIAL TRAUMAS OF THE PAST THREE YEARS BEHIND HER. IN A FRANK INTERVIEW SHE OUTLINES HER DARK DAYS TO SIOBHAN LONG AND INDICATES THAT PERHAPS A FUTURE COVER VERSION OF *WON'T GET FOOLED AGAIN* MIGHT JUST BE IN ORDER.
To mark the occasion of the release of a near definitive punk compilation, GEORGE BYRNE fondly recalls the days when pogo was go-go and gabba gabba was hey.
In the final months of his battle with cancer, TONY GREGORY sat down with Hot Press to discuss his life and career. Knowing it would be his final interview he was in a reflective frame of mind.
From small-time ramshackle punk'n'Irish troubadours to 'international touring act' in the space of six incident-packed years, The Pogues have not only produced music to consistently surprise and delight - they've put it in the charts too! With the help of band members Phil Chevron and Jem Finer, Bill Graham examines The Pogues' enigma in advance of the outfit's impending Christmas single 'Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah' (phew!) and their seasonal show at The Point Depot in Dublin.
It s the morning after the night before and BRET EASTON ELLIS feels like he s got Marilyn Manson playing inside his head. A dinner date with fellow penslinger Irvine Welsh has gone seriously pear-shaped and like his most famous literary creation, the Californian is fit to kill. STUART CLARK offers tea and solpadeine, and in return gets the lowdown on American Psycho, trans-Atlantic stalkers and why both Air Supply and the Teletubbies are evil. Pix: Cathal Dawson.
He believes that country music can make people "turn their hearts away from sin." He also believes that Jerry Lee, Elvis and The Beatles failed to answer the call of Jesus and that many rock groups - U2 consPICUOUSLY not included - are now doing the devil's work. JOE JACKSON hears the gospel according to Ricky Skaggs.
Johnny Ray invented rock ’n’ roll. Elvis Presley marked the beginning of the downfall of popular music. The Beatles only ever wrote one great song. Cranky stuff maybe, but when the speaker is Tony Bennett – the man Sinatra called “The best singer in the business” – you have to listen. Joe Jackson does and, in this exclusive interview, hears how a Jewish-Italian New York kid grew up to be a musical legend, a respected painter and a man who, at 67, can still kick ’90s rock off MTV.
The star of what s set to be the summer s hottest movie, High Fidelity, on love, obsession, movies, rock n roll, his pal Bruce Springsteen and the records he turns to when he s had his heart broken. With support from co-star Lisa Bonet and director Stephen Frears. Text: CRAIG FITZSIMONS
Er, perhaps not, but after 25 years of waxing, back-combing and tottering around on six-inch heels, Mr. Pussy has certainly earned the right to call himself ‘Ireland’s Most Misleading Lady’. LIAM FAY gets a lesson in cross-dressing from the man who’s stripped Bono to the waist, offered solace to Charlie Haughey and stuck a hairy appendage under Ringo Starr’s nose. PIX: Colm Henry
The still vibrant 64-year-old on why Morrissey’s like Father Frank, why Iraq is like Vietnam, and on her meetings with Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Bono, Phil Spector and a whole Oval Office full of presidents.
The industry may not have always liked them but their fans couldn’t be more passionate. Ten members, four studio albums, three managers and two major labels later, The Frames still managed to add up to more than the sum of their parts. Peter Murphy, with help from Glen Hansard and other key players brings the story of the band up to date in this, the final part of our two-part special [Photo Mick Quinn]
After a lengthy period spent "feeding my brain" CERYS MATTHEWS insists she’s really "up for it" again. Although our stop press news suggests her optimism may be slightly premature. Meantime, OLAF TYARANSEN hears about love, politics, presidents, boy bands and CATATONIA's best album yet
When Jeff Buckley drowned in the Wolf River, Tennessee, five years ago, the world lost a fledgling musical visionary, his lone album Grace becoming a sacred text of loss and unfinished beauty. In his short 29 years on earth, his power and grace touched many, especially his mother Mary Guibert and his former bandmate Gary Lucas.
In what may well be the most effective marriage yet of rock and pragmatic politics, U2, Sting, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed and others are pushing the Amnesty International message on the 'Conspiracy Of Hope' tour. Pat Singer joins them on the road.
In an age when hype springs eternal, DAVID GRAY is that rare phenomenon a success story scripted by the fans rather than the industry. And a distinctly Irish success story at that. A certifiable platinum-selling box-office blockbuster in this country, the Welsh singer-songwriter still awaits a similar eruption of Gray fever in Britain, Europe and America. But his latest album, White Ladder, could be the record which tells the world what Ireland already knows. Now as he prepares to wow the faithful at Galway s Big Beat festival, JOHN WALSHE presents the inside story of the best kept secret in the west.
Pics Mick Quinn
Never has a leader of a government so suicidally snatched defeat from the jaws of victory as Albert Reynolds has. BILL GRAHAM mulls over the reasons why.
WILLIAM GIBSON is no ordinary science-fiction writer. Aside from coining such essential nineties' terms as Cyberspace and Cyberpunk, his work has also influenced everyone from computer hackers to scientists developing virtual reality technology. In the rock world, he's regarded as a visionary and artists as diverse as U2, Billy Idol and The Rolling Stones have all claimed inspiration from his novels. Interview: Liam Fay. Cyberpics: Cathal Dawson.
From A to Z, Paul Nolan and Ronan Fitzgerald introduce all the runners and riders for Punchestown – throwing in a baker’s dozen of acts who are not to be missed * along the way
A new album, a new producer, a new sound and a new lease of life so where better to launch mary black s Shine than in New Orleans? Report and
interview: siobhAN LONG
A new album, a new producer, a new sound and a new lease of life so where better to launch mary black s Shine than in New Orleans? Report and
interview: siobhAN LONG
He’s been many things: a roadie with De Danann, a carpenter with Druid, a founder of the world-famous Macnas theatre group and, not least, a six-foot four-inch Connemara man in a skirt and self-styled “cranky fuck”. But now Paraic Breathnach spends a lot of his time crying tears of rage. Olaf Tyaransen finds him down but definitely not out. Portrait Aengus McMahon
Greetings From LA
beck and tom petty get together in Los Angeles for an impassioned rap on songs, songwriting, showbiz, the Unplugged phenomenon and how too much music can boggle the mind. mark rowland listens in.
If you’re Randy Newman you’ll also need a piano, some borrowed dominants and lashings of irony. And that’s just for starters. Joe Jackson hears about the private, public and musical lives of one of American music’s most singular talents.
With her new volume of autobiography, AGNES BERNELLE has turned the spotlight away from the stage and onto her own life illuminating both the happier and dark chapters of a turbulent personal story. Interview: JOE JACKSON. Pix: COLM HENRY
In the second and final part of the ultimate interview, elvis talks about colonel Tom Parker, marriage to priscilla, his '68 comeback, his quest for enlightenment and the truth about his drug intake. but as he dreams of an exciting future, at 42 he doesn’t realise that the end is close at hand
*The quotes in this recreated interview are drawn from a wealth of reliable sources and involved extensive research into many rare articles and books
n a career spanning 25 years in the glare of the stagelight, CHRISTY MOORE has known every emotion from insecurity, despair and vilification to adulation, triumph and the warm glow of creative fulfilment. He has dabbed in drugs, drink to excess, suffered a heart attack for his troubles and made some of the finest records that have ever been subjected to critical scrutiny in this country. Now, in a frighteningly honest interview, he tells it like it is and was. Cross-examination: JOE JACKSON. Microscopic camerawork: COLM HENRY.
With a new tribute album to Gram Parsons on release, PETER MURPHY enlists the help of co-executive producer EMMYLOU HARRIS to recreate the tale of Southern Gothic that was the late singer s life.
The Strokes? Pah! Last night's jammed Billy Bob Thornton gig in Vicar Street (stars on the stage, stars in the audience, queues round the block) is the current front runner for gig of the year. Hot Press, of course, was there (consider us your private radio)
Long before boomtime Ireland there was boomtown Ireland, a country where the national symbol was not a tiger but a rat. to coincide with the release of the best of the boomtown rats, Bob Geldof looks back to the tepid Irish scene of the mid-’70s from which the rats emerged, biting, snarling and laughing, to take on the establishment, Britain and, almost, the world.
After being a magnet for A&R men during the 80s, Dublin has recently developed into something of an underachiever. The city may have the second biggest growth-rate in Europe but there are a hell of a lot of gigs and records that simply aren t selling. peter murphy casts a critical ear over the capital s music scene and decides that what s required is a full-scale artistic enema.
Saturday, July 13th, 1985 will go down in history as Live Aid Day, the extraordinary culmination of Bob Geldof's attempts to mobilise the international music industry behind urgently-needed famine relief in Africa. Among the stellar cast performing for 72,000 people at Wembley Stadium, London are U2, a band determined to rise to the occasion. Report: Neil McCormick
At the end of an exciting, painful and earthshaking year, Bono reflects on the political and the personal – from drop the debt, September 11, Afghanistan and Genoa to the death of his father Bob, the birth of his son John and the enduring friendship which underpins U2’s music and career. Interview: Niall Stokes
[this interview originally appeared in the spectacular Hot Press Annual 2002 - used in the pictures below - a very limited number of this unique collectors item will shortly be on sale - email u2@hotpress.ie to reserve a copy]
For over three decades, the political agitator and columnist Eoghan Harris has been the focus of abundant controversy, consistently raising hackles with views that are seldom less than heretical.
The Waterboys, Patrick Bergin, Frankie Gavin and Brendan O’Regan are just a handful of the trad and folk-y greats on a new fundraising album that’ll benefit the Aran Islands Lifeboat.
Even with the explosion of F.G.T.H. 1984 saw the rebirth of ‘the song’ (and songwriting) and the return of rock’s most rudimentary and potent instrument, the guitar.
With her rich velvety vocal style, consummate piano playing and – let’s be honest here – her stunning good looks, she came on like a breath of fresh air in the mid-1990’s
1986 was an excellent year for Irish bands. Single released were aplenty, but the ones that took my fancy included Brush Shiels’ elegaic 'Old Pal’, Dorian Mood’s ‘It’s A Funny Thing’, and Something Happens!’
Local hero Stephen Murphy, Revelino, The Alice Band, Juliet Turner and Glen Hansard all brought something to the Nowlan Park party but it's fair to say that things went into overdrive from the moment The Blind Boys Of Alabama (right) entered with an impossibly soulful and gospel-drenched ‘Danny Boy’.
Rum saw the first flowering of Shane MacGowan as a unique and brilliant song-poet, unafraid to speak the unspeakable but also capable of magnificent vocal interpretations of songs like Ewan McColl’s ‘Dirty Old Town’.
Part of Jimmy Scott's appeal lies in his longevity, of course. Now 76, when he throws his arms out wide, one can only marvel, partly at the sheer breadth of the gesture, but mostly at how anyone so frail can remain standing without support.
With last year's Swoon Prefab Sprout managed to divide critical opinion into two distinct camps: those who regarded Paddy McAloon as a modern-day Al Stewart, self-consciously sensitive, a wimp, and others who felt that 'Swoon' was the glittering emergence of a major new songwriter. I'm firmly in the latter category.
Just when you think it’s all over bar the lifetime achievement awards (“Congratulations on your continuing existence, old timer”), Martin Scorsese comes along and shoves your face in a grapefruit. The director’s keenly anticipated remake of Infernal Affairs trades post-colonial frisson for dirty Irish gangsters in Boston to splendid effect.
This eight album from the former Grammy winner is a revelation, a beautifully formed record that on songs like ‘Open The World’ manages to sound both seductive and disturbing as it puts you under its spell.
All things considered, the past twelve months are unlikely to be considered essential in the rock’n’roll scheme of things. It was a year when few new acts came to the public eye and those that did weren’t breaking any particularly new ground.
It’s a minor criticism though, and for the most part One Good Reason is a confident, rounded and absorbing record full of catchy radio singles and comfortable in its skin as an old school rock album.
The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland has granted a Classic Rock licence to Radio Nova 100, a new station which will be available in Dublin and the commuter belt.
A true icon of country music, Haggard has more often identified himself with the concerns of blue-collar America than with the 'tear in my beer,my baby done left me, and shot granny as she was passing' brigade.
For the most part, the sound is sparse, uncluttered and stripped down – nothing wrong with that. The problem is that the first few songs fail to connect.
All too often movie soundtracks are bland affairs, with the now traditional love ballad leading the charge towards chart success. Thankfully, this one takes a couple of risks.
This heartfelt love-poem to the strumpet city, and to those who wander its streets looking for connection, compassion, a home, should be required listening for anyone who has ever been anywhere near Dublin.
At their best they are truly wonderful, at their worst - though it doesn’t often happen - there's always a glimmer of hope that something wild will happen
With their album catalogue now into double-figures, the Vermont-raised Phish (not to be confused with that big bloke from Marillion) have yet to stamp their indelible mark on Irish earlobes, . . .
Suited and booted á la The Hives? Or socks on cocks á la Chilli Peppers? No, tonight’s headliners North Horizon take a somewhat more laidback sartorial approach: they all wear woolly hats.
But of course the clothes don’t mean a thing if you ain’t got the tunes, more of which later. Because first band up on an interestingly varied bill tonight is youthful three-piece The Hollow. Despite being together for only two months their front man’s haughty vocals and the slightly dark, understated rock with echoes of the likes of JJ72 and Interpol suggest there might be better to come once they gain experience.
The first issue of (RED)Wire digital music magazine will be available for download on December 1 to coincide with World AIDS Day. It's the latest initiative from (RED), the HIV/AIDS organisation whose prime movers include Bono.
Five years after the sublime I'm With Stupid and Aimee acolytes are now having to contend with the shock of Manna from heaven in the shape of her contributions to the Magnolia soundtrack and this more focused, full-length release.
A new documentary "Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the story of SmiLE" will be given a special screening in Dublin this month followed by a Q&A session with Brian Wilson and the director
Phillips’ vocal style is of the quietly devastated Erin Moran/Aimee Mann school, backlit by Bacharach-and-Wilson-ish arrangements on ‘Another Song’, ‘Little Plastic Life’ and ‘Flower Up’.
When Mr Smith went to Washington - or, actually, Hollywood - to perform his Oscar-nominated 'Miss Misery' from Good Will Hunting at the Academy Awards a few years ago, a worldwide audience of sensitive indie mopers cheered at the vindicating incongruity of it all.
No sooner had the Xmas decorations been taken down than The Blades, the last vestige of one’s misspent youth, decided to call it a day with an emotional performance in the Olympic Ballroom.
Just confirmed to play support for the 22-20's, Mainline are enjoying some major label attention. Plus: Derry band Red Organ Serpent Sound sign to Universal.
Sorry, my mistake. I thought I was off to see a Cole Porter biopic. You know, the champagne-swilling, charismatic omnisexual raconteur who invested his songs and his nightlife with the same saucy elegance?
The Pogues’ turbulent history can be traced back into the mists of 1982 when ex-Nipple Erector vocalist and London-Celt Shane McGowan joined ex-Millwall Chainsaw Spider Stacy to play a set of Irish rebel songs at a gig in London. They were pelted off the stage with chips.
Mark Cullen’s second album, the follow up to the respectfully received Home Truths, further establishes him and his band as one of the sharpest tools in the indie shed.
While 1987 will of course be recognised as the year U2 conquered the world, spare a thought for those whose careers begin beneath the shadow of ‘The Joshua Tree’.
Liam Mackey's 1979
Released when the infant ’79 was still in the grip of winter, Graham Parker’s ‘Squeezing Out Sparks’ stood the test of time and defeated the heaviest competition.
"In dreams begin responsibilities" – is the Delmore Schwartz line that's been used by both Lou Reed and U2. But it doesn't quite suit the latest album from another member of their coterie, T-Bone Burnett.
Take a respected, if neglected, vocalist, give him a bunch of songs from hip contemporary writers, place him in front of some hot musicians and see what shakes out
Despite an annoyingly chatty Thursday night crowd, Hawley created a sort of magical, and very cosy, atmosphere, constructing a cocoon of the kind of delicious sadness you want to wallow and revel in
The third Dublin heat of this year's increasingly interesting battle saw five very diverse acts slugging it out for a coveted place in April’s grand final
They have got it all going on: big beefy choruses, a rhythm section that don't lose their nerve at high speed or volume, a nice line in multi-tracked vocal melodies, and guitars like a gravel bath
'Bring on the models, baby, let the magic begin!' intones the immortal Austin as his triumphant, shagadelic sequel begins to rev up - and who are we to argue?
Cork favourites The Berries are set to release their brand new EP ahead of the city’s stint as European Capital of Culture. Plus the usual round-up of news from the domestic front
Hardly had the ink dried on the last issue s item of advice for would-be entrants for the revised Bacardi Plugged band competition than a number of missives arrived in asking why there was no advice for those who might be thinking of entering the song part of the same project. As some of the senders know where I live I d thought I better oblige.
“And now we havf ze results of ze ‘elseekni jooury” … burble, squeal, zeekzrrzzsngtum … oops, we’re sorry, we’ll write that again … the result of the Hot Press jury, who wish to profusely thank David Byrne for all those pints he bought us in the International Bar last week – even if he did rather endanger his chances with all those neo-structuralist musings about The Bogmen.
AGNES BERNELLE s death last month brought a truly remarkable
life to a close. SIOBHAN LONG looks back, in the company of
Gavin Friday, Philip Chevron and Alan Amsby.
Moody cover shots were the order of the day back in 1989. Check out Enya (moody in a field), Def Leppard (moody on a beach) Elvis Costello (moody with a guitar), and Madonna (moody and scantily clad); with the moody trophy going to Jim Kerr (moody in the wilderness).
Meteor Music Award nominee Maria Doyle Kennedy is finally giving a full release to her 2005 Skullcover album, which has previously only been available through her website.
A happy New Year to you, getting happier by the day, considering the position of the powers that be who still have ambitions to control our lives. (Pause for laughter, pour yourself a drink, and get ready to tot up the damage they have done themselves so far, with fifty more weeks still to go.)
Today sees the first unveiling of the complete Hot Press Covers Exhibition online, featuring a selection of the great and historic images that have adorned the front page of the magazine, from June 1977 onwards
There was enough advance warning for the Minister for Justice to have put a plan in place, which would have prevented the riots that engulfed Dublin on the day of the Love Ulster parade. So why is no one blaming Michael McDowell?
An Omagh girl of Methodist farming background, with an unassuming determination to match, Juliet Turner has already come some distance from the straightforward and endearingly earnest folk thrust of her roughly recorded debut, Let’s Hear It For Pizza.
The Critics Panel who voted for the Top 30 Albums and Singles of the Year are as follows: Bill Graham, Liam Fay, George Byrne, Stuart Clark, Lorraine Freeney, Tara McCarthy, Gerry McGovern, Neil McCormick, Dermot Stokes, Oliver P. Sweeney, Siobhan Long, Steve Averill, Andy Darlington, Colm O’Hare, Joe Jackson, Niall Crumlish, Olaf Tyaransen, Patrick Brennan, Nicholas G. Kelly, Jackie Hayden and Niall Stokes.
ABBA have seldom been acknowledged by those who arbitrate or presume to arbitrate on matters of rock taste. Apart from a brief flirtation about five years ago, rock culture – in as much as the phrase actually signifies anything concrete – has continued to stick them with the legacy of their Eurovision success.
‘That’s entertainment’ was the message of the year but not as Paul Weller intended it, for in 1986 popular music was closer to mass entertainment as Declan McManus’ pater knew it than any year since Elvis Presley swivelled his hips on the Ed Sullivan show.
Dublin-based singer-songwriter ERIC ECKHART scored with his debut CD Lost And Found. Originally from West Virginia, USA, he reflects on life back there from his temporary base in Berlin.
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.
You will cheer, You will scowl, You will stare in disbelief - but don't blame us...
'cos it's all your fault! Yep, it's the Hot Press Reader's poll Results.
THE CRITICS PANEL WHO VOTED FOR THE TOP 30 ALBUMS AND SINGLES OF THE YEAR ARE AS FOLLOWS: BILL GRAHAM, LIAM FAY, GEORGE BYRNE, STUART CLARK, LORRAINE FREENEY, TARA McCARTHY, GERRY McGOVERN, NEIL McCORMICK, DERMOT STOKES, OLIVER P. SWEENEY, SIOBHAN LONG, STEVE AVERILL, ANDY DARLINGTON, COLM O’HARE, JOE JACKSON, HELENA MULKERNS, DAN OGGLY, CATHY DILLON, NIALL CRUMLISH, OLAF TYARANSEN, PATRICK BRENNAN, JACKIE HAYDEN AND NIALL STOKES.
’85 was a remarkably stagnant year. Twelve months after the end of ’84, little seems to have changed or advanced musically and I only hope and pray we won’t be running on the same spot when ’86 ends.
SHORT CUTS (Directed by Robert Altman. Starring Andie McDowell, Bruce Davison, Julianne Moore, Mathew Modine, Anne Archer, Fred Ward, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Chris Penn, Lili Taylor, Robert Downey Jr., Madeleine Stowe, Tim Robbins, Lily Tomlin, Tom Waits, Frances McDormand, Peter Gallagher, Annie Ross, Lori Singer, Jack Lemmon, Lyle Lovett, Buck Henry, Huey Lewis)
There was a time when being shortsighted was regarded as a major handicap. However with the popularisation of contact lenses the necessity of wearing specs has diminished. Meanwhile the design of frames has improved so dramatically that prescription glasses and shades alike have become a hot fashion item. Report: Colm O’Hare.
Alter Ego, Mylo and Dizzee Rascal had almost as good a year as Annie Mac - who swapped a Queens University English Lit course for a high profile slot on BBC Radio One...
The final year of the millennium saw dance music reach to more creative, dizzying heights than before. Digital Beat was there every step of the way. Report: Richard Brophy.
Q: Which top Irish quiz-masters’ pathological obsessions include Something Happens, Shamrock Rovers and the amount of shopping days left to the next Suede gig? A: George “You Started, So I’ll Finish” Byrne
Five years ago no-one would have believed it. But with dance music reaching new heights of popularity, Irish rock ’n’ roll is engaged in a desperate fight for its very survival. Reporting from both sides of the battle line: Stuart Clark
A very eminent British QC was passing through town recently so we finished up in the Dungloe Bar listening to the Jim Armstrong Band singeing the ceiling with John Lee Hooker, Eddie Boyd and Eric Clapton (eh?) numbers, and getting drunk. Us that is, not the band, necessarily.
Though often overlooked, some of U2’s most exciting and challenging music through the years is to be found hidden away on the flip side of their singles. From U23 to Melon bill graham rides the wild horses of the U2 back catalogue and finds that there’s quite a few thoroughbreds among their many cover versions and experimental remixes.
It reads like a scene from Twin Peaks but turns out to be far stranger than any fiction. Bill Graham dons his best John Travolta strides and eavesdrops on the American slants being given to Irish traditions at the Green Linnet Folk Weekender.
Pix: DAVID NEWTON.
Joe Jackson re-evaluates Elvis' prolific but inconsistent movie career – and the decisions that would lead to the ultimate downfall of the man known as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.
RTE2 have plenty of live music action to keep us placated for the next few weeks - here's the line up of bands and when to catch them. For more about the Other Voices series, click on the link at the very bottom.
With the death of Kurt Cobain in April casting a shadow over the following months 1994 will hardly go down as one of the most joyous in Rock history. Your guide to a month-by-month account of the names and events of the past year. Stuart Clark.
