Over the past number of years, Today FM has consistently supported Irish music, playlisting records by local artists and doing in-studio sessions on a regular basis. in the process the station has played an important part in the increasingly impressive chart and sales achievements of irish acts.
In an exclusive interview with Hot Press, Jon Richards of Galway Bay FM has revealed how his station is bucking the trend and giving daytime airplay to emerging Irish music.
John Walshe had a ringside seat for all the music, speeches, laughs and tears that made the 2002 hotpress Irish Music Awards in Belfast a night to remember.
A simmering dissatisfaction with the amount of Irish music being played on Irish radio bubbled over at Music Ireland, with a debate that was, by turns, lively and illuminating.
Ireland has long been acknowledged as one of the richest and most exciting sources of musical talent in the world. Against that background, Hot Press has consistently argued that the Music Industry here is potentially a major source of wealth and jobs. As well as creative fulfilment and spiritual sustenance. To realise this potential fully, however, will involve imaginative policy-making by the government, as well as a commitment to creating the kind of climate in which indigenous Irish music, and musicians, can flourish.
SIOBHAN LONG may have reached the end of her nationwide journey, but, as she explains here, there s still plenty of time for others to do their bit for THE GREAT RECORD OF IRISH MUSIC
The great news is that, owing largely to the familial, accessible and organic feel of the Irish music scene, the place is teeming with official bodies, advisory and educational organisations whose purpose is to put you and your label on the right track. Below is a list of some of the most immediately relevant
Now in its second year, Cork Live At The Marquee is one of the highlights of the Irish music calendar. Here, Hot Press presents a complete preview of what's in store for music fans in the southern capital - and looks at the great legacy of Cork music.
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
FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM is a major new six-part RTE series. Directed by DAVID HEFFERNAN, and featuring new interviews with the major players including Van Morrison, Bob Geldof, U2 and Siniad O Connor it traces the history of Irish music, from showbands to boybands and beyond. By PETER MURPHY.
The proceeds from a new CD featuring the cream of Ireland’s musical talent including U2, Sinéad O’Connor and Ash will benefit people living with mental illness
Veteran 2FM DJ Larry Gogan was honoured by IRMA earlier this month, in recognition of the forty years he has spent at the top of his profession. To mark the occasion, Hot Press catches up with the presenter to discuss the beginnings of his career during the showband era, how Irish music has changed down through the years – and the time he earned Larry Mullen's thanks for playing U2 records despite the protestations of station chiefs.
Being dropped by a major has helped THERAPY? relocate their soul. The result is shameless – “a very simple punk rock’n’roll record,” says ANDY CAIRNS proudly.
Interview: PHIL UDELL
Japanese tin whistlers, Harlem Gospel singers, Indian mandolin players . . . De Dannan have traded scales and tales with them all. Dermot Stokes catches up with Frankie Gavin and Alec Finn and is entranced as the Michael Palins of pan-cultural playing share excerpts from their ongoing odyssey.
Hard Working Class Heroes, featuring big names and rising stars – and everything from rock to hip-hop – is set to provide a snapshot of one nation under a groove. Phil Udell reports
During a career spanning almost forty years as a professional musician, Van Morrison has created an extraordinary body of work. A masterful musician, songwriter, producer, arranger and musical director, he possesses one of the most uniquely recognisable and powerful voices in music. His influence on contemporary music has been profound but far from resting on his laurels, his latest work Back On Top ranks among his finest albums to date. For Van Morrison, the search goes on. It was particularly appropriate, therefore, that he was chosen to become the first inductee into the Hot Press Irish Music Hall of Fame, at a special ceremony there last week. Report: Niall Stanage.
Irish labels, bands and artists often face an uphill struggle to garner recognition, even on their home turf. Which is why hotpress and HMV have undertaken their own combined initiative, to coincide with the announcement of the shortlist for the first Choice Irish music prize. As a product of this initiative, all ten albums will be specially stocked and displayed in HMV stores all over Ireland on the run-in to the announcement of the winning album later this month. Here, we take a look at the list – and reflect on those that have been omitted.
From Big Tom and the Mainliners to The Cranberries and, indeed, back again, Alan Corcoran, one of the lower-profile 2FM DJ’s, has been there, seen that, played that. An uncommonly committed supporter of Irish music in Irish airwaves, here Jackie Hayden watches him at work and finds out more.
With his new album The Mountain, STEVE EARLE has turned his hand to bluegrass. He talks to SIOBHAN LONG about the record, his colourful past and his love of Irish music.
A long way from there to here
With 35 years on the road behind them, THE DUBLINERS are the roots of Irish music. Interview: Colm
O'Hare. The Rolling Stones aren't the only ones celebrating 35 years on the road this year.
Teen prodigy George Murphy followed in the footsteps of some of the biggest names in Irish music when he recently performed for the inmates of Wheatfield prison in Clondalkin. Danielle Brigham reports. Photos: Cathal Dawson
Dublin is a shithole basically! that's the opinion of Kevin Shields, one of the two Irish members of My Bloody Valentine, who quit the fair city six years ago because of what they saw as the stifling atmosphere of the place. Since then they've lived and gigged all over Europe and their 1988 album Isn't Anything has put them on top of the critical approval lists and independent charts. Here, taking a break from their US tour, the band reflect on their art, their careers and what they see as the general awfulness of the Irish music scene. Interview: Helena Mulkearns
JJ72 are being cast as the great new hopes of Irish music. Intense, passionate and melodic, their music has captured an increasing number of fans. With a single in the UK Top Thirty and a debut album about to hit the shelves, they tell NIALL STANAGE how good they are and how good they want to be. Portrait of the Artists As A Young Band: MICK QUINN
Having made his name in the folk arena with Emmet Spiceland, Planxty and The Bothy Band, DONAL LUNNY went electric with the ground-breaking Moving Hearts. In the second part of a wide-ranging interview reflecting on all of the major characters and plots in Irish music since the folk revival blossomed in the '60s, he talks about the demise of the Hearts, the impact of Riverdance, Shane MacGowan, Sharon Shannon, Altan, Coolfin – and what he'd like to do with Sheryl Crow. Tape: NIALL STOKES
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
From her humble origins in Corofin, Co. Clare to The White House, Sharon Shannon has blazed her own unique trail across the landscape of Irish music. Her extraordinary success notwithstanding, she has remained an enigmatic and elusive presence, renowned for the child-like sense of wonder she radiates. Here, for the first time, she opens up, telling her own remarkable story to Hot Press. Interview: Gerry McGovern.
After what was at times a stressful year, Damien Rice is on the verge of a major international breakthrough. Fiona Reid gets the inside story from the hungover but happy singer
Niall Stanage pays tribute to a remarkable young woman whose passion for music made her one of the most widely respected and genuinely loved people in the history of Irish music
It’s been an unusually tough year at IMRO, with the organisation being involved in a number of controversies. with elections to the board looming, however, chairman Mike Hanrahan and chief executive Adrian Gaffney believe that it’s time to look to the future.
To coincide with the release of the Today FM DJ’s double-CD compilation tracking the history of alternative rock in Ireland, Tom Dunne talks to Jackie Hayden about the state of Irish music, singer-songwriters versus guitar bands and the role of Irish radio.
For the launch of his second album, UNDER THE MOON, MARTIN HAYES returned from his new home in Seattle to his native town of Feakle, deep in the heart of Clare. BILL GRAHAM travelled west to meet one of the musicians responsible for the resurgence in Irish music and discuss his roots in the local tradition, and speculate on the possibilities and conflicts opening up within the genre.
Never met a dyke he didn t like! Joe Jackson boogies the night away with Zrazy, one of Irish music s most determined combos. 1993 saw this radical lesbian dance due release their debut album in the face of widescale indifference from the national media and here they tell of their struggle to assert their music and sexuality against overwhelming odds.
As founder and director of the acclaimed choral group, Anuna, MICHAEL McGLYNN has established himself as one of the country's most gifted and innovated composers. However, he has also become a figure by some elements in the Irish Music Industry and been dismissed by others as a "pig ignorant arrogant bastard" Inetrview: LIAM FAY
Never met a dyke he didn’t like! Joe Jackson boogies the night away with ZRAZY, one of Irish music’s most determined combos. 1993 saw this radical lesbian dance duo release their debut album in the face of widescale indifference from the national media and here they tell of their struggle to assert their music and sexuality against overwhelming odds.
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.
With the last broadcast up for a Mercury and Slane just around the corner, Jimi Goodwin of Doves is happy to enthuse about Planxty, U2, The Streets and Sean O'Hagan. Just don't call his band "the new Radiohead"
He scored his first hit single as lead singer with Them in 1965, with Baby Please Don t Go . In 1968, he released his debut solo album Astral Weeks, which is widely regarded among critics as one of the most important and complete records of the past 50 years. But these are just two early landmarks in a remarkable career which finds Van Morrison still on top of his game 40 years since he made his debut with his own skiffle group, The Sputkniks, at a school concert in Orangefield in Belfast. In an exclusive interview, carried out for the RTE television series From A Whisper To A Scream, and published in the run-up to Van s latest Irish dates, he talks to Niall Stokes.
Promoter Jim Aiken, who passed away recently, was a hugely important and universally admired figure in the Irish music scene. Here, leading industry representatives pay tribute. (free content)
What links Richard Harris with Linda Ronstadt, Art Garfunkel with The Supremes, and Frank Sinatra with er, Ghost Of An American Airman? Why, the music of Jimmy Webb, of course, one of the most widely-respected songwriters of all-time. Here he talks to JOE JACKSON about his friendship with Richard Harris, his encounters with Elvis and his deep-rooted love of Irish music.
Since their debut single ‘Wired To The Moon’ went gold here The Revs have established themselves as Ireland’s hungriest and most energetic rock combo, with an appetite for gigging and an eye for publicity that has seen them embroiled in a number of amusing controversies. But behind the brash exterior is the fascinating story of three dedicated young musicians who have overcome their status as outsiders to build one of the biggest and most loyal grass roots following of any local act. Now with the release of their debut studio album, Suck, they are ready to go international.
It’s Christmas, time for some of the leading lights of the Irish musical family to return from far-flung stages and convene for a traditional evening of reflection, revelation, conversation, merriment and, well, gargle. The guests: Glen Hansard and Colm Mac Con Iomaire of The Frames, Gemma Hayes, Mundy and David Kitt.
"To do away with this very special and uniquely Irish music programme would be a great disservice to diversity in a time of unprecedented homogeny", say the band
Music directors at two local radio stations have said they would not include international artists who’ve recorded here as part of their required Irish music output.
The Frames and David Kitt are the latest additions to the Hot Press Irish Music Awards bill. And with TV3 as well as BBC NI broadcasting it & a potential audience of 20 million, it's a good job we've no less than ex-Live Aid director David Croft at the helm
The great and the good of Irish music (plus a couple of blow-ins) come together to support the Make Trade Fair campaign, and the music isn’t bad at all. Written by Paul Noonan and with vocals by Gary Lightbody and Lisa Hannigan, it’s not difficult to guess the musical direction – but happily ‘Some Surprise’ is a fine record in its own right. Fair play to the lot of them.
It was a great night for the Irish music community as David Holmes bagged an IFTA for his Hunger score, while Maria Doyle Kennedy scooped the Best Supporting Actress award.
If Julie Feeney’s recent Choice Music Award win proved anything, it’s that there’s an appetite for something a little different creeping back onto the Irish music scene, something that isn’t straight ahead rock, indie or acoustic.
The timing, then, of this EP from Lieselle McMahon couldn’t be better. It has a similarly off-kilter feel to Feeney, replacing her organic instruments with a brooding electronica. Recorded in New York with Antony And The Johnsons producer Roger Fife, it’s dark, enigmatic and thoroughly refreshing. What we know about her could be written on the pack of a postage stamp, but this is a hell of a place to start.
THESE TWO compilations have been released to commemorate the tenth anniversary of promoter Vince Power's hugely successful annual celebration of Irish music.
This New York/Dublin band have managed to cause a small stir at Irish music industry showcases. While their live performances might be another matter altogether, the mediocre status of ‘Darkest Day’ leaves the trio in danger of fading into the background with many other decent rock bands who come up with an interesting riffs and rousing choruses.
There’s a bigger song in them – but let’s just hope they rummage hard enough to find it.
...at the Hot Press Irish Music Awards. That's right: in a world exclusive, Suede will be debuting their new single as Hot Press' special guests in Belfast
THERE’S A wealth of talent these days in Irish music, much of it difficult to harness for one reason or another, however, Lúnasa seem to have the magic formula – four superb musicians who complement each other in both music and temperament, great tunes which are well arranged, and the ability to surprise and hold the listener from beginning to end.
American music is rooted in rhythms from Africa and the longing at the soul of Irish music. Don't take my word for it. That's the gospel as quoted by Pete Seeger in Philip King's documentary series Bringing It All Back Home.
Given the incestuous nature of the Irish music scene, you’d have thought that a band who’ve been around over ten years, released five albums and received great acclaim across Europe would feature quite prominently on the radar. So how come Dublin’s Primordial aren’t exactly household names? The answer is simple – they play metal. Not the kind of post-ironic metal that abounds in these post-Darkness days but the real, dark deal.
Awards by the dozen, celebrities wall-to-wall, gobsmacking world exclusives and of course, great music: it can only be the Hot Press Irish Music Awards. Only 24 hours to go - here's how it's all shaping up
Despite the potential horrors of selling Irish music to an American audiences, Green Linnet has managed to avoid many of the attendant clichés that have plagued Celtic music overseas.
Given that Christmas seemed to start around the end of August, it’s perhaps no great crime to be talking about Liberty Bell in terms of being one of the great alternative records of the season, even if it is only mid-November.
Even given that anything bearing the stamp of Carol Keogh is destined to be pretty marvellous, this is still one of the most life-affirming, joyous songs to emerge from these shores in recent years.
It is nothing short of the solid gold sound of celebration, not only of Dublin but of Autamata themselves and of all the other bands from the city and beyond who have made this such a memorable year in Irish music. God bless the whole bloody lot of them.
Given that Christmas seemed to start around the end of August, it’s perhaps no great crime to be talking about Liberty Bell in terms of being one of the great alternative records of the season, even if it is only mid-November.
Even given that anything bearing the stamp of Carol Keogh is destined to be pretty marvellous, this is still one of the most life-affirming, joyous songs to emerge from these shores in recent years.
It is nothing short of the solid gold sound of celebration, not only of Dublin but of Autamata themselves and of all the other bands from the city and beyond who have made this such a memorable year in Irish music. God bless the whole bloody lot of them.
Liverpool-born Wilkes has acquired a growing internet-following, thanks in no small part to world of mouth acclaim on several Irish music forums. Backed by Mersey band Ella Guru, 'They’ve Got Nothing On You' is a fine suite of of rootsy folk, in the vein of Bob Dylan and Neil Young. Opener ‘Your Face It Cracks’ demonstrates to good effect Wilkes gravel-toned voice and Ashcroft swagger. However, it’s the sparse and haunting title track which impresses the most. We may have a young John Martyn in the making.
Ten years together now and, while they never really tried to invent the traditional wheel, Sligo's Dervish have been nothing but exemplary ambassadors for Irish music.
Yes, it’s another Irish singer-songwriter. Running Dog is Nick Kelly’s second album, following on from his acclaimed solo debut Between Trapezes, which saw him pip the likes of Van Morrison and Paul Brady to the coveted ‘Best Solo Artist’ gong at the 1998/1999 hotpress Irish Music Critics awards.
The Hot Press Irish Music Awards proved to be as keenly contested as ever with U2, Ash and The Corrs emerging as big winners. But the number of awards acknowledging nascent talent prove there’s more heavy-hitters waiting in the wings
Get a cross section of the Irish music industry to record/re-record tracks in their native tongue, thereby focusing the attention of the very group of people who hold the future of the language in their hands. It could have been awful, of course, a crass attempt to get down with the kids and make learning cool. Yet Ceol ‘06 manages to work on a number of levels.
The piano’s influence in traditional Irish music has often been a malign one, associated chiefly with plodding accompaniment to old-school céilí bands. In Geraldine Cotter’s hands, though, it’s a lively melody instrument, bouncing its way through richly-ornamented hornpipes and reels.
...here's the Hot Press Irish Music Awards, and a massive bash avec much live music is pencilled in for Belfast in April. Read on for the categories and nominees in full
Tributes have been pouring in, to one of the most important figures in the Irish music industry over the past fifty years, the concert promoter Jim Aiken, who died yesterday (free content)
A new initiative from Musicbase could help to win more airspace for Irish music here. It's just one of a range of ideas floated by industry leaders. Report: NIALL CRUMLISH.
It’ll doubtless go down as the most anticipated (and long awaited) re-union in Irish music history. More than thirty years after they first transformed the possibilities of Irish music forever, the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young of trad/folk finally decide to re-convene for a series of gigs.
Something is stirring down Cork way. It’s not a question of quality music – that’s been there before – but a burgeoning sense of identity and a fiery attitude that’s willing to take on all comers, be it those who still think that Dublin is the be all and end all of the Irish music scene or those who purport to speak authoritatively on local culture without taking note of the very musicians who make up the lifeblood of the city.
While nobody was looking, a silent revolution happened in the Irish music scene. Out of the singer-songwriter pact and shoegazing electro posse, a cross-breed sprang up..
On the surface 1988 was a promising year for Irish music with memorable vinyl provided by The Stars Of Heaven, Something Happens!, A House, Cypress Mine! and the sadly defunct Microdisney – but beneath that veneer, all is not as well as it might seem.
That the Irish music industry is in its healthiest state for a while is, by now, a given and it’s probably time to stop congratulating ourselves and start figuring out where it goes next. The answer, at least according to new label Faction, is to start thinking bigger than the DIY own-label approach that has dominated of late.
Known in Irish music circles as one of the finest producers and accompanists in the business, multi-instrumentalist Garry O Briain has played on over 100 albums, but tends to shun the spotlight himself.
As part of the build-up to Music Ireland ’06 in the RDS next month, hotpress has launched a nationwide campaign to encourage musicians to support their local instrument shop. Jackie Hayden explains the central importance of the local store to the Irish music industry – and to every musician’s livelihood.
But not all the time! The Irish presence at the music industry s biggest convention MIDEM was an impressive one. But as ever, a split was on the agenda. Report: NIALL STOKES.
The Irish music industry has spawned a number of official bodies and companies, who provide invaluable services especially relevant to artists going the independent route. But what do these operators actually do? Here, we present a handy run-down on the key bodies and expert companies out there waiting to serve you.
It’s been an age since David Hopkins’ name has been whispered within the Irish music industry. Formerly of Dublin prog-rockers Lir, he elected to call it a day during a mid-90s US tour.
Ireland s recording studios are busy creating the masterpieces that will dominate the charts over the coming year but there are still good deals on offer from some of our most respected establishments.
colm o hare reports.
WELL KNOWN in Irish music circles as a session musician, Ennis born/Nashville resident O'Beirne has lent his distinctive 6 and 12-string acoustic guitar talents to artists as varied as Sharon Shannon, The Waterboys and Marianne Faithful.
As the Irish Music Industry hurtles towards the next millenium, Colm O’Hare reports that the philosophy of the key players is to accentuate the positive and keep both feet on the peddle. Anyway, nobody ever said that world domination would be easy . . .
Now that American rock ’n’ roll has succumbed to its self-destructive urges and with its British counterpart reduced to self-indulgent navel exercises, the stage is now set for the radical rejuvenation of Irish music both as an international commercial viability and as a cultural touchstone for the new generation at home. Bill Graham meets philip king, the captain of the flagship of the latest revival river of sound, and finds that in the wake of the Riverdance phenomenon, it’s full steam ahead for Irish trad. Pix: NUTAN.
With Bono and Simon Carmody orchestrating it, and Kila minding the gap, the recording of a tribute to one of the most important and widely loved figures in the history of Irish music turned into a very special occasion indeed.
Obviously, it’s the album of the TV show, which is for the most part absolutely brilliant, where the crème de la crème of the Irish music community, along with a few adopted extras, decamped to St James’ Church, Dingle, for a week of gigs.
The Ruby Tailights’ main-man Martin Kelly will be familiar to any stalwarts of the mid-90s Irish music scene as the frontman with the brilliant Sunbear, whose distortion-fuelled epics were years ahead of their time. This time around, Kelly has eschewed the effects pedals, however, for some relatively straightforward guitar pop.
At some point Sharon Shannon realised that being one of the most highly-regarded instrumentalists in Irish music doesn’t make you the kind of dynamic performer that pulls huge crowds, so she has evolved a stage show where she gets to do what she’s best at and steps back enough to let her motley assortment of rabble-rousing yahoos do their thing as well.
The Irish were out in force at MIDEM, the annual music industry bash held in Cannes, in the south of France last week. With Irish music’s international stock running high and the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht Michael D. Higgins on hand to lend his support, it proved to be a very interesting year. Report: Niall Stokes.
WHENEVER we gather together, as we often do, to celebrate Irish music successes on the international stage, there is a tendency for us to focus almost exclusively on the performers - on U2, Clannad, Van Morrison, Chris de Burgh, and the rest of that litany - invariably to the total exclusion of other equally noteworthy achievers from what some might regard as the more unglamorous wing of the industry.
That’s the philosophy behind Cross Border Media, a label which has had a remarkable impact on Irish music since its foundation just three years ago. A special report by Colm O’Hare and Jackie Hayden
Fermanagh is a county that s accommodated a rake of musical traditions both past and present. Split by the sibling lakes of Upper and Lower Lough Erin, Fermanagh s musical identity is as diverse as her geography, to the extent that at times there s little or no crossover in musical style from north to south of the county and vice versa.
with a higher profile internationally than at home, and the support of heavyweight friends, The Devlins have recorded an impressive third album. COLM O'HARE reports
Gareth Murphy’s Atlantean project takes Irish music on a journey of depth and discovery that sees it flirt with Arabic, Spanish and Indian stylings, Jah Wobble and Eno, all under the influence of maverick filmmaker Bob Quinn.
Recipient of the IRMA Honours Awars of 2006, celebrating 30 years of music.
Here we document the stories, sounds, politics and philosophies that have developed with Bob Geldof, from his Boomtown Rats days to his most famous status as a devoted humanitarian.
The latest radio listenership figures suggest that the once embattled Today FM is finally emerging as a credible national alternative to RTE. In the second of a three-part series, Jackie Hayden meets IRMA winner, Hot Press Readers' Poll champion and Pet Sounds-smith Tom Dunne
Still making great music after all these years, Van Morrison is an Irish genius worthy of comparison with the most enduring ’60s legends such as Bob Dylan and Neil Young
NIALL STANAGE identifies the contenders in the race to put a new youth-oriented radio station on air in Dublin and speaks to FIONA McLOUGHLIN and DONAL SCANNELL, CEO and Head of Music respectively at FUSE FM, one of the applicants.
Colm O’Hare talks to local indie heroes Saville, the acclaimed quartet determined to make their inspired blend of ’60s pop and rock heard above the din of their hipper contemporaries
THE CANDLELIGHT SESSIONS at Phil Grimes' pub are the first rung on the ladder for many aspiring musicians. Proprietor Tom Ryan and chief rabble-rouser Johnny Kiely explain why this live gem is an important part of the Irish music scene.
Now in its second year, Cork Live At The Marquee is one of the highlights of the Irish music calendar. Here, Hot Press presents a complete preview of what's in store for music fans in the southern capital - and looks at the great legacy of Cork music.
A thrilling collision in the Guinness Storehouse between the aural and visual worlds, Wonky2 - brainchild of Leagues O'Toole - proved that at some parties, you don't have to check your mind in at the door
Cork Independent outfit The Waiting Room have just released their debut album Losing Patience, yet they're quite prepared to hold on to the day jobs for a little while yet as Marc O'Sullivan discovers
Belfast musician Colin Reid likes to surprise his audiences, something he’s sure to accomplsh with an instrumental suite inspired by Flann O’Brien’s The Third Policeman
Dave Caplice is a man with a knack for being in the right place at the right time. So far, he’s recorded with Wizardz Of Oz, played at Washington’s White House and signed a five-album deal with Telstar, and he’s only just begun
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
Dr Sean Millar is back with an acclaimed new album, this time accompanied by The Beet Club, displaying a recently acquired maturity in both music and lyric. Yet he tells Stephen Robinson that he's happy to be still growing up
Tanya Sweeney catches up with Ireland’s hardest partying rockers Snow Patrol to discuss on-the-road hi-jinks, the band’s hallowed status in the Scottish and Irish music scenes, and also bears witness to that long-awaited footie showdown with Thomastown under 15s.
The latest radio listenership figures suggest that the once embattled Today FM is finally emerging as a credible national alternative to RTE. In the third of a four-part series, Jackie Hayden breakfasts - as do more Irish radio listeners than ever - with morning-show helmsman Ian Dempsey
Renowned Cork singer-songwriter John Spillane has joined forces with poet Louis de Paor as the bilingual Gaelic Hit Factory to prove that the Irish language can work in a contemporary context. Jackie Hayden investigates.
An estimated 100,000 people showed up in the Phoenix Park for the O2 sponsored gig that featured Samantha Mumba, Ronan Keating, Mundy, Six, David Kitt and Kells' rock outfit Turn. Would one of the local scenes hottest contenders shine brightly enough to win the hearts of the nation’s pop kids?
With an Irish tour approaching and a new album in the shops, Luka Bloom looks back on three decades that have taken him from busking in a pub in Newbridge to the big stages of Europe and America. In this candid interview with Jackie Hayden the man also known as Barry Moore talks about brother Christy, overcoming stage fright, finding an original voice, dealings with the music business, the need to combat racism - and why he remains a wannabe bogman
From her humble origins in Corofin, Co. Clare to The White House, SHARON SHANNON has blazed her own unique trail across the landscape of Irish music. Her extraordinary success notwithstanding, she has remained an enigmatic and elusive presence, renowned for the child-like sense of wonder she radiates. Here, for the first time, she opens up, telling her own remarkable story to Hot Press. Interview: GERRY McGOVERN.
Meet hot new Dublin quintet THE HIGH BABIES. They re endorsed by Bret Easton Ellis, produced by Kim Fowley and wanted by Madonna. Could this be the first great Irish rock sensation of the 21st century?
PETER MURPHY reports. Cathal Dawson gets the pics in.
The success of The Frames, Juliet Turner and Damien Rice – amongst others has inspired a new do it yourself attitude among Irish musicians and bands, who are no longer prepared to wait for the imprimatur of a major label to get their records made. Here Hot Press presents a step by step guide to becoming a DIY record magnate. Words: Tanya Sweeney. Additional reporting: Jackie Hayden
The success of The Frames, Juliet Turner and Damien Rice – amongst others has inspired a new do it yourself attitude among Irish musicians and bands, who are no longer prepared to wait for the imprimatur of a major label to get their records made. Here Hot Press presents a step by step guide to becoming a DIY record magnate. Words: Tanya Sweeney. Additional reporting: Jackie Hayden
The Divine Comedy return to the live arena in September and have recorded several tracks for a new album 'that's going to be fab', according to the ever-immodest Neil Hannon
At just 23, Siniad Lohan is one of the brightest prospects to have appeared on the Irish music scene for some time, with the Woman s Heart stars taking her to their collective bosom not to mention her acclaimed debut album which is nestling comfortably in the Top 10. Siniad an scial: Siobhan Long.
Irish teen popsters B*WITCHED last month became only the seventh act in chart history to see their debut single go straight in at Number One in the UK Top 40. Are they the latest great white hope for pop music, or simply a troupe of over-hyped cod-ceili dancers? And what does all this signify for the Irish music industry as a whole? peter murphy reports.
Colm O’Sullivan lives for music, and through his work as a presenter with Red FM is one of the most enthusiastic supporters of Irish music in town. Just as soon as he moved into a new apartment in Cork there was a knock at the door. It was Jackie Hayden.
The Imagine Belfast committee may have missed the mark in more ways than one in their unsuccessful bid for the European City Of Culture according to BelFest organiser Gerard Sheppard
FIONA REID meets SEAN MILLAR, the acclaimed singer/songwriter who’s currently overseeing a music workshop for inner-city youths and talks to one young participant, IAN FAGAN
Tasmanian native Matt Lunson has overcome the challenges of establishing himself in a new country (not to mention his past in an Australian punk band called Hasselhoff!) to become one of the Irish music scene’s most accomplished solo artists.
One of Ireland’s premier singer/songwriters whose work has been covered by Christy Moore and the Corrs, Jimmy MacCarthy’s latest album The Moment illustrates a lighter side to his character. Below Jimmy gives us the inside track on the songs, the singers and the craft of writing
Second generation Irish-American LIZ CARROLL is one of the best fiddlers around. She spoke to SIOBHAN LONG about her album, the importance of the session
and Chicago. Picture: Declan English
Second generation Irish-American LIZ CARROLL is one of the best fiddlers around. She spoke to SIOBHAN LONG about her album, the importance of the session
and Chicago. Picture: Declan English
Second generation Irish-American LIZ CARROLL is one of the best fiddlers around. She spoke to SIOBHAN LONG about her album, the importance of the session
and Chicago. Picture: Declan English
The demise of No Disco leaves RTE with no real rock music programme at a time when the Irish music scene has hardly been in a more healthy state. We cast a wary eye back over some of RTE’s chequered contributions to musical eye candy. Look upon these works and weep.
Though soaked in the musical culture of Southern California, female-fronted indie quartet Saucy Monky say there’s an undeniably Irish strain to their music.
With a self-recorded and self-released album – called simply O – Damien Rice has emerged as a major force in Irish music. But that’s just the start of it: the record is now in the charts in both the U.S. and the U.K., and with the kind of momentum he has generated, the feeling is that it might just go all the way.
Getting funky reggae grooves heard over the din of the capital’s rock bands is no easy task, but Dublin ska kingpins King Sativa are continuing to fight the good fight.
The rise and rise of the female singer/songwriter is fast achieving phenomenon status in Ireland - here,
Peter Murphy profiles an eclectic mix of new and distinctive talent
The emergence of The Boomtown Rats inspired a new generation of in-your-face Irish bands who re-energised an Irish music scene that has become moribund and predictable.
Our annual HP-7 summit brings together some of the pre-eminent movers and shakers in irish music to reflect on everything from backstage catering to the end of war, pestilence and famine. Your host: Stuart Clark.
You cook them, we serve them up in the Q&A cantina. At the table to answer the questions posed, in our second serving this fortnight, by members of hotpress.com: Ash
With a new ‘Best Of’ bringing the band’s story up to date, U2’s guitar man steps forward to riff on good times and bad, the private life of a public figure, discovering the secrets of the universe on mushrooms, and why, after all these years, few things match the high of being a member of U2
Formed when they were fresh-faced school kids, border country gloomsters Sanzkrit are at long last set to unleash their debut album. You could say they’re looking forward to finally getting stuck in.
“I hate these questions,” cries David Holmes, DJ, re-mixer, producer, free associate, film-scorer and friend to the stars. Yet he gamely faces the pan-ish inquisition that is the hotpress mixed grill
Prince may be content just to party but in a four-page special the Hot Press journalistic elite takes a look at everything 1999 has to offer. And then some.
. . . or overlooking Fountainstown beach in Co. Cork, anyway. METISSE have everyone talking, owing to the sheer unique nature of their music. KEVIN BARRY met them.
For the weekend of November 25 and 26, all musical roads will lead to the RDS in Dublin for the Music Ireland ’06 event. Jackie Hayden talks to the show director Ollie Upton about what’s in store for us at this major annual attraction for musician and music fans alike.
With his new album sex, age and death in the shops, BOB GELDOF, songwriter and performer, is back in our midst. but after the traumatic personal events of the last five years - events which inform the songs on the new record - the private man is arguably under scrutiny as never before. In this heartfelt, eloquent and, at times, angry interview with JOE JACKSON, Geldof talks about the loss of Paula Yates, the death of Michael Hutchence and his own painful journey back to happiness
Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the dissection of the rock ‘n’ roll year that is the Hot Press Summit. Gathering round the table are the good and great of Irish music, but who let Podge & Rodge in?
Already cult favourites in France and Spain, with their gorgeous second album Garden Tiger Moth leaving international reviewers smitten, dark-horse Galwegians CANE 141 are increasingly looking like the best-kept secret in Irish music. KIM PORCELLI coaxes the cat out of the bag
It’s all about broken down tour buses, Alan Partridge, high speed collisions, Moby, broken ribs, Mina Suvari, MTV stars and David Bowie as Ash launch a sonic assault on America. So riddle me this: can Ireland’s hardest-working rock’n’roll outfit crack the big one?
Katell Keineg confesses that she's lazy, eccentric and mis-understood yet she's back with a live appearance in dublin in February and a new EP due in the spring. Interview: Fiona Reid
co.uk, with their spiky sound and their hearts set on superstardom, are the new great white hopes of the northern rock scene. STUART CLARK met them.
PiX: MICHAEL TAYLOR
The Moondogs were one of the original wave of late ’70s Northern Ireland punk bands. Now reformed, they have no less than two albums slotted for imminent release. Bassist Jackie Hamilton tells all.
From “Outspan” to Glen Hansard, from Grafton Street to Hollywood – and onwards to Lisdoonvarna 2003. A portrait of The Frames as a most unusual band. Part one of a two-part special feature by Peter Murphy. [Main Photos: Mick Quinn]
RTÉ is doing its bit for Irish music with the 2FM 2moro 2our. Patrick Freyne went along to the live launch to catch a glimpse of the hit bands of the future.
Canadian songwriter Emm Gryner has released a covers album of Irish rock classics. But what inspired her to tackle Horslips, The Undertones and Gilbeert O'Sullivan? And why didn't The Pogues make the cut?
He’s the joker in the Irish music pack, a working class hero who has at once conquered and subverted the mainstream. For his first album in six years JERRY FISH and his MUDBUG CLUB have also roped in some top-tier collaborators including rockabilly queen Imelda May and Carol Keogh.
Italian-born multi-instrumentalist antoni o'breskey considers Ireland to be his spiritual home, so much so that he changed the spelling of his name just for us. siobhán long finds out more.
Though practically unheard of in their home country, Dublin metal band Primordial nonetheless have a huge worldwide following and are expected to sell up to 20,000 copies of their excellent new album, The Gathering Wilderness. Interview by Phil Udell.
Galway has a proud history of involvement in the arts - a fact which is mirrored in the strong emphasis on the Humanities in the city's most prestigious college, NUI Galway. But the President, DR. PAT FOTTRELL promises that there's more to come in the future. By OLAF TYARANSEN
There was a time when the associations of Irish culture were such that those of a radical, progressive outlook automatically turned the other way. Not any more. Irish culture is alive and kicking. Report: Chris Donovan.
When he first arrived in the Northwest to attend college last year, Josh Clarke had no aspirations of becoming a radio DJ. Pretty soon, though, he had caught the bug in a serious way.
The next generation of Stanley Kubricks cut their creative teeth on some of Ireland's finest bands: hotpress.com brings you video streaming of the completed works from the Tisch film school in New York
Early this month Beat 102-103 opened for business as ireland's first regional radio broadcasting station covering Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and Tipperary. according to the beat manifesto the station is targeting the 15-34 year old age group with “an upbeat and entertaining programme schedule provided by young presenters, with the aim of giving the youth of the region a service to reflect their tastes and attitudes.
Shaz Oye has been described as having the most extraordinary voice ever to come out of Ireland. On the eve of the release of her much-awaited debut album, she talks to Jackie Hayden about her Irish upbringing, and its highs and lows.
“Goth groove” hopefuls Angel Pier are only a year in existence but already they’ve wooed audiences from Galway to New York. Might they be Ireland’s next break-out success?
With credits on no less than eight albums, Susan McKeown is better known in New York than her native Dublin. Sarah McQuaid hears what we've been missing
With their Harmony Hill album establishing them as one of the Trad world’s brightest hopes, Dervish are now busy taking their music to anyone who wants to listen. Colm O’Hare meets the Sligo six-piece who are being favourably compared to and discovers a band determined to breathe new life into old traditions.
DONAL SCANNELL of Quadrophonic Records responds to a recent Phantom item
which criticised his late now departed Insomnia show on the former Radio Ireland.
The future in nifty twelve-point type, summoned for you out of the ether by the Oracle of Hot Press, the redoubtable, all-powerful, spookily omniscient, scarily prescient, frighteningly knowledgeable but really quite friendly when you get to know him, Old Hayden. Read it and live better
• If the number of albums being released at a given time is any indication, then Gaelic culture is in its healthiest state for years. It is particularly encouraging that real roots music is still being recorded, and indeed that the Irish language is still finding its place in this context.
PASSION MACHINE s new production aims to tell the story of seven Irish people all born in 1958. Writer PAUL MERCIER tells JOE JACKSON about the phenomena his generation have witnessed.
EAMONN DeBARRA is the Young Traditional Musician of the Year. He tells SIOBHAN LONG why he isn t strictly trad and why it s important to play the #20 gigs
Since 1914, the PRS has administered the rights accruing to Irish songwriters, composers and publishers from the use of their music in public places throughout the world. However, the campaign to establish Ireland as a separate territory, with its own independent music rights organisation, has been gathering momentum. Now in a controversial move the PRS have declared that this change can only take place with the approval of two-thirds of the Society’s members in Ireland. Niall Stokes – himself a member of the PRS – examines the issues and concludes that subsidiary status is no longer enough for IMRO.
A great many of us lost the run of ourselves during the Celtic Tiger epoch – the trad community included. But now that the arse has fallen out of the economy, maybe it’s time musicians went back to their roots
Domestic metal bands may find it difficult to make themselves heard over their hipper contemporaries, but Dublin rockers Mike Got Spiked look set to add to their growing army of devotees courtesy of their scorching debut album, Caveat Emptor.
Nope, 1990s are not the infamous Cork band, they're a red hot Scottish act that evolved from the wonderfully named Yummy Fur, who also spawned half of Franz Ferdinand.
After a three-year investigation, the Competition Authority has cleared Ticketmaster of any malpractice in the area of concert ticket sales. Jackie Hayden spoke to their MD in Ireland, Eamonn O'Connor.
They may look after Lambchop’s pets and occasionally leg it from Crawdaddy to catch the last train home, but when not partaking in such hi-jinks, Dublin quartet Delorentos are busy trying to kick rock music another rung up the evolutionary ladder.
There was a significant Irish presence at the recent intel festival in
New York an event which was broadcast worldwide via the Internet.
Report: helena mulkerns.
Every generation has to make its own mistakes. Sad fact is that artists now have less time than ever to prove themselves before being unceremoniously dropped by their record companies or abandoned by a fickle fanbase.
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.
Many Irish radio fans reckon that the 2fm evening schedule is at its most exciting for years – from 6 pm, when a revitalised Dave Fanning comes on, right through to Hotpress columnist Cormac Battle signing off at 2am. One of the linchpins of that stretch is Dubliner Rick O’Shea. To celebrate his tenth year in radio we sent Jackie Hayden to ask O’Shea a few leading questions and to check out the great man’s credentials with his colleagues.
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.
They're Ireland's leading hip-hop duo but there's more to Messiah J & The Expert than gangsta stereotypes. Over brunch, they talk about their move towards using live instruments and their hotly-tipped new record.
JOHNNY DOWD is a 50-year-old Oklahoman who runs a haulage company. He is also a singer-songwriter who explores life s deepest, darkest sides. Interview: Peter Murphy
When Tommy McManus of mama s boys died of leukaemia, his brothers Pat and John hadn t the heart to keep the band going. Now, however, they re back, having found a new spiritual and musical home in celtuS.
Interview:
john walshe.
Held in the Dutch city of Groningen, this year's Eurosonic Festival brought back some painful memories for Irish attendees, The Frames. Hot Press' John Walshe followed the band to the site where Mic Christopher lost his life.
A unique blend of domestic and international talent, Other Voices is the brainchild of Philip King. The new series is, he believes, the most ambitious yet.
It’s time for the singer-songwriter fraternity to move over and make room for the new generation of Irish guitar bands. Director, Marshal Stars and The Blizzards are just three of the acts who feature on the debut compilation from Faction Records, the new label which aims to promote and nuture the brightest stars of the Irish underground.
COLM O HARE talks to MARY COUGHLAN about her upcoming show, LADY SINGS THE BLUES, a tribute to BILLIE HOLIDAY, and about the parallels between Holiday s life and her own.
Like Groucho Marx may or may not have said, timing is (pause) …everything. As such, the two albums that electrified us this year (Interpol’s hugely moving, visceral masterpiece Turn On The Bright Lights; Justin Timberlake’s Neptunes-assisted pop‘n’B triumph Justified) were actually released in ’02.
Roots music may help build bridges between past and present and us and them, but the media stance is still often isolationist. So says simon emerson of the afro celt sound system. siobhan long takes notes.
Roots music may help build bridges between past and present and us and them, but the media stance is still often isolationist. So says simon emerson of the afro celt sound system. siobhan long takes notes.
If anyone had told me a year ago that I’d be flinging my knickers at a bloke in a catsuit and another who used to be in a boy band I’d have told them to fuck right off. But, they wore me down and I eventually succumbed to the cock rockin’ charms of The Darkness (albeit with the help of a persistent Stuart Clark). And as for old Trousersnake, well, frankly, who wouldn’t?
Mary Black doesn't write her own material. Instead she has made an art of picking the right songs - and interpreting them to perfection. What's more, she has concentrated her song-finding activites on a range of Irish songwriters, with results that can at times be extraordinarily illuminating. Report: Jackie Hayden
Inspired by a renewed interest in Christianity, MAIRE BRENNAN of CLANNAD has spread her solo wings again. It s better to be addicted to faith than to drugs, she tells JACKIE HAYDEN
The annual Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival has put Longford on the world music map. Jackie Hayden talks to the festival’s originator Chris Keenan about how it grew from initially being laughed at to becoming one of the most important folk festivals in the international calendar.
You know, Nick Lowe was right when he asked “What’s so funny about peace, love and understanding?” Lately, I try to avoid the news as often as not, because it seems that every day there’s another atrocity: more carnage, more blood, more tears, more misery, more grief.
California-born, Harvard-educated, Alison Brown is not your everyday bluegrass flagbearer. But her emotive playing – and the contribution of her Compass Records label – have made her a leading figure in the American roots scene.
With their Eurovision adventure as a focal point, it may have been a strange and unusual year for Dervish – but they've bounced back with a superb new album.
They’re different, they’re fun, they have their critics but more and more people seem to love them. But enough about the trams; it’s all aboard for an interview with another Dublin
sensation Republic of Loose.
Given that he’s this issue’s cover star, it’s only fitting that the many Christy Moore goodies in our possession are dug up and given a new lease of life. So, if you’re sitting comfortably, let’s begin…
Happy in both her personal and professional life, DOLORES KEANE has learnt the wisdom of doing things for herself. Following the release of her latest album, Solid Ground, SIOBHAN LONG gets to meet her - at the second attempt.
It?s real, it?s now and it goes all the way back to the source ? roots music is taking the world by storm and Ireland is very definitely on the map.
By siobhan long.
spirit walker - the story of how three Essex boys met two Paddies with attitude and released a five-minute
ballad as their debut single. peter murphy has the details.
They may have toured with the likes of Paddy Casey, Ann Scott and Hothouse Flowers, but far from dealing in laidback acoustica, Birr group Wallmark are in fact a hard-rockin’ Led Zep/Who influenced outfit with an appetite for sonic destruction.
Danu may just be the hardest working band in trad. With their fourth album The Road Less Travelled only recently released and another promised for the spring, When Jackie Hayden put a number of key issues to the band’s accordionist Benny McCarthy and bodhran player and uilleann piper Donnchadh Hough he found that they don’t just work hard, they talk hard too.
John Spillane has remained a stalwart of the traditional scene for close to two decades. With his excellent new album Hey Dreamer having just hit the shops, Spillane sounds off to hotpress about his long and eventful career, his enthusiasm for younger artists such as Damien Dempsey and Juliet Turner, and why the organisers of the European Capital of Culture events in his native Cork have gotten things spectacularly wrong. words Colm O’Hare photos Mick Quinn
40 years after the Clancy Brothers brought Irish ballads to an international audience and won famous fans like Bob Dylan, Tommy Makem is still committed to the power of song – but appalled at the way modern Ireland treats its own culture.
You know him as the straight-talking turkey and Eurovision contender. But, in the confines of his 'pad', Dustin also turns out to be quite the indie rock connoisseur.
Having battled their way through eight weeks of the Raw Sessions, hip hop collective and noble underdogs THE INFOMATICS were awarded the title of Sony Ericsson Artist Of The Year. We caught up with Bugs, Mr. Dero, Konchus Lingo and BOC (try saying that three times fast!) to hear how appearing on the country’s first ever rockumentary series is going to change them and indeed the face of Irish hip hop.
The creators of the new Eyebrowy DVD expound on the inspiration behind their hilarious cartoons, their decision to leave their Irish characters behind, and how the real-life counterparts of their ‘toon army view their small-screen siblings.
Are you ready for hip hop, be-bop trad? Then EILEEN IVERS is ready to take you to the bridge. SIOBHAN LONG meets the fiddle player with the world at her fingertips.
Or perhaps we might have reached for another old familiar headline - Fears and Loathing in RTE - as the bosses at Radio 1 announce the chopping of virtually all specialist music programmes from the schedule. It is, writes Bill Graham, an act of cultural criminal negligence.
The Irish language is currently enjoying its most significant renaissance in many a year. in a special report, Seán O Héadeáin investigates the rebirth of the most unfairly maligned element of traditional culture
Rory Gallagher’s posthumous Wheels Within Wheels is a remarkable collection of previously unreleased acoustic material by Ireland’s guitar legend. It comes complete with a cover by the celebrated painter, David Oxtoby, that is certain to make a lasting impression.
It's been almost two years now since Anam's Brian O hEadhra unpacked his rucksack from top to bottom, two years of tearing all over the globe, from Düsseldorf to Darwin, Chicago to Castletownbere. With three albums well and truly reared, the band have recently been coaxing their fourth offspring, First Footing, out into the big bad world, blinkering its eyes against the glare of daylight.
If there were handouts for the shy and retiring, Dervish would be at the back of the queue. Never backward in coming forward, this Sligo/Roscommon ensemble have elevated audience rapport to an art form that's sadly all too rarely practised round these here parts. Lead singer, Cathy Jordan (the sole Roscommon interloper amid a quintet of Sligomen) delights in the more quirky and bizarre backgrounds to the band's songs and tunes. And somehow they all seem to treat a night flight to Kuala Lumpur with the same gravity as they would a skite to Kenmare. Dervish live and breathe on the road. Its interminable miles are the band's sustenance, its cat's eyes their compass to the next town, the next continent, and the next gig.
The Cronin Brothers have come a long way with their group The Aftermath since leaving Longford to make their fortune. With friends like the Kaiser Chiefs and fans like Chris Moyles, they’re on the brink of making it big.
In 2007, Hot Press will celebrate its 30th anniversary. By way of a prelude to the up-coming festivities, at Music Ireland ‘06, we will be unveiling the Hot Press Covers Exhibition featuring a selection of the great, and historic images that have adorned the front page of the magazine, from June 1977 onwards...
“All of Irish history is reflected in our songs”, says Frank Harte, a point well amplified by his new collection, 1798: The First Year of Liberty. Interview: Sarah Mc Quaid
In the first of a new Hot Press series, in which we ll be asking well-known Irish people to step onto a national podium, author and
publisher dermot bolger delivers his state of the nation address.
In the last issue of Hot Press, NIALL STANAGE wrote about his experiences as a busker-for-a-day. This time around he meets the real thing those who try to make their living on the streets of Dublin. PICS: CATHAL DAWSON
The most brilliantly outspoken mind in rock’n’roll, or just a mouthy Sheffielder who says mean things about Johnny Borrell? As the second REVEREND AND THE MAKERS album hits the shelves, Celina Murphy chases down the ever-intriguing Jon McClure.
Bono:
I can't imagine how the people in Hot Press are feeling right now. From the beginning there were four or five in there who were like a band - losing Bill, for them, must be like how I'd feel if something happened to Edge or Adam or Larry. He was like a brother to his colleagues and a cousin to us.
MARY STOKES reminisces on her first decade as Ireland s premier blues artist, and looks forward to expanding her horizons in the future. Interview: john walshe.
Why the media were wrong in their assessment of Sharon Shannon’s court case; the latest musical venture from producer, director and PR ace, Mary McPartlan, plus the usual round-up of news from the world of folk and traditional music.
In the past, many Irish people suffered from an inferiority complex about their own culture – about the language, music, film and literature of this island. But music is one arena where things have changed dramatically. Report: Jackie Hayden
The Walls are about to embark on their most extensive Irish tour yet, including their biggest Dublin gig to date at the Ambassador and may be about to finally break the bank
The Walls are about to embark on their most extensive Irish tour yet, including their biggest Dublin gig to date at the ambassador and may be about to finally break the bank
Sean Tyrrell’s Cry Of A Dreamer has been hailed as a timeless masterpiece. In the long run, however, it may be seen as merely the beginning of an extraordinary musical saga. Interview: Patrick Brennan
There’s more to our national holiday than drowning the shamrock you know. In fact, no matter what your interest, St Paddy’s Day has something to offer.
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
The physical form of how music is distributed and consumed is changing irrevocably, says Napster chairman Chris Gorog, who claims that this means the inevitable and imminent demise of the compact disc.
Superstars, rock stars, movie stars, sports stars, tv stars, authors, actors, artists, comedians, politicians, broadcasters, astrologers, chefs, outlaws, weirdoes, dingbats and Lee Scratch Perry...
The High Court had decided that the U2 gigs at Lansdowne Road could not go ahead. But after a tense week in the Supreme Court, that decision was comprehensively overturned. Reporters: PETER MURPHY, ADRIENNE MURPPHY and BARRY GLENDENNING.
This album by three youngish Londoners of Irish descent is quaintly old-fashioned in its aesthetic, featuring standard session favourites taken at a stately pace, with discreet piano and bouzouki accompaniment
In the run-up to the long-awaited reunion gigs by the legendary eighties folk-rock-jazz band Moving Hearts, Jackie Hayden talks to saxophonist Keith Donald and percussionist Noel Eccles.
Craig Fitzsimons meets Jimmie Dale Gilmore, possessor of a unique high ’n’ lonesome voice and yet another great product of the Lone Star State who, belatedly, is
experiencing a modicum of stardom himself.
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.
When the decision to dump Rattlebag and Mystery Train from the RTE Radio 1 schedule was taken, accusations of dumbing down were rife. So is there scope for arts and music programmes with a bit of depth in Montrose? John Kelly insists that there should be.
The past year hasn't been the easiest for Whipping Boy and all who sail in him. Their debut album, though critically acclaimed, did not sell well and they've also had to weather their own share of record company hassles. But, as Gerry McGovern discovers, the band are still setting their own agenda, and forging forward with their own brew of hope, confidence and fuck-ye-all attitude.
His decision to take care of business may have been a turning point but, at heart, Kieran Goss remains primarily preoccupied with his guitar and his pen.
Artists and record companies are losing millions of pounds every year through piracy. New developments like Napster and MP3 will bring further challenges. Report: JACKIE HAYDEN.
To celebrate hotpress’s thirtieth anniversary issue, we thought we’d break out the bubbly (and the tea!) and invite round a collection of Ireland’s biggest stars.
From pioneering ambient-trad with Clannad, through to her brand new concept album 'Two Horizons', Moya Brennan can now look back on 30 years of lending her voice and harp to some of the most distinctive music ever to come out of Ireland.
Jackie hayden meetsjournalist turned PR guru, Tony O Brien and speaks to him about his rock n roll adventures with the likes of U2, Michael Stipe and Bruce Springsteen.
Not content with sending Danu over to Brussels next week to mark the start of Ireland's EU Presidency, the Department of Arts, Sports & Tourism are mounting a six-month long Cultural Programme taking in all of the member states.
Not content with sending Danu over to Brussels next week to mark the start of Ireland's EU Presidency, the Department of Arts, Sports & Tourism are mounting a six-month long Cultural Programme taking in all of the member states.
An Irish band who don’t entirely fit in at home, Relish can console themslves with a great new album Karma Calling, and an international fanbase that stretches from the U.S. to Japan.
They’re the unsigned bands who are currently storming the Irish charts with little aid from the mainstream music industry – meet Morello, Transmitter and Ginseng.
An Irish band who don’t entirely fit in at home, Relish can console themslves with a great new album Karma Calling, and an international fanbase that stretches from the U.S. to Japan.
A host of Irish musicians have recorded a version of The Horslips’ classic ‘Trouble With a Capital T’ for a special celebrity episode of the Raw Sessions with Sony Ericsson.
He’s one of Ireland's most promising songwriters-for-hire, but now Limerick native Don Mescall hopes to establish himself as a solo artist in his own right.
We’ve tipped them for success in the past, and now, with a New Year upon us, Laura Izibor, Dirty Epic’s SJ Wai and Fight Like Apes’ MayKay are set to sweep all before them.
SEAMUS HEANEY once described Ireland as a country that went from the medieval to the post-modern in a generation. More than any other native band, Horslips embody that idea. Over their ten-year career, the band lurched back and forth from neo-classical Irish chamber music to progressive rock to acoustic folk to psychedelic pop to glam rock; here was one combo capable of going from Carolan to Caravan in a single bound.
In Meitheal, the duo of STEVE COONEY AND SEAMUS BEGLEY released one of the finest albums of the year. Here they talk about their spin on the tradition, the connection between Gaeltacht people and the Aborigines – oh and the logic of playing the accordion with a pen-knife. Interview: SIOBHÁN LONG
In Meitheal, the duo of STEVE COONEY AND SEAMUS BEGLEY released one of the finest albums of the year. Here they talk about their spin on the tradition, the connection between Gaeltacht people and the Aborigines – oh and the logic of playing the accordion with a pen-knife. Interview: SIOBHÁN LONG
DERMOT HANRAHAN, Chief Executive of Dublin's FM104, is in fighting form. He tells Joe Jackson about the station's transformation from near-insolvency to runaway success, slates the station's critics, praises Eamon Dunphy and defends late-night talk shows. Dermot-ologist: MYLES CLAFFEY
A year after Mic Christopher’s untimely death, his family and friends are celebrating his life and music with the release of his Skylarkin’ album and a star-studded gala live performance
THE GREAT RADIO DEBATE – 1993’s FINAL INSTALMENT
In strictly commercial terms, 98FM are by far the most successful Irish independent station. But over the past 12 months they have come in for severe criticism for a music policy which has frequently been described as anti-Irish. As a result, says their Australian Controller of Programmes Jeff O’Brien, there have been changes at the station – and there may be more to follow. Interview: Jackie Hayden.
Not since The Bothy Band in 1976, has an Irish traditional group signed to a major international label. By linking up with Virgin, ALTAN have confirmed their status as the pr-eminent force on the Irish scene and signalled their readiness to take on the world. Of course, theirs has been no overnight success story and, with the tragic loss of Frankie Kennedy, one that has also involved an immense amount of emotional courage. Interview: BILL GRAHAM. Pics: COLM HENRY
The folk and traditional community has been agog with rumours of a row between Facé and Imro. But the signs are that the organisations will be working together now.
He may be better known as manager of The Corrs – but John Hughes has been a musician for well over 30 years. Besides, with a US top 50 album to his credit in the 1980s, his new record – the remarkable Wild Ocean – is just the latest instalment in an extraordinary journey that has taken him close to the edge and back. interview: Niall Stokes
Despite the controversies in which she has recently bee involved, when SINIAD O'CONNOR starts talking music it becomes evident why she ran away to join the rock'n'roll circus in the first place. Citing Bob Dylan, Bob Marley and Van Morrison as her ultimate trinity, she discusses the spiritual forces that drive and inspire. Interview: BILL GRAHAM
From the biggest international names to the most dynamic local creations, festivals make Ireland a good place to be in summer, even when the sun refuses to put in an appearance
Summer time, and the record stores are going to be full to bursting with some cracking albums across all genres. John Walshe examines the hottest album releases set to hit the shelves
Mark McClelland was a feature and music writer for Cork's Evening Echo for four years. Here, he presents his top ten most significant musical acts to emerge from Cork.
Geoff Topley just can’t help writing songs and releasing records. And going entirely solo hasn’t stemmed the flow. “it’s an addiction,” he tells Colin Carberry
It's off to the most Northerly gig in the country with the island angels of Altan as Bill Graham spends a weekend in Donegal with our most dynamic traditional outfit and posits the theory that by looking to the past for inspiration Altan may hold a significant key to the future.
There are no guarantees of success in the music biz, but if you have what it takes there is plenty of expert help available to ensure you give it your best shot.
Snow Patrol and Ash are just some of the North’s rock ambassadors who have given their backing to the Oh Yeah Music Centre, a state-of-the-art multi-media development which will put Belfast on the international musical map.
She was toiling in obscurity until she caught the ear of British TV host Jools Holland. Now Dublin rockabilly siren Imelda May is on the fast-track to the big time.
Cavernous arenas, capacity crowds, shrieking teenagers and a brisk trade in merchandising.
No, it s not a Take That reunion, it s eh, Dublin popsters picture house travelling the autobahns of Germany.
Our Eurosceptic in D|sseldorf: colm o hare
It’s off to the most Northerly gig in the country with the island angels of ALTAN as BILL GRAHAM spends a weekend in Donegal with our most dynamic traditional outfit and posits the theory that by looking to the past for inspiration Altan may hold a significant key to the future.
Liam Fay teams up with the IMRO hit squad as they venture north to Monaghan in search of bars, discos and other such venues that do not have a licence to thrill, or at least a licence for the public performing of music.
Exhausted following her prolonged spell on tour, Bic Runga is keen to make it back home to New Zealand for some well-earned r’n’r. but not before she discusses the vagaries of life, love and pop stardom.
On the eve of the release of the group’s new album Winning Days, The Vines’ bassist Patrick Mathews gives hannah Hamilton the inside story on the tensions that threatened to split the band, hanging with Steve-o and the Jackass crew, and the group’s heretofore undeclared love of the Clancy Brothers.
25 years into his
career and with a
new album set to be
followed by a video
documentary of his life
and times, liam o'flynn
is the acknowledged living
master of the uileann pipes.
Interview: Sarah McQUAID.
Pics: Colm Henry
Donegal fiddle player john doherty died relatively unheralded in 1980 at the age of 86. Now, a new CD bears ample testament to his almost supernatural skill with a bow and strings.
By peter murphy.
Girls Aloud’s Nadine Coyle talks about her Derry childhood, drug use in the pop industry and explains why she gets irritated when the band are called “British”.
They’ve been heralded as the biggest thing in Irish rock since U2 – a prediction that proved prescient when The Script romped to the top of the charts with their debut album.
Most people know Philip Lynott and Thin Lizzy as the swashbuckling rock ‘n’ rollers who produced hard rock classics like ‘The Rocker’, ‘The Boys Are Back In Town’ and ‘Don’t Believe A Word’. But there were other fascinating forces at work in Ireland at the end of the ‘60s, with poetry and folk music both influencing the rock scene hugely. Philip Lynott was at the heart of that development – a charismatic star in the making with a deep romantic streak and an innate lyricism that separated him from the crowd. Now, these qualities have been captured, as never before, on a remarkable CD, released for the first time, free with HotPress. Read on...
Never mind the naysayers, Dublin 2006 is spilling over with white hot talent. Steve Cummins and Shilpa Ganatra run the rule over the capital's new breed.
On the release of a double CD retrospective of his forty years as a performer-songwriter, Johnny McEvoy talks to Jackie Hayden about his early days as Ireland’s answer to Bob Dylan, meeting the great man himself, supporting and introducing The Rolling Stones, defending The Wolfe Tones, not apologising for the troubles in the North, U2 and the key albums that have inspired him.
The idea for Home, an album of Irish songs, has been on the agenda for The Corrs for a number of years. But its release marks an important stage in the evolution not just of the band, but of lead singer Andrea Corr – who has been exploring new ways of expressing herself as an artist with increasing poise and confidence.
While one Irish Ronan is currently attempting to break the US market, another already has. COLM O'HARE meets RONAN HARDIMAN, the music composer behind Michael Flatley’s successes and discovers a considerable solo talent
Softly spoken off stage and complete lunatics on it, Kila have torn up the rulebook with their wantonly eclectic mix of styles. music, inner anger, revolutions and, er, women who cure warts are all discussed, as the band’s Colm O Snodaigh talks to Peter Murphy.
Those angry young Marxist Punk-Rockers THE MEKONS are back with a new album I Love Mekons and a contribution to a pro-abortion Woman’s Rights compilation . . . but they’re no longer quite so angry or young, not exactly Marxist, and their Punk is reinforced by Folk, Country and World Music! ANDY
DARLINGTON finds out what the hell is going on in Club Mekon.
THE SUBTONICS are young, gifted . . . and angry. Having made a name for themselves through their guerilla promotional tactics, they now tell EAMON SWEENEY that we re coming close to the end of rock n roll in Ireland.
For 20 years, iarla o lionaird has steeped himself in the neglected tradition of sean nss singing. Now signed to Peter Gabriel s Realworld label, he believes that the late 90s could finally see a breakthrough for his beloved art form. siobhan long talks to the man with what Martin Hayes calls the lonesome touch
DO YOU WANT NAILS OF FEEDBACK DRIVEN THROUGH YOUR BRAIN? DO YOU WANT YOUR EARS TO BLEED? THIS IS HARDCORE AND IT'S THE MOST VITAL ATTITUDE IN ROCK'N'ROLL, FROM LOU REED TO THERAPY? VIA NICK CAVE, FUGAZI AND... CHRISTY MOORE. OR SO SAYS GERRY McGOVERN, WHO ALSO ADVANCES THE THEORY THAT 'HARDCORE IS GENERALLY FOR HARD WHITE MEN'. SHOOTING GALLERY AWAITS YOUR RESPONSE!
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.
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
MARTIN HAYES fiddles while dennis cahill burns on The Lonesome Touch, an exercise in purity that is not exclusive to the purists. Joining them on the road, siobhan long learns the finer points of a good reel, and discovers that in Irish traditional music there s no place for conflict between continuity and change.
With her own debut album, ELEANOR McEVOY, one of the stars of 'A Woman's Heart', has come out of the folk closet and revealed herself to be a real rocker - feedback, distorted guitars and all. Interview: COLM O'HARE
With her own debut album, Eleanor McEvoy, one of the stars of A Woman s Heart , has come out of the folk closet and revealed herself to be a real rocker feedback, distorted guitars and all. Interview: Colm O Hare.
Think about direction, wonder why . . . It’s eleven years since Stano released his debut album Content To Write In I Dine Weathercraft. Despite his genuine originality and dedication to his art over the intervening years, he remains one of Ireland’s most enigmatic performers, more appreciated on the continent than in his homeland. Interview: Joe Jackson
Patrick Hedlund catches up with Damien Rice and The Frames in Boston and finds they’re having more success on-stage than in the bowling alley. Additional reporting Stuart Clark
ROCK IN RIO, which attracts 200,000 people, may be known for headliners like Sting, REM and Britney Spears. But this year, DERVISH played there too - and got a rapturous welcome. SIOBHÁN LONG reports from an extraordinary event
He’s worked with Van, Dylan, Christy, Sinéad, The Cranberries and many other household names – but now he’s gone centre-stage himself as the composer of The General soundtrack. JOE JACKSON meets RICHIE BUCKLEY. Pix: Mick Quinn
Philip Chevron's career has been nothing if not varied. From the early days with the Radiators through his collaborations with people like Agnes Bernelle and right up to his current work with The Pogues, he has proved himself to be a consistently fine songwriter and performer. In the first part of a lengthy and intense interview, he talks to Eamonn McCann about his childhood, his love of Broadway musicals, the Horslips connection, the genesis of the Radiators and his fleeting career as a journalist.
The Corrs Talk On Corners was the biggest-selling album of 1998 in the UK. So far it s shifted 6 million copies worldwide and rising. And now the band are set to embark on their American campaign, with who knows what ultimate destination at journey s end. So they ve had it easy, eh? It s all a big marketing scam, masterminded by the moguls in the American record company that signed them? We thought you d like to know so we put these and other accusations to someone who should know, their manager of nine years, john hughes. And got some interesting answers too. Interview: niall stokes.
Based in Glasnevin and founded by producer Mark Hadfield, businessman Chris Hehir and Brian McFadden, Chilli Studios proves that home digital recording hasn't yet usurped state of the art commercial studios.
Hot Press' answer to Russell Grant, Jackie Hayden, slips into his chunky-knit jumper, gazes at his crystal ball and comes up with more predictions that probably won't come true. Like last year.
From Chet Baker through Joe Cocker to The Cranberries, the world of music owes the late Denny Cordell an enormous debt. Bill Graham pays tribute to an inspirational craftsman who made Ireland his final home and resting place.
The grand dame of country and western music tells Olaf Tyaransen about her enduring passion for her music, her attachment to her tennessee roots, the ups and downs of her 36-year marriage and her ambitions to record an album of traditional Irish tunes
That’s the routine for the incredibly busy Galway Bay Fm DJ Jon Richards, who also handles on the spot traffic reports from his spanking new Honda. And he’s up for a Meteor Award this year too!
The second day of the Music Show brought together James Bond composer David Arnold, Enya producer Nicky Ryan, Christy Moore, Sharon Corr and... The Blizzards
In 1991, five years after the death of Phil Lynott, the late Bill Graham wrote in Hot Press of Philo's enduring legacy. Over ten years later his words are as relevant as ever
Award-winning director and actor Ed Burns talks about enjoying success on your own terms, his lifelong music obsession and the fact that he’s about to make his first big-budget Hollywood movie.
Hot Press celebrates two decades of The Baggot Inn, still Dublin s premier pub venue and home, at various times, to the likes of U2, Thin Lizzy and Something Happens! Here, manager Charlie McGettigan flips through his scrapbook of memories in the company of Conor O Mahony and reveals how the recent appearance of a donkey at a Joshua Trio gig brought things full circle at The Baggot. (Not to mention, Full Circle.)
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.
Republic Of Loose are that rarest of beasts – an Irish rock band who can get their groove on. Ahead of the release of their new album, they talk about standing out from the crowd.
Damien Dempsey is back in town after a five month stint Down Under. Hot Press catches up with the Dublin balladeer as he kicks off a 50-date Irish tour, taking in Electric Picnic along the way. He talks about the success of his Rocky Road To Dublin covers record, the thrill of bestriding Croke Park – and having Bono and The Edge checking him out in Sallynoggin!
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.
Twelve months ago The Cranberries were unknown outside of the hippest rock circles, now with the platinum success of Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? they stand as the first Irish band to genuinely crack America since U2.
Much of the media attention given to them has focussed on Dolores O'Riordan, a singer whose unique approach to her craft underlines the defiantly independent path the group has trodden all the way to the top of the Billboard charts. Here she talks to JOE JACKSON about what by any standards has been a perfect year. .
This is THE CHIEFTAINS as you've never encountered them before - more like mad, trad and dangerous to know than the grand-daddies of Irish traditional music. Smoking dope with Philip Lynott! Busting muscles through wild sex! Yes, it's the bits that aren't in the official biography. But, soft, not a word to Paddy, OK? Part One of an exclusive two-part interview. By JOE JACKSON.
Niall Stokes: People would make an assumption that since The Corrs have sold millions of records, you ve already got it made. Does it feel like that to you?
Technology is setting the pace in the musical instrument and equipment market of the ’90s, with one great leap forward following another, and the musican reaping the benefits in terms of a vastly increased range of product choices. But it’s a difficult market for retailers nonetheless, with the level of investment and exposure rising all the time. Report: Colm O’Hare
On the eve of the release of their latest album, Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill shoot the breeze about on-the-road partying and incorporating non-folk influences into their songbook
Beaten down by the acrimonious collapse of In Tua Nua and lifted up by a hard-fought victory over cancer, leslie dowdall is back with a new album and new outlook on life. I m just delighted to have been given a second chance, she tells joe jackson. Pix: COLM HENRY.
Though their second album, All The Way From Tuam, has yet to hit the shops in Britain, The Sawdoctors are beginning to pack em in in the strangest of places like Norwich and Leeds. Bill Graham talks to Leo Moran about the band s phenomenal success to date and, against a backdrop of cynicism among rock s self-conscious cognoscenti, asks the perennial question: what is hip?
Live on your TV and your wireless, 2TV will be broadcasting all summer long. JACKIE HAYDEN goes behind the scenes on the show that shakes up Sunday mornings.
Boyzone are, irrefutably, Ireland s first ever bona fide Pop gods. Reviled by many but dreamed about, screamed at and lusted after by far, far more, they are the men boys of the moment. Joe Jackson meets Louis Walsh and John Reynolds, the Svengalis behind Boyzone, and asks Steve, Shane, Ronan, Mikey and Keith what it s like when every female alive wants to shag you senseless. As if he doesn t know.
Or should that be Black pages? Mary Black and her long-time friend, producer and collaborator Declan Sinnott look back over ten years of solo work, and the steady progress which finds her ready to take on the world with her latest album, The Holy Ground. Interview: Joe Jackson.
Or should that be Black pages? Mary Black and her long-time friend, producer and collaborator Declan Sinnott look back over ten years of solo work, and the steady progress which finds her ready to take on the world with her latest album, The Holy Ground. Interview: Joe Jackson.
Or should that be Black pages? Mary Black and her long-time friend, producer and collaborator Declan Sinnott look back over ten years of solo work, and the steady progress which finds her ready to take on the world with her latest album. The Holy Ground. Interview: Joe Jackson
Beaten down by the acrimonious collapse of In Tua Nua and lifted up by a hard-fought victory over cancer, Leslie Dowdall is back with a new album and new outlook on life. “I’m just delighted to have been given a second chance,” she tells Joe Jackson. Pix: COLM HENRY.
In a presidential nomination field virtually devoid of candidates of real calibre and charisma, the name of ex-Boomtown Rat and Live Aid hero BOB GELDOF has cropped up again and again. Despite his outright denial that he will run for office, the rumour refuses to die away. Here, in an interview with LIAM FAY, he gives his assessment of Mary Robinson s seven years in the job, and his hopes for the future occupants of Aras an Uachtarain.
LA, Joshua Tree, Alabama, New Orleans . . . Kristin Hersh verbally back-packs her way around the most significant places in her life and career thus far.
Interview: Nick Kelly.
In the magical, wind-swept landscape of Ireland's remote north-west the cameras roll as U2's Bono and Maire of Clannad make the video for their collaborative single "In A Lifetime". Bill Graham joins the entourage at work and at play and talks to the main protagonists.
Who better to launch this year’s Music Show than Irish band of the moment The Script? In a taster of what to expect from October’s RDS weekender, Danny, Glen and Mark treated a roomful of fans, music students and industry professionals to their thoughts on illegal downloading, songwriting, the dreaded Auto-tune and touring with Macca and U2.
You wanted the best, you got GENE SIMMONS. Here, the motormouth frontman of KISS, the world s greatest showband, talks about sex and women at length (quelle surprise), discusses his Jewish heritage, explains why Kierkegaard and Nietzsche obviously never got laid, and announces to an increasingly bemused JOE JACKSON that he Gene, that is possesses the world s smallest penis.
In the best possible sense, of course! For fifteen years, Gerry Ryan has been a mainstay of Irish radio. Though his few forays intoTV thus far have been ill-fated, his latest small-screen venture, Ryan Confidential looks set to reverse the trend. Here, Ryan discusses the ups and downs of his career to date
She learned her craft with the Wild Oscars and Kaydee, and more recently featured on the John Hughes album Wild Ocean. Now, Tara Blaise has taken flight with the release of her debut album Dancing On Tables Barefoot – a record that unveils an impressively free-spirit and a desire to live life to the full.
Having already conquered Ireland and the UK, SAMANTHA MUMBA is poised to join Britney and Christina at the top of the American pop chart. Not bad for someone who two years ago was fired from a panto by Twink! Now, with her new album Gotta Tell You ready for release, the Dublin singer talks candidly to JOE JACKSON about drugs, sex and the break-up of her parents marriage
DEREK BELL on art, spirituality and porn! MARTIN FAY on Sean O'Riada, Carnegie Hall and drink! And PADDY MOLONEY on superstar friends, Bono's problematic vocals and his critics, inside and outside the group. Yes, it's the second and final part of JOE JACKSON'S extraordinary interview with THE CHIEFTAINS.
It’s the guide Ladbrokes, the Central Bank, Mystic Meg and Mark Lawrenson turn to at the start of each year – Jackie Hayden’s cultural, sporting and political forecasts for the forthcoming twelve months.
For close to a decade, Lillie’s Bordello has been the nightclub of choice for the famous and not-so-famous of Dublin cultural life. But with the passing of the Celtic Tiger era and the current uncertainty over the club’s future, can Lillie’s retain its position as the capital’s number one celebrity haunt?
When a gang of Ireland’s finest musicians, media stars and political types gathered in the Central Hotel for pre-Christmas drinks, there were fun and games aplenty. reporting: Stephen Bailey, Stuart Clark and Roisin Dwyer. Photos: Mick Quinn and Graham Keogh. Costumes: courtesy of The Dublin Costume Company.
Once he cleaned up in the charts, now he s cleaned up himself. Bruised but unbroken, MARC ALMOND is back and busy on all fronts. And, whisper it, there s even talk of SOFT CELL reforming. Interview: NICK KELLY.
On the eve of his unprecedented 23-night run at Vicar St., PAUL BRADY reflects on a dazzling career and describes the long and sometimes difficult process which has led to a new and resounding declaration of independence.
Interview: JACKIE HAYDEN
Whether starring in popcorn blockbusters or thoughtful art-house movies, Gabriel Byrne is a reassuring presence on our screens. But he reserves his deepest passions for keeping alive the flame of Irish culture among the diaspora.
Once he was the mouthy fop rocker who enraged at least as many people as he delighted; now with a debut novel just published he's a (mostly) critically acclaimed author whose time has apparently come. Peter Murphy meets former Toasted Heretic frontman Julian Gough to discuss a meeting with Morrissey and a near-miss with Sinead, the benefits of being humbled and crushed, fame and creativity on the dole and, one more time with feeling, the epic story of lawyers, lubricants and lunacy at Feile '92. Photography: Phillip Tottenham
Martin McGuinness was one of the key figures in the troubles in Northern Ireland . Many unionists believe that the one-time IRA man was at the heart of much that was wrong and divisive in Irish life. But ultimately the quiet Derryman has taken on the role of peacemaker – and he is now the Deputy First Minister in the new power-sharing administration at Stormont.
Jerry Fish – or if you prefer, Gerry Whelan – is what you might call a happy man right now. In fact, if the guy were any higher, the boys in blue would probably stop him on the street and ask him to piss into a cup. Not only is he preparing to close on his most successful professional year in a decade, he’s also received a rather momentous early Christmas present. Some 28 hours before our meeting, the singer’s partner Niki had given birth to a baby boy, their second child. Mr Fish, as you can imagine, is coasting on cigars and brandy and goodwill to all men.
Expelled by the Labour Party and reviled by some of his former colleagues, JOE HIGGINS is seen by his own supporters as the only genuinely socialist politician in Dail Iireann. No friend or fan of Labour, golden circles or U2, he tells JOE JACKSON that revolutionary change is not just possible but essential. Pix: Colm Henry.
Martin McCann, lead singer of Sack has been ‘out’ for a number of years now. Here he talks about his homosexuality and its impact on his music. Interview: George Byrne.
NIALL STOKES takes a very personal journey back through the music and memories of a friendship with a man he was proud to have known
THE DRIVE to Cork was a lonely one. Ry Cooder on the deck, that sweet slide guitar shooting off tracers: the memories, stacked up like a vast
rack of on-line CDs, kept slipping in and out of the engagement slot. No need ever to press the play button. Now and then I had to hold back the
tears as the music of past friendship flooded the car and, with it, a terrible awareness of all the things that might have, but hadn't, been done.
The news of Rory Gallagher s tragic death has sent seismic shock waves through the music world. Here was a man who managed to combine the gift of being an authentic creative genius with the even rarer gift of being a genuinely decent, honourable human being. Over the next six pages, Hot Press pays tribute to both the legend and the person, with contributions from the stars, friends, fans and colleagues who were touched by the Gallagher magic, and takes a trip through the backpages of an extraordinary career.
Arriving in Dublin in the last sixties as a 16 year old guitar wunderkind, Belfast born Gary Moore embarked on a musical career that has seen him go through several metamorphoses and achieve numerous notable success in the process.
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.
He s so vain, but brian molko is also one of the most astute men in rock n roll. Having put his hedonistic days behind him honest! the placebo mainman talks to stuart clark about martyrdom, maturity and Marilyn Manson.
Deco Cuffe me bollix. With the release of his debut album Andrew Strong has finally left behind his Commitments' character and launched his solo career in earnest. Interview: Colm O'Hare
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
No, it's not the overworked Hot Press subs finally snapping beneath the strain of a hectic production schedule but a finely argued debate by our finest writers on the phenomenon of naff. What is naff? Are you naff and if so how do you go about rectifying matters? Read on and be saved . . .
A brief encounter with Dido – author of multi-million-selling debut album No Angel and brand-newie Life For Rent – not to mention one of the nicest popstars you’re ever likely to meet.
It's time to lock up your sons, daughters, pet poodle and drinks cabinet, as eight of Ireland's top bands descend on the venue, london, for the first major Hot Press-sponsored musical event of the year.
When liam fay went along to interview comedienne and chat show host ruby wax, he expected a garrulous, loud, flashy American who would brook no argument as to the sheer wondrous fabulousness of her televisual output. What he got was a garrulous, loud, flashy American who was almost touchingly keen to disown most of the programmes she has starred in during her career, and eager to proclaim herself a serious artiste . . . not to mention her burning ambition to interview Yasser Arafat.
Senate leader Donie Cassidy, a reluctant interviewee, opens up about his rivalry with Fianna Fail colleague Mary O'Rourke and reminisces about his days in the show-band business.
From strange days coming second in a yoghurt-sponsored competition and playing awful gigs sandwiched between boy bands, Damien Dempsey, with a little help from Shane, Sinéad and Christy, has survived and thrived. Eamon Sweeney meets a rap balladeer with a hit album, a social conscience and more than a few stories to tell.
From the profound and the insightful to the weird, funny and just plain daft, Paul Nolan rounds up what the famous and infamous had to say for themselves in 2004...
PHIL COULTER is far from the muzak-producing bore of caricature. Here, he talks to JOE JACKSON about family tragedy, northern politics, drink binges, having songs covered by Elvis and his experiences working with stars like Van Morrison, Siniad O Connor and Luke Kelly. Portraits: MYLES CLAFFEY
Having had his fill of Eurovision and being ripped-off on the Irish circuit, Louis Walsh went for broke with the boys who would be boyzone. Now he can afford to speak his mind. JOE JACKSON is all ears.
Having had his fill of Eurovision and being ripped-off on the Irish circuit, louis walsH went for broke with the boys who would be boyzone. Now he can afford to speak his mind. JOE JACKSON is all ears.
It s been a long, long way from there to here and DONAL LUNNY has been at the centre of things every step of the journey. He has achieved enormous acclaim and considerable success with Planxty, The Bothy Band and Moving Hearts. Now with the launch of his latest band and their eponymously titled album COOLFIN, he takes time out to reflect on all of the major figures who have contributed to the extraordinary revival of folk and traditional music that has taken place over the past 30 years. He also recalls the highs and the lows the heartbreak, the good times and the great music that he himself has enjoyed as one of Ireland s finest and most influential musicians. Interview: Niall Stokes. Pics: Colm Henry
