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
Hoot Press talks to the perennially busy Ed Byrne about his hectic schedule, partying hard at comedy festivals, sexing up his audience and why he won’t be doing a McDonald’s voice-over any time soon.
Christy Moore, who headlines this year’s rejuvenated Lisdoonvarna Festival, recalls the first flowering of music festivals in Ireland – and looks forward to this year’s event, when once again the challenge will be to weave that spell
She’s been a regular festival goer since she first attended Féile at the age of 14. Gemma Hayes waxes lyrical on the joys of those sprawling, big days out
As the Creamfields dance juggernaut heads towards Punchestown we catch up with the carnvial at Prague in the Czech Republic and offer a preview of what’s to come
Music industry heads and gig-goers have been hit with the shock news that concerts and festivals are to be hit with a 13.5% VAT rise from the start of next year.
Oh, how we love our singer songwriters! They're the new flavour of the month, with artists you'd normally have playing in some poky toilet headlining festivals.
The summer months are seeing a whole host of festivals taking place, with the August Bank Holiday Weekend being the signal for en masse mayhem and madness. Music features largely in all festivals, with diverse tastes catered for, so there is something for everyone.
Of the many festivals that took place over the Bank Holiday weekend, Indie-Pendence – previously known as the Mitchelstown Music Festival, but since raised a level or three in the coolness stakes – had the most to offer, yet was the most precarious.
You know, many young people come up to me in the street and then, when they see that I’m Sam Snort, start to shriek and run very quickly in the opposite direction.
Wayne Coyne would like to share a secret. Thing is, he shouldn’t really be telling you. Maybe he’s stirring hornets here and, well, that’s not what he’s about.
Having sold 7.5 million copies of their debut album, and collaborated with Sting, Justin Timberlake and James Brown on their new record Monkey Business, the Black Eyed Peas are among the premier pop acts of the moment. And they're still only getting started, as they tell Steve Cummins
The pressure’s on for Roisin Murphy. She’s no longer shielded from public scrutiny as a member of Moloko and Electric Picnic is her first outing as a solo star in her native Ireland.
Six Semesters could be the first independent Irish feature film with an entire cast and crew made up of students from an Irish university. Jackie Hayden goes behind the casting couch with director John McKeown.
English folk singer KATE RUSBY has been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. She tells Colm O'Hare about sad songs, her Bon Jovi phase, and attracting praise from Blur s Graham Coxon
Having dispatched that difficult second album with admirable panache, Republic Of Loose are gearing up for the festival season, most notably a Saturday night headline slot at Castlepalooza. Mick Pyro talks us through his outdoor survival guide.
The Lovebox festival returns to Dublin with a stellar line-up including Maximo Park, N*E*R*D, Paolo Nutini and Gorillaz Soundsystem. We talk to organisers Groove Armada.
KMLA ARE a band who have no difficulty articulating a vision and a sound that?s at one and the same time intrinsically Irish yet insistent in glancing outward at the shapes and colours of music from all over the globe. Rossa O?Snodaigh, one of Kmla?s main movers and shakers sees roots music?s popularity as an inevitable result of the disillusionment with pop and rock formats.
May 2nd 1998, Liverpool superclub CREAM make their first foray into the festival world with their star-studded Creamfields all-dayer.
RICHARD BLAGGER BROPHY talks to Cream promoter JAMES BARTON about the event.
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
The Heineken Green Energy Festival takes place in The Munster Showgrounds in Cork and the Castlegar Sportsgrounds in Galway over the June Bank Holiday Weekend
Is the time right for Welsh rock n rollers STEREOPHONICS to cash in on their Brits Best Newcomer award of 1998? It is, explains a frustrated KELLY JONES to BARRY GLENDENNING, but only if they can get out of this fucking airport.
He wrote one of the most influential novels in the English language but, for too long, Bram Stoker has been forgotten by his home town of Dublin. But a new city-wide celebration of Stoker’s Dracula aims to set this to rights
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.
The Frames and BellX1 stormed the palisades of Groningen recently as part of the Eurosonic Festival. John Walshe was there to see it happen and to revisit the spot where the great Mic Christopher met with his tragic accident. Plus: the latest news and reaction to the Frames’ new record deal
Richard Jenkins has diligently plied his craft for Woody Allen, the Coen Brothers and in Six Feet Under, but he's now assuming his first leading role in Thomas McCarthy's The Visitor.
Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine have lived up to their name. When all and sundry thought they were dead and buried, the English agit-poppers have returned Lazarus-like with a brand new batch of songs. Interview: john walshe.
IARLA O LIONAIRD has a new star-studded solo album out but the Afro Celt Sound System continue to teach him that music can be enjoyable and not just sublime . Interview: Colm O'Hare
Grunge is back, apparently. And the hotbed for the revival is the English city of Leeds, where Dinosaur Pile-Up are among the newcomer acts leading the charge.
rob thomas is cautiously optimistic that his multi-million selling outfit, matchbox 20, will not succumb to the Hootie syndrome. Interview: colm o'hare.
Their Live 8 appearance has elevated Razorlight to rock's top table, and Johnny Borrell is loving every minute of it. Steve Cummins meets the outspoken frontman
As the summer festival season goes into overdrive, Richard Brophy talks to Slam's Stuart Mc Millan about his involvement in the T in the Park knees up in Scotland next month.
Positivity, great music and animal suits – why wouldn’t you vote for the Flaming Lips frontman as leader of the world. Campaign managers Eamon Sweeney & John Walshe
The big time looms for Ed Zealous, but they're not fazed by the prospect of playing one of the world's most prestigious rock festivals. In fact, they can't wait to crash the mainstream.
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.
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?
From 15-28 July 2002 Galway city hosts one of the most comprehensive of this year's arts festivals with esoteric offerings from the genres of visual art, music, theatre, comedy and lots, lots more
If having your music featured on every TV programme from TFI Friday to England v Morocco is a measure of success, then CORNERSHOP are now one of the biggest bands in the world. Multi-instrumentalist BEN AYRES talks to STUART CLARK about Noel Gallagher collaborations, festivals, royalties, The Blind Boys Of Alabama and that Fatboy Slim remix.
It’s a rags to riches fairytale of Disney proportions, but winning the overall prize in the Global Battle of the Bands contest, a world tour and E85,000 is just part of Kopek’s story.
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.
They’ve played with Bloc Party and Muse and shared a studio with Fionn Regan. Now, London garage rockers The Noisettes are set to make a splash of their own.
As he limbers up for yet another sell-out Irish tour, guitar-picking hearthrob Tom Baxter is keen to scotch rumours of impending nuptials and wax lyrical about his love affair with this country
The Camden Crawl: 40 buzz bands play across 10 venues on one night, in indie’s capital of cool. In the green corner are The Chalets, who pit their musical talent in a predominately London-led line-up.
Tara Brady talks to Catalina Sandino Moreno, star of Maria Full Of Grace, the gritty Colombian drama which tells the story of a seventeen year-old girl attempting to escape the dead-end environs of backstreet Bogota.
Limerick thrashmeisters Giveamanakick's third album Welcome To The Cusp is the product of ten days of cabin fever in Donegal. No wonder it sounds wet 'n' wild.
2006 has been a busy year for Dublin-born Shaz Oye, capped by the release of her mostly self-penned and self-financed debut album Truth According To Shaz Oye. In conversation with Jackie Hayden she looks back on her story so far.
Playing Live at the Marquee on Sunday June 24: Lock up your housewives. Ireland’s most eligible bachelors, Podge & Rodge, are on the road and looking for love.
From being bottled off stage in Italy to supporting Garbage on a major European tour, to their excellent second album I Am Not A Doctor, life has certainly not been boring for Moloko. John Walshe caught up with them.
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!
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from quirky popsters Alphastates but that’s not because they’ve had a massive falling out. Rather, their lead singer lost her voice and then they suffered a sudden lack of confidence. But now they’re back, with perhaps their finest record yet.
They were among the one of the first acts to pioneer the big beat sound, two Irish lads with a barrel full of funk and an ear for killer tunes. Now the Dirty Beatniks have returned, minus one of the founding members, older, wiser and with a raw new album, Feedback. Richard Brophy investigates
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.
With the publication of his memoirs, Shai shahar has packed in his gigolo life and turned to talk radio and sex education on the Internet. paul o mahony, who previously profiled Shai in these pages, catches up with a sex icon.
Coldplay, White Stripes, Strokes, Queens, Garbage, Oasis, JJ72, Franz... With a whole slew of major albums in the pipeline, it looks like ‘05 will be the wrong year to kick that addiction to noise.
From frontman with incendiary collective Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy to his current incarnation as hip-hop zen master, Michael Franti has remained one of the true radical voices of the US underground.
Premier County natives the Corrigan Brothers are currently the darlings of YouTube with their single There’s No-One As Irish As Barack Obama. Edwin McFee catches up with singer Ger to talk about dodgy rock bands, Roy Keane and, um, ladyboys.
Despite predictable criticism from certain quarters, Sarah McLachlan’s vision of “a celebration of women in music” has made the touring Lilith Fair one of the hottest tickets in rock in 1998. Tim Perry reports.
Students are renowned for their loud music, substance abuse and copulating in the streets. But eating disorders, anxiety, stress and depression may be more true to life.
In Case Of Fire are one of a clutch of NI bands that are helping to spearhead a new alternative Ulster. With a string of high profile festival dates on the cards, they talk about their plans for world domination.
From Shakespearian thesp to sitcom star in Black Books, Nina Conti has proven herself to be one of the most versatile actresses around. But, as she tells Phil Udell, what she’s most interested in is reviving the lost art of ventriloquism
From Shakespearian thesp to sitcom star in Black Books, Nina Conti has proven herself to be one of the most versatile actresses around. But, as she tells Phil Udell, what she’s most interested in is reviving the lost art of ventriloquism
Nearly 30 years after he coasted into the big time, PETER MURPHY asks PETER SARSTEDT the big question - and finds that there is much more to the man than the "one-hit wonder" tag implies.
Pop-loving supergroup Talulah Does the Hula talk about expectations, ambitions and drummers with sweet haircuts. Plus, how they stepped outside the shadow of their previous bands to forge a whole new identity.
Marriage and babies have given The Dandy Warhols a fresh perspective on life. But they aren't ready to turn their back on sleazed-up rock'n roll just yet
Their sombre, melancholy music has seen The National tagged as arch-moochers. Face to face though, frontman Matt Berninger turns out to be a stand-up fellow.
Ahead of their Electric Picnic shows, The Beastie Boys talk about Politics, the influence of punk on their sound and explain why Ireland is one of their favourite places to play
Having admitted that he really doesn’t know what he’s talking about, Brendan Dempsey briefs Paul Nolan on the upcoming Montreal Comedy Festival. and other stuff
Denis Desmond’s bid to take-over the UK’s Academy Music Group of venues has run in to difficulties, with the Office of Fair Trading referring it to the Competition Commission.
Where other bands moan about the music industry or spend small fortunes bringing their stage designs to life, Stereophonics like to keep it nice and simple. Or at least as nice and simple as it gets when you tour with U2, get advice from Prince Charles and see Slipknot with their masks off
The twin spectres of recession and emigration may loom large, but that's no reason for the media to make things worse by indulging in gross exaggeration
Danielle Brigham catches up with new Britrock darlings The Futureheads to discuss their recent gigs in, respectively, a ski resort and the biggest shopping mall in the world, touring with Franz Ferdinand, appearing on The OC soundtrack and their collaboration with Bloc Party.
Mary Coughlan returns to Midnight At The Olympia on February 4th, but this time it's with an unreserved optimistic outlook, and the determination to put all her troubles behind her. Interview Lorraine Freeney
Their unique combination of sensual Latin melodies and brilliant, metal-inspired guitar playing have made Rodrigo y Gabriela a phenomenon in their adopted Ireland, with a platinum album, sell-out tours and barn-storming festival appearances already to their credit. Now, with the release of their third album, Rodrigo y Gabriela, their sights are set on the international arena. Here, this extraordinary couple explain why they swapped sun-drenched Mexico for rain-kissed Dublin – and, for the first time, talk candidly about the open relationship they enjoy, as long-term friends and lovers.
In anticipation of the Guinness-sponsored SOUTHERN SOUL AND DISCO FESTIVAL '98, which takes place in Cork over the June Bank Holiday Weekend, ADRIENNE MURPHY shares a chinwag with MIKE G of New York rap luminaries THE JUNGLE BROTHERS, and gets the lowdown from the highly-touted AOIFE Nic CANNA on what it's like being a female in the testosterone-dominated world of DJing.
As Northern Ireland begins to cash in on its recent history, NIALL STANAGE takes a West Belfast taxi tour around the area s landmarks. Pics: PETER MATTHEWS
Some of the best movies currently being made are coming from the near east, specifically Turkey and Romania. CRISTIAN MUNGIU, director of the astonishing, Ceausescu-era set 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days and the forthcoming Tales from the Golden Age talks about the new wave of Romanian cinema.
Comedy hit a spectacular high in 2002 with the success of The Office, The League of Gentlemen and Bachelor’s Walk. But there may be even better to come this year, as three generations of Irish comic talent tell us.
Following a potentially fatal bout of auto-immune deficiency, Airborne Toxic Event’s Mikel Jollett gave up a damned promising writing career to play music.
As the masses prepare to descend on Punchestown, we dispatch Hannah Hamilton to assess the festival fitness of one of this year's Oxegen buzz bands, Franz Ferdinand.
Will U2 play Phoenix Park or not? And what is the future of the rock festival as we have come to know and love it in Ireland? Special Report: STUART CLARK.
the poet Allen Ginsberg died at his East Village home in New York on Saturday, 5th April, just two months short of his 71st birthday. After more than four decades of constant, and often controversial, conflict with such repressive figures as J. Edgar Hoover, Fidel Castro and Newt Gingrich, liver cancer finally succeeded where they had always failed in silencing the notoriously outspoken writer and self-confessed beat-hip-gnostic-imagist performance poet.
One of Belfast’s best-loved indie clubs has undergone a radical reinvention – but is still going strong after more than ten years at the front line of alternative culture in the city.
After cutting her teeth (ouch!) in Bachelor’s Walk and Shimmy Marcus’s Headrush, Derry actress Laura Pyper has squeezed herself into thigh-high boots and corset for Hex, Sky One’s teenage witch riposte to Buffy.
Folk doyen Richard Thompson remains a singular presence in the roots music scene after four decades. Here he talks about “exile” on the US West Coast and his recent return to his electric rock roots.
As cult continental rockers Deus release their fifth album, frontman Tom Barman talks about interviewing David Lynch, collaborating with Glen Hansard and hanging out with Elbow's Guy Garvey.
Seasick Steve is a former hobo who once called Kurt Cobain a neighbour and, in his 60s, now finds himself acclaimed as one of folk's hottest 'new' acts.
The hostage crisis in Beslan, which ended last week in terrible carnage, has brought the conflict in the former soviet union into sharper focus than ever before. the emerging picture is a chastening one, as the prospect of a descent into chaos looms ever larger.
A visit from Larry Harvey, creator of Nevada’s legendary Burning Man festival, looks set to be one of the highlights of Dublin’s forthcoming convergence weekend.
He is best known as a musician and a songwriter, but Nick Kelly has a parallel career as a very successful advertising ‘creative’. So much so, that he was recently asked to be a judge at one of the advertising industry’s big international events, the annual Shark Awards.
Invisible Armies have just released their killer debut EP, A Neutral Space. Richard Brophy talks to Leo Pearson, one-third of the band s core assault squad.
She’s one of the sassiest, not to say iconic, frontwomen in rock. Up close however, Yeah Yeah Yeahs singer Karen O is just a big pussycat. Look, we’ve even made her cry.
Daring Hot Press correspondent Danielle Brigham tells in her own words how she dodged knives, nibbled coat-hangers, fire-limboed – well, crawled – and pulled the world’s stretchiest man, all in the course of a day with the fun-loving freaks of the Circus Of Horrors. photos Liam Sweeney
NIALL STANAGE reports from the tenth Finsbury Park Fleadh, which featured performances from THE PRETENDERS, VAN MORRISON, ELVIS COSTELLO, SHANE MACGOWAN, DAVID GRAY and, er, RONAN KEATING
Blame the evil warts-and-all image on the Christian churches – but even after years of persecution, witches haven’t gone away, you know. in fact, they’re alive and well and living in Ireland!
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
Grunge titans Alice in Chains are back after a 14 year hiatus. They talk about the tragic death of vocalist Layne Staley, working with Elton John and keeping the spirit of the early ‘90s alive.
But who started it? Olaf Tyaransen went to the final protest march against Britain’s repressive criminal justice bill and found himself reading helpful hints on how to throw a brick with maximum effect before a full-scale riot broke out. This is his report . . .
In a rare interview, DJ, Sabres Of Paradise mainman and all-round geezer andrew weatherall tells stuart clark about why he won t be working with Primal Scream again, comes clean about his Van Morrison obsession, and does his best not to slag off Kula Shaker and Mansun.
30th Anniversary Retrospective: On the eve of the release of their fifth album, Ash talk longevity, writing songs in Bono’s summer house and why Twilight Of The Innocents is not a pipe-and-slippers album.
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.
GERRY MALLON is the brains behind The Murphy's Comedy Club which has been running weekly in Galway's GPO for the last three years, despite one Englishman's determined attempt to incinerate the joint. Interview: BARRY GLENDENNING.
Billy Bragg’s larynx, sexual politics, and Jilly Cooper paperbacks. What’s it all about? NICK KELLY finds out when he beams himself up to the planet DUBSTAR.
On the face of it, the Fleadh Mor in Tramore had it all: blistering sunshine, hairy hippies, a stall selling glow in the dark condoms and a line up of rock 'n' roll legends that would be hard to match.
Belfast filmmaker John T. Davis on Uncle Jack, a troubled but ultimately cathartic labour of love commemmorating his late uncle’s achievements as a cinema architect. Interview: Cathy Dillon.
Andrew Maxwell who has followed up a year of successful television appearances with a sell-out stand-up show and a nomination for a prestigious comedy award.
TRACY CHAPMAN S eponymous debut album was one of the biggest sellers of last year more than ten years after its release.
She spoke to PETER MURPHY about her life before and after fame, that album and the race issue.
They ve been gigging for 27 years and they were doing Words when Boyzone were still in the balls zone. They are Big Chief Flaming Star, Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, Little Thunder, Wild Hawk and Dull Knife (not their real names). They are
THE INDIANS
and they hope to still be on the warpath in the next millennium.
LIAM FAY
pow-wows with an authentic showband phenomenon.
An office in downtown Dublin. A band. A journalist. And a tape recorder. Yes, it s another extraordinary Hot Press interview. Starring: The Frames. Directed by: Mick O Hara. With: A cast of 200,000 readers.
An office in downtown Dublin. A band. A journalist. And a tape recorder. Yes, it s another extraordinary Hot Press interview. Starring: The Frames. Directed by: Mick O Hara. With: A cast of 200,000 readers.
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.
She's swapped her Cardigans for a blanket of mid-life melancholia. From her new home in Harlem, Swedish indie-babe Nina Persson talks about her downbeat new album as A Camp,
hooking up with a former Smashing Pumpkin and why life in a band can be like a prison sentence.
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.
Increasingly popular, critically acclaimed, a Grammy Award Winner - and yet, Shawn Colvin still sings those 'ol record company blues. Colm O'Hare lends a sympathetic ear.
From Dr Strangelove to Eyes Wide Shut, film director Stanley Kubrick cast an enigmatic shadow over film. Since his death, the director’s widow, Christiane Kubrick, has dedicated herself to preserving his legacy. Here she offers a glimpse of the man behind the legend.
As Velvet Revolver prepare to play Dublin on January 12, Duff McKagan talks to Steve Cummins about the band's chart-topping success and his pancreas-exploding days of yore with Guns N' Roses.
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
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.
After suffering from a particularly nasty bout of 'difficult second album' syndrome, GOATS DON'T SHAVE have come up trumps with a record that's destined to take them way beyond their present cult status. PAT GALLAGHER tells COLM O'HARE how they managed to avoid becoming the world's first folk techno band and why doing-it-yourself is definitely the best policy.
What has transformed 47-year-old boy Adonis TOM MATHEWS into a realistic simulacrum of that red-nosed little feeb in the Bamforth Comic postcards? Yes, readers, a punishing fortnight at the Galway Arts Festival. Now read on
Cult actor Crispin Glover talks about his taboo-busting directorial debut What Is It?, playing George McFly in Back To The Future and meeting Andy Warhol at Madonna and Sean Penn’s wedding.
BIG IN BRITAIN! BIG ON THE CONTINENT! BIG IN THE STATES! YET IRELAND STILL HAS TO FULLY SUCCUMB TO THE DELIGHTS OF FOUR MEN AND A DOG. HERE, THE TRAD SUPERGROUP EXPLAIN THEIR CURRENT SITUATION TO COLM O'HARE AS THEIR SECOND ALBUM *SHIFTING GRAVEL* HITS THE SHOPS.
It’s a familiar sign, wherever PICTUREHOUSE appear, all over Ireland. This time it’s Carrick-On-Shannon, as the band take to the rock tower stage.
Report: COLM O'HARE
With that long awaited third album in the pipeline, and an imminent Electric Picnic slot, Franz Ferdinad's Alex Kapranos talks to us about utilizing the doppler effect.
THE UNDERTONES have played a series of triumphant gigs since reforming. GEORGE BYRNE met the Derry punk legends, now augmented by Today FM producer Paul McLoone on vocals
Fifteen years since they first topped the Irish charts, The Saw Doctors remain one of this country’s most successful bands. So why do so many people still consider them a novelty act?
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
Malahide’s DIRECTOR may not be any kind of tabloid headline generators, but with an accomplished second album produced by Pumpkins and Placebo veteran Brad Wood in the bag, they’re confident enough to let the music make the fuss.
JONATHAN O’BRIEN (real name) meets
WREKKED TRAIN DAVE (not real name) of the
LO-FIDELITY ALLSTARS (real name) and finds out how CLAUDIO GENTILE (real name) fits into their chaotic scheme of things.
JULIET TURNER seems to have turned an emotional corner with her more effervescent new album Burn The Black Suit. Here she talks to COLM O'HARE about faith, hope and songwriting
And why is young America going overboard about over-weight, over-30 jazzers? john walshe forgoes the pleasures of Dublin versus Kildare to pop across the Atlantic and investigate one of the most unlikely success stories of recent years.
Want to know how to get the most out of Witnness? Email your questions/tips/profound insights via the form below (it can be anything from transport queries to what-to-bring hints to who not to miss on the bill) and await response from the online community
16 years a teacher of Irish, Oliver P. Sweeney is ideally placed to reflect on the past, present and future status of our native tongue and the culture with which it is inextricably linked.
The first time The Killers played Oxegen they fretted whether anyone would turn up to see them. Now they’re sweeping in to headline the main stage. They talk to us about being chased by papparazi, growing up in Middle America and sharing a bill with Bono and, er, Gary Barlow
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.
PIGEON-HOLE THEM AS BELFAST HARDCORE MERCHANTS AT YOUR PERIL - IN THE PAST FEW MONTHS THERAPY? HAVE RELEASED TWO CLASSIC PUNK-POP EP'S THAT SHOOK THE BRITISH CHARTS, AND EVEN GOT THEM INTO THE PAGES OF TEEN-BIBLE SMASH HITS. AS THEY BEGIN RECORDING THEIR NEW LP, THEY TAKE TIME OUT TO GET NERVOUS ABOUT FEILE, GET ANGRY ABOUT THE BEATLES, AND EXPLAIN WHY THE DAYS OF THE NINE-MINUTE INSTRUMENTAL EPIC ARE OVER. INTERVIEW: LORRAINE FREENEY
Pigeon-hole them as Belfast hardcore merchants at your peril in the past few months Therapy? have released two classic punk-pop EPs that shook the British charts, and even got them into the pages of teen-bible Smash Hits. As they begin recording their new LP, they take time out to get nervous about Fiile, get angry about the Beatles, and explain why the days of the nine-minute instrumental epic are over. Interview: Lorraine Freeney.
Liam Fay talks to the three men behind the first “unmissable” movie smash of '95 SHALLOW GRAVE and hears why comparisons with the American death-and-glory tradition are a misnomer.
Having survived the Stone Roses and a spell in jail, IAN BROWN briefly toyed with the idea of a career in gardening before re-inventing himself as the man most likely to bridge the gap between rock and dance. Ahead of his appearance at Homelands, he talks to RICHARD BROPHY.
From Donegal to London and beyond, altan s breathtaking music continues to win new converts. As the band showcase material from their latest album, Runaway Sunday, at the international headquarters of Virgin Records,
mairiad nm mhaonaigh tells sarah mcquaid:
It s all about letting it rip.
Fianna Fail justice spokesperson John O Donoghue wants the Gardam to pursue a policy of zero tolerance. But how would it work in reality? liam Fay conducts a social experiment. Artist s impression: david rooney.
From First Cuts to Latest Cuts, from the First Lady Of Immediate , recording with Phil Spector, Jimi Hendrix and the Small Faces, to the First Lady of Techno, scoring Top Ten hits with Altern-8 and the Beatmasters, to today with Primal Scream and Ocean Colour Scene
P.P. ARNOLD has always been there, wherever the beat is hottest.
Interview: andy darlington.
Comic book artist and file clerk turned movie star, Harvey Pekar must be one of the most unlikely and somewhat reluctant celebrities of our time. An ordinary man whose work has produced extraordinary art, the anti-hero of American Splendour here talks about his friend Toby, Robert Crumb, James Joyce, David Letterman, fame and misfortune, surviving and more.
Queen of catharsis as the leader of Throwing Muses, Kristin Hersh raised a few eyebrows with her debut solo album Hips And Makers, a sublimely private collection which made it all the way to the Top 10. Here she explains her approach to songwriting, the emotional extremes she suffers and what it’s like working with The Sexiest Man Alive to NIALL CRUMLISH.
They toured the world throughout the ‘70s, earning rave notices from Bono, The Edge and Melvin Bragg, upsetting the clergy, terrifying the American public in the company of Blue Oyster Cult and the J Geils Band and out-glamming even Bowie with their flamboyant sartorial taste. With a new DVD on the way and much speculation about a possible tour, legendary Celtic rockers Horslips here talk to Hot Press about a decade of adventure, decadence and great music.
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
Over the past decade, the new wave of films from South Korea has made a stunning impact on movie fans worldwide. The acclaim peaked earlier this year when the remarkable OldBoy scooped the Grand Prix at Cannes. In a Moviehouse special we look at Korea’s visceral treats and talk to ace director Chan Wook Park.
Well and truly punch-drunk and punch-lined, BARRY GLENDENNING rounds
up the gargles and the giggles at this year's CAT LAUGHS COMEDY FESTIVAL
in Kilkenny. Pix: Kevin Clancy
We talk to The Horrors about their 'festival-tastic' summer, the critics' response to their debut album and why they've no time for Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. man Sam Duckworth.
Teach Shinanna, in Shanraw, County Leitrim is the place where pagans go on their
holidays, an adventure
playground for all manner of
earth-worshipper and Celtophile. Liam Fay hears all about it from its founder
Chris Thompson and an
imposing gentleman known as The Fluid Druid.
Pix: Michael Quinn
ADRIENNE MURPHY, Hot Press writer and environmentalist was among seven people charged with sabotaging a Monsanto-owned GM sugar beet crop in Wexford last June. From the field to the courtroom, from taking a stand to taking the stand, this is her personal account of a tumultuous ten months. Pix: Cathal Dawson.
Texas native Jonathan Caouette has caused a sensation in underground circles in the US with his brilliant and groundbreaking debut, Tarnation. A dazzling mix of autobiographical scenes, TV clips, movie footage and cutting-edge music, it might just be the best movie you’ll see this year.
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
The sheer quality, not to mention quantity, of the GALWAY ARTS FESTIVAL once more triumphed over inadequate facilities.
OLAF TYARANSEN reflects on a cultural banquet.
RICHARD BROPHY journeyed to the Czech Republic to see CJ Boland perform at the Summer of Love dancefest. But the trip included encounters with lunatic drivers and Beretta-toting security men, too. Pics: Peter Matthews.
ARDAL O'HANLON is back in anti-hero mode in a new BBC sit-com. But before that, there's more stand-up, a movie, another book and the small matter of football, football. NICK KELLY hears all about a busy life after Ted. Pix: Cathal Dawson.
ARDAL O'HANLON is back in anti-hero mode in a new BBC sit-com. But before that, there's more stand-up, a movie, another book and the small matter of football, football. NICK KELLY hears all about a busy life after Ted. Pix: Cathal Dawson.
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.
Exclusive: Kevin Shields, the missing presumed lost genius of Irish rock, re-emerges to tell the truth about sandbags and barbed wire, the making of Loveless, early Dublin days with Gavin Friday, Liam O Maonlai and U2, and his Bafta-winning work on Lost in Translation.
With cork set to become european capital of culture just over a year from now, Colm O’Hare reports on the cultural attractions punters will be treated to by the lee in 2005
Ahead of the reformed Pistols' Electric Picnic set, we caught up with the guitarist, Steve Jones, who spoke about kicking heroin, his dislike of Malcolm McLaren, his on-air confrontation with Jerry Lee Lewis, and why he'd love to do an album with Cliff Richard.
Backstage at Creamfields, JOHN WALSHE talks to FATBOY SLIM about the joys of fatherhood, being one half of the posh and becks of the chemical generation; sharing a hot-tub with Baz Luhrman and how he got Christopher Walken to tap-dance
Why are four Birmingham lads skulking through Barna Woods in Galway, and why is there a camera crew following them around? john walshe met up with ocean colour scene on the set of their new video, Traveller s Tune . Pix: AENGUS McMAHON.
The release of Born may confirm that hothouse flowers are back to their blooming best, but as john walshe discovers, liam, peter and fiachna have a few vinyl skeletons in the closet. Readers of a nervous disposition are advised to proceed with care.
In all of Ireland s hydra-headed entertainment industry, no other act simultaneously inspires as much love and loathing as The Wolfe Tones, a band who, annually, attract huge support at Siamsa Cois Laoi, while, no less vociferously, their detractors continue to dismiss them as the musical wing of the IRA, and worse. On the occasion of The Wolfe Tones celebrating 25 years together as a group, Eamon McCann went to meet them.
The story of how Paul Brady was transformed from a superlative folk artist into a superlative rock artist in a blinding flash of light (well, fifteen years actually). Today's reading is by Niall Stokes.
After two decades of electro-pop hits, the PET SHOP BOYS have gone back to basics with their new album Fundamental – and thrown some timely political digs into the mix while they’re at it. But the real battle is getting people to take them seriously.
The release of Born may confirm that Hothouse Flowers are back to their blooming best, but as John Walsh discovers, Liam, Peter and Fiachna have a few vinyl skeletons in the closet. Readers of a nervous disposition are advised to proceed with care.
Every year thousands of film fans make the trip to the southern capital for the feast of cinema that is the Cork Film Festival. Hot Press looks back over the history of one of Europe’s longest-running cinematic events and checks out what this year’s packed programme has to offer. Report: Patrick Brennan
The Christy Moore Interview by Bill Graham
Christy Moore is out on his own. He can't be limited as just a folk singer or a popular artist. Rather he's increasingly an Irish national fixture with an influence far beyond the mere entertainer's reach.
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.
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
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.
His career was almost over before it began. But hard work - and a surprise hit - have turned Edmund 'Mundy' Enright into one of Ireland's most widely adored stars. Here he reflects on some of the high points of what has been an amazing journey, during the course of which he has rubbed shoulders with some of the greats.
While the path to rock n roll stardom is never smooth, RICHARD ASHCROFT has experienced more ups and downs than most. In a wide-ranging interview with DAVE FANNING, he talks about drugs, The Verve, his new solo album and why the old hometown doesn t look so bad.
A flyover near the old Harland & Wolff shipyard was the starting point for a remarkable three months that has seen Franz Ferdinand challenging U2 and Coldplay for the title of ‘Biggest Band In The World'. Daredevil photographic exploits completed, Hot Press jumped on their tour bus and got the lowdown on Snoop, Bono, Kanye West, Natasha Bedingfield and nights of debauchery with the Scissor Sisters.
The star-spangled story of how Richard Melville Hall learned to relax and love sex, drugs and rock'n'roll. "Don't tell anybody but I'm actually the lead guitarist with Slipknot," he informs Stuart Clark.
Bobby Gillespie's still staying up all night but now it's because there's a baby in the house. Otherwise, it's all systems go for Primal Scream at their bunker hq - Witnness cometh, Mani's back and Kate Moss, Kevin Shields, Robert Plant and AndrewWeatherall all feature on the groundbreaking evil high
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.
Saturday, July 13th, 1985 will go down in history as Live Aid Day, the extraordinary culmination of Bob Geldof's attempts to mobilise the international music industry behind urgently-needed famine relief in Africa. Among the stellar cast performing for 72,000 people at Wembley Stadium, London are U2, a band determined to rise to the occasion. Report: Neil McCormick
They may refuse to play the media game, but whether it’s dating page three models, accepting awards dressed as the Village People or earning the ire of Keith Richards, there’s never a dull moment in the world of Alex Turner and Arctic Monkeys.
As famous for being mates with Paul Weller and Noel Gallagher as for being pop stars in their own right, ocean colour scene take time out from a hectic touring and recording schedule to explain to john walshe just how popular they are. Pix: mick quinn.
An overnight success story that was years in the making, The Strokes have been dismissed as flagrant hype and lauded as the saviours of rock 'n' roll. Eamon Sweeney, a journalist who has spent more time in their company than most, gets the fullest account yet of the rise and rise of New York's band of brothers. "Whatever happens, we'll be there together," they tell him. "we won’t let each other fall."
When Pulp released the obsessively carnal This Is Hardcore, it was widely touted that the band's main mover, Jarvis Cocker, had lost the plot entirely. But Pulp are back on the road now and Cocker is in fine form - as eloquent when talking about pornography and sex as he is reflecting on the vagaries of the press and his relationship with his father. Interview: peter Murphy.
When Pulp released the obsessively carnal This Is Hardcore, it was widely touted that the band's main mover, Jarvis Cocker, had lost the plot entirely. But Pulp are back on the road now and Cocker is in fine form - as eloquent when talking about pornography and sex as he is reflecting on the vagaries of the press and his relationship with his father. Interview: peter Murphy.
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.
from reagan to bush; from radio free europe to clear channel; from green to reveal; from the sfx to marlay park. REM call time out and Peter Buck fills in the gaps from 1983 to 2003. interview Peter Murphy
A once high-flying solicitor who was jailed for fraud, David Elio Malocco is now a budget film-maker with a strong anti-establishment view, a man who says he has swapped a "disgraceful" materialistic lifestyle for a social conscience. Here, he talks about crime, punishment, Sinn Fein, Shelbourne, God and the movies
pat mcCABE is on a roll. Neil Jordan s film adaptation of his acclaimed novel The Butcher Boy has been rapturously received. His latest meisterwerk Breakfast On Pluto about a border county transvestite is about to be published. He s going on the road with Jack L. And what s more he was recently named Monaghan Man of the Year! Interview: liam fay.
Pics: Mick Quinn
From A to Z, Paul Nolan and Ronan Fitzgerald introduce all the runners and riders for Punchestown – throwing in a baker’s dozen of acts who are not to be missed * along the way
With the tragedy which disfigured their last Irish appearance still fresh in people's minds, SMASHING PUMPKINS' return to a Dublin stage was never going to be an ordinary affair. As it turned out, PETER MURPHY witnessed an act of redemption and spoke to BILLY CORGAN about surviving troubled times.
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.
Anti-capitalism, political fundamentalism, life after September 11 and what to tell the kid who has only two stripes on his tracksuit - the celebrated no logo author tells Hotpress about how best to beat the brand.
He is the grandson of Éamon De Valera – one of the founding fathers of the State and a former Taoiseach and President. So has his unique lineage had anything to do with the success of EAMON Ó CUÍV? These and other issues are teased out in a remarkable interview with Ireland’s Minister for Community Affairs.
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?
Falling in love not only altered David Kitt’s heart but helped reshape his musical vision. Olaf Tyaransen visits his home cum studio and hears about the family affair that is his new album and how meeting Poppy reawakened his love of pop. all this and why the son of a Minister opposes the smoking ban! Photography Roger Woolman.
It's been over four intriguing years since Damien Rice's extraordinary debut album O was launched. That record went on to become a huge underground international hit, selling in excess of 2 million copies. Now his long-awaited follow-up – the similarly simply titled 9 – is finally ready to hit the shops. So how did Rice so successfully capture the collective imagination? And will the latest instalment in the Rice musical biography propel him to even greater heights? Hot Press talks exclusively to some of the key players in his remarkable rise and rise.
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?
As escape acts go, it ranked up there with the very best of Harry Houdini. Bishop Brendan Comiskey, in theory at least, was back to face the music and undergo a gruelling, exhaustive interrogation at the hands of the assembled press corps. Instead, his press conference turned into a stage-managed anti-climax, and the media watched helplessly as he slipped from their grasp.
inishing off a year in which his immersion in the craziness of orthodox religion won him a top journalism award, Liam Fay finds himself standing atop a windswept Hill of Tara in the dead of night in the depths of winter all the better to survey the diverse landscape of paganism and witchcraft in 90s Ireland.
A special report on the arts in Northern Ireland which is alive and rocking with the whole gamut of cultural activity. Here James Elliott and Margaret F. Grundy give the lowdown on the province’s artistic and creative hub.
Irish festivalgoers are going to be spoilt for choice next year, as Witnness, Green Energy and Slane will be sharing the calendar with an Irish version of (wait for it!) the Reading Festival
Lauren Guillery and the Claws have confirmed that they will support French band Plastiscines as part of the 'Let's French' Festival at Andrews Lane on Friday
With the great guitarist Arty McGlynn driving the engine, this debut CD could hardly be lacking on the energy front, and it’s a major treat indeed. Messrs O’Connell and Morrow are to be particularly commended for their unusual selection of material.
With the great guitarist Arty McGlynn driving the engine, their debut CD could hardly be lacking on the energy front, and it’s a major treat indeed. Messrs O’Connell and Morrow are to be particularly commended for their unusual selection of material.
Well you're about to be as Cork City kicks off its newest music festival, the Beamish Experience - featuring McAlmont & Butler, Mundy and The Frank & Walters to name but a few
Calling students in Trinity College; NUI Galway; Limerick IT; NCAD; Athlone IT; Carlow IT; Blanchardstown IT; Sligo IT, Waterford IT: Hot Press have a few remaining vacancies in these colleges for our student rep program.
Touring steadily since the release of his latest album, Trauma Themes Idiot Times, Lennon has now added 4 home dates to his upcoming tour, along with a jaunt to the UK.
Glacial slo-core guitar-bowers Sigur Ros cancel Galway Arts Festival appearance... in order to finish new album (!) in time for autumn release. Fair enough so
The Mulkerrin Brothers, winners of the first ever RTE All-Ireland Talent Show, have announced details of their first Irish tour, with special guests to be announced in the coming weeks.
Hard-working indie rockers The Aftermath continue their full-on Irish tour this summer with a special Whelan’s gig, which many very well feature Liv Tyler in the audience.
Tonight, however, she seems nervous. She has natural presence, but she hasn’t worked out fully yet how to project it – whether to play the diva or to sing from the heart – with the result that she doesn’t always do full justice to the fine lyrics of her songs.
It’s been a busy year for Republic of Loose. With several Irish tours in the bag, they have spent the last few months gearing up for the UK release of their album Aaagh!.
N*E*R*D’s second album, Fly Or Die, is truly awful. It’s the sound of the Neptunes jumping gleefully into the vast abyss of the middlebrow and abandoning all of the sonic inventions and musical elasticity that once marked their work.
Not only are Metallica and Linkin Park making it a double-header in the RDS (and not only are more support acts en route) but this is the start of a beautiful friendship... with our newest festival, Reading Ireland
Clare County Council announced this afternoon that they've rejected a license application for the Lisdoonvarna festival which was due to take place in the Clare town on Saturday June 28.
There's a strong possibility, though, that the decision will be appealed by Aiken Promotions who tell hotpress.com that they're studying the decision and will be responding tomorrow morning.
Louis Walsh is one of the star signings as Bubble Hits today rolls out its dedicated Irish service, which will be available to digital viewers throughout the country.
Upon reading the above headline in a UK paper, Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis pulls out of a security and licensing deal with British megapromoter Mean Fiddler.
The future of the UK's most famous festival is uncertain
Competing with Henry Rollins' spoken word thing ten yards away, that didn’t stop ?uestlove from The Roots regaling the Hot Press Chatroom at Electric Picnic with some tales – and a world exclusive.
The first batch of acts for Scotland's T In The Park Festival have been announced, giving a strong indication of who'll be coming to Punchestown this year.
It was a safe bet that this year’s CREAMFIELDS festival at Punchestown racecourse would be the dance event of the year. hotpress brings you the vibe and the visuals. Photos: ROGER WOOLMAN
Financed by a maxed out credit card and shot in black and white, In Search Of A Midnight Kiss is precisely what we expect – nay, demand – from our indie schmindie movies.
Take one seaside town and a handful of bands which haven’t already played Ireland’s increasingly crowded festival circuit and voila! – you’ve got Cois Fharraige With Sony Ericsson.
…Unless, that is, you live in Belfast. Colin Carberry talks to Sean Kelly, director of the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival, about the exciting and diverse range of events lined up for this year’s programme.
Small Engine Repair may be Niall Heery’s first feature film, but having picked up an award for best first feature at Galway last year and several other shiny trinkets, it’s one of the most keenly anticipated Irish titles in years.
The Mean Fiddler Music Group, which is chaired by MCD supremo Denis Desmond, has sold its name and six of its venues to the MAMA Group Plc for a figure believed to be £6 million.
When Creamfields hit Ireland for the first time, one of the pioneers oF the Irish dance movement, MARK KAVANAGH, was there as both a performer and a fan. This is what he found. Fields of vision: MYLES CLAFFEY
Extreme heat can provoke strange reactions. People lose the ability to fret over pointless dilemmas. Such as: do I watch New Order or the Super Furry Animals? Or, when are Audioslave on and is there time to visit the loo first?
As cats all over Ireland prepare to have their fancies tickled, Jackie Hayden reflects on the comedic talents of one of the star turns at this year’s Smithwick’s Cat Laughs Festival, Tommy Tiernan.
Kaiser Chiefs’ teenage fanbase is unlikely to be disappointed by Yours Truly…, which is packed to the brim with the sort of singalong anthems that made their first album such a resounding commercial success.
Paul McGuinness has been talking to Hot Press about the imminent announcement of U2’s world tour, which is likely to include three Croke Park stop-offs in July.
Jun-hwan Jeong’s brilliantly mad, mad, mad, mad spaced odyssey famously bombed on release in its native Korea, when in a twist worthy of the film’s delirious logic, the movie was marketed as a romantic comedy.
The line-up has been revealed for ‘An Fiach Dubh’ – Fingal Songwriter's Weekend. The first in an annual series, the weekend will bring Irish and international songwriters together to provide master classes in the art.
She may not be a native but Carol O'Beirne, Red FM chief executive, has fallen head-over-heels in love with her adopted home town of Cork. Here, she shares some of the city's secrets with us.
Here is an album conceived in Winkle's Bar, Kinvara, the juices got flowing over a weekend rave-up, with Liam O'Maonlai, Adam Clayton and Mike Scott just dropping around for a blast.
Respect would appear to be due to The Strokes, who play Dublin Easter Sunday and who apparently have developed into an incredible live band - as distinct from an incredibly hyped one - since we've seen them last. Read on for an exclusive gig preview, from Glasgow's Barrowlands
New York and LA are fine, but nobody throws frilly knickers at you quite like they do in Dublin. Futureheads guitarist Ross Millard talks music and underwear with Phil Udell
Following show-stealing performances at the Sonar, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Late of the Pier will play Transmission at The Button Factory on Saturday October 3
One of Hot Press' very favourite festivals, Castle Palooza returns this August Bank Holiday with acts including David Kitt, R.S.A.G and Dark Room Notes.
English starlet Kate Nash chats about her humble beginnings as a waitress in Harrow, her relationship with Lilly Allen, finding her identity as an artist and her love of playing festivals.
Hot Press fave Ice Core Scientist, a.k.a. Steven McGlinchey, has his ‘Pale Blue Dot’ video screened as part of this month’s Portabello and Concerto film festivals.
What a weekend for festivals, what with Le Cheile, Mitchelstown, Hi:Fi and Castlepalooza having taken place this bank holiday weekend. But don't rest your weary head down just yet, for the latter festival has already started on Castlepalooza 2007.
From Radiohead to Springsteen, the twelve months ahead are already packed with highlights. But will Led Zeppelin be among the group’s hitting the comeback trail?
With Michael Eavis letting the grass grow at Glastonbury this year, Scandinavia’s long-running equivalent was bound to be a huge draw for international music fans. Those seeking a people-friendly atmosphere and a musically-varied experience were always likely to flock to Roskilde, a festival structured along similar lines to its English counterpart
Indie rock isn’t just about hip fringes and attitude. It means doing your own thing – not because you’re looking for fame and fortune but because you care deeply about music
THE EXTREMELY WONDERFUL Mr. Adam Freeland is the headline attraction on August 18th as Breakdown returns to the Empire, Belfast. Bringing up the rear, so to speak, are Hedrock Valley Beats…
Yes, the incessant downpour ensured that Punchestown Racecourse often looked more like the set of a World War 1 epic than a music festival, but the rain couldn't dampen the 80,000-strong Oxegen crowd's spirits, not to mention the fiery performances delivered by Arctic Monkeys, Franz, The Who, the Chili Peppers and a cast of, well, hundreds.
While the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival offered a typically eclectic and dynamic programme once again this year, the organisers behind the event nonetheless weren’t afraid to deliver a few uncomfortable home truths about Northern Irish society.
As the Northern Irish nights draw in, the gigs get better. Coldplay, Ryan Adams, Beverly Knight and Teenage Fanclub are just some of the acts who are flying North in the coming months
The first-ever dedicated sound and lighting exhibition to be held in this country takes place at the Green Isle Hotel in Dublin during October. Entitled ISLEX ’94, it’s being run by experienced exhibition organisers KMS & MD Associates. Report: Oliver P. Sweeney.
The full lineup for Co. Carlow's Solas festival has been announced, with Autamata, God Is An Astronaut, Kíla and Republic Of Loose among the highlights.
Ireland’s entry for the 52nd Eurovision Song Contest, to be held in Helsinki in 2007, will be performed by the Co Sligo based traditional Irish band Dervish.
It was a well deserved triumph for bloody-minded independence when Glen Hansard lifted the Oscar for 'Best Original Song', with his Swell Season partner Marketa Irglova at his side.
Ireland’s entry for the 52nd Eurovision Song Contest, to be held in Helsinki in 2007, will be performed by the Co Sligo based traditional Irish band Dervish.
As the Summer festival season kicks in, our Nostalgia Correspondent recalls the heady, pioneering days of rock in the great Irish outdoors. Keep a hose handy.
The foot-and-mouth crisis plunged the Irish live music scene into one of its most difficult phases. Now, however, the business is back – and flourishing. Report: COLM O'HARE
Here it is Oxegen-goers: all you need to know about the coming weekend festival including transport, camping, opening times, what to bring, etc. etc. etc.
A former member of Shane MacGowan’s band the Popes adds his voice to the criticism of Shane’s manager Joey Cashman. And Shane’s father Maurice also rejoins the fray.
2FM dance guru Mister Spring has re-compiled his The Fifth Nine album, after objections to several questionable samples on the initial Spanish pressing.
Following in the footsteps of such luminaries as W.B. Yeats, Ray McSharry and Tommie Gorman, western folk heroes Dervish have recently been honoured as Free Men of Sligo.
No, we’re not talking about swearing off sex, or even avoiding what others might think of as indiscretions at the office Christmas party. But safe sex - now that is a good idea!
From the goodtime vibes of Hot Chip to the full-on sonic assault of Primal Scream, this year's Electric Picnic achieved the impossible by being even more fab than its predecessors.
As he prepares for the Murphy s Ungagged Festival in Killarney this weekend, the compire s compire, JOHN HENDERSON, tells NICK KELLY why rumours of stand-up comedy s death have been greatly exaggerated.
In her new documentary – Dambe, The Mali Project – Dearbhla Glynn follows musicians Liam O Maonlai and Paddy Keenan on a musical journey to the heart of Mali.
How do I get there?
Ryanair flies from Dublin to Torp airport for as little as e5 each way. So you’ll have no trouble finding return flights for under e50. A word of caution; saying Oslo (Torp) is a bit like saying Dublin (Borris-In-Ossory). A bus service Torpekspressen links the airport to Oslo city (about 1 hour 45 minutes away) and costs e20 for a single ticket or e35 for a return. SAS Scandinavian also flies from Dublin to the main Oslo airport (a mere 20 minute train ride from the city centre) but you’ll pay around e200 for a return ticket. A connecting flight with Aer Lingus stopping in London Heathrow works out at about the same price.
Shooting a fancy pop promo is harder work than you might think, as hotpress discovers when we join hotly tipped newcomers Director on a sound-stage at the home of the Irish movie industry, Ardmore Studios.
Billy Bragg's larynx, sexual politics, and Jilly Cooper paperbacks. What's it all about? NICK KELLY finds out when he beams himself up to the planet DUBSTAR.
As Mikam Sound celebrates its 30th year at the top of the Irish sound-hire and production business, Jackie Hayden talks to its driving forces, Paul Aungier and Mick O’Gorman, about their early days, the changing face of the music industry here and abroad and the phenomenal success of their Mosco Sound Design off-shoot.
NICK KELLY talks to BRENDAN DEMPSEY and PADDY COURTNEY, the respective outgoing and incoming MCs of Dublin's COMEDY CELLAR, the most important comedy club in Ireland. Pics: CATHAL DAWSON.
The internet is a wonderful creation – but there’s a dark side to email and social networking. All too often, it has the paradoxical effect of isolating us from those with whom we should be closest.
30th Anniversary Retrospective: Looking back at 30 years of Irish literature, best-selling author Joe O’Connor reflects that things have never been better.
Following the demise of the Music Board last year, hopes are high that the incoming Culture Ireland committe will herald a new era in state support for traditional music. Plus the usual round-up of trad and folk news from around the country.
We'd like to point out that comedian and author ian macpherson chose the headline himself. Still, what did happen to the great bright hope of Irish comedy? NICK KELLY finds out.
As Velvet Revolver prepare to play Dublin on January 12, Duff McKagan talks to Steve Cummins about the band's chart-topping success and his pancreas-exploding days of yore with Guns N' Roses.
Superstar DJ duo The Glimmers are giving their long-awaited debut album away for free on their forthcoming tour. So it's a good thing they're swinging by Ireland.
Belfast’s Alloy Mental on supporting New Order at a pre-retirement gig in Liverpool ahead of the release of their debut album and the latest dance news.
Dermot Carmody talks to Richard Cook, director of the Smithwick's Cat Laughs Festival, about the challenges of organising an event that remains Ireland's premier showcase for both new and established comedic talent.
The college circuit has always been a lucrative one for touring acts, and a fine opportunity for students to check out the best in show, at a reasonable price.
The Great Record has visited some fine places over the past year or more. Now we ve finally wound up in Limerick, plumbed the depths of both city and county and emerged in one piece to tell the tale.
You pick up your newspaper or switch on the television these days and there's a good chance you'll encounter an attack on political correctness - or "PC".
This fortnight's Hot Press is our Electric Picnic special to celebrate we've teamed with O2 to put together a collection of the best Irish talent to grace the festival in a 16 track free CD. There’s something here for everyone; in fact, it’s the perfect picnic spread! Not only that, but we've got some of the bands in question to preview the festival for you (and us!!)
2004 was dominated by the Special Committe on the Traditional Arts’ failure to agree on the way forward for traditional music. Elsewhere, the TG4 National Music Awards attracted major attention and Music Network continued to do an estimable job of getting traditional music into new venues around the country.
Joe Derrane is honoured by the US National Endowment for the Arts; Shane MacGowan pays tribute to Yeats; plus the usual round-up from around the country.
Here at Hot Press we like to bring you interviews with the most influential figures of our times. And in Ireland 1999 who is more influential than Ballydung bachelors PODGE and RODGE?
STUART CLARK spoke to the zeitgeist-defining duo about the crucial issues: religion, sex, Mary Black and Jean Butler s minge . Also an entirely unfounded revelation about our esteemed editor. Pics: MICK QUINN.
Bowling down through the centre of the country on Friday afternoon en route from Derry to fabled Thurles I tune in to 2FM and hear that there are many thousands of folk already foregathered for the Féile. Also I hear the chief of the local gardai saying that so far the behaviour of all concerned has been 'perfect'.
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 . . .
In previous years Dara O'Briain’s public persona seemed to pendulum-swing from TV personality and game show host to stand-up guy – but with the release of his Live At The Theatre Royal DVD, the former UCD man’s comedy ship has well and truly come in.
Think you've got them all right? Or maybe you fancy a sneaky peak (you're only cheating yourself you know!). Either way, you've got the questions – we've got the answers....
To make it in the rock 'n' roll business you need a dream, a vision, a sparkle in your eye . . . and tons and tons of equipment. STUART CAROLAN guides you to the best bargains and damnedest deals in this Hot Press Equipment Special.
With so many quality movies being screened, buffs will be spoilt for choice at this year’s Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. To help you out, Hot Press has picked its 20 essential flicks, with appropriate ‘tasting’ notes.
Music Review | Live
24% | 7 Sep 2006
They said it couldn’t be done, but this year’s Electric Picnic achieved the impossible by being even more joyous, vibey and action-packed than its predecessors. Hot Press was in the thick of things as 200 acts and 30,000 music lovers descended on one very big house in the country.
Having reported in Hot Press ten years ago on a riotous week at the Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam, the time seemed ripe for Olaf Tyaransen to make a return trip.
