IRISH MUSIC is hot right now. That much we know. Whatever way you want to look at it – whether it’s in terms of record sales, media coverage or the successes of home-grown acts touring the world – the evidence is clearly there for all to see. The major players are familiar by now: U2, Enya, Clannad, The Cranberries, The Chieftains and Riverdance – to name but a handful of our most successful musical and cultural exports from a much broader list. The simple fact is – and it’s worth repeating: music from this small island with its tiny population is more successful on the world stage now than it has ever been at any time in the past.
But is this extraordinary level of achievement being felt by all sectors of the Irish music industry? Are the benefits of recent successes filtering back down into the lower end of the industry? In other words, is it all-embracing, bringing everyone along with it in providing real, tangible gains in terms of revenue and employment? Or to put it another way, has the rising tide of prosperity for Irish music lifted all boats?
It’s a difficult one to call. The Irish Music Industry is a many-headed beast made up of numerous strands and layers each with its own aims and aspirations both commercial and artistic. Musicians, record companies, venues, promoters, radio stations and retailers, as well as the promotional and media sector, all pursue their own agendas, which can be at odds with the interests of others. And despite the existence of organisations and committees like JIM (Jobs in Music), The Irish Managers Forum and bodies like IMRO there is as yet, no single de-embracing body representing the industry as a whole and lobbying on its behalf.
Despite the undoubtedly strong position of Irish music internationally, there is no room for complacency. The notion that once the breakthrough has been made, all that remains is for us to sit back and watch the flow become a torrent is a dangerous one. It’s all too easy to assume that behind the big successes lies a new generation of talent waiting in the wings to take the baton and repeat the level of success already achieved.
Not surprisingly, there are conflicting views from those working at the coalface of the industry on the current health or otherwise of the domestic scene. Promoters and managers – those who have to take risks and put their own money into gigs, tours and festivals – know better than most of the harsh commercial realities of operating out there in the marketplace.
“There is a tendency for a lot of people to view the Irish music scene through rose-coloured glasses at the moment,” says Gerard Keenan, of Real Good Management, who number artists like Eleanor McEvoy, Garrett Wall and Jimmy MacCarthy on their books. “The truth is, there are major problems around the country as far as live music is concerned. Getting people to come out and listen to a band or a singer/songwriter is like trying to pull teeth. Part of it is simple economics – one venue owner said to me recently that he could make £700 by booking a local band to do covers, so why should he book anyone from outside? If that’s the way they want to go fine, but it’s not good for the continuing health of the industry.”
Keenan lays some of the blame for this unwillingness on the part of audiences to accept emerging talent at the door of the major record companies. “There has been a profound culture change in the way they operate,” he says. “They are no longer artist driven – the attitude now is to throw ten bands at the market to see if one will stick, rather than getting behind an artist or band and developing them over a longer period of time. Even the music is more commonly labelled as ‘product’ these days, like some sort of commodity. As long as that attitude persists, things will continue to look bleak for any new talent emerging.”
But not everyone agrees with that assessment of the gigging circuit. Dermot Flynn, an independent promoter who recently set up the Heineken Rollercoaster tour as well as organising the successful series of IMRO showcase gigs, sees improvements on the horizon as far as the live scene is concerned.
“It has definitely turned a corner,” he says. “People will go and see bands if they get a good package with a couple of well-known acts on the bill. It’s important to make it good value for money and for it to be a well marketed package, with sponsorship if possible.
“The Rollercoaster tour has been an overwhelming success this year,” he adds. “A lot of the bands taking part are being re-booked individually and will be doing their own tours later on. The colleges now have a surplus of funds which will hopefully be ploughed back into more gigs. Also the IMRO showcases are much easier to book this time around than they were last year and there seems to be more willingness on the part of venues to have live bands.”
Flynn acknowledges the support of local radio which he sees as a significant factor in the success of a package like the Rollercoaster tour. “More and more they want to get involved and it works out for everyone. The radio stations get their name on the poster, the sponsors receive valuable exposure and for a band like Georgia, a lot of their songs are recognisable to the audiences thanks to the airplay they’ve received.”
Of course these package tours are nothing new, though up until now they’ve been largely confined to the folk and traditional area. Both the Bringing It All Back Home tour and the phenomenally successful A Woman’s Heart collective have proved conclusively that multi-artist package tours can be successful.
Mick Barry of MBE is in the business of exporting live Irish music to Europe and around the world and he also manages artists like Liam O’Flynn, Arty McGlynn & Nollaig Casey and Deiseal. He agrees that the recent international successes are not necessarily reflected at home.
“The Irish market for traditional music is in trouble at the moment,” he offers, “but there is still a huge demand for Irish music around Europe particularly in Germany, which is always good, but also increasingly in Scandinavia and Spain. It operates on different levels with distinctive strands. There are the ballad groups like The Dubliners and Clancy Brothers, purer traditional groups like Deiseal and crossover groups like Stocktons Wing who have a bit of a backbeat to them.”
Barry is currently finalising plans for one of the most prestigious and ambitious events, The Guinness Celebration of Irish Music, which brings the cream of Irish talent on a tour of Australia each year. This year’s line up is a tour-de-force of contemporary Irish music with artists like Altan, Sharon Shannon, and Kieran Goss taking part. “It’s a major tour which plays 2,000 seat venues and has been going from strength to strength each year.” Proof, if it were needed, of the export potential of these artists.
Arguably the toughest area on the domestic scene is the struggle faced by young bands through lack of venues and a perceived apathy towards them from the industry in general. Keith Donald is Chief Executive Officer of Music Base the consultancy and advice body set up to assist Irish bands and musicians. In this role he comes into contact with more young bands than most and is well placed to gauge the situation as it is on the ground.
“I think the gig scene is pretty worrying right now,” he says echoing the feelings of others. “There are a number of reasons for this. For one, we exported a lot of our potential audience thorough emigration during the 1980’s. The other factor is that there is a lot of dance music around which mitigates against live music. From my own experience with Moving Hearts during the eighties I can clearly see the difference. We used to tour around Ireland three times a year. If we were together now, maybe we’d do a weeks touring and even then only to the larger population centres.”
So given the current state-of-affairs, what kind of advice does he give to young bands and musicians?
“What I have to do is to use counselling skills and tailor the advice to each particular band. I meet between ten and fifteen bands a month for a session around the table. We would normally discuss things like where they’re at with their career, their level of knowledge about the business, where they should go from here and what steps can they take to get there. Very often I would face them with some harsh realism. For instance, I had a band in here late last year who were interested in touring Germany.
“They had no product out and my advice to them was either to get product out and then tour Germany to promote that product, or else to go on holidays there, leaving your instruments at home. Basically I was saying to them to do it right or not to do it at all.
“The fact is there is no clear-cut career path for successful bands. Each of them does it differently. Some do it from here, others like The Cranberries go abroad. There are dozens of different ways of doing it.”
But should he be more realistic then, in terms of explaining to bands the almost impossible odds against succeeding?
“I do try to bring as much realism to bear into whatever they are attempting to do,” he says. “But there are still a lot of people who dream dreams and no amount of realism can upset that – it’s the nature of the business that attracts those kinds of people. But I think there’s a lot more realism around now than there was ten years ago. Back then, bands were getting signed up and dropped all over the place. Nowadays, people have got used to the idea that a record company deal is not the end of something, it’s the beginning of something else. The people who are serious about what they’re doing are well aware of the fact that it could be a lottery or it could be a long haul and nothing might happen.”
Ex-Undertone drummer Billy Doherty runs Big River Studios in Derry and also manages local hopefuls Schtum and Cuckoo. He feels strongly that there is too much interference from within the music business.
“There are far too many experts in the music business telling people what to do and how to do it,” he says. “They set themselves up as an authority. I just do what I like to do and I don’t analyze it too much. We just deal with people on a one-to-one basis and that includes record companies and producers. If George Martin came here to produce Schtum and he turned out to be a bollox we just wouldn’t use him, no matter how much his reputation preceded him.”
Doherty accepts, however, that it is tough out there in trying to win audiences even for bands with reputations.
“Rock and roll is just not as important as it used to be,” he says. “There will still be bands and audiences and people who buy records but there is a lot more for young people to be occupied with. The onset of different technologies like keyboards has made it much easier for someone to make music. I’m not against that – some of it is very good. But at the end of the day, bands like Schtum and Cuckoo can play really well and it’s a shame that more people are not willing to give them some exposure.”
One vital element that does exist now is the well established educational infrastructure for those wishing to enter the music business. Places like the Ballyfermot Rock School, Sound Training Centre and the various resource centres and one-off events like the Hot Press Music Seminar have provided valuable sources of knowledge and information for aspiring musicians and others who want to get involved in the industry.
In Cork, Colaiste Stiofain Naofa provides a course specifically targeted to those wishing to enter a career in the music industry. Run by the City of Cork VEC, the Music Management and Sound course is a two-year full-time course and according to the course co-ordinator, Chris Ahern, its primary purpose is to familiarise students with all aspects of the industry. “It’s a post Leaving Cert course but we have people on the course who have degrees and who are already in the business but who want to improve their knowledge of certain aspects of it.
“The course is divided into three sections. The first section covers Musicianship, where students are taught how to play their instruments and to read music. The second area covered is Sound Engineering – the school has an 8-track studio with midi-sequencing. The students write and perform their own songs and they demo them in the studio. The third part of the course covers Management, which involves the whole area of marketing and promotion as well as looking at recording, management and publishing contracts. There is also training in lighting, electronics, voice-training and instrument tuition included on the course.”
An important aspect of the course is the involvement of people already in the music business, who come along and give lectures and workshops and bring the benefit of their experience to the students. “We think it’s very important that the students come into contact with professionals,” says Ahern. “We’ve had people like Declan Sinott, who plays guitar and produces Mary Black, PJ Curtis the producer and broadcaster, Keith Donald who runs Music Base and plays sax with Moving Hearts and Eoghan O’Neil who conducts bass workshops with the students. We’ve even had people like Liam O’Maonlai who have given up their time to come along and talk to the students about their experiences in the business.”
There are seventeen courses run by The City of Cork VEC including dance and drama courses and Chris Ahern confirms that there is huge interest in the performing arts. He also points out that the recent prominence of local bands like the Frank & Walters and The Sultans Of Ping has helped in providing a focus for the students. “The problems for young bands are still a lack of venues,” he says, “especially on the weekends – it’s all raves.”
Ahern still feels that the future of the industry is promising for those wishing to enter it and should offer good opportunities for the students on the course. “The prospects are good for people who put their backs into it,” he says, “though it certainly isn’t a magic wand. Some of our students are making good progress – Sinéad Lohan was one of our very first students and we’re very proud of her achievements in becoming involved with A Woman’s Heart and in bringing our her debut album.”
And despite some of the doubts expressed above on some elements of the domestic scene, there is a feeling that things will get better. Gerard Keenan of Real Good Management is cautiously optimistic about the chances of some improvement.
“There are some hopeful signs that things are changing for the better,” he says. “The Mean Fiddler organisation will soon be opening their new venue in Wexford Street and that should give the market a big boost. And the fact that a place like Whelan’s does still exist on a diet of live music is reassuring to those of us in the business of bringing artists to the public.”
Keith Donald too is hopeful for the future of the Irish music industry.
“There has never been such a confluence of factors in place which makes the future look promising,” he says. “The fact that IMRO is now an independent collection agency, the fact that Minister, Michael D. Higgins is still in the job and that there is a much more highly developed infrastructure. I think there’s a wonderful opportunity for things to progress. I do see a downside in that there will be individual artists and bands who will inevitably be let down and disappointed. But that is the nature of the business.”