- Music
- 18 Oct 13
There’s more good news for Villagers with Conor J. O’Brien and the gang tied with Jake Bugg and Palma Violets as the most booked act among the 80 festival members of the European Talent Exchange Programme.
Set up in 2003 by the Eurosonic Noorderslag showcase people, the ETEP is also supported by 25 European public radio stations including 2fm and the EU who grant aid it.
Villagers, Bugg and the Violets graced eleven festival bills to grab top spot with Skip & Die (10), Efterklang (10), Rangleklods (9), Kodaline (9), AlunaGeorge (9), Netsky (8), MO (8), C2C (8) and Little Green Cars (7) tucked in behind them.
"It emphasises the difference it can make having a record company behind you," Hot Press editor Niall Stokes comments. "Villagers are with Domino, while Kodaline and Little Green Cars are signed to Sony and Universal respectively. They all had new records to promote, which gives them a clear advantage, in terms of touring and doing festivals. But it's a little bit worrying that there are only three Irish acts in the top 100 playing European events, when there's so much really hot talent here.
"I think over the next 12 months the likes of James Vincent McMorrow, The Coronas, The Riptide Movement, Children Of The Son and Soak are likely to figure prominently. But this is where we need to see support from government or from Culture Ireland focused. In the absence of record company investment, Irish acts need targeted funding to compete at this level."