Atlantic Sessions 2017 – Music, heritage and a stunning coastal setting

Now its ninth year, and following on from winning an NI Tourism Award earlier in 2017, The Atlantic Sessions has continued to impressed by packing over 50 gigs into dozens of bars, cafes, clubs, hotels and restaurants across four days.

With support for the event coming from Tourism Ireland, Snow Water, the Causeway Coast & Glen Borough Council, and Bushmills Ireland - as well as from the dozens of local musicians, broadcasters and promoters who have been actively encouraging this project for years - the Atlantic Sessions has steadily developed a strong reputation for being a must-play affair for Northern Irish musicians.
Hot Press made its way up to report from the North Coast early on Saturday morning. We were unfortunate enough not able to make the festival on Thursday or Friday, although we got a first hand report on Gareth Dunlop, Rory Nellis, and Joshua Burnside's Friday night performances from Phil Taggart (BBC Radio 1), whose sore head told me all I needed to know about how successful things had gone so far(!)
After a quick meet and greet in Bushmills Distillery (whiskey was taken – for reporting purposes only of course), we got to speak to Causeway Coast & Glen Mayor Joan Baird, who not only sung the praises of the event but had an impressive knowledge of the venues, the musicians, and the people who were involved in putting it all together.

From there, we made our way up to Portrush town as a Music Trail, which took place throughout the day, saw some emerging and established musicians playing in unusual venues. It’s a test of an artist’s resilience to be able to pull off these kinds of pop-up gigs in unfamiliar settings, with unassuming audiences. For that fact, credit must be given to Gerry Norman for his impressive 45-minute set in Koko’s Cafe.

After this, it was a short walk along the coast to the beautiful Arcadia building, which juts out precariously from the promenade. This iconic venue played host to the hugely talented Grammy nominee and two time Ivor Novello Award winner, Iain Archer. A rare performance from one of the greatest contemporary songwriters in Northern Ireland (amply supported by his family, including his kids, who played the role of backing singers), this was an early highlight of the weekend. Iain's performance of Tired Pony’s ‘I Am A Landslide’ was truly exceptional.

Delightful afternoon tunes from @iainarcher #atlanticsessions2017 pic.twitter.com/bvU80GYZu6

— David Armstrong (@_davidarmstrong) November 18, 2017

We stuck around in the Arcadia as the darkness descended and the bracing coastal winds made us more than a bit relieved to be in doors for Ryan Vail's audio visual lights show. Featuring custom built LED lighting and 3D Video Mapping, the Derry performer cut a ghostly silhouette against the backing lights, as he performed old and new tracks, including those from his 2016 album-of-the-year contender, For Every Silence. The performance being as incredible as it was, it seemed slightly incongruous to have a crowd planted on their seats for the full hour. I don’t think I was the only one in the room restless to get up and dance.

Amazing shot from Greg O Hagan in the audience at @AtlanticSess Lazer show at the weekend. @PlumeStudio killed it ??. @QuietArch @VisitCauseway @TourismIreland pic.twitter.com/vxYMcLXIUM

— Ryan Vail (@ryan_vail) November 20, 2017

Not stopping for a minute, the crowd gravitated towards the Kiwi Brew Bar and were treated to an acoustic performance from The Emerald Armada, who were undiminished despite being two members short of the full band.

And despite wanting to hang around to see The Holy Innocents and Brand New Friend, the thought of listening to Joshua Burnside in the confines one of the North’s best restaurants – Harry’s Shack in Portstewart – proved too appetising a prospect. Over fine dining, we listened the singer perform tracks from his NI Music Prize-winning album Ephrata without a backing band. Having such a talented folk musician performing to an extraordinarily busy restaurant on a Saturday night may have been a strategic error on the part of the Session organisers, but Burnside is decidedly undaunted about it all; he's passionate and professional as he goes up against the clamour.

The final act of a busy day sees us head to The Atlantic Bar, where a good fraction of the town’s population have piled in for the evening. Admittedly, the Frampton fight is keeping people busy downstairs, but far more appealing from a music lover’s point of view is the surprise guest of the evening – psych-rock band Documenta. Showcasing us their live chops before they head off to support The Charlatans during the Irish leg of their December tour, Documenta are a seven-piece beast of a band, whose flare for experimentation goes hand in hand with their beautiful melodies and cosmic guitar riffs.

Phil Taggart slides comfortably into his role as DJ following this and he keeps the dancefloor busy for the rest of the night. Your Hot Press correspondent is found embarrassing himself with some God-awful shapes for the duration of the set. Thankfully, the packed out venue means I’m not alone there, but the less said about all that the better...

After a much needed sleep, Steve Scullion (Malojian), Mandy Bingham and Paddy Nash finished things up nicely on Sunday afternoon with an ‘In The Rounds’ set at the Flowerfield Arts Centre, hosted by Ralph McLean. This was a timely way to finish things off – with some soothing, surreal and downright hilarious folk melodies helping to ease our fragile heads.

4 extremely talented local musicians @paddynash @MandyMcW @Malojian performing at @FlowerfieldArts for @AtlanticSess pic.twitter.com/TYY8GTf2k5

— PETER WILSON (@menaman27) November 19, 2017

Things were still in full swing by the time we had to leave the North Coast early in the afternoon, but a joint spoken word and music event by Neil Martin & Glenn Patterson late on Sunday evening made me envious that I wasn’t staying longer…
Having widened from a folk festival to a four day event that has Northern Ireland musicians putting it down as an essential date on their touring calendars, The Atlantic Sessions has grown year on year, but still feels as if it’s in its infancy in terms of how far it can go. I’ll be excited to see what they’ll line up for 2018.