Beats + Pieces

Ireland’s third major dance festival of the summer has been announced. Planet Love returns for the first time since 2003, with more than 60 DJs performing in eight arenas over 11 hours at Shane’s Castle, Co Antrim on Bank Holiday Sunday August 28.
This comes a month after the Global Gathering in Millstreet, Cork and a week before Electric Picnic in Stradbally, Co. Laois. International DJs confirmed to appear in Antrim include Armin van Buuren, Lisa Lashes, Eddie Halliwell, Marco V, Ferry Corsten, Umek, Scot Project, Tidy Boys, Anne Savage and Rolando.
Irish stars on the bill include Fergie, Agnelli & Nelson, Jupiter Ace, Gleave Dobbin and Electroheadz.
There will be eight arenas – Love for trance, Archetype for techno, Goodgreef for hard dance, Rendezvous for old skool, Urban Culture for breaks and beats, Retro VIP for club classics, the Northern Irish stage hosted by Keymix and the Love House arena for lovers of all things, yup, you've guessed it, house.
Additional attractions include a funfair and the 2005 MC Battle Championships Final, with breakdancers and graffiti artists. Planet Love ’05 will run from 2pm until 1am, and there will be coach services from major cities.
It’s somewhat incredible that there are three Irish dance festivals running this summer, yet so far none of the promoters has booked Splitloop (pictured), the acclaimed Dublin breaks duo whose storming debut album, Here On Business, is released on leading UK breaks label Supercharged in August.
The album is preceded this month by the single ‘On My Mind’, featuring a remix from The Drummatic Twins, which has shot straight into the DJ Mag breaks chart at number three. Dubliners Bren and Phil recently previewed their opus on Annie Nightingale’s show on BBC radio, and one of its tracks, ‘Hot Rock Boy’, is included on the front cover CD attached to the issue of DJ Mag out on July 22. That’s the same day Splitloop play on the bill with James Lavelle at London’s best club, Fabric.
Galway-based electronic act Cane141 have just released their third album MoonPool on Exceptional Records, featuring 12 new compositions all written, played, produced and recorded by band mainstay Michael Smalle. Cane141 play their first live show in over a year as guests of the Galway Arts Festival at the Warwick Hotel, Galway July 14.
Meanwhile, Dublin rapper Collie is releasing his debut album, Is Ainm Dom, on July 22. It contains the acclaimed 25-year-old MC’s two previous top 20 singles, ‘Some Sham’ and ‘Get Out’.
Fresh from their recent show in Dublin, Thievery Corporation have released ‘Revolution Solution’ (with Perry Farrell on vocals), the latest single from the excellent album The Cosmic Game (on ESL), with a new Brendan Lynch remix. Other singles out about now include Fischerspooner’s ‘Just Let Go’ (International Deejay Gigolo), and ‘Bucky Done Gun’ from M.I.A.’s irresistible debut album Avular (XL). Electric Picnic stars Soulwax unleash their live favourite ‘NY Excuse’ (Pias), and Oxegen headliners Deep Dish follow last year’s mammoth hit ‘Flashdance’ with the Keane-inspired bliss of ‘Say Hello’. While ahead of their remix of New Order’s ‘Waiting For A Siren’s Call’ single due in August, French electro-pop outfit Colder unleash their ‘Wrong Baby’ single and new album Heat …
Also on the albums front, QNC’s debut on Grand Central, Duo Dynamic, is an aptly titled collection of funky and fun hip-hop, while Afu-Ra’s State Of The Arts (Decon) is a no less enjoyable foray into weightier hip-hop territory. Christian Vogel pushes the techno-soul envelope even further than usual on Station 55 (Novamute), while Fat Freddy’s Drop’s Based On A True Story (Kartel) blends soul and dub with slo-mo, hi-tek beats. Album of the fortnight (and some would say the year) is the mesmerising second effort from Electric Picnic headliners Royksopp, The Understanding (Wall Of Sound). Classy pop music for long summer nights.
Summer is traditionally a boom time for compilations, and 2005 is no exception. Making ideal companions on trips to Ibiza, or anywhere hot and sunny for that matter, are the chilled Café Mambo Ibiza (on Defected), mixed by Pete Gooding, the housed-up Space Ibiza 2005 (Azuli), mixed by Dave Piccioni, and the anthem-packed Underwater Episode 04 (Underwater) collection from Ibiza stalwart alongside Sharam Jey (who is currently finishing his artist album ahead of its September release).
The Electric Picnic crew have added Gilles Peterson and Matthew Herbert to the bill of the two-day Kraftwerk-featuring festival at Stradbally on September 3 and 4. Full details are at www.electricpicnic.ie.
Meanwhile, budding deckticians should note that you could be playing alongside Kraftwerk at the festival if you win the DJ competition in the Electric Picnic section of www.bodytonicmusic.com. The Dublin house club’s crew are running the contest across Europe and the costs of flights and hotel for the lucky winner are included in the prize.
On the clubbing front, the aptly-titled Miss Kittin will bring her purr-fect talents to town on September 10 to guest at Remedy at Temple Bar Music Centre, Dublin. And her occasional bedfellow – in the recording sense – Felix da Housecat graces the hallowed turntables of The Savoy, Cork on August 5th. Ahead of those hot nights, Irish trance duo – whose forthcoming single ‘Shiver’ is being hammered by top trance trio Tiesto, Paul van Dyk and Armin van Buuren – play at Fabric in Tralee, Friday July 15.
While mash-up merchants The Glimmers are at The Vic, Galway on July 23, deep house don Kenny Hawkes will be jetting in to Axis Mundi, Waterford on July 30 and the turntablist champions The Scratch Perverts play The Savoy, Cork on July 31…THE BEAT GOES ON!