Now in it’s ninth year, for those who’ve never been, here’s the Hard Working Class Heroes deal: 100 bands, three days, six venues, all for one 25 ticket. As well as being one of the most enlightening weekends of the year with so many fledgling acts side by side, it is also one of the most accurately named festivals around. Before the weekend is through, some musicians will have played a dozen shows with a handful of different bands. If that ain’t working hard, I don’t know what is.
Rump-shaking electronica emerged as one of the features of the festival, with scores of punters turning up to sets by up-and-coming solo beatmakers. Dublin-based Brit Simon Bird impressed with earthy samples and jarring melodies. One particular hand-clap sample even made it sound like there were 500 people in the room, grooving along. Meanwhile, newly-signed Kildare lad Jack Colleran, aka MOTHS emitted a sound that was ethereal, regal and positively dreamy. If any HWCHer is going to be a household name by next October, it’s this guy.
Keeping things electro-tastic were Cork act Carried By Waves, who showcased their dreamy sound in what was, unbelievably, their first ever gig. Keep an eye out for this pair in future. Also flying the flag for the People’s Republic, Toby Kaar’s electro-meets-hip-hop beats impressed. Meanwhile, the crowd was mere putty in the hands of both Sounds Of System Breakdown and Le Galaxie, who – as always – put on brilliantly energetic shows.
Musicallly, the free HWCH And The City daytime shows proved to be musically worthwhile, even if many of them were played to a mere handful of bystanders. Antrim quintet Amidships cast a wistful spell over the Design Mart in Cow’s Lane, while ambient pianist Conor Walsh, falling somewhere between Goldmund and Rachmaninov, played a heart-stopping show in the Twisted Pepper.
Others night-timers to impress were melodic rock outfit Spies, cocksure thrash rockers Kid Karate and tuneful wooze-poppers Squarehead. Meanwhile, Dublin act The Infomatics proved that the Irish hip hop scene is alive and kicking.
Also deserving an honorable mention are bolshy pop duo We Cut Corners, loopmaster extraordinaire Daithí, and The Dying Seconds, whose twitchy frontman David Cantan is always a joy to watch.
Judging by the drop-jawed expressions in the Grand Social, math rockers Alarmist were the musicians’ favourite of the weekend. Matching their dynamic rhythms with magnetising abstract visuals, the Dublin band owned the room like no other act at the festival.