Into The Great Wide Open

It’s back and it’s pissed off! Actually that’s a complete lie. It’s back and in great form. I’m talking about Belfast’s Open House Festival, which has announced the full line-up for this year’s mayhem, which once again takes place in the city’s Cathedral Quarter between Wednesday September 24 and Sunday September 28.

The event is now in its tenth year and while any other festival would be shouting the merits of its big anniversary programme from the rooftops, the Open House doesn’t really have to as it has never fallen below a plateau of invigorating excellence. There are a few return visitors from last year’s festival but as usual there’s a flood of fresh names and sounds, many of whom have never been to Europe before let alone tread the balmy (maybe that should be barmy) streets of late September Belfast.
On the other hand the festival tends to do a rabbit from the hat trick with local Irish musicians who often surface unexpectedly, and in loose affiliations you mightn’t have anticipated, to play surprise shows before sloping off into the shadows. As ever there’s a beautifully produced brochure/guide book to the festival.
The hard part is deciding where you are going to plant yourself at any given minute. From the word go you have to make a choice between the Gitano Collective in the Black Box and Pigeon Top in the John Hewitt as the festival gets a head of steam up on the evening of Wednesday September 24.
Friday night is even more of a toss-up. I, for one, won’t want to miss the chance to catch the wonderful Southern Tenant Folk Union but they go head to head with Bob Log III and The Bonnevilles and David Holmes on his home turf, spinning the dirtiest blues stompers he can get onto his decks.
As if that wasn’t conundrum enough, getting to either will mean you’ve had to take your leave early from one of the year's hottest trad tickets when Brid Harper, Martin Meehan and P.J. McDonald play the Duke of York.
You’d think that Saturday might be easier – but more time means more a-list shows and more dilemmas. The American Old Time Session or Casa de Chihuahua at lunchtime?
By evening you’ll be wishing for Padre Pio’s ability to be in more than one place at once as – draws breath – Gerry O’Connor, Donal O’Connor and Cathal McConnell play in Culturlann McAdam O Fiach, Heavy Trash, featuring Jon Spencer – uh huh, that one, the one from the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – appear at the King’s Head, The Tom Fun Orchestra gig in the Black Box, O’Death tear up the Festival Marquee (hopefully not literally) and John Spillane is at the Droichead.
Sunday sees the festival wind down but there are still some gems with Providence in the John Hewitt vying with Outlaw Social in the Black Box at lunchtime and Four Men and A Dog in the Black Box that evening, as well as the inimitable Gypsy Hotel club night in the Festival Marquee.
The Niall Toner Band play the festival’s Prism stage but you’ll need to be there on the Saturday to catch Niall and the boys – the coolest dudes in bluegrass following a placement in Grand Theft Auto 4 – previewing a few tracks from his new album.
Also kicking up some dust at the Solas festival you’ll find Kila, whose Once Upon a Time DVD lashed straight into the chart at number two. They’re also making an appearance at the Electric Picnic on Friday August 29. Last year’s Picnic saw them teaming up with Donal Dineen and that pairing is also hooking up for a kind of loose residency at the Academy in Dublin, where they’ll be delivering on Thursday August 21 and Sunday September 7.
Taking their time with the driving, No Crows make an excursion to Dublin for a performance in Albert College Park on Sunday August 24 (also as part of the Northside Music Festival) when the Sligo via Mallorca quartet will play some tunes from their new album. The Northside Music Festival is a pretty broad church type of affair and stretches over a number of weekends, with gigs ranging from opera through jazz to folk – it doesn’t always consist of the shut up and listen to the band type of experience either. On Saturday August 23, for example, in The Den in Finglas, The Session offers a more hands-on approach to enjoying traditional music, in which the audience get a chance to join in with some ace performers like Emer Mayock and Robbie Harris guiding them.
What’s the deal with Grada? Not content with dashing half way across the country to play Farmleigh House and the World Fleadh in Port Laoise in the same day a couple of weeks back, they’ll be repeating the experience on Sunday August 17 when they play in Griffith Park, Drumcondra as part of Dublin’s Northside Music Festival at 2p.m. and then excercise their driving skills by getting to Huntington Castle in Clonegal, Co. Carlow, where they take the stage at 11p.m. as part of the Solas Festival. Ha! A band that laughs in the face of danger (and soundchecks). We like that here.