Music
04 Feb 26

Thomas Dolby announces Dublin gig with Prefab Sprout's Martin McAloon

Thomas Dolby.

Tickets will go on pre-sale this Friday, February 6.

English musician and producer Thomas Dolby has announced a Dublin gig, set to take place in The Academy on May 29. The show will be part of the Iconic 80's Recollections concert series, and will feature Prefab Sprout's Martin McAloon to perform songs of the band.

Dolby will be also accompanied by a band made up of Jakko Jakzyk on guitar, Mat Hector on drums, and Ana Pshokina on bass. With the help of AI and a digitally sampled orchestra, they will perform in front of a 'virtual' symphony orchestra projected on a large screen.

The series of 80's Recollections gigs promises to provide a preview into Dolby's new symphonic project, to be released in late 2026 or 2027.

"It's an emotional feeling to look out at the loyal fans who have stuck by me for four decades - even when I spent long periods away from the pop world," said Dolby.

Thomas Dolby released several of his singles like ‘She Blinded Me with Science’ and ‘Hyperactive!’ in the '80s. He later became a producer and session musician, working with artists like Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, and Def Leppard.

In the '90s, Dolby founded the interactive audio technology company Beatnik, which developed a software that enabled applying sound in small file sizes, like ringtones, on websites. The idea was later adapted by Nokia, Sony, Ericsson, and Samsung.

Dolby designed multiple well-known synths ringtones in collaboration with Nokia. Their famous jingle, known as 'the Nokia tune', is a 1902 guitar composition 'Gran Vals', composed by the Spanish classical guitarist and composer Francisco Tárrega. The song was redesigned and edited by Dolby, becoming a well-recognised ringtone of the 2000s.

From 2001 to 2012, he served as TED's Music Director, programming music for TED Conferences' shows. Since 2014, he has been the head of the Peabody’s Music for New Media program at Johns Hopkins University.

Tickets for Dolby's The Academy gig will go on pre-sale this Friday, February 6.

You can find more information here.