IMRO and IASCA (Irish Association of Songwriters, Composers and Authors) hosted a series of public interviews and live performances at our headquarters in Copyright House on Friday night to celebrate this year’s Culture Night.
We were privileged to be joined on the night by songwriters Mick Hanly, Sonny Condell, Luán Parle, James Vincent McMorrow, who had just arrived back from LA, and Thomas Walsh, as well as members of Codes and Fight Like Apes, who each provided a valuable insight into their songwriting and experiences as musicians for the audience. Fight Like Apes were presented with an award by IMRO in recognition of their achievement of reaching Number 1 in the Irish Independent Artist Album Charts. Guests on the night were also treated to some acoustic performances by the interviewees, as well as a set by trad group, Dílse.
Big thanks to Celina Murphy, Colm O’Hare, Roisin Dwyer and all at HotPress (www.hotpress.com), Derek Copley, Conor O’Hara, Robert Heuston and all at Irish Music Magazine (www.irishmusicmagazine.com), and Phil Udell, Julien Clancy, Alessio Michelini and all at State.ie (www.state.ie).
Check out future editions of Irish Music Magazine and HotPress for more on the night’s interviews. State.ie will feature three of the interviews in an upcoming podcast. In the meantime, see http://www.state.ie/2010/09/news/state-imro-culture-night-in-photos/for some photos of the night’s events.
Much-loved television comedian, Peter Kay, flew into Dublin for an intimate bash with his extended family this weekend, as he launched the latest album of his old friends, celebrated Irish band The Saw Doctors.
Kay, a self-proclaimed fan of the band for more than twenty years, delighted fans as he joined the Galway boys on stage at Dublin's Olympia Theatre on Saturday night to officially unveil their new CD: 'The Further Adventures of the Saw Doctors', which also shot in at No. 1 in The Irish Indie charts and No. 7 in the Overall combined Charts on Friday.
The comedian, who has previously duetted with the band in Manchester and his native Bolton, was once again in fine form, joining energetic frontman Davy Carton for a version of their first chart topper, 'I Useta Lover'. The packed out Dublin venue naturally erupted into a thunderous applause.
Peter Kay said: "What an absolute honour and a joy to be asked to launch the fantastic new album by the Saw Doctors. My family and I have been massive fans for years".
Davy Carton said: "We were thrilled when Peter agreed to do this and went to so much trouble to get here. We equally love his work and in a way I think we share the same sort of humour".
Guitarist Leo Moran added: "We know Peter is very proud of his Irish roots and his Irish relatives, but for a major star to take time out and to speak so highly of our work is a huge compliment".
Kay was joined by relatives from all corners of Ireland as they met up with the band after the Dublin gig. The Further Adventures of the Saw Doctors is available on Monday 27 September in the UK and is out now in Ireland. Their second single 'Well Byes' will be released on October 16th.
After a lengthy list of Summer festivals and headline dates in Ireland, The Saw Doctors start a 17 date UK tour on 24th November, which includes two London concerts at Shepherds Bush Empire as well as shows in Glasgow, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Southampton and Leeds, culminating in the second of those London dates, at the 2 Shepherds Bush Empire on 18th December.
After the Small But Massive success of Glasgowbury 2010, the group have this week announced their joy at being nominated in the 2010 UK Festival Awards.
The local festival has picked up two nods in the esteemed celebrations and find themselves in the running to be the UK’s Best Small Festival as well as being in with the chance to pick up The Grassroots Festival Award.
Glasgowbury is also in the running for industry selected awards such as Promoter Of The Year and Line-Up Of The Year, mixing it up with the creme de la creme of UK festivals.
And now they need you, the people who helped celebrate ten years at the heart of new music this past summer, to register your votes and support and help the local festival make an increased impact on the UK festival scene.
To vote for Glasgowbury, go to the official UK Festival Awards website (uk.festivalawards.com) and select Glasgowbury in its two nominated categories and also enter yourself in for the chance to win two tickets to every winning festival.
Festival Organiser Paddy Glasgow said it was an exciting time for the festival as regards growth and recognition and to make an impact on the UK festival scene would be a huge honour.
“Glasgowbury is very much a festival for the people and with the success of the last ten years it’s a great honour to be making an impact beyond these shores, drawing more eyes and ears towards the huge wealth of bands and artists we have here," he said.
“As always Glasgowbury is about the promotion of new and emerging talent from throughout Ireland and to be recognised and rewarded for doing what we love to do is a natural privilege.”
Voting in the UK Festival Awards is open now and will close ahead of the ceremony on November 18th. Don't forget to register your support soon!
Plans for Glasgowbury 2011 are already well underway and details for the anticipated event will be announced soon. Keep an eye on www.glasgowbury.com for more details.
Irish Australian Songwriter Peter Baxter is releasing his third album – The Blue Black Waves. Produced with Dónal Lunny and Dave McCune and featuring 10 songs that bear the influence of his journey. Guest musicians include Dónal & Keith Donald (Moving Hearts) as well as Sinead Madden (Moya Brennan Band & Clannad).
Included on the album is a cover "Watching Over Me" written by Indigenous Australian songwriter Archie Roach. Peter learned this song when touring the Northern Territory with Archie. Since then he has played at festivals and venues throughout Europe and supported acts such as Ben E King, Ralph McTell, Jon “King” Cleary and Andy Irvine.
Three years in the making the album is shaped by the people he has met and the places that he has visited in thirteen years since the last release – The Miracle Bell.
‘Trad for Trócaire’ is a traditional Irish music fundraising campaign that will encourage Irish musicians, venue owners and traditional music fans to ‘Raise the roof and raise money for Trócaire projects worldwide’ by organising or supporting a seisiún. The campaign is being run by Trócaire in partnership with Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann and will take what's truly unique, special and at the heart of Irish culture – our music, to transform the lives of some of the poorest and most vulnerable communities in the world. Musicians, venues and music lovers nationwide can ‘Trad for Trócaire’ by organising a session during the week of Thursday 23rd to Wednesday 29th September in aid of Trócaire.
Who can get involved?
Anyone can get involved!
If you’re a musician, you can organise or play in a session.
If you’re a venue owner, you can hold a session.
If you’re a trad fan, you can come out and support your local session.
How to get involved?
To organise an event:
Order a Trad for Trócaire pack(containing t-shirts, posters, stickers and a donation form) and register your session by visitingtrocaire.org/trad or calling 1850 408 408.
Singer/Songwriter/Musician, hailing from Ireland. Raised in the small country town of Daingean in the midlands after he and his family moved down from Dublin in the early 80’s. Dave Peyton became a household name when he brought some much-needed rock to RTE's You’re a Star with his band Dave’s Radio, and has more recently released a solo album called “Couch Lovers”.
Dave recorded his Album in the summer of 2009 in Dockside Studio, Maurice, Louisiana, host to acts such as BBKing, Scarlett Johansson, Dr John, Bobby Charles, The Givers, Lost Bayou Ramblers, Mark Knopler and many more. Dave’s Album “Couch Lovers” was Coproduced and mixed by Gareth Mannix/Dave Peyton, and mastered by Bruce Barielle.
For the past few years Dave has been gigging extensively and trying out his new material on crowds around Ireland and across the water. He has been very fortunate with gigs, having shared stages in small venues and big festivals with Irelands finest The Frames, The Blizzards, Mundy, The Pogues, The Hothouse Flowers, Declan O’Rourke, Ronnie Drew, The Walls, and many International Acts such as, Avril Lavigne, Star Sailor, The Editors, Sister Sledge and The Mystery Jets. Dave’s music has been described as driven and dynamic with killer riffs, all topped off by his charismatic melodic vocals. Dave’s voice is without doubt his strongest attribute. Be it delicate, heart-wrenching melodies or soaring, anthemic choruses, Dave has a voice that can capture the spirit and lift the soul.
His talent is one that is truly unique and individual, This shines through in his music. Comparisons don’t come easy and he has a sound that is truly unique. Thomas Black (EMI Records) described Dave Peyton as one of the best singer songwriters he’d seen in years and took him to the UK where he worked with legendary producer Steve Osbourne (New Order, Placebo, Suede, U2, Radiohead, KT Tunstall).
Dave Peyton chosen to play the Olympia in Dublin on Arthur’s Day.
THE Guinness 'Our Thursdays' National showcase took place last week in Lavery's, Belfast. From an incredible 800 hopeful bands, four emerging Irish acts, including Offaly's Dave Peyton put on performances that really showcased the richness of raw Irish talent in front of a packed audience. To the delight of the crowd and the four bands who took part, Jonny Quinn made a surprise announcement and revealed that while it had been planned that only three bands would be selected to play alongside the amazing international talent in the studio venues in Cork, Galway and the St. James's Gate Brewery on Arthur's Day, now all four bands will go on to play at the main Arthur's Day celebrations on the 23rd September.
Backstage there was a real sense of cameraderie among the bands, with members of Reko, Empire Saits and Dave Peyton all openly congratulating Maud. "I thought she was great," Peyton, who had turned in a storming performance on the night, told Hot Press. "They're a great band, with huge potential." The four national showcase bands will perform alongside international artists as part of the Arthur's Day line up in the following venues; Maud In Cahoots – St James's Gate Brewery, Dublin; Dave Peyton – Olympia Theatre, Dublin; Reko -Savoy, Cork and Empire Saints – Folan Quay, Galway. Judges present on the night included some of the industry's top experts including Jonny Quinn and Tom Simpson from Snow Patrol, Matt Cooke from MTV as well as Niall Stokes from Hot Press. Speaking at the showcase, Jonny Quinn said: 'There is no shortage of talent that's for sure. It has been a great experience for all who have taken part and we are excited about performing alongside the winning band on the 23rd September". Not only will the four bands get the opportunity to take part in this unforgettable experience, they will also receive studio time, a digital release from Universal and will find themselves splashed all over the cover of Hot Press magazine in a special feature.
Our Thursdays was a new dimension to the Arthur's Day programme, which continues the philanthropic legacy of Arthur Guinness. Orla Flanagan, Brand Manager, Guinness said "When we set about developing the programme, we never thought we would get such a huge response with over 800 Irish bands taking part. We are delighted to add these four great acts to the Arthur's Day line up. Excitement is really building now for Arthur's Day and I'm looking forward to raising a glass to Arthur at 17.59 on the 23rd September."
The internationally acclaimed Irish composer Bill Whelan presented two gifted emerging Irish composers with substantial music bursaries at an awards ceremony in Dublin this week. Cormac McCarthy from Cork and Aoife Ni Bhriain from Dublin are the latest recipients of the Bill Whelan International Music Bursary which was established to support Irish music students studying abroad.
The Bursary, which was launched in 2005, has assisted students to further their studies in disciplines ranging from film scoring, orchestration and music composition.
The bursary scheme is administered with the assistance of The Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO). Speaking today at the presentation of the awards Bill commented, “Since the Bursary began over five years ago, I have had the honour and pleasure to meet some extraordinary young musicians, many of whom have gone on to flourishing careers as practicing musicians or in the academic field. Unfortunately, this is the last year of this particular bursary, but I am hoping to continue with something similar in the near future. My congratulations and warm wishes to all who have participated over the years.”
Cormac McCarthy, who is entering into a Masters course in Jazz Composition at DePaul University School of Music, Chicago outlined “receiving the Bill Whelan Bursary has benefitted me enormously in meeting the costs of living and studying in the U.S. Equally the prestige and honour associated with such an award is a massive personal boost and has given me a renewed belief in my composition”.
“The bursary is an act of tremendous generosity from Bill and is a fantastic opportunity for the young talent in Ireland to apply for. The musical opportunities that are to be found in Europe and farther afield are simply wonderful but unfortunately not always accessible to Irish musicians. With bursaries such as Bill’s, doors are opened and the level of musicianship in Ireland is drastically improved. I am looking forward to learning and achieving as much as possible in the next 4 years” added Aoife Ni Bhriain who commences a Bachelor of Music degree at Hochschule in Leipzig.
Bill Whelan, best known as composer of Riverdance The Show, a Grammy Award winner for ‘Best Musical Show Album’, has worked extensively in theatre, television and film. His orchestral works include the specially commissioned piece, The Seville Suite (1992) and The Spirit Of Mayo (1993). His work in international film includes Lamb which he co-composed with Van Morrison, his emotive score for the Jim Sheridan/Terry George film Some Mother’s Son and the original score for the film version of Brian Friel’s award winning Dancing At Lughnasa which starred Meryl Streep. His production and arranging credits include U2, Van Morrison, Kate Bush, Richard Harris and The Dubliners. His chamber music suite, inspired by his recent life in Connemara, has been recorded by the Irish Chamber Orchestra, Zoe Conway, Fionnula Hunt and Michelle Mulcahy.
HALVES
THE DEBUT ALBUM
IT GOES, IT GOES (FOREVER & EVER)
RELEASING OCTOBER 29 2010 ON HATEISTHEENEMY
Live tour dates announced for October 2010!
See below or check out www.ahomeforhalves.com
It Goes, It Goes (Forever & Ever) is the haunting, ambitious and spine-tingling debut album from Irish trio Brian Cash, Elis Czerniak & Tim Czerniak, collectively known as Halves.
Recorded in the legendary Hotel2Tango studios in Montreal (housed in a former alarm factory beside a freight railroad) and tracked over two sunny weeks in August of 2009, It Goes, It Goes (Forever & Ever) was created with the use of the studio's vast collection of instruments, amps, organs, effects (most of which dated from 1930's-1980's). Eleven songs were recorded live, in one large room on 2" reel-to-reel tape by Efrim Menuck (Godspeed You! Black Emperor), Howard Bilerman and Radwan Moumneh.
On returning to Ireland additional recording resumed with Richard McCullough in the band's own studio 'The Windfarm' and in various locations nationwide. Guest performers on the record include: Amy Millan (Stars/BSS), Katie Kim, Phil Boughton (Subplots), Canadian harpist Elaine Kelly-Canning, Irish Chamber brass and string players and twenty-seven members of the Kilkenny choir.
The album's title 'It Goes, It Goes' refers to a signal the band were given by their engineer one day that the tape machine was rolling, making them laugh and ruin the take. A relaxed creative environment, Hotel2Tango also came with in-studio dogs trained to stay quiet when the recording light was on!
One of Ireland's most intriguing acts, Halves blend a vast range of instruments, acoustic and electronic, to create an evocative, cinematic live experience. Their three releases to date have met with universal critical success, as well as earning them ardent fans from Tokyo to Seattle. Their live show is truly captivating; a mix of synched visuals, strings, brass, and electronics, anchored by soaring guitars and live drums. In 2009 Halves made their debut TV performance, topping the viewers choice poll on RTE's 'Other Voices' series. More recently the band played four shows at the SXSW Music Festival in Austin Texas to great response, and have also played Eurosonic, Canadian Music Week and London Calling. Halves have supported British Sea Power, 65 Days Of Static, BellX1 and Cathy Davey, and were voted as having produced one of the finest Irish releases of 2007 with their first EP by influential Irish blogger Nialler9.
Halves will play several live shows in Ireland in October including a live PA at Tower Records and a headline performance at The Workman’s Club on October 30th, The Roisin Dubh, Galway on November 4th, The Model Arts Centre in Sligo on November 5th and a support show with Dungen as part of Harmonic 2010.
It Goes, It Goes (Forever & Ever) will release nationwide October 29th 2010 through HATEISTHEENEMY Records on CD and Deluxe gatefold vinyl (includes free mp3 download).
Presale starts tomorrow on www.ahomeforhalves.com
It Goes, It Goes (Forever & Ever) Tracklisting
1. Land/Sea/People
2. Blood Branches
3. Darling, You'll meet your maker
4. Growing & Glow
5. The Little Octoberist
6. Only Safe Landings
7. Haunt Me When I'm Drowsy
8. The Wellwisher
9. I Raise Bears
10. Don't Send Your Kids To The Lakes
11. Mountain Bell
DATE: 21st October 2010
TIME: 20:30 (pre-concert talk: "Traditional Instruments in Contemporary Composition" 20:00)
VENUE: Kevin Barry Room, National Concert Hall, Dublin
This October the Irish Composers' Collective concert is all about the harp. Renowned harpist Anne-Marie O'Farrell will present new works for both classical and lever harps. Composers Johanne Heraty, Daniel Barkley, Marc Tweedie, Piaras Hoban and Hugh Boyle have all composed new music for one of the lesser encountered solo instruments. What's more, Ian McDonnell will premiere an electronic work with material derived directly from the harp itself. An evening taking us from the very old to the very new, it's not one to be missed.
Tickets €10 and €5 (student ID must be presented to obtain discount) may be purchased from the National Concert Hall Box Office online at www.nch.ie , in person or by telephone +353 (0)1 4170000.
JULIET TURNER
::: LIVE ::: National Concert Hall ~ Dublin
Co-Headline Show with JOHN SPILLANE
06 October 2010 – 8:00 PM
Turner's live shows should be experienced. She is a quiet, relaxed performer with a wicked sense of humour. Her voice is unusually clear and sweet and her between song anecdotes are amusing, eccentric and off-the-cuff. Prepare to be drawn in and bowled over!
Juliet Turner stumbled into making music. She was given a guitar for her fifteenth birthday and met a poet who told her to start writing her own songs. In 1996 whilst studying for a year in Glasgow, she was offered the chance to record those songs in a little studio called ‘Heaven’ with small independent label ‘Sticky Music’. The result was ‘Let’s Hear it for Pizza’. People are still buying the album years later for songs such as ‘Pizza and Wine’, ‘Beyond the Backyard’ and ‘Indian Summer’. It is a rough and ready album with some gorgeous lyrics. Innocent yet a little twisted.
Juliet moved back to Dublin in 1996 to finish her Arts degree and to start playing live shows. Word travelled swiftly on the Dublin music scene and soon Juliet was opening shows in the city for international artists such as Bob Dylan, Gabrielle, Natalie Merchant, Sting, U2, Art Garfunkel and Brian Adams and was touring with Joan Armatrading, Brian Kennedy, Ron Sexsmith and Roger McGuinn from the Byrds.
In September 1998 Juliet performed Julie Miller’s song “Broken Things” at the memorial service held to remember the people who were murdered by the Real IRA in Omagh, Co. Tyrone, N. Ireland in that year. Omagh was the town where Juliet had attended secondary school. She refused to release the song as a single, but recorded a version for the album “Across the Bridge of Hope” to help raise money for those affected by the disgusting atrocity. The song was also used under the end credits of the film “Omagh”.
In 2000 Juliet set up her own label ‘Hear This! Records’ with her manager the late Derek Nally. She released her second album ‘Burn the Black Suit’ on the label and it went double platinum in Ireland. This album, produced by Gerard Kiely, was a little more ambitious –’pop veering into darker territory’ as one reviewer put it. It gave the world three catchy pop tunes –’Dr Fell’, ‘Take the Money and Run’ and ‘Burn the Black Suit’. Also the haunting ‘Belfast Central’ and the duet with Brian Kennedy on ‘I hope that I don’t fall in love with you’, written by Tom Waits. This album was recently voted one of the top 100 Irish albums of all time by Hot Press Music Magazine Readers. Number 51.
‘Season of the Hurricane’ was released in Feb 2004 and went platinum in Ireland in June of the same year. This offered the radio hit ‘Everything Beautiful is Burning’ and went to No. 8 in the Irish album charts. It also found itself nestling at no. 5 in the Amazon internet charts between Norah Jones and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Less immediate than the previous album with smoother production values, Turner’s music became even more difficult to categorise and her subject matter more intriguing. The stand out track on this album is the starkly beautiful ‘No Good in this Goodbye’.
‘There was no love as ordinary as ours.
We walked hand in hand through this work day world.
And the swiftness of your leaving caught me by surprise.
There is no good in this goodbye’.
In Feb 2005 Juliet picked up an Irish Meteor Music Award for best Irish Female Performer, alongside artists such as Paddy Casey, PJ Harvey and Snow Patrol. Deciding that the time was right to record some of the live shows, she released “Juliet Turner – Live” in November 2005, recorded over three nights in one of her favourite small Irish venues, the Spirit Store in Dundalk. This set the tone for the gigs to follow over the next couple of years as Juliet began to play all her live shows in small acoustic venues accompanied only by guitarist Brian Grace.
Then with three studio albums, a live album, double platinum sales and a Meteor Music Award under her belt, Juliet decided that a change of scene was needed and in October 2006 returned to Trinity College Dublin to undertake a four year BSc in Clinical Speech and Language Studies.
Alongside the studies, the song-writing and performing continued and Juliet recorded her fifth album in 2008 with producer Keith Lawless in a warehouse in Kinsealy. Described by the Irish Times as ‘one of the most intriguing of Irish female song writers, arriving several years ago with a guitar and a batch of brittle, poignant songs; her broad accent and even broader outlook; her bitter-sweet tastes all marking her as one to watch’, this new album showed an exploratory and unsentimental side to Turner’s songwriting. The slow pace of recording and the change of scenery from tour bus to lecture hall seemed to invigorate Turner and the album was a combination of beautiful, intelligent songwriting and subtle musicianship.
The new batch of songs are thoughtful and less acerbic than some of her previous writing and the narrative lines running through the album are sympathetic and full of warmth. Listen for “Elder of the Tribe”, “High Hopes” and “The Girl with a Smile” in particular. The release of new material seems to fall in a four year cycle and this new album was eagerly anticipated. It did not seem to disappoint, being her most critically acclaimed album to date. On stage with long time guitarist Brian Grace, Juliet Turner has a wry charm, a beautiful voice and fine lyrics, making her a compelling and witty live performer.
In 2010 Turner completed her degree at Trinity College in Clinical Speech and Language Studies.
In July of this year Juliet saw the passing of her long term friend and manager Derek Nally. Stating on her website, "I was deeply shocked and upset to hear of Derek Nally’s death on Thursday afternoon following a sudden heart attack. Derek and I have worked together since 1997 and it was thanks to his support and belief in my ability as a song-writer that “Burn the Black Suit” ever saw the light of day. He was a generous, enthusiastic, intelligent and hard-working man, respected by those he worked with, and he will be greatly missed.
