Ah, the perks of music journalism. My absolute fixation with music – live music especially – has taken me to both some brilliant stuff and some absolute tosh (cough, Boyce Avenue, cough) over the past six months, and – for the sake of memory if nothing else – I thought it was high time I started keeping a list of it all. So I did, back in January. I also made myself a promise back then that I wouldn;t turn this blog into a music fixated place, as it was initially meant to be about travel. So if you’re not into your music, look away now. If you are, here goes a massive first half of 2010, as it was… (With thanks to State Magazine, Alternative Ulster, The Scottish Tourism Board (for bringing me out to Glasgow) and Flea Market Poets (for Munich).
Live Shows:
23.01 – Kerrang Relentless Tour – All Time Low, The Blackout, Young Guns and My Passion (Academy, Dublin).
24.01 – Glen Hansard’s Haiti Fundraiser – with Glen Hansard, Damian Rice, Mundy, Natalie Merchant, Paul Brady and Paddy Casey. (Whelan’s, Dublin).
29.01 – Hamel, The Dirty Demographic, Leddra Chapman and Ewan Butler (King Tut’s, Glasgow)
30.01 – Phil Vasser and Mike Nisbet (King Tut’s, Glasgow)
31.01 – Chemikal Underground 15th anniversary celebration – The Phantom Band, Emma Pollock, Aidan Moffat and Bill Wells, Lord Cut-Glass, Zoey Van Goey, The Unwinding Hours. (O2 ABC, Glasgow)
08.02 – Xavier Rudd (Academy, Dublin)
16.02 – The Portico Quartet (The Coach House, Dublin)
17.02 – Haiti Benefit: David Kitt, Jape, Legion of Two, Patrick Kelleher and Barehands John (Whelan’s, Dublin)
21.02 – NME Awards Tour – The Maccabees, Two Door Cinema Club and Funeral Suits (Academy, Dublin)
Not for the headliners, but for the absolutely incredible Two Door Cinema Club. In fact, The Maccabees, bless ’em, looked very poor in comparison. Two Door Cinema Club may well be the best thing going on in Ireland now (should I say Northern Ireland is the UK? Let’s not get into that…), and seeing them in a venue with a capacity of less than 1000 is something I doubt Ill get to do again in a hurry. Major iPod repetition.
28.02 – CODES, The Delays (Academy, Dublin)
03.03 – Choice Music Prize Award Ceremony – CODES, And So I Watch You From Afar, Duckworth Lewis Method, Julie Feeney, Dark Room Notes, The Swell Season, Valerie Francis and Adrian Crowley (Vicar Street, Dublin)
06.03 – Ocean Colour Scene, O Emperor (Olympia, Dublin)
10.03 – Lynyrd Skynyrd (O2, Dublin)
13.03 – Fionn Regan, Danny and the Champions Of The World (Vicar Street, Dublin)
14.03 – Ellie Goulding, Planet Parade (Academy, Dublin)
20.03 – MGMT, At Last An Atlas (Academy, Dublin)
Again, superb band, small venue. A combo that really, really does it for me. Loads of people at this show were really unimpressed; personally I think MGMT’s slightly odd new stuff is fresh, and though I’m not that into the album, it adds a whole new dimension to the live show.
22.03 – Boyce Avenue (Academy, Dublin)
24.03 – Wallis Bird (Academy, Dublin)
26.03 – And So I Watch You From Afar, BATS and Jogging (Andrew’s Lane Theatre, Dublin)
28.03 – Flyleaf, The Crave (The Academy 2, Dublin)
03.04 – The Dirty 9s, The Gandhis (Crawdaddy, Dublin)
04.04 – Fun Lovin’ Criminals, The Yabbas (The Academy, Dublin)
16.04 – Indie Week Ireland Final – Sixteen Layers, Darlings Of Chelsea, Brazen Angels, The Whatmans, Stone Throwing Youths, Amoric, Fingersmiths, Identity Parade (Twisted Pepper, Dublin)
17.04 – Record Store Day (Dublin) – Stornaway, Autumn Owls, O Emperor, Heathers (Tower Records, Dublin)
17.04 – Mystery Jets, Funeral Suits (The Academy, Dublin)
18.04 – Hypnotic Brass Orchestra (The Grafton Lounge, Dublin)
22.04 – Dropkick Murphys (Olympia, Dublin)
Celtic punk superstars in Dublin, oh yes! These guys got half the crowd on the Olympia stage, played a whole host of Irish trad stuff in punk style and totally rocked the life out of the place. Apart from Pendulum later in the year, which was a bit of a nasty atmosphere next to this one, I’ve never seen the Olympia like this.
23.04 – Glen Hansard (Busking, Henry Street, Dublin)
23.04 – Joan Armatrading (Vicar Street, Dublin)
29.04 – Idlewild (The Academy, Dublin)
One of my favorite bands of all time playing their second last show before an indefinite hiatus. Idlewild went back to their roots and played a stream of stuff from ‘100 Broken Windows’ and the best of ‘The Remote Part’. I’ve seen then play better, but special memories.
02.05 – Florence And The Machine and The Drums (Olympia, Dublin)
What can I say except wow? Florence Welch in a small venue like this is something totally out of this world. One of the best shows I’ve seen ever, never mind this year. The Drums are fantastic, too, I fully expect them to go a very long way.
04.05 – Nerina Pallot, Heathers (Sugar Club, Dublin)
07.05 – Identity Parade, Silverflies and Biturbo Ruediger (Glockenbatt Werkstatt, Munich)
08.05 – Flea Market Poets, Celeste and Identity Parade (59:1, Munich)
Memorable in part because these guys bought me all the way out to Munich to see them, but also because the whole night was a really good laugh, the band dedicated a song to me for coming all the way from Dublin (cheers guys!) and the fun and games back stage were fantastic. Great stuff.
14.05 – Patrick Kelleher (Anseo, Dublin)
15.05 – Shed DJS, The Cast Of Cheers (Twisted Pepper, Dublin)
The Cast Of Cheers are the best band from Dublin that there is right now. They just came second in State’s poll for the best new album of 2010 so far. I only saw the end of their set, and it’s still going down as one of my favorite shows so far this year.
16.05 – Kele (Academy, Dublin)
18.05 – Pendulum (Olympia, Dublin)
20.05 – Villagers (Button Factory, Dublin)
24.05 – Hideaway House Final Show – And So I Watch You From Afar, Heather, Jogging, Logik Party, Find A Way.
Final show of a Dublin institution – teenager decides to host shows in his house, turns out to be incredibly popular, ends up running a television show. The fact that tonight’s headliner went on to play a 16,000 arena supporting Them Crooked Vultures as their next show says it all. What a night, great atmosphere, unique venue, awesome bands.
08.06 – Rage Against The Machine, Gogol Bordello and The Gallows (O2, Dublin)
Worth the trek down to the O2 if only for the sheer carnage unfolding down the front… and the back. I’ve never seen people try and mosh in the teired seating before this gig. Utter carnage – Rage might be ten years past their peak, but they’re still amazing live.
10.06 – Suzanne Vega (The Village, Dublin)
15.06 – Murder By Death (The Academy 2, Dublin)
23.06 – Keane (Olympia, Dublin)
Interviews:
Adam Green (Mouldy Peaches)
Lost Prophets
Zero 7
Sounds Of System Breakdown
Sleep Thieves
Eskimo Joe
We Are Scientists
Kele Okereke (Bloc Party)
The Redneck Manifesto
Seb Hunter
Fionn Regan
Xavier Rudd
General Fiasco
Photos by Kieran Frost and Abe Tarrush.