News, news and more news

I'm still catching my tail a bit having been off on holidays, gallavanting at the various festivals around the country. Here is some garbled news that has arrived on my desk over the last few days/weeks:

• Vampire Weekend are to release a follow up to the superb debut xxx on January 8th in Ireland. It's called Contra and will be out on XL Recordings. Track-list:

1. Horchata
2. White Sky
3. Holiday
4. California English
5. Taxi Cab
6. Run
7. Cousins
8. Giving Up The Gun
9. Diplomat’s Son
10. I Think Ur A Contra

See here for more details.

• The mighty Modest Mouse are to play in Dolan's Warehouse on December 5, very very exciting news, as reported by State. More details when I sniff them out.

• The Coors Light Peak event takes place this Saturday from 7pm on Limerick Docks, featuring Reverend and the Makers, RSAG, Dark Room Notes and local lads Walter Mitty and the Realists and Brigadier JC. Woop! FREE tickets available here... Previous story with more details here.

• On the Beat favourites The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra have released a delightful new single 'Soon', the second release from their forthcoming album Lowering the Tone, available 'soon' we are told! Available for download here.

• The second Tweak festival starts on Monday and we are very excited about it. Full piece below.

ONE of the most interesting and innovative festivals to take place in Limerick in recent years was “Tweak”, an interactive art and live electronic music festival that was run to huge success last year.
The festival is returning again this year and will run for six days beginning next Monday, with the aim of promoting “understanding of the use of technology within our cultural, social and digital world with a contemporary approach to interactive art and live electronic music performance”.
Nora O’Murchu is director of Tweak and explained that the festival’s “primary focus is on interactive art and audience engagement”.
“Installations and performances are chosen both upon their ability to connect with their environment and viewer inclusion in this exchange,” explained Nora, “and while the template is largely the same as last year, there has been a shift towards evening events and exhibitions this year.”
The festival will host an international array of speakers, performers, designers, exhibitions, films, visual artists, and djs from an eclectic range of backgrounds.
There is also an educational element to Tweak and as such three full-day workshops with leading practitioners in the field of programming, electronics and interactive design will take place over the course of the week.
There will also be a five day international electronic arts exhibition, along with a collection of sound-works from contemporary Irish composers and access will be completely free of charge. Several of the events will take place in the atmospheric surroundings of St. Munchin’s Church, in keeping with the theme of utilising spaces in new and inventive ways.
For full information see www.tweak.ie. Tweak begins on Monday, September 21 with a launch and exhibition in the Church Gallery on Clare Street at 7pm.