Panic with The Rubberbandits in Dolan's this Thursday night

Mornin' folks (is it afternoon already?).. Apologies for the lack of posting up here over the last few weeks - if anyone is still reading - but Electric Picnic, holidays and black tie balls have crippled our output in recent times.. Back on the air and delighted to say there is loads going on over the next few days, weeks and months, all of which you can read about in the pages of the Chronicle/Leader, or get the rag-tag bits and bobs here!

This Thursday sees local heroes The Rubberbandits return to their roots for a show in Dolan's Warehouse as part of the excellent new Panic! club night, which has already featured DJ sets from Newton Faulkner and Ocean Colour Scene and the superbly talented Redneck Manifesto last Thursday. This week the 'Bandits (after their recent exploits at EP '10 and in the capital, see below, thanks to Ken Coleman for the pics) are joined at Panic! by DJs Paul Webb, Leon and John Kelly - all for the princely sum of five squids.. But get down for 10.30pm, because it'll be sold out by 10.35pm we reckon..


LIMERICK’S dastardly rap-comic duo The Rubberbandits - who maintain their secret identities by performing with plastic bags over their heads - joined a list of guest speakers that includes Jonathan Swift and Nelson Mandela by making an appearance before the Trinity College Philosophical Society recently.
The improbable appearance came hot on the heels of a rapturously received gig at the Electric Picnic festival in Stradbally, at which the Limerick duo were joined on stage by Crystal Swing, and also after the duo sold out Dublin music venue Whelan’s last week, on a Sunday night no less, an impressive achievement in itself.
The duo are also set to appear on Brendan O’Connor’s The Saturday Night show on RTE in the coming weeks, and have also recently been filiming a weekly slot on one of RTE’s top rated comedy shows - the identity of which cannot yet be revealed.
The Rubberbandits were invited to appear at the Trinity Philosophical Society - known as 'The Phil' - last week and caused such a commotion that a roadblock had to be erected on the Dublin city centre campus, with security shutting down the building the minute they came off stage, according to a spokesperson for the duo.
To put their appearance in some perspective, in recent years the society has played host to guests such as actor Al Pacino, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, presidential candidate John McCain, actress Dame Helen Mirren, writer Sir Salman Rushdie and Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The ‘Bandits themselves said of the appearance: “We just made an appearance before the Trinity College Philosophical society where we were guest speakers. They got us to sign some old brown book that had signatures from eejits out of the 1700's with long names. Today is the first time that a drawing of Bob Marley saying "chuckig our law" has been inscribed in those pages. I spotted that Jonathan Swift wrote something about UB40 in it though in fairness”.
The Rubberbandits return to Limerick this Thursday, September 30 for a special gig in Dolan’s Warehouse as part of the new Panic! weekly clubnight.

Body and Soul Solstice Gathering this weekend

The first ever Body and Soul festival is gearing up to take off this weekend, with superb weather forecasted for the next few days.

The Body and Soul Solstice Gathering 2010 has essentially relocated the beating heart of the Stradbally based Electric Picnic extravaganza to Ballinlough Castle in Co. Meath for the weekend, with Four Tet, !!! (CHK CHK CHK), Jape, R.S.A.G and Tuung, among many, many others, set to provide a superb soundtrack to the festival.

The full line-up for the main stage is listed below, but, like its older Picnic-brother, the Body and Soul solstice festival features a veritable cornucopia of events, music and otherwise, including - I am led to believe - "acoustic jams, impromptu parties, wood-fired hot tubs, winding paths through delicious food stalls, holistic arts, a secluded soul kids garden, a masquerade ball with a moonlit orchestra, and bonfires under the stars".

The closing ceremony on Sunday will also feature a night-time extravaganza celebrating the theme of this year’s Summer Solstice: Phoenix Rising, and those present can expect Pyrotechnic/Pyro-Performance pieces around Sun Discs, fireworks and some other fire-fantastical elements.

A full line-up of events is available here.

Ballinlough Castle is nestled between the towns of Athboy and Clonmellon, Co. Meath. On the N52 (Kells to Mullingar Road) 3 miles south of Clonmellon and 4 miles west of Athboy.

Saturday's line-up/times:

12:15 - 2am - Gaudi
10:45-12:00am - Four Tet
9:15 - 10:15pm - Jape
8:00 - 8:45pm - Crystal Fighters
6:15 - 7:15pm - Voice of the Seven Thunders
4:30 - 5:30pm - Broken Records
3:00 - 3:45pm - Wiggle
2:00 - 2:30pm - Chequerboard
1:00 - 1:30pm - Patrick Kelleher & Cold Dead Hands
12 - 12:30pm - Jennifer Evans
11:00 - 11:30am - Imogen Gunner & the Imo band

Sunday:

1:00 -2am - RSAG
11:15-12:30am - !!! (Chk Chk Chk)
9:30 - 10:30pm - Blue King Brown
7:45 - 8:45pm - Tunng
5:40 - 7:15pm - Donal Dineen, Niwel Tsumbu & guests
4:25 - 5:10pm - Kormac's Big Band
3:15 - 3:55pm - The Egg
2:00 - 2:40pm - Katie Kim
1:00 - 1:30pm - Eoin Duignan
12 - 12:30pm - Colette
10:30-11:30am - Dr Alex Paterson

A limited number of tickets are still available and are available here. Gates open at 9am on Saturday. For more see here. Enjoy!

Rubberbandits Launch Picnic, Create A Stir

IN A sign of their growing national profile, comedic Limerick rappers The Rubberbandits last week launched the line-up for this year’s Electric Picnic festival, which features a reformed Roxy Music, Massive Attack and LCD Soundsystem as headliners.
The assembled media were clearly bemused by the duo from Limerick, who recently became the latest You Tube sensation, clocking up close on 40,000 views for their tribute to Limerick’s former Defence Minister, “Song for Willie O’Dea”.
The Rubberbandits performed their first ever live version of the song to a packed Crawdaddy venue for the launch, but earlier posed with models for the press to launch the impressive line-up for the Stradbally held music and arts festival.
The Limerick duo were the only act asked to perform at the launch and are booked to appear at the festival for a second year running, after upwards of a thousand people crammed into a tent to see their performance last year.
Speaking after they performed in Dublin, the ‘Bandits said they were “delighted” to be playing at the Picnic, and said that their first ever live performance of their Willie O’Dea-inspired song “went down a storm”.
“The Rubberbandits are delighted to be playing Electric Picnic, we are going to bring some culture - some Limerick culture - to a festival that only has Poxy Music and L-S-D Soundsystem on the line-up,” said Rubberbandit ‘Mr. Chrome’ after the gig.
“It's the highlight of the summer, drinking cans, watching beoirs - the food is only ok, but we can’t wait to go back,” added the comedic rapper.
The duo have captured the public’s imagination with a succession of hilarious songs, including “Bag of Glue” and their EP “Drawing Pictures of Each Other Smoking Fags”, which is on sale in Empire Music. They will play a hometown “festival gig” in Limerick in June.
Other acts announced for Electric Picnic include Public Image Ltd (Pil), featuring Johnny Lydon of the Sex Pistols, Leftfield, Hot Chip, Mumford and Sons, Jonsi from Sigur Ros, Gil Scott-Heron and Irish acts such as The Frames, Villagers, Redneck Manifesto and Imelda May. Tickets are on sale now from Ticketmaster outlets, at a cost of €240.

Early Bird Tickets For Electric Picnic Now Sold-Out

The last of the early bird tickets for Electric Picnic are now sold-out, apparently snapped up this morning. They were available for €199 ahead of the full release and line-up announcement, which takes place next Wednesday (woo!) - and the full price tickets will be available for sale on Friday, March 26.
The full line-up will be revealed here next Wednesday, so be sure and check-in..

However, those lovely people behind the Body and Soul area at Electric Picnic have announced that they are to hold their own festival in June in Co. Meath - which sounds fab, and we will be there with bells on. For more info, see below..

THE ORGANISERS of the Body and Soul area at the Electric Picnic festival in Stradbally - quite literally the beating heart of the festival - have decided to host a ‘special gathering’ to celebrate the summer solstice in June. The Body and Soul Solstice Gathering will take place in the beautiful surrounds of Ballinlough Castle, Co. Meath on June 19-20, and with capacity capped at 1,500 and camping available, promises to be an intimate event.
The line-up is good too, featuring Four Tet, Jape, !!! (aka Chk Chk Chk) Dr Alex Paterson, Crystal Fighters, Voice of the Seven Thunders, Gaudi, Kormac’s Big Band, and many more to be announced.
There will also be electronic acts, street theatre, acoustic jams, a healing area, a permaculture garden, a soul kids area, visual arts, workshops, hot tubs, late night cabarets and a masquerade ball with a moon lit orchestra under the stars, according to the organisers. The festival will finish with a “fire ceremony in tribute to the festival theme Phoenix Rising”.
Tickets for the festival went on sale last Saturday at the early bird price of €99. For more see here.

Interview with the Rubberbandits

I've decided to post the interview I did with the Rubberbandits before Christmas, which was ostensibly to promote their mystery gig. That turned out to be held in a field in Birdhill and involved crucified Santas.. They are nothing if not original in fairness to the lads...

Plastic bag wearing rappers singing about bags of glue.

DJs in Willie O’Dea masks.

Prank phone calls.

Greyhounds called Lavender.

Welcome to the surreal world of The Rubberbandits.

Existing on a plane so far beyond the normal, rational world, are Blind Boy Boat Club and Mr. Chrome, aka The Rubberbandits - two rappers from Limerick who keep their real identities secret and never allow their increasingly bizarre act to drop.

Existing at first as prank phone call artists, whose tapes and CDs were passed from person to person, becoming the stuff of urban legend, the Rubberbandits took tentative steps into the world of ‘gangster’-comedy rap in 2008.

Little over a year later they have played triumphant gigs at Electric Picnic, the Bulmers Comedy Festival - selling out the Academy in Dublin - the Galway Comedy Festival, and they are to appear on Podge and Rodge’s Christmas Special next week. They are also to play a gig at a secret location; a “Magic Christmas Mystery Tour”, the price of admission to which will include “transport there and back, ticket and a slug of a can”.

The gig marks the release of the duo’s EP - “Drawing Pictures of Each Other Smoking Fags”.

In requesting an interview with the notoriously media wary ‘Bandits, I am called to enquire if I would be interested in a tour of Limerick city with the duo. I can interview them as they drive me around, I am told.

Forced to accept - with some trepidation - I leap into a blacked out jeep at the allotted time to be greeted by the Rubberbandits in the back-seat, in full plastic-bag wearing costume.

As it transpires, I can count myself lucky to be treated to such an expedition, seeing as a student journalist from Cork, who requested an interview, was picked up by four balaclava wearing heavies and was forced to face a wall while conducting an interview with the terrible twosome.

This is the Rubberbandits.

“How’s it going kid,” says Mr. Chrome, in that inimitable Limerick accent, emphasis held on the final syllable of ‘kidddd’. What follows is half an hour of hilarity, quick-fire responses to my questions, peppered with obscene language, wit and bizarre references that form a deliberate attempt to stymie any normal question I ask.

When asked about the mystery gig they are to play somewhere in Limerick, Mr Chrome says it will be “magical, its mysterious and it is christmassy”.

“We don't know much about it ourselves because we handed it over to other people, so we haven't a clue. There'll be loads of things there - there'll be fire, bouncers with dickie bows - music by us - music by not us,” adds Blind Boy Boat Club. Chrome interjects: “It is our gift for christmas. It will be unreal. If you like rollerblading, smoking fags, drawing pictures, there will be no better place”.

Reclining back into their seats, the ‘Bandits reflect on a year of “highs and lows”...

“It has had its highs and its lows.. Doing the songs were the highs - what would be the lows?” asks Blind Boy of his fellow ‘Bandit.

“We went to Galway and got threatened by a guy claiming to be Sean Connery, that was a low,” claims Mr Chrome.

“He told us not to leave the hotel, said it would be in our best interest. We crept around constantly with our backs against the wall - he is James Bond,” adds Blind Boy.

A much heralded impromptu stage appearance with Ice Cube in Dublin was clearly a high - with the Limerick duo spending time with the rapper afterward backstage. One wonders what he made of the Rubberbandits.

“Mad laugh. Ice Cube. That was the apex of our career. All downhill from there,” says Mr. Chrome.

Blind Boy interjects: “We went to Ice Cube and showed him how to swing a hurley, again. Honest to god, that was the apex. We could die now.”

His partner in crime laughs to himself: “I got to show Ice Cube how to swing a hurley, and he was sh*t at it. He thought it was a baseball bat, and he says - with those two plastic bags, ye look like the Klu Klux Klan.”

The ‘Bandits made their first ever public appearance in August of 2008 in Trinity Rooms, at a gig that will go down in Limerick lore as legendary - the lads managing a song and a half, but the effect of their appearance, lyrics and sheer brass neck, lit up the stage.

Asked why they moved from prank calls to rapping, they say it was “in our souls”.

“What actually happened was we were up in Dublin settling a bet about crocodiles and we realised that no-one knew who we were, so we decided the best way to do it was to become famous gangster rappers, so that everyone in Ireland would know what a Rubberbandit really is,” says Blind Boy.

For the record - a Rubberbandit is a “ghoul with a bag on his head, who sings songs about glue”.

“Our songs are anthems really, songs that people can relate to, everyone knows a greyhound called Lavender,” says Mr. Chrome. “We are bigger in Dublin than we are here. Dublin go mad for it. It is kind of like - I don't know what you would compare it to, it is like going to the zoo or something for them. They won't come to Limerick, but they are happy when it is contained on a stage.”

Blind Boy interrupts: “Dublin people are always asking me is Limerick like it is portrayed in the media? To be honest the only paper I read is the Daily Sport - and Limerick is nothing like the Daily Sport. Nothing.”

The duo laugh loudly about their time on Podge and Rodge, which will be screened on Stephen’s Day. It is hard not to imagine them all getting on like a house on fire.

Asked if they will ever reveal their true identity, the mood of the interview changes palpably.

“No, never,” whispers Blind Boy. “Not until Marty Whelan agrees that he is alright with the money we owe him. That's the reason. We owe him an awful lot of money, but we don't like talking about it,” he adds.

The Rubberbandits. Sit back, don’t ask questions, just be prepared to laugh. Loudly.

The "Drawing Pictures of Each Other Smoking Fags" EP is available now in Empire Music.

Orbital to play Tripod gig in November

JUST announced, Orbital to play first indoor Irish show since 2001 at Dublin’s Tripod on Friday 13th November - eek, Friday 13th - with tickets going on sale tomorrow.
The show will coincide with the 20th anniversary of the release of their debut single “Chime” and follows their headline slot at Electric Picnic last month, which was greeted with mixed reviews.
This reporter found their set a bit lifeless and montonous, the glorious 'Belfast' aside, which was as good as any moment from the weekend.
However, a legion of electro fans will await this much anticipated indoor gig in Tripod - which might well hit the heights of their many fabled live gigs from years gone by.
According to the lads this is not an exercise in nostalgia:
“It’s not an exercise in nostalgia at all, the time just seems right,” says Phil. “They came to us with the offer, and everything just seemed to fall into place. Also the timing seems good: 20 years of being together.”
“Audience reaction is part of the process,” Paul explains, “It really becomes like a friendly football match between you and the crowd. That was always one of our strong points - and for people to say that about an electronic band is a real honour, because it’s the one genre of music that’s normally crap live.
“We’ve got 15 years of active service, making songs,” Paul says. “If you boil that down to a 90-minute festival set you should get something thoroughly good from beginning to end. Let’s put some fun back into it.”
Tickets are €42.50/49.50 (inc. booking fee) and available from Ticketmaster and usual outlets. Tickets go on sale at 9am tomorrow.

Electric Picnic 2009 review

(Apologies for taking so long to get something up on the blog about the Picnic, the last few days have been spent recovering from a great weekend! Below is the piece I wrote for the Limerick Leader, pics are courtesy of Tonya O'Neill and Deirdre Cussen, so thanks to them. Looking forward to next year already, and Cois Fharraige this weekend! Cheers.)

THE sixth Electric Picnic festival was a very different affair this year with wellies a necessity rather than accessory as attendees trouped through mud fields that resembled the Somme, and stood in fear as black clouds threatened to rain on the colourful Stradbally parade.

However, although the feted ‘Indian Summer’ failed to materialise, neither did apocalyptic storms and the rain was restricted to showers on Friday and Sunday morning – with those hardy souls that stayed until Monday greeted with the perverse sight of clear blue skies and sunshine.

It hardly mattered for the near 32,500 fans that made their way to Thomas Cosby’s fields on the Stradbally plains, as those that pilgrimage regularly to the ‘Picnic’ were just relieved to be back, and those that were experiencing the music and arts extravaganza for the first time were wide eyed with wonder, some heard to mutter how they were simply “never attending Oxegen again”.

While the age profile may have met somewhere between the stereotypical notion of the Picnic and Oxegen being on opposite ends of the spectrum – certainly the mix of age was more noticeable this year – the fact that the organisers chose to extend the family campsite meant that many more free-running children were on display, a large crowd of whom were seen crafting toy swords in the Soul Kids area on Saturday, with an exciting series of duels taking place afterward.

Oxegen also scooped some of the top-of-bill acts that would have been more at home at Electric Picnic, and Friday’s line-up in particular was a bit hit and miss.

Main stage acts MGMT and a reformed Orbital failed to galvanise the huge crowds that greeted them, while even Zero 7 failed to turn in an impassioned performance. However, the acts on the fringes more than compensated, Villagers performing to a handful of well-rewarded fans on the Body and Soul stage and hip-hop crew Major Lazer turning in one of the gigs of the weekend by welcoming half of the crowd in the Little Big Tent onto the stage for their finale.

Comic Limerick rap duo The Rubberbandits later packed out this same tent, drawing huge cheers for their inspired blend of rap, hip-hop and showmanship, magicians, people dressed as drug paraphernalia and the Gardai drawing huge cheers.

On Saturday afternoon Ryan Tubridy made his way to the Leviathan area of the Mind Field – a large area that included the Literary and Theatre stages. Tubridy – fresh from his first Late Late appearance – hosted a festival revue, with a bizarre line-up of guests, including former TV3 presenter Lorraine Keane, and was later seen by the Leader in the VIP area nodding his head to the engaging strains of Madness, performing nearby on the Main Stage.

Ska trio White Cholera – featuring David Blake, from Limerick band the Brad Pitt Light Orchestra – performed on the Leviathan stage on Friday and Saturday night, drawing wild applause for their equally wild set.

Back out in the main site, the Tulla Ceili Band played the first of two gigs on the Body and Soul stage, first performing at 4pm and returning almost 12 hours later to close the stage, to the delight of the huge crowd present.

In between East London neo-folk band Tunng impressed on the main stage, while Lisa Hannigan looked a bit lost on the mammoth stage, but then she has played on every other stage and her success warranted such a slot. Limerick duo Size2Shoes played a Saturday lunchtime gig on the bandstand in the middle of the site, the O’Suilleabhain brothers professing their delight at playing at the festival afterward.

A large crowd gathered to hear fellow Limerick band Nick Carswell and the Elective Orchestra perform on the Tree Stage in Body and Soul on Saturday evening – and were moved to a standing ovation for final song From the Ground Up after a passionate and exuberant performance.

Brian Wilson lit up the arena on Saturday night through the strength of the set-list on offer, a Beach Boys greatest hits collection that almost made one forget they were listening in a muddy field in Laois. Wilson and his band The Wondermints brought the house down with spine-tingling performances of Good Vibrations and Surfin’ USA.

Although campers awoke to rain on Sunday morning – causing some to leave for home – the afternoon stayed dry and the evening boasted some of the best music on offer of the weekend, stellar performances from Florence and the Machine, Fleet Foxes, Bell X1 and Basement Jaxx delighting fans, while electro-pop outfit Passion Pit played what many termed the gig of the weekend.

Another superb year for Electric Picnic, despite the weather, and let us hope that organisers keep with the boutique, quirky nature of this festival for as long as possible.

The Elective Orchestra ready for Electric Picnic

AS THE HORDES prepare to descend on Stradbally this weekend, Limerick’s representation at Electric Picnic will be led by local collective Nick Carswell and his band the Elective Orchestra. The band will perform in the Body and Soul Arena at 7pm on Saturday, and singer Nick revealed that the band are very excited about the precious slot at the festival.
“We are really, really looking forward to it, particularly after last year, I wasn't going to be happy until we got a slot at the Picnic,” laughed Nick.
“It is a big deal for us because it is such a great festival to be part of, particularly the Body and Soul area.”
Asked what it is about the festival that makes it such a special one, Nick is philosophical in his reply, noting the Body and Soul area, a natural amphitheatre that is the heartbeat or focal point of the Stradbally music and arts extravaganza.
“The whole festival in general is amazing, but what I love about it is the Body and Soul area, we spent a lot of time there the last couple of years - the whole vibe is very special for a music festival, there is nothing like it in Ireland,” explained Nick.
“The relaxed, chilled out vibe of it feels quite magical and you feel like you are really away from the modern world.
“Relaxing in amongst trees and all the different arts installations that they have, every little detail has something special about it and that is what makes it what it is,” he added.
The Elective Orchestra have secured a prized spot on the innovative Tree Stage, something else they are excited about.
“Apparently this year an artist has carved a stage out of a fallen tree, which is what we are going to be performing on and I'm looking forward to seeing what it is going to be like,” said Nick.
“I really don't know what to expect or how that is going to look, but it sounds right up our street with regard to our acoustic instruments - the cello, violin and acoustic guitar - they all work well with wood, so hopefully we will be getting some good vibrations through the tree,” he laughed. The Limerick band, made up of cellist and violinist Deirdre and Kate Cussen, drummer Bart Kiely, bassist Fergal O’Neill - well known from his stint with Woodstar - and singer Sian Murray, recently went on tour to support the release of second single Oceanview, reminding them of the pleasures of playing to new audiences.
“It was great, it was really good to get out on the road and bring the tunes to a new audience again,” says Nick.
“That is a big part of it, we keep reminding ourselves that that is what it is all about, getting out and playing to people all over the country - you can get carried away with other stuff, but playing live is undoubtedly our favourite part of what we do.”
The band are applying the finishing touches to their debut album and have settled into a steady line-up over the last year, a fact that has seen them grow and become more cohesive, both on stage and in the studio.
“Yeah, the core of our set are songs that we know intimately, inside and out, and they have really taken on a life of their because of all the rehearsal and gigs we have done and that is something we are really proud of,” explained Nick.
“The arrangements and the whole idea of our band has developed really well, we are quite happy with where we are as a group and we want to look forward.
“We still have to finish the album but there is lots more ahead of us and we are eager to build on that,” he added.
Nick Carswell and the Elective Orchestra play on the Tree Stage in the Body and Soul Arena at 7pm on Saturday.

Electric Picnic stage times, photos, general excitement!

This is getting ridiculous. Two days to go and I'm like an excited child on Christmas Eve. Scrolling through the EP facebook site and I see that they have pics up of the site build - this is almost too much to bear!!

I also spent the afternoon buying a raincoat and wellies for the first time ever going to a festival, and I've been getting calls ever since about how good the weather forecast is shaping up! For the record, this is what Met Eireann have to say about the weekend, so I'm still bringing my wet gear:

"Remaining cool and windy for Thursday and Friday, with the fresh to strong west to northwest winds persisting. There will be sunshine and showers, the showers heavy and possibly thundery in places during Thursday, though there will be fewer showers on Friday. Saturday promises to be mainly dry with lighter winds".

Official stage times being released tomorrow, but Body and Soul times are up now see here.

The Body and Soul is to have its own radio station (they thought of everything!). From the blurb:

A new and exciting addition to this year’s festival is Electric Picnics very own little slice of the airwaves. Body & Soul FM will broadcast live gigs from the main stage, interviews, DJ slots and festival news direct to cars, tents and camper vans on the site. Expect lively interviews with artists, environmentalists and holistic gurus, alongside useful general information and chats with performers and festival-goers. The studio will be located in the Body & Soul village on the festival site on wavelength 104.3fm.

There is also a Laundromat (yes, you read that correctly), loads of foodie type stuff (including Michelin star chef Dylan McGrath - no, I don't know who he is either) and a Powder Room (a chic beauty lounge located in a 50 foot luxury trailer). Wow.

Other blogs (why would you be reading them?!) are reporting that ticket sales have risen past the 30,000 mark, so get cracking if you haven't already bought a ticket!!

Jesus the excitement is killing me!

Dan Deacon mix-up, Bacardi Live line-up at Electric Picnic 2009

THIS morning brings the strange news (courtesy of Guesslist) that Dan Deacon is not actually playing the Electric Picnic after all - despite being listed on the official line-up as playing an ensemble gig and a solo set in the Body and Soul.. Strange goings on as Deacon posted a message on his myspace titled 'europe confusion':


Subject: europe confusion
Body: hello,
i just wanted to clear up some information about some shows that i am not playing but i am listed as playing. i will not be playing in europe in september. unfortunately, some of the possible shows got listed as confirmed and advertised. this has resulted in a major bummer as i cannot make these shows. i hope to make it back to europe again soon, but i do not know when that is. my apologies to everyone who was looking forward these fictional shows. this time, it honestly wasn’t my f*ck up.
dan

Huge pity.

Meantime, BACARDI B-LIVE have announced their line-up for Electric Picnic - Toddla T, Streetlife DJ’s, Horse Meat Disco, Krafty Kuts, Jaguar Skills, Beardyman and more are to take to the stage in the swish surroundings of the B-Live tent..

Full line-up:

Friday, 4th September
Baz Hickey (17:00-18:00) // Horse Meat Disco (18:00-20:00) // Beardyman (20:00-20:45) // Streetlife DJ’s (20:45-23:00)

Saturday, 5th September
David De Valera (12:00-13:30) // Stephen Manning (13:30-15:00) // Idiot Proof (15:00-17:00) // A Skillz (17:00-19:00) // Filthy Dukes (19:00-21:00) // Toddla T featuring Serocee (21:00-23:00)

Sunday, 6th September
Calvin James (12:00-14:30) // Disco Bloodbath (14:30-17:30) // Jaguar Skills (17:30-19:00) // Unabombers (19:00-21:00) // Krafty Kuts (21:00-23:00)

Electric Picnic 2009 Preview

It's all Picnic all the way here, getting very excited. Here's a preview..

THE CLOCK is ticking, days are rolling by and kids are getting ready to go back to school.
For many September represents a return to normality, but for 32,500 lucky revellers - a sizeable share of whom hail from the Treaty City - the beginning of Autumn is that time again, the return of Electric Picnic.
The festival, now in its sixth year, has become the de rigueur music and arts extravaganza in Ireland, arguably better than any taking place in the UK or Europe.
In an era when words like ‘vibe’ and ‘boutique’ are thrown around like confetti, this is the only festival that can claim to be both.
Taking place in the rolling hills of Stradbally on Thomas Cosby’s estate - he sends the 400 sheep that normally occupy the fields off on holidays for the week of the festival - Electric Picnic Inc has suffered a year of ups and downs since last year, but seems to have emerged unscathed.
POD Concerts owner John Reynolds has had his much publicised problems this year, resulting in UK promoter Festival Republic buying into the festival. Festival Republic are owned by the same parent company as MCD, with many fearing that Electric Picnic would lose its aura if the Oxegen-bookers got involved.
This seems not to have happened, with Reynolds and POD still involved in booking acts for the festival, and it will continue in its vein as last year, when it was rebranded as a “Music Arts Festival”.
While the promoters are undoubtedly struggling to sell tickets in the recession, it is believed that - as other years - it will sell out in the coming week.
Admittedly attending the festival costs about as much as going on a week holidays, but most would argue it is well worth it.
This year the marquee names are Orbital, Brian Wilson, Flaming Lips, MGMT, Fleet Foxes, Basement Jaxx, Bell X1 and Madness, but there are literally hundreds of bands and acts playing over the three days, with another batch announced just last week, including Passion Pit, The XX and Irish artists David Geraghty and David Kitt.
But the festival is so much more than just music, as comedy, debate, cinema, cookery displays and theatre will take place over the weekend.
This year there is a brand new feature in Trenchtown, a reggae Jamaican village, while the usual boutique food stalls will be a fixture, including the Lennox St café, Diep Noodle and more.
As Siobhan O’Dowd of POD concerts told the Leader, this balance is what makes the Picnic so special.
"Its a three dimensional festival, as well as the music, the art, theatre and comedy are as heavily weighted and I think that is more defining and you wouldn't see that with any other festival," she explained.
"There is also an attention to detail and there are little pockets of activity like the Body and Soul arena which is like a micro-cosmic festival happening within Electric Picnic."
In fact, the aforementioned Body and Soul arena is basically the heartbeat of the festival, a natural amphitheatre surrounded by trees that hosts all manner of exciting events.
Limerick musician Nick Carswell and his band the Elective Orchestra are to play in the Body and Soul area at 7pm on the Saturday of the festival, while comic Limerick rap duo the Rubberbandits will play over the weekend, as will local DJ Paul Webb, well known from his residencies in Trinity Rooms and Saturday night show on Spin South West.
With everything from an Irish language tent to a free phone recharging facility on offer, this is the festival where literally anything can, and probably will happen.
Electric Picnic takes place September 4-6. Tickets are still available on Ticketmaster.ie.

Additions to Electric Picnic line-up!

More news in regarding the Electric Picnic line-up, which is now becoming one of the most complete for this or any year, in our humble opinion.

The superb Passion Pit have been added (yaay!) after an excellent gig at Oxegen earlier in the summer, and releasing the superb album Manners this year. Top quality addition.

Also added are diverse electro act The XX, who release their debut album this week and have been heavily tipped in certain quarters to make a breakthrough. We loved their song Crystallised, see here.
David Kitt also gets the nod (double whoop!) after his most recent album, The Nightsaver (tip for one of the Irish albums of the year) and a jaw-dropping turn in the Body Soul last year with his younger bro' in their Spilly Walker guise. Can't wait to see Kittser do his thang again this year.

Cadenza label boss and Chilean DJ/Producer LUCIANO’s new project AETHER is another of the new additions, "an entire orchestra of live sets, an orchestra of colour, shape, form and sound… with Luciano conducting", as the blurb tells us.

David Geraghty will also appear (listening to his new album as we speak) as will 8 Ball.

The line-up for the dance orientated Little Big Tent has also been released, consisting of THE HACKER, OPTIMO DJs, SWITCH, ZOMBIE NATION, DUKE DUMONT, AEROPLANE DJs, EBONY BONES, ARVEENE & MISK and JAPANESE POPSTARS to an already stuffed programme.

Woop! For a full A-Z listing of the line-up see here.

Tickets are still on sale for 240 big ones and available here. Stay tuned for more news and a large colour feature that is presently being prepared for next week's paper (hopefully!)

Leaked additions to Electric Picnic lineup

More acts have been announced to play the Picnic (Dan Deacon, Kid Creole, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - yaay!), thanks to Jim Carroll for announcing them, apparently the announcement was due tomorrow, but the list is out there already. Certainly making for a superb festival.

Kid Creole & The Coconuts

Dinosaur Jr

Neko Case

Dan Deacon Ensemble

Diplo

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

The Temper Trap

Buraka Som Sistema (live)

Major Lazer

The Acorn

First Aid Kit

Julie Feeney

One Day International

Fake Blood

Boy 8 Bit

The Lost Brothers


(Hypnotic Brass Ensemble on Cruises Street)

Lisa Hannigan on Jools Holland

The bewilderingly, beguilingly beautiful Lisa Hannigan (yes, I'm a fan) is to appear on Later Live With Jools Holland, tomorrow night, On the Beat can reveal.

Ms Hannigan will appear tomorrow, Tuesday May 12 at 10pm and again on Later with Jools Holland on Friday May 15.

Lisa is currently on tour in the UK where her debut album, Sea Sew, has just been released. The current single, I Don’t Know, is set to be featured as Single of the Week on Itunes UK from May 12.

On the Beat has also been informed that Lisa is to come to Limerick for a special show (or two) in the near future, but I can't reveal the full details yet, much and all as I would like to tell all!

In the meantime, here are some of the places you can catch Lisa over the next couple of months.

Jul 04, 2009 Cork, Live @ The Marquee
Jul 05, 2009 Clonmel, O'Keeffe's (Clonmel Junction Festival)
Jul 07, 2009 Waterford, Electric Avenue
Jul 08, 2009 Kilkenny, Kytelers
Jul 09, 2009 Galway, The Roisin Dubh
Jul 10, 2009 Galway, The Roisin Dubh
Sep 04, 2009 Electric Picnic, Stradbally Hall

Alex Barck (Jazzanova) AND Louis Osbourne to play in the city this weekend

Two high-profile - and extremely diverse - DJs are to appear in the city this May Bank Holiday Weekend, with Jazzanova’s Alex Barck playing the Release Party in Aubars on Friday night and Louis Osbourne, son of Ozzy, playing Micronite in Baker Place on Saturday.

Berlin six-piece outfit Jazzanova were one of the names included on the recent Electric Picnic line-up and member Alex Barck (pic above) will give fans a sneak preview of what to expect when he jets into the city this Friday.
In the words of those nice folks over in Eightball:
"From albums and remixes and back to the dancefloor, Alexander Barck’s DJ set embraces everything that makes Jazzanova great, which is simply put, brilliant music from across the spectrum, with an essential common characteristic; it’ll get you dancin’".


Jazzanova (above) are known as a small, worldwide group of innovators when it comes to Dancefloor, NuJazz, Broken Beat and modern Folk and Soul and have remixed tracks for Masters At Work, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Lenny Kravitz and Common.
Expect a musical journey, an otherworldly, unpredictable mix of styles in Aubars this Friday, doors 11.30pm. 12 bucks door tax, a bargain if you ask me.

On Saturday, Ozzy Osbourne’s son Louis pops into the Underground @ Baker Place to demonstrate his considerable DJing-prowess.
I'm reliably informed that far from mere-celebrity DJ, his ability to move smoothly between underground house and techno and his ear for cutting edge electronic music means that he is a regular fixture at the world’s best clubs.

From the blurb from those nice folks over in Micronite:

"After 15 years of DJing, Louis’ passion for cutting edge house and techno remains as strong as the time he attended his first rave. The next time Louis shares this love affair with electronic music and weekend offending at a club in your town, make sure you don’t miss out!"

Underground @ Baker Place. Doors 11pm.

The return of the Belltable Sessions this Thursday

THE FOURTH series of the Belltable Sessions begins this Thursday, with local favourites the Brad Pitt Light Orchestra topping the bill on Limerick’s best acoustic night.

The monthly showcase, which began last year under the direction of local musician and Spin South West DJ Nick Carswell, has gone from strength to strength in the Belltable’s relatively new location of 36 Cecil Street.

The artists perform acoustically, with no mics and “nowhere to hide” as the tagline for the show states.

Returning are local ensemble the Brad Pitt Light Orchestra, who have spent the last number of weeks touring Ireland with Cork band Fred, and have received significant national airplay on Today FM, with Paul McCloone and Alison Curtis hailing their original material. The band performed a stunning set early last year at the acoustic gig, their devilishly theatrical performance winning them many fans in the locality.

The fulcrum of the Brad Pitt’s is sibling trio Ann, James and David Blake - who mix and match their obvious vocal talents throughout their set. A debut album - tentatively titled ‘Lowering the Tone’ - is expected this summer, and after an appearance at last year’s Electric Picnic, great things are expected of the Limerick band this summer.

“We are really looking forward to the fourth Belltable Sessions series, inviting some old friends back and welcoming some new talent to our stage,” explained Nick Carswell. “It is particularly satisfying to have the Brad Pitt’s back, they have had a great year since they last played with us,” added Nick.

Joining the Brad Pitt Light Orchestra are Dublin band The Resistance, local rock band General PM - featuring Paddy Moloney, better known for his NoLand Folk project - and Andy Hickie, interestingly touring Ireland in a camper-van.

“Andy is a folk singer-songwriter who released a debut EP last year and got himself a slot on Glastonbury’s New Talent stage thanks to Q magazine. He is travelling the country in a camper van and is exactly what we want to offer people who come to the Sessions - his brand of folk is very soothing and should appeal to people,” explained Nick.

The Belltable Sessions takes place this Thursday, doors at 8pm.