Cage The Elephant’s ‘Aint No Rest For The Wicked‘ rang through my head as I hurried through the quickly darkening night, my hands noticeably absent of Boojum (who closes an eatery at 8 pm on a Saturday night? Heathens). It…
The sheer audacity of Belfast’s independent music acts. The conspiracy that unfolded on the night of 14th September in which they demanded we choose. Seemingly every act in the city had a show of some description on – I made…
Aaron CunninghamArriving on Friday to the sounds of Son of the Hound wafting over the campsite, I’m in time to witness Joel Harkin‘s first set of the weekend on Quiet Arch’s Air Stage. As always the juxtaposition of cheery banter with sad,…
Amidst the buzz of the Stendhal’s and Electric Picnics of the world, one of Ireland’s better loved one day festivals returned for its second iteration. Coaster, a celebration of Northern music and the intrinsic link between the North Coast and…
The highlight of a day-long songwriting workshop run by Panarts, Ronan McSorley launched his first EP I Am Not Free, and what a piece of work it is. I had the chance to hear the EP a couple of days…
In the height of Derry’s Rewire festival, which had the town bustling full of people, music and events on every corner, No Collusion were launching their EP ‘Sticking Sets’ in Bennigans bar. No Collusion are the next big Derry band…
Charity Shop Vinyl, a 5-piece indie rock band, have been on a constant rise throughout the year. They are facing their third sold-out headliner show of the year, launching their EP ‘Waking up the Neighbours’ and bringing a promising line-up…
The MAC: Belfast’s premier venue for everything weird, wonderful and left-of-field, from music to theatre and miles further beyond. Enter Ryan Vail and Eoin O’Callaghan aka Elma Orkestra’s turbulent electronic exploration of Irish identity and modern politics ‘Borders’ – the euphoric, reverent live…
The wet smack of my boots against the concrete stained cobbles belies the mood of my evening so far. I make my way inside tonights venue, The Green Room beckoning for my attendance. I accept its rustic invitation, planting myself…
The date is Sunday 9th of June. The year 2019. I am standing before the doors of Limelight 2. And it is PISSING down (of course it is. Limelight seems to exist in a state of perpetual downpour). Nevertheless, the night…
As festival season swings around for its annual stop in our collective minds, tonight saw the inaugural performances of one of Belfast’s more beloved gatherings. Women’s Work, which doubles as a celebration of women in arts and music, as well…
SOAK and Pillow Queens finish their European tour with a date in the headliner’s hometown. The culmination of the tour in The Glassworks as part of the ‘Grim Town’ release seems fitting. SOAK (Bridie Monds-Watson), a Derry native, last played…
Belfast has no shortage of collectives these days. From the underground DIYness of ZOOL Records, to the forward thinking boundary pushing of Creating A Space, it seems as if there is an appetite for creation in nearly every sector of…
Oddly, I was glad for the rain. ‘Chasing Cars’ wouldn’t have sounded right in the baking sunlight. Ward Park 3, the latest and possibly final instalment of the festival put on by the Bangor boys. And despite being noticeably absent…
There are very few albums as unique and special as Jeff Buckley’s Grace. Since his untimely death in 1997, this body of work has taken on a life of its own and many now recognise it as one of the…