The Goo 1
Ones To Watch - Whelans - Jan 2/3/4 & 9/10/11 Rec
ommends One of the most vital festivals in the country rings in the new year with an absolutely stellar lineup, featuring 100 acts over 2 weekends. Annie-Dog, Burglar, Winemom, Martina + The Moons, Stella & The Dreaming, And He The Fool, Curtisy, Ahmed, With Love, Hotgirl, Binmen, Thanks Mom, Pebbledash, Anenome, Pastiche, Ten Hail Marys, Dose, BBFT, Lavery, Peer Pleasure, Innuendo, Calum Agnew and The Fae are just some of the great acts performing over two weekends. Here’s a quick guide to some of our faves you shouldn't miss. Anenome: The gothic folk that this Dublin duo conjure is a dark and brooding, deeply experimental affair laced with gorgeous strings, close harmony and Swansesque intensities . Their ‘Human Remains’ EP wowed us this month, and a glut of shows over the last year, from headlining the Workmans, a show on the Hill of Tara, to intimate and improvised performances in The Hut, and an incredible inning in support of One Leg One Eye last month have seen the pair become one of the most talked about acts amongst the strange circles that I move in. PAGE 4 Moonlighting from the incredible Lifts, Clara Webster and Lily Brody Hayes have stumbled upon a layered and evocative sound that they can truly call their own. and he, the fool: I am not a person who enjoys funk. Nor do I enjoy levity, chords, or major feeling music. Somehow, the seven people that make up this seven piece ensemble has managed to circumvent the majority of my foibles. Deeply progressive, clever and musically restless, their instrumental prowess knows no obvious limitations. They swap genres as often as they do their vocalist, and seem to be able to do all of them incredibly well. Whether you like odd time fingerpicking, boisterous New Orleans stomps, psychedelic interludes or big, big voices, there’s a lot to like about and he, the fool, who’s grammatical stylistic choices may have made this sentence more confusing than I intended, but I have faith in your ability to figure it out. BBFT: The jungle infused neo-soul live electronica of this drum and synthesiser duo needs to be seen to be believed. Impossible musicianship with a penchant for infectious melody, is how I think about then. These two offer a contemporary, fresh take on one a genre that has really made its own way here in Ireland. Their debut single, ‘Caravan of Despair’ was an unexpected treat, bubblegum and breakbeats and a melody that will never, ever leave your mind once it finds a way in there. Never. Dream Boy: The first of the onerically monikered acts from the lineup, Dream Boys ethereal alternative rock echoes the psychedelic whorl of bands like Warpaint and My Bloody Valentine, the songwriting chops of acts like Nirvana and Doves with a fervour all of their own. Their live performances here and in London have been rapturously received, as have the three singles the band has released thus far, with much anticipation for an imminent More along the impossible to quantify grandeur of Jeff Buckelys ‘Grace’ than your average shoegaze outfit. Some absolutely skyscraping vocal performances and richly textured instrumental work. I Dreamed I Dream: This Cork post punk quintet drape an edgy and abrasive murk around some beautifully, carefully measured songcraft. Listening to them, I am reminded of my favourite parts of a range of genres, marrying the best parts of the best years of goth rock to that modern, crushing No Wave low end. Sean Nós meets sheets of sheer noise, and all presented with a tendency toward unusual arrangements. All of this is delivered with a wry wit and energy that keeps beyond interest, but absolutely invested. Fierce energy drives this endlessly innovative and exploratory sound, but it is all very cohesive. It’s a remarkably cohesive and malleable noise that they make. The hands of god indeed. Lavery: One of finest soul jazz ensembles