Catch Gemma Hayes on Thursday
Don’t expect there to be many tickets available on the door this Thursday night in Cleere’s as Gemma Hayes arrives back in Kilkenny for her first performance of 2010. Joining her on the night will be Ann Scott. Tickets for Thursday’s gig are available from Cleere’s priced €20, with bookings available on 056-7762573. Doors, quite possibly, open at 8:30pm on Thursday night with things underway by 9pm.
This gig was originally slated to happen last October or November, then December, then January, but there’s nothing like seeing persistence pay off and so this Thursday’s gig should be a great one indeed. Alas, if you can’t catch her this Thursday you’ll have a chance to see her live in O’Keeffe’s in Clonmel on the 25th and the Riverbank Arts Centre in Kildare on the 26th of the month.
You can still grab a free copy of Gemma performing Cloudbusting (Kate Bush) live at the Crawdaddy here or listen below, the track released as a Christmas freebie on GemmaHayes.com.
Gemma Hayes – Cloudbusting (Live – MP3)
Vyvienne Long Arrives, Change Of Venue
Vyvienne Long returns to Kilkenny this week for her first performance in the Marble City for 2010. The show comes ahead of the release of debut album Caterpillar Sarabande which is due out this month.
Support on the night comes from Chequerboard but more importantly it should be noted that there is a change of venue for the gig this Friday night. Originally slated for The Parade Tower, the show will now take place in Harry’s Bar in Langton House Hotel on John Street.
Signs will be in place at Kilkenny Castle directing people to the John Street venue with Chequerboard likely taking to the stage at 8:30pm, allowing time for those walking from the castle. Tickets for the Parade Tower show are valid for Langtons.
Rising star, petite and quirky Long first achieved celebrity as a cellist in collaboration with singer-songwriter Damien Rice, producing the soaring melodies and distinctive sound associated with his albums O and 9. International tours followed during which she instantly charmed fans with her unique ‘cello song’ and quirky take on the White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army”. She soon began writing her own vocal material and formed a core band which typically includes three cellos, piano, drums and bass. Vyvienne released her EP Birdtalk in ‘06.
Her performances include Other Voices (TV series), the JK Ensemble “Sessions” (Lyric FM), and critically acclaimed gigs at The Electric Picnic and Spiegeltent in ‘08. Admired as a compelling vocalist and songwriter of incisive wit, critics have drawn comparisons with Bjork, Tori Amos and Joanna Newsome.
Check out Vyvienne’s site here.
Macrogrizzly Voting & Gigs (Online and Off)
There’s still time to cast votes in the first round of this year’s Meteor Music Awards’ Most Promising New Act category and Carlow-Kilkenny outfit macrogrizzly are looking for your votes as well. You can vote every day, with tomorrow being the cut off day so if you haven’t cast a vote for Joe, Saving J, Bob’s Your Uncle or macrogrizzly, there’s still time.
Follow the band on their official site to keep up to date with their live web gigs. In the real world they’ll also be performing at the JD Live night in Dolan’s in Limerick on March 5th with free transport available if you want to go along and support the band. Their first single of the year, Roam, is available now and the band plans to release another single a month over the remainder of the year. On the web gig front their next show takes place in a super secret location here in Kilkenny on Saturday February 20th, broadcasting live from 10pm. You can check out their previous performances on Blip.tv.
Go vote for macrogrizzly here with their video Samantha Starr (above).
More Acts Announced For Roots Festival
More names are coming out of the hat for the 2010 Guinness Rhythm and Roots Festival with The Duke and The King, Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit, Joe Pug and Uncle Monk added to those already announced including Band of Heathens, Jason and The Scorchers, Chris Smither and Hot Club of Cowtown.
Dubbed “a mini-SXSW without the queuing or taxi-panic”, this year’s festival kicks off on Friday April 30th. Keep up to speed on KilkennyRoots.com or with ourselves here at KilkennyMusic.com.
Bobs Your Uncle – Most Promising?
Another Kilkenny outfit included in the running for the first round of the Meteor Music Awards’ Most Promising New Act voting are Bobs Your Uncle, with their track Eyes On The Prize (above). Steve O’Brien (Guitar / Vocals), Decky Curran (Guitar / Vocals), John Wallace (Drums) and Jimmy Cross (bass) are looking for your vote, which you could give (once a day) until January 28th by clicking here.
Drop by their MySpace for a listen to the Tidal Transmissions EP.
Chemical Addiction Back In Action, On The Move
Tonight sees local grungers Chemical Addiction back on the gig scene, joined by Nirvana tribute Boddah and (no strangers to Kilkenny) Sticky Digit. Kick off in The Pumphouse tonight is about 9:30pm, free admission for all, the gig taking place upstairs.
The lads also take to The Chaz Bar on the quays in Wexford on Monday night from 8pm if you’re in the neighbourhood. Listen to some of the Brian Jones EP on the Chemical Addiction MySpace.
Saving J – Most Promising New Artist?
One of the hopefuls for the Most Promising New Artist gong at the 2010 Meteor Music Awards are locals Saving J. Their video, Kick Off, shot on location at the Watergate Theatre here in Kilkenny has been included in the lengthy shortlist for this year. I had worked on the video production myself, which was developed by fellow local media outfit, Mycrofilms. Voting is up and running, with the details below…
Closing date for Round 1 is 28th January.
This is about finding the best original song from an individual or group who is currently not signed to any record label (small independents excluded) or publishing house. We request when you are listening and viewing the songs, judge each entry on composition, lyrics, melody and originality.
The Top Ten entries that receive the most public votes will go to The Music Industry Panel who will choose the best 5 entries. These Top 5 entries become Round 2 and will return to public voting on 2nd February. The public can then vote for their favorite via online or text voting. The entry that receives the most public votes will be the winner.
Only one vote per entry from a given URL will be counted on a daily basis. You can vote for your favorite artists each day, but only a single vote for each will be counted. There is no benefit to multiple voting, they will not be counted.
Remember, closing date for Round 1 is 28th January so get Viewing & Voting for your favorites.
The winner receives a live performance on New Band Stage3 Oxegen 2010, live performance on Pop 4 on TG4, one day’s recording in Grouse Lodge Recording Studios, one day’s Mastering in Masterlabs, 150 CD singles, with designed artwork, designed CD sleeve and photo shoot with top celebrity photographer Barry McCall, Radio/PR distribution.
If you want to show the band your support, you can vote for them by clicking here.
One Take Sessions Booking Opens for 2010
Booking is now open for the 2010 series of the One Take Sessions. We’ll be working behind the scenes to add a new selection of audio and video from last year’s Sessions to a slightly revamped OneTakeSessions.com.
The ‘Sessions return to Cleere’s Theatre on Friday March 26th and will remain on Friday’s for the 2010 run, roughly falling the last Friday of each month. The application process is simple. Head along to OneTakeSessions.com, fill out the form, choose your preferred dates and let us look after the rest. Interested acts are asked to fill out all details on the form, provide links to your music online and once received we’ll get back to you personally to confirm your application.
The phone, much to our delight, has been hopping in the past two weeks with acts looking to pencil themselves in for this year so we’re already looking at taking in acts across each date for the ‘Sessions. We’re looking forward to having some previous guests back, as well as introducing new faces and as it’s the weekend we’re doubling up on some nights with Friday and Saturday shows.
As a result of the return of the ‘Sessions, we’ll be heading back to podcasting with a new dedicated One Take Sessions podcast featuring highlights from each month’s shows and some chat with the acts on the night. We’re still planning and plotting the return and format of a new Sound System Podcast but at least you know you’ll have one new show to look forward to for this year.
To get booking, visit OneTakeSessions.com. Places, as per every year, are limited so don’t expect them to be available forever.
Standup Comedy Workshop This Saturday
Every town has one. Every large company has one. Every pub has one. Every class room has one. The comedian, or at least someone who fancies themselves as a comedian. Well, if you’ve ever thought about getting into standup, there’s a workshop taking place in Kilkenny this Saturday that will get rid of your fear of public speaking and turn you into a standup comedian, all in one day. Of course, there’s no point in testing you out amongst the group of people on the workshop, no! Once the workshop is complete, you get a short break before the doors open to the public for a standup show. All of this takes place in Cleere’s Theatre, this coming Saturday.
The course is being delivered by coach and comedian Padraig Hyland and according to Cleere’s yesterday, there’s already seven places on the course gone but places are limited.
The course itself aims to build your confidence, improve your presentation and public speaking, have fun and “an amazing experience”, learn how to make people laugh and ultimately get you up on your feet as a standup comedian because “if you can do standup comedy, you can do anything”.
The workshop is on Saturday January 23rd 2010 in Cleeres Pub, Parliament Street from 10am to 5pm with the show starting at 7pm. One day workshop and stand up show in the evening is 120 Euro. Contact Liam on 0863442003 or email at lpjryan13@gmail.com to book a place.
Cross-post from DeviousTheatre.com
Mayor’s Haiti Hootenanny
There’s a lot to be said for having a mayor who’s also active in the local music scene. Following on from his Christmas Hootenanny, Kilkenny Mayor Malcolm Noonan looks like he’s behind The Mayor’s Haiti Hootenanny, “an evening of music in response to the devastating earthquake which took place in Haiti on 12 January”.
This time around the venue is Ryan’s Bar on Friary Street with Friday February 5th as the date. Admission on the night will be €10, additional donations welcome and all proceeds will make their way to the Haitian Disaster Relief fund. Already lined up are The Barflies, TV Jones & The Tomahawks and before the night there’s likely to be a few more names brought onto the bill.
