FESTIVAL
Coughlan's Live 2014
Various times/ticket prices Coughlan's Cork Until Sunday entertainment.ie
Take a small and credible venue, stick a 2013 IMRO Music Venue of the Year button on its front door, line up a batch of good music acts, and what have you got? Coughlan's Live 2014, that's what. Across this weekend, you're advised to check out gigs (some of which are free) by Anna Mitchell, Booka Brass Band, Jerry Fish, Mick Flannery (a sold-out gig, this one), R.S.A.G., Hot Sprockets, Adrian Crowley, Wallis Bird, and our very good if unashamedly ubiquitous friends, Special Guests. Tony Clayton-Lea
CLUB
Satoshi Tomiie
Button Factory, Dublin. 11pm €17.35, satoshitimiie.com
Here's a throwback to a different era entirely. Once upon a time, Japan house don Satoshi Tomiie was a fixture on listings pages like this, Between the evocative Tears release and a rake of remixes for A-list acts such as U2, Mariah Carey and David Bowie, Tomiie was a regular on the superstar DJ circuit. Now returning to the game after a spell away working in his studio on new releases, this is a night for anyone who remembers Tomiie's Red Box thrillers of old. Support from Y'Aaroner G'Nolaner and Darren Rice. Jim Carroll
PROTEST FOLK
Dick Gaughan
Various times/ticket prices/venues Until Thursday
From his first outing as a professional musician in 1970, Scottish singer-songwriter Dick Gaughan continues to be a fiery, fervent man with a mission. Known to have strong opinions on most things, the highly politicised Gaughan shares creative and cerebral space with the likes of Billy Bragg and Christy Moore, and if you haven't yet seen him on stage now might be the right time, as he proceeds with his nationwide tour. Tony Clayton-Lea
COLLABORATION
Dirk Powell, Brendan Gleeson, Michael Mc Goldrick and Francis Gaffney
Unitarian Church, St. Stephen's Green 8pm €18 whelanslive.com
Music from Kentucky to Ireland via the Louisiana bayous. Powell is a musical force to be reckoned with (his contributions to the soundtrack to Cold Mountain are a joy), and an encounter with actor Brendan Gleeson on that film set was responsible for setting in train their occasional collaboration. Joined by Mancunian piper, flute and whistle player (and Capercaille veteran) McGoldrick and guitarist/singer Gaffney. Siobhan Long
ALT.ROCK
Girl Band
Kasbah Social Club Limerick 9pm Adm free Until Saturday
Noise-rock band from Dublin – go-see. That's the short pitch, anyway. The slightly longer one will make you more aware of the band's special talent of fusing feedback howls with the kind of tuneful energy normally not heard unless you have Iggy Pop or Birthday Party albums in your collection. There is also a hint of Daft Punk filtering its way through the songs, which is good. We like? Damn right we like. Tony Clayton-Lea
EXPERIMENTAL
Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh and Dan Trueman
Bottlenote Festival, 13, North Great George's Street 7.30pm €12/€10 bottlenotemusic.com Also Sat, Dublin; Sun, Galway;
Wide of spectrum, loose of limb and oh so downright magnificent: Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh was introduced to the sublime Hardanger fiddle by American professor of music Dan Trueman, and now the pair have let sparks fly on their debut collaboration Laghdú. Their first live performance in Dublin (part of a short tour) promises much in the way of lateral thinking, and nothing by way of predictability. Siobhan Long
CLUB RBMA
Belfast Limelight, Belfast. 9pm, £8/£6, rbma.ie
The pick of the weekend's shenanigans at the Belfast jump-off for the Red Bull Music Academy, tonight features a thumping triple-decker in the shape of Skream's Ollie Jones, Special Request's Paul Woolford and the legendary Chez Damier. You can re-up on your Special Request lines with Woolford's incendiary Soul Music album, while Damier is the Chicago DJ and producer behind Detroit's seminal Music Institute hothouse and the fantastic Prescription and Balance labels. Jim Carroll
