If you're in a band and heading west towards Galway city, chances are you'll be met by Eoghan MacNamara, or Gugai, as he's mononymously known, at his venue the Róisín Dubh on Dominick Street where he has been booking live music for over ten years.
Gugai hails from Limerick but moved to Galway to study. College soon fell by the wayside and booking gigs became Gugai's main thing in places like The Warwick, Pacino's on Prospect Hill and the GPO before the opportunity to co-own and run a live venue presented itself in 2004.
“The Róisín was around for about 15 years before we came along, and it did some great things, but had basically turned into a covers venue, like so many other places in Galway,” remembers Gugai. “The town deserved better than that. There were so many good Irish acts around at that time and we really just focused on bringing as many quality national and international acts to the venue as possible. People start to pay attention when they hear people talking about good shows on a regular basis.”
Róisín Dubh has been a regular stop for emerging Irish indie bands ever since with the likes of Le Galaxie, Villagers and And So I Watch You From Afar playing the venue's free Strange Brew Thursday club night early on in their careers. Candi Staton, the xx, Dinosaur Jr., Battles, Wild Beasts and Seasick Steve are several of the international touring bands that have played there.
Bands know they can expect a warm welcome and a good time at the Róisín and Gugai is usually responsible. “We try to make sure that people don’t go hungry, or thirsty. Especially thirsty. We like to show the bands a good time. Too good a time, every now and then. I often feel I should apologise to the venue they’re playing at the night after. But not taking a day off after the Róisín? Rookie mistake.”
The venue has also made itself a stalwart of the comedy circuit with Stewart Lee, Phill Jupitus and Rich Hall making regular visits among others. The Róisín's reach also extends into booking the Galway Comedy Festival and Galway International Arts Festival co-promoting and booking shows in the Big Top, Seapoint and The Black Box.
“The comedy is really Kevin [Healy]’s baby. He’s done an amazing job building that side of the business - comedy is so big in Ireland right now. It’s very different to booking live music. There’s not as much talk about backline.”
As well as booking and promoting the shows, Gugai also DJs in the venue two nights a week, including at the Róisín's popular Silent Disco night, which occasionally moves outdoors for a street party and fills up Dominick Street with headphone-wearing off-key singing punters.
Gugai's other forays into the music industry include as a manager for the acts Daithí and Elaine Mai. “I said I’d never do it,” explains Gugai. “It didn’t really appeal to me at all. Until I saw Daithi supporting Sleep Thieves upstairs one night, and I thought I could help him out.”
Another is as a label owner of Strange Brew Rekkids which recently released the second album from Belfast electronic trio Not Squares, a thing which Gugai says “was something I always wanted to do.”
Gugai is a keen new music enthusiast, something that has worked in his favour. Those early adoption decisions have lead to memorable shows that “blow up out of nowhere.” Gugai cites the Battles gig in 2008 as an example.
“When we booked it, we didn’t know it was going to be such a huge event. Two Door Cinema Club and Hozier also, we had the show really early on and by the time the gig came around, people were going crazy for them.”
He also recalls a Jape gig in April 2005 with fondness as it was the first year of the now-annual Róisín Dubh Album of the Year Award is given to the album by the venue's favourite visiting artist that year. The first year's recipient was Richie Egan for his debut Jape album The Monkeys In The Zoo Have More Fun Than Me.
“'Floating' was definitely the Róisín Dubh anthem. All the staff and customers were big Jape fans - it was a crazy night. Richie’s parents were there. Matty [Bolger] hid them in the front bar until we presented him the plaque.”
But it's not all full houses and full tills. Promoting and booking shows is a long-term risky game for a venue and not every night is a sell-out.
“Yeah, it can be really tough,” says Gugai. “A lot of the shows I book I put in because it’s something I feel really passionately about, and it’s disappointing when other people aren’t on board. “You have to learn from your mistakes,” offers Gugai. “Which I will do... one of these days.”
