Pick of the weekend
Other Voices
Dingle, Co Kerry, Fri-Sun, othervoices.ie
Each year the annual music and media Christmas party, or Other Voices as it's sometimes known, takes over Dingle for a very special wintry festival. Parties in the sun are all well and good, and with the cracking line-up to Primavera being released this week, many people will now be looking up flights to Barcelona for late May. But in Ireland we might as well make a virtue of what we have – and few things do that better than Other Voices.
The friendliness in the Co Kerry town at this time of year would melt the hardest of hearts. The chats and discussions in the bars and the Banter sessions are some of the best you’ll have. In many ways the music trail, featuring more than 70 acts in venues, snugs and corners the length of the town, has become more vital to the festival than the main musical performances – including Lisa Hannigan, Rejjie Snow, Pixie Geldof and Margaret Glaspy – in the Church of St James.
The Ireland's Edge conference, running over a day and a half and now in its second year, grapples with the collision between business and culture, technology and creativity. If you can't make it to Dingle, you can check out the live stream on othervoices.ie. Winter is the best time of year for hunkering down and working on ideas: developing stories, making music and doing the creative thing that's been nagging at you for months, without decent weather to distract you outside.
But sometimes the best ideas happen when you’re surrounded by creativity; if you’ve been to Other Voices you’ll know exactly what we mean. And if you haven’t – hop in the car now; you might still make a session or two.
FRIDAY
Aisling?
Halla Éamonn Mac Suibhne, Cúil Aodha, Cork 8pm Also Mon, Tues Kerry and tours
gleg.ie/aisling
This multi-media show will tour to non-traditional performance spaces, and give audiences in the Gaeltacht region a chance to celebrate what makes the regions so special. Among those taking part are Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, Seán Ó Flaithearta, Úna Ní Fhlatharta and more.
Live Collision International Festival
Project Arts Centre. Also Sat/Sat
projectartscentre.ie
This annual festival of live art is measured out in a series of double-bill performances, off-site works, works in progress and salons for discussion. On Friday, Louise Ahl's dance piece Yayaya Ayayay, inspired by the artist's prolonged period of sensory deprivation, is combined with Zoe and Maud Ni Riordain's grief-infused musical performance, Live Concept Album (Recovery) (Dec 2nd, 8.30pm €16/€14). Saturday sees Liz Roche's recent emigration/fragmentation-inspired dance piece, Time Over Distance Over Time, staged as a free but ticketed event (Dec 3rd, noon). Meanwhile Mark Durkan presents an immersive reality-fiction experience Alibi, which invites audiences to role-play fictional characters and interact in a private party in the Project bar (Dec 3rd, 5.45pm €8). Jamila Johnson-Small (left), who performs as Last Yearz Interesting Negro, performs in the evening double bill, in her hybrid dance piece i Ride in Colour and Soft Focus, no longer anywhere, a piece about multiplicity within individuals. It is paired with the Figs in Wigs dance-theatre ensemble whose Often Onstage is a comedic riff on the entrances and exits within theatre, whether pursued by a bear or never to be heard of again (Dec 3rd 8.30pm €16/€14).
Elton John
SSE Arena Belfast 8pm £70/£60/£44
ssearenabelfast.com
It is only when you hear one very recognisable song after another that you realise how great a pop songwriter Elton John is. The list is extremely lengthy, and while it may be weighted towards songs recorded in the 70s/80s/90s, that's still three decades worth of substantial pop hits. Special guest is rising Northern Irish singer-songwriter, Foy Vance.
Technotic
The Hangar Dublin 10pm €15/€12/€10
hangardublin.ie
You're allowed to let off some steam and go a bit mad when you're marking surviving 11 years in the club promotion game. Technotic have been putting on club nights in the capital for that length of time, running the gamut from their own nights in places like Frazer's and Kennedy's to events as part of the late, lamented DEAF festival. Tonight, they've got two rooms of DJs on the tear including Jon Hussey, Fran Hartnett, Stuey Lyons, Rob Moore, a live set from Fjaak and many more.
Collider featuring Peter Brötzmann
Unitarian Church, Stephen's Green, Dublin, 7.30pm, €15/10
note.ie
The name is the clue. Collider puts legendary German saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, one of the founding fathers of European free jazz, on an intriguing collision course with six composers from the Irish Composers Collective. In a church. The uncompromising saxophonist is joined by intrepid Dublin cellist Kate Ellis and German-born experimental guitarist David Stalling. Faint hearts should make alternative arrangments.
SATURDAY
Hotbox
The Cellar Galway 9pm €10
facebook.com/hotboxpromotionsirl
Bass, grime and dubstep are what's in store as HTBX welcome Sukh Knight to the wild west. The east London DJ and producer has released some crackers in recent times for labels like New World Audio, True Tiger, Stripes and Hench where his penchant for deep, dark rolling grooves have caught the ear. He's also a man with a good sense for choice collabs, working with people like Ed Sheeran, Professor Green, Congo Natty, Lady Chann and many more. Support from Wriggle's Ozwalk and Sam Fitzpatrick and HTBX resident Danyl.
Derrick Carter
Pygmalion Dublin 9pm €10
pyg.ie
Derrick Carter may be house's reigning boompty-boomp kingpin, but he also has a fondness for disco and that's what's in store when he plays in Dublin this time around. The Chicago DJ and producer has occasionally broken out the disco balls and disco basslines in the past and it's made for a colourful night out as Carter digs deep for classic cuts and rare grooves.
Inside Moves
Bar Sub Belfast 10pm £12/£10/£8
facebook.com/insidemovesbelfast
When it comes to soulful house grooves with panache and sway, Damiano Von Erckert is your man. He hails from Cologne where his way with samples and hazy textures has attracted attention from folks like Floating Points. His AVA. and DVE labels have allowed him to work with people like Egyptian Lover, Ron Trent, Murat Tepelo, Hodini and others. There's support from Inside Moves' regulars Phil and Harding with the promise of two more parties from the crew to come this month.
Yule
The Coop, Newmarket Square, Dublin 8 7.30pm €22
eventbrite.ie
The Young Hearts Run Free team present their annual seasonal bash, with performances on the cards from Alasdair Roberts, Booka Brass Band, David O'Doherty, Maria Kelly, Paddy Hanna and many more. And the best bit is the Simon Community get all the cash, as always.
Kenton Slash Demon
Wah Wah Club Dublin 11pm €10/€8
wahwahclub.ie
It's the quality of the work from Danish duo Silas Moldenhawer and Jonas Kenton which has made their Kenton Slash Demon project one to be reckoned with over the last eight or nine years. While they're also members of the well regarded When Saints Go Machine, the Copenhagen duo's releases for labels like Australia's Future Classic such as Harpe and Peace have put the focus on their ability to mint vibrant, softly infectious tracks which work for both dancefloors and headphones.
SUNDAY
Danny Diamond and Cuar
The Royal Society of Antiquiries, 63, Merrion Square 4.30pm €15
futureticketing.ie
Fiddler, composer and sound engineer Danny Diamond has brought a contemporary sensibility to bear on his rich tune book, stripping them bare for all the world to see. This afternoon concert sees him share a billing with a newly minted Irish chamber music trio, featuring Ensemble Ériú's Neil O'Loclainn and Matthew Berrill on double bass and clarinets and Aoife Ní Bhriain on fiddle. Intimate music in a genteel setting.
