The winners of The Ticket's music reviewing competition spent last weekend at Dublin's Heineken Green Synergy Festival. Here's what they thought of it ...

FAT FREDDY'S DROP

Tripod, Sunday

The capital was awash with all things Kiwi this weekend. The dismal rugby result against the All Blacks on Saturday may have subdued many. Thankfully, though, Hope arrived for many deflated fans when one of New Zealand's finest connoisseurs of reggae and dub music arrived at Tripod.

Fat Freddy's Drop are part of a burgeoning dub scene in New Zealand, along with the likes of Salmonella Dub and Shapeshifter, who show that reggae and dub rule in the southern hemisphere. They treated the audience to some new tracks along with earlier material from their 2005 album, Based on a True Story.

The Daz-white brilliance of the percussion ensemble laid it down spectacularly with the animated trombone player treating the crowd to a freestyle impromptu breakdance. Mid-show they gave us a jam of drums, bass and kick-ass attitude which led to not one but two encores over a two-hour set.

A few bars of the Eurhythmics' Sweet Dreamstowards the end showed the guys can easily mix up musical styles, and they also dabbled in some drum'n'bass licks.

The final song, Rocking the Life, made sure it was a skanking good night for all. New Zealand, all is forgiven. Well, let's not be too hasty. KIERAN O'MAHONY

HEINEKEN GREEN SYNERGY FESTIVAL

Various venues, Dublin

My throat is raw, my nerves are shot and my body aches. The blame for this painful condition lies squarely with the organisers of this year's Heineken Green Synergy.

For five nights, I danced, screamed and partied to some of the most exciting and original acts around.

The festival's fantastic opening night kicked off with labelmates Max Tundra and Clinic. Behind a wall of synths, keyboards and tiny plastic instruments, Max Tundra charmed the pants off a bemused looking crowd with his erratic dance moves and insanely paced electropop.

Donning their trademark surgical masks, the more restrained Clinic continued to feed the ever-growing suspicion of just how great a band they really are.

Meanwhile next door in Whelan's, a tiny crowd of hip-hop devotees were rushing the stage to catch one-fifth of rap legends Jurassic 5, Akil the MC.

Closing the night in style, the living legend that is Herbie Hancock captivated a sell-out crowd over at Tripod, with an epic set coming in at just over two and a half hours.

Over the weekend, there were also mesmerising performances from TV on the Radio, Cut Copy and the unforgettable Presets on Sunday. JULIEN CLANCY