Hot Press 43-20: Featuring Andrea Corr

VOL:43 ISSUE:20, JAN 23. 2020

BUMPER XMAS/NEW YEAR SPECIAL

TALKING TURKEY! WALKING ON CARS THE CRANBERRIES WALLIS BIRD

STEPHANIE ROCHE INSIDE THE WORLD OF WOMEN'S FOOTBALL

THE LATE DAVID TURPIN

EXCESS ALL AREAS VERSATILE + THE DARKNESS

THE

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ANDREA CORR

INTERVIEW

SHE'S DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS

9 ISSN 0332-0847

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HOT PRESS / 4320 / CONTENTS COVER STORY

24

Following the release of her acclaimed memoir, Barefoot Pilgrimage, Andrea Corr reflects on sexism in the music industry, coming to terms with the Catholic Church’s crimes without losing her faith, the importance of Billie Eilish, and the future of The Corrs.

BRYAN BROPHY

REVIEWS

FEATURES HAYLEY K STUART

MIGUEL RUIZ

THE HOT PRESS ROUND TABLE... 28 Ed Sheeran, Dolores O’Riordan, Gay Byrne, Billie Eilish, Cher, ‘A Fairytale Of New York’, X Factor and much, much more are on the agenda as a selectionbox of Irish musos gather for our festive pow-wow, presided over

by Stuart Clark.

PAT CARTY

THE DARKNESS… 34 When the pomp-rock supremos invited Pat Carty to join their Irish tour, it was an offer he couldn’t refuse. Amidst the partying and backstage craziness, he gains a remarkable insight into a band with an unconquerable belief in

FRONTLINES...66

ALBUMS...100

Lucy O’Toole reports on the country’s

We assess the latest offerings from

first citywide charity busking festival,

Harry Styles, Leonard Cohen, Gene

In her most revealing interview to

Waterford’s Buskaid, which aids

Clark and more.

date, Irish soccer star Stephanie

local homeless women and families

Roche discusses the ups and

through Tintéan Housing Association.

downs of her career, the Irish

In the run-up to its fourth year, we

women’s team’s battles with the

talk to founder Tadhg Williams about

FAI, sexism in football and more.

BuskAid’s remarkable journey.

the rock and roll dream.

MARK HOGAN

THE HOT PRESS INTERVIEW… 64

• PLUS MCCANN AND THE HOG

Tracks... 104 Tech... 106

Movies... 108 Books... 112 Live... 116 TV...126

DANIEL TOPETE

T H E F O N TA I N E E V E N T With the band having just triumphed at Vicar Street, check out our recent in-depth interview with Fontaines DC, in which Grian and the boys discuss home, family, Michael D., Jimmy Fallon, Derry Girls and more.

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PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

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Niall Stokes

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Pavel Barter, Aoife Bradshaw, Jack Byrne, Wayne Byrne, Pat Carty, Helen Cullen, Lucas Dean, Roisin Dwyer, Sarah Gill, Laura Grainger, Laura Harff, Selina Jeunling, Michael Kealy, Johnny Keegan, Stephen Keegan, Will Kinsella, Ellie MacLean, Eamonn McCann, Roe McDermott, Edwin McFee, Peter McNally, Valentina Magli, Joey Molloy, Kyle Mulholland, Adrienne Murphy, Colm O’Hare, Lucy O'Toole, Alan Owens, Stephen Porzio, Ed Power, Brenna Ransden, Alix Renaud, David Rooney, Anne Sexton, Dermot Stokes, Eamon Sweeney, John Walshe, Brooke Weber, Kevin Worrall, Bill Graham 1951-1996.

CONTACT US SARAH RICHARDSON An acclaimed spoken word poet, Sarah Richardson this year joined Team HP as our resident sex columnist.

Having trained as an actor at the Gaiety School of Acting, she has been a featured artist at both the Circle Sessions and the Collective in Dublin, as well as performing at numerous London poetry events such as Jawdance and Word Up. In this issue, Sarah talks to comic and writer Noelle Brown about sex during the menopause.

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SCOTT ALTMAN

Dublin director Scott Altman recently won the Documentary Award at the Dublin Independent Film Festival with Home, a powerful examination of homelessness in Dublin. Previously, Scott had won the Hot Press Shoot To Thrill competition in 2013, producing a superb 30-second ad for the magazine that was shown in cinemas nationwide. Elsewhere, he has worked with Kanye West, as well as helming a strong of commercials and music videos. In this issue’s Soap Box, Scott shares his views on Ireland’s homeless crisis.

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MAD HATTER

Camille O’Sullivan as the Ghost of Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol

Your concept of hell?

Performing at friends’ parties or small gatherings (bad nerves).

What would be your dying words?

What the hell was that about?

Greatest ambition?

To be happy in what I’m doing, and be kind.

Who would be the last person you would invite to your birthday party?

Er, where do I begin? Let’s start at Trump.

Period of history you’d most like to have lived in and why?

1940s because I love the style.

Who would be the first person you would invite to your birthday party?

My lovely mum.

If you weren’t a human being which animal would you have chosen to be?

A pussycat.

Favourite saying?

Hold the line/Jesus wept.

If you were told that the world was ending tomorrow morning, how would you react/what would you do?

I’d have a full on breakdown, then get over that, and be with my friends and family and tell them I love them.

Favourite record?

Blood On The Tracks by Bob Dylan and The Boatman’s Call by Nick Cave.

Favourite book?

Rumpelstiltskin.

Favourite film?

The Wizard Of Oz. Favourite author?

Ian McEwan.

Favourite actor/actress?

Alec Guinness/Ava Gardner.

Favourite musician?

David Bowie.

Most embarrassing moment of your life?

Falling over things on stage (I do that quite a lot!).

Favourite food/drink/stimulant?

Chocolate and wine for all three.

TV programme?

Inspector Morse (I love murder mysteries!) and Wanderly Wagon.

Favourite item of clothing?

Sparkly red brogues.

CAMILLE O’SULLIVAN Actress & singer

FAVOURITE ITEM OF CLOTHING? SPARKLY RED BROGUES.

Most desirable date?

My partner.

Favourite method of relaxation?

Drinking my head off – or Thai massage.

If you weren’t pursuing your present career, what other career might you have chosen?

Painting portraits.

Biggest thrill?

Cuddling my daughter.

Biggest disappointment?

Mean, rude people.

Your concept of heaven? ����in�� ��atin� in t�e sea� �r laughing with my dearest friends.

Favourite term of abuse?

I can’t say the worst Cork one, s…c bitch. I just can’t say, it is too bad (I don’t use it, but I used to hear it growing up).

Biggest fear?

Performing in front of people, and scary clowns.

Humanity’s most useful invention?

For me, the pencil. But for humanity, the systems that make water clean to drink.

Humanity’s most useless invention?

Selfie apps and celebrity reality programs.

• Camille O’Sullivan’s latest album is Camille Sings Cave Live, a performance of the Nick Cave songbook. She is currently performing as the Ghost of Christmas Present in the Gate Theatre production of A Christmas Carol, until January 18 (gatetheatre.ie).

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®

GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINEE BEST PICTURE • BEST ACTOR Musical or Comedy

★★★★★ ★★★★★ The Times

Musical or Comedy

★★★★★ The INDEPENDENT

★★★★★ ★★★★★ The UPCOMING

The LIST

The HOLLYWOOD NEWS

“Brilliant, a special film”

“SHARP AND WITTY”

Ali Plumb, BBC Radio 1

From the

d ir e c t o r

SHORTLIST

of

gnarok & T h o r : R ae W i l d e r p e o p l e th Hunt for

1 y r a u n a J S A M E N I OW IN C TICKETS N BOOK

THE MESSAGE GUEST COLUMNIST: PAU L N O L A N

T H IS IS TH E E ND, BE AU T I F U L FR I E ND…

Or at least that’s the contention of a growing number of commentators, in the context of the far-right’s international rise and the threat of global environmental disaster. PAUL NOLAN analyses the past decade in politics to discover how we ended up at this point, and asks: where can we locate some badly needed hope as we enter the next decade?

S

ometime early in 2010, I read an article about the latest project from film director David Fincher, renowned at the time for his work on the dark thrillers Seven and Zodiac, as well as the subversive, zeitgeist-defining, fin de siècle masterwork, Fight Club.

His next film, due in the autumn of that year, was to explore the origins of Facebook, with a particular focus on Mark Zuckerberg’s legal battles with fellow Harvard students Divya Narendra, and twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (memorably dubbed “the Winklevi” in the film), over who first came up with the idea for the site.

As well as my excitement about the movie, I remember thinking at the time that I should probably check out Facebook and see what all the fuss was about. I’d never signed up and it seemed like an opportune moment.

Having seen the film that October at Cineworld on Parnell Street, I felt that Fincher had pulled off another monumental achievement similar to Fight Club: an unbelievably stylish movie that told us so much about the cultural moment we were living through.

As was to be expected from a blackly cynical Gen X-er like Fincher, the film had a grim prognosis: the suggestion that, try as we might, the darker elements of human nature would ultimately worm their way into the new phenomenon of social media.

Around six weeks later, a group of us at a work do in the centre of Dublin stepped outside into the falling snow – Ireland experiencing its second cold snap in 12 months – for a cigarette. Talk soon turned to the big development of the week: with the country on the verge of bankruptcy, the IMF had arrived in town to take control of the national finances.

A very wise man – Jacobean dramatist John Webster, Google

010 HOTPRESS.COM

informs me – once wrote: “We are merely the stars’ tennis balls, struck and bandied which way please them.” I didn’t realise it at the time, but that period had revealed to us arguably the two defining themes of the decade: social media and the global recession.

LOW FARCE

Irish politics in the final months of 2010 descended to the level of low farce. In September, a worse-for-wear sounding Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, appeared on RTE Radio One’s Morning Ireland to discuss the country’s deteriorating financial situation. A national controversy soon erupted over whether Cowen was hungover from the revelries at the previous night’s Fianna Fail Ard Fheis, or whether – as Cowen insisted – he simply had a head cold.

With government ministers Dermot Ahern and Noel Dempsey having insisted that rumours of IMF intervention were bogus, representatives from that very organisation were on our shores within weeks. The final straw came when Cowen attempted a cabinet reshuffle without consulting FF’s junior coalition partner, the Greens, who duly pulled the plug and called an election for the new year.

In keeping with the tenor of the times, the Greens’ Paul Gogarty – who the previous year had responded to a parliamentary contribution from Labour’s Emmet Stagg with a simple “Fuck you” – answered questions at the press conference with a child on his lap.

As was widely predicted, the 2011 general election was a virtual extinction level event for Fianna Fail, as the electorate decisively returned a Fine Gael/Labour coalition and austerity budgets became the norm. It has to be said that the troika of the IMF, EU and ICB weren’t especially big on the idea of European unity in our hour of greatest need: we would pay our debts, while bondholders and other financial bigwigs escaped with minimal exposure. The injustice was

THE MESSAGE utterly galling.

For the beleaguered Irish public, the final straw proved to be a mooted increase in water charges, a shamelessly extortionate move on the government’s behalf.

In the UK, though, a large section of the public were of a mood to give the political establishment something more than a bloody nose. Indeed, quite a lot of people had something closer to a mortal blow in mind.

TECHNOCRATIC POLITICIANS

Those of us who grew up in the ’90s were used to a managerial, technocratic style of politician. George HW Bush, John Major, John Bruton – it was all grey hair and greyer suits. Steady as she goes, and let’s not rock the boat too much domestically or internationally.

Major was bedevilled by the European question, as were his predecessors as far back as the late ’70s. Still clinging onto the fading idea of the British Empire, the Eton-educated Eurosceptics could never quite stomach the idea of Eurocrats dictating policy and law to dear old Blighty.

As 2016 would decisively – and painfully – prove, politics was now attracting some of the most extreme people in society.

In addition, there were all sorts of other elements just waiting to ignite this particular powderkeg. Though not quite causing carnage on the same scale as in Ireland, the recession had still taken its toll on the UK. Understandably, many were fed up with being promised an economic tomorrow that never arrived.

Meanwhile, one of many grim consequences of Bush and Blair’s hopelessly ill-judged war in Iraq was the Isis insurgency, which had contributed to a refugee crisis in Europe as people in the Middle East fled war and bloodshed. Undoubtedly, there would be those in Nigel Farage’s UKIP and others on the British far-right only too happy to invoke racist rhetoric, as they sought to demonise migrants and wrongfully paint them as the source of the UK’s economic woes.

It was in this climate that David Cameron – high on the success of achieving single party government in 2015 – confirmed there would be a Brexit referendum in June of the following year. To describe it as a high stakes strategy would be an understatement.

In Cameron’s defence, victory would have given moderate Tories a powerful weapon with which to mercilessly beat Eurosceptics around the head for a generation. Defeat, on the other hand…

LIES AND DISTORTION

Many argued vociferously at the time – and retrospect only confirms – that Cameron needed to stare down the Eurosceptics and either avoid a referendum altogether, or postpone it until circumstances were more favourable. As it was, shameless lies and distortion by the Leave side, as well as a poor Remain effort (not helped by a lamentable campaign from Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn) all contributed to Brexit being carried by a 52/48 margin.

There would be seismic consequences for many countries, with Ireland somewhere near the front of the queue. Across the water in the US, Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump and his oily consigliere, Steve Bannon, eagerly seized on the Brexit result as proof that, in this new mood of post-Recession fury, people wanted change from politics-as-usual – they didn’t add the qualifier ‘no matter how grotesque the alternative’.

Of course, the ironies here were so large as to require new categorisation. Despite Barack Obama leading the US to firmer economic ground after inheriting a generational mess from George W. Bush, there was hostile resistance – a significant part of it racist – to his progressive social policies. Meanwhile, there seemed to be little cognisance that the runaway, immoral capitalism that caused the financial crash resulted from the kind of Reaganite Republicanism of which Trump was the living embodiment.

We were through the looking glass.

Here we also return to our old friend, social media. In the years since The Social Network, I had become an enthusiastic user of Facebook, until eventually feeling that – like anything in life – it was an activity that had run its course. As Fincher and Sorkin had hinted at, though, the tech giants had other ideas.

By mid-decade, social media had become so entrenched in our daily lives as to be literally unavoidable. It didn’t matter if you wanted out – in this dystopian new landscape, there was no

escape. Inevitably, our enslavement would be ruthlessly exploited by malign political forces.

I can’t remember at what point in the autumn of 2016 I first heard the term “fake news”, but it was in the context of a report about Trump’s campaign. Apparently Zuckerberg and his colleagues in Facebook head office were doing precisely nothing about allegations that Russian troll farms were spreading all manner of conspiracy theories and outlandish bullshit about Trump’s Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.

Farcically, my initial response was that too much was being made of it and that people would see through such chicanery. Fair to say I got that one ever so slightly wrong. We woke on November 9 to a Trump victory and the realisation that the lunatic fringe had officially gone mainstream.

The post-Brexit machinations in the Tory party would mean that, by decade’s end, we had arrived at a scenario previously only imagined in the realm of a South Park satire: Trump as President and Boris Johnson as Prime Minister.

MOOD OF DESPAIR

They say that people having been decrying the foolishness of mankind since the dawn of the human race. Be that as it may, as we enter the new decade, there is a pervasive mood of despair which I don’t recall in my lifetime. For the first time, in recent years, I have finally gained an uneasy insight into how World War 2 actually happened: it only takes a few steps for authoritarian regimes to slide towards outright fascism.

We certainly have our fair of objectionable figures around the globe. Trump. Putin. Bolsonaro. Orban in Hungary. Duerte in the Phillipines (accused by one Human Rights report of overseeing – in a phrase to truly make the blood run cold – “the systematic practice of extrajudicial killings”).

It’s more than that, though. Early last year, around the time of the Facebook Cambridge Analytica scandal, I went to see a public interview in Dublin’s Belvedere College with Taxi Driver and Raging Bull writer Paul Schrader. He was discussing his latest film, First Reformed, a chilling parable about climate change and the apocalyptic tenor of the times.

The interview was being recorded for radio, and a single spotlight illuminated Schrader and the interviewer in an otherwise pitch-black theatre. Schrader expressed the opinion that with the international rise of the far-right and the concurrent trashing of political discourse – all set against the backdrop of looming ecological collapse – we probably won’t make it out of the century. On the same day, I was dealing with a work crisis, and the cumulative effect left me thoroughly shaken as I walked out of Belvedere and into the freezing night air.

It’s true that when you step back and look objectively, it’s hard to come to any conclusion other than we are essentially fucked. At the same time, the human race is truly remarkable in its durability and adaptability. It is genuinely astonishing, for example, that despite our apparently limitless capacity for selfharm, a nuclear weapon hasn’t been used since World War 2. And in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, it seemed unlikely that there wouldn’t been an even more catastrophic terror attack in the west – possibly nuclear or biochemical – within the following ten years.

Throughout this uniquely turbulent period, in an unlikely development, Ireland has remained one of the few beacons of social progress internationally, thanks to the gay marriage and Repeal referendum results, as well as the elections of our first gay Taoiseach and of Michael D. Higgins as President. Still, those milestones have to be seen in the context of a country that is otherwise dysfunctional, with crises in housing, health and public transport.

Even if it may secure a speedy Brexit – though we’ll see on that score – the results of the UK election will do nothing to solve the inequality in British society. The British Labour party, meanwhile, is facing an existential crisis.

In the 2020s, we’ll have to hope there are a few more social and political breakthroughs in Ireland and elsewhere. To say there are badly needed is an understatement.

• Niall Stokes will return to The Message in our Hot for 2020 Issue, published 23 January 2020.

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INBOX

Letters to the editor & other strange missives

THE HOT TOPIC

Contact: Hot Press, 100 Capel Street, Dublin 1, Ireland. letters@hotpress.ie | twitter.com/hotpress (Emails should contain name, address and contact number)

ED SHEERAN

SCOTT ALTMAN DIRECTOR

REFLECTIONS ON HOMELESSNESS IN IRELAND Three years ago, over the Christmas period, I visited Apollo House, the then government-owned building on Dublin’s, Tara Street. With video-camera in hand, I spoke to Irish families dropping off donations for the residents, and to the activists and public figures who secured the building to provide a Christmas home for the less fortunate. �his provided m� first insight into homelessness in Ireland, but it was in the months to come that I met those living on the streets. �omm� was the first homeless individual � met. Initially, I observed him from a distance.

Sat there in a sleeping bag, opposite Trinity College, Tommy looked in a bad way. So bad, he wasn’t even begging. He seemed to have given up. He stared at the concrete pavement, in a trance, rocking to ease the discomfort. I watched person after person walk by.

I approached Tommy and introduced myself.

I got to know him, there and then. We got on well and he quickly came to life. Life had been hard on Tommy, I could see it written across his face. But his spirited eyes showed he hadn’t lost his passion for life. On the one hand, there was the spark of a man in his prime; on the other, this was a guy at his lowest point, fighting for survival. Before long, a young woman handed him a freshly made baguette. On opening it, Tommy was disappointed to discover that it contained no meat. “It’s veggie!” he exclaimed. Laughing it off, he happily tucked in. “You’ll never go hungry in Ireland,” Tommy told me afterwards.

“The Irish are too generous.”

Jack was another homeless man I met on Dublin’s streets. It was late. South Anne Street was quiet and dimly lit. As he struggled to light a cigarette, it was clear he’d had one too many drinks. But he was well dressed, tidy and almost had a film star look about him.

012 HOTPRESS.COM

Jack told me the story of how he ended up on the streets. Originally from Ballymena, he moved to Australia with his mother and siblings when he was a young boy. He opened a roofing business with his brother, and bought his first house at the age of ��. �e got married and had two kids. When his marriage broke up, he returned to Ireland. At the time, I sensed Jack might not be giving me the full picture, but right then it didn’t seem to matter.

I listened… Jack said he wanted the best for his two boys, so he left the family home to his wife and kids. He went on to say that he’s never seen anything as “out of control” as the Irish homeless crisis: “You would never see anything like this in Sydney”. We spoke of his time in Ireland, since he arrived two years ago.

He had helped out as a chef at Apollo House.

The following week, news spread across Irish media that another homeless person had died, sleeping rough. It was the second homeless-related death that week. To my disbelief, it was �ack, who � had filmed �ust five days prior. A vigil took place in Jack’s honour but a second vigil, due to take place outside Dáil Éireann, was cancelled as disturbing stories regarding his dark past emerged in the press. It seems Jack had led a troubled life in Australia, building up a litany of convictions over the years including the indecent assault of a minor. He was then deported back to Ireland.

Nobody chooses to be homeless. Alcohol, drugs, mental illness, family problems, environment and the journey of life all play their part. But nobody deserves to sleep on the street. As a society, that has to be our ab iding principle.

• Home, Scott Altman's award-winning film about homelessness in Dublin, is out in early 2020.

ED SHEERAN NAMED ARTIST OF THE DECADE BY OFFICIAL CHARTS COMPANY Lucky for him he was born when he was. If he’d been around in any decade beginning 19, no one would have heard him. I liked him in the film Yesterday though! He seems like a nice bloke.

Paul Dunford So the rumours are true; music is actually fucked…

John Steele He also needs a good fuckin’ tattoo artist – he seems to have collected every tattoo off bad memes. That lion and shark are epic haha.

Danny Bullman REACTION TO OUR JEFF LYNNE FEATURE I love his new album.

Paul McGrath (no not that one) CRY MONSTER CRY ANNOUNCE MARCH DUBLIN DATE One to book in.

Rebecca Gangnus CHRIS O’DOWD PARTNERS WITH ‘SOCIAL SPIN’ PUB TRANSPORT STRATEGY IN KERRY The Healy Raes will be at the end of the driveway with Uzis.

Ross O’Connor NETFLIX REVEALS VIEWING STATS FOR THE IRISHMAN I watched half-an-hour and now have chronic narcolepsy.

Ken Phelan An absolute classic, for those that appreciate it, which is the majority of people, by all accounts.

Ciaran B. Meagher MARIE FREDRIKSSON RIP So sad.

Ally Hewson CLAIRO MAKES MESMERISING RETURN TO THE ACADEMY Rock and roll!

Joey Molly

CHATHAM HOUSE

COLM KELLY

FROM THE TWEET DECK

SAME OLD TORY: BORIS JOHNSON F O N TA I N E S D C I N V I CA R S T R E E T

THE FRAMES ANNOUNCE 30th ANNIVERSARY GIG AT KILMAINHAM Some great memories of these guys playing in Connolly’s Of Leap in the mid-’90s… those were the days.

Paul Hayes Dee Cee – remember going to this, and and then going back to UCD and setting a tea bag on fire because Glen Hansard told us to light something on fire for Halloween.

Emma Kavanagh Closest I’ve come to being in a cult.

Dee Cee If GH started a cult you know you’d be there.

Emma Kavanagh

DURAN DURAN DUBLIN BOUND Great! This means the band may play some new music? Eagerly >Ü> Ì iÜ > LÕ ÓäÓä° Steven Ng Mun Kit Yes... yes I will!

Youngblood Music FONTAINES DC TRIUMPH AT VICAR STREET Amazing gig. They blew the place up. And Cillian Murphy was nice to watch too.

Breda Gowran The real deal. And a deadly gig. I only wish them continued success and great to see an authentic band shining through in these bleak generic times. That’s the spirit!

Shane Dignam

@guardian Boris Johnson leads Tories to historic general election win. @davidwalliams Boris won by a landslide because all of his children voted for him. @victoriacorenmitchell I mean, standing back with a bit of perspective, WHAT a shower of total clowns, jokers, rogues, villains and in some cases fullon filth… I’ve just enjoyed in the London Palladium’s panto, Goldilocks And The Three Bears. Brilliant, hilarious show.

(Now, back to reality). @guardian Brexit: EU leaders call for swift ratification after Tory victory

@BBCNews SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon says next week the Scottish government will publish “the detailed, democratic case” for a second independence referendum, adding Boris Johnson has “no right to stand in the way”. @CarolineLucas No Boris Johnson, you do *not* have a “powerful people’s mandate” for your miserable Brexit deal. A majority of people voted for parties which opposed that deal and were pledging to put it back to the people in a second referendum. @thomyorke Silent. Silence.

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We all need to mind our mental health Your mental health at Christmas The holidays can bring a lot of demands such as financial, social and family. This is especially true for vulnerable people, or people already feeling under pressure.

It’s important to plan ahead to avoid feeling overwhelmed. You can’t choose when Christmas comes, but you can choose to help yourself get through it.

Have realistic expectations Be honest and realistic about what you can expect from the season. Don’t compare yourself with other people. Don’t expect that Christmas will be perfect. If things don’t turn out as planned, it can have a negative impact on your self-esteem.

Focus on one or two of the most important things to you and try to have a simpler, enjoyable festive season.

Reflect on what you’ve achieved this year Accept yourself and where you are right now.

This Christmas period, use the time to reflect on how far you have come and all you have achieved.

Show compassion for others Often at Christmas, people feel more lonely and isolated than normal. A thoughtful gesture can make a real difference. This could be spending time with someone or offering them a listening ear, you’ll be helping others while also increasing your own sense of wellbeing.

Seek professional help if you need to Despite your best efforts, you might feel low, stressed, sad or anxious over Christmas.

Talk to your GP before Christmas about what support they can offer you.

Don’t hesitate to reach out. Many services (especially helpline and online services) are open during Christmas.

Healthy habits At times like Christmas, it’s easy to fall out of your normal routine. Your body clock can change and it’s not unusual to over-indulge in many different ways.

As a result, your motivation levels can drop and you can feel bloated, sluggish and unwell.

Maintain your healthy habits by: • Keeping up a healthy sleep pattern • Making an effort to exercise outdoors • Watching what you eat • Minding your alcohol intake

Self-care Above all else, allow yourself to take some time out during the Christmas season. If you are feeling drained in any way, find yourself a quiet space to breathe.

Take time to rest and restore your energy.

Christmas might be all about giving, but that means giving to yourself too.

For more information on ways you can protect your own mental health, and support those you care about, visit yourmentalhealth.ie

MUSIC NEWS BIG CHANGES AT THE PICNIC

VOL: 43 ISSUE: 20

FOR MORE GO TO HOTPRESS.COM

MIGUEL RUIZ

T

he final batch of Electric Picnic tickets went on sale last week and sold out in a matter of hours.

It was also confirmed that 2020’s Stradbally August Bank Holiday three-dayer will have an increased 70,000-capacity and feature a new Mind & Body arena, which replaces Body & Soul.

In addition to this, Jerry Fish and his wonderful Electric Sideshow will be the centrepiece of the new FishTown area, and MindField is on the move.

As well as bigger, the 2020 festival will be greener with all sorts of environmental initiatives being introduced.

“I am never one to stand still and I constantly strive to evolve the festival,” Picnic head honcho Melvin Benn reflects. “In keeping with this philosophy, I’m excited to announce the creation of Mind & Body in the area previously hosting Body & Soul with the beloved Mindfield moving to a new home on the edge of this creative area.”

Addressing their departure from EP, Body & Soul director Avril Stanley says: “After ten years as an independent festival, we have decided to step back from our presence and 16-year partnership YKVJ|'NGEVTKE|2KEPKE|UQ VJCV YG ECP TGHQEWU all of our attention to what the central idea

behind Body & Soul is all about: creating an intimate and collaborative festival of the future; one that can embrace social change in a hugely positive way while celebrating an important and ancient Irish feast in our own unique, stand-alone style. |p9G YCPV VQ YQTM VQYCTFU DTKPIKPI DCEM a fresh energy and perspective to Body & Soul at the Summer Solstice Festival in Ballinlough and for our new winter festival ÉRIU, which is taking place in December 2020.”

The first Electric Picnic line-up announcement will be made early in the new year.

KENDRICK TO HEADLINE LONGITUDE MIGUEL RUIZ

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The first batch of hip-hop and urban heavy-hitters have been confirmed for Longitude, which returns to Dublin’s Marlay Park from July 3-5.

They include the back by demand Kendrick Lamar who’s due a new album in 2020, Tyler, The Creator, A$AP Rocky, J Hus, AJ Tracey, Young Thug, Dababy, Aitch, Playboy Carti, Lil Tecca, Mabel, Charli XCX, Jay1, Earthgang, Pop Smoke, IDK and Santi.

There will be loads of additions including, we imagine, some of the Irish up and comers that Tara Stewart is championing in this issue’s Hot Press Xmas Round Table discussion.

MUSIC NEWS

DURAN DURAN FOR DUBLIN

LIAM HEADS TO BELFAST PETER O’HANLON

KATHRIN BAUMBACH

Following the success of last year’s inaugural run of gigs there, Raheny’s St. Anne’s Park returns as a gig venue in 2020.

First to be confirmed on June 7 are Duran Duran who played a Sunday night Electric Picnic stormer a few years back.

In addition to their very long list of hits – ‘Planet Earth’, ‘Something I Should Know’, ‘Notorious’, ‘Rio’, ‘Girls On Film’ etc. etc. – Simon and the chaps will be performing a song or five from their new studio album, which is due before the summer.

Fresh from rocking 3Arena to within an inch of its life, Liam Gallagher has announced a massive Boucher Road Playing Fields, Belfast gig on August 19, tickets for which are £49 and on sale now.

It’s been an extremely good 2019 for the younger Gallagher brother who also stormed the Glastonbury Pyramid Stage and topped the charts on both sides of the Irish Sea with solo album number two, Why Me? Why Not?

no music, no life!

THIS CHRISTMAS

Bob Dylan Travelin’ thru

The Script Sunsets & Full Moons

7 dawson st + O’Connell St

Bruce Springsteen Western Stars

Christy Moore Magic Nights

leonard cohen thanks for the dance

jeff lynne’s elo from out of nowhere

info@towerrecords.ie / www.towerrecords.ie

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MUSIC NEWS

THE FRAMES BIRTHDAY PARTY

It’s rare that a new act bursts onto the scene with as much pedigree as Bedlam Suitcase. Featuring Padraig Meehan and Tom Jamieson of celebrated Irish band Those Nervous Animals, and lead-singer Tara Baoth Mooney – who has a background as a voice actor and songwriter for Jim Henson’s Bear In The Big Blue House – Bedlam Suitcase have been quietly crafting their sound for three years. Their soon-to-bereleased debut album, The Fourth Wall, features contributions from The Waterboys’ Steve Wickham, Grammy-winning musician and producer Paul Bryan, and is produced by none-other than David Bowie’s guitarist and musical director, Gerry Leonard.

“We’re terribly proud of the record,” Meehan tells Hot Press. “We set out to make something that wouldn’t compromise, that would be defiant and would not just be some flavour of the month. At this stage of our lives we don’t give a shit about chasing trends.”

Bedlam Suitcase are running a Fundit campaign to complete the production of The Fourth Wall, which will be launched along with their new single ‘Mountain Shadow’ at The Sugar Club on February 6.

They don’t look old enough, but The Frames will be celebrating their 30th birthday on June 20 with a Royal Hospital Kilmainham show.

Joined by assorted special guests, we imagine it’ll be a supersized set drawing on every phase of their career as Ireland’s biggest cult heroes.

“There’s something about stepping back into the furious belly of this beast where the low bells chime around the parish, where time is swallowed and years slip by, this place where most of my hearing went in the sound of working it out from soaring angst to occasional pride into unmoored middle-age,” says Glen Hansard, ever the silver-tongued devil. “The songs grow too and change their meaning, till it all collapses together into the glorious bonfire that is The Frames.”

Ads Colm Mac Con Iomaire: “A significant birthday should be celebrated. 2020 will mark The Frames’ 30th journey around the Sun. Most of that time has been spent travelling around the World, in and in celebration of, music. Where better to celebrate? One night in Dublin! Come join us!”

Tickets priced €55 are on sale now.

DANNI FRO

BEDLAM SUITCASE: ALBUM LAUNCH

wanted! original or revivalist

Were you a Teddy boy, girl, Mod or Modette?

If so, I’d love to hear from you!

INHALER | KNEECAP | LYRA | ZIGGY ALBERTS THUMPER | JOEL CORRY | MARK BLAIR THE REVENGE | KOKO... LOADS MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED TICKETMASTER.IE | SEASESSIONS.COM SURF SKATE BEACH SPORTS

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Share your experiences by taking part in an interview which will explore the meanings, values, music, and style associated with the Teds and Mods.

Please contact: Ciara Molloy, PhD Candidate, UCD Sutherland School of Law, Belfield, Dublin 4; ciara.molloy1@ucdconnect.ie; 087 1330982; @CiaraMolloy6

EDUCATION

M.i.X MUSIC INDUSTRY XPLAINED

Your fast-track to success in the music industry.

The MiX Course is for aspiring Musicians, PR, Media, Music Managers & Marketers who want to make their mark in the music industry or for those who simply want to update their knowledge, expertise and network!

Schedule

Find out more about MiX

Lecturers On Previous MIX Courses:

• Email: mix@hotpress.ie • Call: (01) 241 1542 • Website: hotpress.com/mix

MiX is composed of a 13-Week, lecture-based course holding one class per week by the top specialist exponents of the Irish and International Music Industry

Jackie Hayden (Journalist) Stephen Lindsey (Publisher) Greg Fry (Digital & Social Media Consultant) Gavin Glass (Radio Nova) Donall Scannell (Born Optimistic) Edison Waters (Music Manager) Steve Averill (U2 Designer) (AMP Visual) Nick Seymour (Crowded House) Eileen O’Gorman (Gleeson McGrath Baldwin Solicitors)

Linda Coogan Byrne (Good Seed PR)

MAZE OF OUR LIVES Hip-hop super-producer Labrinth discusses his superb new album Imagination & The Misfit Kid, working on Kanye West’s Jesus Is King, and composing the soundtrack for cult TV show Euphoria.

Interview Brenna Ransden 020 HOTPRESS.COM

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’s truly a delight to encounter an artist with the joie de vivre of Timothy Lee McKenzie, aka Labrinth. Achieving such a level of contentment wasn’t easy for the London renaissance man.

While much of his work lately has focused on composing – he created the score for the hit television series Euphoria – and production for the likes of Kanye West and Beyonce, Labrinth has also released his second solo album. The follow-up to 2012’s Electronic Earth, Imagination & The Misfit Kid is definitely worth the seven-year wait.

Semi-fantastical and semi-autobiographical – but fully danceable – it’s a concept album of sorts, documenting a young man’s attempt to navigate his way through the music industry.

“My biggest message with this album is to stay true to your creative ambitions,” says the 30-year-old producer. “Often, the underlying message in the music industry sometimes is be to be successful at any cost. That means you sell yourself short, or you start chasing things you never really wanted in the first place. I’m finding what true success is, even if it seems small compared to someone else. I think it’s the best way to try and create things.”

By that definition, 2019 has been a wildly successful year for Labrinth, who released three albums: the Euphoria soundtrack; Imagination & The Misfit Kid; and another with supergroup LSD (that’s Labrinth, Sia and Diplo).

“I think the three albums started something

for me, because I want to release another three next year!” he laughs. “It feels like the creative guy in my head is whistling and twiddling his fingers, because he doesn’t know what to do now. He’s got nothing to work on.

Well, actually I’ve got millions of things to work on, but now I’ve let this longstanding project go.”

Another big project Labrinth checked off his to-do list was producing ‘God Is’ from Kanye West’s latest album, Jesus Is King.

“I really enjoyed working with Kanye,” he enthuses. “I haven’t been around that much inspiration in a long time. I work with a lot of artists, but usually it feels like I have to bring something to the table, instead of taking something away. Because, of course, that’s what a writer or producer’s job is. But with Kanye, there were so many great musicians and great artists, and he’s got great taste when it comes to music.”

For the Euphoria soundtrack, Labrinth also collaborated with lead actress Zendaya on the track ‘All For Us’. Of course, as soon as I ask him about it, he begins singing, “EUPHOOOOORIA!” Was scoring something he was actively pursuing, or just another interesting avenue to explore?

“I actually wanted to score more than I wanted to be an artist,” he acknowledges.

“I’ve always enjoyed musical composition. But I was like, ‘I’ll be working my way up from a really small, crappy TV show. And then maybe someone will notice what I’ve done and go, ‘Lab, you should maybe work on this big show!’ But the big show came first, and I was like ‘Oh shit!’ I was planning to work my way up. It was definitely intense pressure, but an incredible experience.”

Despite all these accomplishments, though, it wasn’t anything music-related that topped the highlight reel for Labrinth in 2019.

“My favourite moment of the year was when my daughter said ‘Hi’, and I heard her voice for the first time,” he beams. “I was like ‘Wow, that’s so incredible.’ It was the smallest thing, but it was amazing.’ My family time has suffered a little bit because I’ve been working on so many things, but we’ve had some nice moments. We decided to become tourists in London – we stayed in some of the coolest hotels and acted like we were tourists. It was really nice!”

• Imagination & The Misfit Kid is out now.

KATHRYN VETTER MILLER

“MY FAVOURITE MOMENT OF THE YEAR WAS WHEN MY DAUGHTER SAID ‘HI’, AND I HEARD HER VOICE FOR THE FIRST TIME...”

MUSIC WORLD 4320 U2 had a special announcement...

DANNY NORTH

HOT WIRE U2 used their gig last week in Tokyo to announce that they’re setting up their own U2X Radio channel next year as part of the Stateside Sirius XM network.

“Generally when I open my mouth people prefer if I’m singing, but on U2X Radio, maybe they’ll forgive me the odd interruption,” joked Bono who, in addition to music from the length and breadth of their career, is promising never-before heard interviews, concert recordings and lots of curveballs curated by the band themselves.

Last week saw Alanis Morissette release ‘Reasons I Drink’, a confessional first taster from her Such Pretty Forks In The Road album, which follows next May. She’s also celebrating the 25th anniversary of her breakthrough Jagged Little Pill album by taking to the road in 2020 with kindred spirits Garbage and Liz Phair. No word yet on Irish dates but we’re hopeful!

The record has also spawned a Broadway show of the same name, which opened last week to the ravest of review.

That something Joe Elliott was itching to tell us in our Hot Press Christmas Annual interview is Def Leppard hitting the road next year with Joan Jett, Poison and Motley Crue. Will the tour be crossing the Atlantic? We hope so…

IT WAS ALL CELLO

T

She saw the world touring with Damien Rice – and even met a fresh-faced Ed Sheeran. Fast forward 15 years and Vyvienne Long has released her second solo album.

Interview Ed Power

here’s a song on Vyvienne Long’s fantastic new album, A Lifetime Of High Fives, called ‘Money Stuff’. It addresses the day-to-day struggles of jobbing musicians.

But it is furthermore a rumination on the tribulations we all face trying to keep our necks above the waterline.

“It explores being a musician and also the challenges of making ends meet and feeling screwed over by big corporations,” says Long. “That feeling of being >LÃ ÕÌi Þ « ÜiÀ iÃÃ Ì yÕi Vi anything. Everybody has to suck it up, that’s the theme.”

Long today lives quietly in the Wicklow commuter belt. But she spent the early 2000s traversing the world as part of Damien Rice’s band. That’s her strident cello on ‘Volcano’, perhaps his most straightforwardly catchy song.

A decade-plus on she isn’t nostalgic, exactly, for those days.

She is, however, struck by the extent to which the industry has changed.

“I get nostalgic for that support system. As soon as he reached a

certain level, so much was taken care of. I certainly miss that.”

If Rice were to call her up and ask her to travel the world with him again, what would her answer be?

“I would certainly be willing to pack up a case if my own album found a wider audience. That would be brilliant. I would love to tour it. Otherwise I think, my domestic life would be a priority.”

“I WOULD CERTAINLY BE WILLING TO PACK UP A CASE IF MY OWN ALBUM FOUND A WIDER AUDIENCE. THAT WOULD BE BRILLIANT. ” Some of her adventures during the Rice years were surreal. She recalls meeting an eager young teenage fan of Rice’s, who had y Ü ÛiÀ vÀ } > ` Ì Ãii his hero in Whelan’s. He had red hair and his name was Ed (Sheeran). Whatever happened to him?

A Lifetime Of High Fives, on which Long sings and plays piano and cello, had been a while coming. It’s nearly a decade since her debut, Caterpillar Sarabande.

In the interim, she put out a live record and Christmas and Halloween singles. Was the delay by choice?

“It was a long time,” she nods.

“I love the idea of a band going in and recording everything and it’s all really fresh. They do it all in two weeks. Mine took much longer.

Part of that came down to the fact it was a solo project. The cello parts, the piano parts, the vocal parts – I did them all myself.”

Being an independent artist brings certain freedoms, she says. But there’s a lot of hard work. Again, she thinks back to her Damien Rice days and how straightforward it all felt.

‘The advantage is that if you can afford it, then you can make an album without having to have the nod from the record company.”

She pauses. “The disadvantage is you’re doing absolutely everything yourself.”

• A Lifetimes Of High Fives is out now.

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MUSIC WORLD 4320 Local Boy

NEW TO HOT PRESS

Fly The Nest Words: Brenna Ransden

INSIDE TRACK

LOCAL BOY MAKES GOOD Lo-fi indie star Local Boy banishes the winter blues with his eclectic new EP.

F

using elements of laidback hip-hop, R&B and smooth funk with off-kilter indie-rock sensibilities, Local Boy has been busy crafting some of the most exciting sounds in Irish music. With the release of his new EP, Local Boy Ruins Everything, this month, the Burner Records co-founder, aka Jake Hurley, has cemented his reputation as one of Ireland’s most promising DIY stars.

The five-track project, led by single ‘Bright Days’, is entirely written, produced and mixed by Local Boy – exploring tales of kitchen sink realism and dreams of rock ‘n’ roll stardom. Having already received coveted spots on high profile Spotify playlists like ‘Lo-Fi Indie’, and over 30,000 monthly listeners around the world, you can expect 2020 to be a landmark year for Local Boy. Catch him in action at Greg Tisdall’s A Christmas Extravaganza at BelloBar, Dublin (Dec. 14).

Local Boy’s frequent collaborator Damola is also capping off the year in style, with the release of his debut EP, SAFE. Since first dipping his toes into the music scene as a young teenager, the Dublin rapper has become one of the most convincing voices in the Irish hip-hop boom. SAFE, led by singles ‘Gave Myself’ and ‘Critical’, arrives on December 13.

Another Irish artist heading into a blazingly bright New Year is Co. Antrim singer-songwriter Lilla 8CTIGP|– an alias that means Little Wolf in Sweden.

Following her acclaimed debut EP, Hold On – which racked up just under a million streams within a month of its release back in 2017 – the soulful artist has returned with her stunning We Were Thunder EP, which she launched with a stellar headline show Upstairs at Whelan’s last month.

And if that’s not exciting enough, she’s also currently on the road with Dermot Kennedy – and will support him at both of his sold-out shows at 3Arena, Dublin (December 22 & 23).

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It’s not easy to ‘make it’ as a full-time musician these days, but Fly The Nest, aka Stephen Cooper, is doing his damned best. The Ballinteer native splits his time 70-30 between Scandinavia and Ireland, playing Irish pubs in Oslo and Copenhagen, after being plucked from the Dublin circuit. And between all that, he also writes music for an advertising company in LA. Recently, he launched his solo career as Fly The Nest, a reference to constantly being on the move.

“I wanted a change, and I wanted everything to feel different to what I had before,” he explains. “My own idea of making it is being happy writing and playing music, and making a living from

it. That’s what I’m doing, so in my mind, I feel like I’m making it.”

Cooper draws inspiration from his dayto-day life, writing about his experiences and transforming them into cinematic rockers. ‘Animal’, for example, “is about female empowerment and basically just putting women up on a pedestal.”

“She don’t care if you wanna stop and stare / But she’ll put you under a spell while you’re there,” go his distorted vocals over headbanging guitar.

Happily, there are more anthems on the way from Fly The Nest. His next single ‘Super Human’ is set for release in January, and after that, he plans to release a series of singles every other month with accompanying visuals.

KTG Words: Joey Molloy With a voice that pierces the soul, KTG has already established herself as one of Dublin’s premier young singersongwriters. She’s been gigging all around town, and last year supported Mick Flannery. This autumn she released her conceptual debut, Searching For The Magpies, via Beardfire Studios.

“The concept of the album was based around the magpies rhyme,” explains KTG. “Every song is related to that, because I realised how superstitious I was when I moved up to Dublin for college. Each time I’d see a magpie, I’d have to go out and look for a second.

For me, the lyrics are the most important thing. Right now, I’m pulling from my own experiences.”

It’s this sort of personal touch that makes her music all the more compelling. There is certainly a sense of sincerity that comes through in her material. KTG proves herself a versatile writer on Searching For The Magpies, as she seamlessly blends elements of folk, funk, indie-rock and soul.

Looking to next year, KTG tells us that, “The second album is coming out in October. It’s called Hi, I’m A Libra and it’s going to be released on my birthday. I’ll also be putting out a series of singles.”

It will be fascinating to see how this gifted performer progresses from here…

• KTG opens for Moylan at the Workman’s, Dublin on December 18.

MUSIC WORLD 4320 Mauro Picotto

S P I N N I N G I N T H E N A M E O F. . .

MYLER

Waterford-born, Belfast-based DJ/ producer Myler tells Alix Renaud how he became a part of the acclaimed DSNT crew up North.

There is no pretentiousness in your uncompromising, ‘filthy techno’ sound. Do you reckon this is part of the reason you’ve become so popular?

This is kind of a hard question to answer and still sound humble, but I try and stay true to myself as much as possible, and I’d like to think that shines through in my music. Righteousness seems to be lacking in the techno scene these days. A lot of people seem to be in it because it’s the “thing� or it’s “cool� – pretending to be session heads for the ‘Gram – whereas this has always been my life. I think people pick up on that.

DSNT is perfectly suited to your production style. Can you tell us more about your affiliation with them?

I’ve been working with DSNT for about eight Ăži>Ă€Ăƒ Â˜ÂœĂœÂ° Ăž wĂ€ĂƒĂŒ ÂˆÂ˜ĂŒĂ€Âœ`Ă•VĂŒÂˆÂœÂ˜ ĂŒÂœ ĂŒÂ…i VĂ€iĂœ came when I was booked for an after-hours rave with Sunil Sharpe. Shortly after that, me and Oisin became good friends, and the rest is history. A long list of parties, amazing trips abroad and feared-out Monday mornings. It’s truly become a musical sanctuary for me, and the crew have become my family.

What’s been your 2019 highlight?

I suppose that would have to be the Boiler Room appearance at AVA festival – it was an absolute honour to be asked by AVA to do it. It was a stressful few weeks leading up to it, but it went amazingly well. I’ve never felt energy like that during a set before. It was insane, proper emotional.

Can we expect more of your material to come out soon?

Yes, a lot of new music coming soon. My album for DSNT has been started, and I’m also working on some new bits for other labels. I can’t talk about it just yet, but all will be announced soon!

SHE’S ELECTRIC

MAURO THE MERRIER There’s some mouthwatering clubbing on offer over the Xmas season, with Mauro Picotto’s date at Drogheda’s Electric Ballroom leading the way. By Alix Renaud

On December 21, Drogheda’s Electric Ballroom is going to be buzzing to the sound of Mauro Picotto, brought over by ,iLÂœÂœĂŒÂ° Ć‚Ăƒ ĂŒÂ…i wĂ€ĂƒĂŒ ĂŒ>Â?ˆ>˜ ĂŒÂœ iĂ›iĂ€ ĂŒÂœĂ•Ă€ the world, there’s no need to reiterate the man’s legendary status. Just last month, we mentioned his recent gig in Dublin’s Index.

Little did we know that he would be so quick to return to Irish shores – albeit a bit further north. Boasting a whopping 700 releases and seven million record sales over nearly 30 years – his 1999 “Reptilian trilogy� being the most iconic – Picotto is also the creative mind behind Meganite, one of Ibiza’s most successful and long-running nights. As a true electronic luminary, Picotto’s Drogheda show will no doubt be a memorable affair.

On Stephen’s Day, techno queen Rebekah will play one of her typically slamming sets in Waterford’s Project Nightclub, at an event put on by Tribe in association with Project. /Â…i >˜` ÂŤĂ€Âœ`Ă•ViĂ€ Â…>` Â…iĂ€ wĂ€ĂƒĂŒ }Âœ >ĂŒ ĂŒÂ…i turntables whilst still a teenager in her native Birmingham. She has built a solid reputation over the years, playing well-received sets around the globe.

Though she started out playing house, Rebekah’s true love ultimately proved to be the heavier and faster side of techno. Honing her craft with hardware hybrid sets, Rebekah has delivered a steady stream of excellent club and festival performances. Since 2007, the renowned DJ has also produced plenty of acclaimed tracks and EPs on revered labels such as Decoy Records, Cult Figures and Soma Records. Her Waterford set will be one of the clubbing highlights of the festive season.

In terms of New Year’s Eve outings in the capital, Cleric in Index – presented by Research and Subject – is one of the tastiest options. Celebrated for his thrilling brand of hard-hitting techno, the Manchester DJ/ producer has released a series of bangers since 2011, including this year’s Blood & Oil EP. Having played in some of the world’s most famous dance venues, Cleric also has his own label, Clergy, on which has he has issued his own material, as well records by the likes of Dax J and Setaoc Mass. His sound is dark and emotional enough to take listeners on a “iĂƒÂ“iĂ€ÂˆĂƒÂˆÂ˜} Â?ÂœĂ•Ă€Â˜iĂž] ĂœÂ…ÂˆÂ?ĂƒĂŒ Â…>Ă›ÂˆÂ˜} ĂƒĂ•vwVˆiÂ˜ĂŒ ĂŒÂ…Ă€Ă•ĂƒĂŒ ĂŒÂœ “>ÂŽi ĂŒÂ…i `>˜ViyÂœÂœĂ€ LÂœĂ•Â˜Vi° ˜ other words, it’s the perfect soundtrack to see in the new decade.

Elsewhere on December 31, Pygmalion present NYE at Pyg & Powerscourt, headlined by electronica masters Dusky.

Forming in 2011, the duo enjoyed instant international recognition for their cutting edge tunes and eclectic DJ sets, which spanned the full spectrum of house and techno. Their debut Stick By This was one of Pete Tong’s albums of the year, whilst the single ‘Careless’ hit pole position on the Beatport Top 100 charts. In 2014, meanwhile, the duo set up the 17 Steps imprint to issue their own material, as well as releases from new artists. Dusky’s mastery of the decks should make for a memorable end to 2019.

Also performing on the evening will be Sligo’s Brame & Hamo, who’ve put out a string of acclaimed releases on their label Splendour & Squalor. They’re well worth catching for those heading early to the Pyg & Powerscourt bash.

HOTPRESS.COM 023

“I wanted to record what I believed to be an extraordinary story, now that I was far away from it”

HOTPRESS.COM 024

ANDREA CORR

W A L K I N G B A R E F O O T Following the release of her acclaimed memoir, Barefoot Pilgrimage, Andrea Corr reflects on sexism in the music industry, coming to terms with the Catholic Church’s crimes without losing her faith, the importance of Billie Eilish, and the future of The Corrs.

INTERVIEW LUCY O’TOOLE

C

P OR T R A I T : J OH N S WA N E L L

elebrity memoirs are often best taken with a pinch of salt. Whether you’re reading a ghost-written runthrough of a pop star’s glory years, or a hastily thrown-together moneyspinner, the genre is not typically associated with, shall we say, literary merit. That’s exactly why Andrea Corr’s stunning memoir, Barefoot Pilgrimage, has blindsided both critics and the public.

Following the death of her father Gerry in 2015, Andrea began seriously reflecting on her life’s journey – resulting in a refreshingly honest work that prioritises the intricacies of family life and faith above the glitz of her worlddominating success as the lead singer of The Corrs. Indeed, for a globally idolised woman, who’s received an honorary MBE, topped charts around the world and rubbed shoulders with the likes of Nelson Mandela, Andrea proves astonishingly normal, in the best sense of the word, both on the page and in conversation.

“I wanted to record what I believed to be an extraordinary story, now that I was far away from it,” Andrea explains. “And that doesn’t just mean the music, but the home as well. It wasn’t until I came to the very end of writing this book that I even thought about people reading it.”

Often taking a stream-of-consciousness approach, Barefoot Pilgrimage raised plenty of eyebrows on its release – with many critics taken aback by Andrea’s fine-tuned writing chops and confident voice.

“Somebody recently said to me in an interview, ‘I didn’t realise you were so funny!’” she recalls with a laugh. “I was in a band as a singer – I wasn’t trying to be a celebrity character or a comedienne.

I was shy in the band, particularly in interviews, though not so much on stage. I didn’t do a lot of talking, but I’ve made up for that in the book.”

Barefoot Pilgrim was a worthy winner at this year’s An Post Irish Book Awards, taking home the prestigious prize of Ireland AM Popular NonFiction Book of the Year.

“That was so emotional for me,” she nods.

“Particularly because Daddy’s poetry was in the book. If he knew – and I think in a way he does – that he won an Irish Book Award, he’d be thrilled.”

Family takes a central role in Barefoot Pilgrimage, as it clearly does in Andrea’s everyday life – demonstrated mid-interview by her expert defusing of a rapidly escalating snack-related row between her two children.

Personal photographs are dispersed throughout the book, while she explores some of the more painful moments throughout her family’s life, including the loss of her parents and her threeyear-old brother Gerard, who died before Andrea was born. Were her family apprehensive about her decision to share these private moments with the world?

“No, because I only showed it to them once it was finished,” she reveals. “I didn’t tell anybody about it along the way. I didn’t want the expectations – because I didn’t even know what I was doing myself. But at the same time, there’s no dirty laundry, and it was never going to be sensationalist or tabloid-worthy. I kind of despair at culture these days – there’s so little dignity.”

Nonetheless, Barefoot Pilgrimage has sparked a massive reaction among readers – particularly with regard to Andrea’s moving discussion of her five miscarriages, a subject that’s impacted the lives of countless women, but often goes undiscussed in Irish life.

“Before the book came out, I was thinking about the subjects in it, and I just didn’t anticipate such a reaction to that section,” she reflects. “That reaction is very telling of how many people are quiet about their hidden grief. It’s made me quite emotional to think so many people suffer in that way – when having these pitfalls can really be a part of your reproductive life.”

The book also sees her openly discussing her faith – something she finds is becoming increasingly difficult in today’s rapidly changing world.

“These days we’re constantly being turned towards hate and darkness – because that’s what we’re watching all the time,” she muses. “Myself

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"Having gone solo, I really appreciate being a singer in a band."

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included. I’ll sit down and I’ll watch Making A Murderer, and I’ll be intrigued. But really, what we’re talking about are dead bodies, murder and hurt. And then, of course, there’s the leaders who we’re looking at. We’re watching and listening to some awful people.

“And yet, we can’t talk about our faith in humankind, or what happens to our parents and loved ones when they die,” she continues. ”That seems to be something we’re not really permitted to have a point of view on. It’s strange. But the thing is, if you’re confident in your own faith, you don’t need to push it down anyone’s throat, and that’s certainly not something I would consider. It’s something that’s with me every day of my life.”

In the face of dramatic changes in the Roman Catholic Church, does she continue to find solace in prayer and Catholicism?

“Absolutely,” she says. “Like everybody else, I’ve seen and been horrified by the crimes that have been permitted to happen within the Catholic Church that we’ve been brought up in. Those people should be fully compensated as much as they can, because their lives have now gone down a different road than they should have.

“But at the same time, for my own happiness, my own faith, and even my faith in humankind, I can’t blame God for it. I don’t want to lose God.” In the book, Andrea also addresses the realities of growing up in Dundalk during The Troubles – describing a no-go area known as ‘Little Belfast’ in her town, and her mother’s fears over armed soldiers on the border.

It’s timely, given that, four decades later, the Irish border and sectarian tensions are once again headline news.

“It was a time of terror,” she reflects. “Those wounds, from what occurred and from how people were forced to live, are still so fresh – so I hope that we will know not to walk ourselves into that again, in any way. That will meet such resistance.”

Andrea’s searingly honest approach also extends to her discussion of fame – something she admits to struggling with in her twenties. Would she be reluctant to let her children enter that world?

“Well, I’m here with a book, and an extraordinary story to tell – and that’s because of a passion for music, and walking, albeit naively, into that world,” she considers.

“If my children loved music, of course I’d embrace it all the way. I wouldn’t be without my worries, but at the same time, I’d have my worries no matter what they went into!”

Indeed, Andrea has great faith in music’s latest teenage megastar, Billie Eilish.

“She seems like an old soul,” Andrea smiles. “I’m

going to sound like a granny now, but I really do respect her stance against the over-sexualisation of women in pop culture and pop music. And I really love the songs – I’m happy that there’s no swear words, so it’s alright for the kids, too (laughs).”

She’s also noted that, at the height of The Corrs’ fame, there was a tendency among the media to pit the sisters against each other, or judge them solely by their looks – while Jim, as the sole male member of the band, was deemed the ‘proper’ musician. Are those sexist practices changing?

“Definitely not, no,” she sighs. “I would imagine that people in that position now are still getting the same treatment. It didn’t really cause tension between us, but it did cause discomfort.”

Andrea surmises that life in the public eye may be more straightforward for men – with superstars like Bono often sitting more comfortably in their fame.

“I think he’s just about gotten used to it by now,” she laughs. “It’s something he’s learned to live with it. But even John Hughes, our manager, would say that, when you watch a male rock band getting off a plane looking all wrecked, worn and messy, it’s grand – in fact, they’re probably all the more credible for it. With women, it doesn’t quite work out the same way.”

Having recently moved back to Ireland with her husband and two children, is Andrea keeping up with the current happenings on the homegrown scene?

“I’m addicted to The Gloaming!” she enthuses. “I keep putting it on every day and my children are like, ‘Mammy, you’re playing that song again!’. But aside from that, I’m pretty terrible – I’m always listening to audiobooks.”

As we hurtle towards the end of another decade, which saw the release of her second solo album, Lifelines, and a major Corrs reunion, it’s no surprise that Andrea’s real standout moments revolve around her family.

“Yes, it would have to be the children,” she nods.

“He’s nearly six and she’s seven – so they’re very much of this decade. And of course, the book. It’s a massive highlight.”

And could a Corrs reunion be on the cards for 2020?

“I hope that we play together again,” Andrea smiles.

“We’re talking about doing dates, and I believe we will do something. It’s just about managing all of our lives, with the children and everything. Having gone solo, and done all that, I really appreciate being a singer in a band, especially a band such as The Corrs. I love that position, and I really look forward to singing our songs again.”

PHOTOS: ANDREA CORR: DONALL FARMER• THE GLOAMING: HEIDI SOLANDER / BILLIE EILISH: KENNETH CAPELLO

Clockwise: Andrea Corr at Remembrance Event at Our Lady's Hospice, The gloaming, Billie Eilish & the cover of Barefoot Pilgrimage

LIVE AT VICAR ST CHRISTY MOORE FOIL, ARMS & HOG DAMIEN DEMPSEY THE CORONAS THE DUBLIN LEGENDS CHRISTY MOORE LANKUM THEO VON CHRISTY MOORE FOIL, ARMS & HOG CHRISTY MOORE THE THREE AMIGOS FOIL, ARMS & HOG BAGATELLE CARAVAN PALACE TOMMY EMMANUEL DIRTBIRDS THE LEGEND OF LUKE KELLY THE HIGH KINGS BETH HART STURGILL SIMPSON MILKY CHANCE DIRTBIRDS NEIL DELAMERE BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB TINY MEAT GANG EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY IT GALZ STEEL PANTHER THE DEAD SOUTH JASON BYRNE THE MEMORIES THE MURDER CAPITAL SLEATER-KINNEY EDITORS TONES AND I RTÉ CHOICE MUSIC PRIZE JARLATH REGAN THE FUREYS EQUIVALENT EXCHANGE ANDY IRVINE & PAUL BRADY THE LEGEND OF LUKE KELLY THE LOST BROTHERS MARY BLACK

17 DEC 18 & 19 DEC 20 - 22 DEC 23 DEC 28 DEC 2 & 3 JAN 4 & 5 JAN 6 JAN 7 & 8 JAN 9 - 12 JAN 13 & 14 JAN 15 JAN 16 & 17 JAN 19 JAN 21 JAN 23 JAN 24 JAN 25 JAN 26 JAN 31 JAN 1 FEB 2 FEB 6 FEB 7 & 8 FEB 10 & 11 FEB 12 FEB 13 FEB 14 & 15 FEB 16 FEB 18 FEB 21 & 22 FEB 26 FEB 27 FEB 1 MAR 2 MAR 3 MAR 5 MAR 6 MAR 7 MAR 14 MAR 15 & 18 MAR 19 MAR 21 MAR 22 MAR

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4 JUL 10 JUL 11 JUL 12 JUL 18 JUL 19 JUL

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THE

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21 DEC 29 JAN 17 FEB 18 FEB

MICK FLANNERY FRIDAY 20 MARCH 2020 VICAR ST

2 019 H O T P R E S S XMAS ROUND TA B L E

WRAPPING UP THE YEAR Ed Sheeran, Dolores O’Riordan, Gay Byrne, Billie Eilish, Cher, ��airytale Of �e� �or�’, � �a�tor, The �rishman, hip hop hopefuls, �ontaines ��C� and the rebirth of trad are all on the agenda as a sele�tion�bo� of �rish musos gather for our festi�e po���o��

FEATURING (CLOCKWISE): M O L LY M c K E R N A N NIAMH DUNNE, LOUIS WALSH,NOEL HOGAN & TARA STEWART

M OD E R ATOR S T UA R T C L AR K P H OTOG R AP H Y M I G U EL RU I Z

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P R E S S T O P L AY (L-R): Louis Walsh, Stuart Clark, Niamh Dunne, Molly McKernan, & Tara Stewart.

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t’s in type so small you can barely read it, but the ‘Please leave your dignity at the frontdoor’ on the bottom of the Hot Press Christmas Round Table invite explains why Louis Walsh is wandering around 100 Capel Street in a comedy elf beard.

Having renewed acquaintances with Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Dermot O’Leary on The X Factor: Celebrity, Louis is now seeking a new act – “They could be sixteen or sixty; solo or a band; rock or hip hop; as long as they’re amazing and will sell lots of records, I’m in,” he says – to manage in addition to Westlife who’ve done brisker business in 2019 than ever. �Did I thin� that twenty years after releasing their �rst single they’d be doing two nights in Cro�e �ar��� �ouis re�ects� �No, it’s fairytale stuff� The last three number ones in the �� � The Script, Dermot �ennedy and �estlife � have been Irish� Earlier in the year Ho�ier topped the charts in �merica� No one’s really selling records anymore, but musically we’re in a great place�� �nd so say all of us� �ouis is eager to meet some of �the new faces� who are contributing to the rude health of the scene here� Happy to oblige, Hot Press �mas �ound Table invitations have also been sent to Niamh Dunne from Ed Sheeran’s favourite trad band �eoga� �fm roc� and hip hop guru Tara Stewart who still hasn’t come down to earth after opening for Cher last month in ��rena� and �olly �c�ernan, one�half of incendiary duo �ulpynes who are cut from the same Dublin pun� cloth as the all� con�uering Fontaines D�C� Joining us on FaceTime is Noel Hogan who would have been wearing his fau� reindeer antlers in person but for a �ight cancellation in �ondon� He’s rac�ed up serious air miles this year promoting In The End, the album the Cranberries were recording at the time of Dolores �’�iordan’s tragic death in January ����� The fan reaction and subse�uent nomination for �est �oc� �lbum �rammy has, he says, �meant an awful lot to us and Dolores’ family�� Trying to ma�e sure they all get a fair share of the wine, choccies, crisps and peanuts on the �ound Table �which is actually rectangular� is our man Stuart Clar��

Stuart: �asy one �rst � or is it� �lbums and gigs of the year� Molly: �o, it�s really hard� �nything that came out before the summer �ust gets deleted in my head. �y top one was de�nitely Pete Doherty & The Puta Madres. �is show in the �cademy was so ama�ing. ��m going to see �he �ibertines this wee� in �anchester. �e�s such an incredible talent. Hot Press’ interview with him earlier this year was ace. �he �ontaines �.�. album is de�nitely up there, as is the latest Desert Sessions � �osh �omme is a genius. � was in the moshpit for �dles at �icar St. and then again in �veagh �ardens, which is another �ig of the �ear contender. � probably still have the bruises�

Noel: �e�ve been so busy promoting our own record � haven�t had time to listen to anyone else�s, but ��ve heard great things about �ontaines �.�. and �he �urder �apital who probably have a lot of the same albums in their collection as � do. ��m going to do my �imeric� �ag waving and say �mma �angford and �ow�ig who are both brilliant. �aving a venue li�e �olan�s really galvanises the local scene. �here was a �uiet period in �imeric� but now there�s a local act playing virtually every night of the wee�. �etting to see �he �ure at �alahide �astle was a highlight this year. ��ve been a fan of theirs for as long as � can remember. �hey were such a huge in�uence on �he �ranberries. � was luc�y enough to meet �obert Smith afterwards and went into babbling ��-year-old fan boy mode. � don�t thin� � let him get a word in edgeways going on about their albums. �s you wal� away reality �ic�s in and you thin�, ��hat did � say to that man�� �t was embarrassing and ama�ing at the same time.

Stuart: �f you�re going to ma�e a twat of yourself in front of somebody, let it be �obert Smith.

Noel: ��actly, although he mightn�t see it li�e that� Niamh: ��ve been listening to �lbow�s new one, Giants Of All Sizes, nonstop. �t�s a different sort of album for them� heavier and more e�perimental, which � li�e. �uy �arvey is one of the great lyricists of his generation. �ouring with �oy �ance meant � got to see him nine nights in a row, which was brilliant. ��or� last wee� in the ��rena was mindblowing stuff.

Tara: � really wanted to see ��or� but my show is in the evening so � miss so many gigs. Such a �rst world problem, � �now, but annoying all the same. � hear she�s banned people using phones at her gigs.

Niamh: �eah, and no harm either. � thin� we�ve all had shows ruined by ee�its holding up their phones or, worse still, i�ads. �lus, it means you�re seeing the ama�ing visuals and technology for the �rst time. ��ve no problem with artists doing that.

Tara: �usic-wise, � loved this singer out of �ashington �.�., �ri �enno�, who was signed by �. �ole. She did a song with him as well on her record, Shea Butter Baby. �t�s a bit of a toss up between that and �i��o�s Cuz I Love You for my �lbum of the �ear. �ncredible too were �� �racey�s eponymous one and �illie �ilish�s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? One of the stupidest things this year was the bac�lash to her not �nowing who �an �alen are. She was probably minus-twenty when they were having their big hits.

Stuart: �hat wasn�t mentioned is that she could go on Mastermind with �he �eatles as her specialist sub�ect. � as�ed her what her favourite �ab �our record was and she said the White Album. �hich was the correct answer.

Molly: She was really good at �lectric �icnic. �here was genuine warmth to her performance, which � wasn�t necessarily e�pecting. �o be that together and still only seventeen is insane.

Louis: � li�e what ��ve heard of �illie �ilish � her parents are �rish, aren�t they� � and �ermot �ennedy is the real deal. �y �rst time seeing him was on Jimmy Kimmel in �merica and � thought, ��ow�� �ith the greatest respect to �ontaines �.�. what they do is niche whereas �ermot �ennedy will sellout �ro�e �ar�. �nhaler are going to be another very big act. �ot because it�s �ono�s son

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“INHALER ARE GOING TO BE ANOTHER VERY BIG ACT. NOT BECAUSE IT’S BONO’S SON BUT BECAUSE THEY’VE GOT THE LOOK AND THE SONGS” - LO U I S WA L S H

but because they�ve got the look and the songs. � was talking to somebody in �olydor who�ve signed them and they�ve big hopes for �nhaler and a �amaican girl, �eleste, who they reckon is going to be the big thing ne�t year. � love some of the new country acts in �merica like �aren �orris� she�s a superstar in the making. �ashville�s gone very pop�rocky with people like her and �acey �usgraves, although there�s old�timey stuff too like �argo �rice.

Molly: �h, she�s great� �he�s really lived her songs.

Stuart: �oo�e, drugs, divorce, drunken misdemeanours, �ail time� �s. �rice has done the lot.

Louis: �raham �ash in the �ational �oncert �all this year was ama�ing. � went to see �her in �ay in �iami. �he out�ts and the show were incredible. �he�s �� and still giving value for money.

Tara: � dee�ayed at �her�s gig in the ��rena. � was shitting myself too much, though, to really en�oy it. �aving actually succeeded in making people dance � � even got her own security bopping with �estiny�s �hild ��urvivor�� ��d probably be more rela�ed doing that sort of thing again. � was told �no photos� but � was like, ��her�s upstairs, there�s no way ��m leaving this building without getting my picture taken with her.� �o � thought, ��uck it� and went directly to her team who, honestly, were some of the nicest people ��ve met. �ost of her stagehands have been with her since she started in the ���s, which speaks volumes. �he hustle paid off and � got to meet �her who was �ust fabulous. �hen � said, ��e need to get the light right for the photo�, she was like, ��ou know it, girl�� Stuart� �nyone else feel completely starstruck this year� Molly: �eing on the same �unday bill at �ndiependence as �iffy �lyro was totally surreal. �t was lashing rain all day � apart, funnily enough for our set � but the crowd �ust got wet and loved it. ��m a punk obsessive, so supporting �tiff �ittle �ingers in �he �cademy was a dream come true.

Louis: �iamh, sorry, the penny�s only �ust dropped that you�re the band who�ve worked with �d �heeran.

Niamh: �eah, he gave us a dig out. �e wrote a bit of music, ��inute ��, ten years ago, which nobody gave a shit about until �d �heeran sampled it for ��alway �irl�. �t�s funny you mentioned �oy �ance because he was the connection between �d and us. �d writes a lot with �oy, and we�re always writing with �oy so it was one degree of separation. �nd that introduces

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you to the e�tended family of �ohnny �c�aid and �ary �ightbody� Louis: �ho are some of the best writers around. �d wrote a lot of the songs for the new �estlife album� they�re all great. �e really helps and gives to people, doesn�t he� �he perceived wisdom was that to play stadiums you had to have ten albums and fourteen people on stage, but he �ust brings a few effects pedals with him and gets stuck in. �here are no rules anymore for artists or record companies.

Stuart: �f somebody had said to me a couple of years ago that, ��he guy who signed �he �miths and �he �trokes and �he �ibertines, �eoff �ravis, is going to launch a trad label and make hip young things out of �ankum and �isa ���eill�, ��d have offered to drive them back to the care home.

Niamh: �eople are starting to realise that trad can be innovative and current. � feel like we�re part of that.

Stuart: �ou helped give birth to it.

Niamh: �ell, thanks� Tara: � saw �he �cratch at �ther �oices who were absolutely brilliant.

Molly: �ttitude�wise �ankum are a punk band.

Louis: � have to admit � haven�t heard of any of them, which is probably because they�re not on the radio or television very often. �hey�re still the number one ways to break an act.

Stuart: �omebody who�s never off the radio and the telly is �o�ier� Louis: � picked him. �aroline �esmond from ��� asked me to go to �t. �erard�s in �ray and �udge a school talent competition. �e sung a �ina �imone song and straight away � knew, ��his guy�s going to sell millions of records.� �aroline decided to take him under her wing and the rest is history. �o�ier�s very lucky to have �aroline and �aroline�s very lucky to have �o�ier. �e�s a lovely guy who hasn�t changed a bit.

Stuart: �e reminds me of �d �heeran in that he makes it look so easy when obviously it�s not.

Niamh: �he only time ��ve seen �d nervous was before the �yramid �tage at �lastonbury. �esus �hrist, we were all nervous� �hat was probably the �rst time there were two accordions on the main stage at �lastonbury. �t was only looking back at it afterwards on �� that it felt real. �hen you�re up there staring at this sea of faces you can�t take it in. �t�s bucket�list stuff.

Stuart: �o you wince when you hear bad buskers murdering ��alway �irl�� Niamh: �s our drummer �okes, ��here�s a great sound of no mortgage

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off it” so we�re very forgiving� � laugh when people say we�ve been �an overnight success� because we�ve been treading the boards for ��, �� years with the same line-up.

Stuart: �ara, you�re one of the few ��s in the country who�s totally nonplaylisted and gets to play ���� new music.

Niamh: � love your show by the way� Tara: �hank you� ��ve no idea why but �fm seem to trust me. �ven though it�s five nights a week, it�s difficult to fit everything in. �e�re ��� �rish� Louis: �s all radio shows here should be� Tara: �he first hour is any genre� the second is rap, hip hop and ��B which is getting stronger in �reland by the day. �ango � �athman, �o�a�ue and �e��ie Snow are well-known at this stage but there are others waiting to break through like �hite �a�, a �ublin duo who are �uite comedic but the beats are great� �ebi �e� who sold out �ost �ane recently� their ��, �ed, who�s also known as �ebi �ecks� �inch who�s more of a poet� �th �bi from �aterford� and �aleb and �alshy, one of whom is from �ublin and the other from �ondon. �here are so many.

Molly: �t really helps when an �rish �� has your back. �an �egarty has opened up so many doors for us. �e�s played all our singles, comes to our gigs and re-tweets us. � hate the word �in�uencer� but people take notice of somebody like �an.

Louis: Other Voices is important. �t�s very well made and authentic.

Stuart: �e�re all agreed that there�s more great �rish music out there than ever, but as �avid �itt has highlighted, skyrocketing rents mean that more and more artists are having to move to places like Berlin where accommodation is affordable and the authorities give a damn about culture.

Molly: � work part-time� otherwise � couldn�t afford to live in �ublin. �y dream is being able to ���� concentrate on �ulpynes, but that�s �ust not an option at the moment. �very musician � know is in the same boat. �one of them are paying their rent from gigging and festivals alone. �e�re not on big money� your fee �ust about covers getting you there and playing. � don�t want to have to start from scratch living somewhere else. � tried �ondon and it wasn�t for me. � love the venues and the bu�� in �ublin. ��m going to be stubborn and stay here.

Tara: �e want to keep you. �hy should you have to leave� Louis: �t�s �ust a great city.

Stuart� Somebody we lost this year is �ay Byrne. �hat are your favourite memories of him� Louis: � grew up watching �ay every �riday night, thinking he was �od. �e was in�uential in so many ways � and then he put Boy�one on for me. � rang up on the �hursday, and they had them on the Late Late on the �riday. �hich proves that anything is possible� � couple of the boys are fed up of seeing the clip, but that�s how it started. � used to be the agent for �inda �artin, Brush Shiels, �ob Strong, �slan and �ountainead, and being on the Late Late was guaranteed to sell records and tickets. �s with �erry �yan, we�ll never see the likes of �ay again.

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Noel: �e were on a couple of times with �aybo, after which we felt, ��e can retire now�” �ou could have been top �� in �merica, but it was only when you were on the Late Late that your parents thought, ��hey�re not wasting their time�” �e was very welcoming to us and loved �olores� they had great craic the two of them together.

Stuart: �id you see the BB� �� trying to make a name for himself this week by describing ��airytale �f �ew �ork� as �an offensive pile of downmarket chav bilge.”

Louis: Bullshit, it�s a great record. �irsty �ac�oll�s voice is so good and the video was ama�ing.

Noel: � �ust think it�s ridiculous. �t�s all gone so �.�. now. � guess ��m showing my age a little bit, but people get offended too easily. �re we going to start doing that to every song� �hings like that slightly rub me up the wrong way.

Molly: �hat �� is so spectacularly missing the point of the song, which is one of the few �hristmas records that doesn�t make me gag.

Niamh: Shane is simply one of the best songwriters we�ve had in this country. �hen you think about ��ainy �ight �n Soho� for instance, it�s poetry.

Louis: �or me it�s �an. � adore him.

Stuart: �oel, congratulations on the much-deserved �rammy nomination.

Noel: �o be honest with you, it was slightly overwhelming a couple of weeks ago when � got the call about it. � was at home and thought back to being in �rance on my own in ���� and deliberately sitting down to write the first song, and sending it to �olores. �t felt ama�ing but it dug it all back up a bit. Between writing it, the thing with �olores and going in with Stephen Street to try and finish it off, this album has been a long hard road but totally, totally worth it. �t�s �ust nice that other people apart from our selves get the record.

Niamh: �t�s great, ��m so happy for you. � would never have thought it possible to be in a band if it weren�t for �olores.

“I LOVE THE VENUES AND THE BUZZ IN DUBLIN. I’M GOING TO BE STUBBORN AND STAY HERE.” - M O L LY F R O M VULPYNES

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T A B L E T O P P E R S : Billie Eilish, The Irishman, Dermot Kennedy & Fontaines D.C

Molly: �ame here. �eeing this bad ass �rish woman playing rock music� �olores was an icon for me.

Noel: �t�s slightly different and slightly the same in that when we started we looked at �� doing The Unforgettable Fire and thought, ��hey�re �ust a band from �ublin and they�re over in �merica doing ama�ingly.� �t was way different music to the �ranberries, but it showed us you didn�t have to be from �ew �ork or �ondon. �revious to that we�d thought bands were made in a factory in a big city and came out looking super cool and sounding great when in actual fact they�re from normal backgrounds. �t�s really lovely of �olly and �iamh to say those things. � know that �olores would be so happy and proud that she�s been an in�uence on the ne�t generation of bands.

Stuart: �ave you had a chance to look at the mural of her that went up recently near to �ing �ohn�s �astle� Noel: � saw it over the weekend. � was driving round the corner, had totally forgotten about it and was like, �Oh, shit�� �ou don�t think these things are going to affect you, but suddenly you get a lump in your throat again. �s we said to you when we met earlier in the year, for so many people she was �olores O��iordan the star and all that, but for us it�s our friend. �on�t get me wrong� the mural is stunning and a wonderful tribute to her. � love the fact that fans have somewhere to go and remember her, so thanks to everybody involved. �t does get a little bit easier as time moves on.

Stuart: �ow�s the �ranberries documentary you told us about in �ebruary progressing� Noel: �etween all the reissues and the album this year, we�ve had to push it back but come �anuary we�re going to be focusing on that. �irst things first, the company we�re going with have directors in mind who they want us to meet, which will happen early in the �ew �ear. �hey�ll probably do the interviews with other people first and then sit down and speak to us. �e did some interviews three years ago for another thing that didn�t end

“SHANE IS SIMPLY ONE OF THE BEST SONGWRITERS WE’VE HAD IN THIS COUNTRY. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT ‘RAINY NIGHT IN SOHO’ FOR INSTANCE, IT’S POETRY.” - NIAMH DUNNE

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up being made, so there�s a lot of unseen footage of �olores that we�ll be able to use.

Louis: �nother really important thing about �olores is that she sung in her own accent. �e didn�t realise how good she was until she was gone. �t wa s the same with �i��y. �e didn�t realise what a real fucking rock star �hilip �ynott was until he died.

Molly� � �ust feel wronged that my all�time favourite �rish band, �hin �i��y, weren�t of my generation. �o have seen them �ust once� �t�s not fair� Stuart: �ho�s the most charismatic person you�ve been in the same room as� Noel: � always remember us doing the �.�.�. tour and �ichael �tipe, who was another big hero of ours, �ust having something about him. �ven though they were so, so big at the time he was very welcoming. �wo years earlier we�d been in �.�. for the first time doing the ��inger� video and he called �round really late at night to see the director who�d previously worked on their ��osing �y �eligion� promo. �e has that star �uality about him without trying to be a star.

Molly: �ruce �pringsteen. �e and my �am spotted him in the corner of the �ong �all having a pint. � didn�t want to be one of those loser fans bothering him, but � couldn�t help it. � went over and he was so nice. �e gets �ublin �us everywhere when he�s here too. �egend.

Louis: �nd he goes into �ower and buys all the local music. �lton �ohn�s the same� he knows everybody in the charts and gives �hristmas presents of his favourite new albums.

Stuart: �id you see Rocketman� Louis: �o and � don�t want to because � know the real story. �he most charismatic person ��ve met is �avid �owie. � got him to sign a picture in ���� when he played ��, now �he �cademy. �e was totally up on new music too.

Tara: �ine�s �her. � couldn�t stop staring at her.

Louis: �nyone watched The Irishman yet� Stuart: �t�s too short� Tara: �o it wasn�t, �tuart. �y bum went to sleep� Niamh: �t didn�t do it for me now.

Molly: � got restless leg halfway through it in the cinema. � much preferred Joker, which not being a �arvel fan � had to be dragged to, but was great.

Louis: � watched The Irishman last night and ��ll watch it again. �he soundtrack � “In the still of the night/I held you tight/ ‘Cause I love you so” and all those other songs � was great. �oe �esci has to get an Oscar for that.

Noel: �o spoilers� �atherine and myself spoke about this the other night and we�re saving it for �hristmas. �t�s been nominated for a whole bunch of stuff so � can�t wait to see it.

Stuart: �t would be entirely remiss of me, �ouis, to have you here and not elicit some �uality showbi� gossip. �tarting with �adine �oyle� Louis: �er thanking me the other night in the bloody �ungle� she�d never

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thanked me in her life before. �ut she�s a nice girl. She was in the �rish Popstars and fucked up big time over her passport and her age. She was devastated by it and didn�t want to leave her house in �erry� she�d totally lost her con�dence. �t almost destroyed her. �hen � heard � was doing Popstars in �ngland� � rang her and said� ��lease� please go for this because you�re good enough.” �nd she did� which shows real character. �he other girls hated me for saying she was the best singer in �irls �loud� but she was.

Stuart: �ow was the latest X Factor run� Tara: �h my �od� the �ussycat �olls with the water and everything were brilliant.

Louis: �t was ris�u�� � love �icole. �s she said to me when it was announced that �ussycat �olls are reforming� ��hey�re my backing dancers�” Tara: �here was a very telling moment on the show when she was in the spotlight and the rest of them were in the dark. � thought� ��eah� �icole�s always going to be the star of that.”

Louis: � had the winner� �egan �c�enna� who�s not the person � thought she was from Big Brother. She�s a real songwriter� loves her music and is going to have an ama�ing career. ��m not involved� ��m �ust helping her out.

Molly: �id anyone see �hristina �guilera in the ��rena� Tara: �o� but � heard she was great.

Louis: She�s off the boil� though� as a recording artist.

Tara: �here was de�nitely more hype about �ritney Spears coming back than there was �hristina. � saw �ritney twice last year � here and in �ondon � and it was depressing but still� Louis: �t least she�s alive and out there doing it. ���y�s on tour again and will make it to �ublin. � know that because � helped him and Sharon book their hotel. ���y is the nicest man. �ery funny and very dry. �verybody thinks he�s a bit shaky but he�s on the ball.

Molly: �e�d have to be to have survived the industry this long.

Louis: �on�t believe anything you read � they are the best couple. �hey need each other.

Tara: � love the song he did with �ost �alone. �is part works really well.

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“DOLORES WOULD BE SO HAPPY AND PROUD THAT SHE’S BEEN AN INFLUENCE ON THE NEXT GENERATION OF BANDS.” - N OEL HOGAN

Stuart: �inally guys� what are your �hristmas plans� Tara: ��m feeling really smug because ��m going to �alaysia. �y boyfriend�s going to meet my mother who�s from there and about two hundred family members. �hey�re all going to want photos with him because he�s tall� ginger and pale� Molly: �his is the �rst year in ages we haven�t been gigging over �hristmas� so ��m looking forward to �ust drinking some gin with my �um and �ad.

Niamh: ��m the opposite. �e�re �at out until �hristmas �ve so this is my �rst time ever not going home to my mother. ��ve got a date with my couch instead.

Louis: � go to �iami for four weeks every �ecember and � love it. ��m going to see �eline �ion. She�s a real one�off and had a number one album last week in �merica so ��m really looking forward to it.

Noel: �ell� we�ve The Irishman to watch� �oing back to the height of the �ranberries cra�iness� we�ve always said� ��ome mid��ecember we�ll get our arses home to �imerick.” ��m basically going to eat too much and catch up with all the �lms� �� shows and records ��ve missed out on travelling.

Stuart: �appy �hristmas everyone� Everyone: �appy �hristmas�

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HELLO DARKNESS WARNING: C O N T A IN S N U D IT Y & F LY I N G G U I TA R S

When pomp-rock supremos The Darkness invited Pat Carty to join their Irish tour, it was an offer he couldn’t refuse. Amidst the partying, crowd-surfing, backstage craziness and tourbus hi-jinks, he gains insight into a band with an unconquerable belief in the rock and roll dream.

Photography: Pat Carty & Jenny May Finn

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F

or many people – people of refinement, taste and breeding – rock n’ roll will always sound better with a feather boa around its neck and a leer on its face. If you’re inclined to run away with the circus, it may as well be a multi-coloured one, with all the lights on.

Bearing this maxim in mind, it took me half a breath to accept an offer from The Darkness’ management to join the band on their Irish tour. I had visions of bacchanalian boogeying that, as a once great man once nearly sang, would have had Caligula blushing.

I’m contractually obliged to say that out of that tantalising triumvirate of sex, drugs, and rock 'n’ roll, the important one is the music. Easter Is Cancelled is The Darkness’ best record since 2003’s debut Permission To Land, which won them a place in the hearts of true rock and roll believers.

Billed as “An Evening With The Darkness”, on these dates, the band have made the brave/foolhardy decision to play the album in its entirety, and then return with a selection of fan favourites to close. When I arrive into Cork’s Cyprus Avenue, they are hard at work soundchecking. There’s a slight tension in the air, as they practise switching

from acoustic to electric instruments on first song ‘Rock N’ Roll Deserves To Die’.

However, this dissipates quickly as the irrepressible Justin Hawkins bounds over to greet me.

We’ve known each other a few years, and he’s a gentleman who’s never less than sparkling company. Pleasantries dispensed with, I stick my professional oar in, asking why the band were making things difficult for themselves at soundcheck.

“There’s lots of calamity potential,” he replies. “But if it’s too comfortable, it’s not satisfying.”

“It’s growth that we’re all excited about!” he continues, with one eye on the quoteo-meter. “Prog can be challenging.” It can be a challenging listen too, I mutter, an utterance rewarded with a grin and raised eyebrow.

As they resume soundcheck, The Darkness rattle through an overpowering ‘Growing On Me’. Hawkins saves his real screams for showtime, although he can’t help throwing a few shapes. The band switch instruments for the frankly ridiculous ‘Deck Chair’.

“You hate that song,” Hawkins will late declaim, pointing at me. “I’m not crazy about it,” I acknowledge, “but you can’t expect me to like it all." “I expect you to love it!” The Mark Knopfler-style guitar solo is a bit tasty, though. “So you do love it!”

THE DARKNESS on tour

MY OLD FRIEND…

(Opposite page from left) The Hawkins brothers and Pat Carty deep in analytical thought; The Darkness rocking The Academy; and the band's collection of guitars.

“THERE’S LOTS OF CALAMITY POTENTIAL. BUT IF IT’S TOO COMFORTABLE, IT’S NOT SATISFYING.”

protests Hawkins.

The singer also debates his entrance (Matron!), which he feels should involve hydraulics or, failing that, at least a zip line. Ultimately, neither are available.

Upstairs in the dressing room, I’m introduced to Justin’s brother Dan; bassist Frankie Poullain; and the newest member of the band, Rufus Tiger Taylor. The latter is a man so handsome, he’s impossible not to hate. Until, that is, he suggests we seek refreshment. Upon my return, Hawkins corrals me into helping with a list of Christmas songs for a British magazine, and considers an offer to appear on 8 Out Of 10 Cats, which I think would be gas, but he’s unsure. He doesn’t venture out before the show – “I don’t want a cold, I want to do a good show, I don’t want that reputation” – so we sit and get a few things straight.

The Darkness’ first single of 2019 was titled ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Deserves To Die’. Surely it doesn’t?

“We saw a video, I don’t even remember what the band was,” recalls Hawkins, “and we thought, ‘Oh look, this band’s gonna be exciting!’ But when you looked at it, they were really struggling.”

All smoke bombs and young ones on car bonnets?

“And long hair.”

What’s wrong with long hair?

“Nothing’s wrong with long hair! That was where they got it right! But there was nothing new, nothing challenging, nothing that made you go, ‘I wish we thought of that.’”

But people might point at you guys…

“But they’d be wrong, Pat, and you know that! You have to have more than one influence. For example, Frankie listens to Serge, that comes through. I am referring to Serge from Kasabian, of course!”

No, you’re not. They’re really edgy!

“Yes, that is the definition of edge! The point is we’ve got a lot of influences, and if you look for them, you’ll see them.” So it’s not just Queen and AC/DC? “Sometimes, it’s AC/DC and Queen.”

As well as playing the new record, on the current tour, The Darkness do perform the immortal ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’. A millstone about the neck, I wonder? I am quickly shot down.

“That’s never happened to me,” shrugs Hawkins. “It’s the best song we’ve got – it’s the best song anyone’s got. Tell me a better song than that?”

I suggest ‘Solid Gold’ has more fellatio and people shitting themselves – “we wanted to call that album Royal Flush, with a turd made out of gold playing cards on the cover” – but ‘Thing Called Love’ will be the one they play on the radio if the bus crashes tonight and kills us all.

“The band and Carty die!” Hawkins guffaws. “We’ll all get Grammys, what will you get?”

A small footnote somewhere, I hope. “A blue plaque, surely?” Hawkins kindly responds. Dan leans in to add, “I hope they play ‘American Pie’.” But then your relatives won’t get any money? “It doesn’t matter,” Justin flatly states. “We’re dead.”

This is the band’s first set of shows since performing on The Kiss Kruise, which is exactly what it sounds like: a trip around the Caribbean with Gene Simmons and co. There was probably a nice cheque involved, but is this dodgy territory?

“Why?” cries Justin. “Because you’re walking amongst the great unwashed?”

I mean, it’s end-of-the-pier fare.

“Falling into the sea? You’re worried about dying. Why are you so obsessed with dying?!”

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Drum as you are: Rufus Tiger-Taylor in full live flow, and Justin Hawkins trying out some moves demonstrated to him by Pat Carty.

IT WAS PRETTY SPINAL TAP

If there are jitters, they aren’t evident come showtime. The new songs go down like a winning lotto ticket, especially the stunning one-two of ‘Easter Is Cancelled’ and ‘Heavy Metal Lover’. Perhaps as expected, though, the Cork crowd react more to the older material. Particularly well-received are the muscular ‘Get Your Hands Off My Woman’ and The Darkness’ ode to venereal infection, ‘Growing On Me’. I’m having a particularly good time, thanks to the free beer, but so is everyone else. When the band finish with a bottom-punishing ‘Love On The Rocks’, it’s grins and hoots all round. Back in the dressing room, the mood is jubilant enough, despite some minor grumblings about this and that.

They’ll change the second set tomorrow but for now, thanks to Frankie’s charming brother Tim, a Cork resident, we head down the street for some liquidfuelled analysis. First, we slip into the Crane Lane Theatre, and then it’s onwards to Canty’s, where we head upstairs. Almost immediately, fans approach Justin. He invites them to join us, which leads to a mini-stampede. As soon as one admirer offers an alternate pronunciation of Old Spice (don’t ask), Dan gives me the eye and he, Rufus and I head back downstairs, leaving Justin to his fate (“You fucking legged it!” he roars at me later).

The sport is good, although the band are never left alone for long.

As the selfies requests mount, it’s left to Tim and myself to take up the drinking slack. Once we’re chucked out, we make our way back to the bus, though Dan insists on a slice of pizza, forgoing his half-veganism, but then drink will do that to you.

The “relaxed” talk on the bus turns to the pros and cons of plastic surgery – “you’d fix a tooth!” – before Dan offers a foul-tasting potion supposed to help one sleep. I question its validity, but am soon snug in my bunk, which, at floor level, reminds one of the sweat-box they used to put misbehaving prisoners in, in old war movies.

After our overnight drive to Belfast, I wake up to an empty bus.

People are either off working, working out (Dan and Justin), or “exploring” (Rufus). I sit down for a bit of actual toil, posting a favourable review of the show. When I finished, Rufus returns – “it was a massage, Pat!” – and tells me how he ended up in The Darkness.

“It was pretty Spinal Tap,” he reflects. “I was in Sydney with my girlfriend at the time and I got a phone call. ‘Hi, this is Dan from The

Darkness, we’ve got a vacancy at the back of the band.’ I said, ‘Ooh, I love it around the back, Dan!’ to which he replied ‘OK, we’re gonna get on!’”

Taylor took the overnight flight, learning the songs that Hawkins sent him on his knees, which “pissed a lot of people off!” He then went straight to the rehearsals to meet the band for the first time. “Justin said to me, ‘Is it weird that your Dad’s on my hand?’”

Hawkins has the four members of Queen tattooed on his knuckles, and Taylor, if you haven’t made the connection yet, is the son of drummer Roger. You know, the good looking one. “Yeah, it’s weird,” Rufus told Hawkins, “but I’ll get over it.”

The band did a press gig that day, with Taylor round the back, and that was that. He’s very shortly going to be their longest serving drummer. He spent the previous five years with Queen, playing percussion and understudy, lest his father fall ill, as well as appearing with Jeff Beck. Joining a band that obviously owe a debt to his father’s group, though, never worried him.

“I never had that feeling going in,” he says. “Yes they’re heavily influenced by Queen – but Queen were influenced by all their guys too, Little Richard is my Dad’s fucking hero!”

Taylor, a fan of the band since hearing them at 14 – “’Growing On Me’ blew my mind, there was nothing else like that, it was just fucking Nickelback!” – agrees with my assertion that this is a band who belong in arenas, if not stadiums. Nonetheless, it’s a joy to see them in smaller rooms, and he’s determined to get them back to the biggest venues.

“What annoys me,” he notes, “is that we did shows like the Download festival in my first year, a secret show. We packed that tent out and it was double packed outside. The entrance was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. We had ten Vikings, extras from the TV show, who walked us from the dressing room. Every other band was there, Slash, all of them, and Justin went with these Vikings right to the back of the crowd. They hoisted him up on a shield, in this turquoise suit, of course, and then carried him right through the middle. He was giving it all this” – Taylor makes a face like a nobleman at a particularly fine feast – “and we started ‘Barbarian’. The place fucking erupted!

A great show, we absolutely smashed it, but we never had a fucking offer back, and we did that for fucking free! I don’t get it. Coldplay do Glastonbury and they bring on Michael Eavis every time, and it is

“EVERY OTHER BAND WAS THERE, SLASH, ALL OF THEM, AND JUSTIN WENT WITH THESE VIKINGS RIGHT TO THE BACK OF THE CROWD."

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THE DARKNESS on tour sickening.”

I remind him that Justin once called Eavis a very rude word in the press.

“Oh yeah. No. We’re banned from Glastonbury!”

MYSTIQUE CHISELLING

Another soundcheck, this time in Belfast’s famed Limelight. The band have a rough run at Zeppelin’s ‘When The Levee Breaks’, because it’s a more relaxed affair than yesterday. What’s evident is that the engine room – as with any great band – is being driven by the interplay between Dan and Rufus. Dan has the right hand of God, pushing things along like Keith Richards and Malcolm Young before him. When he tells me that he “just likes hitting the same thing again and again”, he’s selling himself short. But he acknowledges his debt to the DC. “I listened to them a lot,” he says. “I’d switch the speakers entirely to the left, just to study Malcolm’s playing. I could play along exactly like him, because it’s all open chords, simple but brilliant. Technically I’m appalling, but I’ve got really good rhythm.” Frankie had introduced us to the joys of his bass synthesiser at last night’s show, and it rears its ugly head again today. “That’s a horror show,” says Dan, shaking his head slowly, “but it’s a horror show played by a man in a dressing gown! Frankie’s a great bloke, it wouldn’t be the same without him, and it wasn’t for a while.”

Once the work is done, Rufus gives me the international sign for pints, and he, Frankie and I head off, loudly declaring to anyone who’s listening that we’re “going for something to eat”. Over a quick one or two, they regale me with stories of Johnny Depp, Jeff Beck outrunning the police in his hot rod, and a gig near the old Spandau prison in Berlin, where Justin loudly asked “Does anyone speak German here?” I, reluctantly, return to the venue to have another word with the singer, a man who could talk for England.

We cover a lot of ground: his phrase “Rise Of The Arse Clowns” which sums up the world today (“I see this as a period where the arse clowns are having their way, but I look forward to the eventual arse clown downfall!”), and his trepidation at providing a VIP experience for the more well-heeled fan, which commences with the Dublin show.

“It’s mystique chiselling,” he muses. “Music used to be an aspirational vocation. You want to be the rock star, you want to drive the big car, and live in the big house with the high fence nobody can see over. You don’t see the real legends farting in the bathtub or posting selfies – you don’t get to watch them prepare for their show in their civilian clothes. I’ve never wanted access to the artists I’ve admired. I don’t want to see Abba having a bickering match or Steven Tyler choosing his Hawaiian shirt. I don’t want to meet them. I want to appreciate the art. I really think it devalues what we’re doing, from art to either a service, or even worse, content.”

This last word drips with disgust before he continues.

“That’s why being a rock star is something people don’t aspire to anymore. There’s no money in it. Unless you’re in Coldplay. And if you’re in Coldplay, that’s not living.

You don’t even want to go on the road in case you knock over a tree or crash into squirrels.”

Hawkins’ well-publicised problems with the rockin’ perils brought the band to a halt around 2006. He got help and pulled himself back from the brink.

“There was a rock bottom but I just can’t tell you about that,” he says. “It makes me hate myself, and whenever I think about it, I want to cry.”

He threw himself into fitness, a habit he maintains to this day. “I was basically a muscle with some sounds coming out of the hole in the middle of it.” There’s an album cover of nightmares.

He’s in a better place now, with a better band.

“It’s the magic The Darkness has,” he suggests. “There’s a certain chemistry between Frankie and the brothers, and the times when it is glorious have always been Frankie times. Rufus has only enhanced that, it feels like something totally new.”

The singer still has plans, though.

“I intend to get fucked up if I get to 60.”

This, he insists, possibly incorrectly, is still 32 years away, but the plan is to go bananas. Is he going to give me a shout?

“Yeah, man! I need someone to write about it!” So I have to work as well? “This isn’t work, Pat. We both know that.” To be serious – although I certainly will await that call – it is music that matters.

“When I was at school I wanted to be a pilot,” recalls Hawkins. “I wanted to do something that was really thrilling, something where you feel totally alive. Live music and touring gives you that. If you’re a footballer, it’s all about focus – there’s a ball there and absolutely nothing else matters.

Sport, music and flying are the three things that every kid should be looking for, because that’s living.”

24 hour Carty people: The Darkness make shock kidnap attempt on our correspondent

Is he talking about freedom?

“Yes,” he nods. “Freedom is when nothing matters, apart from the thing that you’re doing. There’s freedom in that.” All the clowning has gone out the window; this is how the man really feels. “That’s what I look for.

Anything that interferes with the one moment of my life where I’m totally focused has got to go. It is the first and most important thing.”

SOLID GOLD

Belfast’s show is even better than the night before. The band seem more assured, the new album rocks. There is a sense of fun to the second set, nowhere more so than when guitar tech/multi-instrumentalist Ian ‘Soft Lad’ Norfolk has his beard ceremoniously shaved into a moustache – an event that Justin, after prompting from the crowd, decides should be for charity. He ill-advisedly calls for donations and a barrage of coins rain down onstage.

This money will later be ceremoniously donated to a nearby barman.

Hawkins does headstands, flicks plectrums left, right and centre, and plays his guitar in every conceivable pose.

The band bring out ‘Solid Gold’, much to my delight (“It’s Pat’s fault!”), and even introduce me from the stage.

Tumbleweeds blow by and a city, as one, goes “Who?” Before they finish, Hawkins encourages two audience members to fight to the death to decide if there will be another song. The Darkness are a phenomenal live act and they kick every arse for a mile around.

Being introduced by Justin brings its own problems. I’m cornered by fans of the band, one in particular who insists I deliver a book to Frankie to sign, which I politely refuse.

He’s a good chap though, and buys a drink, unprompted, before I head back to the dressing room. The mood is ebullient, pints of Guinness arrive, and once the crowd has cleared a bit, Justin, Dan and I move to the main bar.

We take another corner table with The Rews, a fine band providing excellent support on the tour. There are still a few people knocking about, including my friend with the book, and several drinks are sent over. Justin is, of course, on the alcohol free stuff, but he seems to take joy in the fact that Dan and I, not wanting to appear rude or ungrateful, are trying to drink everything that’s put in front of us.

Because of this amiability, possibly my only fault, I awake in the bunk the next morning worse for wear, and stark naked. Not normally a problem, except I’ve no idea where my clothes are. Not hearing any sound, I roll out on to the aisle from that bottom bunk. Carved as my arse is, by artisans, out of the finest Irish granite, the world does not need to see it. I move swiftly towards the front lounge but I hear voices, so that won’t do.

Thankfully the back lounge is empty, and my clothes are in a ball on the floor. Once decent, I leave the bus and run into Rufus, having a pick-meup. Justin comes around the corner, fresh from a morning run, surveying these two wrecks with a pitiful eye.

We’re parked at the Dublin docks. Over a cup of coffee, Rufus laughs at the memory of a contretemps I apparently had in the street the night before. I have no memory of this, but Rufus is amused: “Two Irish fellas shouting ‘Fuck you!’ at each other for five minutes!”

In the taxi to The Academy, I bring up the VIP experience, mentioning Justin’s concerns. Rufus admits it was his idea – all these other bands are

“BECAUSE OF THIS AMIABILITY, POSSIBLY MY ONLY FAULT, I AWAKE IN THE BUNK THE NEXT MORNING WORSE FOR WEAR, AND STARK NAKED.”

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“

When I heard Lizzy for the first time, I thought, ‘Great, all the best bits of ABBA, without the flabba!'"

Screamin' J Hawkins: The Darkness frontman cranks out some monster riffage

doing it, and it greatly adds to the band’s take home pay. This seems fair enough, and if fans want it, then who’s to argue? There’s a great story about why Rufus loves Frankie so much. The band was doing a show in Sweden and a football was lobbed up onstage. Justin, being Justin, did a few tricks before kicking it back into the crowd.

The balls made its way back, landing in front of Frankie, whose steeltoed cowboy boots dispatched it, with great force, into the face of a woman in the front row, leaving the band both mortified and in tears laughing.

LAST CALL

The first order of business is a radio interview that Justin insists I sit in on, much to the bafflement of the genial interviewer, but she’s a good sport. There’s nothing wrong with the questions, but we’re like a couple of schoolboys, and I am naturally in tatters, although Justin will later declare it good work. Once the soundcheck is half completed, the VIP punters are brought in.

“I want things to be perfect as a cut diamond, not a piece of old coal. I live for my fans, write that down!” Justin bellows beforehand and, if the band feel uncomfortable in anyway, it doesn’t show.

They give out a song and then pick some names out of the hat to play with them. Two likely lads – Dazzler and Foxy, apparently – add guitar and vocal to ‘Get Your Hands Off My Woman’.

Disappointingly, for the sake of this story, they’re great, and Justin is grinning throughout, wondering if he might get a night off.

The Q&A session is a bit stilted; perhaps the fans are slightly nervous, but we do get a shocking story about some unnamed “rock legend”, who apparently tore up a photo offered to him for signing by a terminally ill child. I say unnamed, but I’m not naming him here, although he possibly employs his own hairdresser. Ally, Justin’s hard working and long suffering assistant – a woman who could not have been nicer to me if she tried – hands me the microphone to help out. Because of where we are, I ask Dan about Thin Lizzy, as he regularly sports their familiar logo on his t-shirts.

“We were really into ABBA as kids,” he says, “and whenever there’s a guitar solo on an ABBA song, they’re always harmonised, with a similar kind of tone. So when I heard Lizzy for the first time, I thought, ‘Great, all the best bits of ABBA, without the flabba!’ I was pissed in Camden and my mate had the shirt on, which I thought was cool, so we swapped. That was the only good t-shirt I had for the early gigs, so people saw that as my trademark, which meant I didn’t have to worry about it!”

The photos taken care off, Frankie and I go down to the corner for a glass of wine. A thoughtful and considered man, he regrets the split: “Male pride is an awful thing, that caused a lot of the

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problems, that and bad management.”

But he’s enjoying it now.

“Touring is harder when you’ve done an album where you realise after a month that it’s not as good as you thought it was,” he says.

“But I think this album stands up to the first one.” You hear stories about bands with brothers – everyone knows who I’m talking about – who just can’t get on. How do the Hawkins men do it?

“They have great parents, so they’ve got very strong ideals and principles. I feel very privileged to be working with these two amazing, talented guys, and if you wished for someone to play drums for us, you couldn’t have imagined anyone more ideal than Rufus.”

Young Rufus – a veritable horse of a man who hits harder than the death of a pet. With his background, the potential to be an arsehole was enormous, but he’s an incredibly nice fellow and a credit, as my Ma used to say, to his parents. Frankie is quick to agree.

“Of all the people I know, he just has no arsehole in him. He’s able to be very mature and immature. Justin has that too, the ability to access his inner child, which is so important when it comes to being creative. That’s what we all love about him.”

Frankie Poullain – does that translate as ‘The Frenchman who loved chickens’? – reserves a special appreciation for Hawkins’ lyrical acumen: “I’m always so surprised that people don’t read Justin’s lyrics and appreciate how brilliant he is. He’s such a great lyricist and it is very nuanced humour. If he were French they’d love him. Serge Gainsbourg was celebrated for that, the word play.”

The Dublin show is a riot and Hawkins seems to be having the time of his life. There are handstands; guitar-wrangling; a cavort into the crowd on shoulders; even a few push-ups. Worryingly, he points at me during the fellatio section of ‘Solid Gold’, which engenders some strange eyeballing from the front row. Justin introduces me as the greatest writer in the world, which even I think is overplaying things.

The smattering of slow claps that follows is the sound one might hear on mentioning beastiality in a eulogy.

Afterwards, there’s a ferry to be caught, I say my goodbyes and thanks to the brothers with vague promises to meet up in London; get a hug from head honcho Andy Shillito, a lovely man who gave me a well-deserved bollicking on night one for being over-eagerly stupid; and receive a treasured Darkness tea towel and mug set from Jo, who refuses to take any cash, because that’s the kind of decent people I’m dealing with.

The ferry, of course, doesn’t stop Frankie and Rufus venturing out for one last drink. Poullain gets mobbed in the pub and Rufus politely fights off the affections of a very ardent admirer. When we get a minute to ourselves, he discusses his Dad with obvious affection (“Why wouldn’t they go out on tour and have a good time?

He’s still a bit of an animal and he introduces me as his wild child.”)

The time has come, they’ve got to go. We embrace and Tim and I return, rather enthusiastically, to the bar. The circus is leaving town, but this clown doesn’t want to go home.

WALKING ON CARS

Ahead of their headline set at NYF Dublin’s Countdown Concert, WALKING ON CARS reflect on their landmark year – including sold-out European tours, a major headline gig at Cork’s Irish Independent Park with support from Lewis Capaldi, and battling it out on the charts with Billie Eilish.

C

INTERVIEW: LUCY O’TOOLE |

apping off their final performance of the year with fireworks is a fitting way for �alking �n �ars to celebrate the remarkable successes of ����. �eturning after twoand-half years, and a series of personal setbacks, with Colours, the hotly anticipated follow-up to their ���� debut, Everything This Way, the �ingle band have firmly established their reputation as ma�or pop players at home and abroad. �ow, they�re set to ring in what looks to be another bla�ingly bright year, as the headliners of the �ew �ear�s �estival �ublin�s �ountdown �oncert. �ow in its eighth year, ��� �ublin has transformed the city into one of the top �uropean destinations for �ew �ear�s. �alking �n �ars are set to feature at the top of a star-studded bill, including �orthern �rish indie-rock legends �sh, rapidly rising star �imee and country-pop artist �isa �c�ugh. �f course, �alking �n �ars� hometown of �ingle has an impressive reputation for its own �ew �ear�s �ve celebrations � though we�re sure the band won�t mind missing out on the countdown in �erry �ust this once.

“DINGLE’S ALWAYS MENTAL… BUT WITH DUBLIN, IT’S GOING TO BE LIKE MULTIPLYING THAT BY 50.” ��ingle�s always mental,” lead singer �a Sheehy laughs. ��housands of people s�uish onto the bridge back home for the countdown. �ut with �ublin, it�s going to be like multiplying that by ��. �t�ll be mad � way bigger and louder.” �etween sold-out tours and ma�or outdoor gigs, it�s been an eventful year for the band � particularly after the departure of their guitarist �an �evane. �s they continue to e�plore new sonic territory, there�s been no time to rest on their laurels. �n between tour dates, they�ve already been back in the studio working on the follow-up to Colours. ��e left �uite a long break between Everything This Way and Colours,” Sorcha �urham e�plains. �So this time around, we said, ��ou know what� �et�s �ust keep going.� �e want to keep on writing and releasing, and keeping up the momentum.” �lthough initially somewhat distrustful of outside producers, the band gradually opened up to e�ternal in�uences. ��n our first record, we were afraid of bringing different elements into our traditional set-up � but in hindsight it worked out really well,” �a notes. ��or the second album, we were a little bit more comfortable, and this time, we�re going back to basics a little bit. �ut nothing has been mi�ed or finalised yet � so that could still all change.”

Colours also sees the band adapt to the loss of their guitarist by revelling in a new synth-heavy sound. ��e spent two weeks in �ngelic Studios in the north of �ondon, and they had loads of vintage synths,” �a says. ��or the whole album, Sorcha was all about the synths.”

PHOTOGRAPHY: MIGUEL RUIZ ��e had a �Synth �f �he �ay�,” Sorcha adds, laughing. ��hey had a room with layers and layers of synths, so we tried one out every day, �ust to see what the craic was. �e ended up making a kick drum out of the �S-��.” �n its release back in �pril, Colours faced some tough competition in the charts � narrowly missing out on �o.� to �illie �ilish�s allcon�uering When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? ��he difference was something like ��� albums�” Sorcha smiles, shaking her head. �So it was very close. �e were like, ��ut you don�t need it��” �� know�” �a laughs. ��eave us alone, for one week� �ut she won, so fair is fair.” ��e�re still going to hold a grudge, though,” bassist �aul �lannery adds with a cheeky grin. �nother world-dominating pop star on �alking �n �ars� radar is �ewis �apaldi � who supported the band at their sold-out show at �rish �ndependent �ark, �ork this summer. ��e�d never played a gig on that scale in �ork before, so it was really special,” �a nods. ��verything �ust fell together, and even the weather was great.” ��ewis was gas,” adds Sorcha. ��t�s insane to watch him perform, and see everyone in the crowd singing back every word of every single song, without fail.” ��y sisters and her friends came backstage, to say hello to him,” �a continues. �She didn�t give a shit about me, it was all about him� �hey were chatting to him for about �� minutes � and she was definitely going in for the shift at one stage �laughs�.” �he band have also picked up an ever-e�panding fan base overseas. �ow do they account for their massive success among the �ermans� ��ermans �ust love �reland and �rish artists,” Sorcha says. ��t�s hard to know e�actly why that is � the emotion, maybe. �hey connect with a lot of the lyrics and sentiments in the music.” ��e had a lot of crying on our last �erman tour,” she laughs. ��ut the fans over there are �ust ama�ing. �n �unich, they printed out all of these signs with the album artwork and handed them out to everyone in the crowd. �he signs �ust read� ��hank �ou�.” ��t�s intense,” �aul nods. �� was nearly crying myself.” �icking up international accolades while still based in �erry, �alking �n �ars are helping to shift the old view that musicians need to leave �reland in order to find success. �� lot of people ask us if we�re going to move to �ublin, or if we�re going to move to �ondon,” Sorcha says. ��ut part of what makes us who we are is that we�re from �ingle, and that we still live there. �e do what we do, and we�re not trying to be anything that we aren�t.” �nd with an e�citing new generation of independent artists following in their footsteps, they reckon that the future of �rish music is in safe hands. ��t�s unbelievable,” Sorcha beams. ��he �rish music scene is absolutely bu��ing at the moment. �raditionally, you�d mostly hear about �rish bands � but now it�s broadened out so much, with hip-hop and loads of ama�ing solo female artists. � �ust love to see it.”

• Walking On Cars play NYF Dublin’s Countdown Concert on December 31.

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KIM AS YOU ARE Having picked up the pieces after the break-up of Sonic Youth, KIM GORDON discusses her fantastic new album, the risk of America falling into fascism, and what she took from her recent trip to Ireland.

INTERVIEW ED POWER

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T

he heartache within indie-rock was widespread and intense when in 2011, the golden couple of anti-corporate noise-pop, Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore, announced their separation. The details of the split subsequently surfaced and were grubby indeed. Moore had been conducting an affair with a younger (also married) woman.

Gordon found out after picking up her husband’s phone one afternoon to check the time and stumbling upon an illicit text message. She confronted him; they went for counselling. And he continued to see the other woman.

“Thurston was carrying on this whole double life with her,” Gordon would say to Elle. “He was really like a lost soul.”

She laid it all out in her subsequent

memoir, Girl In A Band (the title deriving fro� a l�ric in �onic �o�th�s final al��� The Eternal: “What’s it like to be a girl in a band? / I don’t quite understand”). It opens with an excruciating chronicling of �onic �o�th�s final to�r � following the r���ling of �oore�s infi�elit�� when the group were still contractually obligated to play a handful of shows in South America.

Gordon describes her soon to be ex-husband as awkwardly upbeat and determined to go out on a high. She, the wronged party, was left to stew in silence.

“I thought about saying something,” she re�e��ers of �onic �o�th�s final gig� in Sao Paolo. “I didn’t.”

Four years on from the book, Gordon is starting over with a fantastic first solo LP, No Home Record. Given the painful ending to her collaboration with Moore, it’s surprising just how evocative it is of classic Sonic Youth. Gordon’s laconic vocals are front and centre; she

KIM GORDON

“LA IS SUCH A GREAT PLACE AS A SONGWRITER. YOU’RE ALWAYS IN YOUR CAR, ALWAYS A VOYEUR.”

COME ON FEEL THE N O I S E - R O C K : the sleeve of No Home Record

demonstrates the same gift for cathartic melodies as displayed on such SU faves as ‘Swimsuit Issue’ and ‘Tunic (Song For Karen)’.

The parallels are often on purpose. ‘Hungry Baby’ from the new album scrutinises sexual harassment within the music industry in the era of #MeToo. It harks back to a previous occasion she addressed the subject, with the aforementioned ‘Swimsuit Issue’ in 1992. At that time, nobody thanked her for it. “‘Swimsuit Issue’ caused quite the stir,” Gordon remembers. “It was kind of embarrassing for me because we had just signed to Geffen. And we’d got a lot of �ack for that. �hen this pro�inent ��� person was called out for sexual harassment, it was a good opportunity to make a point. But apart from the one person being called out, nothing changed… That’s the culture. It’s gross.”

She wrote in her memoir about Geffen executives telling the band that Gordon should stand centre stage, the better to draw the male gaze. She shrugs.

“It’s kind of embedded, I guess.”

Gordon grew up in Los Angeles, where her father was a UCLA professor of sociology. In 1980, at age 27, she took a bus to New York hoping to pursue a career in the arts. There, with no prior musical experience, she fell in with the city’s noise-rock scene. Soon she was dating Moore, with whom she started Sonic Youth.

They married, had a daughter (model Coco) and toured the world.

And then everything fell apart and so Gordon moved back west, to the city of her childhood. No Home Record is, among other things, a rumination on how she and Southern California have changed in the intervening decades.

“LA is such a great place as a songwriter. You’re always in your car, always a voyeur. Everything is very branded here. Even the yoga is branded. It’s all raw material to be used.” �he doesn�t �iss the �usic industr� � the endless tours, the promotional cycles, the soundchecks, the backstage hangs. Still, she look backs fondly on Sonic Youth. And she appreciates it was band that very many people hold dearly. But it can be hard making sense of that day to day.

“I’m grateful in an abstract way,” she proffers. “If it weren’t for Sonic Youth I wouldn’t be where I am.

People wouldn’t have the interest. It is a little abstract to process that.”

Sonic Youth is a closed chapter in her life. Moore lives

in London now with his new partner, book editor Eva Prinz (it was their affair that ended his marriage). He and Gordon are not reconciled. Asked recently if she had forgiven him she replied that for that to happen, he would have to seek forgiveness in the first place.

“The Dalai Lama said you don’t have to forgive someone if you can have empathy for them. And if the Dalai Lama said it…”

“If you loved someone, you can try to understand them,” she continued. “I empathise, but at the same time, you have to protect yourself from trauma and getting hurt again. You can’t really forgive someone if they don’t say they’re sorry.” �as it difficult la�ing all those feelings out in print � ��t�s �ust like the al�u� � � was surprised what a �ig deal it was,” she tells Hot Press. ��hen �ou spend that long talking about yourself you develop imposter syndrome. You feel as if you’re being overvalued. It was stressful. I also had two museum shows in three months. That was overwhelming.”

Her commitment to visual arts is one of the reasons Gordon hasn’t got around to a solo record sooner (plus there is her noise-rock side project Body/ Head). As an artist she is constantly in demand. Earlier this year she was in Dublin to unveil an exhibition of her pieces at IMMA, entitled She Bites Her Tender Mind. It was her second visit within 12 months, following a site trip to the Kilmainham exhibition space in 2018.

“It’s a wonderful museum with a really good programme. I want to go back and drive the west coast. �he first ti�e� for �� site visit� was right after the �epeal vote. �t was so incredi�l� sunn� and war� and people were out in the park.”

Things are less sunny back home. I remind her of Sonic Youth’s 1992 indie-disco standard, ‘Youth Against Fascism’. In the dim, distant and oh-so-naive post-grunge era, the song’s call-to-arms against right�wing e�tre�is� felt vaguel� �uaint � as if fascis� was something we didn’t have to worry about. But just like ‘Swimsuit Issue’, it has proven remarkably prescient. Sonic Youth recognised something hiding in plain sight all along.

“The United States has never been closer than it is now to having an authoritarian president,” she says. “A president who thinks he’s above the law and wants to use the government for his own ends.”

• No Home Record is out now. Kim Gordon will tour the album in 2020.

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ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES Mary Crosby, the daughter of Bing, talks about the family’s Irish roots, her childhood with one of the biggest stars of the 20th century, and the orchestral reworking of Bing At Christmas. Interview: Brenna Ransden.

M

ary Crosby speaks admirably of her father Bing Crosby – perhaps you’ve heard of him? – who frequented Ireland in the ‘60s out of an intrigue for his heritage, and also horses.

“Dad was very Irish and grew up in a very Irish household,” she reflects. “That was part of our world. We grew up feeling strongly Irish, with the Irish lullabies and all that good stuff.”

The last time Mary herself was in Ireland was to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Irish Sweepstakes, in which her father had a horse that won.

“I think most people are aware of who he is and what he stands for,” she explains. However, there’s an aspect to his reputation that she worries people still haven’t shaken. Her halfbrother Gary Crosby published a memoir in 1983 that alleged rampant abuse and alcoholism in the household.

“After Dad died, I had lunch with Gary,” recalls Mary. “He said, ‘You know, they told me that the worse it was, the more books would sell.’

And then he apologised profusely. At that point the damage was done. So there was a period of time where people read this awful book and thought that it was the truth. And it didn’t matter that Gary kind of recanted afterwards.

“But I think now, decades later, people know better. And so I’m hoping there aren’t misconceptions anymore.”

For Mary, her childhood was happy and simple.

“People assume that we grew up in a very Hollywood environment, but we didn’t at

All That Jazz

PIC: RAPH_PH/FLICKR

Jazz superstar Jamie Cullum talks about his favourite Xmas songs with Selina Juengling

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all,” she reveals. “We grew up outside San Francisco and went to public schools. It was very important to my Dad that we grew up in a really stable environment, that didn’t have the grandiosity and excess of Hollywood, and that was achieved.”

Once a year, however, the family would venture down to Hollywood to record the annual Bing Crosby Christmas special.

“It was never work,” insists Mary. “That was just flat-out fun. We got to be together as a family and sing songs. And every year, there was always somebody who was interesting or cool or

“MY CHRISTMAS WISH IS THAT THE SPIRIT OF DAD CONTINUES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.” who I had a crush on.”

She names Glen Campbell, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Michael Landon as a few noteworthy names – and of course, she was on set for the iconic episode with David Bowie.

However, there was one guest star in particular she found particularly incredible.

“Fred Astaire came out of retirement to do a show with Dad,” she recalls, starry eyed. “I was so starstruck by Fred Astaire, I couldn’t talk. He was such a gentleman. And I got to dance with him, so that was a really huge deal.”

Of course, today, the release of Bing At

Jamie Cullum couldn’t have escaped the Christmas spirit this year even if he wanted to. Not only did he release two Christmas songs as part of the extended version of his latest album Taller, he also features on Robbie Williams’ album, The Christmas Present.

Strangely enough, they recorded the jazzy version of Slade’s ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’ back in March, a decidedly un-festive time of the year.

According to Cullum, though, sleigh bells do immediately create a festive atmosphere.

“As soon as you hear sleigh bells on a track,” he notes, “you’re immediately transported to Christmas. That’s the power of music, you see.”

The jazz-pop maestro says he’s a big fan of festive tunes, partly because people seem to be more open towards a unique kind of songwriting during the Yuletide season.

“It’s a good time of the year to sneak in some clever chords and changes,” he says. “Everyone seems ready for it around Christmas time.”

Family Portrai

t

Christmas with the London Symphony Orchestra is the biggest deal in her life. The album, which just reached No. 5 on the Irish charts, features remastered recordings of Bing Crosby’s Christmas, paired with newlyrecorded orchestral arrangements.

“We were unbelievably happy with the result,” beams Mary. “Kudos to the London Symphony Orchestra and the producers, arrangers and artists involved. They support Dad’s voice beautifully, so we’re thrilled.”

At the end of the day, Mary reveres her father and his spirit, and hopes that these songs will continue his legacy.

“My Christmas wish is that the spirit of Dad continues throughout the year,” she concludes.

“Dad didn’t simply sing Christmas songs; he sang songs about kindness and giving back.

And they cross religions and cultures. I think these are difficult times and we need comfort and hope and joy. And so, I would wish for the spirit of kindness to continue through the year across the world.”

• Bing At Christmas with the London Symphony Orchestra is available now.

A good example is ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’, the Mel Tormé version of which is Cullum’s favourite Yuletide song.

“I think it’s a beautifully constructed song with gorgeous chords,” he raves. “What’s lovely about it is that everyone knows it, but it’s actually very complicated musically. It’s not one of the easier ones, you know? It’s wonderful that songs like that have become part of the everyday consciousness.”

As for his own Christmas plans, he likes to keep it simple: cooking, eating, hanging out with the family – and having Pucket championships, a tradition in the Cullum household.

“We’re trying to make Christmas a simple affair this year,” says the singer. “Modern life is quite complicated, and these days, Christmas is more necessary than ever.”

• Jamie Cullum kicks off his 2020 tour at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, Dublin on March 9. We’ll be talking to him some more beforehand.

THE MUSICAL EVENT OF THE H O L I D AY S E A S O N TOM HOOPER ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER T . S . E L I O T S TA G E M U S I C A L

DIRECTED BY BA S E D ON T H E L E G E N DA RY

JAMES

CORDEN JUDI

DENCH JA S ON

DERULO IDRIS

ELBA JENNIFER

HUDSON IAN

M CK E L L E N TAY L O R

SWIFT REBEL

W I L S ON INTRODUCING

FRANCESCA

H AY WA R D

TBC www.ifco.ie TBC www.ifco.ie

I N C I N E MA S DE C E M B E R 2 0

STAR WARS A

H O T

P R E S S

S P E C I A L

F E A T U R E

INTERSTELLAR

O V E RDRIVE

With Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker being released into cinemas on December 19, and set to wrap up this chapter of the epic saga, what better way to prepare yourself for the inevitable plot twists and turns that await, than to remind yourself of what happened in the first of the current Star Wars series. It helps us remember what makes this series so great and what we hope to see more of in the next highly- anticipated instalment. Here we revisit our original five star review of the film that kickstarted the current trilogy – 2015’s The Force Awakens. Directed by JJ Abrams, the movie was a thrilling, innovative rollercoaster ride. B Y R O E M c D E R M O T T

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STAR WARS A Hot Press Special Feature

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS Directed by: JJ Abrams. Starring: Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Daisley Ridley, Oscar Isaac, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson.

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o you feel that pressure in your chest, that triumphant swell of iconic music and adrenaline and nostalgia mixed with something else, something rare and intangible and almost forgotten?

It’s hope. Hopes of generations, of unabashed fans, of dizzying enthusiasm in an era of cynicism, of dreams built long ago in an era of the new and flashy. It’s hope so pure, and real. And now realised.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was always going to be the movie event of the year. It was the film that was to reignite memories and childhoods and first crushes and first heroes in old fans; it was to create all this and more for newcomers. It was always going to be big, and expensive, and bold.

But it didn’t have to be the movie event of the decade. It didn’t have to live up to the hype, and hope. It didn’t have to be good.

It isn’t. It’s great.

Great in the awe-inspiring, tear-provoking way that only films built on generations of dreams can be great. It’s legacy and nostalgia and iconography. It’s innovation and freshness and daring. It taps not into what the original films were, but what they meant to audiences, how they made us feel. That desire for adventure, and inspiration, that hunger to be heroic. It’s all here, and then some.

J.J. Abrams and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan have perfectly balanced the old and new, the humour and heartbreak, and have updated the white, male-dominated universe to one filled with equals, not merely in the reductive sense of physical strength and skill with a lightsaber, but equal in vulnerability, in ambition, in need for love and deep reservoirs of courage. The characters in The Force Awakens are equals in their humanity.

Yes, even when they’re just humanoids.

The old and new cast form a beautiful mash-up; a modern remix of a classic tune. Slightly wizened but with no less of a twinkle in his eye, Ford’s Han Solo becomes a supporting player alongside Leia (Carrie Fischer), now a resistance general whose feistiness has not been quenched, merely refined over time.

These iconic characters have taken a step back, not because they are weaker, but because their aims and means are different now. Becoming a hero is a young person’s game. They’ve paid their dues. They’re on hero status maintenance now; the action load is lighter.

They can also see themselves being born anew, as the trio of Luke, Han and Leia have been replaced with figures that embody the progression of this world. As Poe, Finn and Rey, Oscar Isaac, John Boyega and Daisy Ridley bring an irresistible fluidity and variance to their roles that extends so far beyond the rare and so hugely important representation of racial diversity of their trinity. These are not mere reincarnations of the original cast, but complex and nuanced characters in their own right.

Isaac brings a determination and charm to resistance pilot Poe, but Isaac’s ever-simmering intensity brings a completely different energy than Ford’s glib rogue. As deserter storm trooper turned rebel Finn, Boyega’s role brims with the trauma of cruelties suffered and inflicted, but with a strengthened resolve for the world to be better for it. And it is Rey (Ridley), and not her male peers, that embodies so much of a young Luke Skywalker, but her past as a desert scavenger and loner have left her suspicious, cynical, and her path to trusting her new comrades and finding a new form of family is all the more meaningful for it.

But our new heroes are faced with new enemies, who are just as compelling. As new villain Kylo Ren, Adam Driver brings is terrifying and mercurial – steely-eyed and merciless one

moment, a tantrum throwing teenager the next. His intentions evokes the terror Darth Vader, but he’s a new, modern villain, one that taps into the millennial trope of entitlement and immaturity but combined with deadly power.

With all these evocations of old and new, parent material and newborn reboot, it’s no surprise that some of the original Star Wars’ Freudian themes also emerge – but to say more would be a slip all its own. What can be revealed is that this wonderful characterisation never comes at the expense of action – but nor does the action eclipse all. Though still prone to dumps of exposition and a visual shine that’s just a little too slick, J.J. Abrams’ directing is assured, maintaining a sense of visceral excitement while never veering into mania. Perfectly paced through heart-stopping flights, X-Wing attacks and TIE Fighter battles, the action has clarity and flair, the emotional stakes of each dramatic sequence elevating seat-clutchingly thrilling scenes into experiences fraught with emotion as well as sheer, giddy excitement.

It’s not just the action sequences that prove an embodied rollercoaster of feeling. Abrams and Kasdan maintain blend of levity and longing throughout the entire film. Bringing levity and playfulness to the script, Kasdan understands that real humour respects its audience. There are earnest throwbacks and merry winks to the film’s predecessors, and also an irony and contemporary wit that feels like an uproarious, dynamic dialogue between generations. But there’s also a slow unfurling of real relationships and deep emotion, which Abrams thankfully allows to linger in moments of meaningful quiet.

There was a universe, and it was filled with beloved characters and classic adventures and the countless fantasies of fans and audiences everywhere.

The Force Awakens has not only perfectly presented one of these fantasies and reignited our minds to the other infinite possibilities. It also makes these dreams seems tangible, like each unique and personal and heart-filled imagining could also be realized, could also be portrayed on screen, become this almost-true. It gives us hope.

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V ER SATILE

PHOTO

SPECIAL

As the first Irish hip-hop group to headline 3Arena, Versatile were in for a rollercoaster ride in the hours leading up to the show. With exclusive backstage access, Miguel Ruiz documented the band on the day of their landmark gig, as the Ringsend boys took a few small steps from their gaff – and one giant leap into the history books.

STEPS

SONG WRITERS SPECIAL

GOOD ÉIRE DAYS We are blessed in Ireland with the extraordinary quality and diversity of our songwriters. In this special feature, we look at three homegrown artists who have each, in their own way, recently created outstanding albums: sonic adventurer JAPE; art-pop maverick THE LATE DAVID TURPIN; and innovative singer-songwriter WALLIS BIRD. PHOTOGRAPHY: MIGUEL RUIZ

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“I want something that will reward you, but only if you’re in the mood to let it reward you.”

J A PE

Jape Expectations

“I

BY S E L I NA J U E NG L I NG

�ive in ��e�en an� � �ust �e� in yesterday,” Richie Egan, AKA Jape, notes when we meet on a rainy November day. “It’s way colder in Dublin at the moment. In Sweden, it feels like Indian Summer, but this is proper cold.”

Egan notes that his adopted home also makes for a quieter environment for songwriting than the busy streets of Dublin city.

Indeed, you can almost hear the contemplative atmosphere of Sweden in his latest record, Sentinel, which subtly draws the listener in, “like trying to get a cat to cross the room”.

“I would like it to be an intriguing record,” says Egan. “I want people to not initially go, ‘This is the best record I’ve ever heard in my life’, but that it will intrigue them enough to go back and take another listen. I feel like if they do that, it will connect with them on a deeper and better level than something that’s really immediate.”

On Sentinel, the singer very consciously turns his back on contemporary fast culture.

“There really is a place for that Tik Tok �eneration,� re�e�ts �i��ie� ���at�s rea��� cool stuff, but in the age we live in, I believe artists are starting to understand that we need to get to a place of depth again. That’s my little hope for the record – that it can scratch that particular itch.”

Instead of creating songs that try to

�oo� t�e �istener �it�in t�e first �� seconds – the point at which payment is secured from streaming services – Jape takes his sweet time. Half of the eight songs on Sentinel are over five minutes, and catchy hooks are at a premium.

Nevertheless, he succeeds in captivating the listener because, in his own words, “There’s nothing worse than being truly boring.” ���m a �itt�e o��er no� an� � fin� it more interesting to do shit that’s never been done,” suggests Richie. “I want something that will reward you, but only if you’re in the mood to let it reward you. � �as tr�in� to fin� a �a�an�e �et�een establishing the rhythm of the song, letting it be as it should, rather than truncating it.”

That’s exactly what sets Sentinel apart from his previous records.

“There was a sense of needing them to do well,” says Richie, carefully choosing his words. “On my past records, there’s been a couple of songs where I go, ‘I shouldn’t have done that one. That’s a little bit selling myself short’. But I feel very proud of this one, more than I did the other ones.”

According to the press release for Sentinel, the album is inspired by “the short time when he wakes up from a dream”. Jape’s fascination with dreaming even stretches to enjoying bad dreams.

“Since I was a kid, I loved having nightmares,” he reveals. “I love the way it’s a different reality every time when you

dream. And when you wake up, whatever that reality was in the dream, it sort of stays in you for a while. Then it just goes god knows where until the next dream.”

It’s the simple things like dreaming, talking to a stranger or teaching his daughter how to ride a bicycle that inspire Jape these days. However, nothing can compare to the power of music and art.

“I saw Bill Callahan play in Copenhagen recently,” he says. “When he sang ‘Say Valley Maker’, it was the embodiment of the level we can reach through art.

Transcending humanity for just three or four minutes. It was the same week that Kipchoge ran the two-hour marathon.

When I saw the last minute of that, it was the same feeling of this rise above ourselves for a brief period.”

Like many musicians, Egan uses music as therapy. But it’s the combination of music and exercise that keeps him from “going crazy”.

“I think human beings really need a period in the day when they are awake but not thinking,” he says. “Some people can meditate. I can’t meditate. My brain is just too fast. So for me it’s exercise, and �eir��� enou��, a s�e�ifi� time� �t�s �ot to �e �� minutes �or me� �ort� minutes an� it just switches. But it’s always a struggle and I think everybody goes up and down. What works today may not work tomorrow.”

• Sentinel is out now.

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SONG WRITERS special

“We tend to gender the genres and that can have an affect on people. ”

The Late David Turpin

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Boys Do Cry

BY S T UA R T C L A R K he history of music is littered with people who have extraordinarily high opinions of their talents. That’s a good thing because otherwise we might never have got to hear James Brown, Little Richard, John Lennon, David Bowie, Marc Bolan, Joe Strummer, Bono, Madonna, Jay Z, Beyoncé, Kanye, Lady Gaga… the list goes on and on.

Conversely you’ve The Late David Turpin, t�e �ublin singer and film scorer and �riter who’s very much still live, but appears almost embarrassed that he’s dragged us here today to talk about his new record.

The forty-something shouldn’t be so demure because his treatise on the conventions of modern love, Romances, is a genuine Irish Album of the Year contender.

While no slouch in the vocal department �imsel� � �or �roo� c�eck out �����s e�ually excellent We Belong Dead – Turpin has ‘cast’ t�e album as i� making a film, �it� �� ot�er male singers handling what would otherwise have been his parts.

Asked whether it was hard handing over such intensely personal songs – shame, abandonment, cruelty and infidelity all loom large – to other people, David pauses for a while and says: “There’s this sort of fetish for the ‘lone writer mining the depths of their psyche and then pouring it all out on record.’

Mere autobiography doesn’t attract me. It’s quite an arrogant thing to say, ‘I expect you as an audience to listen to me talk about myself.’

Done well by somebody like Joni Mitchell it can be very beautiful. Done badly it’s a form of masturbation. I say that without any prejudice against masturbation; we all do it, we all enjoy it. Being as these songs are about sex and love and romance, it made sense to do them as a

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series of liaisons, I guess, with other people.

Musical liaisons, I hasten to add.”

David readily admits to Romances being in�uenced by �erek �arman, t�e a�ant �ritis� filmmaker, stage designer, diarist and, er, gardener.

“I don’t know how much you hear it in the songs, but aesthetically the imagery surrounding the record is quite Jarmanian,” he explains. “We had a calligraphy artist recreate his handwriting, which is very distinctive, for the booklet that comes with it. One of things that is important to me about Derek Jarman is that whilst made on a shoestring, his work is so beautiful. Think of t�e scene in ��is ���� film� Edward II where Annie Lennox pops out of nowhere and sings a Cole Porter song. It has the glamour o� a ����s �olly�ood musical on about a hundredth of the budget.”

Another of Romances’ conceits is men singing about things – tenderness, vulnerability, uncertainty etc. etc. – that are supposed to be female preserves.

“Something I hear all the time working in t�e film industry is t�at, ��omance is �or girls, crime is for boys’,” he sighs. “That wasn’t my experience of being a boy. I didn't like Heat or Scarface or anything like that. I liked Imitation Of Life and Magnificent Obsession and Dynasty. We tend to gender the genres and that can have an affect on people. Boys can grow up with no experience of love and sex and romance. It’s just not part of their culture.”

David grew up having to dodge the homophobic bullies who had a major problem with him coming out as a teenager.

“It wasn’t so much ‘coming out’ as people just being able to tell I was gay,” he recalls.

“I had other kids shoving my head down the toilet and it going round school that I had AIDS and had died when I was off school for a

cou�le o� days �it� ��u� � �as beaten u� �airly regularly and ostracised from various groups.

It tends to void you of a sense of your worth – both as a child and as the adult you become.

You become very unwilling to stand up for yourself. What I’ve never wanted any of my work to be, though, is a pity party. There’s lots of light to go with the darkness.”

One of the numerous Romances standouts is ‘Couldn’t Do Without’, which features a stunning turn from Conor J. O’Brien.

“Conor, who I’ve known for a very long time, is lovely,” David enthuses. “He’s managed to be commercially successful while remaining ���� true to �imsel�, ��ic� is a really di�ficult thing to do. He’s worked on everything I’ve ever recorded, so we’ve continued the tradition.”

The rest of Romances' cast is a mixture of old friends and new people David discovered through the audition process.

“To run through a few of them, Bear Worship – who you might also know as Ivan St. John and Pinky – featured on my last record. Martin McCann I knew of as an entity – he was in Sack, of course, and loves Sade, which made him another automatic choice. Gar Cox has been my boyfriend for six years so that was obvious. Elephant is very contained and nice – although he did make fun of me because I still use a �� �iscman� �amyel is �renc���ris�, which gave me the rare opportunity to work with another language. He was very good at being willing to embody all the clichés of being a romantic �renc�man� �ona, ��o �as in BIMM, has a big, big voice.

“It’s been so liberating,” David concludes.

“Working with other people’s voices is one of the few moments when I feel like I’m getting out of the trap of being me.”

• Romances is out now on Kabinet.

Bird to the Wise

WA L L I S BIRD

BY LUC Y O' T O OL E

In an era of widespread political uncertainty, countless artists are opting for escapism in their work. Wallis Bird, however, is refusing to turn the other cheek. Her socially-conscious sixth album, Woman, released back in September, is a powerful call-to-arms that boldly confronts some of the biggest debates of our time.

“As time passes, it’s getting more and more urgent,” Wallis tells me. “The subjects that I was singing about on the album were very specific to a time. It’s interesting, because now I’m comparing them to anything that’s happened since, and I’m seeing the development of the themes.”

On her European tour, which included an acclaimed string of dates across Ireland, Wallis stripped back the frills to perform the new album as a compellingly raw one-woman show.

“It’s been amazing,” she smiles.

“I want to present myself as a representation of a woman. I worked an awful lot of hours towards trying to project something that people will think about, and something that will be a representative of many different questions and thoughts.”

Of course, issues of identity and gender came under the spotlight this year more than ever before. With Woman, Wallis found herself coming to terms with an ever-shifting concept of womanhood.

“I always felt as much masculine as feminine,” she reveals. “I also spent a lot of my life being gay in secret.

Woman isn’t about your gender, or what you think makes someone a woman – it’s about who you are in your heart.

That also refers to transgender rights. If you feel like a woman, then that’s what a woman is.”

Bookending the album with some of the most crucial social issues of our time, Wallis has no qualms about the explicitly political nature of her songwriting – avoiding the head-in-the-sand approach of some of her contemporaries.

“We’re living in this next-day-delivery culture in the western world,” she says. “That makes you feel God-like – you can have anything as soon as you want it. You just consume, and you believe everything you hear. That’s when populism comes in, and when racism becomes rife.

Human rights go out the window, because people have become complacent. Nowadays we have an awful lot to fight for.” `ii`] «i } ÌÀ>V ¼Ƃà / i , ÛiÀ Üý] ë Ài` by the tragic death of three-year-old Syrian refugee Alan Kurdi, contains some of the most starkly honest lyrics of Wallis’ career: “A baby lost its family, lost its life / Don’t turn your face away / Don’t tell me borders are for jobs and civic order / You want your palette white, you want it cleaned.”

On ‘Repeal’, meanwhile, Wallis plots the moving journey towards abortion legalisation in Ireland.

“That songs goes through the whole story,” she explains, º À i «iÀà Ì> } >L ÕÌ Ì i À Ü iÝ«iÀ i ViÃ] to a group of people talking, to the vote, and finally, to the moment when the result came out. It was a beautiful opportunity to mark exactly how I saw it, and how it felt.

We really came a huge way together, so it was only right to represent it.

“This tour was the first time I’ve sang ‘Repeal’ on these shores. It’s amazing to be playing it for the people that

WRITING TO REACH YOU Other Irish songwriters who’ve had a great decade.

RUTH-ANNE CUNNINGHAM One of the most in-demand pop songwriters around, Cunningham has written for artists like Britney Spears and Niall Horan, and also contributed to the Fifty Shades Of Grey soundtrack.

JOHNNY McDAID

“If you’re getting priced out of your area, you don’t have time to be creative...”

actually made it happen.”

While it’s clear her love for Ireland still runs deep, Wallis is one of many homegrown artists who can no longer afford to live in this country while pursuing creative work, and is now based in Berlin.

“If you’re getting priced out of your area, you don’t have time to be creative,” she says sadly. “You don’t even have time to think, because you’re working two jobs – because the rent’s too fucking high.

We’re going to end up with a faceless, lifeless, pointless working ant farm of a country. It needs to change. If every single artist in Ireland has to move away to make a living, to be able to afford to be creative, then who’s going to be left?”

“This country has so many beautiful people, and so > Þ }Ài>Ì Ì iÀÃ]» à i V Ì Õið º À}iÌ >L ÕÌ economists – we need to look at this land in a different way. We have to begin to feed back into the well of what’s happening here, and not just be looking abroad.”

Does she envision a time when she’ll return?

“As soon as Ireland starts to get with nakedness, I’d love to!” she laughs. “One thing that I love about living in Germany, is that I can be proud of my nakedness. You go to a sauna and you’re naked, or you go to the park and you can find a little nudist area. It sounds like a silly thing to say, but the most important part of life is food, our minds and our bodies. So as soon as ireland starts to have nudist parks, I’ll be over.”

“My dad reads every single Hot Press,” she continues after a brief pause. “He’s going to see this and be like, ¼ `] Þ `>Õ} ÌiÀ½Ã Ì> } >L ÕÌ Õ` ÌÞt ­ >Õ} î°» While she might be waiting another few years for Ireland’s first nudist park, Wallis is decidedly hopeful for ÓäÓä° “We’re either fucked, or we’ll just go for it,” she smiles. º Ü>Ã Ì } >L ÕÌ Ì >ÃÌ } Ì] > ` Ài> Ãi` Ì >Ì Óä\Óä is perfect vision. You never know – we might get almighty vision!”

As well as performing in Snow Patrol, the Derryman has also penned material for a small galaxy of pop stars, including Ed Sheeran, Kodaline, P!nk and Robbie Williams.

CONOR J. O’BRIEN O’Brien’s masterful songwriting with Villagers has been recognised with Mercury and Choice Music Prize nominations, as well as an Ivor Novello award for the 2016 album Darling Arithmetic.

GLEN HANSARD Having scooped a deserved Best Song Oscar in 2019 for the Once track ‘Falling Slowly’, Hansard has enjoyed a decade of further success, releasing a string of acclaimed solo albums as well material with The Swell Season and The Frames.

DAMIEN RICE On hiatus in the early part of the decade, Rice made a strong return with 2014’s My Favourite Faded Fantasy, and most recently appeared on Leonard Cohen’s posthumously released Thanks For The Dance.

• Woman is out now. Wallis Bird plays Theatre Royal, Waterford (January 4) and A Woman’s Heart Orchestrated at the National Concert Hall, Dublin (February 12, 13 & 19).

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JOJO RABBIT • A HOT PRESS SPECIAL FEATURE

TA I K A WA I T I T I

MASTER OF SURPRISE Films as astonishing as Jojo Rabbit are very rare. But then award-winning director TAIKA WAITITI has based his entire career on finding comedic gold in the unlikeliest places – and turning that into the stuff of unforgettable cinema.

T

aika Waititi has given us an absurd, hipster Hitler in his satirical comedy Jojo Rabbit, a film about a lonely 10-year-old boy living in World War II Germany, who is so desperate for acceptance and company that he commits to becoming the best little Nazi he can be, and creates an imaginary friend - Adolf Hitler.

But when young Jojo discovers that his mother is hiding a Jewish girl behind a wall in their home, his entire worldview is thrown into a loop. Jojo Rabbit explores the consequences of that revelation. It is a satire, which ultimately emphasises how ridiculous the Nazis were in so many respects. It goes further, of course, letting its audience know how important it is not to be sucked unwittingly into bigotry. In effect, it takes a stand against the kind of shameful ignorance that is far too common in the modern world. It is, in so many ways, a comedy for the times.

To mark the release of this enormously challenging film, we take a look over Taika Waititi’s previous films and show that, with his fascinating comic genius, nothing is ever quite what it seems…

B Y R O E M c D E R M O T T.

and funny, the tragicomic Boy – a movie that again demonstrates Waititi's flair for finding the humour in growing pains and human foibles – is a little bit magic.

What We Do In The Shadows (2014)

JOJO RABBIT

E AG L E VS . S HARK

Eagle vs. Shark (2007)

Waititi’s debut film is a low-key rom-com, but it’s far from the traditional cheerful slickness we’ve come to expect from that genre. Loren Taylor stars as Lily, an introverted young woman with a crush on a socially awkward Jarrod (Jemaine Clement). But these two loveable kooks aren’t just united by their love for one another – they are also battling their own unique struggles, including depression and Jarrod’s obsession with getting revenge on his old high-school bully.

Eagle Vs. Shark established Waititi’s ability to blend the more tragic elements of life with warm comedy, embracing the marvellous messiness of life.

B OY

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Hunt For The Wilderpeople (2016)

Another coming-of-age film, Hunt For The Wilderpeople tells the story of a standoff-ish orphan Ricky (Julian Dennison) who finally finds the right, loving parents. But when tragedy strikes, and he’s about to be taken away, he escapes into the woods with his guardian Hector (Sam Neill). With New Zealand media and authorities believing that Ricky has been kidnapped, the film becomes about Ricky and Hector’s increasingly ludicrous, Mad Max-like experiences of living off the land. Blending real emotion and intimacy, with a naturalistic style and outrageous humour, Hunt For The Wilderpeople is as raucous as it is heartwarming.

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

W H AT W E D O IN T H E S H A D OWS

Boy (2010)

Waititi’s often-overlooked second film is a heartbreaking and hilarious coming-of-age tale about a boy struggling to cope with the return of his absentee father, played by Waititi himself.

Existing between the realms of fantasy and reality, Boy constructs elaborate, heroic stories in his imagination to explain his father’s absence.

Boy’s younger brother, meanwhile, is grappling with the death of their mother. Earnest, tender

A hybrid of Spinal Tap, Peep Show and The Addams Family, Taikia Waititi and Jemaine Clement’s deadpan mockumentary shows that even the undead struggle with the niggling banalities of night-to-night life. Roommate compatibility, for example, can be extra tricky when there are centuries between you. Starring Waititi as Viago, the camp 379-year-old control freak, and Jermaine Clement as 862-year-old kinky glam-rocker Vladislav (Clement), the fanged posse settle in Wellington, New Zealand – but newbie vampire Nick (Cori Gonzalez Macuer) threatens to destabilise their dynamic.

Filled with brilliantly observed comedy and uproarious one-liners, What We Do In The Shadows demands repeat viewings.

H U N T F O R T HE W I L D E R P EO PLE

Fresh out of assistant-directing the visually breathtaking Dr. Strange, Waititi took the helm to direct Thor: Ragnarok. Here, he plays with comic book visuals, heightening the cosmic rainbow palette and fantastical sets. After Thor’s long-imprisoned sister Hela (Cate Blanchett) arrives at Asgard, hellbent on destroying the Kingdom, Thor finds himself trapped on the other side of the universe on what is literally a garbage planet. He must survive a gladiatorial contest, but finds that his opponent is a familiar face. A few well-selected cameos bring some layered comedy, with a beloved actor nailing his role as a rave-loving dictator. A truly unique and fun installment in the epic franchise.

• Jojo Rabbit is released in Irish Cinemas on January 1st 2020

INSIDE CONNOLLY BARRACKS 056 HOTPRESS.COM

In 2017, members of the Connolly Youth Movement in Cork broke into a city-centre building and set up camp there, naming the house Connolly Barracks. But who are these people? What drives them?

And what goes on inside the barracks?

Inside CORK BARRACKS

A Special Hot Press Report,

By Shamim Malekmian

C

ork city’s Granary Theatre is an old structure, painted in loud pink. It yawns the ennui of a ‘70s building under searing summer sunlight, and coughs out the anxiety of a performer in pursuit of excellence in Autumn and Winter, when it’s filled with drama students from University College Cork (UCC).

On its left, is a line of almost identical houses. One house in the row, however, stands out, not immediately, but surely, if one is in the mood for paying attention.

Above its newly painted doorframe, the words Connolly Barracks are spray-painted in green. On its noticeably clean window, a piece of paper is stuck. “We support the occupation of derelict buildings to use as homes for people,” it says. The words ‘derelict’ and ‘buildings’ are inscribed in red.

The house lights are never turned on, not because there is no one inside, but because there is no electricity. Connolly Barracks, with its distinctly sour reek, is home to seven people, who fill all of its damp bedrooms. Six of these people are members of an all-Ireland Marxist youth organisation, the Connolly Youth Movement (CYM). The other resident used to be a member in his youth.

CYM and The Original Housing Crisis

The Connolly Youth Movement was founded in 1963 in Dublin when the city was ablaze with rage and revolt in response to a chronic dearth of housing. The shortages led to the formation of the Dublin Housing Action Committee (DHAC), a dissenting group, who decided on a strategy of breaking into empty buildings, repairing them and then squatting in them.

The success of the DHAC inspired a group of young republicans to form the CYM. The name Connolly was included to signify the group’s dedication to the revolutionary ethos of James Connolly, the socialist leader at the heart of the 1916 insurrection – and arguably Ireland’s greatest patriot.

The CYM is allied to the Communist Party of Ireland (CPI). Being a youth group, however, members must be between the ages of 16 and 30. The CYM kept a low profile through the 1980s and the ‘90s. However, by 2002, it had re-emerged quietly in Dublin. As the housing crisis deepened in the aftermath of the financial crash, CYM’s popularity began to grow.

In 2017, Alexander Homits was appointed General Secretary.

Introducing Alex

Alex is 26, tall and strong-boned, with bushy eyebrows, a shaved head and a blonde Van Dyke beard, similar to that sported by the Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin.

Originally from Estonia, his family migrated here when he was small. Alex’s voice is clear, wry and confident. He speaks Russian fluently.

Almost inevitably, he has become a target for online haters. “Not Irish,” a tweet directed at him reads. On his personal Facebook page, Alex once shared a meme of a man for whom ‘where are you from?’, seemed like a loaded question. “Every time,” Alex captioned it.

His calmness in the face of adversity seems almost preternatural.

Not always, however. CYM members recall him coming to work at Cork’s Trade Union Office, when he was severely ill. “Fuck’s sake,” he shouted, “I hate to be sick.”

Any democratic society needs an element of civil disobedience; people who are prepared to make life difficult for the authorities.

Alex grew up, he admits, “as somebody who was homophobic and quite sexist, who was a misogynist.” Later, however, he embraced the Marxist objective of liberating women from patriarchal oppression. “It’s a process of unlearning those things and developing a new culture,” he says.

He has recently moved to Dublin to work as research assistant to the left-wing Independents 4 Change politician, Joan Collins TD. But he prefers Cork, where he grew up. Walking through a busy O’Connell Street on a lukewarm Thursday afternoon, Alex is reluctant to take credit for CYM’s ascent in Cork.

“I like to think I’m responsible,” he says, “but that’s just my ego. Everything is a collective effort.”

Heat The Commies

August 2017. Alex and a few fellow CYM members broke into a dilapidated building on Mardyke Road and announced that it had been “liberated”. They also encouraged other young people to solve their housing

woes by following suit.

A fundraiser called “Heat the Commies Community Fund”, was established to help the squatters warm the house with heaters, operated with gas. Cork activists furnished the house with secondhand furniture. Artist members of the CYM began painting communist graffiti on the walls.

Connolly Barracks was born. It is the CYM’s most successful “political project” to date.

I sit down with Alex in the building on East Essex Street that also houses Ireland’s age-old radical bookstore, Connolly Books. I ask him why ‘Barracks’?

“It’s named after James Connolly,” he says.

“And yes, the term Barracks denotes the disciplinarian element to the house. I put down the success of the Connolly Barracks to the fact that there is a degree of discipline to it, unlike other squats or occupations.”

Alex refers to a set of rules that apply to all residents. They can be found on the CYM’s website. For example: “Those who occupy the Barracks must be CYM members or probationary members as they will be bound by the branch and its principles.”

Housing and Inequality Today

In September this year, the Department of Housing confirmed that, for the sixth month in a row, over 10,000 people in Ireland were homeless. To understand the full extent of Government failure, the number of people who have been forced into emigration – including many musicians – would also need to be taken into account, along with those who end up moving in with their parents because they have nowhere else to live.

Meanwhile, Dublin now ranks in the world’s top 10 most expensive places to rent.

The CYM view is that the housing crisis is an artificial problem manufactured by capitalist greed.

“Homes are deliberately not being provided for people,” Alex insists. The result is that rents are soaring. “And the rent money,” he adds, “goes into the pockets of landlords, vulture funds and multinational companies that have a grip on several houses.”

So how might the housing crisis be addressed?

“Property taxes in Ireland are very, very low by comparative standards,” Vittorio Bufacchi, a lecturer in Political Philosophy at UCC, says.

“So, there is no incentive to do anything with a vacant house. You can do two things in response. You can fine people for leaving their houses empty or have a much more progressive property tax.”

In the current climate, Dr Bufacchi sees squatting as a necessary act of civil disobedience.

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“

"The Connolly Youth Movement will defend themselves in the inevitable" confrontation"

18-year-old chairperson of CYM’s Cork branch.

Ruark hurries down, sporting tinted glasses and a mischievous smile. He sits next to Ben, 24, with dyed blonde hair and a hint of shyness.

K E V I N ( L ) C A LV I N (C ) A N D R UA R K ( R ) AT C ON NO L LY BA R R AC K S

“Any democratic society desperately needs an element of civil disobedience,” he says. “You need people who are prepared to stand up and make themselves heard and make life difficult for the authorities.”

He attributes the rise of Marxist groups such as the CYM not just to the housing shortage, but to rising inequality.

“There are economic inequalities. There are cultural inequalities that are deeply ingrained in our societies. There are social inequalities – for example, we have the most expensive childcare system in Europe. And now, housing inequality reinforces that, and is going to generate more inequality.”

Alex now rents a room in the working-class neighbourhood of Jobstown, in Dublin. He sees “overthrowing the State” through an “inevitable” socialist revolution as the only solution.

“The free-market solution is creating homelessness every day,” he says. “In a communist, socialist system, the common wellbeing of humanity comes above the necessity for somebody to make a profit.”

He shrugs at the suggestion that revolutions are rarely peaceful.

“We’ve seen all over the world that when there is a protest, the State will react violently,” he says, “and the first thing that comes to mind is the use of police and the army. I have the right to defend myself, and the Connolly Youth Movement and anybody affiliated to us will defend themselves in the inevitable confrontation.”

The Oxygen of Publicity Stunts

Already, the Connolly Youth Movement has been engaged in minor confrontations with the State.

In October 2018, CYM members interrupted a meeting of UCC’s Young Fine Gael Society, which was attended by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney.

Alex, who was studying Law in UCC at the time, called the Tánaiste “a smug, scum fuck bastard.” He was asked to leave the room.

CYM members live-streamed the entire saga on their Facebook page. The university later

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reprimanded Alex “for swearing”.

Earlier this year, CYM members attended an event at the Clayton Hotel at which the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was speaking. In a room filled with Fine Gael politicians, Khadijah Bracken, an Irish-Egyptian CYM member stood up and read from a written statement, attacking Fine Gael for their failure to address poverty and homelessness.

In Alex’s view, these events were successful publicity stunts. Applications for membership increased. He refuses to divulge the total number of CYM members across their branches in Cork, Dublin, Waterford, Limerick, Galway and Belfast.

Inside the Barracks

Inside Connolly Barracks, the furniture is dingy and covered by old, faded blankets. I am meeting Kevin Cashman, Ida Wulff, Ben Kingston, Ruark Murphy and Diarmuid De Priondragás. Calvin Walantus, a 23-year-old American socialist organiser, who travelled from San Francisco to visit his CYM friends, is there too, lounging on a soft sofa, and glancing at his phone.

The house is dimly lit by the fading afternoon sun. Ida, 22, with curious green eyes and a shaved head is calmly knitting. Diarmuid, 23 – tall with blonde hair and a penchant for spicing his words with a pinch of humour – is dating Ida. On the walls, a sprawl of art captures the attention, from a drawing of Joseph Stalin in front of a communist hammer-and-sickle flag to a red star married into a golden harp. There is a communist flag hanging from the wall too.

Above it, are photos depicting Cork’s CYM members at different rallies, meetings and even personal celebrations, which mostly involve drinking pints of Beamish at their favourite local pub, An Spailpín Fánach.

A crimson-coloured bra hangs next to the hammer-and-sickle flag. The remaining walls carry images of socialist leaders and revolutionaries, from James Connolly to Jeremy Corbyn; Fidel Castro to Malcolm X. Kevin, 23, with dark eyes, black hair and a short beard, goes upstairs to waken Ruark, the

We Need To Talk To Kevin

Kevin joined the group four years ago. He met Alex at a nightclub, where they were both working. They became friends.

“I had no real political leanings at the time,” he says. “I was occasionally reading some sort of leftist literature, but I didn’t ascribe to any train of thought. Alex told me there was a protest happening against Job Bridge [European work placement scheme], and I knew it was something that I wanted to help out with. I worked with the CYM for a year, before actually joining.”

Kevin’s parents are separated. His father “owns his own home.” They don’t get along.

“I moved out of the house at 17, and I lived in places that I shouldn’t really have,” he says. “I’ve lived in ten or maybe eleven different student accommodations since leaving home, and without a doubt, this is my favourite place.”

Kevin has a day-job at a call-centre now. He could afford to live outside the Barracks, but he’s staying.

“I believe this is a valid form of protest,” he says. “I think it’s legitimate, calling upon authorities to commit to some action.”

Diarmuid agus Ida

Originally from Finland, Ida is a third-year student of International Development and Food Policy at UCC. “When I got here, it was hard to find a place,” she recounts. She stayed in a hostel for a month while she was attending college.

Sitting next to her boyfriend, who is listening intently, Ida recalls moving into several different student accommodations. “I just couldn’t find anywhere,” she says.

She learned about the CYM on Facebook.

“I went to a meeting to find out what the CYM is, who is James Connolly. I joined pretty much immediately after that.”

Diarmuid, who works “in a kitchen” during the day, is the only Irish squatter in the room who is not from Cork. He was always fascinated by Karl Marx.

“I was reading the Communist Manifesto, and I was looking at my friends and realised that no one was doing anything radical,” he says. One day, he saw on Twitter that Gardaí had raided a house near Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral, evicting a group of young squatters. Members, it turned out, of the CYM.

“When I saw that, I thought: ‘These people are actually doing something’. I just opened my laptop and sent an application to join.”

Then There’s Ruark and Ben

Ruark, Chair of the Cork branch, has just finished Secondary School. This is the first time he has lived away from home.

“I read a few articles. The ones that stood out to me were written by Fergal Twomey, our previous National Chairperson,” he says. “I joined off the back of that.”

Ben is a sound engineer. His asthma has deteriorated since moving into the Barracks, but he is undeterred. Identifying as anti-fascist, he is concerned about the rise of right-wing nationalism and anti-immigrant sentiment.

When the Irish far-right figure, and former journalist, Gemma O’Doherty, announced a meeting in the CYM’s beloved An Spailpín Fánach, the members joined a cohort of People Before Profit (PBP) activists in Cork to organise a large protest.

Near Cork’s Kent Train Station, on a green partition erected by Irish developers BAM, Alex’s handwriting reads: ‘Racists Not Welcome’. It is written in both English and Irish.

A L EX HOM I T S AT C ON NOL LY B O OKS

Accusations of Hypocrisy

Not everyone sees the CYM in a benign light.

Other left-leaning groups have – somewhat typically – accused its members of posing as working-class heroes, while belonging to bourgeois families. Critics also insist that homeless people – even those not affiliated with the CYM – should be allowed to move into the house.

“I would like to note that we’re not social workers,” Ben says coolly in response. “We have no ability to provide for [homeless] people’s needs.”

What does Alex think? He shakes his head.

“It’s a good question,” he says, “but we have a set of rules that govern how the house is run, and when we had people over, who weren’t members, I kind of thought: ‘why would these rules be applicable to them’. We thought about it for some time. When all the people who were non-members moved out, we decided that we would only admit CYM members, so that there would be some sort of internal consistency.”

The Story of Eoin

PHOTOGRAPHY: SHAMIM MALEKMIAN

The last resident of Connolly Barracks is Eoin McCarthy. He is a member of the Communist Party of Ireland. In his sixties, he has lived in the barracks for some time. However, Eoin has recently been given an official letter from the CYM, telling him that he must leave.

The letter says that Eoin has transgressed “principle 3.F” of the Barracks rules. Under said principle, “Residents who use the house without contributing anything to its maintenance, threaten other residents, or endanger the project can have their residence revoked by democratic decision of the residents.”

Kevin says that Eoin initiated a physical altercation with him. An in-house meeting was convened, during which the others say that Eoin volunteered to move out.

“He is of the belief that I was trying to instigate an atmosphere where we were just generally being very hostile toward him,” Kevin says. “This incident happened seven or eight months ago, and I think in a lot of situations in different houses he would’ve been removed,

There is a stigma for us men, to open up about our mental health, so men take their lives

like, immediately, but we have tried to act democratically.

“We had a vote within the branch,” he adds.

“We’re giving him the right to appeal, but it’s an ongoing issue.”

Eoin has now appealed the decision. He says he was made to feel disrespected and isolated in the house.

“There were no mechanisms in place to deal with noise issues or problems and these will need to be addressed, if Connolly Barracks has any prospect of being sustainable,” he said in a Facebook message.

A Sense of Purpose

In contrast, the other occupants of Connolly Barracks say that they have found refuge in the CYM. Being involved in the movement has given them a sense of purpose.

“I’ll always be very grateful that I have found like-minded people,” Kevin says, “but also a greater project that I can subsume myself into.

It gives meaning to my life, more than anything else.”

Ida says that “the sense of comradeship” in the house has made her content. She likes living with people who have “the same political end-goal, who have each other’s back.”

Ben says there have been days that merely waking up has seemed like a colossal task, but if one wakes up in the Barracks, “at the end of the day everybody’s laughing and has a good

time.”

“I’m quite happy to pursue a goal towards a struggle that is going to fundamentally change Ireland,” Alex says. “I get a personal sense of satisfaction and a sense of fulfilment out of it, and I know my members do too.”

Remembering Seby

There is one other dark note. Just a few weeks ago, the Connolly Youth Movement lost a 17-year-old member, Sebastian Stroie. The son of Romanian immigrants, Sebastian apparently jumped off a building in Dublin to his death.

Alex, who’s carrying a book called To Die For The People by African-American political activist, Huey P. Newton, wants “Seby” to be mentioned.

“His death has deeply impacted me,” Alex confesses. “I spent a week at home crying, and I’m still in shock to be perfectly honest. I can’t wrap my head around it that Seby is not going to the bookshop anymore, or interacting with us, or posting something [online].”

A UNICEF report has confirmed that Ireland has one of the highest rates of teen suicide in the EU. Nevertheless, Alex says he felt “tremendous guilt” for not being able to help Seby. But being the sole source of comfort for an undisclosed number of young members is a task beyond his capabilities.

“It feels like it’s my fault, and I know it’s not,” he reflects. “There is a stigma for us men, to open up about our mental health, so men take their lives. I encourage everyone, including myself, to talk to a therapist. But, yes, in the CYM, we want to create an atmosphere for young people to be able to share their problems.”

As residents of the Barracks light up the house with candles and battery-powered fairy lights, they wonder if Seby would have been happier if he had lived among them. The group then poses for a photo in front of the house.

“Will people be able to see the words Connolly Barracks in the photo?” Ida asks.

They will, I say and wander off into the night, bleakly aware that no one knows what the future holds.

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T

chances.

“I really didn’t, I thought the fact that I had never written a book would be disqualifying, as it would be for most potential collaborators.

I had no track record, I was only 29 and I really had none of the qualifications that I assumed he would be looking for – someone from Minneapolis, someone who was black. I felt I wasn’t checking any of the boxes.”

Piepenbring was asked to submit a written statement of intent to Prince and it is this that he feels won his quarry over.

“There was something in it that he did kind of vibrate with,” he reflects. “This idea that a memoir doesn’t have to be this kind of demystifying tell-all thing. I think he wanted to talk to someone who wouldn’t approach this with a template in mind and wasn’t going to turn it into something tawdry or salacious.

That’s where it began and once we spoke, I think what made him inclined to keep me around was that I was a good listener. I was so in awe of him, especially at the beginning, that I made a conscious choice to try and speak as little as possible, to draw him out on whatever he wanted to say.”

A cynic might point to this sense of awe as one of the reasons Prince didn’t go for someone with more experience. Piepenbring is quick to agree, but he feels there’s more to it than that.

CREDIT: VIRGINIA TURBETT

DAN PIEPENBRING achieved any fan’s – or writer’s – dream by being chosen by Prince to work on his sadly unfinished memoir, The Beautiful Ones.

“He really did have a way of making you believe you could do impossible things,” he tells PAT CARTY.

here are many reasons to curse April 21, 2016, the day one of music’s very few undisputed geniuses passed away, but the knowledge that Prince was working on a book about his life with Dan Piepenbring of The Paris Review is a particularly bitter pill. This year it finally saw publication, and while it's a book that many fans will cherish, there is, sadly, an air of what might have been about the whole affair – a fact that the author, to his credit, owns up to.

“It really started when I was 16,” Piepenbring says, remembering how he first fell under Prince’s spell. “I heard ‘If I Was Your Girlfriend’ on the radio. I was a drummer, so I had this vendetta against drum machines, but this song’s drum programming and the ethereal kind of eerie synthesisers, and Prince’s very haunting delicate genderbending falsetto, really blew me away. By the end of college, I had just about his whole discography. I was really obsessed, I thought he was the greatest.”

For such a dyed in the wool fan, the prospect of working with his hero must have been daunting, but even when his agent put his name forward, Dan didn’t fancy his

PRINCE MEMOIR “Of course I wondered about that – he was famously controlling. He liked to have the upper hand. So, even if only subconsciously, that must have informed his thinking. My less cynical side is inclined to say that he did enjoy working with young people and he was genuinely inspired by them. I don’t think he wanted to feel that he was washed up or confining himself in his thinking, and having so many young people around helped with that.”

There are a couple of incidents in the narrative where the singer appears to be testing the writer. At one point, Prince flew Piepenbring to Australia – 23 hours in the air to conduct a meeting that could have been done over the phone. Prince also invited the author to a Paisley Park dance party, only for the singer himself not to show.

“He just wanted to see what I was willing to do,” suggests Piepenbring, “and the extent to which I was willing to play to his rules, and let him set the tone, which of course I was entirely.

By that point, that was his mode of dealing with everyone; it had to be on his terms. It did make me nervous of course, but to have him trust me to be the first reader of his memoir pages, to be presented with them handwritten

“Yeah, I think so,” Dan agrees. “The intimacy and the solitude and the stories that would seem to occur to him almost spontaneously on the stage. I think those went hand-in-hand with the memoir and he was really trying to excavate his past. An awareness of his own mortality was definitely a part of what lead him down that path. It was pretty eerie and special to go to those shows in Melbourne and see him discussing things that he and I had discussed, or I had read about in his hand just hours before.”

What Dan’s referring to here are the handwritten remembrances from Prince that form the central part of the book. They’re fascinating, but their brevity really makes you hunger for more.

“Of course, it absolutely does. There is always going to be a sense of loss and a sense of wonder at what could have been.

It was a major struggle to figure out how to structure it, but if people get to the end and they’re unsatisfied with what’s there, I think that’s a very sensible and understandable reaction. To read those pages is to immediately want more.”

One wonders if Piepenbring, Prince’s

“TO HAVE HIM TRUST ME TO BE THE FIRST READER OF HIS MEMOIR PAGES, TO BE PRESENTED WITH THEM HANDWRITTEN ON A LEGAL PAD – THAT WAS SPECIAL.” on a legal pad – that was something so special, and something he would not have done with anyone he wasn’t comfortable with.”

There have been some great musical memoirs over the last couple of years. Prince does give him a bit of guff in the book, but Springsteen’s autobiography – as well as Dylan’s – must have been at least instructional.

“I never discussed it with Prince, but my editor and I were both big fans of Dylan’s Chronicle, in terms of its candour,” Piepenbring half-agrees. “I don’t think Prince would ever write a book that was anything like that, but in terms of a book that does help one see Bob Dylan in a new way, I think it was valuable.”

CHAOS AND DISORDER

Prince had some outlandish ideas for his memoir – it should end racism, and dismantle Ayn Rand’s paean to individualism, The Fountainhead. Intimidating requests for any writer, surely?

“Certainly they are out of the ordinary, but I was thrilled to hear him speaking so ambitiously, and almost riffing or improvising on what he thought the book could be. He really had such a reverence for the medium and he was almost giddy about what a book could do that a record couldn’t. He approached it with an almost limitless sense of what it could accomplish. Yeah, I did worry. What does a page of prose look like that tries to solve racism or attempt to function as a handbook and a story at the same time? But when you locked eyes with him, he really did have a way of making you believe you could do these impossible things.”

Piepenbring saw several Australian dates of Prince’s final Piano & A Microphone tour, which featured songs from throughout his career. It would appear at this remove that the tour and the book were all signs of Prince looking back.

estate and the publishers ever questioned whether the book should come out at all?

“Yes, it came up and I think there was always a fear that we were moving forward with something that was too incomplete. It wasn’t until near the end that we all kind of agreed that we had enough, that we had a way of telling a story that wouldn’t feel like something slapped together with no real purpose. I remember going to Paisley Park with my editor and my publisher just after Prince died, and we were all very nervous, because we really didn’t think there was going to be a book. It was only when we realised how deep his own archive went that we began to think otherwise. It was a huge risk to undertake something like this with so few of his words to guide us.”

MUSICOLOGY

The Prince-written section of the book finds the artist looking back on his childhood: a time of fantasy, seizures and his parents' heartbreaking divorce. Presumably Prince was using hindsight when he imagined his younger self with superpowers.

“I think he was recalling his childhood with a lot of fidelity,” Piepenbring argues. “Although it’s hard not to draw a line from the imagined life to the world that he constructed for himself at Paisley Park. I think so much of the wellspring of his creativity was in that solitude.”

He refers to his seizures as his brain overheating – was there just too much going on in that head?

“That might be my favourite part, where he’s finding that connection between a sort of overactive, over-fertile imagination and the suffering that came with it. That really rings true.”

It seems he loved his parents equally. Was their divorce particularly traumatic for him?

DAN PIEPENBRING “He brought it up again with me four days before he died and described it as one of the central dilemmas of his life. That was something he really did think about almost constantly. You see it in ‘When Doves Cry’ and ‘Purple Rain’.”

Based on what he himself says in the book, and the Prince that we all know and love, the armchair psychiatrist could pronounce Prince’s character as being an amalgamation of his mother’s sexuality and his father’s discipline.

“Yeah, it’s all part of that same slumgullion of parental influence,” Piepenbring agrees.

“His mother’s sexuality must have had a huge influence on his. He has said that she would lay out erotic magazines, Playboys and things like that, and just sort of hope that he would catch on.”

Prince does say he’d rather the Song Of Solomon – the LoveSexy of the Old Testament – than an R rated movie, although I suspect that’s hindsight and not how the teenage boy really felt. His father, John Lewis Nelson, was a serious jazz musician who used ‘Prince Rogers’ as a stage name. Prince describes the day he moved back in with his father, after the divorce, as the happiest of his life “I think he revered his father’s approach to music and thought if he could stay close to him he would be able to draw from that same well,” says Piepenbring. “Look at him as a band leader and a performer – it’s almost always there. You can see the discipline of his father, he really expected perfection on stage.”

That’s the important thing, the music. Prince’s writing is at its best when the subject is Ohio Players, or Rufus & Chaka Khan, or his feelings about the funk.

“It’s so wonderful, there’s almost a budding philosophy of music,” nods Dan. “Of course I wish there was more, but I really delight in those moments. Just to see Prince coming of age in this way, to see him listening to music with such joy.”

• The Beautiful Ones is out now, published by Century.

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THE HOT PRESS INTERVIEW

- STEPHANIE ROCHEFOOTBALLER

GOAL IN MIND Having attained worldwide stardom with a wonder-goal that went viral and earned a FIFA Puskás Award nomination, Stephanie Roche these days plies her trade with Italian Serie A side Florentia San Gimignano. In her most revealing interview to date, the gifted striker reflects on the ups and downs of her career, the recent upheavals in the FAI, the women’s team’s battles with the Association, equal pay and sexism in football. Plus her thoughts on doping in the sport and the Repeal referendum.

WO R D S : M A R K H O G A N

COFFEE SHOP, FLORENCE. FRIDAY, 10:30 After his season at Juventus, Ian Rush reportedly said “I couldn’t settle in Italy, it was like living in a foreign country.” Are you enjoying it here?

In terms of football, it’s fine. Football is a universal language. When the club asked me to re-sign for this season, I told them I needed more Italian lessons. We’ve started them now, so I’m getting much better. It’s particularly important because the manager doesn’t speak English. The hardest thing is in the dressing room: the blending-in, being part of the team. I’m a quiet person. At Sunderland, I could fit in easily; I talked to everybody, but kept to myself at the same time. Here, I’m living with an English player, Lois, and Tamara from Germany, and we get on really well, so that makes it easier.

There’s a big match tomorrow against AC Milan. How has the season been so far?

I was our top scorer in pre-season. I scored nine goals in four games. I was playing really well and felt back to my old self. And I

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got back into the Irish squad, which was a big thing for me. I was enjoying football. I started the first game; we didn’t play well as a team. I’m not saying I didn’t have a good game, but I didn’t have a great game. The manager took me out of the team straight away.

I’ve been coming on as a sub in some games since. It was annoying because I had found my rhythm.

Is football a man’s world?

It’s slowly changing. Most people probably change because they feel they have to, which I find a bit patronising. I see people talking about women’s sport and you can tell they’ve never watched a women’s game; they’re just talking about it because they feel they should. If you’re going to show support, it’s important that you actually watch a game. It’s important to criticise as well. If I have a bad game, I’d prefer to be told, because it means the person is taking a genuine interest. You don’t want to hear that you’re great, after every game. That really bugs me.

BBC Sport’s advert for the Women’s World Cup had the tagline “They’re Better Than You Think”, with the word ‘Think’ crossed out. Do a lot of guys assume they’re better than most professional women footballers?

To an extent! Men are built different to women; they’re stronger and faster. I’ve trained with senior men’s teams and it’s only speed and strength where I find I’m not as good. In terms of technical ability, I’m usually better or as good. Some people think the women’s game is slow. But it’s a different type of game. Women’s football is more technical, because we’re not as fast. To really appreciate our game, you need to watch it at the highest level.

Your boyfriend, Dean, plays in the League of Ireland. Who’s the better footballer, you or him?

Oh God, you can’t ask me that! We’re different types! He’s a really good footballer. As a man, he’d say he’s better! He’s faster and stronger, without a doubt. But tactically and technically, we’d be much the same. And in terms of ability, if we were to do a number of exercises like hit the crossbar or ping a ball from 40 yards, we’d be similar.

BOTTOM THREE: CODY GLENN, DAVID MAHER, PIARAS Ó MÍDHEACH/ SPORTSFILE ; ORAGE TOP BY MARK HOGAN

I

n 2014, Stephanie Roche burst onto the world stage when her stunning goal for the Irish women’s football club Peamount United went viral. She went on to become the first woman in the world to be nominated for the FIFA Puskás Award. Over one million people worldwide voted her into the runner-up position, while at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, she turned the heads of Ronaldo, Messi and countless more around the globe. The intervening years have brought ups and downs, including a leg break while on international duty. Last year, she returned from injury to sign with Florentia San Gimignano in Italy’s Serie A. In the Florentia camp for their clash with AC Milan, I encountered a footballer in her prime, awaiting her chance to shine again. Stephanie Roche is ready to prove she has more to give. A whole lot more.

PULLING THE TRIGGER: ( C l o c kw i s e f ro m t h e t o p ) : Stephanie in S erie A action; i n t r a i n i n g ; o n I re l a n d d u t y (3 and 4); and campaigning f o r e q u a l i t y. . .

MARK HOGAN

Tell me about the opportunities you turned down.

I was asked to go on pretty much every reality TV show in Ireland.

But it would have conflicted with football. And I’d have been going against everything I knew to put football second.

Were there media approaches from the UK? I was asked to go on Big Brother a few weeks after the Puskás nomination was announced. I had just finished in France and I was going to America. They got in touch with Wexford Youths, the club who I scored against. One of the girls messaged me, saying, ‘You’re not going to believe this, Big Brother has been onto us looking for you’. I immediately thought, ‘No!’ It wasn’t for me.

Maybe when you hang up your boots?!

Yeah, hopefully some of them ask me again when I retire!

“You have to be happy; I’ve played football for a long time, and now it’s taking off. If that can continue, it’s good for everyone.”

So, who would come out on top in those exercises?

Jesus, this could cause a break-up! I’m going to say me. He’d probably say him though. We’ll have to do a test, yeah?!

How do you manage the long-distance relationship?

The fact that we’re both footballers makes it easier because he understands why I’m here. And even better, he pushes me. Football is fickle; you’re easily forgotten and quickly replaced. When I was injured, Dean always encouraged me. We’ve been together 12 years, so it’s hard being apart. You don’t want to be living in a different country to the person you love. But he knows how much it means to me to be a top footballer.

When did you realise you were good at football?

Probably not until I was 12 or 13. I used to play on the street with the lads, and everybody knew me as a little tomboy. But I never knew much about women’s football until I played in school. I got trials for Ireland quite quickly; it was only then I thought, ‘Jesus, I must be alright!’

Is it frustrating that bigger money is only now hitting the women’s game?

Yeah, England are a good bit ahead of most countries. The FA have a lot of players on central contracts, getting good money. They’re able to be really professional, and it’s changing them as a team. It’s great to see. I’ve played football for a long time, and now it’s taking off. If that can continue, it’s good for everyone.

You shot onto the world stage with that goal. Have you ever wished you’d never scored it?

That’s a good question... Sometimes it can work against you. I like to think I’m a decent footballer in terms of technical ability. I think I can score special goals. But women’s football can be quite bitchy.

In the past, in clubs, people have thought ‘who does she think she is?’ At Sunderland there were issues with a couple of girls who were just nasty. I let it affect me a little. I had a lot of opportunities after the Puskás Awards, but I only took on stuff that was relevant to me. I wouldn’t have done something just to make money. But there were things I didn’t do because I thought I’d have people in the squad bitching.

What was it like being thrown into the spotlight?

I strangely enjoyed it because everyone was so positive, particularly in Ireland. You’ve obviously got the begrudgers putting nasty things on Twitter, but in general people were good. I was doing interviews with media from all over the world; I found it weird that they wanted to talk to me. I’m a private person so having to put stuff on social media at the time was also weird. But it’s part of what you have to do nowadays.

It’s not that I wish it hadn’t happened, but there were times where it did affect people’s opinion of me.

066 HOTPRESS.COM

Did the hype around the Puskás Award raise expectations too much?

A little bit, yeah. I’ve never said I’m the best footballer in the world, and I like to be criticised. I think when people who hadn’t watched women’s football saw the goal, they thought I have to be the best women’s footballer around. People were tweeting saying, ‘she’s unbelievable, she has to be up for the Ballon d’Or’. But I’d never get ahead of myself; I’m not that type. Sometimes people perceive you simply based on what they’ve read. But there are so many good female players who people don’t know about. I used the platform to promote women’s football and show that there are plenty of women who can score goals as good as Messi and Ronaldo.

What are your thoughts on equal pay?

The Premier League in England generates millions. Right now, the Women’s Super League doesn’t. But if the FA promoted the women’s game in the same way, it could make as much. The girl I live with was saying it’s crazy to think that Jesse Lingard is on such a ridiculous amount of money, and we’re on just under two grand a month. We’re doing the same thing every day, we’re working our arses off. There are parts of you that think ‘even if we got a quarter of what he gets, it’d be great.’ But at the same time, I don’t think we generate enough money yet. It’s getting to the stage where it could; 60,000 people went to Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, Wembley sold out for England–Germany, and Spurs–Arsenal got 38,000 two weeks ago.

More interest is being generated but it’s not there yet, particularly in club football. At the international level, because you’re representing your county, the pay should be more equal, as it’s more equal in terms of what you’re doing.

Should there be equal pay, full-stop?

You’re going to get me in trouble, I was part of the strike thing with the FAI, I have to be careful! I’ll never play for Ireland again (laughs)!

No, I do think the same principle applies; the men sell out the Aviva and we’re playing in Tallaght Stadium. Our attendance is growing and we’re heading in the right direction with the games being on RTÉ, but we’re still a bit far off getting equal pay.

How do you navigate the pathway towards equal pay ?

It has to start with equal opportunity. All the bits in between have to be the same, not just money. For instance, when the men’s international team go away, they have five masseuses, physios, everything they need. We get one physio and I think we’ve just now got a masseuse. As a team, we need things like that. Everything has to be equal. Only then can women’s football progress. The same goes for media and branding; when sponsorship comes through for the men’s team they should be told ‘if you’re sponsoring our men’s team, you’re sponsoring our women’s team as well’. And there should be an equal share for the men and women, if we’re talking about equality.

The basics need to be equal first, then eventually it can get to the pay being equal.

Does it come down to the need for greater investment in the women’s game?

Yeah, it does. We’re a hundred years behind. If people are saying women’s football isn’t great, it’s because it hasn’t had investment similar to men’s football over the last century. It’s all about funding.

You don’t want to always talk about money but that’s what’s missing.

The decision by Three to not renew their sponsorship deal was a devastating blow.

The main sponsors are a huge chunk of what allows us to compete so

STEPHANIE R OCHE

“When you’re on the pitch you forget everything else and do what you have to do. You do your job.”

MARK HOGAN

That’s a bigger achievement than the Puskás nomination?

Yeah. The goal was something special that was captured, and it took off. But playing for Ireland is the bigger thing. It was always my dream to play at senior level for Ireland.

Is there sexism within women’s football?

Yeah, sometimes. People who come from the men’s game can take a while to adjust. I’ve had male coaches not treat us the same as they would men. It’s as if they’re afraid to say the wrong thing. I’ve had strong coaches who do treat you the same as men; but sometimes male coaches are intimidated. I don’t know if it’s sexism, it’s more that their approach is different. As a player, I’d prefer a coach to treat me as he would a male player.

When was the last time you cried and why?

Yesterday. First by myself and then with friends. It was over football.

What’s your main fault?

My house-mate, Lois, tells me I’m too nice.

What’s your reaction to the release of the FAI accounts?

It’s such a shambles, isn’t it? You couldn’t make it up. You’d like to think the people in there fit the criteria to be able to deal with all of these things, but they’ve been doing a half-arsed job of it.

Will it affect team morale?

When you’re on the pitch you forget everything else and do what you have to do. You do your job. Obviously every player is disappointed and annoyed with what’s going on, but we’re just going to have to get on with it.

it’s a worrying time. With the accounts being released, at least now everything’s out in the open and everyone knows what needs to be fixed. It’s going to be an uphill task; there’s a lot that needs to be done.

When you say women’s football is a hundred years behind, you’re referring to the ban in the UK? In 1921, the Plymouth Ladies captain actually said the same thing: that the FA were “a hundred years behind the times”.

Yes, we’re still a hundred years behind because of the ban. The women’s game was really big, there were more than 50,000 people at games in 1920. Can you imagine if they didn’t ban it, and it had grown with the men’s game?

Has the issue of maternity leave ever arisen in teams you’ve been on?

It’s never been an issue. I remember at Sunderland – and don’t ask me why, because I wasn’t thinking of having a child! – I looked at my contract to see what’d happen if you had a child. Basically – I think – if you have a child, you’re out of contract. If you’ve been playing football for a long time and you have a child, you should be paid because it’s a natural thing. I shouldn’t not have a child because I’m playing football.

It’s difficult though because, if I sign for a club for a season, and I’m gone for nine months because I’m pregnant… it’s something that needs more discussion. A lot of female players just don’t know what would happen.

FLORENTIA S.G. TRAINING GROUND, FLORENCE. FRIDAY, 17:15. POST-TRAINING. Training is over. What’s your state of mind?

Right now, I know I’m not starting tomorrow, so that plays on my mind.

You know by the way the team is set up in training. I feel I’ve trained well this week, so I’m disappointed, but you have to be professional about it. I could get on, so I have to be ready either way.

Do you have a playlist that you listen to before a game?

I listen to all sorts of music. If you went through my Spotify, anything could come on. I like pumped up music before a game. I love Irish traditional music as well. I really like Bruno Mars, Picture This and Dermot Kennedy.

What has been your biggest achievement?

Playing for my country. That’s huge. Every time.

Tell me about your involvement in Niall Quinn’s ‘Football Visionary Group’.

Niall has come in with Kieran Foley and numerous others from different backgrounds. The proposal outlines how to bring the FAI forward. I was asked to help with women’s football. Change is needed, the whole country knows that. Now it’s a case of making it happen, not just talking about it, as has been the case for the last ten years. The FAI didn’t want to change anything, but their hand is being forced now with the accounts having been released. The next step has to be a big one. I believe the Visionary Group has the right ideas to make it work.

It wants to help all football in Ireland, not just the League of Ireland, not just women’s football, not just grassroots; it’s about a better future for the whole of football in the country. That vision can be achieved if the group is given the backing.

What are your thoughts on John Delaney?

Obviously, it’s disappointing. As a player, you like to think the people in charge are making the right decisions, but it seems they weren’t.

Everybody has their opinion on John Delaney at this stage. I’ve met him lots of times. He was always very nice, he always seemed to want to help women’s football. So it’s disappointment, really.

How do we fix the game at a grassroots level in Ireland?

In England, the FA have a hold over exactly what happens in grassroots football. In Ireland, there are too many associations and leagues doing their own thing. There needs to be better cohesion, from the FAI down, to make sure that everybody is doing what’s best for football.

The #MeToo movement doesn’t seem to have reached women’s football yet. How big is the issue, given the power balance between men and women in certain sports?

The former English manager, Mark Sampson, was accused of being with a player when he managed Bristol Academy. He’s had racial abuse allegations as well. But personally, I’ve never really seen anything like that. Managers with players? Yeah, you’d get that a little but I wouldn’t have known anything about it. You’d hear rumours sometimes and think, ‘ok they’re very close’ but I don’t know…

Will Ireland qualify for Euro 2021?

I think we will. We’ve made it hard on ourselves with the draw against Greece. It won’t be easy. We need a result against Germany, but with the squad we have, we’re capable of beating them. We’ll get ourselves back on the road if we beat Greece in March.

HOTPRESS.COM 067

How do you increase attendance at international games?

The biggest difference between women’s and men’s football is that the women themselves have to promote it. We’ve got the 20x20 campaign now and RTÉ are showing the games, but without the players sharing everything… Our Ireland team WhatsApp group is hopping whenever the FAI post something, ‘Share that, retweet that’.

All the players are really involved in getting the message out there.

MARK HOGAN

Can integration between the men’s and women’s teams happen at league level in Ireland?

It’s funny you say it, because I was in the FAI when Kieran Lucid came in with the All-Island League proposal. I suggested to try it with the women as well. Shelbourne are affiliated with the men’s team, but so many of the women’s teams aren’t. That’s where women’s football is lacking. Could you get Peamount to partner up with Shamrock Rovers or whoever’s their nearest team, and then have an all-island league? For investors and brands, if they can see that it’s working with women and men, it would generate more money. But when I asked, Kieran said that it was just for men. So that’s what you’re up against.

A lot of people aren’t even considering the women’s game – but from a branding perspective, anybody who’s worked in marketing knows that going forward, the women’s side is just as important.

Is there an Irish female footballer who’s extra special?

Denise O’Sullivan. She’s been nominated for RTÉ Sportsperson of the Year. She works hard and is a good player. There’s no airs and graces about her, she just gets on with it. She’s a special footballer, and a nice person as well.

Why is it harder for men to come out in football, than women?

It’s strange. If you’re a man, I think you’re going to be worried about getting slagged in the dressing room. I think it’s just fear. In women’s football it’s more accepted. I don’t ever wonder if one of my team mates is gay or straight; I’m not going to treat them any different.

If you had a girl who was good at football, would you encourage her to go professional?

I’d encourage her to play but I’d make sure she has her education as well. I was probably a bit naïve thinking, ‘I’m going to be a professional footballer, that’s all I need.’ The reality is I won’t be able to make a living out of playing football. I need to do other stuff and I’ll have to do courses in the next few years to get prepared for after football; media courses and coaching badges. I have my UEFA Youth Cert and I want to do the UEFA B badge too.

So are you able to put money aside?

The club look after us really well, and are good at making sure everyone has what they need and nobody’s struggling. Our housing and bills are paid for and we get a salary every month. I want to save money to buy a house; football wages aren’t going to cut it, so I need to focus on getting a proper job.

“I don’t ever wonder if one of my team mates is gay or straight; I’m not going to treat them any different”

Positive LGBT culture starts in the dressing room, not by wearing rainbow laces on TV. What can be done to make football a more accepting sport for gay men?

Yeah, they tried to do a bit with the rainbow laces. But more could be done. Sometimes people are afraid to approach the subject, because it’s always been so taboo. It needs for more men to come out together, so that others feel they can too.

PLAYERS’ TUNNEL, FLORENTIA S.G. STADIUM. SAN GIMIGNANO, TUSCANY. SATURDAY, 17:00. POST-MATCH. FLORENTIA S.G. 2 – 1 A.C. MILAN How do you feel right now?

It’s a strange one. I’m delighted the team won, but annoyed I didn’t play. It’s difficult when you’re not able to contribute. We’ve beaten Roma and now AC Milan, so it puts us in fourth position. I want to help the team, and I know I can do it so I’m just waiting for my opportunity. I can only control the controllable.

I watched you celebrate with the team; you laughed and smiled and hugged, but still, you were somewhat reserved.

I was annoyed. The celebration is difficult, because I feel like I haven’t earned it. I’m really happy that we won but I haven’t done enough yet to feel what they’re feeling.

RESTAURANT, SAN GIMIGNANO, TUSCANY. SATURDAY, 19:00. POST-MATCH.

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Do you have a five-year plan?

Yeah. Since I came back from injury my plan was to get back playing regularly, and get into the Irish team, which I’ve managed to do. I’ve been a squad player for the last three Irish games; I want to play as much as I can. My overall goal when I started playing football was to get to a major tournament with Ireland. We’re in the qualifiers now, so to get to the finals would be the icing on the cake. If I did that I probably would be happy to walk away from football, and have a family; I want my own kids.

A proper job?

I know! It’s difficult to say that! But a job that pays more money than playing football. I’ve been working on it.

When I was injured I started my own football coaching company, Stephanie Roche FC. At the minute I have people helping me, but when I finish playing I can focus on that.

Would you like to join the Irish camp as a trainer?

I’d like to think I’d be considered. If I get through all my coaching badges there’ll be a lot of girls finishing at the same time, so there’ll be competition. Ireland is a small country. Maybe I’ll go abroad… I loved it in America.

Things didn’t really work out, but I’ve been offered different things over there.

Tell me about your US experience.

I really enjoyed it. The manager liked me. I had a conversation with him the week before I was let go, and he told me that I was the best finisher in the team.

The club needed defenders; they tried to get a couple of American girls, but couldn’t. So, they had to get a foreign player. They only had three spaces on the roster for foreign players. But I don’t regret going; it prepared me for England. Looking back, I think I’ve done really well so far. There are parts of the last few years where I haven’t really enjoyed my football; that’s why I’m here: I’m hoping this season will see the tide turn.

Where there’s money in sport, there’s drugs. Is it a problem in today’s game?

I don’t know. We get tested. In our last international camp, we had doping people test two players. So it is quite frequent. And here, you have to write down everything you’ve taken, so if something comes up that isn’t on your list, it’s your own fault. Even if you have a cold or ‘flu you’d be afraid to take anything, just in case.

Are there performance-enhancing techniques in the Premiership?

There’s been loads of media reports about blood doping. There are clever doctors out there who are able to work around the system to enhance performance. They know what they can get away with.

How would you feel about managing a men’s team?

I’ve worked a lot with men over the last ten years. Most are quite open-minded once they get to know you, especially when they can

see you’re a good footballer. But we’re still a long way from having the authority you need to be in charge of a men’s team. A few women have done it, but if things don’t go right, it’s always going to be because you’re a woman. But I wouldn’t have any qualms about doing it because I’ve grown up being around men all the time. I’d always talk football with my brothers, my dad and my boyfriend’s family. I wouldn’t be shy about giving my opinion.

DAVID MAHER/SPORTSFILE

STEPHANIE R OCHE knows? Maybe we’re overthinking it. Maybe it was just that the manager didn’t want them. All the people who did it, did it for the right reasons. They weren’t being selfish, it wasn’t about them, it was about Ireland as a football squad.

But the manager has the final say?

Yeah. You’d like to think that. I don’t know if there were people behind the scenes getting involved or not. Colin (Bell) was quite a strong manager, I think he would have had his way. Hopefully.

But yeah, there was Karen Duggan who retired early as well, Áine Gorman… I think Emma Byrne might have been finishing up anyway. But Emma could probably have given us another campaign. I don’t know if they felt pushed out or whether their time just came to an end.

What’s your prediction for the men’s playoffs?

They’ve made it hard on themselves.

They’ll beat Slovakia. And I think they’ll do it against Northern Ireland or Bosnia; they’ve always done things the hard way. I flew home for the Denmark game and I was disappointed because I thought we showed them too much respect.

When we actually went for it, we were the better team. There’s really good talent within the team. If we believe in ourselves, we can qualify.

What’s the best feeling you’ve ever had?

Scoring a goal. Scoring for my country, in particular. There’s a picture of me when I scored against Germany and I think you can see the passion in my face.

It’s a photo I really don’t like, because I don’t look very pretty in it (laughs) but you can see how much it meant to score the goal.

What do you think of Mick McCarthy?

I like him. He’s done quite well. The players seem to like him and that’s a good sign. If players like to play for a manager it means he must be a decent person as well as a good manager.

What do you think about the transition from Mick McCarthy to Stephen Kenny?

Kenny’s doing very well with the Under 21s. They’ve got some great players. Some people want Mick McCarthy to play the younger players, but it’s a huge step. And when you’re working with a squad, it’s difficult to drop a senior player for someone who’s doing well but isn’t experienced in playing at the highest level. It’s important to let players develop, and play them when they’re actually ready. If we allow the likes of Troy Parrot and Aaron Connolly do well with the Under 21s, then Kenny can bring them through and the transition will be easier.

R E D A L E RT: Hanging with Ronaldo and Messi in Zurich

“I think everyone should be able to do what they want with their own body. In this day and age, everyone should be able to make their own choice.”

Have things have improved since 2017 when Irish women players went public with their grievances?

It’s strange because a lot of the players who were involved aren’t there anymore. The likes of Áine O’Gorman; I think she should be still there, she’s still able to play. I think there were issues with her and the previous manager where they had disagreements. I know Emma Byrne and Áine O’Gorman in particular were very passionate about getting it sorted. We knew there was a movement coming with the 20x20 campaign. I was proud to be part of the group, it brought us together on the pitch. We all knew it needed to happen.

And it worked, because the squad and the level of professionalism has immensely improved. I think it’s going to help us get to a finals – hopefully Euro 2021.

Was there a reaction against people who got involved?

I don’t know. It’s difficult because I would have spoken to a couple of people and thought there may have been. There would have been rumours. I think certain people might have been phased out a bit. It would be very disappointing if that was the case, but who

What were your thoughts on Repealing the 8th Amendment?

I think everyone should be able to do what they want with their own body. In this day and age, everyone should be able to make their own choice.

Tell me something nobody knows about you.

Maybe I have a bit of a temper.

No-one gets to see it because I’m very nice to people in general, but…

So who sees that temper?

My poor boyfriend, I suppose!

Something has to really annoy me for me to get that angry (laughs).

Your advice for young footballers?

Work as hard as you can, while you can, because football is really short.

Being injured the last two years has made me ask have I given my all, have I really done everything I possibly could?

And have you done everything you could?

I’ve a lot more to give. That’s partly what’s killing me at the minute. I want to play and show what I can do. Most people who know of me, know me because of that goal. So, it’s important to me to play at a high level and to prove myself again. If I don’t, I’ll just be known for the Puskás. Don’t get me wrong, it was an amazing thing, but I want to be known for more than that.

Postscript: The tide has turned. As the magazine goes to print, Stephanie has been named in the starting 11 for Florentia’s match in the Coppa Italia. A place in the quarter-finals is at stake. Forza!

• Ireland play Greece in Tallaght Stadium on March 6, 2020 in the 7'(# 9QOGPoU 'WTQRGCP %JCORKQPUJKR| 3WCNKH[KPI )TQWR

HOTPRESS.COM 069

REEL-GOOD FACTOR In our recent Hot Press Annual, a selection of Irish stars picked their favourite movies of the year. We here dive deeper into their fascinating and eclectic choices.

COMPILED BY BRENNA RANSDEN, JOEY MOLLOY AND DANE PERSKY

JOJO RABBIT

Hozier

J OJ O RA BBI T

The American satirical black comedy from Taika Waititi follows a Hitler youth member who finds out his mother (played by Scarlett Johansson) is hiding a Jewish girl in the attic.

Talking to us about the brilliantly daring effort, Hozier enthused, “I really enjoyed Jojo Rabbit – a stunning film.”

Netflix’s position as a new home for daring arthouse cinema. In Noah Baumbach’s biting examination of divorce, Charlie and Nicole Barber — played by Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson — find themselves negotiating emotional and legal turmoil as they undergo a bitter break-up. One of the year’s best reviewed movies, Marriage Story is a brilliantly insightful and provocative effort.

Farah Elle Somebody’s Child J OK E R

JOKER

In this DC Comics thriller, Joaquin Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a failed comedian with an unfortunate case of uncontrollable laughter. Labelled an outcast and bullied by those around him, Fleck descends into the mad guise of the Joker, a clown figure with a penchant for extreme violence. The movie became a cultural phenomenon and grossed over a billion dollars at the box office.

Phil Coulter T HE I RI S HM A N

THE IRISHMAN

Based on a true story, Martin Scorsese’s latest offering has Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro), an Irish-born American now elderly and far past his prime, finally revealing his involvement in the 1950s with Russell Buffalino (Joe Pesci) and his Pennsylvania crime family. As Sheeran rises from truck driver to hitman, he finds himself swimming with dangerous sharks like powerful Teamster Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino).

Tara Stewart HUS T L E RS

HUSTLERS

Based on a 2015 New York magazine article, Hustlers follows the story of Destiny (Constance Wu), a stripper who struggles with financial difficulty following the ’08 economic crash. Having reconnected with friend Ramona (Jennifer Lopez), the duo start drugging their clients and stealing their credit card numbers. Besides exceeding box office expectations, J-Lo’s performance was hailed as a career best.

Toucan M A RRI A GE S T ORY The most nominated film at the 77th Golden Globes, Marriage Story solidifies

MARRIAGE STORY

THE M I S E DUCAT I ON O F CA M E RON POS T

In this British-American drama directed by Desiree Akhavan, audiences trace the story of Cameron Post, a teenager involved in a secret lesbian relationship. The film provides insight into gay conversion therapy and the struggles that queer people faced in the ’90s. The movie received the Sundance Festival’s highest honour, the Grand Jury Prize.

Robert Smith A POLL O 1 1 Forgoing narration, interviews or recreations, this unique documentary about the eponymous ‘69 moon mission provides remarkable insight into the historic voyage of Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins (no, not that one). In addition to performing well commercially, Apollo 11 was also one of the year’s most critically acclaimed films.

Roz Purcell AV E NGE RS : E NDGA ME The final film in the Avengers trilogy finds Marvel’s heroes reckoning with a universe half-destroyed

by Thanos. With a box office take of nearly €2.5 billion, Avengers: Endgame is the now the highest grossing movie of all time, and likely the most ambitious superhero film ever made.

Bronagh Gallagher A M A Z I NG GRA CE Starring none other than the queen of soul, this concert documentary shows Aretha Franklin in 1972 as she records her gospel record Amazing Grace. The film is an insightful dive into the legend’s approach to music and features cameos from Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts.

FASHION / SEX / GIFT GUIDE

WILD LIFE THE ST. NICK OF IT

The top Irish designers to check out this Xmas.

Pg. 76

Sex | 72

Shoot | 74

Gifts | 78

Noelle Brown on sex during the menopause.

Why sequins are in vogue this season.

Say goodbye to last minute panic with our Xmas gift guide.

SEX

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The latest sex opinions, tips and news with Sarah Richardson

OPINION

THE SEX GETS BETTER The cliched view of menopause is that it signals the end of women’s interest in sex. After all, you can no longer have babies, right? However, the clichés are wrong. As comedian and writer Noelle Brown argues, for many women the experience of menopause is empowering – not least in that it ushers in a new period of sexual freedom…

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s a spoken word artist, I perform at many different comedy and poetry nights across the city. At one of my recent gigs, I witnessed a stand-up routine all about going through the menopause. It was hilarious, eyeopening and made me realise just how little we generally hear about that portion of women’s lives.

I started to think, why don’t we talk about this?

What actually happens during menopause? And mainly, being me, I wondered: what about sex?

And so I thought: as a 20-something I can either ponder these ideas, live in fear of that time and just generally make assumptions, or I can sit down with the woman whose jokes had me laughing out loud – comedian, actor, writer and director Noelle Brown – to get the real scope.

Guess which I did...

IN THE DARK Noelle has been talking about menopause, interviewing women and creating art about it for over a year now. It is part of a personal campaign to bring the conversation about menopause out from the shadows, where it currently lurks.

For Noelle, it all started when she hit menopause – and around the same time, a young friend of hers went into early menopause.

Her friend turned to her, looking for advice and someone to talk to about it, only to find that Noelle was as much in the dark as she was.

Noelle explains that no-one among her friends was speaking about this experience, though they were all going through it. Doctors didn’t seem to be educated on the multitude of symptoms that can be involved, the effects that the menopause can have on women’s bodies, and the shame

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BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION

Noelle Brown

“No-one among her

friends was speaking about this experience, though they were all going through it.” that comes with putting yourself out there as someone who is going through menopause.

She recalls the way people immediately shut down, the moment she mentioned that her new project focused on menopause. It took getting women into a safe, one-on-one space before they felt they could really open up about their experiences.

From masturbation and periods to women enjoying sex, there are many experiences women go through that – as a society – we still feel uncomfortable talking about. Menopause is at the top of that list. Noelle speaks about friends of hers whose mothers are avid feminists but who still shut down completely when menopause is mentioned.

“Your reproductive years are over, so what are you?” That question has been indoctrinated into women, because for so many generations we have been told that, as women, our main purpose is to have babies and be mothers. When we can’t do that anymore, our worth in society is immediately diminished. That this is wrong seems obvious. But simply saying that won’t make those attitudes go away.

The stigma surrounding menopause hits women, for whom it arrives early, even harder.

They have to battle feelings of not being a “real woman” because they have “lost” the ability to reproduce. Speaking to women, Noelle is convinced that the resulting shame is crippling many women emotionally – and it is also hindering their access to medical support and care.

Noelle argues that GPs aren’t being educated properly to support women in menopause. A lot of doctors, it seems, have forgotten how to listen.

Symptoms such as anxiety and depression – which are part of the hormonal changes involved – are dealt with by prescribing anti-depressants rather than being met with the understanding that they are related to menopause. And the misleading assumptions don’t end there.

One of the biggest misconceptions about women, once they hit menopause, is that they

WILDLIFE | SEX “Far from wilting towards old

age, Noelle found a large number of women who became more empowered after menopause.”

SEX O'CLOCK NEWS

are dead from the waist down. Not only is this utterly wrong, it is also damaging on many levels. For example, once they hit menopause, women aren’t being told to go for STI check-ups or tests because it is assumed that they are no longer having sex. As a result, women’s sexual health is being put at risk because an assumption is made that they no longer even want to have sex. How mad is that?

A KIND OF RE-BIRTH During her research, Noelle met with a sexologist – who explained to her that if you enjoyed sex before, there is no reason whatsoever for you not to enjoy sex during menopause. It is true that, for some women, sex can become slightly more painful because the vaginal walls thin out. But there are options – like taking estrogen – that can minimise this. In fact, having sex is good, because it is a workout for those muscles.

Indeed, some women told Noelle of the “menopause orgasm” insisting that sex became better during and after menopause. The fact that you don’t have to worry about contraception is part of that – though, of course, you do have to remain conscious of avoiding STIs. Currently, menopause is loaded with negative connotations. But Noelle sees it differently, explaining to me the positives of menopause, and the power that going through it can unleash.

Noelle describes the experience as “puberty in reverse.” She theorises that, as menopause sees the lowering of estrogen, leaving testosterone as the more prominent hormone in women’s bodies, it can act as a kind of re-birth for women. Far from wilting towards old age, Noelle found a large number of women who became more empowered after menopause, who started businesses and became more creative after going through it.

A lot of them reported feeling more in touch with their bodies. And for many of those who’d had children, it was a time when their full-on duties as mothers were coming to an end and they could start to put the�sel�es first� Seen in this light� �oelle depicts the �enopause as a moment of renaissance for women, where they can become more empowered sexually, personally and professionally.

Conversations around menopause are just beginning – and work like Noelle’s is so important. It helps, in a big way, for women to see themselves and their experiences being shared on larger platforms.

Too often, menopause is seen as the butt of the joke, so to hear Noelle, a comedian, twist the narrative and reclaim our experience is incredibly empowering. Oh, and in her case, hilarious…

TH IS ISSUE'S SEX TIP ORGANIC FOR THE PEOPLE This week’s sex tip comes from Noelle Brown. She recommends using organic lube during sex when going through the menopause. Which begs the question: why lea�e the �enefits of using lu�e and lots of it till then� Organic lube can help if you experience pain during sex.

During the menopause, this can come from the thinning of the vaginal walls. But, of course, it can happen at different times and for various reasons to women. Noelle recommends using the organic lube, yes, and lots of it to make sex more enjoyable and pleasurable. The truth is that you don’t have to be going through the menopause to �enefit fro� the use of lu�e� �e say� gi�e it a try� �t can offer an extra dimension to sex at any and every stage of your life.

The joy of Xmas: getting in the mood

Does Christmas get you in the mood?

The nights are longer, the decorations are finally up and – it turns out – people are having more sex. Research fro� the Scientific �eports has confir�ed it� �here is a general increase, around Christmas, in sexual activity; a rise in the use of the word “sex’ and sexrelated terms in web searches; and an increase in pregnancies following the Christmas holiday.

The Christmas and holiday seasons are characterised by what they call ‘collective moods’, which could be why people start to think more about growing their family. Or, it might just be that people have a bit more time on their hands. �nd ha�e a �uart fe� drinks� Whatever the reason, Christmas really is the horniest time of the year� Put a little toy in your stocking Stuck trying to find the perfect gift for your partner? Looking for something to spice up your Christmas nights? Why not try a Christmas-themed sex toy? From candy cane lube to jingle bell nipple tassels, the Christmas stocks of sex toys are in – and who wouldn’t want to give them a try? There’s kinky Christmas crackers, ice cube �a�oured nipple �al� and candy cane vibrators. Let’s make it a se�y �hrist�as�

A sneaky sex session A survey done by EdenFantasys has found that 7 out of 10 people will have sex on Christmas day. Interestingly, spending Christmas at your parents or in-laws doesn’t stop people having sex, with 47% admitting they’d had sex in their childhood bedrooms while visiting their parents.

Some of the participants had unique suggestions as to where to sneak off to for a quickie.

Ideas included; a treehouse, on the roof, and even behind the �hrist�as tree� A little Christmas music to get you in the mood?

Another festive survey found that during the holiday period, a lot of couples are not against having a bit of Christmas music in the background to set the mood. A third of participants said that they would get down to ‘Jingle Bells’, 28% said they would have sex to ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’ and one in four said they would happily have ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ to set the tone. Er, there’s no accounting for taste �or lack of it���

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YULE NEVER LOOK BETTER With the merriest of seasons approaching, it’s time to do yourself up like the most sparkling Christmas tree ornament – right in time for all the festive parties.

By Roe McDermott

Group shot, all Penneys

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WILDLIFE | FASHION

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“Metallic midi skirts are great party pieces, but can also be dressed down with a jumper or graphic tee during the year.”

STOCKISTS 1. Sequin mini skirt €13, Penneys 2. V by Very Ombre sequin dress €145, Littlewoods 3. Ombre strappy sequin jumpsuit €62, Miss Selfridge 4. Silver sequin top €18, Penneys 5. Silver sequin midi skirt €85, Miss Selfridge 6. Gold jacquard skirt €13, Penneys 7. Diamante waterfall drop earrings €4, Penneys 8. Embellished fringe skirt €120, Miss Selfridge 9. Burgundy puff sleeve playsuit €30, Miss Selfridge

xciting, odd, exhilarating, elegant and ever-present, the versatile metallic trend was shining on all the major catwalks this fashion season.

Futuristic twists, delicious shimmers and classic sequins mean there’s a way for everyone to work this trend into their wardrobe.

Emilio Pucci went for mermaid shimmers with oversized metallic tops with dramatic bell sleeves. Paco Rabanne sent models down the runway with tops and dresses made from shining discs, with bejewelled hair. Christian Siriano showcased metallic streetwear with textured puffer jackets and quilted skirts with a silver shine, while Halpern went for a more traditional party look with all-over sequin dresses. Molly Goddard went for a modern yet show-stopping look, dressing her models in edgy black pants and slicked back hair. Silver crystal tops with crystal fringing, meanwhile, gave the illusion of diamonds dripping to the ground. And 16Arlighton’s creations were bright, bold and irresistible, as heavily jewelled and embellished gowns

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with keyhole slits were emblazoned with artistic portraits, all thanks to perfectly placed sequins and stones.

Look for opulent brocades and jacquards in metallic hues for a beautiful clash of past patterns and futuristic shines. Also be sure to clash and contrast your metallic jewellery for a modern blend of silver, gold and copper tones. There are ways of rocking the Christmas bedazzle while also ensuring your new pieces will easily transition into your everyday wardrobe next year. Metallic midi skirts are great party pieces, but can also be dressed down with a jumper or graphic tee during the year. Metallic playsuits look incredible when paired with heels for a party, but can become great streetwear when paired with black tights, flat boots and a leather jacket. Jacquard and shimmery miniskirts can also be dressed down with tights, a jumper or a classic white shirt during the year, allowing you to bring the party all year around.

Now don your sparkles, stay away from mistletoe during the office party, and ensure you make Santa’s nice list – your outfit definitely will.

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THE FULL IRISH Irish shops and designers are packed with gorgeous items that make the perfect Christmas gifts – and because you’ll be supporting an Irish business, you’ll definitely make Santa’s Nice list.

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TARYN DE VERE

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aryn de Vere is an artist, writer and fashion activist living in Donegal – but most importantly, she is possibly the most colourful woman in Ireland.

Attracted to joy, unusual materials, upcycling and wearable art, Taryn de Vere is known for making unique jewellery and headpieces.

Several of her wearable art pieces are in the collection of the National Museum of Ireland.

Taryn de Vere’s business is run from the family home – “on a hill in Donegal, not far from the sea” – where Taryn lives with four of her five children, who all help in the business.

“The shop reflects our family: colourful, quirky, a bit silly and funny,” says de Vere, who always aims to try something new. She embraces both challenges and a sense of play, meaning that her designs are all truly unique, one-off pieces.

“I get bored very easily, which is why I don’t tend to make exactly the same thing twice,” she laughs. “My stock is ever-changing, depending on what new thing I’ve discovered that week and what materials I’m playing with. I love finding random things and thinking about how I could turn

them into a piece of wearable art. For example, I’ve used a lot of dog toys in my headpieces – they’re often bright colours and fun shapes. I made an egg boob necklace out of dog toys once, and when people hugged me they squeaked. The squeak was an added bonus!”

But her work is also inspired by her political beliefs, and she has made headpieces to wear to marches supporting trans rights, reproductive rights and enthusiastic consent. Her overall goal is to bring more colour, kindness and joy into the world – for everyone. What else could you want for Christmas?

“I’m on a mission to make the world more colourful,” says de Vere. “We know that what we wear affects our mood and that colour has an impact on how we feel – so I’m hoping to help people overcome their fear of wearing colour. I’ve colourful pieces from the very small and discreet to huge and over the top, so if you’re just dabbling at wearing colour I have something for you – and if you’re a colour fanatic like me, I have something for you too.”

• You can buy Taryn de Vere’s pieces at taryndevere.com and follow her very colourful Instagram account, @taryndevere.

WILDLIFE | GIFT GUIDE

SUSANNAGH GROGAN

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scarf isn’t just for Christmas – it’s for life. Or at least, that’s certainly the case with the beautiful scarves made by artist and designer Susannagh Grogan. Grogan describes herself as a print designer, and uses her bold, colourful prints to adorn beautiful silk scarves, ties, dresses, and even leather accessories.

Her designs have featured abstract patterns, florals, geometric designs and colour-blocking, but Grogan is always drawn to

colour.

“My unique print designs this season originate from my sketchbook,” explains Grogan. “There are drawings, sketches and painting, as well as small swatches of fabric collected over the years, so my prints this season are an eclectic mix of pattern and art.”

The timelessness, boldness and sophistication of Grogan’s prints have amassed her a huge range of clients internationally. She was crowned Accessory Designer Of The Year at the The Fashion Innovation Awards, whilst DCCOI awarded her Best New Product and Overall Award at Creative Island/Showcase. In New York, Grogan’s designs have been sold to many local designers, including Victoria’s Secret, Macy’s, Tommy Hilfiger, Estée Lauder and Mint Velvet. Her gorgeous pieces also have some famous fans.

“Susannagh Grogan scarves were chosen by the US-Irish Alliance preOscar party as gifts for guests, including Michelle Williams and Melissa McCarthy,” notes the designer. “For St Patrick’s Day at the White House, Ireland’s former Attorney General, Máire Whelan, gave a Susannagh Grogan printed silk scarf to Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.”

Grogan is loving Irish fashion lovers’ recent focus on sustainability and support of homegrown designers.

“There’s a big uplift in buying good quality, and things that will last, which is great for me. I am celebrating 10 years of my label this year!”

• Susannagh Grogan’s full range is available at susannaghgrogan.com, or on Instagram at @susannaghgrogan. Her stockists include Brown Thomas and Arnotts.

THE TEMPLE WOLF

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ne of our all-time favourite Irish shops for gifts, jewellery and accessories is The Temple Wolf, an Irish online store filled with irresistible pieces that range from boho chic to gothic glamour.

“I describe The Temple Wolf as ‘a store for boho dreamers’, so I try to appeal to the bohemian girl,” explains The Temple Wolf founder and designer Emma Laing.

“Think tassels, crystals, coin jewellery, dreamcatchers etc! I choose and/or design the pieces based on things I always wanted, but either wasn’t able to afford, or couldn’t source in Ireland. I have always had a fascination for skulls, pentagrams etc., so you’ll always find a sprinkle of that in the shop! My favourites at the moment are the turbans, chunky amethyst rings and ‘Feminist’ necklaces!”

The Temple Wolf features the Eire collection: beautifully delicate jewellery such as necklaces and rings, featuring the silhouette of Ireland, with a tiny heart shape cut into the piece. It’s a gorgeous collection that would make the perfect Christmas present for friends and family who now live abroad.

Emma has kindly selected some of her other favourite pieces in the store, which are currently selling like hot cakes in the lead-up to Christmas, so get ready to spoil someone special with these gorgeous pieces.

• To browse and buy Emma’s curation of jewellery and accessories, visit TheTempleWolf.com. She also loves chatting to customers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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all know that the Christmas shopping season can result in familiar cycles of manic sprints around town and pintrelated procrastination – resulting in yet another year of ill-advised, last-minute gifts.

This year, why not save yourself the stress, and give a gift that really counts? In the Hot Press Gift Guide, we've got something for all your loved ones – whether they're tech wizkids, culture vultures or coffee connoisseurs. You might even find a thing or two for yourself along the way...

Gym + Coffee gympluscoffee.com Hello Christmas! Gym+Coffee, Ireland’s leading athleisure brand has you wrapped up and ready to go this holiday season with the best in Irish-designed gear plus a full line of merch! Their brand new �en�s � �omen�s �ift Boxes are a stellar option and for only €100, are an absolute steal. �ach �ift Box includes a hoodie or leggings, tee, beanie, water bottle and socks! Fully customisable in stores or with a select range of �ift Box combos online. Shopping for a picky pal or still not sure what they want? Let them know they can exchange their gear all the way through ‘til January 8, 2020 or cover all your bases with a Gift Card. With stores in Dublin, Cork and Limerick plus their full range available online, there’s nothing stopping you from absolutely nailing it this Christmas.

Brew Box Coffee brewboxcoffee.ie Looking for a gift that combines sentimentality with practicality – while also supporting local businesses and promoting sustainability? Irish start-up Brew Box �offee is a subscription service with a difference. Launched by Roisin Culligan, Brew Box aims to get everyone drinking sustainably sourced and local specialty coffee. �he first subscription service to offer a sustainable solution to the �espresso pods filling up our landfills, Brew Box offers compostable capsules from European coffee roasters. They also stock reusable coffee cups made from the coffee husk.

Brew Box�s monthly subscription service launched in January, and has already featured an incredible selection of Irish coffee roasters, including �oasted Brown from �elgany, �o. �icklow and �alendar �offee from Barna, �o. �alway. �his year also sees the return of Brew Box�s multi roaster �hristmas �ift Box. �ign a loved one up for a six or twelve-month subscription, and they’ll receive coffee to their door the first week of every month. �rinking sustainable coffee has never been so easy!

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Thornton Pianos thorntonpianos.ie For two generations and over 50 years, Thornton has been the name in piano maintenance and supply in Ireland. This family run business has been a cornerstone of Irish music since it opened its doors in 1968, specialising in new and reconditioned pianos for players of all levels. Stocking brands such as Yamaha, Kawai, Schumanm Kemble and much more, Thornton’s also offer full services, including everything from basic needs like tuning, to repairs and reconditioning, and cabinet refinishing.

Currently, Thornton Pianos are running a special auction � to benefit Breast Cancer Awareness – of an incredible 1980 �hallen�pright �iano finished in a �atin white with art by artists from The Catherine Lawlor School of Art. Challen was the choice brand of �he Beatles. ���� of funds raised will go to the Marie Keating

Foundation to support their life saving work promoting cancer awareness and early detection. Why not give the gift of music this Christmas from Thornton Pianos.

Athleisure designed in Ireland

Make Life Richer this Christmas

Canon Zoemini S If you’re looking for a stylish, memorable gift for the creative young person in your life, the Canon Zoemini S is hard to beat. The chic instant camera printer allows you to snap a selfie and print it on the go – making it perfect for a night out with friends and family.

Ultra-slim, lightweight and portable, the pocket-sized device features a remote shutter function for getting the ultimate group shots� as well as a rin��li�ht �or �awless selfies� �ith filters and colla�e options, it’s the ideal gadget for your inventive and artistic loved ones.

Priced at €169.99, the Canon Zoemini S is available in three stunning colours� �att �lac�� �earl �hite and �ose �old�

Wildcat Gift Vouchers - WIN €500! Any gift voucher bought this December, instore or online, is eligible. �imply ta�e a selfie �or �et creati�e i� you�re camera shy� with your �i�t card and tag @wildcatinknorth & @wildcatinksouth in your Instagram story to enter! The winner will have their gift card automatically topped up by €500 to spend in either of our stores, for a fresh start for 2020. Get tagging!

@gympluscoffee

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GIVE THE GIFT OF COFFEE THIS CHRISTMAS!

BREW BOX SUBSCRIPTION BOXES

Order Online at www.brewboxcoffee.ie HOTPRESS.COM 079

FESTIVE GIFT GUIDE Hand-Poured Clean Burning Candles from The Irish Chandler

Maktus For fun, quirky gifts with an Irish twist, make sure Maktus is at the top of your Christmas shopping list this year. Located in George’s Street Arcade, as well as online, the independent store has become a beacon of homegrown creativity, stocking unique products from both their own studio and a range of local artists and designers.

Causing a stir last year with their selection of papal-themed gifts ahead of Pope Francis’ Irish visit, Maktus’ range also includes Jackie Healy Tae mugs, Philo enamel pins, Teresa Mannion coasters, Geebag t-shirts, Dublin Burd tote bags, hilarious cards and stunning Irish prints. Drop into the shop at Unit 21/22 George’s Street Arcade, Drury Street, Dublin 2, or browse the range at maktus.com – with free shipping on orders over €60!

Celebrate a real Irish Christmas this year, with the delightfully fragranced candles from The Irish Chandler. Handcrafted in the west of Ireland, the independent candle brand offers a fragrance to suit any home, including Winter Spruce and The Irish Christmas Candle – with a spicy citrus scent that will remind you of a plum pudding steaming on top of the stove.

The Irish Chandler’s range of soy wax candles are all hand-poured by Lisa in County Clare, nestled between The Cliffs of Moher and The �urren� �he �rish �handler candles burn clean with no nasty soot and they’re vegan friendly too – making them the ideal gift for anyone tricky to buy for.

And, if you’re struggling to choose just one candle from The Winter Collection, why not go for a mini-set gift box, containing all four seasonal scents.

The Irish Chandler’s clean burning candles are available online at www.theirishchandler.com – as well as in store at the Nine Crows vintage store at 22 Temple Lane �outh, �emple �ar, �ublin ��

Printsfield: Personalised Socks printsfield.com Very often, people fail to choose the best present for friends or loved ones... this may happen even to you! Don’t be afraid anymore, PrintsField have got you covered with their amazing personalised socks. With this hilarious no�elty present, you are ���� sure that your gift will be breathtaking.

Even more important, this comfy gift will be remembered, and that’s what it’s all about, right? It takes only two minutes: just take a photo of your loved one and upload it to create and order your fully-customised socks. ���� �ou can e�en a�ail of a special ��� discount by using the discount code: HOTPRESS20

Ticketmaster Gift Card Fixx Coffee fixcoffee.com So, it’s that time of the year again – and once more, you’ve found yourself struggling to �nd the ideal gift� �ell, fear not, because we’ve got the perfect FiXX for you! This year, give the gift that truly keeps on giving – the gift of never running out of coffee again!

Why not treat the coffee lover in your life �or yourself, for that matter�� to a supply of delicious award-winning coffees, including Nespresso© compatible pods and ground or whole bean, delivered straight to their door.

Simply choose the coffee, and then select the delivery frequency and the length of your subscription. With a selection of multiaward-winning coffees including decaf, unique monthly single origin roasts and capsules, there’s sure to be a FiXX for everyone.

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�truggling to �nd �ust the right �hristmas gift for 2019? For any live entertainment fans you know, a Ticketmaster Gift Card is just the ticket!

Choose the value you want to give at www. ticketmaster.ie/giftcards, send them an eGift directly or have a Gift Card dispatched by post and the recipient can redeem their gift against ticket purchases online or at participating Ticketmaster outlets.

With thousands of events to choose from covering Music, Sports, Arts, Theatre, Comedy, Family Entertainment, Attractions and more, a Ticketmaster Gift Card under the tree this year will be a guaranteed hit. ticketmaster.ie/giftcards

DublinBikeMan

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Offering the largest selection of bicycles for Christmas Gift ideas Vintage Bikes | Mens & Ladies Racer Bicycles | Dutch Bicycles Accessories, New Parts & Vintage Parts for old or new bicycles also available

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FESTIVE GIFT GUIDE

Eco-conscious gifts from Catalyst Coffee

Bodygems at Wildcat Ink Wildcat Ink are happy to announce they are now stocking Bodygems: bespoke 14k gold body jewellery handmade in the United States.

The range includes yellow, rose, and white gold threadless jewellery in a variety of beautiful styles for all types of piercings.

These are in addition to their comprehensive range of surgical steel adornments.

Bodygems jewellery is available in both stores for fresh piercings or to snazz up your old ones; just in time to treat yourself or a friend for Christmas! Pop in to our Stephen’s Green or Jervis Street Studios to see the full selection and chat to a piercer about your next body adornment.

Dublin Bike Man dublinbikeman.com Selling second bikes in Dublin City Centre, Dublin Bike Man has a large range of ladies’ and men’s bikes in excellent condition, rust free and ready to go. The website is updated daily with a selection of mountain bikes, folding bikes, and classic/vintage bicycles for L’Eroica, touring and classic bicycle events. Purchasing a bike second hand has a number of advantages including being the environmentally friendly option, increased value for money, and less risk of bike theft, making it an ideal Christmas gift for yourself or a loved one this year. Dublin Bike Man operates a convenient test run service seven days a week from 10am to 7pm by appointment, in addition to offering comprehensive knowledge on bike parts and upkeep.

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Make this year a greener Christmas, with eco-friendly gifts that both your loved ones and the planet will appreciate. Catalyst Coffee turned plenty of heads when t�ey opened t�eir doors in �ray t�is year� �s �ell as selling irresistible takea�ay coffee, Catalyst offer a range of ingenious products designed to help us lead a more eco-conscious and sustainable lifestyle – from small items such as bamboo cotton buds, to larger products like stainless steel lunch containers and reusable make-up pads.

Catalyst’s major focus is on reusability and products that are built to last – including stainless steel razors and Chilly’s bottles.

Ultimately, this shift away from the single-use mentality, and towards a more sustainable lifestyle, is one of the most important changes we need to make to live in harmony with our planet.

Catalyst also make an effort to support Irish business, using brands such as �illy�s �co �lean, �ild �ose �oaps and �irtue �rus� � reducing t�eir carbon footprint, and keeping money in the Irish economy. ��eck out t�eir range o� products in�store at �� �lorence �oad, �ray, or take a look at their Instagram: @catalystcoffee

National Concert Hall Gift Card With a dazzling, eclectic programme on offer year-round, a National �oncert �all ����� gi�t card is an un�orgettable gi�t �or culture�lovers young and old. Creating memories to treasure for years, gift cards are available �or any a�ount �ro� ���, and are valid �or �ve years �ro� t�e date of purchase.

An NCH Friends membership is also a perfect gift for someone who loves �usic� �ear round �e�bers�ip gives access to signi�cant ticket discounts, priority booking and exclusive events and invitations� �ll �or just €100 for new members until January 31.

And, if you’d like to give a loved one an early Christmas present, there are plenty of offerings across the festive season at the National Concert Hall to choose from. This Way To Christmas, features The Snowman – �it� �o�ard �lake�s iconic score per�or�ed live by t�e ��� ��rist�as �rc�estra ��ec� ������� ��ter ��rist�as, t�e adored stage �usical Oliver! is also coming to the NCH, complete with spectacular costumes, sets, dancers and orc�estra ��ec� ����an� ��� �ee lots �ore events at nc��ie�

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SOUTHERN COMFORT and HOT PRESS Join Forces To Bring Mardi Gras To Ireland

LET’S GET THE PARTY STARTED Hailed as the Spirit of New Orleans, Southern Comfort has been whetting the collective whistles of revellers and lovers of whiskey liqueurs alike since 1874. Hot Press takes a look at the story of the world famous libation and its role as the drink of choice during the Big Easy’s Mardi Gras celebrations (AKA the biggest party of the year!).

Words: Edwin McFee

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ith the greatest respect to the likes of Pink, Andrew WK and his royal purpleness Prince, nothing and no-one rivals the tag team of Southern Comfort and Mardi Gras in New Orleans, when it comes to getting the party started. Just like strawberries and cream or summertime and festivals, the Big Easy-originated bash is an unbeatable double act with Southern Comfort.

And now, Mardi Gras is coming to Ireland!

Pour yourself a glass of Southern Comfort, put some Dr. John on the stereo, don your best �eathery �as� � and read on to find out �ore� THERE IS A HOUSE IN NEW ORLEANS… Southern Comfort was born in New Orleans and created by an inventive barman named Martin Wilkes Heron in 1874. The son of a boat builder, the enterprising bartender came up with the idea for a unique, warm and tantalisingly sweet new whisky liqueur in the Lower Garden District, which is around two miles north of the French Quarter in the city they call The Big Easy.

Initially called “Cuffs And Buttons,” the name was apparently inspired by the shape of the ingredients in the original recipe that went into the drink which resembled cuffs (citrus swaths) and buttons (cloves). Needless to say, it didn’t take long for Heron to realise he had a hit on his hands. People from far and wide were eager to sample both the smooth taste and the fruit and spice accents of what became known as the

“Grand Ole’ Drink Of The South.” People may not have known it yet, but Southern Comfort had been born.

Fast forward to the end of the century and the burgeoning businessman was now living in Memphis, Tennessee – which is where he patented the libation whose label was to bare the motto: “None Genuine But Mine”. And so we can say for sure that, while Southern Comfort �ay ha�e �o�fi�ially� �o�e to li�e in the �irthpla�e of Rock ‘n’ Roll, its heart and soul truly lie in New Orleans. That this is one of the greatest cities in the world is surely apt and fitting.

The same can be said for one of the biggest parties of the year. We are all familiar with the term Mardi Gras (which, for the unenlightened, is French for “Fat Tuesday”). Well, it is one of the most rollicking festive occasions anywhere on earth and it culminates in a carnival day and parade on what – in this part of the world! – we call Shrove or Pancake Tuesday.

While the event’s roots can be traced to Medieval Europe, passing through Rome and Venice in the 17th and 18th Centuries to the French House Of The Bourbons, in modern times, the festival is most closely associated with the city they call The Big Easy. Across the globe, Mardi Gras, and its various iterations, are a �ele�ration o� �pring and �ertility. �nd the final day of Mardi Gras is the last blow-out, before the traditional austerity of what Christians call ‘lent’ imposes itself. �n �ew �rleans� they put on one o� the finest parades in the world – mirrored in Brazil’s famous

Carnival. But when the city’s reputation for round-the-clock nightlife, a vibrant music scene and spicy cuisine � �hich re�ects its history as a melting pot of French, African and American cultures – are added to the mix, New Orleans is the perfect party host.

Mardi Gras, of course, is celebrated with good friends, great beverages and a lively spirit – and Southern Comfort is undoubtedly the drink of choice for the event.

Boasting an unforgettable taste and an aroma which conjures up an array of exciting images of New Orleans – both old and new � from your very first sip� this association can only get stronger, as Irish people fall in love with the Grand Ole Drink of the South.

extra bold) or Southern Comfort 100 Proof – a wonderful drink, which boasts vibrant caramel and fruit accents.

On the other hand, if you really want to get into the spirit of Mardi Gras New Orleans style, there are literally hundreds of cocktails and bespoke creations to ensure the party is started in style. Here’s a half-dozen of our very special recommendations…

SPICE UP YOUR LIFE Mardi Gras, New Orleans-style, is famous as a festival full of fun, colour and copious costumes. A bash that brings together all walks of life, it is bright, sensual and extravagant. Indeed, it seems as if there are almost as many unique and different masks and feathery outfits as there are pilgrims at Mardi Gras.

Its tag team partner Southern Comfort is just as versatile. Indeed, no matter what your taste, there’s a marvellous blend, or cocktail, featuring Heron’s libation, that’ll please the taste-buds. If you prefer your whiskey neat or on the rocks, you can order a glass of Southern Comfort Original, Southern Comfort Black (for those who like very smooth whiskey

COMFORT COLLINS: This, we assure you, had nothing to do with Michael! Consisting of Southern Comfort, lime juice, lemon-lime soda and ice, this will start or end your night on a lovely, lingering sweet note.

SOUTHERN MULE: The Southern Mule features Southern Comfort, ginger beer, a wedge of lime and some mint leaves.

Boasting a timeless taste, this crowd-pleasing drink will ensure your Mardi Gras party is the coolest around.

COMFORT OLD FASHIONED: This is another fine example of keeping it simple to achieve the finest possi�le results� �ou stir a teaspoon of sugar, two dashes of bitters and a splash of water in a glass. Add a measure of Southern Comfort and ice. Garnish with a twist of orange peel and away you go.

HERON’S HARVEST: Thus named in honour of the whiskey’s founder Martin Wilkes Heron, this wonderfully luxurious cocktail includes

Southern Comfort, Sour Apple Schnapps, a dash of Hazelnut Liqueur, a smidge of caramel syrup and a wedge of apple. Trust us, after one sip of this magnificent drink� you�ll feel like you’re in the world famous French Quarter in no time.

THE SCARLETT O’HARA: Named after the female lead in the Southern classic Gone With The Wind, this is a simple but very special drink. Combine 2 ounces of Southern Comfort with a dash of lime juice and 6 ounces of Cranberry juice: that’s a ratio of three to one, if you are making for a large crew! Add the dash of lime, and serve with ice and a wedge or the skin of a lime.

NEW YORKER: This, as they say, is a trip.

Combine a measure of Southern Comfort with lime juice (a third of the amount), two dashes of Pernod and one dash of Grenadine. Shake with ice and strain into a Martini glass. Garnish with a lemon twist. Mardi Gras heaven!

In terms of straightforward mixers, you can enjoy Southern Comfort with red lemonade, with coca cola or with tonic. A dash, or a piece, of lime is always a good idea. Of course, like Mardi Gras itself, there are no rules when it comes to enjoying your Southern Comfort. Regardless of whether you’re a free spirit or someone who believes that something classic will never go out of style, Southern Comfort serves as the perfect accompaniment to good times.

FESTIVE DRINKS SPECIAL

REELING IN THE CHEERS! As the big day hurtles inexorably towards us, STUART CLARK and the rest of Team Hop Press sample a selection of the finest Yuletide drinks with lots of gift ideas along the way.

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haken, muddled, stirred or just plain poured out of a bottle, there’s a drink guaranteed to warm/chill your winter cockles and make it an extra festive Christmas and New Year.

Team Hop Press is looking forward to checking out the latest crop of seasonal Irish craft beers, which include Siege 1690, a barrel aged stout made with much love in Limerick by Treaty City Brewing; the Ugly Xmas Jumper Pale Ale that Rascals have magicked up in tandem with Molloys; Heaney’s Can’t Catch Me Gingerbread Imperial Stout; 12 Acres’ Winter Is Coming oatmeal stout; White Hag’s Yule Ale; and the latest incarnation of Winter Star, the O’Hara’s spiced amber ale with cinnamon, orange zest and coconut that’s very much the sum of its parts.

Meanwhile, at O’Hara’s Urban Brewing sibling at CHQ in the Docklands they’ve Marshmallow Root Stout and Belgian-style Bierre

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de Noel on tap as part of their 12 Beers Of Christmas.

If you’re looking for gift ideas, Brewdog also have a handsome looking 12 Beers Of Christmas festive variety pack and a range of €45 kits that allow you to brew such signature libations of theirs as Elvis Juice and Punk IPA at home.

Another way to support your local makers of beer – and to treat a loved one – is to book one of the many craft brewery tours that are on offer around the country.

One of our favourites is at Rascals in Inchicore, Dublin 8 where the traditiona� �ta�ian pi��a o�en is fired up all week. �here are so�e e��a��� fine distillery tours – Roe & Co in the Liberties, Powerscourt Distillery in Enniskerry and Slane Irish Whiskey in Meath are three that immediately spring to mind – which include tastings and the chance to raid their respective shops.

There are also a wealth of Christmas limited-edition releases and gift-packs out there, the contents of which can either be sipped neat in front of the fire or used as a component part

FESTIVE DRINKS SPECIAL

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in a long drink or cocktail. Paddy. ie, Graceomalleywhiskey.com, Thebearadistillery.ie, Southerncomfort. com and Lambaywhiskey.com are great places to go for recipe ideas.

Any self-respecting stocking will welcome one of the botanical kits – all good offies and supermarket drink sections have ‘em – that can be used to liven up your goldfish bowl gins and vodkas.

Alternatively, raid your local Asian supermarket for separate packs of cardamom, pink pepper, juniper berries� ginger root� hibis�us �ower� star anise, saffron, angelica root, orris root, cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg and cassia bark, which can be mixed ‘n’ matched to produ�e some stunning �avours� So, stick the special Hot Press Christmas �potify �laylist on the stereo� poke the fire and raise a glass to health, happiness and the wonderful selection of drinks we have here in Ireland. Slainté!

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FESTIVE DRINKS SPECIAL

HIT REFRESH!

Christmas is always the perfect time to sample some delicious drinks – and we here look at some of the very finest brands on the market.

GRACE O’MALLEY WHISKEY graceomalleywhiskey.com

Brave, bold and irresistible, Grace O’Malley Whiskeys are inspired by the rebellious heart and fascinating life of their namesake, the pirate ��een o� �onnacht. �heir �agship brand, Grace O’Malley Blended Irish Whiskey, is a special blend of triple and double distilled malt and grain whiskeys. Unique in Ireland due to its high double distilled malt content, this special blend combines multiple batches of whiskey of varying age statements,

from three to ten years old. Each batch of whiskey is aged perfectly in different barrel types including French Oak, American Oak, Bourbon and Rum Casks. Responsible for the decisions at every step in the ageing, finishing and blending of Grace O’Malley Whiskeys is world renowned spirits expert, cellar master and blender, Paul Caris, who calls the exact moment that each whiskey has reached perfection. The resulting blend delivers a whiskey perfectly balanced between fruitiness, age, character, complexity and smoothness.

The brand features three ranges, the Crew, Navigator and Captain’s range.

COCKTAIL RECIPE LAMBAY NEW YORK SOUR We think this New York Sour is a dashing better looking version of the original whiskey cocktail.

The grated nutmeg should not be ignored, it adds that hint of spice – perfect for the season ahead.

LAMBAY WHISKEY lambaywhiskey.com

Lambay Whiskey continued its success in 2019, receiving awards for its Lambay Single Malt and Small Batch Blend at the Meininger’s International Spirits Awards. Alexander Baring, the seventh Lord Revelstoke and inhabitant of the island from which the whiskey takes its name, founded the brand in 2017 in partnership with French �ognac fir� �a��s �ognac. �a�bay �hiskey is crafted with Trinity Well water from Lambay �sland, and finished in �rench �ak �ognac casks carried across the sea from the world-renowned cellars of Camus, France. They currently have two lines on the market, the Lambay Small Batch and The Lambay Single Malt. The Single �alt is a triple�distilled �alt whiskey finished in oak casks shipped from Maison Camus in France, and rested on the shores of Lambay Island, where they are exposed to notes of iodine, seaweed and salt via the maritime winds and sea-spray. The Small Batch is a whiskey blend of malted and grain whiskey, matured in Bourbon barrels with a pleasant cognac cask finish.

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INGREDIENTS 50ml Lambay Whiskey Small Batch Blend 25ml Lemon Juice 15ml Red Wine ( Shiraz / Malbec) 10ml Egg White 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters Garnish with Grated Nutmeg

METHOD

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Fill shaker with ice, cover, and shake vigorously until outside of shaker is chilled, this should take, about 15 seconds.

Strain cocktail through a strainer into a rocks glass filled with ice.

Pour via the back of a spoon a few mls of the red wine. Garnish with grated nutmeg and serve.

RASCALS BREWING COMPANY rascalsbrewing.com The impressive cyan and white brewery in the Goldenbridge Estate on the outskirts of Inchicore, has been a real boon to Dublin 8.

Its fantastic event and conference spaces have attracted local businesses to the area, and the Taproom serves up some of the very best pizza in Dublin. And all that is before we even get to the delicious libations dreamed up by co-founders Emma Devlin and Cathal O’Donoghue. From Chardonnay Saisons to Mint Choc Stouts and Strawberry Vanilla Milkshake IPAs, Rascals have been bringing a sense of fun and adventure to the craft brewing scene since they launched in 2014. It’s an attitude that led to them scooping up the gold at the 2016 World Beer Awards for their popular Yankee White IPA. Their full range numbers around 60 different varieties of ales, porters, IPAs and Weisse beers, but their year-round range, which includes the Fruitopolis Pale Ale, the Wunderbar IPA, the Big Hop Red, the Session Pale Ale, and the aforementioned award-winning Yankee White IPA, are plenty to be getting on with.

JOIN US ON

The cure for everything is sea air and salt water...

Atlantic Salt Water Infused Gin

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FESTIVE DRINKS SPECIAL

THE BEARA DISTILLERY

thebearadistillery.ie �lending nati�e sea �ora with traditional gin botanicals, the Beara Distillery captures the wild spirit of West Cork. Created by the Power family, the handcrafted small-batch gin is infused with salt from the Atlantic Sea and sustainably harvested Ventry Harbour sugar kelp – in homage to the long maritime history of the stunning Beara Peninsula, where the distillery is located.

Along with juniper, coriander, cardamom and orris root� �eara �cean �in is also �a�o�red with handpicked fuchsia buds. As well as being the iconic symbol of West Cork, the fuchsia adds a unique sweetness to this complex yet smooth premium gin.

Having already been crowned the Best Irish Gin at the prestigious Irish Whiskey Awards in 2019, Beara has proved a hit overseas too – with sales in several European countries, and further plans to expand to the USA. As their reputation continues to grow, the Beara Distillery is putting their locality on the map – ensuring that, whether people are talking about their gin or their home, they know they’re talking about something special.

BREWDOG

brewdog.com Those crafty geniuses at BrewDog never get tired of brewing up delicious new beers. They were there at the very start of the craft beer revolution, opening their first brewery in Scotland in 2007. Since then, they have opened breweries in s�ch far-��ng locales as Columbus, Ohio and Brisbane, Australia, in addition to operating over 85 dedicated BrewDog bars worldwide.

Not only have they got the IPA market sewn �p with their �agship ��nk ���� they’re now taking on the alcohol free market with the all new Punk AF, a low alcohol version (0.5%) of the aforementioned IPA. Retaining all of the attit�de and �a�o�r of ��nk ���� ��nk ���s ��icy tropical fr�it �a�o�rs mix it up with grassy and pine notes, all sitting on a solid malt baseline.

All this just means you now have two great options for a tasty libation on your night out.

PADDY WHISKEY

paddy.ie The product of three classic Irish approaches to whiskey distillation, Paddy has the distinction of blending grain, malt and pot-still into a single, smooth spirit. With a rich heritage dating back to 1779, Paddy owes its name to the legendary distillery salesman, Paddy Flaherty, who became so synonymous with the whiskey he sold that, in 1913, the distillery owners paid him the ultimate tribute by renaming the whiskey in his honour.

HOW TO MAKE THE PERFECT PADDY IRISH COFFEE •35.5ml Paddy Irish Whiskey •1 teaspoon of sugar •1 cup of freshly brewed coffee •Top with lightly whipped cream •Garnish with grated nutmeg and dark chocolate

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SOUTHERN COMFORT BLACK

Cozy up this festive season with a SoCo Cocoa, Southern Comfort Black’s indulgent winter warmer.

Southern Comfort Black’s whiskey-forward profile with subtle spice and fruity accents, blends perfectly with the creamy hot chocolate; the perfect way to warm up on a chilly winter’s night.

HOW TO MAKE:

Pour 150ml of Hot Chocolate into your favourite mug or latte glass.

Add 35.5ml of Southern Comfort Black and stir.

Top with whipped cream, chocolate shavings, marshmallows, or anything else that takes your fancy.

#BELIE VEING RAC E

WW W.G RAC EOMALLE YWHI SKEY.C OM

GRACE WILL DO WHAT GRACE WILL DARE

From the west coast of Ireland to rebel hearts around the world:

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THE WHOLE HOG FRONTLINES

2010 to 2019

“THE MEDIA, AND SOCIAL MEDIA IN PARTICULAR, HAVE PLAYED A MAJOR PART IN DEGRADING NEWS AND DEBATE.”

A DECADE OF TURMOIL Over the past ten years, Ireland has made huge advances towards being a mature, liberal, open society.

Elsewhere across the globe, however, there has been a drift towards authoritarianism and aggression, fuelled by the naked greed and megalomania of the social media and internet companies. The question remains: is there any way back?

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he Terrible Teens come to a close. Here come the 20s. You might observe that we’ve come back from a kind of oblivion and had some great craic along the way in doing so.

But that’d be to simplify things greatly for a huge number of people. Over the past ten years, we’ve been through the masher too, in so many different ways. Deluges and infernos, disasters and massacres, keening mothers everywhere; lives, loves and hopes crushed by “smart” bombs, drone strikes, terror attacks, hunger, thirst, misadventure, murder, trafficking, people washing up on Europe’s shores. And Fukuyama.

Here at home, the upheaval in Ireland’s political order was itself hugely dramatic. The financial levees crumbled, and the IMF came to town.

There was bad news on the stock exchanges and contagion in the markets: music in the cafés at night and revolution in the air. Some of us at least found ourselves reliant on the kindness of strangers. Emigration, always a default option for the Irish, rose sharply as jobs disappeared.

Across the Atlantic, Barack Obama’s jubilation at winning his second term in 2012 was muted.

He and his supporters realised the limits of victory: they knew that they weren’t out of the woods, that terrors lurked both within and without, and that what they’d earned, really, was just four more years of turmoil and struggle. And so it proved.

Long sleeping monsters stirred. BAM: ISIS from the Syrian dust, Trump, populism, fascism, racism, Brexit, new wars, new movements, regression and repression. Reason seemed to die, and there we were in a black hole that swallowed hope and light and laughter, a place of meanness and prejudice where truth is subordinate to opinion and the individual trumps society: a circus tent full of PT Barnum bluff and buffoonery peopled by clowns and fanatics. The lunatics have taken over the asylum. Not for the first time ever, mind you…

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BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING

Rewind. When World War 1 ended a century ago it was followed by a poorly thought-out settlement with territorial expansion, land seizures, deregulation, US isolationism. What happened after the impact of the first Great Recession of the 21st Century began to ebb – and it’s still not done, folks – was a repeat of the dose. The rich got richer, the poor were plunged in the opposite direction. At least partly in response – though there were other, older, darker forces to do with religion and race in play as well – increasing numbers abandoned what were perceived as elites and instead embraced authoritarians and demagogues, especially in Eastern Europe and South America, but elsewhere too. This, we thought, is how it must have felt in Europe in the 1930s.

Historians like to pin broad titles on eras like

the Age of Enlightenment, the Imperial Age, the American Century. Well, when they look at the last decade, they style it the ‘Age of Rage’.

What are people mad at? As Marlon Brando answered in The Wild One, ‘Whaddya got?’

Depending on your perspective, the list is different. For Hot Press, there’s this much, just for starters: homelessness; the greed of the rich and those at the head of the global corporate ladder; violence against women; the denial of abortion rights and the repression of the LGBTQ community in so many jurisdictions; the handling of the economic crisis; ditto the climate crisis, the social crisis and the various crises that underscore migration. What, you might ask, is not to enrage?

The media, and social media in particular, have played a major part in degrading news and debate. Now it’s about clicks, shouting, confrontation, a roiling Roman Coliseum right there on your handheld screen. But, as we noted last month in Hot Press, the real poison in the apple has been the facilitation of false news and vexatious, lying propaganda, online bullying and thuggery. It is an arena which favours the unscrupulous and the mendacious: thus far-right trolls and hackers target almost every imaginable field where disorder and dysfunction can be sown. And the social media companies facilitate it, without a hint of concern for ethics. Only profit counts.

Life has grown much faster and less structured over the past decade. Things happen and are disseminated so quickly that they outstrip our capacity to work out timely, accurate and appropriate answers. A new world is taking shape – or being shaped – largely without the kind of debate that might enable us to apply the necessary checks and balances.

How we live and work has changed utterly.

Likewise how we play: there’s blogs, vblogs, selfies, Twitter, Instagram dysmorphia, an abundance of porn, and people walking under trucks and onto train tracks because they’re so absorbed in their phones…

Technology makes it easy to track and monitor every single thing that you do. Over the past decade we have come to understand the shocking scale of this, and the threat it represents to citizens and their rights.

A succession of whistleblower leaks revealed breath-taking levels of official surveillance by CIA and British GCHQ listening posts. They even spied on the EU and on friendly Governments – including, incredibly, tapping Angela Merkel’s mobile phone. Then we heard how Russians do it too, and Chinese and Koreans.

And so too, in their own equally insidious way, do internet and social media companies and platforms. Everything is logged and stored. We ourselves are being mined and herded. Orwell’s dystopia of 1984 has come to pass, but Big Brother isn’t just about intrusion by Government: social media and internet providers are at it

migrants in a refrigerated trailer in England, it emerged that the driver was from Armagh. He has pleaded guilty to charges of trafficking and others have been arraigned as well. That those involved were or are part of a world-wide trafficking network is clear.

Meanwhile, the border area refuses to accept ordinary democratic norms. Extortion, intimidation and violence seem endemic and to set an asterisk against the undoubted achievements of the Good Friday Agreement. A beacon we may be in some regards – but most certainly not all.

IT’S HOPE WE NEED

too, day and night, night and day. A new term has evolved in recent times to cover what has been going on: surveillance capitalism. And now we’re poised for more – or we should be – this time with robotics, artificial intelligence and the internet of things

THE DRUGS QUESTION

And so it goes. A new global order is taking shape, dominated by authoritarianism, viciousness and fear. China will soon be Number One. Despots are back. So too is stupidity and shallowness. Some countries, like Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands and Switzerland have bucked the trend, but freedom is in retreat and science is under siege.

Oligarchs have moved centre stage. Western electoral systems and processes are under sustained – and often very effective – attack from further east. The EU is iunder attack from Russia. From the US. And now from Britain too…

Ten years ago we were petrified about the economy. Now we’re afeared of almost everything, perhaps too much so. Unsurprisingly, we’ve had a revival of dystopian fiction like The Handmaid’s Tale.

We’re all the better for being a bit out of step in Ireland. We spent a lot of time over the last generation unearthing, sometimes literally, the crimes and misdemeanours visited on the weak in mother and baby homes, Magdalen laundries, schools, clubs and sporting organisations, where paedophile priests (and sometimes their lay equivalents) had the run of the place, buoyed by the authority of their calling and sheltered by a Church that protected itself rather than the weak and innocent.

There were other exposures, for example in the health services, where women have often been treated with contempt. One such was Savita Halappanavar, her lost radiance lingering in photos from happy times. “Horrendous, barbaric, inhumane,” these were the words used by her husband to describe how she had been treated in University Hospital Galway, after a jury delivered a unanimous verdict of medical misadventure in 2013.

The road to greater enlightenment has been a corkscrew one.

Turning point followed turning point, to the referendum on marriage equality and the epoch-defining referendum decision to delete the 8th Amendment to the Constitution. Now, globally, we are saluted by many as a beacon of enlightenment and progressive thought in a world that’s slipping into darkness. Who’d have thought?

But there’s no room for complacency. Look at our health system.

Look at our housing crisis. Look at homelessness. And recent months have seen more unsettling developments. The first is the intrusion of outright racism into Irish politics. One suspects that this is as much a case of individual local politicians playing to a specific gallery. Some of these neanderthals don’t understand that one racist troll can pose as hundreds of people and generate thousands of posts.

They also forget that millions of Irish people have plied their trades and professions in far-flung foreign fields and have sent back a vast treasury. It continues still. If some immigrants do as the Irish have always done, what of it? What’s sauce for the goose…

Another nasty development has been the revelation this month that Irish gangsters are distributing drugs as far away as Australia. The local market is saturated. You can buy cannabis, cocaine and a range of other drugs anywhere in Ireland, even in remote rural areas. It’s completely normal. We’ve known of the scale of their operations here. Now we have a glimpse at the reach. It’s global.

As most sensible people realise, the only logical response is legalisation Over the past ten years, there have been moves in that direction in parts of the U.S., in Canada and in Portugal, and the results have been very positive. There is no reason why Ireland cannot play a lead role in promoting a more pragmatic, sensible and safer approach to drug policies.

Where financial dividends depend on breaking the law, criminality will flourish. Following the discovery of the bodies of 39 Vietnamese

All that said, and notwithstanding Churchill’s ancient swipe that “as the deluge subsides and the waters fall short we see the dreary steeples of Fermanagh and Tyrone emerging once again” we have continued to enjoy peace on this island. The high profile stuff gets the publicity, but the great achievement of this peace is quiet, local and everyday.

That’s what makes the prospect of a hard border in Ireland, as a result of Brexit, so troubling. In turn, that’s why some people study the demographics and call for a border poll. There’s even talk of Scotland seceding from the UK, in which case all bets are off.

• That, and Brexit’s wider impact, will be a core issue over the coming decade. We’ll have other priorities too, like the further development of digital tech and, increasingly, artificial intelligence.

Yes, as some wags have it, so far natural stupidity has proven a greater threat to humanity. But the two combined could be terminal. It’s a shame that we have to think this way first, because there are many brilliant AI developments in train. We need to take the best and leave the rest.

• Another priority is to massively reduce our carbon footprint, tackle pollution and rebalance the world’s economic model. Call it sustainability. On this, many thinkers in sociology and economics now argue that the EU should renew itself by focusing on society rather than the economy, promoting a social contract and building social solidarity. If we can make it stick, this kind of thinking will represent a positive legacy of the last decade.

• The EU wants Europe to be climate-neutral by 2050. The European Green Deal, which has just been announced by the new EU Commission as its flagship initiative, is intended to help get us there. It will include a large-scale investment plan, involving yearly commitments of between 175 and 290 billion euro to energy systems and infrastructure.

• We have to reduce greenhouse gases four times as fast as we have over the past two decades. The changes and adjustments will affect jobs, livelihoods, working conditions, skills and employment prospects. The change has to be accomplished in a fair and transparent way, hence the idea of a “just transition”.

• Inescapably, another key issue is migration. Climate-driven catastrophes are a key driver and achieving climate neutrality will reduce the pressure. But, of course, poverty, war and disease drive migration too, so these also must be addressed.

It’s all going to involve major challenges and momentous changes, especially in transport, food production and energy. To one degree or another, each of us will have to face the facts – and the music.

Great, we’re cycling more, we’re making sustainable choices in food, microbrew beer, natural wine and fair-trade coffee and so on. But now it’s crunch time. Pointing the finger at others who should change won’t cut the mustard any more.

Is there any bright side, you might ask? And the answer is, of course – but we need to keep it out there. Many good things were done over the past decade, even in terribly straitened circumstances – like, for example our commemoration of the Easter Rising which was carried off in fine style.

Fittingly, we leave the last words to Michael D Higgins, President of Ireland through most of the past decade. In his thoughtful inaugural speech he reviewed where we had been, what was ailing us now and how we might imagine ourselves into a new future, exhorting us as follows: “Ní díomas ach dóchas a bheidh ag teastáil uainn ins na blianta dúshlánacha atá amach romhainn” – It’s not despair, it’s hope that’ll be needed in the challenging years that are before us.

In his terms of office to date, Michael D has more than done his bit in building that necessary feeling of hope. Now we all have to do ours.

The Hog

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BUSK AID FRONTLINES

SEIZING THE DÉISE

Waterford’s BuskAid is the country’s first city-wide charity busking festival – aiding local homeless women and families through Tinteán Housing Association. In the run-up to its fourth year, we talk to its founder, musician and writer Tadhg Williams, about BuskAid’s remarkable journey so far. Interview: Lucy O’Toole Photography: Hayley K. Stuart

H

e may be opening for the likes of Glen Hansard, David Keenan and Rozi Plain these days – playing “depressing songs about ex-girlfriends and sex” in between cramming sessions for his upcoming Christmas exams – but it wasn’t too long ago that Tadhg Williams was getting his start busking on the streets of Waterford. It was there that he came face-to-face with homelessness in his city – and the seeds of BuskAid were sown.

“It was New Year’s Eve, 2015, and there were only two buskers in the whole town: me and this old fella who kept playing ‘Auld Lang Syne’ on the tin whistle over and over again,” he recalls with a smile. “I was still in sixth year, and my mental health was very poor – so it was almost as though I was searching for something to give me a little bit of a lift.

“There was a lot of visible homelessness in Waterford at that time. I was heartbroken at the thought that there were people without anyone to share New Year’s Eve with. So, Ü i w à i` Õ« LÕà } Ì >Ì `>Þ] Üi Ì up to Dealz and bought them a rake load of sandwiches, giant Toblerones and bottles of Coke with whatever money I had.”

As Christmas approached the following year, Tadhg decided to step it up a gear. Taking to Facebook, he asked people to join him busking around Waterford to raise money for the homeless.

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“People started liking and sharing it, and before I knew it, it was getting so much traction,” he says. “Everyone wanted to get involved. Within a week someone had sent me a logo, someone else had said they wanted to sponsor jumpers for us all, and someone else had offered us a HQ for the day. It just completely snowballed.

“I don’t know how many times I cried the

“I WAS HEARTBROKEN AT THE THOUGHT THAT THERE WERE PEOPLE WITHOUT ANYONE TO SHARE NEW YEAR’S EVE WITH.” wÀÃÌ Þi>À Üi ` ` Ì° Ì Ü>à à ëiV > ] Ì i Ü>Þ Ì all just came together.”

From these humble roots, BuskAid has rapidly transformed into a Waterford Christmas tradition. With the help of his team, particularly his fellow co-ordinators, writer Anna Jordan and musician Derek Flynn, the city-wide busk has raised over €15,000 over the last three years. Programmed like a festival, last year’s BuskAid saw 100 buskers and volunteers getting involved.

“I like to call it a ‘Walking Winter Music Festival’,” Tadhg laughs. “People sign up to

get involved, and we have different hourlong slots throughout the day in various parts of the city. We create a walkway through the town, so every couple of 100 yards or à ] Þ Õ½ w ` > Ì iÀ LÕà iÀ° 7i½Ûi >` iÛiÀÞÌ } ÛiÀ Ì i Þi>Àà q y> i Ì À ÜiÀÃ] dancers, poets and musicians.”

Local musicians have been eager to lend a hand, including TOUCAN’s Conor Clancy and Backroad Smokers Club – while David Keenan has also been spotted wearing a BuskAid badge when playing a gig.

“At one point in the afternoon, all the buskers and volunteers from throughout the whole day get together, and we do a giant group busk,” Tadhg says. “I’ll never forget the wÀÃÌ Þi>À Üi ` ` Ì° / iÀi Ü>Ã >L ÕÌ xä v ÕÃ belting out songs in Red Square, and by the end there was probably 300 people standing there listening to us. It was insane.

“I suppose it’s a bit like the Grafton Street busk – except that we obviously don’t have Glen Hansard (laughs).”

BuskAid’s proceeds go to Tinteán Housing Association, who have been providing accommodation and support for homeless women and families in Waterford for the last two decades.

“We made a decision when we started that we wanted the money to stay local,” Tadhg says. “People forget that there’s a homelessness crisis outside of Dublin as well.

So we did a bit of digging around, and we found Tinteán Housing Association. I’ve been up there a few times to see the work they do, and its unbelievable.”

Several of the women availing of Tinteán’s

SEX, LIES & VIDEOTAPES

The Jeffrey Epstein saga again demonstrates the shameless sense of entitlement felt by all-too-many public figures.

TA D G H W I L L I A M S , A N N A J O R D A N , D E R E K F LY N N

“BY THE END THERE WAS PROBABLY 300 PEOPLE STANDING THERE LISTENING TO US. IT WAS INSANE.” services have also got involved with the city-wide busk.

“Anna Jordan does writing classes in Tinteán, and she’s brought some of the service users in to read their poetry on the day,” Tadhg smiles. “We set up poetry corners around the city, where people can say their poems out loud. It’s so special to see someone who has been knocked down so much in their life, standing up in the street reading a poem that they wrote. That really gives you a boost.”

Earlier this month, Waterford band Chimpanbee released the 2019 BuskAid anthem, ‘This One’s From Me’, with all proceeds going to Tinteán Housing Association.

It was a bittersweet moment, as it was revealed to be the final release from the local legends, whose keyboard player, Damien O’Brien, died after an assault in Waterford in July 2018, aged 28.

“Chimpanbee are real Waterford rockers,” Tadhg nods.

“They’re a great bunch of lads, and they’ve been through the wars the last year or so� �h�s �s the first m�s�c they��e released since that happened. They wanted it to be something upbeat and happy – a Christmas song that people could dance to. It’s a brilliant track.”

Chimpanbee are also set to headline Viking Promotions’ BuskAid Live & Loud gig in Electric Avenue on December 14, with all proceeds once again going towards Tinteán.

The main event takes place across the city a week later – and Tadhg reckons that this year looks set to be the biggest one yet.

“It’s growing all the time,” he grins. “People are starting to take notice of it outside of Waterford as well – I got a message from a girl in Cork last week, saying that they want to do a BuskAid there next year. I can’t wait for this year, because it creates such a vibrant atmosphere around town. It really gives me purpose at Christmas.”

• BuskAid takes place across Waterford on December 21.

See buskaid.net for more information.

A

B Y PAU L I N E O ’ C A L L A G H A N

ccording to Alan Dershowitz, Jeffrey Epstein’s former lawyer, lying to the media may be a sin, but it’s not illegal. Both Donald Trump and Boris Johnson have demonstrated just how effective lying, however brazen, can be with voters and how shame has simply disappeared from the psyche of many public figures. Dershowitz became famous defending paragons of virtue such as Claus Von Bülow, O.J. Simpson and Mike Tyson, and he secured a very favourable deal for Jeffrey Epstein.

What is it about wealthy, successful men and their libido? JFK famously needed sex every day or he got a migraine. Bill (“I never had sexual relations with that woman”) Clinton fell victim to a press less willing to conceal “indiscretions”. Jeffrey Epstein apparently needed ‘massages’ three times a day, preferably from young teenage girls. Is it their sexual charisma which brings them success in their field, or does their success make them so desirable that women apparently j ust can’t help themselves?

The reality seems more prosaic. Yes, success is intoxicating, but power and wealth also prove potent aphrodisiacs.

In Epstein’s case, it appears he targeted very young vulnerable girls, and was clever enough to use a woman as an intermediary, just as Harvey Weinstein disarmed young actresses by having female assistants show them up to his hotel bedroom.

Weinstein and Epstein were canny enough to camouflage their deeds with famous friends, philanthropic activities and resourceful lawyers. It appears also that Epstein videotaped many of his famous friends, including politicians and royalty, in compromising sexual situations,

which may explain the leverage he exerted in evading punishment for so long. This raises worrying questions with regard to his apparent suicide in jail, as well as providing hope to tabloid editors of even more titillating revelations in the future.

The Me Too movement has instigated a welcome and overdue paradigm shift in attitudes to behaviour which was long tolerated or endured. Film producers and fashion photographers had a “droit de seigneur” with regard to the girls whose careers they promoted.

Thankfully, such cavalier attitudes now seem outrageous, and Prince Andrew’s “honourable” continued friendship with Epstein, and disregard for his victims, illustrate the shameless sense of privilege and entitlement that has been a hallmark of many of these cases.

Weinstein and Epstein were able to silence individual voices, either by threatening their careers or paying them off with non-disclosure agreements. However, successful and well-loved actresses such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lawrence could not be dismissed as gold-diggers or scorned women, and the sick exploitation of the casting couch was finally exposed.

However, the Epstein case may also have revealed the extent to which powerful billionaires can gain influence and control over elements of the law, the judiciary and government, through honeypot schemes and blackmail (“pee-pee” tape, anyone?).

Today, where there is interference by foreign governments in democracy, justice and the free press, as well as a total disregard for truth and morality, we can now see clearly how individual sexual misdemeanours and crimes can impact upon, not just vulnerable young women, but us all.

HOTPRESS.COM 095

McCANN FRONTLINES

WINTER OF DISCONTENT As another Christmas arrives, it’s again worth considering the innumerable flaws in the Christian seasonal narrative – and, by contrast, the enlightened pagan outlook.

D

ays before Xmas you are out for a nosh and a few scoops before hitting the shops and the next thing you know you’re being buffeted and tripped by a troupe of urchins trilling sweetly about Jesus. Clip on the ear some of them want.

Pagans, by way of contrast, are a pleasant sort of people. You hardly ever hear pagans giving out about Christians thieving their winter festival.

It would be different if the boot were on the alternative foot. Kill you as quick as they’d look at you, Christians, if they suspected you’d dissed their crazy-moon beliefs. That’s the mindset which enabled them to multiply and prosper in the years after Jesus, even as pagans were scattered to the wind, slaughtered in droves, tortured to death.

It’s unthinkingly, routinely remarked, even by sensible, secular people, that cruel behaviour is ºÕ À ÃÌ > °» º À ÃÌ > » Ã ÕÃi` >Ã > µÕ> w iÀ of kindness, mercy, love. Violent factions are urged – “Can ye not behave like Christians?”

This is a misuse of words and a distortion of history.

If all the early Christians had wanted to do was practice their religion in peace, the civil authorities would have accommodated them, no problem. Had they set about recruitment by pious example or rational argument or magical tricks, they would, by and large, have been accorded the courtesy of a hearing. The Roman world had scores of religions, some of them less daft than others. Every neck of the woods had its own assortment of deities. It wouldn’t have occurred to anyone that believing in Juno would

EAMONN McCANN

THE NATIVIT Y: PERPETUATING A FALSE NARRATIVE

once they had the strength and the swagger, they set about obliteration of all rivals.

The fact that key aspects of core Christian beliefs were widely shared across the Middle East made it all the more necessary that other claimants be suppressed. The world was coming down with gods born to virgins around the time of the Winter Solstice – Osiris (Egypt), Adonis (Syria), Dionysius (Greece), Attis (Phrygia), Ì À>Ã ­*iÀÃ >® > ` > y V v Ì iÀ v>Ì iÀ iÃÃ deities were all well-established, and had millions of followers long before Jesus was a gleam in the eye of the Holy Ghost.

The prevalence of these myths arises from the rhythm of nature. This is the moment of the year when the earth turns the cold corner of winter,

“THE FACT THAT KEY ASPECTS OF CORE CHRISTIAN BELIEFS WERE WIDELY SHARED ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST MADE IT ALL THE MORE NECESSARY THAT OTHER CLAIMANTS BE SUPPRESSED.”

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when people in past times could celebrate survival, break open the stores, look forward to the warmth of the sun on their faces and the miraculous blossoming of new life, a time to laugh and love and shrug off restraint.

All learned Christians, including popes, have known all this all along. In “Jesus of Nazareth – The Infancy Narratives”, published seven years ago, Benedict XVI conceded that Jesus had been born years earlier than the Church had preached, that the event did not take place on December 25th, or in a stable, that there was no basis for believing there was an ox and ass involved in the matter, much less a little drummer boy going “Pa rum-pum-pum-pum.”

(Although if we rule the babe-in-a-manger

PHOTO: JESSICA LEWIS

be offensive to Vesta, or that proclaiming the divinity of Jesus would incur Jupiter’s wrath.

Rome’s representative in Palestine at the time, Pontius Pilate, was a gentleman compared to the Christian dogmatists soon to assert themselves.

None of this conforms to the standard narrative of Christianity’s origin, of the winsome infant, ever-virgin mother and sturdy father assembled in classical formation amid the frugal comfort of a soft-glow stable, star-stained sky poised for glory to descend. / i w ÀÃÌ >` iÀi ÌÃ v Ì i VÕ Ì >Þ >Ûi Lii humble, prayerful people right enough, maybe iÛi Ü>ÌV } Ì i À y V Ã LÞ } Ì >Ã Ì iÞ followed the arc of a star from the East. But

business in, why baulk at the suggestion of a pre-incarnation John Bonham?).

Benedict’s admission that the foundation myth of Christianity was as full of holes as slab of Swiss cheese did not, of course, prompt him to cancel the annual nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square, complete with manger, swaddling clothes, limpid-eyed livestock and all the trimmings. The show must go on, he may have murmured to himself.

The Bethlehem story inviting you in is the exact equivalent of the chain-store adverts currently alluring you with soft soap and angelsong to pay over the odds for tinsel and tat.

If you have a present still to buy, consider The Darkening Age: The Christian Destruction Of The Classical World. Wonderfully wellresearched and beautifully written by Catherine Nixey, it presents the early Christians as they were, bearded, black-robed, wielding cutthroat weapons, roaming Syria, Iraq, Palestine, bellowing fealty to their wrathful god as they descended on pagan homesteads and villages like wolves on the fold.

Statues of the old gods which had stood proud for centuries were toppled and broken to bits, exquisite pieces of ancient art trampled into the dust, the writings of poets, philosophers, mathematicians, historians à Ài``i` À « i` Ì L w Àið Ƃ «ÀiÛ Õà learning deemed diabolical.

Nixey encapsulates the difference between Christians and pagans by reference to St. Augustine (“That all superstition of pagans and heathens should be annihilated is what God wants, commands, proclaims”) and pagan writer Symmachus (“We see the same stars, the same world surrounds us. What does it matter what wisdom a person uses to seek for the truth?”).

Let’s have a traditional non-Christian festival this year. Eat, drink and be merry, kiss strangers

WINTER PAPERS FRONTLINES

YULE LOVE IT

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HELEN MURRAY

othing whispers “Christmas!” quite as seductively as Winter Papers, the clothbound festive annual assembled

by Kevin Barry and Olivia Smith.

Back for a fifth run out, its bounteous delights include At Ballindoon, a new short story from Mr. B who, as we know, is a master of the form; former Hot Press-er Peter Murphy in conversation with the endlessly fascinating Carmel Winters; another great interview that finds Siobhan Kane quizzing Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh; a foray into fiction, The Artists’ Colony,

by Patrick Freyne; Wally Cassidy’s Limerick hip hop photo essay; and Jessica Traynor’s ace ‘Nureyev In Dublin’ poem.

Despite professing to being a reluctant writer, Siobhán McSweeney, AKA Sister Michael, nips

SIOBHÁN MCSWEENEY

S E I T R E E B

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in and steals the show with her An Actor’s Diary.

In the midst of filming the latest Derry Girls – “I do love this show, this character, our gang of dicks” – something terrible happens.

“My lovely, difficult, infuriating, witty da passed away tonight,” reads her entry for October 30, 2018. “For a misanthrope like him, I find it hilarious that he was surrounded by so much family and love when he left us. He’d have been furious.”

But immensely proud, one imagines, of the wit and eloquence of his daughter’s writing.

“There were thirty people in my year in drama school when we graduated fifteen years ao,” Siobhán concludes shortly before Christmas. “There’s less than a handful of us still working as actors now. Blind, ignorant, arrogant, slow, stupid, plodding stubborness has brought me here... God bless it, everyone!”

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ALBUMS / MOVIES / TRACKS / TV / BOOKS / LIVE

CRITICAL MASS

TAKING US TO CHURCH PHOTO: DANNI FRO

Hozier triumphs in 3Arena.

pg. 116

TV | 126 Paul Nolan selects the festive TV highlights.

Albums | 100

Books | 112

Leonard Cohen’s posthumous swansong proves a masterpiece.

Paul Charles gives his tips on how to write the perfect whodunnit.

Tech | 106 A look at the new Star Wars game.

ALBUMS

ALBUM OF THE FORTNIGHT

>

In-depth reviews from the world of rock, pop, hip hop, trad and everything in between

DANCING IN THE DARK Leonard Cohen

Thanks For The Dance SONY

‘Listen To The Hummingbird’

THANKS INDEED, MR. COHEN The appropriate response to any posthumous album should be wariness. How many demos did Jeff Buckley actually record? Remember Amy Winehouse’s Lioness? No? Good. This, however, is different. Cohen was a beloved artist because that’s exactly what he was, an artist, and one of the few figures you could actually point at in music and say “poet”. A man who worked for years on a song like ‘Hallelujah’, a song that seems impervious to tarnishing despite so many people’s best efforts.

The vocals here were recorded as Cohen worked on You Want It Darker, and this album can be taken as a continuation of that one although it is, if anything, a superior work.

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Cohen’s son Adam, using conversations with his father as a guide, directs the marvellously sympathetic arrangements with help from Daniel Lanois, Beck, Jennifer Warnes, Damien Rice and Feist, amongst others.

It’s the lyrics, and that voice, that are the real prizes though. There are sly digs at himself in ‘Happens To The Heart’ – as in, “I was always working steady, but I never called it art.” His everlasting adoration of women comes through on ‘Moving On’, the title track, even ‘It’s Torn’, and certainly in the explicit story ‘The Night Of Santiago’ (“I took off my necktie / And she took off her dress / My belt and pistol set aside/ We tore away the rest”). I would never presume to attempt to define the power Cohen has over

women, but I do know that to talk about him to any female with blood pumping through her head and heart is to watch her instantly lose interest in anything to do with you. Competing with a poet is akin to dodging raindrops. “I wasn’t born a gypsy to make a woman sad.”

There’s a sad state of the world address in ‘Puppet’; meditations on his own frailty in ‘The Goal’ and ‘The Hills’; and an examination of the nature of beauty in ‘Listen To The Hummingbird’, which his beloved Federico García Lorca would have been proud to claim.

Show me another artist whose final work is every bit as good as their first? A near-perfect record, and a beautiful adieu.

Out Now · PAT CARTY

CRITICAL MASS | ALBUMS Keith Christmas Life, Life SELF-RELEASED

‘Round The Stones’

OLD BOWIE COMRADE DELIVERS THE GOODS Longevity being the hardest thing to achieve in music, you have to take your hat (metaphorical or otherwise) off to Keith Christmas, who’s still strumming away at the age of 73.

His career got off to the most stellar of ‘60s starts when he played acoustic guitar on David Bowie’s Space Oddity album and then gigged at the first Glastonbury. A much-loved fixture on the hippie underground – tours with the likes of Zappa, Captain Beefheart and Hawkwind followed – his chances of a commercial breakthrough were effectively ended by punk. So, while his old Beckenham pal went on to become one of the biggest stars on the planet, Keith settled for cult folk-rock status.

Sporting a moonlit image of Stonehenge on the cover, Life, Life sets its out stall out with ‘Round The Stones’, a song Peter Gabriel might have conjured up if he’d fallen in with Fairport Convention rather than Genesis. Christmas’ weathered rasp – it’s his real name by the way – turns the title-track into something halfway between Steeleye Span and that other Kent boy, Shane MacGowan, in one of his more sensitive moods.

‘Love In The Gold’ had this reviewer thinking of Finbar Furey – the timbre of their voices is remarkably similar – while ‘Love That Surrounds’ is a gorgeous song of spiritual sustenance, underpinned by Keith’s fabulous picking. A fine storyteller, Christmas’ best years still could be ahead of him.

Out Now · STUART CLARK The Chainsmokers World War Joy COLUMBIA

‘P.S. I Hope You’re Happy’

DANCE DUO’S THIRD LP IS ALL SMOKE AND NOT ENOUGH FIRE While their often underwhelming lyrics might suggest otherwise, EDM-pop sensations The Chainsmokers are actually pretty savvy operators. Having hit on a hugely successful formula with 2016’s Halsey-featuring ‘Closer’, the New Yorkers have been like men on a mission ever since, merrily milking that cash cow for every last drop. World War Joy is their third album in as many years, and firmly suggests the boys have become

the musical equivalent of dodgy firework sellers on November 1 – i.e. they’re all out of bangers.

Dialling back the toxic masculinity and narcissism of 2018’s Sick Boy, the new album maintains their gradual transformation into fellow genre-straddlers Twenty One Pilots.

However, there is precious little inspiration across these 10 tracks.

Playing to both acts’ strengths, the team-up with Blink 182 (‘P.S. I Hope You’re Happy’) is one of the few moments of genuine aplomb.

‘Family’ is also destined to be a favourite during the next festival season, but the rest of the songs suffer from going to the well one too many times. Indeed, more often than not, they feel like their sole purpose is to soundtrack reality TV montages. Disappointing.

Out Now · EDWIN MCFEE

CRITICAL MASS | ALBUMS

Labrinth Imagination & The Misfit Kid

Gene Clark

SONY

No Other (Deluxe Edition)

‘Miracle’

4AD ‘Life’s Greatest Fool’

THE BYRD WHO WOULDN’T FLY SOARS Any time rock snobs get together and indulge in a game of top trumps, this is one of those albums that guarantees a winning hand.

Arguably the greatest songwriter in the original Byrds – check out ‘I’ll Feel A Whole Lot Better’ or ‘She Don’t Care About Time’ – an ironic fear of flying, and the usual internal squabbling, pushed Clark out of the nest towards a solo career in 1966.

Great albums with the Godsin Brothers and as part of Dillard & Clark – fans of Robert Plant and Alison Krauss will be familiar with some of the songs - followed before White Light (1971) and Roadmaster (‘73), both of which are worth seeking out. It was with 74’s No Other, however, that Clark really staked his legitimate claim as one of the giants of country rock.

Even that kind of categorisation fails to capture the breadth of what he achieved here. Mind you, it sold like sour milk.

Employing the cream of LA session musicians at great expense, much to the chagrin of label boss David Geffen, Clark put together a masterpiece. Highlights are too numerous to cite, but particularly special mention has to go to the upbeat country of ‘Life’s Greatest Fool’; the dark groove of the title track; the gospel rock of ‘Strength Of Strings’; and rolling closer ‘Lady Of The North’. Indeed, every song is touched by genius.

The sound on this painstaking re-master, which includes extensive session tracks and a great version of Dillard & Clark’s ‘Train Leaves Here This Morning’, knocks my old

SUPERB OUTING FOR HIP-HOP SUPER-PRODUCER A hugely in-demand studio wizard whose credits include Beyonce, Rihanna and Kanye West, Labrinth here returns with his first solo album in seven years. Imagination & The Misfit Kid is a semiautobiographical concept record of sorts, examining a young man’s struggles negotiating the rapids of the the music industry. Needless to say, Lab has plenty of firsthand experience.

Other achievements on his glittering CV include co-writing Tinie Tempah’s breakout hit, ‘Pass Out’; creating the soundtrack for cult TV series Euphoria; and forming the pop supergroup LSD, with Sia and Diplo. His eclectic musical background definitely informs Imagination..., which covers an impressive amount of musical ground, including gospel, funk, trap and pop.

Opener ‘Imagination’ is a contemplative tune that nicely lures the listener into the universe of the eponymous misfit kid. Danceable synths pepper the record, while there’s a hint of gospel in ‘Something’s Got To Give’, and ‘Sexy MF’ is seductive, pop-tinged funk. The true highlight, though, is ‘Miracle’, a heartwarming number with a monster bass drop. Every time Lab hits the tune’s high notes, it’s a moment of pure euphoria (pun intended).

In the words of Labrinth himself: put your fucking glasses up.

Imagination & The Misfit Kid is nothing short of a genre-bending triumph.

Out Now · BRENNA RANSDEN

CD into a cocked hat. This version also allows the exquisite production to shine, revealing hitherto hidden layers, and finally explaining where all that money went. Absolutely essential.

Out Now · PAT CARTY Coldplay Everyday Life PARLOPHONE

‘Orphans’

PATCHY DOUBLE ALBUM FROM STADIUM KINGPINS Much to the eternally cheery Chris Martin’s chagrin, the world we live in today is, well, completely

fucked. Rather than staying true to form and making an LP full of good vibrations, the oft-maligned megastar and his bandmates have instead created a record reflecting these turbulent times. Among the issues touched upon are police brutality, climate change, war, faith, gun control and racism.

A sort of spiritual heir to 2008’s pigeonhole-defying Viva La Vida, this double album variously taps into gospel, Sufi qawwali music, chamber-pop and Afrobeat, resulting in a frequently experimental listen. While the band have jokingly claimed they’ve been making their eighth opus “for the last 100 years or thereabouts”, to these ears, Everyday Life sounds

HOTPRESS.COM 101

CRITICAL MASS | ALBUMS Eamonn Dowd and The Racketeers (feat.

Eamon Carr) Songs From The Fever Ship INTENDANCE

‘Cu Chulainn’s Lament’

Harry Styles Fine Line COLUMBIA RECORDS

‘Fine Line’

POP ICON DELIVERS A MASTERWORK 7 i >ÀÀÞ -ÌÞ ià Ài i>Ãi` à w ÀÃÌ Ã > LÕ Óä£Ç] Ì i > y Õi Vià ÜiÀi i` >Ìi Þ >««>Ài Ì\ / i i>Ì iÃ] Ì i -Ì ià > ` Fleetwood Mac. Although the album was self-titled, it didn’t reveal much about the sometime One Direction singer. Indeed, thanks to the cryptic lyrics, Harry Styles effectively drew a veil over the singer, even if it was a well-executed and enjoyable affair.

On Fine Line] Ì Õ} ] -ÌÞ ià L>Àià > \ Ì Ã Ã > à }iÀ w > Þ realising his true creative vision. “It’s all about sex and feeling sad,” Styles told Rolling Stone in August. “We’d do mushrooms, lie down on the grass and listen to Paul McCartney’s Ram in the sunshine.” It perfectly sums up the nature of the record: every song «> Ìà > ÛiÀÞ Ã«iV w V >}i > ` >à ÌÃ Ü Õ µÕi >Ì Ã« iÀi° Indeed on opener ‘Golden’, you can practically see the singer tripping on mushrooms under the Californian sun.

On Fine Line, he’s also more experimental. ‘She’ is like the sonic Ài«ÀiÃi Ì>Ì v > >V ` ÌÀ «] Ü i ¼-Õ y ÜiÀ] 6 ° Ƚ à > vÕ ÌÀ>V with more psychedelic undertones. The most surprising moment, ÜiÛiÀ] à ¼/Ài>Ì *i « i 7 Ì ` iÃý° / à vi >vw À }] > ÃÌ heavenly masterpiece features a gospel choir, as well as distorted guitars and a bongo solo – and somehow it works.

What make the album truly outstanding are the intimate moments where Styles grapples with heartbreak and identity.

‘Falling’, for example, is a beautifully vulnerable ballad about the aftermath of a break-up. “What if I’m someone I don’t want around?”, Styles asks himself, while delivering the best and most chilling vocals on the album.

However, Styles saves the best ’til last. Tugging directly at the heartstrings, Fine Line’s closing title-track tops everything on the album in terms of scale and emotion. The record takes you on a journey and ultimately leaves you breathless. Just as Harry -ÌÞ ià >à i L>À i` > µÕiÃÌ Ì w ` à ÌÀÕi Ãi v] Þ Õ > à i ` up questioning your own identity. Overall, a stunningly powerful record.

Out December 13 · SELINA JUENGLING

oddly unfinished in places (check ‘Guns’ and ‘Daddy’). Nonetheless, there are moments of inspiration. ’Orphans’ is Coldplay at their anthemic best, and the brass-driven ‘Arabesque’ is pretty tasty. The

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boogie woogie-spiced ‘BrokEn’ is also great fun.

Overall, Coldplay’s fans will have little to complain about. Even for non-believers, it deserves a listen.

Out Now · EDWIN McFEE

IRISH ROCK LEGENDS JOIN FORCES FOR EPIC AFFAIR One of the disappointments, arguably the only one, of Horslips’ re-emergence was the absence of drummer Eamon Carr. Not only does this new treat from Eamonn Dowd and The Racketeers welcome the man back to his rightful throne, the songs are also built around Carr’s poetry/lyrics, reminding us that he’s easily one of our most undervalued wordsmiths. The Sweden-based, Irish-born Dowd is no slouch either. This may be only his third solo album, but he’s been a staunch presence on the rock scene since the ’80s.

This collaboration has produced an intriguing slew of songs, which artfully and passionately celebrate the human spirit in the face of adversity. In particular, they focus on our overseas history. After the short opener ‘Crow’s Nest’, ‘Oh Hangman’ parks itself somewhere between Dylan and Mark Knopfler, for a jaunty musical outing that belies the serious title.

Dowd’s voice is in full flow, with The Racketeers providing an accordion-inflected folk backing.

The rendition of ‘Cu Chulainn’s Lament’ is rawer and bleaker than Horslips’ version from The Táin, with Carr’s bandmate Jim Lockhart contributing flute and Hammond to swell the atmosphere. The lengthy ‘The Merchants Of Bordeaux’ is equally sombre, with plaintive harmonica and gentle guitar.

Elsewhere, on ‘The Merchants Of Bordeaux’ Carr provides some typically powerful lyrics: “We were carried on a crimson tide over fields that once were green / We were ragged, we were broken, the most wretched ever seen”.

His provocative words often take us to the dark side, touching on hangmen, danger, misdeeds and repentance. But sometimes we need to go there, if only to come back.

Out Now · JACKIE HAYDEN Hail The Ghost Arrhythmia WHITE HEART RECORDS

‘Sweet Samurai’

MOODY STUFF FROM HOMEGROWN ART-ROCKERS It’s taken Irish rock trio Hail The Ghost four years to complete the follow-up to their much-touted debut, Forsaken. Thankfully,

though, our patience has been rewarded with what is a thoughtprovoking effort. Last time round, we described them as “atmospheric indie”, but Arrhythmia is comprised of bleaker soundscapes, more reminiscent of Joy Division.

Opener ‘Prologue’ has a short spoken vocal, reflecting on the power of music against a background of pale grey noise.

The droning of ‘Swarms’ teases the ears, a drum nailing the groove to floor beneath Kieran O’Reilly’s nonchalant vocals. ‘Pirouette’ is based around sprightly piano, while ‘Black Karma’ takes a more strident, full-on approach. The choral element adds drama to ‘Sweet Samurai’, though again it’s O’Reilly’s vocals that carry the track. ‘Elegy’ is calm and reflective, with Corr’s sparse piano particularly effective.

The house doctor tells me that with arrhythmia, your heart beats too quickly or too slowly, and the pulse throughout this album tends towards the latter. Its melancholy mood reflects the times we’re living through, which is an impressive achievement. On the debit side, O’Reilly’s style can be onedimensional, and the record isn’t exactly awash with subtle textural touches. Still, this is an album you can tunnel into for comfort and compassion. Let’s hope Hail The Ghost don’t keep us waiting so long for their next report from the dark side.

Out Now · JACKIE HAYDEN Vyvienne Long A Lifetime Of HighFives HAPPYHAZARD

‘Let Go’

IRISH CELLIST & SONGWRITER OPTS FOR THE ROAD LESS TAKEN Damien Rice’s one-time cellist, Vyvienne Long, has been championed by artists as diverse as Ed Sheeran, The New Triangle and DJ Kormac. A Lifetime Of High Fives is her third album, and the overdue follow-up to 2013’s Vyvienne Long Live with the Balanescu Quartet.

The sumptuous tones of a jaunty cello herald beguiling female vocals on the waltzing ‘Seahorse’, which whets the appetite for more. But what follows is often much darker, and far more mysterious and unsettling. ’Let Go’ is made of sterner stuff, with Long’s pleading vocals evoking Bjork at her impish best. Some deft finger-picking opens ‘This Monster’, though it soon ups the ante with a catchy chorus. Initially, the piano-lead ‘Photographs’ is a more conventional affair, before eventually moving into familiar Long territory. The lyrics express a

CRITICAL MASS | ALBUMS

Milky Chance Mind The Moon BMG

‘Eden’s Garden’

MULTI-PLATINUM GERMAN DUO RETURN WITH GENREBLENDING THIRD ALBUM Since crashing onto the airwaves in 2013 with megahit ‘Stolen Dance’, German duo Milky Chance have maintained a formidable following – clocking up appearances at Glastonbury and Coachella, and smashing through the two-billion streams mark.

On their new album, Mind The Moon, Milky Chance rely on this winning formula, playing it safe with their trademark effortless folktronica grooves, reggaeflavoured beats and breezy singalong hooks. While opener ‘Fado’, styled after the traditional form of Portugese singing of the same name, hints at the offbeat sensibilities that have always been integral to the duo’s sound, it soon becomes apparent that Milky Chance’s well-established brand of chill-pop struggles to find its footing in 2019.

While there’s nothing on Mind The Moon to seriously rival the all-conquering power of ‘Stolen Dance’, the album often shines in its least expected moments.

‘Daydreaming’, featuring Australia’s rapidly rising alt-rock star Tash Sultana, is a standout, leaning into an increasingly psychedelic sound.

The collaboration with Ladysmith Black Mambazo, ‘Eden’s House’, is another highlight – gradually building into one of the most moving tracks on the album, with the South African group bringing a deeper dimension to Milky Chance’s comparatively light sound.

Milky Chance’s latest offering is unlikely to keep you up at night – but is a pleasant, nod-along trip all the same.

Out Now · LUCY O’TOOLE

Liam Payne LP1 UNIVERSAL

GRAHAM KEOGH

raw sense of insecurity.

‘You’re The Sun’ has a sparseness stemming from Long’s vocals and atmospheric piano, before sailing off to distant places you don’t want to return from. There’s even a bluesy tinge to ‘Enough’, with its powerful lyrics addressing violence against women. On the urgent ‘Money Stuff’, meanwhile, she revolts against crass materialism. The album ends with ‘Some Wretched Curse’, the lyrics of which articulate confusion about which path to take in life.

Listeners, thankfully, are likely to be less hesitant and opt decisively for repeat listens.

Out Now · JACKIE HAYDEN

‘Remember’

LIAM PAYNE HEADS IN THE WRONG DIRECTION Directioners have had to wait four years for a solo album by Liam Payne. Well, here it is. While most of his fellow band members found a niche for themselves – Harry Styles ventured into ‘70s rock, Niall Horan became the newest popfolkster, and Zayn Malik made a name for himself in R&B – Payne sticks with pop and hip-hop on LP1.

The album is essentially a collection of the singles he’s released since One Direction went on hiatus. All of them worked well on their own and certainly appealed to a mainstream audience: ‘Strip That Down’ reached the top 5 in four countries, including Ireland and the UK, while ‘For You’ – his duet with Rita Ora for the soundtrack of Fifty Shades Freed – was also a top 10 hit.

But given that some of the tracks came out two years ago, they already suffer from overfamiliarity. Much of the material is also disappointingly formulaic. with Payne intoning shallow, oversexualised lyrics that are paired over generic beats. There are some outright lyrical howlers, as on ‘Rude Hours’ when he sings, “Meet me in the parking lot / Yeah, might be a bad idea / I probably do your ass in the car”.

Even his attempts at ballads and more serious moments fail, and result in soulless pop. Just when you think it can’t get any worse, Payne even attempts to – wait for it – rap on ‘Tell Your Friends’.

Just to put the tin hat on it, he closes the album with a dismal festive number, ‘All I Want (For Christmas)’.

LP1 is just a mess. Next please!

Out Now · SELINA JUENGLING Yann Tiersen Portrait MUTE

‘The Jetty’

SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS FROM SOUNDTRACK MAESTRO On Portrait, Yann Tiersen has – along with three new tracks – rerecorded select works from his 25-year career. Best known for film soundtracks like Amelie, Tiersen prefers to downplay the almost accidental nature of these works as secondary to his composing. The album is in some part an effort to re-contextualise many of the tracks, while also breathing new life into

The Who WHO POLYDOR/UNIVERSAL

‘Detour’

BARNSTORMING EFFORT FROM ROCK ICONS At its best, The Who’s music is ridiculously exciting. Of all the music that makes you want to get out of the chair and just fucking do something, The Clash might be their only rivals. And WHO – against all the odds! – is vintage stuff.

Right from the opening ‘All This Music Must Fade’, Pete Townshend – always one of rock’s great philosophisers/bullshit artists – is in electrifying form. In a voice that could still strip paint, Roger Daltrey declares, “I don’t care / I know you’re gonna hate this song.”

The keyboards burble, Zak Starkey kicks the shite out of his kit, and that guitar rings out. It finishes with Townshend muttering, “Who gives a fuck?” This is how you kick off a record.

Unconcerned about either dying light or whether there’s a country for old men, they variously rage against Guantanamo in ‘Ball And Chain’; their own history in ‘I Don’t Wanna Get Wise’; ageing and the world at large in ‘Rockin’ In Rage’; and the Grenfell disaster in the spitting ‘Street Song’. Elsewhere, there’s just general rage on the great ‘Detour’, which jumps on the magic bus for the first time in a long time.

Things do dip slightly in the second half – ‘I’ll Be Back’ is so middle of the road it might as well be a white line – but this is grown-up rock and roll, with all the power chords, oohing backing vocals, powerhouse drumming and left-turns one might hope for. There are no songs here pretending that these men are anything other than who they are. If this is their final bow, then it’s a defiant one, with two fingers in the air.

Out Now · PAT CARTY

them.

Part of this process involved recording to analogue tape, while the core of the tracks were recorded live in order to preserve a certain immediacy, great effort being taken to avoid the exhaustingly endless choices offered by modern digital recording. Working with touring musicians Emilie Tiersen, Ólavur Jákupsson and Jens L Thomsen, and featuring tasteful collaborations with John Grant, Gruff Rhys, Stephen O’Malley and Blonde Redhead, Portrait is an impressive effort.

Building on deceptively simple piano motifs, Tiersen’s work has a yearning quality that somehow

expresses hope and resignation simultaneously. Quirky-yet-familiar melodies take frequent sidesteps into surprising diversions, from the devilish, Morricone-inspired ‘The Waltz Of The Monsters’ to frenetic, Aaron Copland-like canters on tunes such as ‘Rue des Cascades’ and ‘Portrait No 2’. At times, it evokes an almost ironic Frenchness with its harmoniums and accordions. You can practically smell the Gauloises.

Despite his reservations, it’s easy to see why Tiersen’s music lends itself so well to cinema. Give Portrait a spin and make it the score to your own personal movie.

Out Now · SAMUEL STEIGER

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TRACKS

The latest singles, digital downloads, videos and live sessions with Edwin McFee >

TRACK OF THE FORTNIGHT

THE WHILEAWAYS All The Lights On (Must Be Christmas) SELF RELEASED

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Definitely aviary: REWS’ ‘Birdsong’ is a belter MALAKI Butterfly Boy MALAKI RECORDS Butterfly Boy, the debut EP Dublin rapper Malaki is a thing of rare appeal. This supremely rich set of songs is an impressive calling card indeed. Introspective lyrics, immersive production (via righthand man Matthew Harris), and urgent performances make for a thrilling listen. Keep him on your radar. Malaki is destined for big things. (J.M.) DAVID ROONEY Seven Seas AVAILABLE ON SPOTIFY David Rooney has described ‘Seven Seas’ as a tale of two seagulls (it’s a long story!). It certainly has a lovely, open, maritime quality that captures well the swell of the ocean. There’re echoes of The Eagles and (in a different vein) Steely Dan. The acoustic guitar sound is chunky and impressive. And there is a beautiful, atmospheric, tinkling outro by Jay Wilson on keys. At 2mins 37secs, it’s made for radio play! Well worth a listen.

REWS Birdsong MARSHALL RECORDS REWS have had a bit of a makeover line-up wise since we last saw them, but ‘Birdsong’ makes one thing abundantly clear – when it comes

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to kicking ass, it’s business as usual.

Helmed by the multi-talented Shauna Tohill, this explosive rocker sees the singer spread her wings and soar to new heights. One of the most potent tunes she’s ever put her name to, this is an instant pit anthem.

COURTNEY LOVE Mother KRO RECORDS Lifted from the starstudded soundtrack of new horror movie The Turning (based on Henry James’ seminal novel The Turn Of The Screw), the erstwhile Hole frontwoman again demonstrates her mastery of alt-rock power ballads. Gloomy, goth-flecked and deliciously dark, after a decade of inactivity, it’s a welcome reminder of her gifts. Here’s hoping there’s more new music on the way.

BILLIE EILISH Everything I Wanted INTERSCOPE As 2019 wheezes its last breath, looking back on the last 12 months, I think we can all agree that Billie Eilish provided one of the highlights of an exceedingly vexatious time. Clearly not content with releasing one of the albums of the year, the artist has unleashed this new cut – a dreamy, downbeat number that sees her reflect on her chart successes, while also serving

as an ode to the bond between her and her brother.

WENDY JACK Woolly Jumpers WJM Inspired by the season to be jolly, ‘Woolly Jumpers’ is a perfect soundtrack for a bop around the Christmas tree. Arriving hot on the heels of the internationally lauded ‘90 Degrees’, Jack has an inimitable croon that creates worlds and stories you can get lost in – and this infectious effort is another gem.

NOEL GALLAGHER’S HIGH FLYING BIRDS Wandering Star SOUR MASH Lifted from the upcoming Blue Moon Rising EP (c’mon City!), Noel reckons ‘Wandering Star’ is “already a live standard and we haven’t even played it yet” – and who am I to argue? Filled with church bells, and boasting a stadium-shaking chorus, the Abbey Road-written number possesses a Beatles-like magic. If you’re searching for a more subtle style of Christmas music, look no further.

LISA O’NEILL The Wren, The Wren EP RIVER LEA RECORDINGS

Fresh from scooping Best Original Track at the RTÉ Folk Awards, the acclaimed songsmith unveils a

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The Galwegian trio’s latest single is a gorgeous Yuletide lullaby that could melt the heart of even the meanest grinch. Expertly capturing the magic of their hometown at this time of year – referencing Eyre Square, Neachtain’s and more – it’s a perfectly weighted waltz, built around their trademark harmonies. If the heart-swelling first half doesn’t get you, the cinematic, stringswept crescendo most certainly will.

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spellbinding new three-song EP. A magical fusion of memory and myth, it sounds simultaneously classic and current, with O’Neill’s vocals really impressing. Her version of the Percy French-penned ‘Come Home Paddy Reilly To Ballyjamesduff’ is worth paying particular attention to.

COLDPLAY Daddy PARLOPHONE Backed by a suitably sweet video courtesy of Aardman Animations (AKA the people behind everyone’s favourite cheese-munching duo Wallace and Gromit), the comeback kids are destined to divide audiences – again – with ‘Daddy’.

A skeletal number driven by Chris Martin’s piano and voice, to these ears, it ain’t exactly the bees knees.

The diehards will no doubt adore it, though.

KÍLA Cúrsaí Grá KÍLA RECORDS The always innovative Kíla unveil their first new material since 2017 – and it’s an absolute riot.

Described by the band as “a love song set on a stormy sea, or is it a swamp?”, skiffle, ’50s rock ‘n’ roll and rockabilly influences pepper this musical stew – and mighty tasty it is too.

CRITICAL MASS | TRACKS PICK OF THE FORTNIGHT

SPECIAL LIVE REPORT

A MAGICAL NIGHT Supported by John Smith, Lisa Hannigan delivered a brilliant performance at the Hot Press-curated night in Dublin’s Windmill Quarter. By Tanis Smither

THE FORTNIGHT’S BEST DIGITAL DOWNLOADS, PODCASTS AND LIVE SESSIONS

Yes readers, there’s so much more to Christmas music than Shakin’ Stevens, Slade et al, so here’s an alternative selection of tunes to enjoy while you ingest a tub of Celebrations. First up is this riff-tastic, ridiculous ode to Satan from the mock-rockers.

Hear it on Spotify

Yule & the gang: The Futureheads THE FUTUREHEADS Christmas Was Better In The ’80s (CHRISTMAS SONG) This church bell bashing, super charged chug-fest is the perfect antidote to the schmaltzy sounds of Michael Bublé. Fans of The Ramones’ ‘Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Anymore)’ will especially love this cracker.

Hear it on Spotify JOSH HOMME AND C.W. STONEKING Silent Night (CHRISTMAS SONG) This tongue-in-cheek, ‘50s

steeped cover of the festive classic will have you rockin’ around the Christmas tree in no time.

Hear it on Spotify THE REGRETTES FEAT. DYLAN MINNETTE Holiday-ish (CHRISTMAS SONG) No strangers to the world of Christmas songs, this is the third festive tune from the teenage tearaways, and it’s the musical equivalent of getting a snuggle from Baby Yoda.

Hear it on Spotify

MIGUEL RUIZ

SPINAL TAP Christmas With The Devil (CHRISTMAS SONG)

F

or well over a decade, Lisa Hannigan has been a mainstay in Irish music, making records that have been widely acclaimed and doing live shows of unique power. She has also captivated audiences around the world with her extraordinary, otherworldly brand of folk, and hummingbird vibrato.

Well as we might think we know her, however, the enigmatic singersongwriter delivered a riveting, revelatory set to a packed house at the third gig in the Hot Press-curated Windmill Live series. It turned out to be a very special occasion indeed.

Windmill Lane Recording Studios has, of course, moved to a new location on Ringsend Road, but the spirit of its origins is still strong in the Windmill Quarter. The room was lit with Christmas lights and the bright eyes of the onlookers. As we waited for the music to start, the atmosphere was positively electric.

Lisa was supported by John Smith, the revered English singer who has himself garnered international acclaim on the back of solo tours and support slots for the likes of John Martyn, Iron & Wine, and Ben Howard. He is a famously skilled guitarist and you could see why, his deft picking enhanced by a superbly modulated use of pedals. He also has a wonderful, warm tone in his between song story-telling.

“Some woman came up to me after a show and told me I was a great guitar player, but couldn’t sing,” he quipped, to much laughter, before launching into what was a fine rendition of ‘Hares On The Mountain’, an old English folk tune that, ironically, highlights Smith’s intoxicating rasp.

The crowd loved him, urging him on after every song.

Lisa Hannigan opened her set with ‘Anahorish’, her a cappella, sung version of Seamus Heaney’s nostalgic poem. Indeed, there was an element of nostalgia to Hannigan’s whole performance, as she took us lovingly through a number of her longer-standing tunes. ‘Little Bird’, and ‘O Sleep’, both from her 2011 solo album Passenger, saw her achieve a one-of-a-kind intimacy between herself and the audience, who were clearly entranced.

Hannigan is one of those artists who seem to react physically to every note that’s played. As she switches deftly between guitar, mandolin and ukelele, and addresses the mike like a friend, there are times whan it feels as if you’ve walked in on something very personal – but there she is, up on the stage. There is a powerful alchemy to it, and as a result, you cannot tear your eyes away. Lisa is spellbinding to watch, and John Smith’s wonderful harmonies add another gorgeous layer, underpinned by drummer Ross Turner’s subtle percussion.

The call for an encore was impossible to resist. Her version of ‘O Holy Night’, which closed the set, connected somehow with the sacred nature of the space. Overall, this was a magical performance.

HOTPRESS.COM 105

TECH

>

The latest games, apps and gadgets with Pavel Barter

REVIEWS & PREVIEWS

TSUM-ING ATTRACTIONS Disney Tsum Tsum Festival Switch (Bandai Namco) Tsum Tsum, the digital equivalent of popping bubble wrap, was a free-to-play game on mobile devices before moving to Nintendo’s familyfriendly console.

Ten games come wrapped up in candy-coated graphics and brighter colours than a disco in 1985. A rhythm dance game doesn’t really work, but stuff like Ice Cream Stacker, in which disembodied Tsum heads fall from the sky as you stack them up, will have you gurning until dawn. Tsums, for the uninitiated, are collectible stuffed toys from Japan. Despite the presence of iconic American characters – Mickey Mouse, Goofy, etc – the escapade feels more Japanese than karaoke at a sushi bar.

Mini-games such as Tsum Chase, a Pac-Man clone, will appeal to retro fans, and Lost Treasure Push, a coin-collection arcade affair, will appeal to everyone’s inner gambler. On the whole, this mini-game collection is best suited for minigamers (aged 12 or under).

6/10

Samsung Galaxy Note10 Spare a thought for the Note 10, the smaller sibling of the Note 10 Plus. While the latter has grabbed all the headlines,

106 HOTPRESS.COM

the smaller Samsung may have the upper hand. This phone is literally handier� �t ����� it fits neatly into your pocket: unlike the 6.8” Plus.

The Note 10 also features the fantastic S Pen. Samsung’s stylus is no longer just about writing notes (although you can make digital scribbles on the screen when it’s asleep). Bluetooth is now integrated into this magic wand, so you can swing it around like a mad conductor.

The phone picks up your gestures, through the S Pen’s gyroscope and accelerometer, allowing you to open apps, take pictures remotely when your phone is on the other side of the room, and control music without touching the screen.

There’s only 8GB of RAM, compared to 12GB on the Plus, and no Micro SD card, but you’re unlikely to notice the difference. Count yourself lucky if you find this �eauty in �anta�s sack.

9/10

Preview

Sony α7R IV Sony’s fourth generation, highresolution, full-frame mirrorless camera purports to have more depth than the Dalai Lama. The 61MP sensor suggests it should produce great shots in low light.

The camera’s autofocus (AF)

real time tracking system can be used in video and stills.

It can shoot at up to 10 frames per second, using full auto focus, and capture 4K video to create cinematic footage. A 5.76M dot ���� �ie�finder dis�lays your target. �ye�� feature identifies a subject’s eyes, mixing cutting edge tech with AI wizardry.

The α7R IV’s low-light skills were recently on display at the Macnas Parade in Galway.

Preview Nextbase Series 2 dashcam �le�a is infiltratin� our automobiles through Nextbase’s dashboard friendly gadget.

It’s not just about summoning Billie Eilish, as you cruise down Mullingar highways.

Intelligent parking mode turns the device into a sentient security guard. If you are parked, away from the vehicle, and some idiot rams your car, the dashcam switches on to record their misdemeanours. In the event of a serious accident – should you drive off a ravine, Thelma & Louise style – the dashcam alerts the emergency services.

Nextbase reckon their dashcam is the first of its kind to sync recorded files to your phone, over Bluetooth and WiFi. Prices range from €59.99 to €189.99.

APP ATTACK Christmas is a season of cheer and goodwill, unless you’re sleeping in a doorway. A new app plans to bring Chrimbo spirit to the vulnerable elements of society, by donating money from retail purchases to a homeless charity. GIVEBACK raises funds for Dublin-based Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH). For every purchase you make through the app, the retailer automatically makes a donation to the ICHH. Giveback.ie’s 1,200 retail partners include Amazon and Hotels.com. The app was created

by James Gallagher and Victoria RyanNesbitt, students from UCD and DCU. Millennials can clue up on current affairs through SQUID, a free news app with over 100 categories from 20,000 sources. Users can personalise their content, sort topics and save articles. “We want to help younger generations rediscover news reading as a fun, valuable and engaging daily activity,” said Johan Othelius, SQUID founder.

GET THE SHIFTS might sound like an Irish take on Tinder, and although it does use the side-swiping mechanics of the dating app, it’s about finding work rather than hook-ups in Coppers. Part-time jobs on offer through the app include housekeeping, floor staff, kitchen work and promotional staff. Swipe right to find a job for extra Christmas cash.

CRITICAL MASS | TECH

S H O CK O F T H E S H E N M U E Karate kid Launched in 1999, Shenmue was one of the best titles on the Dreamcast console. Sure, the dialogue was more ham-fisted than a pig in boxing gloves, but the game’s presentation of an open world Japan was mesmerising. The story followed Ryo Hazuki, a young man trying to discover who murdered his father. ��ongside �� fight se��en�es� p�a�ers spent mone� on �ood� ra��e ti��ets and toys. You could pop into an arcade to play old Sega games, or earn money by gambling and driving trucks. This all-immersive life simulator gave the game a deserved cult status.

After 2001’s Shenmue II, there was silence – until now. Shenmue III, the third and fina� part in ��o�s saga� has fina��� been re�eased �or ��� and ���

Nuts and bolts A robot created at Trinity College has made Time’s list of 2019’s 100 best inventions. Stevie is part of a pro�e�t exp�oring ho� artifi�ia� intelligence could play a part in the

TECH NEWS

care of the elderly. The Irish robot has been hanging out with old folk at a residential community in Washington (which sounds like the pitch for a Ron Howard movie). Conor McGinn, the lead engineer on the project, said that robot carers like Stevie are unlikely to be mass-produced any time soon, due to their cost.

Force the issue A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, Luke Skywalker took a break and let a new space sheriff take over. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, for PS4, Xbox One, and PC, features Cal Kestis, a Jedi on the run from the empire’s evil forces.

Alongside his faithful droid and a former Jedi knight, Cal visits planets including Kashyyyk, the hard-to-spell home of the Wookies, and unravels an ancient mystery that could revive the Jedi Order. Unlike the usual Star Wars shoot-em-up, this action-adventure is more similar to Tomb Raider and Uncharted – with added lightsabres. �he �or�e te��s �s �o���� find a re�ie� in the next issue of Hot Press.

Lightsabre rattling: Star Wars

MICROMEDIA LOOK TO THE LIGHT ON STREET DIGITAL ADVERTISING

For More Information Contact Hello@micromedia.ie or www.micromedia.ie

HOTPRESS.COM 107

MOVIES

>

The latest film reviews, interviews and opinion with Roe McDermott

INTERVIEW

A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE Irish actress Aisling Franciosi has a breakout role in The Nightingale, the new film from Babadook director Jennifer Kent, which is a harrowing examination of colonialism and racism.

APOLOGY

A Dog Called Money: Apology to Paul McGuinness The film director Seamus Murphy was interviewed about his new film A Dog Called Money in Hot Press Vol.43.19, published 14 November, 2019. He has issued the following apology in relation to what he said in that interview: “I want to apologise to Paul McGuinness for any offence caused by me in an interview I made last month with Hot Press. I don’t know Paul personally, I do know however that he is a man of great repute and my illadvised words and assumptions were inappropriate and wrong.”

– Seamus Murphy

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D

irector Jennifer Kent made her name exploring psychological horror, pain, and feminine trauma in the acclaimed film The Babadook, but her new movie The Nightingale explores these themes and more in even rawer and more controversial ways. Set in 1825, it sees Irish actress Aisling Franciosi (The Fall, Game Of Thrones, Legends) star as Claire, an Irish penal servant living with her husband and baby in the rugged Tasmanian wilderness, struggling to survive the extreme terrain and the vicious, oppressive cruelty facing them.

When Claire is repeatedly raped by a British officer Hawkins (Sam Claflin) who also destroys her family, Claire embarks on a revenge mission. Unsurprisingly, coming from Kent, The Nightingale is never what is seems. As Claire suffers from PTSD and also inflicts racism upon her Aboriginal guide Billy (Baykali Ganambarr), the film becomes a truly harrowing examination of oppression, colonisation, racism, sexual violence and war, with Franciosi putting in an incredibly powerful performance.

The film feels urgent – but is also difficult to recommend, particularly due to the disturbing rape scenes. Screenings in Australia have had multiple walkouts, and 26-year-old Franciosi says she’s “gearing up for a new wave of new reactions” upon the film’s release in Ireland and the UK. The film’s exploration of colonialism feels particularly relevant for home audiences, but Franciosi believes The Nightingale is more prescient than that.

“Yes, in some ways it’s a period piece,” she says.

“But I also think the conversations it could spark are unfortunately still very relevant today. It’s a period piece that offers an interesting look at violence, at racially motivated violence, violence against women, fear of the other and all that. It’s quite timely.”

Franciosi first read the script in 2016 and was immediately drawn to it.

“I could tell it wasn’t a piece for entertainment,” she notes. “It was trying to be more than that, and that really excited me.”

Franciosi was also excited by the opportunity to portray a character who not only experiences violence and PTSD, but also realises how she has othered Aboriginal people.

“You have a character who at times is unlikeable,” she says. “But she’s also sympathetic, fragile and really fucking strong – so as an actor, I thought ‘What an opportunity’. Also, because I had played so many teenagers, I was ready to show that I could hopefully do something more than that!”

Claire is an incredible character, and it’s difficult to imagine anyone else playing her. Franciosi has shown her beautiful singing voice before on shows like The Fall, and in The Nightingale, Claire’s singing becomes the score.

We see her and Billy use it as a way of clinging onto their culture.

“Jennifer had done so much research into Aboriginal history, that both characters sing to express their identity,” says the actress. “Because obviously with colonisation, one of the first things they attempt to do with the population they’re trying to oppress, is to strip them of their identity, their culture, their language, their song.

That happened so much in Ireland and Australia. I love that about the film, the idea that Billy and Claire take back ownership of their voices. There’s literally a scene where Billy is singing, ‘I’m still here’. Towards the end, Claire’s singing is a choice to not only reclaim her identity, but to not descend to the depths Hawkins has. It’s a sign of her determination to survive.”

The rape scenes in the film are lengthy and truly soulbruising, without ever being traditionally graphic, with Kent determined there should be nothing sexual about it. Leaving the camera on her characters’ faces and making sure there were never two bodies in the frame, she conveys that it’s not a shared experience, but an act of vicious, traumatising violence. Kent brought a psychologist on set, who not only helped Franciosi with research, but also supported the actors while filming.

“We rehearsed the scenes very mechanically and choreographed things, but I was really taken aback at how difficult I found it to film,” says Franciosi. “I was sobbing in between takes, and I could not control it,

CRITICAL MASS | MOVIES XMAS SPECIAL

WHOLE GROTTO LOVE We know, we know, Die Hard, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Iron Man 3 – these are all technically Christmas films, and great ones at that.

But to be truly contrary, this year we’re going all post-modern and keeping our Christmas viewing classic…

Damon Herriman in The Nightingale

which came as a massive surprise to me – I’m usually very in command of my emotions. And Sam Claflin and the guys found it really difficult too, because they didn’t know if I was still upset, or if I was still in the moment of what we were doing. It was really hard. We had grown men on the crew in that cabin with us, and they were in tears. But the psychologist was on set to talk to us and call for breaks.

“One of the most amazing things was she came over to me and said, ‘Would you mind talking to the guys, they’re really worried about you and I just want you to show them that you’re okay’. And after, she said she wished she had a recorder to record what they were saying, because they were like, ‘Obviously we know in theory how horrible an act this is, but filming this scene’ – and they were all in tears saying this – ‘but how, how could anyone do this?

Because it’s nothing to do with sex, it’s about power, and dehumanisation, and trying to destroy a person without killing them’. Because rape and war do go hand-in-hand.

It’s a really powerful weapon. And filming this really hit that home for them. So it was important for us to get to that point in the scene, where that was so clear.”

After researching by interviewing victims – “These people share their trauma with you in order for you to tell a story correctly,” she says – Franciosi was convinced that the scenes really should be difficult to watch.

“Yes, it’s unbelievably uncomfortable, but so it should be,” she asserts. “If you ever see a rape scene onscreen that you don’t find harrowing, then it’s done wrong. You should never be able to see a rape scene and have it just wash over you. I think it’s caused a bit of uproar with people, because they’ve been made to feel the emotional damage that Claire goes through. People don’t like being made to feel that.”

However, victims have thanked Franciosi and Kent for validating their experiences of both sexual violence and PTSD onscreen.

“I had a woman in her forties or fifties come up to me after a screening in LA and say, ‘I’m a victim of sexual violence, and I feel understood after watching this film’. So something that is too much for someone can make another person feel seen. So I’m quite proud to be part of something that is sparking so much conversation.”

Franciosi’s performance is getting critical acclaim, and she is currently filming the upcoming mini-drama series Black Narcissus, also starring Gemma Arterton and Jim Broadbent.

As a rising star, she reveals a wishlist of people she’d love to work with.

“I love directors such as PT Anderson, the Coen Brothers, Kathryn Bigelow, Andrea Arnold, Yorgos Lanthimos, Lenny Abrahamson. And in terms of producers, I’d love to work with Ed Guiney – he’s picking amazing projects. But there’s no one type of role I’m chasing. Also, I’m not at the point of choosing my roles! I see stuff I’m interested in, and I audition! Give me an interesting script and a great role, and I’m interested.”

“I could tell it wasn’t a piece for entertainment. It was trying to be more than that, and that really excited me.”

• The Nightingale is in cinemas now

Meet Me In St. Louis (Dir. Vincente Minnelli, 1944) The plot of the charming valentine-card musical Meet Me In St. Louis hinges on the possibility that Alonzo Smith (Leon Ames), the family’s banker father, might uproot the Smiths to New York, scuttling his daughter Esther (Judy Garland)’s romance with boy-next-door John Truett (Tom Drake), and causing similar emotional trauma for the rest of the household. Margaret O’Brien won a special Oscar for her remarkable performance as youngest child Tootie, which prompted Lionel Barrymore to grumble “Two hundred years ago, she would have been burned at the stake!” The songs are a heady combination of period tunes and newly-minted numbers by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin, including the classic ‘The Trolley Song’.

Elf (Dir. Jon Favreau, 2003) When the news is finally broken to Buddy (Will Ferrell) that he’s not a real elf, he decides to head back to his place of birth, New York City, in search of his biological family. This is one of those rare Christmas comedies that has a heart, a brain and a wicked sense of humour, and it charms the socks right off the mantelpiece. There are also sweet subplots involving Buddy’s new little brother Michael (Daniel Tay); Buddy’s awkward-but-heartfelt little romance with the department store girl (Zooey Deschanel); and some heart-tugging unfinished business at the North Pole. Of course, there’s a big scene involving Buddy’s confrontation with the department store Santa Claus who Buddy – clever elf that he is – instantly spots as an imposter.

“You sit on a throne of lies!” he tells him. Also superb are the cheerful Ferrell’s interactions with cynical New Yorkers, which are hilarious for kids and adults alike.

Home Alone (Dir. Chris Colombus, 1990) The McCallisters are a large and warmly bickering family, desperately engaged in last-minute preparations for a Christmas vacation in Paris.

Somehow, in the chaos, the well-meaning dad (John Heard) and warmly protective mom (Catherine O`Hara) manage to make their plane with only one small detail neglected. Yes – their youngest son, precocious-butinsecure Kevin (Macaulay Culkin), has been forgotten at home, all alone.

While Mom tries to make her way back from Paris, little Kevin learns to live on his own. Until, of course, his house becomes the target of two burglars (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), and Kevin must set a series of – quite sadistic, it must be said – traps to keep them at bay. An iron to the face, a blowtorch to the scalp, an upturned nail to the foot: this was slapstick repackaged for the video-game generation.

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REVIEWS

MOVIE OF THE FORTNIGHT

FILM NEWS

A CUT ABOVE

KNIVES OUT Directed by Rian Johnson. Starring Ana deArmas, Chris Evans, Daniel Craig, Jamie Lee Curtis, Christopher Plummer, Toni Collette. 130 mins. In cinemas now.

SUPERB MURDER-MYSTERY TAKES INSPIRATION FROM AGATHA CHRISTIE When a rich mystery writer is discovered dead in the attic of his gothic mansion and each member of his greedy family has a plausible motive for wanting him dead, the question is: how much fun can Rian Johnson and a killer cast wring out of a modern Agatha Christie-style whodunnit?

The answer is: a tonne. Hot on the heels of Jordan Peele’s social horrors Get Out and Us, and the capitalist patriarchy-smashing comedy-horror Ready Or Not, writer-director Johnson skewers the idea of privilege, wealth and race in this riproaring mystery. Following the apparent suicide of Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), country-fried inspector Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) starts investigating who could have killed him: was it floundering son Walt (Michael Shannon); swaggering, selfish playboy grandson Hugh (Chris Evans); philandering son-in-la Richard (Don Johnson); or Goop-style daughter-in-law (Toni Collette)?

The extended clan is full of characters all professing their love of Harlan – but tiny, wickedly funny moments and razor-sharp cultural references show a family knee-deep in resentment, privilege and entitlement. Daughter Linda (Jamie Lee Curtis) is “self-made” – she just got a tiny, million-dollar loan first. An online troll and neo-Nazi grandson parrots the “Devil’s Advocate” anti-immigrant views of his uncle. The family performatively express love and respect for Harlan’s kind-hearted nurse Marta (Ana deArmas), though no-one’s sure what country she’s from. They also have a condescending attitude towards “the help” that they mask by awkwardly quoting Hamilton lyrics.

But when Blanc discovers that Marta has a “regurgitative reaction to mistruthing” – yes, she literally vomits when she lies – he realises she could be the key to all of the family’s secrets, including what happened to Harlan. But another mystery remains: who hired Blanc? And why?

Johnson’s writing blends searing social satire about race and class in America with a masterfully constructed central mystery, which unfolds

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in flashbacks, interrogations and throwaway comments that prove to be crucial clues.

Production designer David Crank creates a houseshaped Cluedo board filled with secret entrances and creaky stairs, and the camerawork alternately captures the tension, absurdity and danger swirling around these characters. The wickedly talented ensemble cast are clearly having an absolute blast – and you will too.

MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN Written and directed by Edward Norton. Starring Edward Norton, Alec Baldwin, Bruce Willis, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Bobby Cannavale, Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe. 144 mins. In cinemas now.

EDWARD NORTON TACKLES PRESCIENT SOCIAL ISSUES IN HARD-BOILED 1950s NOIR After languishing in seven circles of production hell, Edward Norton has finally brought Jonathan Lethem’s 1999 novel to the screen. Norton has spent two decades letting his passion and ambition for this movie grow – perhaps beyond his grasp.

As well as adapting and directing, Norton stars as New York City private detective Lionel Essrog, an orphan with Tourette’s Syndrome, who looks up to his superior and mentor Frank (Bruce Willis).

But when Frank is gunned down on a job, Lionel is determined to find out who murdered his only father figure, and finds himself at the centre of a complex web of shady politicians who are exploiting gentrification, racism and the class divide for their own gain.

Norton has assembled a stellar cast for his ’50s-set hard-boiled noir, which is closer to Roman Polanski’s Chinatown than the original plot of Lethem’s novel. Alec Baldwin is effortlessly unctuous and Trump-like as the city’s vile planning overlord Moses Randolph, and Willem Dafoe is a ball of righteous fury as a man fuelled by either conviction or conspiracy theories. Gugu Mbatha-Raw is radiant as a community-minded lawyer and love interest, unfortunately sidelined so Norton can play White Saviour to all black people affected by gentrification.

Norton’s own performance features elements of all his greatest roles, capturing the duality of Lionel’s Tourette’s, bringing internal insight to his voiceover, and evoking the isolated vulnerability

WHEN HITCHCOCK MET O’CASEY POSTER

If you’re looking for a Christmas present for your favourite cinephile, a glorious Irish documentary is out now on DVD and waiting to elevate someone’s movie library. Director Brian O’Flaherty’s When Hitchcock Met O’Casey examines what led Alfred Hitchcock to direct an adaptation of Irishman Sean O’Casey’s play Juno And The Paycock. Through interviews with O’Casey’s relatives, film and theatre experts and archive footage of Hitchcock, O’Flaherty explores this unexpected artistic project, looks at what attracted the future Psycho director to Juno, and asks whether his interpretation of the famous play stands the test of time.

Hot on the heels of ‘Julia Roberts Was Nearly Cast As Harriet Tubman’ comes another instalment of ‘Hollywood Is Racist: The Neverending Story’.

Aladdin star Mena Massoud, who was utterly charming in the Disney liveaction remake, has revealed that he has not had a single audition since the release of the film, which grossed over $1 billion worldwide. The EgyptianCanadian actor’s lack of recognition reveals how there’s still so much discrimination against people of colour in Hollywood – particularly those of Middle Eastern descent. Make it your New Year’s Resolution to get it together, Hollywood.

This December, why not take a trip to the Irish Film Institute?

Seasonal screenings this year span a variety of genres, from horror to canonical classics. An offshoot of IFI’s Horrorthon, Deathcember takes place on Monday 16th. Structured as a cinematic advent calendar, it is comprised of 24 films by 24 international directors, linked by quirky animated segments. This month’s Archive at Lunchtime screenings take on a festive theme, featuring Christmas-centred newsreels, amateur theatricals and shorts. The IFI Family screening, The Man Who Invented Christmas, visualises Charles Dickens’s journey around London as he plots the narrative for A Christmas Carol. Meanwhile, It’s A Wonderful Life, a favourite of the festive season, returns in a glorious 4k digital restoration.

of an idealist deeply disappointed by the world.

Altogether, the role can feel calculated, but Norton utterly commits to the paradoxes.

For a story triggered by grief, the execution at times feels overly intellectual, tackling many prescient socio-political ideas, but losing emotion amidst its puzzle-box plot. But what the film lacks in emotion, it makes up for in richly textured atmosphere, as cinematographer Dick Pope uses the blues, greys and yellows of an Edward Hopper painting, while capturing the resiliency of Harlem. A jazz bar allows Daniel Pemberton to run wild with a tense, skittish score, echoing the unpredictable beauty of how Lionel’s brain works.

Overworked and imposing, Motherless Brooklyn is nevertheless earnest and admirable in its desire to tackle issues, which feel startlingly urgent.

N E W Y O R K S T A T E O F M I N D : M O T H E R L E S S B R O O K LY N

LITTLE WOMEN Directed and written for the screen by Greta Gerwig.

Starring Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Laura Dern, Bob Odenkirk, Meryl Streep. In cinemas December 26.

GRETA GERWIG BRINGS NEW VITALITY TO MUCH-LOVED TALE In Greta Gerwig’s warm, witty and wise coming-of-age story, Lady Bird, Saoirse Ronan asks her disappointed mother an important, heartbreaking question: “What if this is the best possible version of myself?” In Gerwig’s adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel Little Women, she again examines the lives of young women grappling with the idea of what being the best version of themselves looks like, in a world full of contradictory messages.

Gerwig’s adaptation shuffles the book’s chronology, beginning as headstrong Jo (Ronan) is living in New York, selling stories to a newspaper. Jo’s lifelong dream of becoming a writer has technically been achieved – but she’s not happy. The stories she sells are vapid potboilers that follow her editor’s demand that any female characters should end up “married by the end – or dead.” She and her family are struggling financially. And despite living in New York, she has yet to find anyone who appreciates her ambition and wild spirit.

Doubting herself and trying to imagine her future, Jo looks back to the past – and it’s both poignant and jarring. The intertwined timelines are evocative, as the glowing cinematography of memory captures Jo’s mischievous, misfit connection with the romantic boy next door, Laurie (Timothee Chalamet); thoughtful Meg’s (Emma Watson) growing love for a poor tutor (James Norton); and impetuous Amy’s increasing awareness that her ability to marry rich may be her family’s only path to financial stability. Meanwhile, the grey present shows the harder reality of the March sisters’ lives, in a world offering little support to women.

This restructuring deepens the emotional complexity of each sister’s choice, adding new stakes to a well-known plot as the March sisters ask themselves a version of Lady Bird’s question.

The performances are wonderful: Ronan’s Jo is fiery, stubborn and overflowing with emotion, while Florence Pugh’s Amy is defiant and intelligent. However, the timeline shuffling can rush emotional moments slightly, leaving frail Beth (Eliza Scanlen) and Jo’s admirer Friedrich Bhaer (Louis Garrel) underwritten. The sumptuous production design and costuming also undercut the sense of financial insecurity

LITTLE WOMEN: A SIZEABLE ACHIEVEMENT

SCARLETT FOR YOU: JOJO RABBIT hovering over the family.

But Gerwig has captured the vitality, the chemistry, the ever-present but evolving love these characters have for each other – and the love audiences have for these characters. A radiant, huge-hearted film that embraces the messy beauty of growing up.

JOJO RABBIT Directed by Taika Waititi. Starring Roman Griffin Davis, Scarlett Johansson, Taika Waititi, Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Stephen Merchant. 108 mins. In cinemas January 1

TAIKA WAITITI’S NAZI SATIRE IS ABSURD – AND FUN! Satire is harder than it looks. Ideally, it needs a razor-sharp focus, a reason to exist, and it needs to be audacious. Satire is meant to punch up – but in order to do that, you need a target, a motive, and one hell of a right-hook.

Jojo Rabbit is a comedy with a lot of jokes about how ridiculous the Nazis were. It’s also about the idea of acceptance, trying to fit in, and not embracing bigotry and ignorance just because it’s the norm that surrounds you.

Based on the novel Caging Skies by Christine

Leunens, Taika Waititi’s film is amusing. Set during World War II, 10 year old Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis) is a lonely boy who attends a Hitler Youth camp, is very proud of his uniform, plasters posters of Hitler on his walls, and fills the void left in his life by his absent father, and his distracted mother, with an imaginary friend: a goofy, wisecracking, “down with the kids” Hitler, played by Waititi, who nags Jojo with lines like “Heil me, bro! You’re overthinking it! You can heil me better than that!”

This imaginary, flamboyant, tantrum-throwing, hipster Hitler is only slightly more absurd than the other adults who surround Jojo, such as Rebel Wilson’s Fraulin Rahm, who encourages Jojo and his campmates to believe that Jewish people have devil horns, perform hypnosis and are covered in scales. But these are the kind of myths and lies that a child’s imagination will latch on to, so Jojo falls for them, hook line and sinker – until he discovers Elsa (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, graceful, steely and fragile), the Jewish girl his mother (Scarlet Johansson) has been hiding in their house. The pair strike up a friendship that throws Jojo’s whole worldview into question.

Griffin Davis is a wonderfully expressive young actor, and the film’s Wes Anderson-like absurdity and great, Bowie-filled soundtrack are fun.

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Dive into the literary world with our latest reviews and interviews

INTERVIEW

TA K E M E T O THE SCENE OF THE CRIME WRITER Crime fiction is one of the most popular literary genres – and for good reason. After all, almost everybody likes a good ‘whodunnit?’. But how do you approach the task of creating a fictional world that’s believable? What are the most important factors in developing a character? And what, in the end, makes a crime novel really work? We talk to Paul Charles to find out.

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P

aul Charles is a master of his craft. Over the past two decades, the Northern Irish-born, London-based author has been spinning acclaimed crime tales in his series on DI Christy Kennedy – ten in all. Indeed, when the Inspector Starrett series and the McCusker mysteries are added, he has 15 crime novels to his credit. And there’s five more standalone novels, which takes him up to 20 overall. And that’s just his fiction.

Actually, make that twenty-one. Departing Shadows, the most recent addition to the Christy Kennedy series (it’s No.11, fact fiends!), was released last month. So, how does this marvellously prolific writer go about his business? How does he prepare?

And what is the key advice that he’d give to aspiring crime writers?

That he has a day job as well, as a leading music agent – he has worked closely with the likes of Tom Waits, The Waterboys, Jackson Browne, Van Morrison, Christy

Moore, Tanita Tikaram, Ani di Franco, The Blue Nile and The Kinks, among many more – only makes his achievements all the more impressive. But we are here today to talk about the fine art of spinning a good yarn – and how you might prepare yourself for a life of crime (writing)!

Paul Charles’ top tips for Crime Writers 1. Read Wisely and Well

It may seem obvious, but before you even pick up a pen, or sit down at a keyboard, Paul Charles recommends avid reading.

Everything you learn is likely to go down on the page sooner or later! In particular, one should be well-versed in crime literature, in true crime and, ideally, in at least basic forensics: the inevitable, ‘how did they figure that out?’ bit. “I devour true crime stories,” Paul says. But that’s just the start of it.

Charles also recommends reading broadly: about pigeon racing, the tarot, drugs, music,

CRITICAL MASS | BOOKS

“THE READER MUST FEEL THAT THEY’RE READING A REAL STORY WITH REAL PEOPLE.”

science, bingo! Having in-depth knowledge in your back pocket on other topics, which can add layers to a story, is a great advantage, and – well used! – makes for a far more engaging read.

2. Imagine The Perfect Crime

A crime story isn’t going to work without a crime that needs to be solved. It’s one of the key elements of any good crime novel, and oftentimes that means you need a more-or-less perfect dastardly deed to keep readers guessing.

“In each Kennedy story, I incorporate one unique method of murder,” Paul reveals. “My books are not as simple as someone just getting shot or ending up with a knife in the back.” Ideally, my dear friends, there should be more to the murder than that! The thing is that it is up to every writer to dream up their own special form of gore. It’s important to note that Paul’s murders may be unique, but they’re never far-fetched.

“I’ve done a lot of experiments and fine-tuning to make sure the murders come across as real,” he confesses.

3. Choose The Right Setting

Most of the Kennedy stories are set in Camden Town, a neighbourhood of London with which Paul Charles is intimately familiar. Having been based there for years, Charles knows every nook and cranny of the district, which is by turns gritty and genteel depending on the streets you’re walking. Thus, his writing takes on a feeling of immediacy and authenticity, with vivid descriptions and references to real locations.

“Camden is as vital to my books as New York is to Woody Allen’s films,” he says. Basically, when

choosing your setting, it helps if it is a place you know like the back of your hand. And if it is somewhere else, you’re really going to have to travel there and learn what makes the place tick.

4. Give Readers A Likeable Hero This is a principle that would not be universally accepted within the crime-writing fraternity.

Often crime writers enjoy exploring the trope of a decidedly unlikeable protagonist or hero.

Historically, detectives are frequently portrayed as bad or at the very least troubled guys – typically too fond of the booze and, sometimes, abusive to their partners. In the Kennedy series in particular, Charles breaks from that tainted tradition. DI Christy Kennedy may be flawed – who isn’t? – but he’s a stand-up man with considerable mental fortitude. “You want your protagonist to be likeable – or at least I do,” Paul laughs. “They should be someone you’d want to spend time with. After all, you’re asking readers to spend a whole book in this character’s head.”

5. Create Other Interesting Characters While the main character is vital, it is important not to take your minor characters for granted.

They’re also crucial to the story. “You have to make your characters stand-out,” he observes.

“The aim is to make sure that they breathe, that they’re three dimensional, and that they come right off the page.” Creating convincing characters demands a study in human behaviour, right down to the smallest details. Imagining his

characters, Paul Charles will give them little ticks and distinct movements, so that the reader can develop a mental picture. Just like people in real life, characters can be inconsistent, moody and full of quirks. The message is: don’t be afraid to embrace idiosyncrasy!

6. Ask Yourself The Right Questions

For a crime writer, three fundamental questions should be running through your mind at every twist and turn of the story. 1. Who did it? 2. Why did they do it? 3. How did they do it? The way Paul Charles looks at it, “If you’re able to answer those questions, you’ve got your story. But you have to be prepared to give yourself up to that story and serve it. Be confident with what you bring to the desk, and then let the narrative take on its own momentum.” And finally…

7. Make Sure to Keep It Real

Ultimately, to be convincing, a crime story needs to be effectively grounded in reality. At every stage of our conversation, Paul Charles’ advice circles back to the believability of the story.

That is fundamental. “The reader must feel that they’re reading a real story with real people,” he states. “I try to write fiction that reads like a truecrime story. My nightmare is someone reading one of my stories and thinking: that could never happen.”

• Departing Shadows (Dufour Editions) by Paul Charles is out now. It’s available on Amazon, IndieBound and Barnes & Noble.

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BOOKS

THE LIT CROWD The new host of RTÉ Radio’s The Book Club, Rick O’Shea, selects his top five favourite tomes of the year. By Pat Carty

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he likeable Rick O’Shea has become a sort of book-reading figurehead in Ireland over the last few years. The radio DJ, and 2009’s “sexiest radio voice” award winner, came across a book of Arthur C. Clarke short stories when he was a young lad in school and was particularly taken with ‘The Nine Billion Names Of God’ – a story referenced in this year’s Quichotte by Salman Rushdie. That was a tidbit Rick was unaware of, so score one for the Hot Press guy who didn’t win Irish Celebrity Mastermind! Moving into arts broadcasting by hosting The Poetry Programme on RTÉ, O’Shea now takes over The Book Show on Radio 1, a dream job he considers his holy grail.

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“I was asked ‘Would you be interested in doing a book show?’ reflect Rick. “I went, ‘Yeah, thank you very much’, without really thinking about it.” The show will feature the expected authors and readings, and Rick is determined to cater for “a vast majority of mainstream readers. So as well as literary fiction, we’ll have crime fiction, mainstream fiction, some non-fiction, and hopefully delve into young adult and kids’ books as well.” No better man for the job, considering the staggering success of the book club he set up on Facebook, which boasts close to 29,000 members – a group he initially thought might attract “a few hundred likeminded souls who all want to talk about books.”

We asked Rick to select some of his favourite books of 2019, and here’s what he came up with.

1. The Fire Starters - Jan Carson “Jan is a brilliant author from East Belfast and this is one of the most beautifully written books I’ve come across in years. There are two characters, from opposing sides of the divide in Belfast, both who find themselves in unusual situations with regard to their own sons. It’s very modern, set during the marching season, but there’s a huge track of fantasy that runs through it, and I don’t want to tell people anymore than that. It’s an unusual combination which missed out on the Irish Book Awards. I keep hammering on about it because I think it’s one people should read.”

2. Night Boat To Tangier – Kevin Barry “Barry is in the top two or three authors this country has, and I don’t think he’s ever put a foot wrong in anything he’s written. This has a huge dose of Beckett: two Irish ex-gangster

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“I chose this just because she’s Edna O’Brien and this book is extraordinary. It’s set in Nigeria and the main character is a girl who’s abducted by Boko Haram.

She’s a teenager who is taken from her school and made the wife of one of the fighters.

It’s her story and the story of the horrific things that happen to her, and then what happens when all these girls are liberated.

And also, how she may or not be readjusted into her own society, and how people accept her or don’t. It’s all about Nigeria, but

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4. Girl– Edna O’Brien

Rick is currently reading Emer McBride’s forthcoming novella Strange Hotel and has just finished Eoin Colfer’s Highfire, an adult fantasy involving a sweary, alcoholic dragon who lives in the Louisiana Bayou, due out in the new year.

Like us all, he has more books than he can ever read.

Therefore, he requests that if anyone fancies buying him a Christmas present, they make a donation to his book club’s appeal in aid of the Peter McVerry Trust at idonate.ie/ bookclub.

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“Rónán is better known as Mumblin’ Deaf Ro, who was nominated for the Choice Music Prize a couple of times. It’s his first novel, from a small UK publisher, but it’s appeared on best book lists throughout the year.

It did manage to get nominated for the Irish Book Awards and it’s an incredibly gentle, simple story, again of two guys of a certain age.

But these guys are almost the opposite of Kevin Barry’s characters.

They are normal, lovely people with perfectly ordinary jobs, and one of them lives with his Mammy. It’s a gentle kind of love letter to the nature of friendship between men without any of the drama.”

A-Z

S • E D

“The last one is non-fiction.

Emma is from Rialto, and Emma is black, so she kind of stood out growing up. She lives in the UK these days; she’s an academic who also does TV shows for BBC4. This book is about the nature of having hair when you’re black and what it means culturally.

But there’s everything from that all the way up to the use of fractal maths in Africa, and their origins there, and how they come from hair design.

It’s completely eye-opening and obviously a world I do not belong in, and yet she writes so compellingly that I found myself getting dragged in. She tells an amazing story.”

INDUSTRY

UAL

3. Leonard and Hungry Paul – Rónán Hession

5. Don’t Touch My Hair – Emma Dabiri

E VE RY TH I N G YOU N E E D TO SU C C E E D I N TH E E NTE RTA I N M E NT B U S I N E S S

IS

as it’s Edna, you can read a lot of other things into it. You could very easily read it as a parable of Irish life at a certain time as well.

A lot of what happens to her, particularly in the early stages, are not easy things to read so you’d need to gird your stomach for it.”

V

sitting in the port of Algeciras, waiting for a daughter who may be going in or coming out on a ferry from Tangier, they’re not 100% sure. They sit, talking a bit about their past, and there are flashbacks to that past in Cork. I was dying for this book to show up, and it’s a three-course meal in terms of how beautifully it’s written.”

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO SUCCEED IN THE ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS

C

“EMMA DABIRI WRITES SO COMPELLINGLY… SHE TELLS AN AMAZING STORY.”

IN MUSIC & MEDIA

Meet The Key Players

IRELAND €24.95 U.K £19.95

Available in selected news agents nationwide or online at hotpress.com

• Rick O’Shea hosts The Book Club, Sundays at 7pm on Radio 1.

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FONTAINES DC

Everything’s gone Grian: Fontaines DC. (Below) Versatile with Coolio.

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COLM KELLY

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Go to hotpress.com for more reviews including The Coronas, Junior Brother and much more!

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�ometown shows can be �at, fraught affairs. �he artist tries too hard to demonstrate how much it means to be back where it all began� the audience fails to notice it has crossed the line between supportive and obse�uious. �isely �ontaines �� crack on with the first of two nights at �icar Street, getting stuck in as if it was �ust another gig. �hey�ve had a year and then some � it�s �ust over �� months since the five-piece supported Shame down the road at the now demolished �ivoli. �n the time since, �ontaines �� have become the name to drop in forward facing postpunk, while the gentrification that claimed the �ivoli has ploughed ever onwards.

So it�s the perfect moment to catch a group poised on the brink of something larger. �hey play �,���-capacity �rixton �cademy next year� movie star �illian �urphy has come along to see them tonight. �nd of course the sense of �ublin as a city alienated from itself, which they capture on their �ercury-nominated debut, Dogrel, has if anything intensified in the interim. �his is a proper s�uall from the outset. ��urricane �aughter� �uxtaposes twitchy frontman �rian �hatten, half-chanting in his Skerries accent, with the collapsing pile-driver guitars of �arlos ���onnell and �onor �urley. �t builds from there, with ��he�ueless �eckless� applying an industrialised din to �hatten�s recollections of the despair he felt in his pre-rock star days, working a minimum wage �ob at a posh hotel. �lastic pint glasses �y through the air from early on. Soon the moshpit stretches all the way to the back of the room, to where Hot Press has sheepishly retreated. �nd that�s before the �uintet even get around to their three-way whammy of ��oo �eal�, ��oys �n �he �etter �and� � a sardonic look at contradictory �rish attitudes towards the ��, which corners of the �ritish media have gleefully sei�ed on as proof of our rampant �nglophobia � and ��ig�. �hroughout, there isn�t much chatter from �hatten � as you would wish. �he band are doers rather than sayers. �he frontman does, however, have a lump in his throat as he dedicates ��oy�s �une� to �hilip �unne, a young man from Skerries who passed away several days previously. ��hilly would have sang it better,� he whispers at the end. �hereafter, the volume cranks up again, punters are splashing beer once more and �ontaines �� remind us why they are the dogrel�s b�������.

ED POWER

VERSATILE

3Arena, Dublin �hat a �� months it�s been for �ersatile. �here was the Hot Press cover� the Irish Times handwringing� the backlash� the backlash to the backlash� and, ultimately, the year ending the only way it could � with a �oolio collaboration. �here was also, of course, the viral clip of

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�ormac �ostello singing along to ��refontaine� after �ublin�s �ll �reland win, as Stephen �luxton did a humblebrag sweeping of the team�s dressing room � a moment that�s taken on added poignancy with �ersatile�s sell-out ��rena gig taking place on the day �im �avin sparked euphoria around the country by leaving the �ub hotseat (er, surely you mean “walked away with his all-time legendary status assured”? – Ed.) �f course, being from �ingsend, the �ersatile boys could easily walk over to perform this gig if they were so inclined. �n fact, they ���� decided to walk to the gig, or so they�d have us believe, as the pre-show, �live� big screen footage shows them making the short trek to the venue. �aving finally made it to the backstage area, the footage fades out, there�s a short burst of dry-ice, and decks wi�ards �van �ennedy appears to cue in ��refontaine�. �rontmen �aspar and �skimo Supreme then appear from the wings, prompting a delirious reaction from the youthful crowd, who remain in celebratory mood throughout the evening. �atching the group perform, it�s not hard to discern why they�ve proven controversial. �heir material has a hefty strain of irony � not a �uality culturally in vogue at present. �ndeed, as two �ublin lads incorporating elements of gangsta rap, �ersatile�s output occasionally comes close to collapsing under the weight of its own absurdity, no more so than when they spit out lines like, �I’ve no interest in politics / I’d rather get me bollicks licked� �there goes the invitation to discuss the by-election results with Sean ���ourke, then�. �t all culminates in an uproarious take on ��scape �agon�, with the obligatory appearance from �oolio � who, in one of �����s more unlikely developments, has become a favourite son of �ublin, after successfully appealing earlier in the year for �iarmuid �onnolly to return for the Sky �lues� five-in-a-row bid. �ven those members of the crowd who�ve spent most of the show arguing, posting �nstagram updates � or simply disoriented � are on cloud nine. �or tonight, �ersatile are kings � well, more like errant princes � of the city.

PAUL NOLAN

MIGUEL RUIZ

Vicar Street, Dublin

HOZIER

3Arena, Dublin �efore a packed house at ��rena, �o�ier makes a dramatic entrance. �t is the stuff of incipient superstar legend. �o the pounding drums that open the anthemic ��ina �ried �ower�, �ndrew �o�ier-�yrne emerges. �t first, he is partially obscured by a blank, see-through curtain, onto which powerful imagery of world protests are pro�ected� then, the sheet falls and the song explodes into its choral rallying cry. �t�s a confident intro, and �o�ier has every right to it. �fter all, ���� saw him achieve his first �S �o.� with Wasteland, Baby!� earn rave reviews for various open-air summer shows back home� and play five nights at �ew �ork�s �ammerstein �allroom. �is ��rena gig is the perfect climax to the singer-songwriter�s banner year. �wo songs in, �o�ier tells his audience what an �immeasurable pleasure� it is to be here. �nd so it must be. �he opening bars to every track � particularly the singles from his eponymous debut album, ��ackie �nd �ilson�, �Someone �ew� and pre-encore closer ��ake �e �o �hurch� � are greeted gleefully, with fans singing along with great gusto. �otably, �o�ier unveils the �oody �uthrieinspired protest folk song ��ackboot �ump�, before giving us a taster of another unreleased track. �itled ��he �ages�, it uses the rising tensions in the world today as a �umping off point� musically, what starts out as an infectious �a��y piano number performs a pirouette to become a full-band, pop banger. �y adroitly �uxtaposing the darkness of its lyrics with a light accessible sound, it already feels like an anthem for the new decade.

STEPHEN PORZIO

entertainment There's more to Xmas than just kicking back on the sofa and enjoying the chocolate treats – yes, there is, really! – as we prove in this jam-packed entertainment guide. Here are the top events happening over the festive period, covering music, sport, comedy and more.

HUDSON TAYLOR: 5 NIGHT STAND

Whelan’s Dublin, December 17–22 Hot on the heels of the successful single ‘Back To You’, brothers Harry and Alfie Hudson-Taylor get ready to warm up winter with the release of a brand new Christmas song. The instant classic ’How I Know It’s Christmas’ features lines that recall the sibling’s history as buskers – “Rainy days singing songs out on Grafton street / Got so cold I didn’t know I couldn’t feel my feet” – and is perfectly timed to coincide with their annual run of festive gigs at Whelan’s. This year they’ll play an astonishing six nights at the Wexford Street institution, with over half of those dates already sold out.

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DERMOT KENNEDY

3Arena, Dublin, December 22 & 23 Following the incredible international success of his debut album, Without Fear, Dublin singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy plays his biggest Irish concert to date this Christmas, with two sold-out nights at Dublin’s biggest venue. Hot Press writer Lucy O’Toole hailed Without Fear as capturing “an artist on the cusp of greatness,” and thanks to the success of songs like ‘Lost’, ‘Outnumbered’ and the career-defining ‘Power Over Me,’ he has gained over 750 million streams and boasts 11.5 million listeners monthly on Spotify alone. He has received a nod in the BBC Sound Of 2019 and was voted NPR Slingshot’s Best New Artist of 2018.

DAMIEN DEMPSEY

Vicar Street, Dublin, December 20–22 Damien Dempsey’s most recent duet album, Union, saw the accomplished songwriter collaborating with key figures in the world of Irish music including Sinéad O’Connor, Imelda May and Moya Brennan. First rising to prominence with his 2000 album They Don’t Teach This Shit In School, Dempsey has found success with his passionate and insightful songs, tackling social concerns and taking on the powerful. One of Ireland’s most formidable performers, it’s no surprise that Dempsey’s 3-night run at Vicar Street is already sold out.

F E S T I V E E N T E R TA I N M E N T G U I D E

FÉILE KÍLA

National Stadium, Dublin, December 21 One of Ireland’s most exciting live acts, Kíla have teamed up with one of Ireland's top breweries, O’Hara’s, to bring their high energy live set to iconic Dublin venue, the National Stadium for their annual festive celebration. Both hugely successful at home and internationally, Kila and O’Hara’s relationship has gone from strength to strength in 2019, with the launch of the Kila Sessions in Whelan’s of Wexford Street. Now they plan to close out the year in style with a foot stomping party.

Tickets are going fast.

2FM XMAS BALL 3Arena, Dublin, December 21

This hugely successful annual event raised a staggering amount of money for the ISPCC at its 2018 outing – nearly €500,000 in total!

This year, they're back with another fantastic opportunity to ring in the holiday season in style and donate to a great charity. Headliners Picture this had a massive 2019, starting with the release of their smash-hit sophomore album MDRN LV. The successes kept coming with a Song Of The Year gong at the Choice Music Prize and a sold out engagement at the 3Arena. They’re joined on the night by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and Lyra.

GAVIN JAMES

OTHERKIN

Roisin Dubh, Galway, December 21 Debut album, Otherkin OK, was a work of unbridled, no-nonsense rock – some of the finest that Ireland had seen in a long time. It debuted at No. 2 on the Irish charts back in October 2017, showing that the band had a wide reach throughout the country. Several years later, it rightly received a nomination for Choice Prize Album Of The Year. So the news that Otherkin have decided to call it quits after seven years as a band was taken hard by all at HP Towers. Fans will be able to see Otherkin one last time this December. They will play one night at venues Cyprus Avenue in Cork (12), Mike the Pies in Listowel (13), The Button Factory in Dublin (20) and the Roisin Dubh in Galway (21).

THE RECEIPTS

INEC Arena, Kerry, December 31

An Alternative Christmas Night Out in the Dublin Mountains

Since releasing his platinum-certified debut album, Bitter Pill, four years ago, James has sold out multiple tours domestically and internationally, and incredibly reached over one billion online streams. His latest release, Only Ticket Home, was released in October 2018 and climbed to the number two spot on the Irish charts. After ringing in the New Year with a live concert and TV broadcast from Dublin’s Custom House Quay, Gavin entered 2019 with a worldwide tour around the UK, Europe, US, Canada, South America, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. This year, Gavin will ring in the New Year with this special date at the INEC Killarney.

Formed 30 years ago in the nearby suburbs of Ballinteer, these Hot Press cover stars’ Thursday evening musical residency has been a huge draw to the popular Barnacullia Pub. Originally formed in 1990, the band enjoyed great popularity and success for many years alongside acts such as LiR and The Coletranes.

In 2019, they finally released their debut selftitled album, with beautiful orchestration from ‘I Don’t Like Mondays’ and ‘Fairytale Of New York’ wizard, Fiachra Trench. The band are planning a special Christmas party night for December 19, where they’ll light up the Blue Light with a selection of their own tunes and a few well chosen covers to get you in the festive spirit.

Blue Light Pub, Dublin, December 19

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FESTIVE ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE

NEW YEAR’S FESTIVAL DUBLIN Various Venues, December 31 – January 1

Now in its eighth year, New Year’s Festival Dublin encompasses two days of breathtaking spectacle and topclass entertainment, including family-focused events, as well as midnight revelries. Following a landmark year that's included sold-out tours across Europe and major concerts on these shores, Irish musical heroes Walking On Cars are on hand to help you celebrate the New Year as the headliners of this year’s Countdown Concert on Custom House Quay (December 31). Special guests will include Northern Irish rockers Ash, Dublin’s rapidly rising star Aimée and countrypop artist Lisa McHugh. The celebrations are set to continue the following afternoon with a family-friendly New Year’s Day Concert in Temple Bar, featuring legendary Irish folk group Kíla.

LANKUM

Vicar Street, Dublin, January 5

DAVID KEENAN

Olympia Theatre, Dublin, January 13 The Dundalk native, who has just released his latest single, ‘Altar Wine’, will release his eagerly awaited debut album, A Beginner’s Guide To Bravery, three days before this engagement with the Grande Dame of Dame Street. ‘Altar Wine’ is an exploration of the insecurities that Keenan has experienced personally, and those that the singer perceives within Ireland. It's is the next big step on a path Keenan has carved over the past three years that has seen him become one of Ireland’s most exciting performers. In that time, he has developed an ever-growing following with a series of acclaimed EPs.

Riding high on every discerning critic’s ‘Best Of 2019’ lists, Dublin’s favourite folk miscreants released the epic The Livelong Day back in November. Our own Lucy O’Toole hailed the group as having “reemerged with a deepened sense of maturity and mortality, culminating in a project of uniquely raw intensity – and undoubtedly one of the finest releases of the year.” Comprising of brothers Ian Lynch (uillean pipes, tin whistle, vocals) and Daragh Lynch (vocals, guitar), alongside Cormac Mac Diarmada (fiddle) and Radie Peat (harmonium, accordion, vocals), Lankum channel a diverse set of influences and histories to create beautifully rare folk music.

SLIPKNOT

3Arena, Dublin, January 14 A surprise appearance at the number one spot in the Irish charts with new album We Are Not Your Kind proved that these Iowa noiseniks are as popular as ever.

Perhaps even more satisfyingly, this bunch of mask-wearing degenerates knocked Ed Sheeran off the top spot to get there. If that wasn’t enough hype to get fans excited for their Dublin date, rumours abound that the band have already accumulated enough material for another album. They have also announced the release of an album of recordings made alongside 2008 album All Hope Is Gone, which according to frontman Corey Taylor, have a very Radiohead vibe.

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DUBLIN BOWIE FESTIVAL Various Venues, Dublin, January 8–12

The fifth outing of this celebration of all things Ziggy will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of the icon’s seminal album, The Man Who Sold The World. The festival will be headlined by Holy Holy at the Olympia (January 11), a supergroup consisting of Bowie’s treasured and trusted producer Tony Visconti, Spider From Mars drummer Woody Woodmansey and Heaven 17 main-man Glenn Gregory on lead vocals.

Other highlights include The Birth of Bowie in The Sugar Club on Friday, January 10 which sees a Q&A with Phil Lancaster (Bowie’s drummer with 60s mod group The Lower Third) and a live set from The London Boys who play exclusively from Bowies ‘60s period. Lancaster’s recent book At The Birth Of Bowie will be profiled on the night by guest host, Hot Press’s Pat Carty.

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FESTIVE ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE

JACK WHITEHALL: STOOD UP

SSE Arena, Belfast, December 19 Following two sell-out arena tours, the former A League Of Their Own panellist and voice actor – reduced to a non-speaking role in the box-office dominating Frozen – returns with his most hilarious show yet.

A joy to comedian firmly on the road to becoming a global megastar, Whitehall gained international attention thanks to the success of his recent smash-hit Netflix Show, Jack Whitehall: Travels With My Father. This will be his biggest tour of the UK and Ireland to date, and is one not to be missed.

PAT SHORTT: HEY!

OLYMPIA PANTO: CINDERELLA

Hey! delivers a peculiar take on modern life that only the unique imagination of Pat Shortt could conjure up. The show is an hilarious and quirky look at Ireland, brought to you by one of the country’s best loved comedians. It boasts a rogue’s gallery of odd-ball characters, bizarre situations and, as one would expect from the man behind ‘Jumbo Breakfast Roll’, there is even a brand new song or two! After three sold-out nights at the Olympia Theatre at the beginning of this year, 2020 marks the last time that Pat Shortt will perform Hey!, meaning that it’s your final opportunity to catch the show.

A Christmas tradition like no other, the Olympia Panto brings another unmissable production this holiday season. Directed by acclaimed Irish actor Simon Delaney and featuring an all-star cast of famous faces from the nation’s favourite television shows, Fair City and Dancing With The Stars, 2019’s outing is Cinderella: The Story Of Cinders & Her Fella. The title role will be played by Riverdance star Zoe Talbot, while her Prince Charming comes in the shape of Dublin comedian, Al Foran. The cast is rounded out by Fair City’s Ryan Andrews and Maclean Burke, Xposé star Nadine Reid and West End star Rob Vickers.

Various Venues, Nationwide, January 3–February 28

Olympia Theatre, Dublin, December 20–28

FROM TURMOIL TO TRUCE: PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE National Photographic Archive, Dublin

Drawing on the NLI’s rich and varied holdings of photographs and newspaper cuttings contemporaneous to the Irish Civil War, this new exhibition explores the key aspects of a dramatic, brutal and extreme period of Irish history. In telling the story of Ireland’s pursuit of independence, the exhibition highlights the increasing normalisation of violence at the time; the impact felt across the country and at all levels of Irish society; the personal experiences of both individuals and families and the difficult choices that confronted them. The exhibition is free to visit, and is open seven days a week.

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TEMPLE BAR TRADFEST 2020 Various Venues, Temple Bar, January 22–26

From modest beginnings, this celebration of all things trad has become a hugely popular annual event. The past decade has has seen the festival grow in terms of size, ambition and musical breadth, with a line-up that now appeals to the purist and the casual fan alike. This year, TradFest will usher in the light and energy of spring with performances by Irish heroes Paddy Casey, Maria Doyle Kennedy and The Hothouse Flowers; and up-and-coming stars of the future Lisa Lambe, Emma Langford and Susan O’Neill (SON). One of the most exciting acts is sure to be Afro Celt Sound System, a European and African based collective who have forged a reputation for energetic, uplifting shows.

The images are black and white.

The issues aren’t.

National Photographic Archive Meeting House Square Temple Bar Dublin Mon-Sat: 10am-4.45pm Sun: 12 noon-4.45pm

FÉILE

THE NATIONAL STADIUM

SAT 21 DECEMBER 2019 TICKETS €30 AVAILABLE FROM EVENTBRITE www.kila.ie

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SPORT FESTIVE ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE

HEINEKEN CHAMPIONS CUP: LEINSTER V NORTHAMPTON SAINTS Aviva Stadium, Dublin, December 14

These two Pool 1 rivals will take to the Aviva for a second leg encounter in what’s sure to be a Champions Cup Christmas cracker. At time of writing, Leinster have extended their winning run to seven matches in all competitions and are riding high atop the Guinness Pro14 Conference A. No slouches themselves, Northampton’s recent from has seen them top the Gallagher Premiership. Right now, there is little to separate the two teams, as they sit atop Pool 1 with 9 points each, but by the time this Christmas encounter rolls around, a chance to draw level or extend a lead to six points will almost certainly be on the cards.

DESIGN & C R A F T FA I R

PIERCE TURNER

LEOPARDSTOWN CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL

Leopardstown Racecourse, Dublin, December 26–29 Filled with glamour, music, entertainment and top class National Hunt racing, the Leopardstown Christmas festival has become a much-loved Yuletide tradition. Featuring eight Grade 1 races over four days, the event also boasts live music in the festival marquee, DJs in the Champions Pavillion, and children’s activities on the festival Family Day held on December 29. December 28, meanwhile, is the official Ladies Day of the Christmas Festival featuring the coveted Savills Style Awards.

GUINNESS PRO14: ULSTER RUGBY V CONNACHT Kingspan Stadium, Belfast, December 27

Providing rugby fans a great chance to preview a few stars of the Irish Six Nations squad before that competition kicks off in February, this clash of the north and west is bound to be intriguing post-Christmas viewing. With French interest in Connacht and Ireland centre Bundee Aki, the hard work that has gone into the province’s rebuild since they won the 2015-16 season may not have yielded further silverware, but they're still formidable opposition. Up in Ulster, their hard work has been paying off in the Champions Cup, with consecutive wins over Bath and Clermont Auvergne in their opening two games.

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SIAMSA TIRE

ARTS CENTRES AT CHRISTMAS Without Ireland’s many local arts and cultural centres, our country would doubtless be a much less colourful place. And this Xmas, many of them boast fantastic programmes of entertainment designed to put the sparkle in the festive period. Out on the Wild Atlantic Way, Galway Arts Centre hold their third annual Design & Craft Fair the weekend before Christmas (December 21 & 22). Visitors can enjoy a wide variety of stalls, featuring handmade jewellery, art prints, original paintings, wooden crafts and much more.

Further south, Siamsa Tire in Tralee, Co. Kerry will be celebrating the Yuletide period with a production of Aladdin for their Christmas panto, as well as Musical Memories Of A Panto Dame from the local Jackie O’Mahony School Of Performing Arts. In Leitrim, a conversation between artist Jo Melvin and writer Gertrude Gibbons, entitled The Moon: Painting & Poetic Imagery, will close out the

Jeff Gibbons exhibition, NowHere Factual Nonsense at The Dock.

Down in Cork, the Montfort College of Performing Arts present their 28th annual pantomime with the classic fairytale Cinderella at Firkin Lane. Across the country, meanwhile, Wexford Arts Centre will host the annual homecoming performance by local singer songwriter Pierce Turner.

In the midlands, Aslan’s Christy Dignam and Joe Jewell will be on hand at Birr Theatre & Arts Centre on January 9, for an evening of songs and stories from their long and colourful career. In Meath, St. Mary’s Musical Society present Aladdin as their hilarious new pantomime.

Christmas cinephiles will find much to love at Draíocht in the Blanchardstown Centre, with screenings of Elf (December 16); Home Alone 2 – Lost In New York (17); and It’s A Wonderful Life (18), in addition to Robin Hood The Panto from Coolmine Panto Group.

Finally, the Droichead Arts Centre in Drogheda will present EMIT, the new body of work by local artist Vivienne Byrne.

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TV

EGGNOG-ING ON HEAVEN’S DOOR

T

Paul Nolan casts an eye over this year’s Xmas TV highlights.

Photos above (From left) Queen: Rock The World; Michael Hutchenbvvce: Mystify; and Ireland’s Fittest Family.

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here are some seriously tasty treats in store for music fans this Xmas, and leading the way is an evening dedicated to Michael Hutchence and INXS. BBC2 will be screening the Hutchence doc Mystify (9.20pm, Dec 28), a fascinating and insightful look at the tormented personal life of the iconic frontman.

It’s screening as part of a double bill with INXS: Live Baby Baby (11pm, Dec 28), the recently re-released concert film of INXS’ barnstorming 1991 concert at Wembley. The following night, BBC2 will also be showing Liam Gallagher: As It Was (10.15pm, Dec 29), which examines the turbulent period the ex-Oasis singer endured following the dissolution of Beady Eye and the commencement of his solo career.

Elsewhere on the Beeb over Xmas, there’s also a Queen night on BBC Four, consisting of a double bill of Queen: Rock The World (11pm, Dec 23), which follows the recording of News Of The World and the band’s subsequent American tour, and Queen: The Legendary 1975 Concert (12am, Dec 24), a film of their Xmas Eve gig at Hammersmith Odeon in ’75.

Another New Year bill we’d heartily recommend starts with BBC Four’s screening of the documentary Soft Cell: Say Hello, Wave Goodbye (10.30pm, Jan 3), a look at the history of the influential synth-pop duo and – to whet the appetite for the League Of Gentlemen member’s upcoming reboot of the character – BBC2’s In Search Of Dracula with Mark Gatiss (10.35pm, Jan 3).

Other Xmas Beeb highlights, meanwhile, include Cunk & Other Humans On 2019; Have I Got News For You 2019; Dara O Briain: Voice Of Reason; Glastonbury highlights; the Gavin & Stacey Xmas Special; and Jools’ Annual Hootenanny. And for us sports nuts, there’s also coverage of Liverpool’s progress in the World Club Cup, Match Of The Day and ongoing NFL coverage.

Over on Channel 4, meanwhile, the Christmas schedule really gets going in earnest with a tasty comedy double bill. First up is the 8 Out Of Ten Cats Does Countdown Christmas Special (9pm, Dec 23), which sees host Jimmy Carr again preside over the comedic mayhem instigated by team captains Rob Beckett and Sara Pascoe.

It’s followed by the Celebrity Crystal Maze: Christmas Special (10pm, Dec 23), wherein host Richard Ayoade will oversee a contest between participants including Strictly Come Dancing duo Shirley Ballas and Catherine Tyldesley, I’m A Celebrity winner Scarlett Moffatt, choirmaster Gareth Malone and comic Nish Kumar.

Also well worth checking out is the two-part Great British

Bake-Off special. It kicks off with The Great Christmas BakeOff (Christmas Day, 7.10pm), where hosts Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig will oversee a tussle between four previous winners, before Status Quo bring festivities to a conclusion with a rip-roaring take on ‘Rockin’ All Over The World’. Meanwhile, on The Great Festive Bake-Off, the redoubtable Fielding and Toksvig will be joined by the Derry Girls cast for some culinary fun, with music provided by the London Community Gospel Choir.

And there’s plenty of other Xmas TV goodness on C4, with additional highlights including Gogglebox 2019, The Big Fat Quiz Of The Year, The Last Leg Of The Year, Richard Osman’s World Cup Of The Decade and the premiere of Mission Impossible: Fallout.

On the homefront, RTÉ has a couple of sporting gems amongst its festive goodies. Shane Lowry – Open tells the story of the Offaly man’s victory at the British Open this summer, whilst Second Captains will return with a New Year’s Eve special, when the search for Ireland’s Greatest NonSportsperson Sportsperson will continue.

Elsewhere on the RTÉ schedules, meanwhile, there will be

“BBC2 will be screening the Hutchence doc Mystify, a fascinating and insightful look at the tormented personal life of the iconic frontman.” tributes to Brendan Grace and Niall Toibin; a look back at classic Irish Christmas telly on The Big Christmas Rewind, featuring Derry Girls’ Saoirse Monica Jackson, amongst others; musical gems in Pat Shortt Music From D’Telly; and rip-roaring entertainment in Ireland’s Fittest Family – Celebrity Special.

On New Year’s Eve, there’ll be a party hosted by Una Healy featuring performances from The Waterboys, David Gray and Wallis Bird, as well as coverage on the RTÉ Player of the NYE Countdown Concert from Custom House Quay in Dublin, with performances from Walking On Cars, Ash and more.

One final Xmas highlight worth checking out will be Sky One’s Cinderella: Ever After Ever (Xmas Eve, time TBC), a comedic take on the classic fairytale starring Little Britain’s David Walliams and Car Share’s Sian Gibson. If you’ve ever wondered what follows “happily ever after”, this show should shed some light.

Happy viewing!

WWW.SPINSOUTHWEST.COM

THE PHANTOM

ANDRES POVEDA

THE SOCIAL SCENE

Thalia Heffernan at the Schweppes Ultimate Mixer Studio in 20 Dawson Street.

Elaine Crowley and Jill Murphy at Breast Cancer Ireland's Charity lunch in Marco Pierre White's

Fresh from gripping the nation with Dublin Murders, Sarah Greene joins a seriously star studded cast in Roadkill, a new Westminister political drama that’s being cofunded by American PBS and the BBC. Lining up alongside the Leesider are Hugh Laurie, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Saskia Reeves and veteran character actor Patricia Hodge.

You can also catch Sarah in Normal People, Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald’s incoming TV adaptation of the second Sally Rooney novel of the same name, which the author is participating in the making of. London thesp Daisy Edgar-Jones, previously seen in Cold Feet, stars as Marianne…

Meanwhile, Sarah Greene’s Dublin Murders compatriot Ericka Roe appears in Herself, the latest film from Mama Mia! and The Iron Lady woman Phyllida Lloyd, which is premiering at next year’s Sundance festival.

The Irish involvement doesn’t end there with Clare Dunne, who plays the mother escaping from a possessive partner lead, developing the concept and Element Pictures duo Ed Guiney and Rory Gilmartin and Sharon Horgan among the production crew.

Element Pictures will also be at

SARAH GREENE

Robert Redford’s Utah cinemafest with The Nest, the latest film from Martha Marcy May Marlene man Sean Durkin, which co-stars Jude Law and Carrie Coon as a couple retiring to a ramshackle mansion where their already rocky relationship really starts to unravel…

Hearty congratulations to Andrew Scott and Saoirse Ronan whose respective turns in Fleabag and Little Women have earned them Best TV Supporting Actor and Best Film Actress nominations for the Golden Globes, which take place on January 5 in Beverly Hills.

Naturally we’re biased, but both would make extremely worthy winners. Elsewhere, there are lots of nods for Joker, Marriage Story, Rocketman, The Crown, Jojo Rabbit, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and The Irishman whose cheerleaders (see page 28) include Louis Walsh…

RTÉ One and the BBC are teaming up again on Smother, a new Irish noir from the pen of The Bay and Mr. Selfridge’s Kate O’Riordan.

To be filmed in and around Lahinch, the intrigue starts when a man is found dead at the bottom of a cliff shortly after attending a family party, and develops into a drama of epic, multi-generational proportions…

SAOIRSE RONAN

Following a demo call that yielded over 1,000 applications from experienced radioheads, Spin 1038’s Jessica Maciel will from December 29-31 get to fill in for Scott Mills on his BBC Radio 1 afternoon show. Thirty-five new people will be making their Radio 1 depping debut over the Christmas period – a wholesale promoting of new talent that our national broadcasters might do well to emulate…

The Phantom is delighted to hear Mark Cagney back where he started, which is on the radio doing various bits of Newstalk fill-in.

Mark made it clear when leaving Ireland AM earlier this year that he wasn’t retiring, and must surely be in the running for a regular Marconi House spot. Personally, we’d love him to be given his own nonformatted show where he can delve into his massive album collection.

Maybe Thing – we’re really showing our age now – can co-present…

There was never really any doubt, but RTÉ/BBC Three have officially confirmed that The Young Offenders is returning for a third series in 2020 with the episodes already in the can. With close to 300,000 watching here and 4.1 million BBC iPlayer box-set requests for it, Peter Foott’s Cork-based comedy has been a major ratings grabber.

MARK CAGNEY GAGE SKIDMORE

Sinéad Byrne and Deirdre Ball at the A Very Aisling Christmas Party in the Sugar Club

128 HOTPRESS.COM

JUDE LAW

Hudson Taylor's Harry and Alfie at the opening of The Connected Restaurant

R E S TA U R A N T O F T H E F O R T N I G H T

Hot Press' Emily O'Callaghan and Eimear O'Connor with Lawson Mpame at Schweppes Ultimate Mixer Studio in 20 Dawson Street.

Our recent interview with Jock, Conor, Mairead and Barry, which can be found on hotpress.com, includes the definitive word on the pink pussy purse that caused so much consternation in episode two of the current run…

Penguin imprint Harvill Secker has fended off stiff competition to publish As You Were, the debut novel from Athenry poet Elaine Feeney who’s also a lecturer at NUIG. The “dazzlingly inventive” tome hits shelves in April…

In other big Irish book news, Tramp Press is to publish Niall Bourke’s debut novel, Line, which includes climate change, colonialism, fanaticism, the migration crisis, big data and the erosion of democracy among its dystopian themes. “Niall has a unique voice,” enthuses Tramp’s Sarah Davis-Goff. “It’s the most exciting novel we’ve read in some time.” That’s the good news; the bad is that you’ll have to wait until spring 2021 to read it, such are the length of literary run-ins these days…

If you’re looking for a festive stocking-filler, we can heartily recommend How Will Santa Find Us?, which tells the story of what the guy in the big red suit has to do to track down a homeless family.

Laura O’Neill, Peter Donnelly, Tara O’Brien, Fatti Burke and Yasmeen Ismail are some of the wonderful illustrators teaming up with writers Shane O’Brien and Stephen Rogers to raise both awareness and much-needed funds for Focus Ireland who really shouldn’t be reliant on such handouts but, hey, it’s not like we have a Minister for Housing or anything...

Sinéad Gleeson’s year has got even better with news that her excellent Constellations: Reflections From Life tome will be hitting American shelves in April. Offering dissertations on art, illness, ghosts, grief and all the other important stuff, it was published here earlier in the year by Pan McMillan…

Phil Cawley has bagged himself a Saturday afternoon gig at Radio Nova to go with the Sunday afternoon show he’s already presenting at Today FM. Meanwhile, Nova has indicated that they’re interested in taking over the five DAB digital frequencies that RTÉ are vacating as part of their emergency cost cutting programme.

As reported by The Phantom, the world of DAB radio in Ireland

Elaine Carey and Mateo Saina at the opening of The Connected Restaurant

Cathy O'Connor at Breast Cancer Ireland's Charity lunch in Marco Pierre White's

The Ramen Bar 51 South William St. Dublin 2.

Tel: (01) 547 0658 “You have to be all in to get into ramen,” the protagonist in what is arguably one of the best episodes of Netflix’s Chef Table declares in the show’s third season. Ivan Ramen is a Brooklyn-born misfit, who happens to be making some of the best ramen in Tokyo. A story waiting to be told, his obsession and commitment rivals that of any of the other chefs featured in David Gelb’s show.

The notable difference to the rest of the demi-gods of cooking, however, is that most of us can afford to taste Ivan Ramen’s obsession.

When I saw the episode in 2017, I found myself craving a bowl of ramen much more than I had craved Massimo Bottura’s Cacio E Pepe Risotto, or Dominique Crenn’s Abalone and Brioche with Wagyu Butter.

I was all in to have some ramen. The only place I knew in Dublin serving it was The Ramen Bar on South William Street. It would be no Ivan Ramen, I figured – but hey, it was worth a try. How wrong I was to make an assumption that it would be just ordinary ramen. In fact, it was love at first sight with the signature Tonkotsu Original. However, as with most loves, I needed to compare to be sure – and duly checked out David Chang’s famous Momofuku in Toronto. Tail between my legs, it confirmed what my heart – and gut – had instinctively known from the start: the Ramen Bar boasts some of the finest ramen you could hope to come across.

The greatness starts with the fact that the restaurant has its own noodle machine, brought all the way from Kagawa in Japan. It continues with the divine Chashu, a maltose-glazed roasted pork belly, which serves as the base of the Tonkotsu broth. The chashu is then mixed with vegetables, and simmered for 14 hours to make the broth.

Completing the broth and homemade ramen noodles are a few slices of the chashu, seasoned bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, seasoned egg, spring onion, and dried nori seaweed.

On a cold winter’s day – or let’s face it, pretty much any day in Dublin – nothing warms the soul like a bowl of Tonkotsu Original ramen does.

It’s savoured around 3pm on a Saturday, when no important things to do or places to be are anywhere in sight.

The menu has come a long way since the humble beginnings of the Ramen Bar, when the Tonkotsu Original was pretty much the only dish on offer. It now boasts 16 ramen varieties, one made for kids especially, as well as a selection of Buns and Baos. It also has a selection of starters, from the humble Edamame to my other favourite – Prawn Crackers, filled with more Pork Chashu, Salsa, and Yuzu Sour Cream.

Maybe I'll get to visit Ivan Ramen sometime, but until that day, I will happily have my Tonkotsu Original in the Ramen Bar as the first choice.

IRINA DZHAMBAZOVA

HOTPRESS.COM 129

Irma Mali and Nika Mali at the Kiehl's Chrismas Celebration in Wicklow Street

has got far more interesting this year with the opening in Dublin and Cork of several pirate platforms.

Talking of pirates, the Boat That Rocked’s Irish roots are explored fully by Paul Rusling in the Radio Caroline Bible, a 500-page brick of a book, which explains how Ronan O’Rahilly kitted out the original Caroline in Greenore, Co. Meath in the 1960s.

Two of the DJs who made a big splash on

Sonya Lennon and Evie Smith at The Marker Hotel’s Christmas Tree event

Caroline, Robbie Dale and Chris Carey, were later responsible for kickstarting Ireland’s superpirate era with their respective stations, Sunshine Radio and Radio Nova whose names were later purloined by the two licensed broadcasters currently on-air in Dublin.

With cameo appearances from the likes of Status Quo, MC5, the Tonys Blackburn and Benn, and Marianne Faithfull, it’s a fascinating read, which can be ordered from

radiocarolinebible.com…

The Phantom is deeply saddened to learn of the death of Peter Forde, a member of Limerick alt. rockers Vesta Varro who toured extensively from 2006-’08 and released an album, Exit Here, that was recorded in Windmill Lane with Richard Rainey at the helm.

They were serious contenders but, such is the randomness of rock ‘n’ roll, the commercial breakthrough they deserved never came.

ASOMBROSO! THE MUNCHIES CELEBRATE THE END OF A DECADE OF ALMOST TRIUMPH The end of a decade. What a long strange trip it’s been for the Mighty Men of Hot Press Munchengladbach 1891!

By 2010, it is fair to say, things had started to change at what had been dubbed “the Home Farm of Irish journalism.” The new owners of the Grand Old Club (the same as the old owners, but we’ll let that pass) had begun to invest heavily in what some of the British tabloids consistently referred to as “foreign talent.” A steady stream of Brazilian Internationals found their way to Hot Press. Similarly, a string of nifty dribblers from one part or another of North Africa, notably including Algeria, Libya and Tunisia.

On the pitch, mind you, the results didn’t always match the quality of the ensuing performances. That frosty observation brings us to the first big issue with which a side that is committed to playing football in Ireland has to contend: the state of the pitches. Let us be kind and say just that the surfaces leave a little bit to be desired, what with the hills, dales, bumps, tufts and – in winter – large puddles that on occasion become full-blown lakes with which ball players have to contend here on Paddy’s green shamrock shore.

As if that were not obstacle enough for a side that likes to roll the ball around, as on a snooker table, there is the second factor: referees! In general, the men-in-black are fine upstanding individuals, whose only desire is to get to the end of the 90 minutes with their eardrums intact, notwithstanding all the shouting, roaring and belly-aching that happens on the average pitch – and with even worse emanating from the sidelines, and the always packed terraces!

But still! Irish referees have, it seems, often been schooled in the British way of looking at football – and occasionally, indeed, of treating

the aforementioned “foreigners”.

On many occasions, then, over the past ten years, as a Moroccan, a Brazilian or a Mexican lay prone on the bedraggled turf, after a twofooted lunge had taken the legs from under him, the officials have been known to bellow the immortal phrase “Get up outta that.”

And yet, there have been many memorable moments. Winning the Fair Play Cup in 2015.

Samir Benkouiten nutmegging three opponents in a row. Daier Benites in his pomp holding off all-comers or skipping over tackles before planting the spherical orb in the back of the proverbial onion sack. A screamer from Axel Balvanera that rose straight and arrow-like, holding true all the way from his boot to where the net bulged dramatically in the top left-hand corner. And perhaps best of all, the move, on a terrible pitch in Brickfields, in a game against Oliver Bond, in which all ten outfield players touched the ball in a superbly worked passing movement which culminated in Joe Ejoku slamming the liathróid home mercilessly from the edge of the area.

So magnificent was that goal that the legendary player manager of Hot Press Munchelgladbach 1891, Niall Stokes, said only one word at his customary post-match pressconference and it was this: “Asombroso!”

It didn’t matter what the question was, the answer was the same: “Asombroso!”

“What number jersey did you wear today?” the man from the Maily Dale asked. “Asombroso,” the Munchies main-man responded. ”What did you think of the performance of the referee,” the woman from the Grauniad enquired. “Asombroso,” the big No.10 said with a smile.

“Pep Guardiola admitted today that he was copying your style,” the football correspondent

The MIghty Men of 2019

from the Irish Currat Bun said. “What would you like to say to him by way rebuke?”

“Asombroso!”

Shortly afterwards, an attempt was made to launch a new drink on the Irish market using the name that had been immediately popularised by the pronunciations of the Hot Press playermanager. Asombroso was sold in two-litre purple glass bottles and tasted like a cross between Poitín and Tequila. However, following an exchange of legal letters, a seven-figure settlement was agreed for the unauthorised use of the name Asombroso. The drink was then quietly removed from the market. “There wasn’t enough alcohol in it,” the wily midfield dynamo said. “To have allowed them to sell Asombroso in that form would have seriously damaged my brand profile.”

How football has changed! With the 20192020 season in full swing, the Mighty Men have latterly been having a torrid time, with many superb victories interspersed with occasional shock defeats. But with 2020 just around the corner, it is indeed time to celebrate the wonderful footballing achievements of the past decade. A few bottles of Asombroso remain, which were put aside with precisely this moment in mind.

“We are still alive,” the Munchies playermanager told the assembled reporters. “At least I think I am.”

The season is young yet.

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