Vol.XXIII - Issue 3 - OTwo

OTwo Volume XXIII, Issue 3

Breaking Boundaries

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co n t e n t s 3 mystic mittens Soapbox

letter from the editors

4 arts&culture news WHWN 5 travel 6 f ood 8 games 10 film&tv 14 creative writing

photo: Camille lombard

16 Sinéad gleeson 20 music 24 fas hion 28 arts&lit 31 fatal fourway 32 aperture OTwo Credits Editor Roisin Guyett-Nicholson Deputy Editor Martin Healy OTwo Co-Editors Seán Hayes David Monaghan

Art & Design Editor Louise Flanagan Chief of Photography Camille Lombard Food & Drink Editor Rachel Gaffney Fashion Editor

Katie Devlin Music Editor Luke Sharkey Games Editor Aaron Poole Film & TV Editor Owen Steinberger

OTwo Contributors Ause Abdulhaq Aurora Andrus Polly Butterfield Barbara Campos

Maeve Costello Shane Cullen Saul Fidgeon Orla Keaveney Rebecca Kelly

Katie Lalwani Adam Lawler Cian Montague Mittens the Mystic Emma O’Regan-Reidy

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Arts & Literature Editor Ezra Maloney Creative Writing Editor Chiamaka Amadi Online OTwo Editor Melissa Ridge

HELLO once more to all you arts and culture nerds, and welcome to another exciting edition of OTwo magazine. This issue we are ‘breaking boundaries’ and featuring content on artists, creators and writers who deviate or challenge the established norm.

In university, we are often encouraged to think critically and reflect with thorough insight. We are encouraged to question what it is we have come to accept as established fact and why this might be so, and far too often people abandon such education upon leaving third-level. This is a shame, for it is through such insight that social movements begin, that political activism can flourish, and that great art is made. It is where progress begins, and that is why those who have broken boundaries should be celebrated.

Our centre this issue is an interview with the subversive Sinéad Gleeson, who has edited an anthology of Northern Irish women writers titled The Glass Shore. It is a sequel-of-sorts to last year’s The Long Gaze Back and is transgressive for highlighting Irish writers who for a long time have gone unnoticed in a male-dominated publishing scene.

In ‘Travel,’ we set the record straight on the city of Limerick, which in the past has been marred unfairly by misconceptions of its people and places. Over in ‘Food’ we speak to breakout star Chef Adrian, review Five Guys in Dundrum, and teach you how to make ‘brookies’ (breaking the boundaries between ‘cookies’ and ‘brownies,’).

In ‘Games,’ we feature a piece on virtual reality, the disputed ‘future’ of video games, and how it blurs the line between reality and fiction while raising some interesting moral and ethical questions. ‘Film’ features two articles that deal with breaking boundaries, the first of which focuses on ‘Future Fiction,’ and how creative screen industries deal with mankind’s relationship with technology. The second is the growing influence of audience participation in the running of TV and Film.

This change is so great that the boundary between fan and creator has been irreparably broken.

In ‘Music’ we feature an interview with Fangclub, and review the latest releases from Lady Gaga, Swet Shop Boys, and Jagwar Ma. ‘Fashion’ highlights menswear and men in fashion, disrupting gendered notions of fashion industries, and ‘Arts and Lit’ looks at diversity in Irish literature and how we construct the ‘Other’ in our narrative fiction.

So we hope as you read the magazine you become inspired to break boundaries yourself. Or at the very least, we hope you enjoy what we have produced this issue. Either option is fine.

Much love, Seán and David xx

OTwo//

Soapbox:

spatial awareness

MYSTIC MITTENS ARIES The prospect of getting so dizzleblasted to ‘Superstylin’’ by Groove Armada this weekend has forced you to work harder than you’ve ever worked before. You’ve handed in all your work early and everyone is super-impressed with you. Maybe you should do this every weekend. ‘Think Twice’

TAURUS The good news is that Mittens sees money in the future. Too bad it’s not yours. Get off the couch and get a job.

GEMINI

VIRGO

The guy you get with on your course Christmas Pub-Crawl might be packing more than Christmas cheer. Mittens thinks you might want to get yourself tested.

LIBRA Sometimes all you’ve got is just enough!

But most of the time it isn’t.

SCORPIO You cannot reuse your pumpkin as an ironic Christmas decoration. It’s rotting and has turned purple with mould.

Throw it out now.

SAGITTARIUS

If you’re going to compliment someone’s t-shirt, have a look at all the t-shirts in the room to make sure you realise which one is your real favourite.

Stop drinking while on antibiotics. They say not to do it for a reason. It never ends well.

CANCER

May your life someday be as great as you pretend it is on Instagram. But Mittens can see the future; this is as good as it gets.

Your intentions to hand out sweets on Halloween this year were all well and good, but you’re an emotional eater and ate everything before the sun even went down.

LEO You were so afraid at offending anyone or anything this year that you decided to go as yourself for Halloween. The person who threw the party got offended by your lack of effort.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS This is Mittens’ last prophecy before the US Election. Despite being equally fluffy, Mittens’ prophecies have been more reassuring than anything that has ever come from Donald Trump.

PISCES You’re never going to happen. Stop and give up right now.

WE HAVE one of the biggest campuses in Ireland, and not many places where a lot of people can congregate at once, yet trying to walk from one place to another without experiencing an incident of spatial ignorance is like trying to find where Cher buried her old diaphragm.

The influx of Freshers every year is a major catalyst. I decided to go to the Fresher’s Tent at lunchtime on a Monday because obviously I hate myself, and the sheer number of people who swerved in front of me just to stop, leaving me with nowhere to go but up (believe me, I tried) was, frankly, hilarious. So if you were wondering why you heard an exasperated guffaw from two inches behind your ear, ’twas I. You did this to yourself.

People who are on their phones at least have an excuse; they can’t bear to make eye contact or wait until they reach their destination to text their mate, “where u?”. But the people who manage to bump into me while looking dead ahead; how do you do this? Where did you train? I can’t tell you to watch where you’re going if you already are, so the next thing I say won’t be half as nice.

Seriously, I don’t need all my stuff to join my GPA on the floor.

Maybe if you could grow spatial awareness in a jar I’d be able to walk across Pi Restaurant in one piece. It’s not just science students, though; while arts students eventually grow into experts at descending the awkward slightly-too-wide steps outside Newman, the glut of students between classes would give you flashbacks to World War z.

This lack of spatial awareness seems to be ingrained at this stage, and affects everything, including where ticket-sellers place their tables so that the queue acts as a Trumpian wall blocking the library stairs. Nice.

However, it’s only when you get to the bus stop and try to elbow your way onto a 145 that you realise UCD is only a microcosm of the wider world; as it supposedly prepares us for the job-market, it, too, prepares us for Dublin City Centre. Single mothers wielding battering prams; couples walking hand in hand, spread across the whole path. People not only unaware of humans, but of vehicles and the colour red.

Dear God, just try turning the corner off Dawson Street without getting bludgeoned, kneecapped, or knocked out cold.

There’s only one solution, and that’s to cop on. Relieve your overwhelming need to get up in someone’s grill by attending a weekly night out in Workman’s like those of us who have our shit together.

Maybe in this lonely and bleak transition into adulthood, bumping into someone is the only human connection you can get, and it’s that small modicum of comfort that gets you through the day. Seriously though, cop on.

Words: Adam Lawler Illustration: Joanna O’Malley

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A r t s a n d C u lt u r e – News and Events NEWS

EVENTS

Lucian Freud at the IMMA The Irish Museum of Modern Art is to display the works of Lucian Freud over the next five years, culminating in a survey show in 2022. In the interim, 30 paintings and 20 works on paper will be displayed in the Garden Galleries with tickets ranging between €5-8. It is free for IMMA members, full-time students and under -8s. Born in Berlin in 1922, Freud later moved to London with his family to avoid persecution under the Nazi regime. His work is inspired by friends, family and lovers, and often ventures into the surreal. Further information can be found at www.imma.ie

4th Annual Documentary Festival The 4th annual Doc Fest is back for one night only: November 11th. Some of the best documentary films from Ireland and abroad will be shown to fans and creators. The Doc Fest prides itself on its unconventional screening spaces, and this year is no different.

The festival is being held in the Teeling Whiskey Distillery and will commence at 6:00 pm. Admission is €12. Further information can be found at www.eventbrite.ie.

New Economic Analysis for Irish Film and TV Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphries TD has commissioned an analysis of Ireland’s film and television output, due to be carried out over the next six months. The aim of the analysis is to help inform the Government of indigenous screen-based industries and will help advance Ireland’s reputation as the home of creative talent. For more information see: www.irishfilmboard.ie

Dublin Art Book Fair in Temple Bar Gallery The Dublin Art Book fair will be held at the Temple Bar Gallery from November 10th13th. Entry is free, and there will be upwards of 50 Irish and international publishers attending. The fair allows publishers the chance to present their books and zines. In addition to that there will be a series of workshops, book launches, and discussions.

From November 25th- 27th, 30 galleries will be hosting 60 events over the span of one weekend. Admission is also free and will include events like walking tours, workshops, curator talks, exhibit openings, visual art, and the artists themselves. This festival allows galleries to take over the city, artists to show their best work, and the public the opportunity to discover new artists. See: www.templebargallery.com R.Kelly is Still Trapped in the Closet The Sugar Club will be screening the 2005 Hip-Hopera Trapped in the Closet by R. Kelly on November 12th at 9:00pm. All 33 chapters of this cult phenomena will be shown.

Entry is €5-10. Further information can be found through www.eventbrite.ie

Reflection by Leucian Freud, one of the works on show in IMMA

What’s Hot & What’s Not HOT:

NOT:

Sweater Season: Let us rejoice, it is finally socially-acceptable again to layer and wrap up in our favourite woollen sweaters that we were so sad to leave behind last spring. They certainly ease the pain of getting up in the morning, simply moving from cosy bed to cosy jumper. Extra points if yours is hand-knitted, belonging to a deceased relative, and knitted by an actual granny in Connemara.

Daylight Saving: We like to pretend to ourselves that “gaining an extra hour in bed” once a year is worth it. But if we’re honest, this extra hour is really just spent in bed, scrolling through memes on our phones.

It is now also dark at 5pm on the way home from college, which is just scary and traumatic for no necessary reason.

District Magazine: It’s true, OTwo is the beacon of all things cultural and artistic, your bible for the events and happenings of Dublin and further afield, but what’s happening over at District looks to be, perhaps, just as exciting. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, District is launching their first issue last week in Nowhere Dublin, and is set to feature some of the most exciting artists and musicians from around.

Maybe this town might just be big enough for the both of us…

Artistic Photos of Leaves: “Look at all these lovely leaves scattered across the path in front of me. Do you know what would be a completely original, great idea? If I took a photo of them and shared it across social media.”

For heightened impact, add a filter, bump up that contrast and caption it with every leaf, tree and nature emoji you can lay your basic fingers on.

Not The Weather: Literally. It’s absolutely freezing out there.

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Christmas in November: As of today, there are 46 days left to Christmas. This is a long time. In fact, it is longer than the amount of time it takes the moon to orbit the Earth (27 days), longer than it takes to climb Mount Everest (40 days) and longer than it took the Beatles to record their entire debut album (13 hours).

So please, refrain from singing Christmas carols, do not don your favourite ironic Christmas jumper and do not even think about starting to watch Christmas films until at least December.

OTwo//Travel

“ Th a t ’ s L i m e r i c k C i t y ! ” … i s n ’ t i t ?

Orla Keaveney offers an insight into the best of an often ridiculed and under-appreciated cultural hub in the West of Ireland.

AS a Limerick native, I have developed a fairly thick skin when it comes to my hometown’s lessthan-stellar reputation. Sure, most people associate us with the dulcet tones and sophisticated fashion sense of the Rubberbandits, but we’re just grateful that nobody calls it “Stab City” anymore. Limerick may not be glamorous, but us locals have learned to appreciate its authentic, if somewhat gritty, vibe.

However, that’s not to say we don’t have some pride in our corner of the country. During a drawn-out airport layover, I looked up my hometown in Irish guide books, and the only one that bothered to mention Limerick simply left it at “bypass this town if possible”.

Now, I have no illusions about how Limerick compares with its more picturesque neighbours in Adare, Bunratty and Ennis, who work hard to live up to romanticised expectations of the Emerald Isle. But after seeing the place where I was born and raised dismissed as an insignificant blot on the landscape, I have become determined to prove that Limerick is worth a visit in its own right.

With that in mind, here’s a distilled guide to the best Limerick has to offer. Whether you’re looking for a cheap mini-break without the hassle of a Ryanair flight, offering your condolences to UL students who missed out on a course in UCD, or simply curious to see if we really keep a horse outside during weddings, don’t rule out Limerick

photo Credit: Claire watersLulu

until you’ve had a look at its diamonds in the rough.

If you ask a local in Limerick what the city’s main attraction is, after a short and confused pause (we’re really not used to dealing with visitors), the response will most likely be King John’s Castle. Perched impressively over the River Shannon, the castle has recently been dolled up after a multi-millioneuro investment.

The curators may have overestimated the public’s interest in medieval warfare, but once you make it to the courtyard, you really get your money’s worth (although the €6.65 student rate is reasonable). The imposing 800-year-old fortress is the perfect place for Game Limerick’s bustling milk market of Thrones-style photos, plus the view from the tower is breathArthur’s Quay shopping centre taking: the silhouettes of Saint and the old reliables like Penneys, Mary’s Cathedral and Thomond Schuh, River Island and Brown Park are particularly striking.

Thomas.

Like anywhere else in Ireland, If you are looking for somewhere Limerick is susceptible to the ocwith a bit more character, you can casional Irish downpour. Luckily, always catch some live music at the famous Milk Market has a giant Dolan’s Warehouse, which has canopy so you can explore its stalls five large music venues including while waiting for the rain to pass a pub. Known for hosting a wide off. The products are a mixture of range of local and international bargains, artisan handcrafts and performers, there’s always everything in between. You can get something new to see — upcoming anything from Nutella crepes, to acts include Hudson Taylor, The cheap vinyls, to handmade sweets, Riptide Movement, Keywest and or even counterfeit Beats headLisa Hannigan. phones. The sausage butties are Limerick has most of the usual a particular favourite. If high-street international restaurant franchises, brands are more your style, though, but if you’re looking for something the market is only a short walk from unique to the area, there is still plenty to choose from. Cheap-andcheerful Chinese Wokking is a firm student favourite. If you’re looking for something a bit classier, both the Hunt Museum and Limerick City Gallery of Art have great lunch menus, plus you can give your significant other the impression that you are a sophisticated patron of the arts while chomping on a densely chocolate-y cupcake.

“The imposing 800-year-old fortress is the perfect place for Game of Thrones-style photos, plus the view from the tower is breathtaking…”

“Limerick is worth a visit in its own right.”

photos: Seán hayes

For dinner, Freddy’s Bistro, Japanese Taikichi and Texas Steakout are all safe bets, though La Piccola Pizzeria is something of a hidden gem, housing the best Italian food in the city.

Although Limerick’s Colbert Station has regular trains to and from Heuston, the station’s location isn’t exactly the most welcoming part of the city, to put it delicately.

You are much better off taking the Dublin Coach, fondly referred to as “the green bus” by Limerick natives.

Not only is this bus cheaper at €10 each way, it also drops you right in the heart of the city, O’Connell Street (yes, we have one too — though for the record, ours is the original).

If you come on a sunny day, I would strongly recommend a cycle along the boardwalk on a Coke Zero bike, though it’s a pleasant jaunt by foot too. Architecture students might also get a kick out of the gorgeous Georgian architecture close to Pery Square, though try not to focus on the not-so-postcardworthy shop fronts of William Street.

So next time you’ve a few days free, please bear in mind that modern Limerick has come a long way from the days of Angela’s Ashes. Forget the stereotypes, leave your shopping bag-balaclava behind and come find out for yourself what the Rubberbandits really mean when they say, “That’s Limerick City!”

King John’s Castle

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OTwo//Food

Out of the Frying Pan: Chef Adrian Rachel Gaffney chats to rising star Chef Adrian about learning to cook, healthy takeaways, and plans for the future.

NAMED one of Joe.ie’s top fifteen rising stars of last year, if the name Chef Adrian is new to you now, it won’t be for long. This twenty five year-old has recently been scooped up by RTÉ to produce cooking videos for RTÉ Player, after a Vine he made in January on how to make a healthy spice bag went viral. He may be a familiar face to some, as he has been cooking on The Seven O’Clock Show on TV3 for about two years.

Next year will see the new Chef Adrian Eats Ireland, exclusive to RTÉ Player, where this rapidly emerging talent will be sent by the public to test out the nation’s whackiesteateries. The University Observer sat down to ask him about his influences, his challenging training, and plans for the future.

When asked what his favourite thing is to cook, it was a difficult decision to make.

He was clear that he loves to do one pan dishes, to save on the washing up, and if he had to decide it would probably be a lovely prosciutto, chicken, mash potato and purple carrot dish.

An even more laboured decision was to decide on his favourite restaurant, as Chef Adrian explained, it changes all the time.

However he noted that his favourite of all time was Hospital Road by Gordon Ramsay as it “will be the best meal you will ever eat.”

Looking a bit closer to home, he recommended The Olde Post in his home town of Cavan.

Looking back on how he entered the food industry, Chef Adrian relfects that as part of his college course, he trained in a kitchen in Malahide. At just seventeen, he worked

intensive hours under the watchful eye of the head chef who was “just crazy! He used to stand beside you every day and stare and curse or roar at you. That’s how he trained you as a chef”.

He lasted an impressive six months there under before moving on to work with Nevin Maguire. Adrian would go on to work under Nevin’s tutorage for six years, all throughout school and college. This was a much more pleasant, but no less, gruelling environment.

While he recounts that Nevin “was really nice” compared to his old tutor, it was still “really tough, working long hours such as Wednesday through Sunday starting at 9am and finishing at 1am.”

At just twenty-five now, he professes to have worked all over Ireland in artisan shops and cafes as well as kitchens. His love of cooking did not stem from his family however.

When asked if there was a family tradition of cooking, Adrian only laughed and replied, “Mum is a terrible cook! She never passed on any cooking skills to any of the family as she had no interest in it. I would have been a terrible cook if I hadn’t gone out and learnt the trade for myself.” His grandmother was a good cook but it seems that watching cookery shows on TV had the biggest influence on his decision to train as a chef.

Like most Irish children, and generally most Irish people, Adrian grew up loving takeaways. “I used to eat them all the time as a teenager, I loved everything about them. I always wanted as a chef to be able to make that stuff good for you but taste the same”.

Chef Adrian’s sumptuous take on the familiar satay chicken dish This was the basis for Chef Adrian’s new ingly hectic as his work on food education concept - the “fake-away”- your favourite in schools across the country is really taking fast food made healthy. Chef Adrian’s website off. It began two years ago when a school in is full of delicious looking recipes such as Roscommon contacted him to come in and home-made buffalo wings and chicken satay, talk to the students about food. It snowballed perfect alternatives when the take awaycrav- from there, picking up unexpected speed ings kick in. after he was asked to give a talk to the Home The “fake-away” cookbook will be out next Economics Association of Ireland. year at the same time “Fake-Away with Chef Adrian began visiting three to four schools Adrian” products hit supermarket shelves. The a week all over Ireland following that, either long term goal is to launch a franchise of “Fake- speaking to a home economics class or an away” restaurants, which would be eagerly entire school, discussing the ongoing obesity anticipated near UCD. problem in the country. He notices on these The menu is “just mad” in Adrian’s words- “it school visits that, like his own background, has everything from doner kebabs to a cheeky parents are not influencing or teaching their Nando’s style peri-peri chicken, it has loads of children to cook anymore. He would give good stuff on it.” The underlying concept to a demonstration on the essentials, such as these healthy versions of fast food is air-frying, chopping skills and how to make basic sauces. which eliminates the calories and negative According to Adrian, the vital stuff they will health effects from the usual deep-frying of use when they go to college. Offering up these foods. This healthy versions of classic take-aways will culinary style is surely see Chef Adrian on Irish screens for home cooking years to come. that students could really get Chef Adrian will be doing his own demo in on board with.

UCD on November 15th, which will be free to Adrian’s all students. calendar is becoming increas-

“I would have been a terrible cook if I hadn’t gone out and learnt the trade for myself.”

Chef Adrian, one of Ireland’s youngest rising culinary stars

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OTwo//Food

Five Guys: Not Worth the Wait After the grand opening of the much anticipaited Five Guys, the new fast food diner in Dundrum Town Centre, Ause Abdelhaq investigates.

EVERY so often a restaurant will perfect their marketing strategy so that, by the time they open, everyone in the city knows that it’s happening. Five Guys, the new fast food diner in Dundrum Town Centre, is one such restaurant.

To say that expectations were high would be an understatement. We have been barraged with article after article claiming that this place was the “diner to end all diners.” Any friends who had been to the States for a summer couldn’t stop talking about how excited they were that it was in Dublin at last. Honestly, I expected incredible food – and I wasn’t disappointed on that front.

To their credit, Five Guys serve a really good burger. It’s obvious that the meat is of good quality, the toppings are well-sourced and the toasted bun is done to perfection. However, it’s not the highlight of the cuisine – that accolade is reserved for the gorgeous fries, which are the best I have ever had in a fast food place.

Since I was with a friend, I was able to sample both the Five Guys and Cajun varieties – avoid the latter, simply because the former is so good. The malt milkshake was definetly dissapointing, both due to taste and consistency – their drinks will need some work to

compete with Eddie Rockets.

Unfortunately, good food is where the positive part of this review stops. While it’s true that the food is the most important part of any meal, it’s not the only things that matters.

Starting with the most glaring problem: the

‘‘For those special occasions when you feel like splashing the cash, it does its food better than any other diner in the city.’’ price. I bought a burger, regular fries and a milkshake and I spent no less than €19.50. For fast food. I would understand the price if the portions were massive, but the burger was actually on the small side, to the point where it seemed like fries with a side of meat.

Other problems include the size of the menu, which is tiny – within three visits, you’ll have tried everything on it. Don’t bother going if you’re a vegetarian, vegan or have any special dietary requirements. Also the diner has been dogged since opening with reports of hourlong queues – although this is probably just the result of overeager marketing and it will likely die down soon enough. Finally, the décor of the diner is self-indulgent and clichéd, a minor issue, but still annoying.

Overall, Five Guys is genuinely audacious in how much it asks you to spend and, for the average college student, it won’t be a frequent haunt.

That said, for those special occasions when

you feel like splashing the cash, it does its food better than any other diner in the city. My recommendation would be to try it once – simply to have tried it, but I don’t see this particular establishment succeeding long term unless it brings the prices down. Eventually, everyone will have tried it and people will start either going to cheaper fast food places, or fancier gourmet spots.

Photo credit: david shannon via flickr

RECIPE: Brookies Brookies are the new cronut and if you’re not emotionally recovered from assignments and mid-terms, here’s how to make your new ultimate comfort food.

Rachel Gaffney Photo credit: Sugarmama via sugarmama.com

Ingredients Brownie layer: 110g light brown soft sugar 50g caster sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg 155g plain flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda 170g plain chocolate chips

Cookie layer : 110g butter, softened 200g caster sugar 110g butter, melted 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 eggs 30g unsweetened cocoa powder 60g plain flour 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1 pinch salt

Method: Preheat the oven to 180 C / Gas 4. Grease a 20x30cm baking dish.

For the cookie layer: Beat the butter, brown sugar, sugar and vanilla extract together in a large bowl until creamy. Add egg; beat until light and creamy, which will take about 2 minutes.

Whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl. Gradually stir flour mixture into butter mixture until dough is combined. Stir chocolate chips into dough. Spread dough into the bottom of the prepared baking dish to cover it completely.

For the brownie layer: Stir the sugar, butter and vanilla together in a bowl; add eggs and beat well. Mix the cocoa powder into the butter mixture until wellcombined. Stir flour, baking powder and salt into cocoa mixture until just combined. Pour brownie mixture over cookie dough and spread to cover completely.

Bake in the preheated oven until a skewer inserted into the centre of the brookies comes out clean, which will be about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into small squares.

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OTwo//Games

The Ethics of VR & Video Games Aaron Poole investigates the impact that virtual reality might have on its users VIDEO games have always offered their players fantastic possibilities. When we come home from a long day at college or work, they offer us the ability to transport ourselves into a different world, whether it’s a distant, forgotten past; in a spaceship headed to explore the vast unknown; to a far-off land populated by dragons and sorcerers. While this is unlikely to occur in the near future, the medium through which we begin to experience this is already beginning to change in front of our eyes.

Looking back on the landscape of the video game world over the last twelve months, it’s hard to fathom how much of a

“​Virtual reality offers us a new way to live out our fantasies - the ability to be an active part in the impossible and the terrifying” leap we have taken in the development of video games and their technologies. Who knew that this year, as opposed to a new triple-A title, the most wanted video game would be an hour long experience that sees you take physical control of Batman in Gotham City? Virtual reality offers us a new way to live out our fantasies - the ability to be an active part in the impossible and the terrifying - and it looks like it’s here for the long haul.

VR companies, such as Sony, who are currently working on games for their newly released PlayStation VR headset, are largely focused on bringing us experiences that we can’t, or are too afraid to, live through. At a

recent press event in Dublin, I was able to go hands-on with one of these games.

Ocean’s Decent is a game which sees the player lowered in a cage to the depths of the ocean. “We want you to be transported to a different world”, I’m told by the assistant lowering the device onto my head. With 360 degree head tracking, I’m able to move my head anywhere, allowing me to see out to the ridiculously detailed 3D ocean surrounding me, just as a great white shark swims by and shakes the diver’s cage, complete with sound effects that were equally as detailed.

It’s an obvious fact that you experience emotions while playing games in a conventional manner, but to be inside the game is something that amplifies these emotions to levels beyond anything experienced before. This enables even the most simplistic of actions to become exciting and new.

These new experiences, however, bring new concerns. I was asked before engaging with the technology if I had any prior issues with regards to heart conditions or anxiety attacks, something that would

rule me out of being able to test it, and was again shown a similar notice on the game’s load screen.

New levels of immersion that come with VR raise new levels of concern for its users, both physically and psychologically. Developers and consumers alike should be aware of very real risks such as undiagnosed heart conditions, asthma and sensitivity to adrenaline.

It is fair to say that people are guided by the impulses of their environment, so there is a sense of danger attached to VR that exposes an emotional nerve. There was a lot going on in terms of how I felt inside that space - while playing ​Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, there were instances where I noticed that I had become very alert, causing adrenaline to start pumping throughout my body and for me to start sweating inside a room that was quite cool.

It was a dissociative experience that was designed to make you lose a sense of where you are in space, creating an atmosphere where your body doesn’t feel like it’s yours anymore. It is here that a sense of discomfort

image courtesy of sony computer entertainment inc.

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arises, and where a question of ethics might be raised.

Understanding the very real physical risks of VR will undoubtedly present a

“New levels of immersion that come with VR raise new levels of concern for its users, both physically and psychologically.” challenge for game developers. Intense reactions in VR experiences are going to raise new questions on the ethics of game design, making sure that they try not to scare users to death.

Responsibility is something that is going to fall on the shoulders of many developers in the near future. This is especially true with the advances in game AI, which could actively work out what it is that provokes emotional reactions and attempt to make those moments happen more often (not too dissimilar to scaling difficulty seen in games today).

In terms of ethical dilemmas, what was initially a product intended for an individual’s entertainment is in danger of veering more towards the realm of, for lack of a better term, a self-torture device.

A note here to parents considering buying into the technology for their children: supervision is key.

As VR becomes widely available, and is set to enter the homes of thousands this Christmas, the studies are really just beginning for everyday gamers. Entering a virtual world offers challenges for both our minds and bodies, but the slightest miscalculation in gameplay design is in danger of causing a severe physical reaction in players. Caveat emptor.

OTwo//Games

The Bunker: Review Martin Healy

Release date: ​20​th​September Platforms: ​PS4 (Reviewed); PC Developer: ​Splendy Interactive Publisher: ​Wales Interactive

WITH the interactive media boom of the ‘90s, FMV (full motion video, or essentially interactive movies) games were big business. From ​​ Night Trap to Hell: A Cyberpunk Thriller​, the genre died off due to the fact that these games were, mostly, terrible.

Nonetheless, today, with the cheap availability of digital video,

as well as the popularity of Steam, FMV games are seeing a renaissance – 2015’s H​ er Story being the prime example. The Bunker attempts a return to the cheesy FMV thrillers of old, but it fails to capture much of the kitschy charm.

The action takes place in an alternative version of Britain, one where the proposed nuclear apocalypse of the mid-twentieth century actually occurs. The story centres on a thirty-something man named John, who has spent his entire life in the bunker, which is now mysteriously empty of everyone bar his elderly mother. While the gameplay involves some light puzzle-solving, it’s mostly made up of watching the activities of John as the mystery of the bunker unfolds.

One of the main issues with The Bunker​ is its interactivity – or simple lack thereof.

Where ​Her Story took a unique spin to the genre as you trawled through hours of police footage, The Bunker instead just offers extremely light puzzle-solving alongside some pretty terrible quick-time events. The PlayStation 4 version also has an incredibly slow cursor, so most of these actions feel like a chore.

The main narrative itself is relatively intriguing, but the game is at its best when it leaves you to explore and find the smaller, hidden stories of this alternate-Britain. The actual plot is basic, and the twist is obvious, but the wider world Splendy Interactive hint at is much more intriguing.

The weakness of the plot is not helped by the poor acting. While most of the performances range from middling to acceptable, Adam Brown’s performance of protagonist John is consistently terrible. Most of his reactions to serious events are borderline comical, and his voice-over removes a lot of the tension from dramatic scenes.

While ​The Bunker is undoubtedly wellproduced, it is undermined by poor acting and boring gameplay. The central plot is filled with clichés, clumsy flashbacks, and is not particularly satisfying, which is an even bigger shame considering the intriguing world the game establishes. It saves its most engaging moments when you are left to explore, but these times are few and far between, leaving The​Bunker a disappointing two-hour journey.

Battlefield 1: Review Aaron Poole​

Battlefield 1 is a large-scale first-person shooter set during World War I. The game sets out to convey not only the stories of those lost in that war, but also the technology and tactics they used, which are reflected in the game’s single player and multiplayer options.

The game’s single player offering is a campaign that is short in length, but that is to be

“​The story, while not heartfelt, does convey a sociological message regarding the pointlessness of war” expected from a series that is far more focused on its multiplayer element. The story, while not heartfelt, does convey a message regarding the pointlessness of war.

This is achieved through an interesting gameplay choice by DICE. You live out the lives of several of these soldiers in isolated “memories”, until you reach a point in that memory where you will be unable to continue due to an overwhelming increase in difficulty level, forcing you to die and move on to the next character.

In the multiplayer form, Battlefield 1 offers the franchise’s most refined gameplay to date.

The map selection is teeming with beautiful environments which, as you would expect, are completely destructible via the massive selection of World War I-era weapons and vehicles.

In terms of how you upgrade equipment, experience earned through matchmaking will earn you ‘War Bond’ virtual currency. This comes as a welcome replacement to paywalls offering accelerated unlockables, meaning you will need to play the game as intended to unlock new, more powerful weapons.

In terms of gameplay, there is not much to say in the way of controls: players of the franchise will immediately be familiar with the first-person shooter combat that is common to most games of that genre. However, fans will need to adapt to the new gameplay mechanics associated with weaponry, designed to mimic their real life counterparts.

“The map selection is teeming with beautiful environments which, as you’d expect, are completely destructible”

Sniper rifles are no longer one-shot kills and feature bullet drop time. Rifles also take longer to reload while automatic guns feature less ammunition. If you want to gain a significant upper hand, you’ll have to get your hands on a tank or artillery cannon which are placed randomly on the map.

Battlefield 1 is a blast to play through. With a great variety of weapons, vehicles, and large scale maps/teams, aided by the game’s setting, EA truly have created the experience of a battlefield. While the story

Release date: October 21st Platforms: PS4; Xbox One; PC Developer: DICE Publisher: EA offers little in the way of length, it attempts to break convention by offering something fresh through its storytelling. Gamers will find this a welcome addition to the series.

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OTwo//Film&TV

HOW TO BREAK THROuGH Owen Steinberger speaks with film-maker Stephen Hannon on following his dreams without compromising his studies and how you can do it too.

Escape, one of director Stephen Hannon’s most recent creations ARTS students are, with few exceptions, dreamers. However, “the real world” looms larger now more than ever, threatening to crush these aspirations under the weight of responsibility. Today’s students face a gridlock between the expectations of their degree and the reality of their post-graduate future, the two of which rarely align.

It can be exhausting to balance school with a social life and artistic ambitions. Many students are simply overwhelmed, their dreams liable to slip through an exhausted grasp. Yet former graduates frequently return for further education, hoping to eke out a few more years of relative bliss in university.

Many still hope to break into the art world, but the work involved is daunting and the risk of failure is worthy of genuine concern.

However, Stephen Hannon, a young filmmaker and a student at University College Cork, has managed to carve himself a path towards success.

After years of working behind the scenes on film productions, learning what he could but making no noticeable impact, Hannon decided to direct his own productions. He reflected on his first ever film, one he made for the Charlie Chaplin Film Festival in Kerry.

“I managed to persuade my younger brother, who was 10 at the time, to dress up in a wig and a suit with a good old-fashioned walking stick… a few months passed [and] we got the notice that it had actually been accepted!” It was a Hail Mary to be sure, but Hannon says this stroke of luck was what pushed him to further pursue his passion for film-making.

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Since then two of his short films (Fever and Escape) have been shown at a number of film festivals across Ireland and abroad, most recent of which being the IndieCork Film Festival less than a month ago. “It’s like living a dream,” he says – a dream utterly within reach.

Film-making is a multi-faceted process, involving the work of many – the director must work with the cinematographer, who must work with the actors, who must work with the scriptwriter. The premise itself is daunting enough, but Hannon urges that, out of anywhere, college offers the right tools to make your mark early.

“University is a fantastic place to start,” he says. “You have hundreds of people… who are aspiring to become actors, acres of English students looking to write the next epic, and plenty of people studying the technical side of the film world.” The strengths of others can make up for your lack of experience, and are what turn a dream into a fleshed-out, actionable plan.

All he needed, Hannon said, was the determination to follow these avenues through. Act now, he urges; build a team of dependable people from within the talent-rich environment of your college campus, before “the real world” steals you away.

“Go in without an ego and focus on learning from others. After a while, you will have a good group of people which you can depend on… who will introduce you to techniques, equipment, locations… the list is endless.”

Networking can be a gruelling pursuit, but

“university is a fantastic place to start… you have hundreds of people… who are aspiring to become actors, acres of English students looking to write the next epic”

it is the necessary manual labour of an artist’s lifestyle.

Digging in his heels, Hannon has finished five short films over the course of a year, through his persistence and willingness to “go outside of [his] comfort zone” to do editing, shooting, and production work on top of his director’s responsibilities.

Part of being motivated is being willing to test the limits of your abilities, to never say “no” to a challenging role or topic.

Both Fever and Escape “shed light on certain stigmas” which the general public is uncomfortable to mention. In the former a mother-daughter relationship starts to fall apart as the two find that their depression is the only thing that binds them together, while in the latter two gay men find that their perceptions of their own homosexuality are radically different than one another’s, and find themselves drifting apart as a result.

These scenes are claustrophobic and ripe with tension.

Hannon does not shy away from these melancholic situations. Rather, the camera pulls in closer to the action, its distance almost intimate, the expressions of anger or embarrassment on the faces of the actors made the primary focus. His work finds an inherent strength in embracing the uncomfortable in any situation, in turning it to your advantage.

There is a popular penchant for nihilism among college students, especially those who have saddled themselves with arts degrees that look more useless by the minute, and it is not entirely unwarranted. But it is certainly possible to break through this cloud of disillusionment, as it was for Hannon. Though “the real world” fast approaches, by meeting it head on, with optimism and confidence in your creative abilities, a clean break can be made.

“We all have a hundred-and-one things going on in our lives,” Hannon recognises.

“But I truly believe that, if you love something enough, then you’ll make time for it.” To shake off the weight of “the real world” without letting your hubris get the best of you, it may require sacrificing something important. “For me,” Hannon says blithely, “that something is probably sleep.”

Stephen Hannon can be contacted at “stephenhannon01@gmail.com” for collaboration, or with any requests for film-making advice.

OTwo//Film&TV

A V a n is hi ng L i ne :

Sci-Fi vs. Reality Science fiction is quickly losing its place as a tool for predicting the future. Cian Montague examines this trend.

SCIENCE fiction has long been used as a tool for predicting the future. Star Trek, for instance, was famous for ‘ahead of its time’ creations, with personal computers, tablets and automatic doors featuring in the show long before they hit the mainstream. The predictions made in Back to the Future Part II were put to the test on October 21st of last year. Unfortunately, the real 2015 did not match up all that well, as it turns out functioning hoverboards are still some time off.

But is this something that modern sci-fi still attempts to offer? Series like Black Mirror and Mr. Robot seem less interested in predicting the future than in examining the state of our society as it exists today.

Mr. Robot, the second season of which concluded this September, reminds its viewers

that their lives are ruled by machines and constantly raises issues of identity that stem from our always-online lifestyles. At one point, protagonist Elliot remarks that something is on everybody’s mind before correcting himself: it’s on everybody’s screen. “Might as well be the same thing nowadays,” he observes, expressing one of the central themes of the show.

Similarly, anthology series Black Mirror presents a more twisted picture of reality, but it is one that is recognisable nonetheless. In 2011, at the time of the show’s debut, creator Charlie Brooker posited that the series was “about the way we live now – and the way we might be living in 10 minutes’ time if we’re clumsy”, and this remains the case for the most recent third season: this is dystopian, sometimes nightmarish, but ultimately it doesn’t “It’s not that newer sci-fi isn’t ‘good,’ seem too far from today.

“Hated in the Nation” it’s just that the genre is failing to and “Nosedive,” two push our antiquated perception episodes from the newest Black Mirror season, of the future forwards, choosing resonate precisely because of how plausible instead to re-tread old ground.”

the scenarios they depict seem: the former primarily looks at the culture of internet-shaming and portrays a terrorist attack involving a killer hashtag and some robot bees. The latter satirises social media culture and presents a society where every personal interaction is rated, forming the basis for an oppressive and explicit social hierarchy.

Though these episodes show off some pretty nifty futuristic computers, their concepts hardly strike as unfamiliar. Other episodes in the season look at hacking, online exploitation, and virtual reality gaming, and other contemporary problems. There is certainly some interesting future tech on display, such as memory-altering brain implants and an iCloud-like virtual reality afterlife, but it often takes a back seat to the ever-present theme of screen obsession.

This is a trend that can be seen in film as well. Ex Machina and Her show their protagonists developing feelings for artificially intelligent beings. In Ex Machina, an android can be uniquely fitted for an individual on the basis of personal information shared online.

Interestingly this parallels the Black Mirror episode ‘Be Right Back’, also starring Domhnall

Gleeson, but in that case he is in the android role. Her sees its main character fall in love with what is essentially Siri, just with more polish and a dash of self-awareness.

Certainly these films feature advanced and futuristic artificial intelligence. However, cinema has addressed the problem of distinguishing between humans and AI for years, from The Matrix to Blade Runner to Alien and further back still. Furthermore, with the recent release of HBO’s Westworld and with the Blade Runner sequel set to come out next year, the smart bet is that evil androids are here to stay. It’s not that newer sci-fi isn’t “good,” it’s just that the genre is failing to push our antiquated perception of the future forwards, choosing instead to re-tread old ground.

This year’s biggest science fiction release will surely be Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in December, but this too seems unlikely to concern itself with predicting the future; alien encounters and lightsaber duels make for an action-adventure film, with little room for comment on humanity’s future. The Martian, on the other hand, entrenches itself so firmly within reality that its technological advancements only range as far as a decade or two into the future, and as such they are hardly even noticeable.

There are of course exceptions, films that do attempt to cast their eye further afield.

Rian Johnson’s Looper took on time travel, obviously a well-covered concept, but grounds itself in a unique circular narrative that pits self against self. Inception’s novel dream technology marks one of post-modern sci-fi’s few conceptual triumphs, although it seems unlikely that Christopher Nolan meant this as a concrete suggestion for a technology the future holds in store.

Much of today’s science fiction, however, shies away from such bold ideas of the future.

Popular media is commonly resorting to distorted versions of “the now” over what attempts to capture what could be. Series like Black Mirror are guilty of the same narcissism that they attempt to warn against.

Modern society seems to have an unhealthy fascination with its newfound technological ability, which has stunted the creativity the science fiction genre was once known and treasured for.

TV show Black Mirror, often set in alternate-versions of the present.

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OTwo//Film&TV

Review: The Accountant

Martin Healy

The Accountant tries to do a lot of things. It wraps an action film and a conspiracy thriller up with a romantic comedy and a family drama over the course of 120 minutes, but it never does any of these things particularly well. When the pace ratchets up and gunfire lights up the screen, however, The Accountant makes for an acceptable, if dumb, action flick.

Inspired by the Taken cliché, wherein an otherwise mundane man harbours a secret ability to murder others with great efficiency, we follow the trials of Christian Wolfe (Affleck), a freelance accountant who ‘uncooks’ the books of corrupt individuals and organisations. The Treasury Department has begun to close in on his scams just as he takes on a suspicious contract from a robotics company, and high-stakes action summarily follows.

Wolfe has a form of autism, allowing Affleck to put in a flat performance. While Anna Kendrick brings some life to love-interest Dana, and J.K. Simmons is charming as an old treasury agent, Affleck’s performance merely flails in the general direction of autism, leaving the film with a gormless, stone-faced protagonist.

The plot, though it flirts with a grim conspiracy thriller angle early on, soon loses control of its own direction. When you stop to consider the limits and abilities of Wolfe’s autism, the feats he

achieves in the movie’s action sequences simply make no sense. The Accountant is a dumb film, and while that isn’t always a bad thing, its charms fail to make up for its glaring flaws.

Nevertheless, there are some wry, well-timed jokes throughout, where the film is able to bask in its own inanity to some success. Jon Bernthal delivers a menacing performance as one of the main antagonists, yet some unnecessary plot twists later on in the film manage to dull his overall character.

Once the film settles on “action film” as its genre – about halfway through – the film begins to pick up. The action is sharp and violent, and looks and sounds great. This momentum doesn’t last, however,

as the final act slows things to a crawl with a load of bloated exposition. While the final shootout is well-directed and exciting, the variety of strange turns the plot takes in its final 20 minutes make for a sloppy and confusing finish.

In A Nutshell: The Accountant tries to piece together too many genres to make a good film of its own. It’s a dumb action film, and even among its own kind, there are plenty of superior options.

Directed by: Gavin O’Connor Starring: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson Release date: November 4th Running time: 128 minutes

“The Accountant is a dumb film, and while that isn’t always a bad thing, its charms fail to make up for its glaring flaws.”

Review: A Street Cat Named Bob Katie Lalwani Directed: Roger Spottiswoode Starring: Bob (the Cat), Luke Treadaway, Ruta Gedmintas Release Date: November 4th Runtime: 103 minutes

“‘A cute and cuddly cat film’ this is not. The issues of homelessness and drug addiction are featured just as prominently as Bob himself.”

JAMES Bowen and his cat Bob have made quite the name for themselves. Propelled to stardom by a series of books based on their lives, it wasn’t long before the film rights were snapped up. A Street Cat Named Bob successfully captures the heart-warming spirit of the story’s print form.

The film follows James, a man on his “ninth life” facing the hardships of sleeping rough.

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By chance he comes across an injured stray cat; using almost all the money he has left, James nurses the ginger feline back to health.

Afterwards the cat refuses to leave his side and follows James everywhere, including onto the bus and while he’s out busking. The two form a strong friendship, a bond that changes both of their lives forever.

“A cute and cuddly cat film” this is not. The issues of homelessness and drug addiction are

featured just as prominently as Bob himself.

Through some harrowing imagery the film grants us insight into the plight of homelessness, wherein a man is isolated and made invisible to the rest of society.

Bob is no ordinary cat, flouting the feline stereotypes of selfish, aloof, and antisocial behaviour. James may have rescued Bob but we can see that it is Bob who also saves James, encouraging him as he strives to ditch his drug addiction for good. Bob also performs tricks while his friend and owner is busking in town, attracting attention and adoring fans.

Luke Treadaway’s performance as James is brilliant and heartfelt, and the actor lends his vocal talents to the feature as well, making for an excellent soundtrack. Bob the Cat is portrayed by four cats including the star of his own film, Bob himself. The real James too gets a small, yet touching cameo.

The film, in comparison with the preceding books, is a bit drawn out and commercialised.

Hollywood tropes appear which feel inauthentic and detract from what is otherwise an honest, heartfelt tale. Yet the film still manages to preserve its central message of perseverance in the face of hardship, one that will leave you crying and laughing your way through.

In A Nutshell: A stray cat helps a struggling man to overcome the hardships of homelessness and drug addiction. An adorable, yet earnest film.

OTwo//Film&TV

The Audience Strikes Back Owen Steinberger charts the rise of audience involvement in television, and looks at where we may have gone wrong.

LONG have television networks ruled over their schedules with extreme prejudice, slicing beloved programs from their rosters for not meeting arbitrary quarterly requirements or for being a touch too controversial for primetime hours. A simple timeslot change can doom a series – eight on a Friday night has a legacy as TV’s death bed, where problematic programs would be shipped to decimate their ratings, justifying their cancelation soon after. Little could audiences do but bemoan the iron hand of corporate media.

There were, however, ripples in the water, signs of a coming change in the television industry. The original run of Star Trek was rescued from termination, which would surely have doomed the million dollar franchise to early obscurity, by a wave of support from fans.

Newspaper columnists urged their readers to send mail to NBC in 1968, which The Press-Courier documented as more than 6,000 letters a week.

A third season was brought to bear as a result.

Star Trek would go on to be cancelled after this renewed run, its budget having run thin, but a precedent had been set. David had shown that Goliath could fall; network television had become irreversibly democratic.

This trend of consumer involvement was given a massive boost by the advent of services like Kickstarter, which allow for individuals to pitch their ideas to an online audience in hopes of individual investments. Star Citizen, a video game meant to call back to old-school space exploration titles, has managed to amass just over $130 million over four years from crowd

funding at the time of writing.

The sight of that much money lit up the eyes of media executives: people will pay your production costs, and all you have to do is promise them something they desperately want. These services have made it possible for individual entrepreneurs to share their ideas with the world with great success, which is of course an incred-

“The full integration of television and its audience has begun, the two fusing together into self-serving grotesque made of equal parts greed and goodwill.”

thousand signature petition for its return, then these petitions cease to matter. Fans have also started countless petitions for an entirely new series, or for individual changes to existing ones, such as the reversal of a favourite character’s death. A recent petition to “Bring the Old Republic era of Star Wars to Netflix” has garnered over one-hundred thousand signatures, and continues to climb.

At this level of saturation, television networks are caught at a standstill.

Audience fervour is at an all-time high, but attention spans are low, so if a series is indeed resurrected, or born of a petition itself, the likelihood that it will go on to succeed is no higher than that of any other, original project.

Services like Netflix and Amazon Prime are set to steal the crown from network television partially due to their flexibility in acquiescing to audience demands. Subscription models and the viewer’s freedom of choice allow for some niche series to be funded and added to the service with little risk to the platform as a whole.

Netflix has stood behind this new form of interaction since its reboot of the beloved series Arrested Development in 2013. However, even though fans had been clamouring for new episodes for years, the Netflix-produced season released to middling reviews. Such is the fatal

flaw of audience-driven television, that art makes no guarantees.

Online communities often create echo chambers of opinion, circular conversations reinforcing each other until fandom rises to a fever pitch.

The expectations of audiences are therefore almost always set far higher than studios can meet, regardless of objective quality. The greater problem with this circular logic, however, is the brutal fact that the customer is not always right.

The creative process is a delicate thing, like the repair of an intricate watch. To attempt to truly create something great under the piercing glare of millions of expectant superfans, while

“Such is the fatal flaw of audience-driven television, that art makes no guarantees.” thousands upon thousands post comments and tweets, send emails and private messages, all urging you in particular and often contradictory directions, is often to doom the project to failure.

If only they could shut the window and get some peace and quiet.

That networks have started to bend to the tyranny of their audiences is, in a way, a deserved punishment for the decades they have spent cashing out on generic comedies while railroading creative series to failure. But this supposed gesture of goodwill should be seen with suspicion, if not with derision. As life often shows us, what we thought we wanted rarely meets expectations once it is finally ours.

ible thing. For television networks, however, it has made pleasing its audience a dangerous necessity.

In this internet age there are no half measures. The full integration of television and its audience has begun, the two fusing together into self-serving grotesque, made of equal parts greed and goodwill.

People now get up in arms over the axing of their favourite series with droll regularity.

If every show that is cancelled elicits a five Illustration : Joanna O’malley

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OTwo//Creative Writing

Letting Go

Fergal loved to push buttons, so on our way to Dublin we sat in the seat with none. A nice man found space for our suitcase, leaving me free to deal with the usual fuss. Gloves in hat, hat in sleeve, coat in bag, bag on lap, and old Monkey Moo on top with his stuffing peeping out at the seams. I never usually looked around but today I saw the hooded eyes of some lady, snapping her judgy eyeballs away.

It gave me a lump in my throat. I had a word for the likes of her but I reminded myself it was normal, well, our normal; the one with labels, discrimination and stigma.

Fergal spat on the window to clean away the condensation. He pointed to a couple of white clouds and said ‘new friends.’ I was surprised he remembered the little chat we had at breakfast because his memory wasn’t great. I was glad he remembered we were going to meet his new friends. His good eye looked past the rainy patterns on the glass as he carefully searched between the greys for any scraps of white. The distraction gave me a chance to zone out until a wet elbow nudged me in the ribs to make sure I was looking. ‘Me lucky,’ he smiled. I quickly pulled up the corners of my mouth and remembered to squint; faking the smile for an acceptable four seconds. Lucky was not a word used to describe my son. Intellectual disabilities can be hard to spot but you simply can’t ignore a bearded teen in a Power Ranger suit, Spider-Man shorts, and skull cap with a Peppa Pig badge taking pride of place on the front.

The psychologist said the bizarre associations were his way of being creative. ‘It’s true what they say,’ he laughed, ‘you are what you wear so just let him mix his colours!’ Enough said.

Some things ruin your life but thanks to the medication we’d made it through another night with minimal tossing and turning. I was tired, and the gentle forward and backward motion closed my eyes for a comforting moment. Soon Fergal’s Disney bag was unzipping and the eager hand rummaged about in his hidey-hole of secrets and precious things. The SpongeBob notepad appeared. He smelled it a few times then rubbed the special pen hooked onto the back cover as if it was his favourite pet. His key-worker had given it to him. I say ‘given’; she didn’t have much choice.

The main event of ‘Angela versus Fergal’ made Tuesday his favourite day, and Angela, the woman with the bag of pens and endless amounts of patience, his favourite new friend.

Angela said Fergal’s hand-over would

be witnessed by someone from Children’s Services. They offered us transport but I wanted to bring him on the bus one last time.

‘This accommodation will suit Fergal perfectly,’ they said, handing me paperwork to sign and acting as if he was getting digs for college, ‘try not to worry; his medical needs will be taken care of.’ It was all those other needs I was worried about, but I couldn’t afford to think about it right now, Fergal was looking at me.

‘Okay?’ he asked. ‘Okay,’ I said, tapping his knee to reassure him. He stuck his tongue out and tipped it with the pen. ‘Mammy up?’ he asked. I nodded and crossed my eyes at him to make him laugh. I loved that hearty laugh, and I loved ‘up days’ too, the days with no emotional outbursts or bruises, even if this up day was also a bit down.

While Fergal was busy scribbling, I had an intrusive thought; David McSweeney, so-called expert in crash repairs, and my so-called father. Hard to believe it was sixteen years ago, yet I remember everything, especially when I came home from hospital and found home wasn’t exactly as I’d left it four days before. ‘A hundred per cent certified’, he shouted from the doorstep, ‘if you think you’re bringing that in here!’ The temples were rubbed with those dirty oily fingers, like he was trying to massage away the headache that was me. ‘Oh, totally screwed up your life there.’ He was never one to sugar-coat anything. I stood frozen to the spot at first then I began to move slowly towards the gate. ‘Don’t bother Sinead,’ he shouted, throwing two black sacks out onto the path. ‘I offered to help you get rid of it but as usual; the hard nut couldn’t be cracked, just like your mother;’ he snapped. He pulled the door closed behind him. Mammy would have killed him for humiliating me in front of the ‘gawkers’. If only she was still here, he’d have been the one out on his ear, not me.

Fergal started crying, and so did I. ‘Please Daddy; I’m sorry. I just wanted to do the right thing, he’s beautiful; look at him.’ He refused, his face reddening, and the steely temper was pulling the brows closer together over the bulging eyes. ‘The right thing,’ he hissed, ‘that’s exactly what I’m doing.’ I tried to reason with him. ‘I lost my mother,’ I said in a trembling voice. ‘I lost my wife’ he boomed ‘and this would’ve broken your mother’s heart’.

I lunged at him, trying to grab the key. When I couldn’t get it I lashed out but he pushed me away, he pushed us away. My backside hit the concrete, and so did my baby. Suddenly I was

By Christine Fitzpatrick

my mother’s daughter. ‘Me, break her heart, that’s rich coming from you,’ I screamed, ‘she would’ve kept fighting the cancer if you hadn’t cheated on her.’ We both stood there bitter and twisted, me holding a crying baby and him holding the key. ‘Fuck this,’ he raged, ‘I’m off to the pub’, and just like that, he was gone. That night found us in an emergency room in Kildare. The taxi man whispered all the way there because he thought Fergal was sleeping. How I wish he had just been sleeping.

The brakes on the bus snapped me awake.

‘If you don’t move, I’ll run over you,’ the driver bellowed out through the door. I grabbed Fergal’s hand, he was trembling. The angry shouting had triggered an anxiety attack.

‘Me not fucking bastard,’ he said repeatedly.

‘Shush,’ I said, ‘you’re not, of course you’re not, Silly-Billy’. I put my arm around him. Well the looks! Thankfully we were getting off at the next stop.

Fergal helped me pull the suitcase along James Street. He stamped in every puddle as we walked past the hospital and around to the South Circular Road. I saw people staring and decided that I wanted them to look; to have a really good look. ‘Remember us,’ I thought, ‘remember me you feckers, and remember him.’ The shock when I turned around to face them, ‘this is Fergal, I said firmly, ‘Fergal McSweeney, my son, the best son anyone could ask for.’ I knew they were still

looking because we blew raspberries the rest of the way.

Angela was there, waiting for us. I held my baby close for the longest time. The softness and smell of his hair was intoxicating. I never wanted to stop touching it, smelling it but someone tugged my arms away, it was Fergal.

I couldn’t manage ‘goodbye’ so I told him I loved him more than anything in the world.

He smiled and said ‘I love me too,’ then he did a little dance over to the bag of pens. I eventually found the strength to pull the door closed behind me.

I could have stood there bitter and twisted.

The doctors had offered me more treatment but I refused. I had come such a long way but we all knew it wouldn’t work. I was sick of the pain, sick of holding on and now Fergal was being looked after so I allowed my legs to take me away. As I passed by the hospital I knew I was done. I took off my wig and felt the refreshing prickle of rain drops. ‘Goodbye,’ I whispered and just like that I let go.

Illustration : Meadhbh Sheridan

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Poetry

OTwo//Creative Writing

Growing in Grief

Coffee Disease

Watched

Disconnected

You are wildflower I crawl through a cave holding but the letters of your name “You’re all grown up now, you need to learn to deal with remains”

The aroma of coffee awakens me My whole life I have drank only tea Coffee is a drink for townies No better than those hash brownies My dear old mammy always said to me

Close your eyes and rest, And ignore the city’s rasping breath and yellow eyes That creep through your window’s, that slice through the slit in your curtains And settle on you Those eyes that lean over you as you walk and watch and watch, Sheltering in the night’s foliage Or existing bare and aggressive But always looking down.

Until a grey yawn from the east makes them scurry And you and the world awakes, and does not know It has been watched

They sit across from one another.

Together physically

Understand the stalactites and stalagmites of your frame It is all right here where you need to go You need to crawl through and suffer banalities of doom Your word is the heaviest ornament I am suffering under your spell I remember the taste of your atoms I remember the hollow of our spells “But you’re all grown up now” And have everything to lose so you hit snooze and withstand the blues You say love and hope it embraces your cold frame I stick with your name as the syllables are nicely measured out And a grown man in a fairy costume told me to grow the hell up, to understand the totality of grief to know its shape and size as clearly as a lover’s body

But now here I am standing in line Waiting for coffee so I can feel fine Though I’ve been walking and talking Inside my mind needs a shocking For coffee my heart starts to pine This long semester is slowly dragging Exams looming, future hopes sagging.

“No hot drinks in the library” That thought is too scary I now even drink coffee when shagging

while a pixelated glare Separates them mentally.

Their attention is focused on 6 second videos, Captioned pictures: They like, They swipe, Move on…

And forget.

Sean Tate

Kevin Byrne

I return home to Limerick for Christmas Feigning outrage at the whole coffee business.

But withdrawal soon begins Shakes and cold sweats for my sins Without coffee, I am covered in sickness

Aoife Hardesty

You are rare You are not hope I carried you through slopes, through fields, now this cave, this final resting place of man Where the haunted echoes do all they can

Dermot Christophers Illustration : Meadhbh Sheridan

15

OTwo//Sinéad Gleeson

New Shores, New Horizons: Sinéad Gleeson

Just after the release of her latest anthology, Sinéad Gleeson chats to Seán Hayes about her days in UCD, deconstructing an archaic canon and, the crucial role of women in literature.

photo: Ger holland

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OTwo//Sinéad Gleeson said that “it is one of the most thoughtTRYING to label Sinéad Gleeson is an provoking collections of stories I’ve read in almost impossible task. Indeed, she is at once a journalist, broadcaster, writer, critic a long while.” Likewise, Stellar magazine and editor. All of these labels, though, are listed it as their Book of the Month for Oconly professional titles and, from speaking tober. Gleeson, however, remains humble. to Gleeson on the phone, one instantly “I didn’t expect it,” she admits, “Obviously The Long Gaze Back won last year so I just realises that she is far more personable than that. She is at once warm, friendly, thought. ‘Oh, it’ll be someone else’s turn.’ I intensely passionate and startlingly intelli- wouldn’t expect to win again; I’d be very gent. Despite only a handful of encounters surprised. It’s lovely to be on there. It’s a really nice nod to get.” with her in the past, talking with her feels like a good catch-up between friends.

The Long Gaze Back, which Gleeson has There is, as it happens, a tremendous just mentioned, is her previous anthology. amount to catch up on.

Published just over twelve months ago, I last met Gleeson just over a month the collection, this time featuring short stories by women writers from around the ago, upstairs in Hodges Figgis on Dawson Street, at the launch of The Glass Shore. country, scooped the same award at last Collected and edited by Gleeson, The Glass year’s ceremony.

Shore is an anthology of short stories by In many ways, beginning work on women writers from the North of Ireland.

The Glass Shore after this original success The night was a great success, with impas- seemed like the only logical step forward. sioned speeches delivered by literary Gleeson, however, now jokes that, “If giants Anne Enright, Evelyn Conlon, and someone had told me this time last year, Martina Devlin.

‘Oh, you’ll have another anthology out!’, Since then, Gleeson has been up and I would’ve jumped down a lift-shaft or down the country, as well as overseas, something to get away from them.” promoting the book and taking part While attending events last year in the North, in support of The Long Gaze Back, Gleeson continued to encounter the same, problematic consensus. She explains how that at one event in the Linen Hall Library, “a couple of people came up to me and said, ‘It’s a wonderful book. It’s great to see but we really feel that we’ve been left out of the conversation, about anthologies, about women, about the short story.’ It kind of played on my mind a bit.”

This general feeling was only reinforced after a similar event in the Lyric Theatre where, Gleeson explains, “at the end, the Q&A was literally just people saying, ‘Great book. We don’t have a book like this.’, ‘I don’t think there’s money.’, and, ‘It just feels like nobody wants to hear our voices.” She continues, admitting that, “It was the same conversation the whole time, and people were quite emotional in panel discussions. She continues to about the North and feeling that a lot of present The Book Show on RTÉ Radio 1 things have happened there in the last and, just last week, managed to pick up a forty-odd years, and sometimes they’re nomination for Best Irish-published Book not listened to.” of the Year at the Irish Book Awards 2016.

Jan Carson, one of the writers included The nomination comes as somewhat of in The Glass Shore, has addressed this a surprise to Gleeson. To others, howidentity-crisis before. Noted in the Irish ever, it seems almost inevitable. Indeed, Times, she compares the ‘Northern Irish Elizabeth Day, writing for the Irish Times writer’ — in all her manifestations — and

“It was almost a literary anthology bingo. You could say, ‘Right, before I turn this page, if there any women in this book, I know who they’re going to be.’” their connection to both the Republic and UK, to the child of divorcing parents, where both parents assume that the other is looking after the child’s well-being. This anecdote particularly stuck with Gleeson, as she admits that, “I just remembered all those voices and faces of people who

were quite upset about the fact that there wasn’t a book. I just thought that that’s actually ridiculous, and kind of depressing.”

Achieving recognition for the female writer has always been a difficult struggle across the world. It is, however, almost possible to understand the under-appreci-

“If someone had told me this time last year, ‘Oh, you’ll have another anthology out!’, I would’ve jumped down a lift-shaft or something to get away from them.”

17

OTwo//Sinéad Gleeson ation of the female Northern writer when her male counterparts include Seamus Heaney, Brian Friel and Derek Mahon.

These writers are canonical, not just in Ireland, but internationally too.

The Female Line, published in 1985, perhaps marks the initial movement towards recognition for Northern Irish female writers. Edited by Ruth Hooley, the book is a collection of poetry, memoir and essays. In her introduction, Hooley highlights the problem of a male-focused canon. She claims that The Blackstaff Press, a leading Belfast-based publisher, at the time had a ratio in the region of just two female writers to fifteen male writers published in their single-author poetry books. “This silence is ambiguous,” Hooley writes, “Does it mean an absence — there are hardly any women writing? Is it due to suppression — women lack confidence and opportunities to develop their writing? Is it a result of oppression — women are discriminated against in terms of what is taken seriously and which material matters?”

These are troubling questions, and questions that Gleeson no doubt asked herself when beginning to compile her anthology. She has, however, been asking these questions for a considerably longer period. An alumni of UCD, she remarks on her time as a student: “I took a short story course in my very first year of my undergrad. It was with Gus Martin … Soundings was the poetry book when I was in school,

Sinéad Gleeson: writer, editor, journalist, critic, and presenter of The Book Show on RTÉ Radio 1

but he edited that anthology of poetry and in that book there is only one woman, and she’s not Irish — it’s Emily Dickinson.

Gus was a wonderful lecturer, but you see the way in which people are in charge of putting together the canonical texts, and people in charge of putting together university syllabi, and some of the problem often starts there.”

Returning to UCD as part of her research for The Glass Shore, she was somewhat disheartened to see that not a

“If you’re a reader, the idea that you get to spend lots of time working by going into the National Library and digging around, pulling out stories, there’s not many better ways I could think of to spend your time.”

18

lot had changed. “I started taking down the anthologies,” she recalls, “some of which I recognised from when I was there, and seeing that it hasn’t gotten much better — that imbalance of mostly men or the same women if they were included.

Always Edna O’Brien, always Somerville & Ross, always Mary Lavin, always Elizabeth Bowen. It was almost a literary anthology bingo. You could say, ‘Right, before I turn this page, if there any women in this book, I know who they’re going to be.’ And that, for me, perpetuates the idea that only a handful of Irish women are good writers or are worthy of inclusion.”

It is starting to become clear just how many limitations Gleeson herself had to overcome just to compile this collection — the problem of location, the problem of gender and the problem of genre. Genre is a somewhat unexpected limitation, and one that is not immediately thought of. She admits, though: “when I started out, I thought, ‘this is a little bit more difficult than The Long Gaze Back, not just by virtue of geography, but my experience has been that in the North, there is a very big tradition of poetry and drama, and it isn’t of fiction, and it isn’t of the short story. If you had asked me to name twenty-five people off the top of my head,

I could have gotten close, but I don’t know if I could have got twenty-five without doing research.”

So just how does one overcome this type of problem? Put simply: one asks for help, which is just what Gleeson did. The acknowledgements list in the back of the anthology boasts an impressive list of writers, editors and academics — Carlo Gebler, Glenn Patterson, Thomas Morris and UCD’s own Professor Margaret Kelleher, to name a few.

Explaining the process, she says: “It was a question of throwing out the net and seeing what names kept coming up. The public library system here is brilliant. I had envisaged that I’d have to go to Belfast a lot, but a lot of what I was looking for I found here.” It certainly doesn’t sound like a job for the work-shy. “It’s a lot of legwork,” she admits, “It’s a lot of digging, but I like that side of it, because you really don’t know what you’re going to find and you hope you’ll unearth a gem. And if you’re a reader, the idea that you get to spend lots of time working by going into the National Library and digging around, pulling out stories, there’s not many better ways I could think of to spend your time.” A pang of jealousy can be felt at this thought alone…

OTwo//Sinéad Gleeson In an age where literature, and indeed all writing, faces crisis as the world continues to become increasingly digitalised, instant and online, threatening normative forms of literature to the point of extinction, these is, at least, some hope on the horizon. Seen, by some, as a reaction to this, there has been a growing trend in the slow-magazine and literary journal, where the book or journal-as-object is appreciated both aesthetically and for its content. Ireland, too, has benefitted greatly from this trend, with groundbreaking literary journals such as Banshee, Gorse and The Stinging Fly all rising to prominence.

Gleeson agrees with this idea, crediting “the reinvigoration of the platform” as part of the reason for the short-story’s growth in popularity. She strongly maintains, however, that, “I don’t subscribe to the view that the short story is having a comeback or any of that idea. I don’t think

it ever went away.”

— on stage together, She offers another reason, an almost themselves having romantic view on reading, suggesting that both fought most of with anthologies: “you read outside your their lives not only for comfort zone. It’s literally like a raffle; you recognition, but more don’t know what’s coming up. I’ve read basically, for equality anthologies and discovered writers from and for their voices to just one short story and wanted to read be heard. other work that they’ve done, and that’s It is interesting why I love them. It’s the randomness of to think of The Glass it. They’re very accessible in terms of their Shore as both a prodbrevity and definitely not in terms of the uct of the efforts that subject matter.” have helped pave its At the launch for The Glass Shore, Man way, while simultaneously continuing to Booker Prize-winner Anne Enright commented on the tremendous increase in challenge and change female writers, finally gaining some of the normative notions in recognition they deserve. A movement, today’s society. Gleeson celebrates this Enright notes, that has only just come to new-wave of female writers, recounting that, “five or six years ago, when the the fore in the last three to five years. It is almost stirring to watch both Enright new-wave started to come through, I thought, ‘finally, here are the new voices, and fellow-writer, Evelyn Conlon — a founder of the Rape Crisis Centre in 1979 the young voices.’ The post-Celtic Tiger voices, and it was Paul Murray, and Donal Ryan, and Gavin Corbett, but I did notice that were weren’t many women and I did think, ‘Where are all the new women going to come from?’, and then, very quickly, it started to happen. So quickly that The Long Gaze Back was in progress and then some of them appeared who I would’ve loved to have had in the book, like Sara Baume, Louise O’Neill, and Danielle McLaughlin. It’s changed, it has massively changed.”

Indeed, one only has to look at the shortlists for this year’s Irish Book Awards, where women have received at least half, if not more, of the nominations in most of the categories. Certainly women writers have, this year, dominated the short story category. It only makes sense, though, that in a scene and industry so supported by women, that they receive equal recognition and thanks. Gleeson recalls the famous Ian McEwan quote, where he concluded that, “when women stop reading, the novel will be dead.” Having introduced fifty-five stories, across two anthologies, to new audiences, it can be said with relative ease that Gleeson has done more than her fair share for keeping reading alive.

While Gleeson would do well to savour her moment of success, she still manages

“Where are all the new women going to come from?’, and then, very quickly, it started to happen.” to find the time to look ahead and is keen for the next project. The biography note on her website states somewhat teasingly that she is working on a novel of her own.

She laughs, though, when quizzed about it: “it’s funny, I do have a bit of one on the go. I said in an interview that the idea of a novel is very daunting and the idea that you would stay interested in something for that long, when lots of the work that I read, that I love, is the short story and the essay. So maybe it’s that the novel is not for me. At the same time, there’s no one way to write one and there’s no one way to write.”

“I would like to focus on my own stuff for a while because I have a few things on the go and I find myself thinking about them a lot but not actually doing them, and the words don’t write themselves.

Generally, for the next few months, juggling is what’s going on!”

All of a sudden, my inability to label Gleeson at the beginning of this interview seems only to lend itself perfectly to the type of work that she does, and the type of person she is. Here is someone deeply passionate, looking only to right the balance and allow the under-appreciated and forgotten voices the opportunity to have a light, of which they are entirely deserving, shone on them. Her work only proves that very often the status quo, the normative constructs that unconsciously govern so many aspects of our daily lives need to be, and should be, constantly questioned and challenged, if only to discover what lies beyond the horizon, on new shores.

19

OTwo//Music

Rebirth Of The Cool The LP In 2016 Has 2016 been a landmark year for the album? Adam Lawler thinks so.

THERE comes a moment when every artist hungers for their Pet Sounds.

They want to change the game forever, with cohesive and boundary-shattering albums that act as self-contained works of art. Something more fulfilling than the traditional collection of tunes; four singles padded out with forgettable ditties. Imagine, if you will, that hunger took hold of every major artist at the same time; this is 2016.

Album-making was becoming as commonplace and quaint as stamp-collecting; 2016 has changed that forever. The album is now fluid and versatile, a bomb waiting to be dropped.

Albums have become less a collection of tunes, and more a stream-of-consciousness expression of creativity, with many releases this year hitting 70 minutes. The influence of hip-hop is tangible, and in a year in which the Grammys deigned to finally recognise streaming-only releases, the lines between label release albums and independent mixtapes have been distinctly blurred.

Meanwhile, black artists are using this new cultural dominance to eschew tradition. Albums

by Kanye West and Frank Ocean don’t credit any of the features, forcing listeners to do the work of the internet researcher, recalling a time when we would have to look in record sleeves to find out who played ‘that’ guitar part. Collaboration is

“The album is no longer viewed as ephemeral; it’s permanent, a painting that will be looked upon for years to come.” implicit; controversy surrounding the credits on Beyoncé’s Lemonade illustrates a desire to tear down the romantic notion of the single genius doing everything themselves.

The single is still essential, but only as a gateway from the public swimming pool to the private waterpark that is the album, an artistic free-for-all. Frank Ocean and Kendrick Lamar are releasing albums of offcuts that would have

diluted the album’s vision -- so much for bonus tracks. How has this happened? The album is no longer viewed as ephemeral; it’s permanent, a painting that will be looked upon for years to come. So no pressure then.

Do artists even need albums, though? In a world where every aspiring rapper and quirky indie kid has a Soundcloud, artists have to decide whether the effort is worth their while in an age of over-saturation. Albums may work for

“What matters is that the album feels vital again, it feels like a living, breathing and evolving entity.” artists like Adele, but many dance artists like Calvin Harris have already denounced the format, which makes sense considering the need to stay relevant with a slew of constant singles.

Pop auteurs like Robyn are diverging into projects like ambitious “mini-albums”, so perhaps the form should be confined only to those who are truly invested.

This has led to a sort of choose-your-ownadventure mentality, where every detail of an album is tailored to fit the artists’ vision like a bejewelled glove; the still image from Beyonce’s Lemonade that adorns the cover emphasising the inseparable visual aspect; the haphazard artwork and constantly shifting track list of Kanye’s The Life Of Pablo reflecting its creator’s eccentric process.

Even the difference in spelling of Frank Ocean’s

Blond(e) suggesting ideas of gender identity. The form is being melted down and moulded to suit whoever wields it, and the vision is more sharply forward-looking than ever.

Even when pried away from the artists who made them, each of these albums acts as a selfcontained statement in its own right — feminism, police brutality, gender and sexuality, bloated navel-gazing (not looking at anyone, Drake).

Every album is a concept album for better or for worse, and in a year of social and political talking points, that sense of grand importance, of somehow making a difference, is what is energising the format.

The focus has been shifted from creating sales to creating an impact. The controversial elements and creative roll-outs help develop that image of the guerrilla-artist pushing ‘detonate’ and telling the record labels to just deal with it, even if the creative spontaneity is A&R’d to within an inch of its life. What matters is that the album feels vital again, it feels like a living, breathing and evolving entity.

In largely forsaking hooks and shaking up release strategy, this year’s releases have taken risks, some of which did not completely pay off.

Rihanna’s attempt to blend avant-garde music

Illustration : Joanna O’malley

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and a sponsorship campaign with Samsung failed spectacularly. These failures are the necessary growing pains of a form that’s growing too large for the media it’s presented on. One is reminded of Brian Eno’s assertion that “modern art is the

“The album is the new grainy black and white film -- the new distorted guitar.” sound … of a medium pushing to its limits and breaking apart.”

The album is the new grainy black and white film -- the new distorted guitar. In the future we could well need headphones, a screen, a sheet of braille and two friends to listen to an album, but that’s the exciting thing; the myriad possibilities.

The albums of 2016 are a stepping-stone, and one day we’ll look back from an enlightened future and remember these eager and well-meaning attempts at innovation with fondness.

OTwo//Music

Th e s e Th r e e P u n k s

The members of Fangclub speak to Melissa Ridge on the release of their latest EP and the recent success that has followed since the launch of their debut.

SINCE first beginning to jam together in 2013, Fangclub have become one of the most successful punk-rock bands to come out of Ireland.

Brought together by a love of punk-rock, the North Dubliners have played gigs across the city as well as festivals in Toronto and New York.

Dara Coleman, drummer, gives an insight into the origin of the Fangclub 90’s sound, stating: “We all have our own personal music taste but I think there is a corner of rock that all of us are really into so that is the sound that Fangclub have come out of. It would be that whole 90’s thing.”

Stephen King, singer and guitarist, adds that: “we all have specific styles and different aesthetics and those three different aesthetics together form our sound.” He goes on to talk about how his contribution lays the foundation for the band’s songs and lyrics, admitting that: “I would do most of the writing, like the lyrical stuff, melody and the kind of first ideas of the song.”

“In between gig rehearsals,” he continues, “we always make sure we have time to just jam.

Someone will just start something. We won’t even think, we’ll just go for about twenty minutes, have a recorder, trawl through the files and we’ll hear something and be like, ‘Oh, I like that’ and that’s the beginning of a new song. Songs come out all over the place emotionally.”

On this, Kevin Keane, bassist, adds that their songs are often a mix of emotions with each being captured in their own right in each song. He

explains that: “lyrics would be on one buzz and the riff would be on a different buzz. Whatever mood you’re in you can find some aspect of the song that you can relate to.”

After the release of their first EP Bullet Head in May of this year, Kerrang called up the band for an interview, which the lads have now come to view as a big moment for themselves and milestone for their careers.

“Kerrang was a big moment for me,” King explains. “Watching it when I was 12 or 13 and then you’re in the magazine that you bought every week. It was just insane.” The band was playing in Toronto when they got the phone call. Reflecting, he admits: “it was incredible. They were like, ‘What do you want to do for a photoshoot?’ And we were like, ’can we trash a hotel room?’ And they were like ‘yeah.”

Their second EP Coma Happy, is due to be released on November 11th. It is a collection of four of the band’s favourite songs that they feel best represent their sound and ethos. The lads began recording in Data Recording Studios in Kerry but after it closed down they finished off the last track in Station Studios in Balbriggan.

“The majority of the songs, even from the last EP, were recorded before any of the label stuff happened,” Keane explains. “We went down to Kerry two years ago and just recorded an album for our ourselves with no real plan. Then it found its way in the hands of certain people.”

King adds that: “It was just picking and sprinkling songs from those sessions and choosing an EP from that. Looking back, if there was any direction, it was in the studio two years ago.

‘Dreamcatcher’ and ‘Inside Joke’ were the last of the songs to be recorded so there was more work in them and the writing was a little better. We were more mature as a band writing those songs.”

‘Dreamcatcher’ is the lead single on the EP. The band feels it is one that really connects with a wider audience. King reveals: “I just love that song. It went down well live.

Anyone who has heard it live is like, ‘What’s that dream song?’ We had a feeling that it would be one that would go down well.”

The band is set for a busy year ahead. After the launch of Coma Happy, they have a gig on December 10th with Twin Atlantic in the Academy, which the lads are very excited about.

“We wrote a new song and we’re testing it out on the Twin Atlantic tour,” King reveals.

Following this they are travelling to the Limelight in Belfast and then across to Glasglow where they will play for three nights in Barrowlands.

After taking a break for Christmas they will kick

“It was incredible. They were like, ‘What do you want to do for a photoshoot?’ And we were like, ‘can we trash a hotel room?’ And they were like ‘yeah.” off again in February and be on the road doing various festivals in the UK. Faced with the prospect of the long-term, Keane jokes: “I’ve no idea where we could be. I didn’t even know we’d get here”. Life has a funny way of working out like that. One thing is clear, though, for Fangclub; the wheels have been set in motion and things are only increasing in pace. “Things are moving so fast. It’s impossible to gage or have ideas where we’ll be in years to come.”

Fangclub’s second EP Coma Happy is released on the 11th of November.

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OTwo//Music

RADAR : Kevin Koivisto Kevin Koivisto sits down with Luke Sharkey to discuss his new album The Rain, killing your darlings and the worst fate for a musician.

THERE is something awfully surreal about a quiet UCD. Maybe it’s because people are still recovering from their nocturnal bank holiday adventures or maybe the first day of reading week has been universally decided upon as a duvet-day. Either way, the silence and the dull sky makes me feel slightly on edge and I’m delighted to have the company of Kevin Koivisto as we sit beside the secret lake. Koivisto is a Finnish native, moving to Dublin to study English and Music in UCD. He has just released his debut album The Rain independently and we begin our conversation on the virtues and vices of going the independent route.

“I feel like creative control is a blessing and a

“I hear bands like the Black Keys on the radio, these people are playing songs off my playlist. It makes me think people here would really like my music.” curse. I just felt like if I had approached a label with [the album] they would have said, ‘let’s re-record it, maybe cut some of it down.’ For me, the album is representative of the time and place where I wrote it,” he muses. So how does Koivisto stay critical of his own work in the absence of a label representative in his ear? “There’s this old art rule called killing

your darlings,” he explains. “When you have something you really love and something tells you to get rid of it, you’ve become too involved with the piece.”

As brutal as this rule may be, Koivisto has clearly used it to excellent effect on The Rain.

The double disc format is ambitious for even

“For me, the album is representative of the time and place where I wrote it.” the most experienced song-writer, but every song on the album feels like it has earned its place. Koivisto develops a relationship with the listener throughout the album and you feel like you have arrived somewhere upon completion. This is helped in no small part by the conceptual nature of the release. “The album is conceptual, or quasi-conceptual,” Koivisto admits. “The idea of the rain is present in most of the tracks. It’s kind of an allegory.”

So where did the influences for the album come from? Koivisto breaks into a wry smile.

“The big B, the Beatles.’ Then a lot of what’s maybe called dad-rock, ‘60s and ‘70s stuff.”

Upon his arrival in Ireland, Koivisto was surprised to hear some of his favourite modern bands on the radio. “I hear bands like The Black Keys on the radio, these people are playing songs off my playlist. It makes me think people here would really like my music.”

Koivisto reveals he has plans to start performing the album live around the city, though he wants to capture his audience’s attention thoroughly when he does. “I think the worst fate for a musician is to become background noise, performing the role of the tape.”

Somehow, I have little doubt he will do just fine in Dublin City.

The Rain is out now on Spotify.

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Dublin Gig Guide To keep your bank balance healthy, Rebecca Kelly gives you the lowdown on cheap gigs this November.

Swords - November 11th - The Workman’s Club Alternative indie/rock Dublin three-piece Swords are set to headline the show on November 11th in The Workman’s Club to celebrate the launch of their new album, Tidal Waves. Entry is €12.50 and doors open at 8pm. Highly recommended for those who like indie music with a mixture of guitar, piano hooks, drums synths and samples, alongside the amazing vocals of Diane Anglim. This is not one to be missed.

OTHERKIN - November 11th – Upstairs at Whelan’s If you’re into something a bit louder, OTHERKIN are also playing on the same night upstairs in Whelan’s. Tickets are a steal for only €13. Another Dublin-based band making waves, OTHERKIN are a four-piece group whose inspiration comes from The Clash, QOTSA, Ramones and Blur. They’ve got a punk sound and philosophy, having once stated that: “we want our records to be punchy, lean and blazing. Straight in, no kissing.” The band demonstrated their enthusiasm and stage-presence during the summer, while opening for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers in Belfast. Despite the obvious pressure they faced to make an impression, their energetic performance went down well with the crowd.

Dana Masters - November 17th - The Sugar Club Need some music for the soul? Dana Masters has got your back. Originally from the American Deep South, Dana grew up around blues, soul and gospel. A regular performer alongside Van Morrison, her vocals are to die for. She’ll be live at the Sugar Club on November 17th. Tickets are on sale now and are €15. Doors open at 7pm.

Lars Vincent & Band - November 27th - Upstairs at Whelan’s Lars Vincent & Band play upstairs in Whelan’s for a relaxed Sunday night gig. A former member of the Irish Defence Forces where he spent 11 years as a soldier, Lars has a unique way of telling stories through music. A proud Mullingar man, he captures the essence of Irish life through his music, which is described as contemporary/modern Irish folk. Tickets are only €5 and doors are at 9pm. For that price, you may as well go along and give it a listen. Who knows? It could be your new favourite genre.

OTwo//Music

A l b u m r e v i e ws Joanne Lady Gaga

Every Now & Then Cashmere Jagwar Ma Swet Shop Boys

What Are You

Listening To?

The Belfield FM committee share their current favourite tracks with OTwo

LADY Gaga has recently become something of a Renaissance woman. She has tried her hand at a variety of things including modelling, acting, activism and even cook-book writing. So far she’s been successful at all of them and Joanne is the perfect example of the talent-fluidity Gaga possesses, both as an artist and a performer.

The album spans incredibly different genres, from Gaga’s trademark vibrant dance-pop to ‘70s disco and even swaggering country rock songs.

Surprisingly this seemingly insane mash-up of genres works cohesively together on most of the album with songs like ‘John Wayne’, ‘Diamond Heart’ and ‘Sinner’s Prayer’ being stand out tracks.

The only disappointing track of the album is the over-hyped but underwhelming duet with Florence Welch entitled ‘Hey Girl’ which attempts a throwback to ‘70s disco groove that unfortunately flops because of poor lyrics and general dullness.

As part of her discography, Joanne is the best showcase of Gaga’s incredible vocal range of all of her five albums. Her classically trained voice shines, especially on ‘Perfect Illusion’ — a questionable choice for lead single of the album — even mastering challenging key changes, proving that Lady Gaga is much more than processed pop music, as many have assumed.

The producers, writers and instrumentalists who worked on the album speak volumes about Gaga’s more serious intentions for Joanne as a record. Mark Ronson, Josh Homme and Tame Impala frontman Kevin Parker are just some of the notable names featured.

Overall, Joanne is a decent album that raises questions from the listener. What next from Gaga? Can she maintain a consistent fan base when she herself doesn’t seem to know what kind of artist she is?

JAGWAR MA’S sophomore effort sees the Australian trio building on the better parts of their first album. While Howlin was undoubtedly a pretty solid debut, Every Now & Then takes Jagwar Ma to new heights.

Despite hailing from Australia, the band’s sound is deeply rooted in Madchester, acid house, trip-hop, and pretty much every other niche British genre from the late 80s/early 90s (except, maybe, shoegaze).

Jagwar Ma takes the best aspects of these genres and mashes them into something entirely new that is a treat on the ears. A refreshing change in a world oversaturated with Mercury Prize nominated middle-ofthe-roadsters — you know who you are.

While their first album fell down in its latter half, in Every Now & Then the opposite is true. The first three tracks, while decent, pale in comparison to what follows.

The album only really hits its groove when it reaches ‘Give Me A Reason’. At seven minutes it is the longest song on the album, with lyrics and vocals secondary to Jono Ma’s synths and general production on this track. From there on in, things only continue to build up.

The album builds on itself to form arguably one of the strongest releases of 2016 so far, with album highlights including ‘Ordinary’, ‘Batter Up’, ‘High Rotations’, and album closer ‘Colours of Paradise’. With the exception of the forgettable ‘Slipping’, the last eight tracks are a euphoric listening experience.

In A Nutshell: Imagine Tame Impala mixed with Primal Scream, but so much better.

SWET Shop Boys are a rap duo comprising of Heems, formerly of Das Racist, and Riz MC, aka actor Riz Ahmed. Cashmere is their debut album, following 2014’s Swet Shop EP. Riz and Heems are separated by heritage, religion and the Atlantic Ocean — a divide extending to their rapping styles. Heems plays the joker, peppering his verses with bizarre, wacky lines, often to great effect. Riz plays the straight man. While Heems sounds relaxed, expending no effort, Riz’s verses are carefully crafted, and he spits in an energetic, unabashedly British way, exemplified by album highlight ‘T5’.

The album’s production is handled entirely by London-based Redinho, who creates a unique sound by combining eastern instrumental sounds with heavy 808s and synths. As such, Cashmere’s sonic palette is distinctly South Asian while remaining accessibly familiar to Western audiences. Lyrical references abound to baklava, Hare Krishnas and Kama Sutra, as well as to the more usual Tupac, André 3000, Beyoncé and Jay Z. The album’s real strength is its ability to be both thought provoking and fun at the same time. Islamophobia and racial stereotyping are constant themes throughout. Yet the pair also know how to have a good time and infuse these topics with a refreshing sense of humour. Heems’ hook on ‘No Fly List’ — ‘I’m so fly, bitch/but I’m on a no fly list’ – is golden.

The album’s major flaw — aside from Heems’ solo cut ‘Swish Swish’, which never really ignites — is that it is too short, clocking in at just 34 minutes. There is a lot going on here, and it seems likely that Heems and Riz have enough material for a longer LP.

Maeve Costello In A Nutshell: This is the record Taylor Swift would make if she had the balls.

In A Nutshell: A unique, thoroughly enjoyable record; it deals with serious political issues while maintaining a sense of humour.

Ezra Maloney

Cian Montague

“The Carney” Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds

Tomás Ó Mathúna, Station Manager

“Helicopter” XTC

Willem McCartney, Tech Manager

“Eating Glue” Paranoid London Barry Walsh, Liaison Manager

“Cranes in the Sky” Solange Emer O’Hara, Secretary

“Winaloto” Tommy Cash

Peter Fitz, Events Officer

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OTwo//Fashion

NOWHERE BOYS

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OTwo//Fashion

Supplier: A Kind of Guise and A.P.C at Nowhere, Aungier St. Models: James Casey and John Vaughan Photographer: Camille Lombard Shoot Co-ordinator: Katie Devlin

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OTwo//Fashion

La Vie En Chanel

Before the introduction of their new line, Shane Cullen investigates the journey of iconic fashion house Chanel from old-style Parisian glamour to its current modern Renaissance.

WHEN asked about Chanel, one would probably think of the classic No.5 perfume, simple elegance and vintage couture. Karl Lagerfeld, however, has breathed new life into the brand in the form of new styles and celebrity ambassadors such as Kristen Stewart, Lily-Rose Depp and new face Willow Smith. They follow in the footsteps of fellow A-list names including Blake Lively and Keira Knightley to become the face of the brand. This move has not only created a new image for the brand, but has also gained a wider audience to appeal to.

In his 33 year-reign as creative director for Chanel, Lagerfeld has turned aroundthelabel’simage,pushingdesign boundarieswhere no director had gone before. Lagerfeld was no stranger to the world of design and trends before heading up Chanel, having been the head of French fashion house Chloé and a contributor for Fendi. One of his turning pointswas 1983’s Haute Couture collection,followingYvesSaintLaurent’s lead and presenting his own take on the empowering female tuxedo.Among the showcase included tailored suits and the classic Chanel black dress, all with a modern touch.

In 2016, that re-invention of creative flair has showed no signs of slowing

down, with Chanel’s 2017 Spring/SummerReady-to-Wearcollectionshowcasing an exciting range of playful colours and structured pieces in an innovatively

“Karl Lagerfeld has breathed new life into the brand in the form of new styles and celebrity ambassadors.” creative runwayshow, allwhile retaining thatever-so-recognisableChanelcharm.

The catwalk embraced the theme of computer technology, opening with models wearing futuristic white helmets — a combination that looked to have been inspired by Daft Punk and Star Wars. Along with the helmets were gloves and boots to match, all while donning classic suits.

Lagerfeld’s runway concept brought together original pieces that remain timeless, even within a modern backdrop.

Lagerfeld’s catwalk shows are not the only thing that has generated intrigue; the addition of famous faces has also contributed greatly. Woman of the moment Kristen Stewart has

proven herself to be quite a success since becoming the face of Chanel clothing, as well as eyewear and beauty range projects. The addition of Stewart has been a mutual success, with Chanel retaining a fresh-faced image, while Stewart has silenced red carpet critics and found her style with the likes of androgynous suits, bringing with it a cool attitude to match.

With the appointment of young Hollywood royalty Lily-Rose Depp and Willow Smith as new faces, Chanel is looking to retain its bold, modern image while broadening its appeal beyond the confines of the older, sophisticated woman.

Chanel eyewear from 2015

Campus Chic Tzarini Meyler “I am wearing black because Voldemort is my Queen.”

Orla Donovan “This is literally all that was clean.”

photos by: camille lombard

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Chanel as we know it has come a long way from its Parisian hat-selling beginnings. Ultimately, it is down to KarlLagerfeld and his creative vision for the journey it has been on to become the global empire it is today. The 2017 Spring/ Summercollectionsretainanabundance ofvibrant imagination, continuing towin overfashion critics and fans of the brand while ensuring that the modern era of Chanel is its most exciting yet.

“Chanel is looking to retain its bold, modern image while broadening its appeal beyond the confines of the older, sophisticated woman.”

OTwo//Fashion

F ash ion Bloggers in t he 21st Century With the authenticity of fashion bloggers dividing the industry, Polly Butterfield examines the argument on both sides.

THE DEBATE surrounding the presence of bloggers in the fashion industry has been a fierce one since the rise of the professional fashion blogger about ten years ago. Yet the exact place of career bloggers in the fashion industry is somewhat ambiguous. Does the fact that bloggers can now gain so much attention from their online presence change anything about their authenticity?

This issue can largely only be viewed through a 21st-century lens, looking at the rise of the internet as a whole which is, of course, what gave bloggers their platform in the first place. For most millennial fashion enthusiasts, their first introduction to fashion blogs could well have been Style Rookie, aka Tavi Gevinson,whowas a tender13years-oldwhen first extended invitations to Fashion Week.

Young lovers of fashion watched another like-minded peer taking pictures of herself in kooky outfits.

Adding some witty commentary and sitting front row at Dior, a whole new generation were inspired to start blogging, in the hopes that they too would be interviewed and spark controversial debate.

Of course, not everyone is lucky enough to strike gold with a successful blog and large following. This provokes

some serious concern regarding the intentions of today’s fashion bloggers.

What is on offer now is so much more than a front row seat at fashion week; it’s

“What is on offer now is so much more than a front row seat at fashion week. Essentially, it’s a whole career.” freeclothes,beautyproducts,travel,parties and a celebritystatus. Essentially, it’s awhole career. In thisway, the content of blogs is constantly changing to adapt to newfollowers and product sponsorship.

Many fashion insiders see this as inauthentic and not dedicated to the greater cause of the industry.

However, looking through a 21stcenturylens, it is a sorryfact that physical magazineshavesimplylostmuchoftheir readership,duetohigherprintcostscontrastedwith the instant and free content online. Are bloggers, therefore, just the new generation of fashion editors — the new dictators of style?

Often the writing is intelligent and funny (in particular Leandra Medine of The Man Repeller), and they do similar work to that of magazine staff,

despite not being under the banner of a publication. A large part of the fashion industry is based on product sponsorship and advertising, so why should bloggers, just a product of their time, be told they are not worthy of a spot at the high table of the fashion industry?

The whole arena of fashion blogging has grown over the last ten years. In some ways, bloggers have become a happy digital medium between fashion journalist, ‘It’ person, and celebrity model, all of whom have been permanent fixtures at Fashion Week since the 90s. A lot of the criticism aimed at successful bloggers by industry insiders could

potentially be anxiety at the prospect of seeing beautifully photographed and printed magazines become obsolete in favour of the immediacy of the internet. However, if bloggers do offer this mix of roles and authenticity, there may just be a way for bloggers and fashion journalists to work in harmony and not in competition.

“Are bloggers, therefore, just the new generation of fashion editors — the new dictators of style, if you will?”

The High-Fashion Hybrid

As H&M get ready to release their latest high fashion collaboration, Emma O’Regan-Reidy evaluates the true value of this yearly fashion crossover. photo credit: jean-paul goode

nipulated into geometric shapes and animal prints, which can seamlessly be incorporated into an eye-catching outfit for any occasion.

Miuccia Prada, of the eponymous iconic Italian fashion house, has in the past expressed her reluctance to allow a Prada/high Chance the Rapper, menswear rep for Kenzo x H&M street collaboration, saying that collections between luxury brands SHOWCASING high-profile faces such and stores such as Topshop or H&M as musical artist Chance the Rapper and supermodel Iman, the collabora“While Prada and others may tion between the French luxury house indeed look down upon it, Kenzo and H&M boasts Kenzo’s collaborations such as Kenzo signature prints on H&M’s casual dayx H&M make often bizarre and to-night wear. Each piece dismisses the typical warm tones of the autumn admittedly elitist high fashion season with their kaleidoscopic more approachable and designs. affordable.”

Bold colours are audaciously ma-

merely produce “a bad copy” of the original.

While Prada and others may indeed look down upon it, collaborations such as Kenzo x H&M make often bizarre and admittedly elitist high fashion more approachableandaffordable,bytranslating avant-garde patterns and styles on to morecasualeverydaypieces.Thisintegration of luxury brands that most people probably wouldn’t ordinarily know into thepricerangeofmiddle-classconsumers promotesthebrandand,often,strengthens the house’s reputation.

These collaborations are also a gateway to high fashion for those who would not normally be exposed to brands such as Kenzo or Prada.

Through these collaborations, a younger generation is inspired, piquing their interest in the fashion world early on. In addition, attaching pop

“These collaborations are also a gateway to high fashion for those who wouldn’t normally be exposed to brands such as Kenzo.” culture figures to iconic houses — such as Zayn Malik collaborating with Versace or Gigi Hadid with Tommy Hilfiger — also opens the brand to a younger demographic. This can even result in a new group of loyal customers for the legends of high fashion.

So, for those of us who won’t be able to afford a Prada trench coat or crushed velvet dress this holiday season, Kenzo x H&M’s tiger-printed turtlenecks and cosy pile bombers will be available online and in shops from November 3rd.

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OTwo//Arts&Lit

Bob Dylan and the Beginning of a New Literary Tradition The decision to choose Bob Dylan as the 2016 Nobel Laureate in Literature has sparked divided opinion and debate. Barbara Campos considers both sides of the argument.

Bob Dylan’s songs have been described as Homeric and literary, even if the songwriter sometimes seems to shy away from such high praise -“the academics, they ought to know. I’m not really qualified. I don’t have any opinion.”

Funny and mysterious, Dylan was definitely an interesting and innovative choice from a committee that sometimes ignores writers of great talent. The statement released said quite simply and succinctly why Dylan deserved the win – “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.”

In 114 years of the Nobel Prize in Literature there had never been a laureate who was involved in the art of songwriting. In the weeks leading up to the announcement, articles focused on writers like Philip Roth, Haruki Murakami and Adunis – Dylan wasn’t even a contender.

Following the announcement some expressed jubilation at the choice, but there were also those that were very sceptical.

“In 114 years there has never been a laureate involved in the art of songwriting, until now.”

Some were even angry, asking almost in desperation: how did this happen? Twitter and Facebook exploded with posts that justified or questioned the decision.

Perhaps, the most striking aspect of all this was that for, maybe the first time ever, it felt like people did not have to pretend to be acquainted with someone’s work. Dylan is the first of all winners that is widely listened to, and it is not just a victory for him but for all lyrical songwriters.

Dylan’s songs are a natural continuation of the English literary tradition. Most negative reactions after the announcement seem have been because his words are best understood when accompanied by music, they do not stand alone. It’s very easy to forget that poetry as we know it is part of an oral tradition. Just because something doesn’t

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exist in print from the start it does not mean it is not as worthy. Dylan’s work is still part of this historical oral tradition. ‘A Had Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’ is clearly part of the ballad tradition, especially because of his use of the question and answer form.

“Oh, where have you been, my blue eyed son?

Oh and where have you been my darling young one?

I’ve stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains I’ve walked and I’ve crawled on six crooked highways.”

Established writers and scholars have for a long time acknowledged Dylan’s genius.

When this song came out in 1963, the poet Allen Ginsberg, an influence on Dylan himself, cried because he felt “the torch had been passed on to another generation”.

Christopher Ricks, former Professor of Poetry in Oxford, and an eminent scholar of modern poetry, has dedicated his time both to extensively annotating T.S. Eliot, and writing on Dylan. One of his points, familiar to anyone studying English and closereading, is Dylan’s use of prepositions: “Everything that constitutes a Dylan song in performance must matter, since a work of art is an organic whole… That includes what might seem to be very small changes indeed. Take Dylan’s art with those humble workaday words, prepositions. Here his variants encompass a great deal: the different impetus, say in… ‘Don’t fear if you hear/A foreign sound to your ear,” as against ‘…A foreign sound in your ear.”

It is this attention to minute details that differentiates him from the ordinary singersongwriter, and catapults him into the realm of literature. However, there is always a bittersweet feeling after hearing yet another old white man has won the Nobel. In 114 winners, only 14 are women, and only a handful were people of colour.

A lot of what Dylan has to say about women can sometimes feel clichéd. ‘Lay Lady Lay’ plays with the idea of the rugged male – “His clothes are dirty but his hands are clean” – and the ever-so-frail female. In ‘Just like a Woman’ the woman is a trickster, “she fakes”, and “makes love like a woman” but she is also feeble, she “breaks”, and “aches” like a “little girl”. There is also that

“There is always a bittersweet feeling after hearing yet another old white man has won the Nobel” very dubious advertisement for Victoria’s Secret where Dylan appears drooling over half naked girls. The academy has once again managed to perpetuate the power of the white male.

Nevertheless, this is a small victory, not just for Dylan but for all worthy songwriters.

In a way it cements songwriting as part of

Bob Dylan: Portrait of the Artist

“high culture”, and, perhaps, in some years songs will be a part of the English curriculum in schools, and students may study Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Van Morrison and Joni Mitchell, in conjunction with Shakespeare, Dickens, and Joyce.

This is also the reason many people felt disappointed at Dylan’s response, or rather lack of response to decision. It was a chance for him to make a stance for the sake of others too. The New York Times wondered whether Dylan might refuse the prize, like Jean Paul Sartre who at the time of his win said he would not “allow himself to be transformed into an institution”. After this backlash the Telegraph managed to get hold of him, and his response was naturally that he was very surprised and happy, and said that he would be at the ceremony “if it’s at all possible.” We will have to wait to find out what exactly that means.

Illustration : Aisling mcguire

OTwo//Arts&Lit

Writing the “Other” Saul Fidgeon questions how well different sexualities and races are represented in Irish literature.

THE “other” is an age-old concept used in literature to isolate those who are different in some way from what is thought of as “normal”. Groups are “othered” for reasons such as gender, sexuality, race, religion or social class. People suffering disabilities, for example, are often used as the other because their physical or mental differences make it easy for the reader to see them as abnormal.

By “other-ing” these individuals, writers encourage an “us-versus-them” mentality in readers that tends to be biased against minorities.

The twentieth century saw many movements for social change that improved the treatment of minority groups, and these have carried on into the twenty-first century. Literature has always played a crucial role in these movements for its ability to simultaneously give a voice to and shape a culture. Nowhere is this clearer than in Ireland, a country known for its literary talent. The stories told by our playwrights and authors echo the issues of their generations, and it is unfortunate, yet telling, that Irish literature has been so slow to adapt a fair and equal view of groups that have been “othered.”

The treatment of gay and other queer people in Ireland has been historically unjust.

One of our country’s most famous talents, Oscar Wilde, was arrested and imprisoned for his homosexuality in 1895. In 1983, almost

“Literature has always played a crucial role in social movements for its ability to simultaneously give a voice to and shape a culture.” a century later, Declan Flynn was beaten to death in Dublin’s Fairview Park. This was the most vicious in a string of attacks on homosexual men in the area. Flynn’s death was a spark for change, however, as it contributed to the development of the gay pride movement in Ireland and the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1993.

Acceptance of queer culture in Ireland has

have been passed because of a mistrust of non-nationals. This mistrust has unfortunately become a part of Irish identity, made acceptable by the old joke of “I’m not racist but…” This treatment is mostly reserved for foreign people of different skin colour, and it is deep-rooted within Irish culture.

In the 1960s this became so aggressive that the Nigerian government warned its students of the danger of studying in Ireland.

Beatsploitation, the first Irish novel to feature a black protagonist

“While queer culture in Ireland has made continuous progress, treatment of other races has not been so forward-thinking.”

This fear and hate of people who are racially and religiously different from what is considered normal in Ireland makes it difficult for them to be a part of Irish society. Kevin Curran, a teacher from Balbriggan, blamed the lack of other races in Irish literature for this divide. “African students were being excluded from our national literature simply by being ignored by it.”

He remedied this in 2013 by writing Beatsploitation, the first Irish novel to have a black protagonist. Wishing to avoid appropriating the voice of another culture, he wrote from the point of view of a white man discriminating against Kembo, the protagonist, to draw attention to how Irish people generally treat foreigners.

In the three years since the publication of Beatsploitation, no African-Irish writers have risen to prominence to take the place in our national literature that Kevin feels they deserve. However there has been a wealth of brilliant writing from authors new and old in recent years. The post-Celtic Tiger period has seen a literary renaissance of sorts. It is likely that the books we see in shop windows today and those we will see over the next few years will do even more to break the boundaries between what is “normal” and what is “other”.

grown stronger over the past three decades and it has been helped greatly by queer writing. Playwright Frank McGuinness and authors Colm Tóibín and Emma Donoghue, three of This type of racial abuse has resurfaced in the the biggest names in Irish literature, identify 21st century due to the fear of terrorist groups as gay and through their writing give a strong such as ISIS; in this generation the abuse is directed at anyone whose skin tone suggests voice to the Irish LGBT community. they come from a Muslim country.

The success of biographies written by queer celebrities like Graham Norton and Panti Bliss further reinforce the place queer writing has in Irish literature. McGuinness’ most notable play, Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme, was written in the mid-80s, a dangerous time for any expression of homosexuality, but McGuinness’ opinion on this is not one of fear: “gay characters have been few and far between . . . It was about bloody time, and it had to be faced.”

While queer culture in Ireland has made continuous progress, treatment of other races has not been so forward-thinking. In 2004 the Irish people passed the citizenship referendum which stopped babies born to foreign parents within Ireland from automatically being granted citizenship, a vote widely believed to Writer Oscar Wilde, imprisoned for his homosexuality

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OTwo//Arts&Lit

Race and E x p ectations in Th e S e l l o u t Last month, Paul Beatty became the first American to win the Man Booker Prize. Barbara Campos delves into the novel that won, The Sellout.

PAUL Beatty’s The Sellout, winner of the Man Booker Prize, is a satirical novel set in the fictional city of Dickens, Los Angeles. It all starts in the Supreme Court of Justice where the protagonist, Me, is being accused “of everything from desecration of the Homeland to conspiracy to upset the apple cart.”

We later discover that Me’s crimes were due to the reinstatement of segregation and slave ownership. Beatty then traces back the life of this man, deeply affected by a history and culture that changed from night to day.

This feeling is encapsulated when Me sees a black comedian kick out two white audience members in a comedy club for laughing saying “this is our thing”. Me’s thought – “so what exactly is our thing?” is what this book is about. It questions everything we may believe regarding black cultural identity.

The protagonist’s relationship with his father, a psychologist with rather unorthodox experiments, overshadows the entire book.

“Beatty talked to 18 publishers before being offered a deal.”

Even after his death there is a sense that Me reacts against him, or in his memory. The narrator details that at age of eight his father decides to test the bystander effect (“the more people around to provide help, the less likely one is to receive help”) by having him stand around an intersection: “Dollar bills bursting from my pockets, the latest shiniest electronic gadgetry jammed into my ear canals, a hip-hop heavy gold chain hanging from my neck, and, inexplicably, a set of custom-made carpeted Honda Civic floor mats draped over my forearm like a waiter’s towel…”

His father then proceeds to mug the boy

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himself, and people around him finish it off by taking whatever was left and beating him up.

This relationship has more to it, and beneath its harsh superficiality, it is clear that this is a father trying to inspire his son to be aware of the infinite amount of inequality in society.

After his father dies, expectation falls on Me to fulfill his duties: lead the Dum Dum Donut Intellectuals, a group that meets bimonthly to discuss cases of inequality. Me is a reluctant member, considering the meetings pointless.

Hereafter, Me begins helping the police when there are cases of black people on the verge of suicide, or going through breakdowns. He acts almost like a specialist in hostage situations, highlighting the disparities between the police force and black communities. It’s after one of these occasions that Me ends up owning a slave. After attempting suicide Hominy, a former child-star nostalgic for the past, explains that he has completely lost his sense of identity – “Dickens disappeared, I disappeared… I just want to feel relevant.”

This is the prevalent idea in the novel: what does one do after one’s identity is taken? It seems a reflection on the consequences of total abandonment, of an establishment that

thinks everything is okay. After the abolishment of slavery, segregation, the civil rights movement, and even a black US president, there is this temptation to say everything is fine, we are all equal.

Beatty explores the disfranchisement of a group of people through ways that may outwardly appear to be fair. The response these characters have may appear extreme, but maybe it can be said that they adopt slavery as a way to belong again, and segregation to achieve control. The more you read this book, the more it will become clear that the “racism” in it is simply a means established for society to give African-American’s a defined presence. Otherwise, they face being ignored

and put away. They do not want to integrate into white society and culture. They are proud to be black, and proud to be a part of a different culture and history.

Beatty achieves this with extremely poetic language and without ever stopping to be funny. It was also a hard book to sell – Beatty talked to 18 publishers before being offered a deal. Every publisher said it was great but maybe too hot to handle. While the book can make you uncomfortable, and as a white, middle-class woman I felt uncomfortable, this is not a reason to shy away from reading, publishing, and discussing racial issues. In fact, it is very important we do. This book is a must-read.

“This is the prevalent idea of the novel: what does one do after one’s identity is taken?”

Paul Beatty author of Man Booker-prize winning novel The Sellout

FATAL FOURWAY Worst Food Experience

Niamh O’Regan

David Monaghan

Roisin Guyett-Nicholson

Seán Hayes

AS a young child, I was fortunate in many ways, I travelled quite a bit and was mercifully not fussy about food; always an excellent combination. Yet on one of these travels, I experienced what was potentially the most disgusting thing I have ever eaten.

In the depths of an American fair, there was a hotdog stand, naturally selling highly processed meat wrapped in a highly processed roll to be covered in a highly processed sauce of the customer’s choosing. Tricked by the promise of a good hotdog, I found culinary ruin.

An even-more-processed-than-normal hotdog, interspersed with what my father described as “something which would not even pass as an apology for cheese”. It was the worst sort of surprise; slimey and lingering. It was nothing short of vile. Sickening to the extent that my entire family felt extraordinarily ill after, and I’m not even sure if anyone finished theirs.

I am not squeamish, I understand the makings of the highly processed hotdog. Nor am I vegetarian. I also quite like cheese. This is the day I learned that just because you love two things separately. It doesn’t mean you should try and combine them to create an epic taste combination.

On the other hand, if you want a monstrous taste combination, please, be my guest. I hear you can buy cheese in a pressurised can and it comes out just like whipped cream, but bright orange. The “cheese dogs” as they are nauseously remembered, never fail to elicit a grimace and green tinge from the rest of my family. The youngest has been spared the trauma by virtue of her youth, but the rest of us forever try to forget.

MY worst food story comes from a time in my life when I was a tad more naïve and energetic than I am today (ask anyone in the office, I’m a useless shell of a person). I had just begun my Erasmus adventure in the exotic city of Nottingham and I was ready to take in the sights.

Having recently befriended some folk in my host university’s LGBTQ+ society I felt it absolutely necessary to go out and drink with them at once. I mean, what better way to solidify lifelong friendships than to become immediately inebriated? And so it was set: we would go to the only gay bar in the city - Propaganda.

I was already familiar with ‘Prop,’ as it was known, for it was the gay bar featured in a favourite film of mine: Weekend. It is the bar at which the two protagonists meet, so I was looking forwarding to seeing it in real life. Grand.

The only problem was that I couldn’t attend my classes, prepare a meal and get ready in sufficient time. Not to worry, I thought, sure I can just get a meal on campus. Famous last words. I ordered a curry at the canteen and when it arrived I was horrified to find the sauce was mostly liquid, the rice hard, and the chicken really chewy. Whatever, I thought, I don’t have enough time to be fussy, and so I wolfed down my meal.

Later that night, in a fit of excitement, I drank pint after pint and accepted every drink offer that came my way. To this day I maintain that it was the excitement of being a new place that drove me to such an extreme, but to be honest, I’ve always been this dumb. Anyway, the drink caught up with me eventually and in the midst of kissing someone on the dance floor I had to stop and excuse myself from the building. Obviously concerned, this boy followed me outside.

His curiosity was satisfied when I turned to greet him only to end up vomiting on his new white trainers.

He still hasn’t called me back.

Dear reader, let me paint you a picture. I was 17 As students, we very often don’t get the chance years-old and wildly excited to be going to my to go home and visit our long-suffering, worried first proper grown up dinner party. It was go- parents. There was one weekend, though, recently ing to be so much fun and the realisation of all when I decided that I would make the trip across my dreams that I would be a sophisticated lady. the country, and go home for the weekend. After Never mind that these were the same people I all, I hadn’t had a cooked meal in about three saw every day in school, the simple setting of a weeks, and I was finally out of clean socks. My dinner party would change all that. Everyone parents were overjoyed, to say the least. They decided to make the most of it, and took me out would be immeasurably glamorous. for the dinner, to the fanciest restaurant my town My friend was hosting a DIY version of Come can afford.

Dine With Me. I thought it would be great. Her Now I must admit, it was a thoroughly enjoycupcakes and cookies were really amazing, so I able evening. Drinks were flowing, I had a sublime was expecting great things. main-course and conversation was generally All that changed when the food was served. good — my father had only made one politically While I hadn’t anticipated Michelin Star cooking, incorrect, mildly-sexist joke all evening. the potato pancakes that were served up were So what’s the problem with this, you might disappointing to say the least. I don’t believe ask? Isn’t this issue’s column meant to be where the chef had ever heard of salt and pepper. we tell you our worst experiences with food? It’s Perhaps cardboard pancakes would have been true, my story does not include processed or rota more accurate description. Though of course ten food; it does not even contain vomit. What it this was my best friend. I couldn’t possibly say does involve, however, is dessert and one indeanything about this tasteless garbage. Years of scribably beautiful waitress.

Our waitress saunters towards and table. AlCatholic guilt and conditioning by my parents ready I can feel my face and ears going red. She meant I could never be so impolite. So, instead clears the tables, hands out the dessert menus I choked them down, trying not to look her in and asks, “Can I get anybody dessert?” Now I have the eye. been waiting for the sticky-toffee pudding since The one shining light on my horizon was I got here. It is meant to be the highlight of my dessert. This was a friend who had baked renight. But when you combine my excitement, my ally tasty penguin-shaped chocolate cupcakes embarrassment towards the waitress, and a good and cookies. I thought dessert would be the re- old Freudian slip, everything is ruined. deeming part of the night. Oh how wrong I was.

I take the first part of “sticky” and the last part It was supposed to be chocolate mousse but of “toffee”, and end up asking the poor woman, it hadn’t set properly. Instead of fluffy sweet “Can I please have a stiffy?”, much to the shock goodness, I got weird chocolate soup. Overall of my parents. The waitress took it well, telling not the brightest ending to my visions of a high- me that it wasn’t on the menu. I, however, am class cocktail party. horrified. And I’ve just beaten my dad for saying the most inappropriate, mildly-sexist thing of the evening.

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A PERTURE //out of place//

ryan O’Donnell

Louise Flanagan

Louise Flanagan

ryan O’Donnell

If you are interested in submitting photographs or illustrations for Aperture please send them to design@universityobserver.ie

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