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Trinity News
trinity ball
guide
May 7th
2004
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with
contents
O UTDOOR
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stage
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e
M AIN
stage
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stage
S OUL
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DANCE
e
stage
Things
to do in
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Dublin
D
when you’re
ead
on your feet...
(The morning after the night before)
I
e
Outdoor Stage
22.00-22.30 DJ Leagues
22.30-00.30 Antibalas Afrobeat
00.50-02.00 Youngblood Brassband
02.15-03.30 U2 Tribute
03.45-05.00 Classic Beatles
Front
Arch
Dance Stage
Outdoor Stage
Soul Stage
22.30-23.30 DJ Adrian Gibson
23.30-00.20 Electrelane
00.45-01.15 The Things
01.30-02.30 Buck 65
02.40-03.40 DJ Adrian Gibson
03.50-05.00 Julie Dillon &
The Company
Dance
Soul Stage
Stage
Main
Stage
New Square
New* Atrium Acoustic Stage
22.00-03.00 Solo performance by David Kitt plus special guests
22.00-22.30 BOTDJ winner
22.30-23.30 Scott McNaughton & BJ
23.30-00.30 DJ Flip
00.30-01.30 Scott McNaughton & BJ
01.30-03.00 Headman
03.00-05.00 2 Many DJs(Soulwax)
Main Stage
22.30-23.00 Business (BOTB winner)
23.15-23.45 Republic of Loose
00.00-00.50 Dizee Rascal
01.10-02.10 The Rapture
02.30-03.30 The Divine Comedy
03.50-05.00 Jerry Fish &The
Mudbug Club
Out door
Stage
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra
22.30-00.30
Those of you who thought ‘Fela Kuti’ was a kissing disease should take
advantage of the opportunity for enlightenment on all things Afrobeat which the
Antibalas have to offer. Out of Brooklyn, but carrying their African, Caribbean and LatinAmerican influences to the fore, this 13-piece orchestra is known for their “lustrous horns, upfront organ, locked- down
grooves and wicked percussion” (Exclaim!). It was only back in
1999 that the band arrived in London for the
first time with no place to stay, but with 3 albums, seventy ‘Africalia’ parties in Manhattan and countless live shows to
their credit now, Antibalas are as established as their anti-establishment
politics allow them to be. The focus with this band tends to be on the message
as much as the groove, emblazoning themselves with ‘Anti-bullets’ as a group
name being only their first step towards pacifist political activism. But the
intermittent nature of their lyrics and strong percussive presence means that
the Antibalas attitude is more likely to be moving your feet than being shoved
down your throat. With members proficient in Brazilian and West African
drumming, Spanish guitar and Balinese gamelan, a fun game to play is to try
and see if any two people on stage are on the same continent at the same time. The
group return to Trinity for the Ball after a raucous gig two years ago which left the Buttery walls sweating even more than usual. Expect killer horn solos.
Atrium Acoustic Stage
22.00-03.00 Solo performance by David Kitt plus
very special guests to follow
III
The Youngblood Brass Band
00.50-02.00
The Youngblood Brass Band does what it says on the packet: it brings
together 6 horns, 2 drummers a sousaphonist and an MC to create a multiphonic sound injected with youthful scratchings and hip-hop cuts. You can
expect these Madison, Wisconsin boys to bring a bit of New Orleans to the
Ball- filtered through their own punk, jazz and samba sensibilities. After
rumours of stolen trombones and sousaphone in Brussels, the band should
be in full complement for their first ever appearance in Ireland. Three
albums into their caucaphonous career, the Youngbloods have plenty of
material at their disposal to set the stage ablaze with words, beats and harmony.
Classic Beatles
03.45-05.00
Like mankind, many of us have pondered the existence of tribute bands. Why are they here? What is their
purpose? Why are they spreading like a cancer over the world? The answer to all of our questions (yes,
the mankind - related ones as well) is found in events like the Trinity Ball. In the wee hours of the morning, listening to butchered renditions of your favourite band’s greatest hits seems like a much better idea
than it really is. This lot, mercifully, have left their meat cleavers at home. They've got decent voices,
they're well drilled, in fact they sound like… The Shadows. If you, like much of humanity, enjoy no-brain
pleasant singsongs at this stage of the evening, then this is perfect fare. If, however, you don’t like The
Beatles… you probably haven’t read this far. Your loss.
Main
Republic
of Loose
23.15-23.45
With the imminent release of their debut
album and dates this summer at the Fleadh
and Glastonbury festivals, Republic of Loose
couldn’t hope for a better buzz to accompany
their crackling brand of dirty grunge-soul. The
Dublin lads were recently joined by Shane McGowan
onstage at a gig in London, a fittingly symbolic passing
of the torch for all that godless Irish men with guitars feel
they have in common with the gospel singers and bluesmen
of America’s deep south. Anyone who caught them during
their slot at Witnness last year or recent gigs at Whelan’s and
Temple Bar Music Centre knows what to expect from this band:
a driving, sweet soul sound tempered by a funky, bouncing bass
line and the occasional rock edge. Their most recent single ‘Girl
I’m Going to Fuck You Up’ indicates not only that this band is capable of the perfect blend of these ingredients, but also that they’re
indifferent to the sensibilities of daytime radio DJs. The song has
secured an audience regardless as theme music for the RTE program ‘The Big Bow Wow’, and has confirmed this band’s mounting
presence. The Ball Guide has its doubts that Mr. McGowan will be
able to make it through security to join them, but you never know.
The Rapture
01.10-02.10
To American music magazine 'Filter',
they're the "coolest band in the world". To
others they're a mediocre indie band, rescued from anonymity by the talents of
Tim Goldsworthy and James Murphy. But
regardless of their merits prior to their
encounter with this dance-influenced
production team, the D.F.A., it's hard to
deny that The Rapture now have the
potential to make a major breakthrough.
The entire band have the requisite úberhip dress sense, frontman Luke Jenner has
the girlie voice that virtually ensures success,
and their songs are beat-heavy but breezy, retro
anthems stressing the primacy of love. So if songs
like 'Love is All' and 'House of Jealous Lovers' sound
appealing, head on down to front square for a fix of
dance-influenced, light indie-rock.
V
The Divin
02.30-
The apppearance at this year’s Trinity B
power of a few last minute phonecalls and t
pulling out of all their Dublin shows (A pox a
children’s children. After that, we’ll forgive an
short notice to fill the breach, and become this
ally expect? Will The Divine Comedy be a surpris
Delightful as the idea of getting a nap in front squ
with this chap. Christening ‘The Divine Comedy’ i
has ensured that the band’s music mirror his own
ble (albeit laced with lashings and lashings of iron
produced the ever-popular ‘National Express’, ‘Gin
Despite apparently going through a bit of a mid-life
band (but insisting on keeping the ‘Divine Comed
moodier but interesting effort, and reports sugges
that’s just impossible to resist. Expect a good time,
ne Comedy
-03.30
Stage
Dizzee Rascal
00.00-00.50
Jerry Fish
and the
Mudbug Club
03.50-05.00
This band have cut something of a
swathe across the comatose Irish
music scene in the past year, with their
Ball of one Neil Hannon is a testament to the
piscine front man leering from the cover
the legendary Cahill charm. With the Charlatans
of Hotpress and the RTE guide amongst
and a curse on them. And their children. And their
others (the Irish equivalent of bigger than
nd forget) an Irish act has stepped in at appallingly
Jesus). Jerry Fish (possibly not his real
s year’s headliners. But what can the uninitiated actuname) is living proof that good looks, or even a
se hit, or just lull us all into a soft, sweet drunken sleep?
beautiful voice, are not a prerequisite for a
uare on a Saturday Morning is, that’s unlikely to happen
singing career. JFATMC were formed in 2002 out
in a moment of willful pretension back in 1990, Hannon
of the ashes of An Emotional Fish, who made
n unique taste, being occasionally obtuse, often inaccessimegabucks when some Italian had a hit with one of
ny), and almost invariably entertaining. Along the way, they
their songs. Since then, they have played the main
19-year-old Dizzee Rascal is as young as most
n Soaked Boy’ and yes, that theme tune from Father Ted.
stage at Witnness, released the award-winning ‘Be
first years, but has already accomplished
crisis at the moment, which led to him dismissing his entire
Yourself’, and are on this year’s Glastonbury bill.
much, much more than a 2.1 in Introduction to
dy’ name) not too long ago, his newest album is a darker,
Their press blurb describes them as “a vibrant
Organisation and Management. With a
st that he’s still got a canine eagerness to please onstage
mash of lounge lizard schmooze and mariachi pasMercury Prize for debut album ‘Boy in da
, maybe even a good show.
sion” (e.g., a shower of drunken buffoons). Live
Corner,’ a sizzling guest spot on the new
shows feature Fish, looking like an elegant hobo,
Basement Jaxx release, and opening dates for
backed by a band and horn section, featuring the
Justin Timberlake already under his belt, Dizzee
Ladybugs on backing vocals. Check them out if
has established himself as Britain’s most promising
you feel like reliving the showband era on
new two-step / hip-hop artist. As braggadocious and
amphetamines.
with as much street-cred as anyone this side of 50 Cent,
(Dizzee was even stabbed several times!), he blends jagged
and jarring garage beats with a raw lyrical flow that would belong
to the New York’s underground rap scene, if the slang and accent
weren’t so East London. Still, what keeps Dizzee from succumbing to the
massive amount of hype heaped upon him is the ability to write introspective
and expressive lyrics that belie his age.
SOU lStage
Electrelane
23.30-00.20
Experimental Sensitive rockers Electrelane have been knocking around since 1998,
hailing from the same Brighton ‘scene’ that produced the Eighties Matchbox B–Line
Disaster, Electric Soft Parade and British Sea Power. With siblings like this, it’s
tempting to say that we got the runt of the litter. They are, of course, keen to play
down the connection to their more famous neighbours, referring disdainfully to
“NME hype manufacturing something that doesn’t exist”. Less endearing,
however, is their self- conscious feminist posturing. “We’re very conscious,”
intimates keyboardist Verity Susman, “that we’re working in a phallicentric
genre.” Phallicentric? That’s a big word for a pretty lady. Having said
that, Electrelane do have a great energy about them, particularly when
playing live, and have the requisite skill and variation in their infectious, aggressive, sensitive rock to be well worth a look. All the same,
make sure you have a clear route to the exit, just in case they start
talking about post-feminism. You have been warned….
DJ Adrian Gibson
22.30-23.30 and 02.40-03.40
VII
We've all been there before. It's an indie weeknight at Anypub, and the DJ is doling out offbeat tunes to the enthusiastic, badly dressed masses. You're slightly better dressed than most people here, and that special somebody
(who's cute, despite a ludicrous taste in, let's say, socks) is dancing progressively closer. You look over to the DJ booth,
pleading with your eyes to "just play 'Hey Ya' one more time. I know, you've put it on three times already, but I really
think I have a chance here! Please". The DJ (wearing, of course, a ghastly shirt) ominously flourishes a Smiths single,
before smiling and putting on.. the B-Side ("look at me! Aren't I ever so alternative?"). Morrissey's love-sick miseryguts
lyrics now seem ever-so-poignant, as the floor empties, and your dreams begin to crumble. Now, it's not that you don't like The
Smiths. In fact, you'll probably listen to them in your room after a long lonely cab ride home, but you're really getting sick of
having a conceited, pretentious DJ ruin your night. Mercifully, DJ Adrian Gibson doesn't treat a crowd in the same way as that
wanker in Doyles last Tuesday night. As resident DJ of the Jazz Café in London, he's used to arty hipster crowds, but on some of their
more 'mainstream' nights, he's been known to produce surprising, enjoyable jazz-funk sets that get people dancing, but don't bore
the pants off them by slavishly playing 'Top Ten Megahits Volume 40'. Recommended for getting the party started.
Buck 65 Being touted by alt. rock royalty is never a
foolproof guarantee of quality, but Buck 65, Thom
York's favourite hip-hop artist (apparently) does
deserve our attention. Hailing from rural Canada, his
work is radically different in style and content to the
"I'm ghetto, I am" posturing of most mainstream rappers. Complimenting this welcome difference is a terrifying prolificacy (18 albums and counting), and a refreshing
willingness to talk frankly about his work. So, if "Dirt roadbreak beat blues, like if Steve Earl made hip-hop" sounds
intriguing, then Buck 65 is worth investigating. If it sounds
unbearably pretentious, don't bother. Buck 65 is interesting,
articulate and a little bit different, but by his own admission
"it's music for patient people, no question"
The Things
00.45-01.15
Tony Wilson, head of Factory records, once commented that “nobody enjoys a jazz musician’s performance more than himself”. Then again, Ian Curtis of Joy
Division fame pointed out in response that “Wilson is a
wanker”. Whichever view you subscribe to (personally I
find both to be true), The Company, a group formed under
the auspices of Jazz Soc here in Trinity, are one group
capable of entertaining the great unwashed. Dabbling in
Soul and Funk, they’ve been knocking around for about
four years, building up a decent fan-base and putting in a
hugely successful Trinity Ball appearance along the way.
Jazzy fun for all.
Buck 65
01.30-02.30
It’s a cliché, but you really will either love or loath The
Things. In frontman Neill Moore’s howl of a voice, you
might hear the next great white hope of Irish rock, ready
to awaken it from flabby, “mellower than thou” slumber.
Then again, you might just wish he’d even attempt to
actually sing. His (melo)dramatic stage persona might
make him seem like a performer gifted with limitless
energy and charisma, or just an talentless fool trying to
disguise his limitations, and you might find yourself praying that he electrocutes himself with his microphone as
he sticks it in his mouth for the seventeenth time. In any
case, if high-adrenaline songs about being a dangerous,
irresistible maniac (the lady doth protest too much
methinks) fuel your engine, it’s well worth making up
your own mind. If not, well, there’s always a chance of
seeing that electrocution. , no question"
Julie Dillon and
The Company
03.50-05.00
Headman
01.30-03.00
Headman, a German duo who specialise in trippy, rolling waves of synth sounds and
funky guitar licks, may have taken their name from an experimental mind-tinkering
Steven Soderbergh film called ‘Schizopolis’, which features a character called
namelessnumberheadman. In another twist a ‘headman’ is either a tribal chief or
an executioner. Dictionary-tastic! Then again, it may simply be a cheery ‘it’s all
in your head…man!’ observation on their music, which aims to create a
dreamlike, sonic mattress to rest your weary, alcohol-drowned body on.
Worth seeing if only to figure out how two guys can play songs featuring guitars, drums, bass, keyboards and a pipe organ. Are they
double-jointed? Perhaps they’ll just throw the synthesizers
out of the window and rattle through an acoustic folk
set. Up-and-coming bands beware, this rambling
nonsense is what you get when you have
a mysterious (read: opaque and uninformative) website.
Dance
DJ Flip:
23.30-00.30
DJ Flip, with a dynamite performance at last December’s International
Turntablist Federation World Championships
has almost singlehandedly put Irish hip-hop on the
map, winning the Federation’s Scratching title. He’s also
no stranger to Trinity, supporting Dublin-based-hip-hop
duo Messiah J and the Expert at the Buttery in February. Fresh
off a headlining Easter Sunday appearance at Rí Ra and with a
new single out this month, Flip is a worthy heir to the championship
crown that was once awarded to Beat Junkie and Rawkus Records’s
Soundbombing mastermind Babu.
IX
Scott McNaughton & Bongo Jason
22.30-23.30 and 00.30-01.30
What can you say about this act? That they represent the collision between two potent live forces, the might of Scott “Who’s
a Naughty Boy Then” McNaughton and the indescribable
audio assault of the legendary Bongo Jason? That both
have been performing on the Dublin live scene, separately, waiting for the opportunity to team up, Power
Ranger like, and force their sonic beats on an
unsuspecting audience? What better event
than the Trinity Ball, where only the most discerning ears can be
found? Only one thing is certain - I made all of this up. The mystery deepens.
Stage
2 Many DJs(Soulwax)
03.00-05.00
The alter ego of Belgian guitar rock
band Soulwax, made up of brothers Stephen
and David Dewaele, 2 Many Djs are one of the leaders
of the mash-up style of mixing cuts and lyrics from songs
with beats from others. And unlike the stylings of current
mash-up hero Danger Mouse’s Jay-Z/Beatles concoction, The
Grey Album, 2 Many DJ’s actually released an album legally. Of course, according to 2 Many
DJ’s website, it took almost three years, over 865 e-mails, 160 faxes and hundreds of phone calls
to clear the tracks from over 45 major and independent record-companies, and put together the 62minute, 2002 release As Heard on Radio Soulwax, Pt. 2. Of course, nowhere else will you find an album
with “I’m Waiting For The Man,” “9 to 5” and “Independent Women Pt. 1” on it. Be prepared for improvisation, classic tracks and the closest thing we’ve got to Grandmaster Flash, sans the fear of copywrite
lawyers.
Things to do in Dublin when
the nice friendly security staff are turfing you unceremoniously out onto the street, but you’re still on a
high (really, you ought to stop consuming E’s like tic-tacs, it’s all fun and games until somebody loses
their mind). Now, if you’re sensible, you go home, have a bite to eat and maybe a nice long nap. If you’re like most people, you’ll go on
to a friends party, where you’ll kill whatever feeble brain cells you have left with whatever happens to be handy, and vow to join the rock
band of your new ‘besht mate’, before crashing out and sleeping for a week. But of course, for the mateless and homeless amongst you,
there’s still plenty to do in town, if you’re brave enough..
So it’s 6am,
Drinks
The Windjammer, Townsend Street
hen I called asking about early houses, the polite gentleman behind the
bar acted as if I had pissed in his mouth: “Yeah, we do have one” he told
me gruffly, “what’s wrong with that?”. The conversation limped along like that
for a while, but I was eventually able to wring from him information on the
prices and opening hours. They open at 7.30am, and it’s €3.50 for a stout, €3.75
for lager. Clearly, you come for the prices, stay for the service with a smile.
Asked about whether they’d be running one after the Trinity Ball, my new
friend only said “not sure, all those Trinity types messing about, spilling drinks
and all that shite”. So, your course of action is obvious: knock on this nasty
prick’s door at 6am until he either lets you in or calls the fuzz.
W
Slattery’s, Capel St.
ew club opening in the room above Slattery’s at 7am… 3 DJ’s (borrowed
from ‘Bodytonic’) playing mellow house and funk… Full bar with Slattery’s
normal prices (2 pints and a packet of crisps for a tenner)… full table service…
trays of fruit being dispensed (god only knows why)… €5 in, but only €4 with
a concession… Oh brave new world. Whether this new club is set to become a
regular highlight of the post-club scene (organisers predict it will run every
Saturday and Monday), or go down in a blaze of vomit and sleeping drunks, it
will be open this Saturday morning, and the organisers promise that people
can stay as long as they want. We might just hold them to it..
N
XI
The Chancery Inn, Inn’s Quay
ituated near the four courts, this place is a bit of
a walk, but judging by the friendliness of the staff,
it would probably be a good bet. It opens at 7am,
prices are reasonable - €3.50 for a Guinness, €4 for
lagers - and the predominantly unemployed crowd
apparently “mix well with the students, who are
really well behaved”. How charmingly naive.
S
you’re dead on your feet...
Nibbles
Spar, Grafton St. Lower
t’s a 24 hour place, so it’ll obviously be open. What’s more, they’re running
a hot food counter with breakfast rolls at €3.50, cold deli rolls at €3.20. The
studenty-type behind the counter also informs me that they’re planning on
having wedges, and maybe even chicken wings, so a veritable feast is in
order! He’s also keen to stress (and insists on my writing this) that there’ll be
“really cute guys” behind the counter that morning as well. So, if you don’t
mind a sleazy Spar boy leering at you or your friends, this is probably a good
bet..
I
The breakfast of champions
Centra, Nassau St.
nce again, it’s a 24 hour place, but when I mention hot food after the Trinity
Ball, the response is a look as blank as.. a blank thing. The chap I’m talking to isn’t sure what the Ball is, or if they’re doing anything special about it,
but tells me that the hot food counter normally opens at 7am, normal rolls are
€3.19, premium rolls (including the best chicken fillet baguette ever) are €3.50.
Nice prices, but be prepared to be stared at like a strange museum attraction.
O
The Coffee Dock, Jurys Hotel, Ballsbridge
f you want coffee at this stage, there’s clearly something very,
very wrong with you, so you might not mind plodding out
to Ballsbridge. The place opens at around 7am (which is
fine, it’ll probably take you till then to get there) and is a
mite pricey, but the coffee and croissants, I’m informed,
are just what you freaks need. It’s also nice and comfortable,
so be careful not to fall asleep in the soft, inviting chairs. If you want a caffeine
jolt, here is the closest place to town I’m afraid, and if you can find somewhere
closer.. you’re a better researcher than me (quelle surprise!).
I
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