Gigs for 2023

Beasty · 22-12-2023 11:32pm

Had a ticket for Hozier tonight, but was "run over" by three-quarters of a ton of horse last night resulting in the curtailment of my entries in this thread....

(fortunately just bad bruising, but under instructions to rest up for a while)

spindex · 23-12-2023 12:32am

I haven't seen them but I'll take a guess at it being a "hurdy gurdy"

Exclamation Marc · 23-12-2023 12:50am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121528154#Comment_121528154

Sorry to hear. Feel better soon Beasty.

Dreamweapon · 23-12-2023 10:59am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121528006#Comment_121528006

Hurdy Gurdy i would say.

Check out a band called France if the drone of a Hurdy Gurdy floats your boat. This is one of my favourite recordings of them: https://aguirrerecords.bandcamp.com/album/occitanie

Penfailed · 23-12-2023 6:10pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121528154#Comment_121528154

Mend well!

Gloomtastic! · 23-12-2023 7:51pm

Discovered The Scratch by posting on here, thank you.

I’m away for their 31st gig but I’ve just booked to see them in Brighton next year. £35 for two tickets. I see now why Beasty heads over there so often…….

Beasty · 23-12-2023 8:30pm

My totals for the year

42 gigs involving 2 flights, 4 train journeys, 20 ferries, around 17,000km driving and 21,256 photos

The Nal · 24-12-2023 9:46am

Gig(s) of the year for me

Moz in Vicar St

King Giz at End of the Road.

SuperBowserWorld · 24-12-2023 10:11am

Haven't been to any gigs in years.

This year included:

Paul Heaton, New Order, The National - 3 Arena

Depeche Mode - Malahide Castle

Kraftwerk - Trinity College

Morrissey, The Walkmen - Vicar Steet

Death Cab for Cutie - Bord Gais Theatre

The Blades - The Academy

All terrific gigs. Really superb. I feel so grateful and lucky to see them all. And absolutely blessed with the perfect weather for the outdoor Depeche Mode and Kraftwerk gigs, considering it started raining in Ireland in late June, and hardly stopped since.

Stillill42 · 24-12-2023 11:17am

A great year's music, hard to pick a gig of the year but Wilco at the Olympia, Angel Olsen at EOTR, BC Camplight at Whelan's and Young Fathers at the Olympia were brilliant. PJ Harvey maybe pick of the bunch. Happy Christmas folks, here's to a 2024 full of amazing live music.

dasdog · 24-12-2023 11:33am

Had a great year. The most memorable:

Aphex Twin - Victoria Park (All Points East/Field Day) and Clifton Downs (Forwards Festival)

Audio torn apart and twisted and mangled to something new every two minutes with melody only AFX can conjure. And the undercard in Bristol was pretty tasty too.

PJ Harvey - Olympia

It was an astonishing performance where chills go down the spine - "Are you Elvis? Are you God?"

Osees (Button Factory), Lankum (Vicar St), Boygenius (Kilmainham) were some my other highlights.

hold my beer · 24-12-2023 1:15pm

My gig for 2023 was New Order in the Point. Blew me away.

I was only at 5 or 6 gigs in 2023, and 1 festival (ATN). Next year is looking great with LCD, Simple Minds, ATN, Peter Hook and hopefully many more.

Happy Christmas to all.

Penfailed · 24-12-2023 2:31pm

My highlights were SLF in The Barrowlands, IDLES at EP and And So I Watch You From Afar in the Mandela Hall. Top of the list though, was PJ Harvey in The Olympia.

Exclamation Marc · 24-12-2023 3:02pm

For me, Blur in Malahide, Hozier in the Academy, The 1975 in the 3Arena, The Darkness in The Olympia and QOTSA in the 3Arena were in my top 5 gigs of the year. All brought something a bit special and left me with great memories.

On the comedy front, Ed Byrne and Olga Koch (at the Fringe), James Acaster in Vicar Street, John Mulaney at the Olympia and Fern Brady in Vicar Street were the 5 comedy standouts.

Already looking forward to 2024 with some good gigs in the calendar.

Merry Christmas all and here's to more crackin days and nights next year.

PTH2009 · 24-12-2023 3:19pm

Great years of gigs, returned to sum familiar venues and experienced new ones in The Helix, The Seanti Bar and Wexford Spiegeltent. Absolutely thrilled to get Wembley Stadium off the bucket list which turned out to be 2 visits in 10 days. Will make a few honorable mentions

The Weeknd Wembley Stadium- amazing show visually and great entertainer

Blur Malahide Castle- electric atmosphere

Bruce Springsteen RDS- sounded as good as ever

John Fogerty 3Arena- very good gig and proves how good CCR are

Paul Brady Theatre Royal- pleasantly surprised at home good it was. One of the last remaining gems in Irish music

Motley Crue/Def Leppard Marlay Park- a good evening out in Marlay Park. Leppard were the better band on the night but Crue were very good

WWE MITB The O2- nice too get back to a WWE PPV and back to the O2. Also made a visit to ABBA Arena which was very impressive

QOTSA 3Arena- Last big gig of the year and didn't disappoint

Happy Christmas and New Year, Roll on 2024

delbertgrady · 24-12-2023 3:56pm

I started a specific thread for the annual round-up, but the conversation is continuing here, so I've requested that be closed.

My own top three would probably be:

Wilco, Cork Opera House

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, RDS (night two)

Depeche Mode, Malahide Castle

Wilco were phenomenal in the Olympia, but somehow managed to surpass it in Cork. Spiders (Kidsmoke) and Via Chicago were incredible. Plus, you know... Impossible Germany.

Springsteen's three night stand was fantastic, but night two, in particular, seemed to be the night of choice for those who did more than one show. I was about eight or ten back from the stage, just off centre. Magnificent. I don't care about the static setlist. The guy is untouchable. And I'm all on for Kitty's Back and The E Street Shuffle staying put.

Depeche Mode in Malahide was glorious. Evidently galvanised by the loss of Fletch, Dave and Martin delivered - in my opinion - their best album this century and were as great live as they've ever been. Joyous stuff.

The top two on my list don't feature in my photo collage above, as I made the decision to just focus on the gig. Likewise, the PJ Harvey photo above (from night two) was one of only a handful that I took.

Honourable mentions:

PJ Harvey, Olympia (night one) - worth the admission price for Man-Size and Dress alone. Sadly, a cruelly timed microphone glitch messed them up slightly on night two.

Elton John, 3Arena (night one) - I saw five shows on the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour and this and Cork 2022 were probably the best two.

OMD in St. Anne’s Park were magnificent (as always) and endeared themselves to everyone. It should be a showbiz maxim: Don't work with children or animals and never put yourself in a position that you need to follow OMD on a bill. Soft Cell, never likely to work in daylight in a park to begin with, sank like a stone. I don't know who thought it was a good idea. Arguably the dud of the year.

Tauriel · 24-12-2023 5:41pm

My gig of the year was Hans Zimmer in the 3Arena. Honestly love this man so much, he could play here 365 days straight and I would be at every show. One memory that stands out in particular was that he came off stage during Gotham's Reckoning to walk amongst the VIP crowd and passed inches in front of me (and of course I fumbled my phone so didn't get a clear picture of him!) 😁

A non-music show came in second for me, which was On Earth and Space: Chris Hadfield's Guide to the Cosmos in the BGET. He really is an inspirational man and very good with fans young and old.

Honourable mentions to Shania Twain and Iron Maiden in the 3Arena and also Beast In Black at The Academy.

I also attended two of the worst shows of my life this year one night after the other in the form of The Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit - The Concert and The Magical Music of Harry Potter - Live in Concert, both in the BGET. Neither were official concerts, which the BGET failed to mention, and resulted in Howard Shore taking legal action against the promoter of the LOTR & The Hobbit shows.

Irish Aris · 24-12-2023 5:47pm

In a year with many great gigs, the one that has really stayed with me is PJ Harvey at the Olympia.

Although I wasn't initially a fan of the new album I was very impressed by the live presentation. She is an amazing performer, her movement and facial expressions really superb. Now I'm getting into her back catalogue again!

TenPicnics · 24-12-2023 7:24pm

Like a few others here, P.J. Harvey in the Olympia was best gig of 2023 for me, an incredible performance that had the Olympia spell-bound.

Happening upon an unexpected session, in a turf shed at 1am, by a gang of Begleys and Ye Vagabonds at the Willie Clancy Week in Miltown Malbay was my best unplanned music experience of the year. Possibly my life.

24-12-2023 8:00pm

Made 34 gigs and 2 festivals this year.

Still way way down on the pre Covid days when I would have regularly got to 50 plus. 2019 was my zenith with 64.

Bought my first house this year which has really cramped my style.

My top 3;

1. Bicep in Gravity Bar of Guinness Store House on the summer solstice.

2. Roisin Murphy in Trinity.

3. PJ Harvey in Olympia.

24-12-2023 8:09pm

I have also just finished rewatching the documentary North Circular by Luke McManus.

It's a most see for any music fan.

It has really fired me up for my last gig of the year The Scratch, Gemma Duleavy et al in Collins Barracks on NYE.

Dreamweapon · 24-12-2023 8:48pm

Had about 50 gigs this year plus 2 festivals. Plenty of good shows, a fair smattering of not so good but definitely two clear winners:

Weedeater and Whores. Both in the Grand Social and both heartily obliging in providing heavy, dirty riffs at a proper volume.

Honourable mentions to Loop (Whelans), Slowdive (National Stadium), Swans (Academy) Jim Jones All Stars (Upstairs@Whelans) and Thurston Moore (Whelans).

Hmmm...looks like the youth need to up their game.

Gigs for 2023

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