The last year has been a strange time for everyone, but when youâre one of Irelandâs most renowned live music promoters it has proven doubly so. Leagues OâToole, a name that most music fans will be familiar with, found himself abruptly cast adrift from his career and the live music scene that he has lived and breathed for so many years.
âI wonât lie, itâs been incredibly difficult,â he says. âWhen the virus first emerged, quite quickly I lost my job â as did most of my colleagues, and as did a lot of people right across the board in the music industry and the associated services.
Updated / Monday, 12 Apr 2021
10:59
When creating each episode of
Reeling In The Years, producer John O Regan compiles his own unique soundtrack for the year in the spotlight, comprised of songs from that year, some of which then make it into the episode of the show itself - enjoy John s extended 50-song 2010 mix below.
2010: The Extended Playlist
Updated / Tuesday, 6 Apr 2021
15:00
Putting creativity, diversity, community and history, centre stage, the annual MusicTown festival nurtures collaborations between artists and across disciplines - Festival Director Leagues O Toole introduces this year s virtual edition.
So last year we frantically chased our tails, rescheduling and postponing and cancelling and trying to diagnose the effects a pandemic would have on the arts and its various associated industries. Until we finally slumped into some sort of mode of defeated acceptance that it wasn t leaving us soon and we had to somehow transcend the lethargy and exhaustion of all this to think of new ways to present work online.
Enniskerry musician Valerie Armstrong released her new album False Bride last week, with an accompanying music video shot in Wicklow.
The harpist and singer has created an album that gives a contemporary twist to the sound of the traditional Irish ballad, mixing harp and voice with electronic percussion.
Armstrong made music industry headlines last year when her work was sampled by Grammy Award-winning artist James Blake. Armstrong s new music video was filmed by TW Films.
The new album is a collaboration with Ken McHugh of Autamata and Cathy Davey fame. Armstrong s collaboration with McHugh has allowed her to innovate upon the classic harp sound, creating songs which are all at once grounded in tradition, yet modern and cinematic in feel. The album s singles Blackwaterside and the title track False Bride are broadside ballads originating from the 17th to 19th century.