On the train from Toronto to Montreal and, what do you know, there’s Wi-Fi onboard. I just turned on the Mac and, to quote Tag Team, whoop there it is. Wonder will Irish Rail get the memo? Beats that mobile broadband yoke I was using in Ireland for a bit earlier in the month to see if it was worth the bother (I’m sure some techie folks will argue with me about this, but I didn’t think it was much cop).

Anyway, I’ve said goodbye to T.O. and moved onto Montreal. I reckon there were some people back there glad to see the back of me! I’m hooking with some good folks in MTL with a view to finding out if there are more banging francophone bands like Malajube I should know about (I keep hearing great things about Les Breastfeeders). There are gigs in the city in the next few days from Beirut (the new album “The Flying Club Cup” is immense), Bat For Lashes and Fujiya & Miyagi.

I hope some of the local bands are playing as well and not preserving their energies for Pop Montreal next weekend, which I will miss.

So more Canuck adventures next week. Have a smashing weekend - and if you’re Hard Working Class Hero-worshipping in Dublin this weekend, check out You’re Only Massive, Super Extra Bonus Party, Oh No Ono and Leanbh. Oh and the photo exhibition too.

Trust Kevin Drew and friends to go to town with their homecoming (or, more likely, we’re-leaving-home-again) show. There was one show early doors and another which kicked off late and finished much, much later before depositing everyone out onto Bloor St. The reason for such festivities? His new “Spirit If” album and the start of a tour which will see a Broken Social Scene of sorts hit the road for a couple of months. Seeing as we have been bumping into Drew all week long in Hogtown, it would have been bad manners not to go.
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It’s back to school time for a group of DJs and music producers from all over the globe, who are attending the Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA) in Toronto.
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The cast of lecturers and talkers at this year’s Red Bull Music Academy come from all walks of musical life.

Martyn Ware, formerly of Human League and Heaven 17 told how he made tracks such as Being Boiled - “it still sounds like we were from Mars” - before producing best-selling records for Tina Turner and Terence Trent D’Arby, then instigating the sound design and installation project, Illustrious, with Erasure’s Vince Clarke.

Hip-hop DJ and producer Premier was also good value, reminiscing about his early days as Waxmaster C and about the years before hip-hop music existed.

Dancehall pioneer King Jammy, Planet Rock producer Arthur Baker, indie dudes Bloc Party, Canadian electronic act Junior Boys, and Nordic psychedelic disco producer Prins Thomas are also lining up to tell their tales.

The people behind Toronto’s Arts & Crafts label were in party mode this week and threw a swish soiree in the city to celebrate some recent events.

It was a chance for them to mark the ongoing worldwide chart success for Feist’s 1234 and to introduce some new signings: Canadian acts The Constantines and The Stills.

Kevin Drew, co-founder of Broken Social Scene and of the Arts & Crafts label, was waxing lyrical to the Irish in attendance about his forthcoming show at Dublin’s Tripod on October 14th.

Drew’s Spirit If album has just gone on release.

Montreal’s Patrick Watson - who plays Dublin’s Ambassador on November 13th - won this year’s Polaris Music Prize for his Close To Paradise album at an event in Toronto on Monday.

There were 10 albums in the running, including Arcade Fire, Feist, The Besnard Lakes and Miracle Fortress, but the media jury gave the nod on the night to Watson’s epic melancholic pop.

Besides the Can$20,000 (€14,000) prize and the giant novelty cheque, Watson can expect to see a significant sales and PR bump for the album as a result of the win.

The Barbra Streisand Irish concert saga looks like it’s coming to an end. The report has been issued, the apologies have been given and 2,500 Babs freaks are going to get either their money back or a “voucher”.

The report itself has CCTV footage from the day, extracts from the event management plan and even rainfall charts.

Interestingly, there’s also a statement from National Consumer Agency big cheese Anne Fitzgerald with the report, including this lovely nugget which suggests that this one, like Babs, may yet run and run.

We believe that the compensation being offered by MCD represents a fair deal for consumers. However, the NCA would advise patrons that, if they do not wish to accept the compensation now on offer from MCD, they are entitled to refuse it and to take action against the company in the Small Claims Court. Similarly, patrons who are not being offered any compensation may have grounds for action in the Small Claims Court

But, are you happy now? Bet those who didn’t complain are fuming.

I could probably fill this Tune of the Week slot for the next couple of years with acts from Canada.
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The Red Bull Music Academy is quite an operation. While throwing 30 tyro producers and DJs together for two weeks and hoping they don’t come to blows is one thing, the actual logistics (and cost) of putting on the gig are quite something else.

For instance, 381 Queen Street West was until recently just a vacant building with a very steep set of stairs. Now, it has been turned insideout and houses half-a-dozen fully equipped studios, post-production suites, a radio station, a lecture theatre and tons of art from rising Canuck artists.

After the jump, some pics from the RBMA HQ including art by John Dickson (Smoking City and Traffic) and David Poolman (The Last Word In Lonesome Is Me), a not very comfortable chair, a selection of the studio equipment available to the participants, the lecture room and a shot from hip-hop snapper Jamel Shabazz’s Seconds Of My Life exhibition which is currently running in the city as part of the RBMA.
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(1) Fuming is a great word. Probably my word of the year. I’ve discovered that On The Record blog readers love to fume. They fume about the price of tickets and not getting tickets. They fume about MCD, Ticketmaster, Arcade Fire and what they had for lunch. At least, I suppose, it saves them having to fume to Joe.

(2) If you write a post about one thing, chances are the people commenting on it will end up taking it somewhere else entirely. Don’t know why this happens, but it does.

(3) Don’t ever be surprised by the fact that people will comment on posts you wrote months and months ago. Thanks to the wonders of search engines, people are still commenting on posts from months ago. Like, you may have forgotten what it was about Ian Brown which inspired you to write about him (and you’re probably not alone), but some of your readers will keep bringing it up nonetheless.

(4) There are a lot of people working in both media and music industries who use this blog to vent their spleen, start rumours and spread leaks. Long may it continue.

(5) Blogging and procrastination go together like Bertie Ahern and big wodges of cash.

(6) Having access to IP addresses is a very dangerous business.

Patrick Watson was the happiest man in Toronto last night as he left the Phoenix Theatre with the Polaris Music Prize’s $20,000 cheque under his oxter. The judges decided that the Montreal man’s “Close To Paradise” album was the one for them, beating off Arcade Fire’s “Neon Bible”, Feist’s “The Reminder”, Miracle Fortress’s “Five Roses” (a glorious album, it must be said) and six others.

Watson claimed he was giving the cheque to Budget Car Rental seeing as he owed them 16,000 loonies for a van he wrote off outside Fargo, North Dakota. At least, he’ll have some change left over after that transaction to buy some poutine and Steam Whistle for his band.

The Polaris gala made for a grand night out, it must be said. Six of the 10 nominated acts played two songs apiece and there was much singing and dancing from various members of the media before each act. While all of this was going on in front of an invite-only audience of about 400 or so, 11 judges were locked away in a room having a good old fashioned row. The fact that they finished their deliberations a good 45 minutes before the deadline means Watson was a clear-cut winner.

You can argue the toss over these prizes all you like, but the truth is that “Close To Paradise” will enjoy a promotional and sales bump in the coming weeks and months because of this win. Any of these album prizes (even the humble Choice Music Prize, to make sure declarations of interest are declared and all of that) result in a spate of publicity for an artist and an album. But it’s up to them and the general public to take the affair to another level.

What was also enjoyable about last night’s soiree was the chance to chew the fat with some Canuck writers and label folk about the state of their musical nation. While there is no doubting just how buzzy (some) Canadian bands are right now (or just how much monetary aid is available from the government under the enviable Canada Music Fund), there were some observations from the gallery about the domestic infrastructure which made you stop and think a little.

For instance, many see an urgent need for more dedicated local labels to operate and grow alongside Arts & Crafts and Last Gang. This would ensure that the likes of the excellent Born Ruffians, Tokyo Police Club and others from the new, new school will be able to benefit from the development afforded by local labels and intelligence rather than just signing deals abroad.

Then, there’s the sheer size of the country which makes domestic gigonimics a bit of an ordeal: there may be a population of 30 million to support the acts, but they’re concentrated in wide flung metropolitan pockets which often take a day or more to reach. And that’s not to mention the way in which many in the industry constantly look abroad for validation in the first instance of homegrown artists and albums. It was only when Arcade Fire made a splash abroad, after all, that the industry in Canada started to pay attention to them.

None of this will bother Patrick Watson too much as he celebrates his win at the Drake Hotel aftershow. Time enough to start thinking about how to make the most of this when he wakes up sometime today and checks to make sure the extra-large cheque is where he left it before he turned off the light. Then, he’ll probably put the phone back on the hook and start talking over and over again about how awesome all of this is.

…make sure it’s this one.

From his blog on the New York Times site, Freakonomics co-author Stephen Dubner posed the question “what’s the future of the music industry?” to a number of players and pundits (including Fredric Dannen who wrote The Hit Men, one of the best books ever about dirty dealings in the record business). Their proposed solutions are quite interesting, to say the least.

Your favourite waste of that time which should really be spent doing productive things for your employer will have a Canadian flavour to it for the next week or so.

On The Record is currently in Toronto to observe what’s going on at the Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA), a boot-camp for DJs and producers where they get to hear the professionals yakking, attend studio workshops and play out in city-wide clubs and venues. Previous RBMAs have assembled in Dublin, Berlin, London, New York, Seattle, Cape Town and Sao Paulo and the list of RBMA attendees is increasing in both size (500+ at this stage) and quality (both the excellent Flying Lotus and Aloe Blacc were recent attendees). More posts about what’s going on at the very swanky RBMA HQ on Queen Street during the week.

Yesterday afternoon, the RBMA kicked off with a hugely entertaining and on-point lecture from DJ Premier. Some great yarns from the great man, one of best of which was him talking about how he ended up jumping the queue at the James Brown memorial at the Apollo thanks to “a hook-up Afrika Bambaataa had with Rev Al Sharpton”.

There’s a load of gigs on in Toronto as well this week. No special reason, just a load of gigs on as bands sweep through town and out again, some pulling crowds and some, well, not pulling crowds. The Aliens played to a tiny turnout on Saturday night (their audience would have fitted with ease into the band’s big-ass tour bus), the excellent Black Lips, who play Dublin’s Crawdaddy on November 4, fought the Hogtown traffic to make it to jam at Criminal Records (a record shop which stays open until 8pm on a Sunday - now there’s a business plan) and Akron/Family put on a show which the band may well be still playing such was their inability to end any song in less than 20 minutes.

Turbonegro were also playing in town last night, but I don’t have my Turbonegro cap with me so I didn’t go.

Tonight, the Polaris Music Prize event is on in the Phoenix Theatre downtown. Last year, the Canadian version of the Mercury Music Prize (or the Choice Music Prize!) went to Final Fantasy for the outlandish “He Poos Clouds” album. Here’s the list of the runners and riders in the shake-up for this year’s prize. Me, I think it’s going to be either Feist or Miracle Fortress who will have an $20,000 in their bank account after tonight. Full report on this to come.

And later in the week, the plan is to catch Kevin Drew & Broken Social Scene who be playing the “Spirit If” album live for the first time. Thing is, though, I reckon at least two-thirds of Toronto have the same plan.

The Virgin Megastore brand is the latest marquee name set to vanish from the streets in what has been an eventful year for the music retail sector.
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Who’s the man? Well, in hip-hop blockbuster terms, Kanye West is the man, shifting 957,000 copies of his Graduation album in one week in the US, compared to the 691,000 sales accrued by his rival 50 Cent for Curtis.

It’s a sales pattern which is repeated worldwide, with West trumping Fiddy amost everywhere else. Ireland was one of the few territories where the order was reversed. Proof then that we really do prefer the more po-faced, stodgy, unimaginative gangsta posturing variety of hip-hop.

But the contrived battle between the two rappers did lure buyers in the shops. Ironically, both rappers were flogging below-average records, yet this had no bearing on the hype surrounding the tussle.

Kanye West plays Live at the Marquee in the Phoenix Park, Dublin on November 30th and the Odyssey, Belfast on December 1st.

UPDATE Fiddy, who promised to stop rapping if he lost the chart battle to Kanye, plays the RDS, Dublin on November 4.

Gigonomics present plenty of difficulties for Irish bands seeking to haul their asses around the country and play to the people.

While singer-songwriters can simply stick the guitar in the boot of the car and head off, bands face other problems and costs.

Music Network’s performance and touring bursary, then, may be just the ticket. It’s intended to help Irish and Ireland-based musicians realise performance and touring opportunities.

So far, 19 applicants have received funding from 2007’s fund, and Music Network want to hear from rock, pop and indie acts looking for a dig-out.

Interested parties should apply online before October 8th.

They’re coming home. Earlier this summer, Galway’s Cane 141 took their Lost at Sea collaborative installation with artist Róisín Coyle to the GraceSpace gallery in New York.

The installation will now feature at Nimmo’s in Galway on October 4th, along with a live performance from Chequerboard and a DJ set from Cane 141’s Michael Smalle.

Later in the month, it’s at the Some Days Never End festival in Imma in Dublin.

Meanwhile, Cane 141’s Lost at Sea CD goes on sale from all record shops still open for business from November 2.

Bet you didn’t know that the Irish government used to keep tabs on UFOs? Until 1984, the Department of Defence kept a file on Irish UFO sightings. Since then, the government has been busy with other things (ensuring we have a world-class health service, chaos-free roads and an uncorrupt Taoiseach, for instance) so the file has remained in a dusty drawer in a departmental office.

It would have remained there too, had Alison Healy not come along and asked to have a look at it

According to Alison’s piece in today’s paper, the dossier contained such sightings as:

A UFO sighting in Boherlahan, near Cashel, Co Tipperary, in 1984 which was “the same shape as a fried egg”, had “some kind of an aerial on top, “was brown in colour” and “made a buzzing noise like a chainsaw”.

A flying projectile over a bog in Donegal in May 1984. An off-duty garda and a farmer were cutting turf near Falcarragh when they heard “a gushing sound”. The garda looked up and saw a grey object travelling at speed over his head. It was shaped like a household iron with fins at the back.

A Cahirciveen shopkeeper and farmer in June 1947 told gardaí about “a circular object moving faster than a motor car” which was “flat and was like a big wheel or large plate . . . the rim was white and it was hollow in the centre”.

Also in 1947, two priests separately saw a strange rocket-like object in the sky the same evening.

However a garda superintendent who investigated the two Co Kerry sightings was satisified it was just a shooting star.

“The pressmen in Killarney like to keep abreast of the times and now that the age of ‘flying saucer’ has arrived, they like to keep in the news, particularly where any money can be made out of it.”

Maybe we could interest current Minister for Defence - and keen amateur journalist - Willie O’Dea in opening a new file on unidentified flying objects?

(Big thanks to Waxy for alerting us to this piece of blog filler - it makes up for all his hissy fits yesterday)

No, I didn’t see this one coming.
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A couple of years ago, an old mucker of mine Katie Hannon wrote a great book about the Irish political process. The Naked Politician looked at just why hundreds and hundreds of seemingly sane men and women would go through the often demeaning motions of seeking a vote from their fellow citizens who were often happy to say one thing to their face and do something else entirely in the voting booth. It was a great yarn (especially the bits about Jim McDaid) which proves once and for all that the Irish political animal is one quare beast.

I kept thinking about Katie’s book during last night’s RTE 1 re-up on the 2007 general election and not just because the two titles were first cousins. Watching The Naked Election made you realise that most of those who stand for election must really be plain daft. Be it the would-be Progressive Democrat TD Frank McNamara (would you vote for a lightweight version of Richard Clayderman? Only 474 voters in Dublin South Central were prepared to do so) or Niall O’Brolcháin (the then Green Party mayor of Galway), here was ample proof that you needed more than a firm handshake and a brass neck when you went on the Irish hustings.

You also needed a sense of the ridiculous, which O’Brolcháin clearly doesn’t appear to possess. If it was mind-boggling enough to be having difficulties persuading the voters of Galway West to vote Green at a time when their water was undrinkable, O’Brolcháin seemed totally at a loss when faced with common-or-garden electioneering high jinks. The candidate always looked awkward on camera, none more so than when he was facing an audience of senior citizens with a tambourine in his paw. That his then leader Trevor Sargent was extremely happy to stand by his side, belting out “The Wild Rover” on an acoustic guitar like an eco-friendly Damien Dempsey, probably still features in O’Brolcháin’s nightmares.

But it was perhaps more telling to see how some of the others profiled in this documentary possessed a blinding conviction in their own chances, a belief which persisted even when it became obvious that they were not destined to become members of the 30th Dail. Sinn Fein man Pearse Doherty, for instance, was spinning some semblance of sucess even after the seat he had targetted had gone Fianna Fail’s way. He probably still finds it hard to accept after all his Bebo, YouTube and conventional canvassing that the people of Donegal had said no to him.

He should take stock from the reactions of such battle-hardened war-horses as Jackie Healy-Rae and Mary O’Rourke. That pair may have a good day in May, but they both knew it could have quite easily gone the other way too. After all, you don’t get to be a gnarled Irish political veteran without getting a kick in the arse now and again from the electorate.

There’s probably a whole lot more on tape where all that came from too, which will hopefully give some of the RTE mandarins a couple of ideas about future programming. I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling the license fee would be better spent on this. More Richard Crowley and Sean O’Rourke please and less Brian Ormond and Charity You’re A Star.

Our favourite French duo Justice are the latest act to go under canvas this autumn/winter - they play Live at the Marquee in the Phoenix Park on December 1. Tickets on sale from Saturday. Support bill TBC. They’re probably the one act who can make great use of the Papal Cross too.

Via Rev Jules, here’s the sponsorship document which Channel 6 were flinging around in the search to get someone to give them some cash for proposed surfing show Cois Farraige (mmm, wonder where they got that name from?).

Per the document, the show is:

A new music, culture and lifestyle show for Channel 6. Bright, vibrant and distinctly edgy, it is programming that reflects the changing nature of Irish culture and in particular our changing relationship with the sea.

Sounds like a job for Tom MacSweeney to me. But wait, here’s what the blurb has to say about the presenters:

Our presenters, once chosen, will be young, sexy and of the culture. Each week they will travel in the coisfarraigecamper van to one of the country’s best beaches.

Unfortunately, the document doesn’t say how much cash they’re looking for, but we’ll have a whiparound later in the week and come up with a few bob. Lets hope we’re not too late.

The run on Northern Rock’s one lonely outpost in Ireland seems to have crawled to a stroll. Maybe this is down to the announcement by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer to promise to pay the bills or maybe it’s the cold autumnal snap which makes standing around on nippy street corners a little uncomfortable. It could be also due to the bank’s decision to send in the PR heavyweights to steady the ship. The crisis seems to have passed for now - until the next bank gets a dose of the jitters because US banks and lending institutions decided it was a great idea to give great big lumps of cash to Cletus Spuckler and friends.

What was interesting to observe from the last few days was the age profile of those queueing to get their cash back in Dublin with older savers who were attracted to the bank which offered its highest deposit rates on internet-only accounts out in force.

You don’t need Maccer to explain why the sight of these folks standing around waiting for the bank to open its doors was hugely telling. Whatever about new Ireland’s flash and cash, there are still plenty of citizens who are the same slow, steady savers of old.

They were the ones who had made the cash but didn’t spend all of it on foreign property, new cars and cosmetic surgery. They were the ones who, having researched the best rates available, spurned the usual AIB and Bank Of Ireland and An Post accounts in favour of Northern Rock’s leggy rates. They had probably advised their kids to do the same thing, but their feckless offspring, the ones who don’t remember the economic doom and gloom experienced by their parents, probably didn’t pay any attention (or more likely didn’t have any huge five and six figure sums to salt away).

And yes, these bank customers were fuming because that is, after all, the Irish pre-set in times like this. Fuming at the notion of queueing to get their cash back on a street. Angry at missing their rounds of bridge and golf and coffee mornings. Outraged at having cameras pointed at their face and knowing the neighbours would be watching. Raging at having tried to make a few bob the legal way and getting caught.

But you couldn’t escape the sense of worry and panic coming from the queue. They had trusted their life savings to a bank and now, that bank was in some kind of trouble. While some could probably give you a lecture in the ins and outs of the sub-prime markets, others simply knew that their money was in that bank and there was a chance they might not get it back. If you drew a collective thought bubble over them, the caption would probably go ‘bank runs aren’t supposed to happen in the 21st century are they?’

Yet there’s no doubt when you listen to the bean-counters and financial smart boys that this is only the start of things and the Northern Rock incident won’t be the only time you see queues like that forming outside the door of a financial institution. Those pundits who have been predicting economic downturns, recessions and depressions for the last couple of years are preparing to crow. Expect a run on new matresses in the coming months.

Last week would have been a great week to issue this report.

From Reuters, American radio is beginning to show a lot of love for text messages. So 2005.

Miranda Sawyer’s views on why the kids are listening to BBC Radio One: the DJs know what they’re on about and they actually love music. This may well be where some radio stations are going wrong, you know.

Why settle for one blog when you can have two or three or four or five of the yokes? Joining the rush to turn the blogosphere into a series of colonies is regular On The Record smart alec Ronan Fitzgerald who has added the excellent Everything Else to his mini-empire. It’s for all the stuff which is not minimal house, the politics of dancing and odes to Ricardo Villalobos.

“Unforseen circumstances” have scuppered Fiddy’s proposed European tour. “Unforseen circumstances”?

The letters are flying already.

Madam, - In light of the comments made by the German ambassador to Ireland I have taken the time to draft the below letter as I realise the Taoiseach may well be busy this week:

“Dear Germany, Please find enclosed your ambassador. We will be happy to receive a replacement in due course. Kind wishes, Ireland.” - Yours, etc,

ALAN KENNEDY

Ho, ho, ho. Etc. Just why are letter writers to daily newspapers so unfunny? What gives them the idea that they’re actually Tom Sharpe, Twenty Major and Frank McNally rolled into one? Maybe it’s time the paper started publishing some of the comments we receive here on a daily basis? Some of them are funny, you know. OK, a few.

As played on Phantom 105.2, Saturday September 15, 10pm-midnight

Loads and loads and loads of new stuff - well new to me at any rate. If you haven’t done so already, check out Windmill’s album “Puddle City Racing Lights” on Melodic. If you want big crunchy guitars in your life, Kinksi, Les Savy Fav (playing Dublin’s Crawdaddy on October 27), Health and Blitzen Trapper are for you. If you just want some great mighty tunes, check out Envelopes, The Young Republic, Club 8 and The Royal We. Big up to Waterford lasses You’re Only Massive (see below for what you should call your label) whose cracking electro reminded some of our listeners of CSS. Also new sounds from truly wonderful albums from Robert Wyatt, Beirut, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, King Creosote and PJ Harvey. And - at long last - we found a recording of Bat For Lashes doing “I’m On Fire”. Lovely hurling.

Windmill “Ashmatic” (Melodic)
Envelopes “Life On The Beach” (Brille)
The Young Republic “Modern Plays” (End of the Road)
Health “Glitter Pills” (Lovepump United)
Kinski “Crybaby Blowout” (Sub Pop)
Les Savy Fav “Patty Lee” (Wichita)
Blitzen Trapper “Devil’s A Go Go” (Sub Pop)
Hafdis Huld “Diamonds On My Belly” (Red Grape)
The Royal We “All The Rage” (Geographic)
Le Loup “We Are Gods! We Are Wolves!” (Hardly Art)
Club 8 “Whatever You Want” (Labrador)
Matthew Dear “Fleece On Brain” (Ghostly International)
You’re Only Massive “Sugar Shake The Cool” (Decies Discs)
Cadence Weapon “Black Hand” (Big Dada)
Herbie Hancock “Bring Down The Birds” (Columbia)
Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings “Let Them Knock” (Daptone)
Betty Wright “Clean Up Woman” (Atlantic)
Blackstreet “No Diggity” (MCA)
Beirut “In The Mausoleum” (4AD)
King Creosote “Leslie” (679)
Flying Lotus “1983” (Plug Research)
Ennio Morricone “Once Upon A Time in the West” (RCA)
Robert Wyatt “Stay Tuned” (Domino)
Bat For Lashes “I’m On Fire” (Echo)
PJ Harvey “When Under Ether” (Island)
Tim Buckley “Song To The Siren” (Bizarre/Straight)
Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band “The Host, The Ghost, The Most Holy-O” (Virgin)
Robert Johnson “Cross Road Blues” (Columbia)

The fuming has already begun. There was some fuming on Morning Ireland earlier and I reckon we’re in for a whole week of fuming.

All thanks to the German ambassador to Ireland, Christian Pauls, who made a couple of observations about modern Ireland at a function last week. Per The Irish Times, Pauls said that:

Hospital waiting lists were chaotic

Everyone drives ‘06 and ‘07 cars.

Doctors who were offered salaries of €200,000 a year had described the salary as “Mickey Mouse money”.

Irish Ministers of State earn more that the German chancellor

20 per cent of the population were public servants.

US visitors had stopped coming to Ireland because of the heavy traffic

Ireland has a bleak time in the past due to the Famine

Ireland had a history “sadder than Poland”

A house had sold in Clontarf for over €20 million and one could buy a skyscraper for that in Frankfurt.

Those of us who call this little island home will surely nod our heads sagely at this lengthy list and go “mos def”.

But while the ambassador thought he was just speaking to members of the German Federation of Buying and Marketing Groups visiting Dublin, Fine Gael MEP Gay Mitchell was also at the event. And he was “shocked” at what he was hearing. I repeat “shocked”. It was as if Gay was hearing all this for the very first time.

“The ambassador should grow up. What he said was very undiplomatic and his contribution was somewhere between resentment and spite. He should not get away with what he said. I was totally taken aback.”

The German embassy doesn’t really know what all the fuss is about. Per their spokesman:

“He is a nice and polite man who is also a witty man. I don’t think he would insult the Irish people with his remarks. That would not be his intention. Sometimes he tends to be ironic and maybe they were meant to be ironic comments.”

Like I said, it’s going to be one of those weeks.

It seems that Some Days Never End, the series of gigs from POD Concerts to be held in the grounds of the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin during October, will feature THREE tents. That counts as serious oneupmanship given the amount of large canvas erections going up in Dublin 8 this autumn.

One tent will feature a load of musical acts, most of which we’ve already told you about already because we’re so like that. The list includes Groove Armada with Dizzee Rascal (October 25), Jose Gonzalez with Duke Special (October 26), Pet Shop Boys (October 27), what’s left of the Buena Vista Social Club with Kila (October 30) and The Frames with John Cale (October 31).

Another tent will recreate Andy Warhol’s Silver Factory.

A hip New York City hangout for the Warhol set with artists, musicians and creatives such as Lou Reed, John Cale, Bob Dylan, Truman Capote, Alan Ginsberg, Susan Sontag, Edie Sedgwick, Dennis Hopper and Candy Darling passing though its doors. Decorated in tin foil and silver paint by Warhol’s friend and Factory photographer Billy Name, the Silver Factory hummed day and night gaining a reputation as a centre for hedonism and decadence.

But from 1964 to 1968 the Factory also hummed with the whir of cameras and creativity, providing a physical and conceptual framework for a broad range of activity that pushed the boundaries of what art production can be and helped define our contemporary ideas of the role of the artist.

Over the course of the fest, this tent will feature screenings of such Warhol arty flicks as Eat and Sleep and other works and installations. All of this Warhiolism is in conjunction with Sligo’s Model Arts and Niland Gallery who are presenting their own Warhol exhibition from October 6 to December 22

And a third tent will feature food and drink. Well, what do you reckon then, this or this?

No sign of Ian Brown, though.

From That’s Ireland via The New-ish Journalism and The Warholiser

Shock, horror, Johnny Drama - the second show in a big tent from the Canucks who sound like The Waterboys is now sold out too. It looks like only John Paul Two could have drawn more people to the Park.

We have been here before so you know what to do. Whinges, complaints, observations, belly-aches, catty comments about Ticketmaster, MCD, Win Butler or the deers in the Phoenix Park? You’ve come to the right place, bud. Start typing

Already a well-established title in Northern Ireland, AU magazine will be appearing on newstands all over Ireland from October.
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With music industry despatches dominated of late by tales of woe, more and more acts are finding that a little bit of imagination goes a long way when it comes to grabbing attention.

It also helps that the act has a decent record to flog too - which is where Cathy Davey may be on to a winner with her second album Tales from Silversleeve.

The follow-up to Davey’s 2004’s debut Something Ilk was produced by Sneaker Pimp Liam Howe and will be released on October 12th.

Davey’s big idea is a nationwide residency tour which will see her ping-ponging between five different venues in October.

You’ll catch the singer playing at Belfast’s Auntie Annie’s (on October 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th), Dublin’s Whelan’s (8th, 15th, 23rd, 29th), Galway’s Roisin Dubh (9th, 16th, 30th), Limerick’s Dolan’s Warehouse (10th, 17th, 24th) and Cork’s Cyprus Avenue (11th, 18th, 25th, 31st).

Along with Shine in Belfast and Freakscene in Cork, Strictly Handbag is one of the veterans on the Irish club scene.

The Monday night hang-out in the capital city for 1980s revivalists and people who don’t have to get up on Tuesday morning marks its 13th birthday with two bashes over the October Bank Holiday weekend.

Kevin Rowland returns for more disco-jockeying on Sunday 28th at Whelan’s, while Will Sergeant from Echo & The Bunnymen spins psychedelia, northern soul and rock’n'roll at the Handbag party at Rí-Rá the following night.

You need tea leaves to make a proper pot of tea.
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By the looks of this, he was quick off the mark this morning.

I watched The View last night. Yes readers, I did and you poor saps are going to have to put up with me dissecting the show for the next few paragraphs.

It’s a strange beast, the TV arts show. In the 1990s, RTE ran a show called Black Box and, really, there’s not much difference between it and The View. The presenter? Glenn Patterson, a writer from up north who looked good in a sharp suit. The talking heads? Three people who talked very seriously about the arts, smiled nervously, nodded a lot and occasionally gestured wildly with their hands. The set? A big desk for the books, over-designed chairs and lots of modern art-like shapes in the background. The topics? Books, films, theatre, opera, TV, ballet and ice-hockey. No, hold on, not ice-hockey. Ice cream, maybe? Ice T?

Anway, the point is if you close your eyes, there are zilch differences between the show which ran over 10 years ago and the show which is currently going out at stupid o’clock on a Tuesday night. The names have changed, but the format remains the same.

And there’s the nub of the problem. The format. It’s so DULL. Really, really dreary. It makes arts, culture and entertainment look and sound about as exciting as Oireachtas Report. There is no sense that the content which drives the show is in any way smart or sassy or interesting. There’s no effort to update the format, to shake things up, to approach the topics in a new or interesting way.

You really can predict how each topic will run. (1) Intro from presenter (2) Guest number one talks a bit, makes a bit of sense (3) Presenter asks question intended to move debate on (4) Guest 2 talks and ignores question (5) Cut to presenter asking another meaningful question (6) Guest 3 gives his or her take which is usually the same as guest 1 and/or guest 2. Guest 3 also ignores question. (7) Back to presenter who raises eyebrows (8) Guest 2 makes another point which rambles on a bit (9) Presenter makes smart comment and tries to end the debate (10) Cut to guest 1 giggling, guest 3 frowning and guest 2 yawning (11) Presenter moves to next topic.

It’s not the fault of the presenter (John Kelly does a fine job) or the guests (though Liz O’Donnell was caught once or twice off-camera with a look on her face which suggested that she’d probably prefer Oireachtas Report). The format needs to be chopped and changed and brought kicking, screaming and shouting into the 21st century. Then again, the fact that RTE continue to consign their arts and culture coverage to the wee small hours says all there has to be said about the chances of that happening.

One of this year’s more interesting fests was the Life weekender in Gort, Co Galway in June. The organisers decided they wanted to end the season with a bang and put together the After Life one-day bash featuring Coldcut, Tayo, Zion Train, Rocker’s Hi-Fi’s Biggabush and such homegrown luminaries as Hystereo, Phil Kieran, Ikeaboy, Ciaran Byrne, Keith “Psychonavigation” Downey and reps from the Electric City, Neutronyx, Acii Disco, Teknowarfare and Breakology club nights.

The plan was to hold After Life at the Turbotstown Walled Garden in Coole, Co Westmeath next Saturday, but objections were seemingly raised when the license application was heard in the local District Court and, despite what the organisers refered to as “previous festival organisational experience and a solid health & safety plan”, the application was turned down. As a result, After Life will now take place in Dublin’s Tivoli and McGruder’s next Saturday with a somewhat altered line-up.

It’s certainly the only fest I can think of which got a rum deal from the gardai and the courts in 2007 and it makes you wonder if this sets a precedent which may impact on events scheduled for next summer in Co Westmeath such as Midlands, Garden Party and the proposed arrival of Latitude. After all, the authorities surely can’t have different rules for different promoters, can they? Any locals (or Co Westmeath court reporters) care to elaborate on what really happened here?

(1) Rugby sucks. Golf sucks too but not as much as rugby.

(2) Some advertising and PR hype does not work. I’ve lost count of the amount of clueless press releases, photo ops and stupid stunts from mobile phone pimps 3 Ireland bigging up their involvement in Irish music (the latest was about a completely pointless Paddy Casey phone). They need to do something else because, per John Collins, 3 Ireland have just 134,000 clients (Jaysus, there are some blogs which have more readers than that) and (ironically) 3 per cent share of mobile phone revenue which means the company are carrying a huge loss since they entered the Irish market in 2005. Maybe they could sack some people?

(3) Keith Duggan is a Tupac fan. We’ve been digging The Irish Times sportswriter’s Sideline Cut column for an age and he’s started dropping loads of musical references into it of late. The other week, he was wondering about the whereabouts of Engine Alley. Last Saturday, he was referencing the Dead Kennedys and quoting Tupac. Hey, maybe he’s after our job.

(4) It seems that we’re not the only ones reversing IP addresses to cause mischief. Una has a great story in the Sunday Tribune showing how some RTE folks were caught editing Wikipedia entries about rival stations and programmes. Sure, wouldn’t you think they’d have more to do?

(5) If you only to see one film about FBI shenanigans this week, make sure it’s Breach

(6) Straight No Chaser magazine, RIP

(7) Monocle, the new magazine from Wallpaper grandee Tyler Brûlé rocks. Intelligent Life, the new magazine from the The Economist, does not rock.

(8) When is a sell-out gig not a sell-out gig? When it’s The Police at Croke Park. This gig was supposed to be sold-out and now, there are tickets back on sale and ads on radio and in the papers. Did they find some extra seats or something?

(9) Now that On The Record’s video recorder has finally stopped taping Law & Order, anyone got any advice or recommendations about hard-drive recorders?

(10) Finding a baritone saxaphone player is the most difficult part of putting together a brass section.

(11) Some people aren’t feeling any blog love.

(12) There was a big rave at Fairyhouse Racecourse on Saturday. And I bet not one On The Record reader was at it.

As played on Phantom FM, Saturday September 1, 10pm-midnight

Just as it was inevitable that this show would start out with that remix of RATM after I heard it last weekend (cheers to Annie Mac for the hook-up), it was also inevitable that we’d hear from “The Piper At The Gates of Dawn”. Inbetween, there was room for my new favourite band in the whole wide world (well, as at Saturday at 8pm anyway), Le Loup, Diplo’s M.I.A. vs Battles remix of “Boyz”, one of the amazing tracks from the Flying Lotus mini-album, new music from Beirut, Efterklang and Fiery Furnaces, a cut from Ben Westbeech and, why not, Elmer Bernstein and his orchestra horsing out the theme from “The Man With The Golden Arm”. Also tunes from that fabulous new Twisted Nerve compilation and I finally got around to Arthur & Yu. If you haven’t heard Belgian vocal wonders Scala & Kolacny Brothers, make amends today. Big respect to the texters (especially Mike).

Rage Against The Machine “Killing In The Name Of (Mr Oizo Remix)” (White)
Dan Deacon “Crystal Cat” (Car Park)
M.I.A. “Boyz (Diplo Goes Into Battles Mix)” (White)
The Pre-Sets “Are You The One?” (Modular)
Claude Von Stroke “Who’s Afraid Of Detroit?” (Dirtybird)
Von Sudenfed “Fledermaus Can’t Get It” (Domino)
Balkan Beat Box “9/4 The Ladies” (Essay)
Le Loup “We Are Gods! We Are Wolves!” (Hardly Art)
Josh Ritter “Mind’s Eye” (Independent)
Kevin Drew “Safety Bricks” (Arts & Crafts)
Fiery Furnaces “Ex-Guru” (Thrill Jockey)
Menomena “Muscle ‘N Flo” (Barsuk)
Flying Lotus “Tea Leaf Dancers” (Warp)
Little Dragon “Scribbled Paper” (Peacefrog)
Elmer Bernstein Orchestra “Theme from The Man With The Golden Arm” (MCA)
Ben Westbeech “So Good Today” (Brownswood)
Secos & Mochados “Amor” (Soul Jazz)
The Jamaicans “Ba Ba Boom” (Trojan)
Toolshed “I Rooster II” (Twisted Nerve)
Vashti Bunyan “Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind” (Fat Cat)
Liftmen “Sad Tail” (Twisted Nerve)
Earth “An Inquest Concerning Teeth” (Southern Lord)
Beirut “A Sunday Smile” (4AD)
Efterklang “Mirador” (Leaf)
Arthur & Yu “Come To View (Song for Neil Young)” (Hardly Art)
Pink Floyd “Astronomy Domine” (EMI)
Scala & Kolacny Brothers “Heartbeats” (Fratelli)

Hugely popular Crumlin troubadour Paddy Casey has sold a staggering 250,000 copies of his two albums to date in Ireland alone.

Last Friday, he released his new album “Addicted To Company (Part 1)” and marked this occasion with an in-store performance at Tower Records on Wicklow Street, Dublin.

Given the above numbers, how many people do you think allegedly turned up for this prestigious in-store performance?

(a) 1,000

(b) 800

(c) 500

(d) 25 - and 10 of these hardy souls were from his label or management company

Interestingly, there are tickets still on sale for Paddy’s show at Crawdaddy tonight (Monday), even though his own website claims the show is sold out.

Ahem.

Kanye West plays Live at the Marquee in the Phoenix Park, Dublin on November 30th. Yes, another bloody tent. Kanye will also play Belfast’s Odyssey Arena on December 1st.

Expect Aiken Promotions to announce more Live at the Marquee gigs in the next week.

UPDATE 1: Thanks to Mrs On The Record for pointing out that the other gigs in this marquee will probably be Madness, Meat Loaf and Rod Stewart - ie the gigs Aiken Promotions are putting on in Belfast this autumn/winter. Sure, there might even be an appearance from Bruce.

UPDATE 2: Or we can make do with chart-topping Euro rave-poppers Cascada. Playing Live at the Marquee on December 5th.

Some online sleuthing shows that Dizzee Rascal will be playing the tent pitched in the grounds of the Irish Museum of Modern Art on October 25th and Jose Gonzalez will be playing on October 26th.

UPDATE 1 It looks like we can add the Pet Shop Boys to the list for October 27th.

UPDATE 2 Marlon has worked out that Groove Armada are playing Some Days Never End on October 25th.

Arcade Fire to play a second show in Dublin in October. Have a great weekend y’all.

UPDATE As exclusively, er, rumoured here, Arcade Fire play an extra date at Dublin’s Big Top on October 23. Tickets go on sale on Friday next at 9am. We’ll make the ham sandwiches and flasks of tea for the inevitable round of whinging and moaning and belly-aching on Friday next from 9.10am onwards as people realise this gig is also sold out.

The best music festival of 2007? Don’t take our word for it. On The Record blog readers were asked to give us their verdict on the Electric Picnic and here’s their take on it.
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It’s interesting to see that one of the Big Three concert promoters in Ireland are not bothering with tents for their shows this autumn.

With the Point closed until early 2009, Aiken Promotions seem intent on putting all their big shows (like Bruce Springsteen, which sold out in less time that it takes to boil a kettle this morning, Rod Stewart, Meat Loaf and Madness) into Belfast’s Odyssey instead.

It makes sense on a couple of levels. The Odyssey is a fantastic venue, easily the best large-scale multi-configuration shed on the island; people will always travel if they really want to see the show - after all, people from the north have happily came down south over the years to see acts - and it’s further proof that this all-Ireland economy doesn’t just impact on Aer Lingus customers in Shannon.

Lets hope Ian Paisley turns up to thank Bruce in person. And hey, surely the moaning should have begun by now about higher ticket prices because of the sterling?

Some day, all record executives will be like Rick Rubin.

A Mercury Music Prize judge tells all. Just a pity Jude Rogers forgot one vital detail: the panel do not get to select their shortlist from ALL albums released, but rather just those albums submitted by labels who can afford the application fee.

That dude Diplo has a new mix-tape for y’all to download and he goes through it track by track with Pitchfork.

The story behind the Ethiopiques series, one of the finest world music projects of recent years.

Business Week runs the rule over ticket brokering giant Ticketmaster’s revenue model.

Researchers think they can put manners on file-sharers. Maybe when they’re finished, they could do the same for blog readers. Hah!

Here’s where it starts to get interesting again.
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Good news: Sinead Gleeson has recommenced blogging.

I’ve seen loads and loads of really cool photos from last weekend online so here are some links. Get clicking! And also check out Kate Geraghty’s great pics for The Ticket at the Electric Picnic here.

Una introduced me over the weekend to Lili Forberg and her photos from the weekend are class, especially the ones of Iggy (especially where he’s humping the amp), Jarvis Cocker Bat For Lashes and the Beastie Boys.

Pete Brady from Thumped was also busy with his camera and his pics are here. Really like the Fujiya & Miyagi ones.

Nialler9 had his camera with him and snapped Super Extra Bonus Party, Final Fantasy and UNKLE.

Dara Munnis got some lovely snaps of Lisa Hannigan’s Sunday morning show at the Body and Soul Chill stage.

UPDATE More links to pics in comments below

They haven’t gone away, you know. While On The Record readers (and writers) recover from the Electric Picnic, some old topics are still rumbling on. No, not that one. Or that one, though we expect it to return next week.

Number one, some Ian Brown fans are still at it. Look, I didn’t kick this one off but some people seem keen to keep making points.

Number two, the dashing Ray Foley. The Today FM DJ himself has now decided to get involved in proceedings and he posted his thoughts over the weekend while everyone else was in Co Laois.

Hi Jim,

No I’m not hurt nor offended, nor “very slighted” - I just said what I thought, which was I sensed some negative vibes toward the show. But as I made very clear (I think), that’s ok. I’m not hurt or anything. And I do genuinely enjoy your blog.

As for IP addresses and whatnot, that’s not us: I haven’t been here since last weekend and I unfortunately don’t have three researchers.

All the best,

Ray Foley

Dude, those first couple positive comments about your show were all generated from IP addresses located within a certain building on Upper Abbey Street and I don’t mean the posh Spar on the other side of the Luas tracks. Maybe Willie O’Reilly is taking time out from his hectic schedule to show his lunchtime DJ some blog love?

Number three, the Picnic v RTE. There has been some subtle spinning from RTE quarters about this, but we’re no nearer the real story. By the way, lets hope our TV licence fees did not pay for those “team building” excercises which saw certain RTE departments at large in the guest area at the Picnic.

Number four, the Klaxons won the bloody Mercury Music Prize. I still stand over my original opinion about the album. Of course, I blame the judges. ALWAYS blame the judges when these album of the year prizes turn out the wrong way….

I’ve noticed a few people mentioning The Dukesbox in the comments below as one of their Picnic highlights, which is cool to see. I bumped into two very unhappy Dukes when I was wandering around the site on Friday afternoon. They were worried about the fact their little van was parked so far from the action and that they had no power. Obviously, all that changed for the better over the weekend.

They also told me some very interesting tales about how much certain brands were shelling out to get involved with UK festivals (Braun’s 50k to plaster their logo on one skate ramp at some fest outside Bath which I’d never heard of before). As we have seen with the Picnic this year, festivals have become big days out for corporate brands.

Anyway, behold the Dukesbox!

As played on Phantom FM, Saturday September 1, 10pm-midnight

Yeah, yeah, it was a pre-record.

Bjork “Earth Intruders (Instrumental)” (One Little Indian)
Spiritualized “Electricity” (Dedicated)
Magik Markers “Taste” (Ecstatic Peace)
Josh Ritter “Real Long Distance” (Independent)
Les Savy Fav “The Equestrian” (French Kiss)
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists “The Sons Of Cain” (Touch & Go)
Frog Eyes “Evil Energy” (Absolutely Kosher)
The Raconteurs “Broken Boy Solider” (XL)
The Hold Steady “Hot Soft Light” (Vagrant)
The Faint “I Disappear” (Saddle Creek)
Deerhunter “Strange” (Kranky)
Animal Collective “#1” (Domino)
Panda Bear “Bros” (Paw Tracks)
DJ Shadow “Building Steam” (Mo Wax)
Aluminium “The Hardest Button To Button” (XL)
Clarke-Boland Big Band “Sakara” (Talkin’ Loud)
Little Dragon “No Love” (Peacefrog)
Bat For Lashes “Sarah” (Echo)
The Octopus Project “I Saw The Bright Shinies” (Peek-A-Boo)
Talking Heads “This Must Be The Place (Naïve Melody)” (EMI)
Findlay Brown “Losing The Will To Survive (Beyond The Wizard’s Sleeve mix)” (Brownswood)
Catherine Howe “It’s Not Likely” (Numero)
Cat Power “Dream” (Matador)
Van Morrison “Into the Mystic” (Polydor)

Enough about the weekend from me, what about you?

How was the Electric Picnic for you? Let us know your thoughts, raves, faves, quibbles and stories. I’m planning to round up the best of the rest of the Picnic for next Friday’s Ticket so you know what to do. Type to Jim.

(1) What idiot booked the Jesus & Mary Chain for the main stage? If ever there was a band doing a TTMAR (take the money and run) gig, it was the Reids and their hired hands. Still, Jim Reid looks like a man who’d happily thump you for looking sideways at him. Rumours that his brother William had a big feed of Pieminister fare before taking the stage proved unfounded.

(2) The alleged sighting of local Dail rep Brian Cowen discussing the problems of fortysomething hip-hop with the Beastle Boys was also a no-no, but the Beasties did go home with a signed poster of Linda Martin. True story.

(3) It was very funny to see a number of MCD Concerts employees (each with a punter wristband) walking around Stradbally taking discreet photos of nearly everything that moved. Expect Latitude to turn up next summer in Co Westmeath with loads and loads of Picnic knock-offs.

(4) The Body & Soul arena is the heart of the Picnic. I could have quite happily spent the entire weekend there and I’m not even a hippy. It would make a great festival on its own, but I hope it will still remain a part of the Picnic.

(5) The branding at the Nokia Trends Lab stage was completely over-the-top and took away from the bands who were playing there. I lasted only a few songs at The Aliens and Sons & Daughters because the stupid screens, idiots in boiler suits and sense that you were at a corporate PowerPoint presentation was doing my head in. Down with this sort of stupid unwelcome and inappropriate branding thing which was unfortunately very common at this year’s event.

(6) The Next Stage rocked. I couldn’t tell you what the hell it was about but it was really trippy, interesting and funny. The campfires at 1am were a great idea. Mouse On Mars played there. Bet you didn’t know that.

(7) The most surreal moment of a surreal weekend happened in the Silent Disco late on Saturday night/early on Sunday morning. In the middle of a happy hardcore set, the Dutch DJ dropped the Wolfe Tones “On The One Road” into the set. Who needs acid when something like that happens?

(8) I saw a rake of Irish acts on Sunday morning.