Jim Carrollon music
Whatever happens at Punchestown Racecourse this weekend, Oxegen fans can rest easy in one regard the title of worst festival for 2008 has already been claimed.
That unfortunate sobriquet now belongs to Zoo8, a three-day festival held at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park in Kent last weekend.
Fans spent most of this week fuming, with such lowlights as bad organisation, the number of no-shows and poor facilities mentioned in the despatches. Descriptions such as "shambles" and "disgraceful" were bandied about in various online reviews of the festival.
Dizzee Rascal, Roni Size, Athlete, Late of the Pier, Charlotte Hatherley, The Rascals and Wiley were some of the acts who pulled out of the festival at the eleventh hour.
While the organisers, a trio of dance club promoters, were initially claiming that the event was a "qualified success", they later acknowledged that some aspects of the event went badly wrong.
In a statement, festival director Ricardo Monty said they "experienced some serious teething problems" including "queues upon arrival, complaints over campsite overcrowding, lack of drinkable water and line-up and scheduling changes." Monty also said organisers encountered "significant dissent from artists regarding payment".
Many of these problems, said fellow director Danny Blanche, were due to a "miscalculation over cash flow" with the park owners having to come to the rescue to keep the show on the road.
Ash bassist Mark Hamilton told BBC Radio Kent that the band's appearance was in doubt until late in the day due to "a lot of issues with the promoters".
Naturally in the wake of such widespread unhappiness, there have been many calls for refunds for tickets, which ranged in price from £45 to £99.
However, the organisers said they will be dealing with all such claims on a case-by-case basis.
"We want to stress that this was our first festival", said Blanche, "and that we have dealt with all problems directly and will continue to do so in preparation for next year."
Round two for RnaG
Time for round two. Last summer, Raidió na Gaeltachta's An Taobh Tuathailshow released its first compilation to a round of applause for all quarters.
Now comes volume two with longstanding presenter Cian O'Ciobhain selecting tracks from Susannna & The Magical Orchestra, the excellent Boxcutter, L. Pierre, Mice Parade, Hannu, Songs Of Green Pheasant, Sarsparilla and Somadrone.
The release on the Psychonavigation label in August will be supported by a tour featuring appearances by Kilkenny electronic act Rarely Seen Above Ground, Alphamono, Dry County and Somadrone.
The tour kicks off at Dublin's Button Factory on August 1 and visits Galway (Roisin Dubh, 8), Cork (Electric Underground, 15) and Limerick (Trinity Rooms, 22).
Number eight for Nitin
Last seen in Ireland when he was artist in residence at the Dún Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures in 2004, Nitin Sawhney releases his eighth studio album in October.
London Undergroundfeatures Sawhney collaborating with Natty, Reena Bhardwaj, Ojos de Brujo, Anoushka Shankar, Imogen Heap, Faheem Mazhar and Paul McCartney, with artwork by Antony Gormley.
Sawhney says the album is his attempt to capture the London he knows.
"London's heartbeat has changed", he says. "Within that heartbeat there lies a feeling, a collective consciousness, the uniting hum of disparate voices waiting to be heard." "London Underground" is released on October 10.
ETC
• Dublin City Council's Arts Office is behind the Northside Music Festival running in various venues throughout August, with performances from Havana Son, Grada, Kevin Glackin, Veda and many more. Info from www.dublincity.ieor 01-2225455
• Polish post-rock outfit Korbowod play shows at Dublin's Boom Boom Room on July 25th and Waterford's Artbeat Festival on July 26th. www.myspace.com/korbowod
• Hollywood's favourite Irish film score composer David Holmes releases his new album The Holy Pictures on September 8.
QUOTE
"People like championing the underdog. It's when you start getting popular that people start sticking the knife in"- Jape's Riche Egan on backlash and begrudgery
