December
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- 3 DecMore Info
RESCHEDULED EVENT, ORIGINAL TICKETS STILL VALID
Selective Memory presents
GO_A
plus support
Opium Live • Sun 03 December 2023 • 7:30pm
Get ready for a musical experience like no other as Ukraine’s electrifying folk-electronic sensation, GO_A, makes their debut appearance in Ireland this October! With their unique blend of ancient Ukrainian folk traditions and cutting-edge electronic beats, GO_A has taken the global music scene by storm, earning widespread acclaim for their innovative sound.
Go_A is making a modern reinterpretation of Ukrainian folklore packaged in electronic sound. The name of the band consists of “Go” as “movement” and “A” as an ancient Greek letter “alpha”, symbolizing cultural roots and the beginning of everything. And their music centers around just that: the beginning, retelling traditional Ukrainian stories that have been passed down through generations.
The story of the band started in 2012 when the sound producer Taras Shevchenko met the ethnic singer Kateryna Pavlenko. Having experimented with Ukrainian folk songs, they realized that folklore and electronic music are a perfect match, thus creating a consummate combination of emotion and energy.
In December that year, the first song “Koliada” («Коляда») was released. First, they wanted to write a song together as an experiment, but after seeing that it worked, the band has worked together since.
The band first gained attention after the release of the single “Vesnianka” («Веснянка»), which won the National competition The Best Track in Ukraine 2015. For six weeks, the song was number one on the 10Dance chart of the Kiss FM radio station in Ukraine and was awarded Discovery of the Year by the radio station.
In the fall of 2016, the debut album “Idy na zvuk” («Іди на звук» — Follow the tune) was released, featuring 10 songs (including “Vesnianka”). In early 2017 they released a Christmas single “Shchedryi vechir” («Щедрий вечір») in collaboration with Katya Chilly.
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TICKETS
€24.50+bf available online from Whelanslive.com & Ticketbooth.eu
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 4 DecMore Info
BORIS GREBENSHIKOV
no support
Opium Live • Mon 4th December 2023 • 7:00pm
Boris Grebenschikov or ‘BG’ as he is known is also known is ‘The Russian Bob Dylan’, but he’s much more than that. To Russian speakers everywhere he is their Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen, Marc Bolan and Christy Moore all in one man.
I would describe him more accurately as the ‘Poet Laureate of the Russian speaking peoples’. Everyone knows BG!
He is an anti Putin, anti war Russian dissident living in London (since 2020) and playing to the Russian and Ukrainian diaspora globally since he can no longer play in his home country. He has been denounced as a traitor in the Russian Duma and recently appeared on the BBC’s ‘Hardtalk’ with Zeinab Badawi.
He is about to release ‘Heal The Sky’ a compilation album featuring tracks from friends and luminaries such as Dave Stewart, Jackson Browne, Transglobal Underground, Lisa Gerard, Christy Moore, The Waterboys, Crowded House and many more. All proceeds go to The Ukrainian Children’s Hospital in Kiev.
BG has toured internationally, playing sold out concerts, in the US and Europe, filing the Beacon Theatre in NY, Théatre de la Ville in Paris and The Royal Albert Hall in London.
With his legendary band ‘Akvarium’ and more recently with an international line up as BG+ he has challenged repression and enriched real Russian culture for 50 years.
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TICKETS
General admission: €50
TRC Card Discount: €27.50 (TRC Card & Ukrainian Passport to be shown at the door)
Tickets available online from Whelanslive.com
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 7 DecMore Info
DME Promotions proudly presents
DECAPITATED
‘NIHILITY’ UK & IRELAND TOUR 2023
plus support
OBSCURA, INFERI & THE MATERIA
Opium Live • Thur 07 December 2023 • 7:00pm
Across eight studio albums, Decapitated grew from the adolescent dream of teenagers from a small Central European town to one of the leaders of the metal genre. Each successive album further expands the band’s sound with genre-bending authenticity and integrity. As Metal Injection rightfully observed, “any self-respecting death metalhead knows the name well.” Like a rose in the devil’s garden, the Decapitated story builds triumph from tragedy. The gleeful grotesquery of extreme metal imagery and riff-tastic bludgeoning beckons listeners to uncover broader truths.
Their latest studio album Cancer Culture was released in 2022, with instantly recognisable devastation and deceptively sinister hooks abound. Newly minted Decapitated anthems like ‘Last Supper’, ‘Hello Death’, ‘Just A Cigarette’, ‘No Cure’, ‘Iconoclast’, and ‘Cancer Culture’ shimmer with sonically sharp production and unrelenting bombast. There’s also a newly increased emphasis on melody, even venturing into darkly romantic territory. Wacław “Vogg” Kiełtyka (guitar), Rafał “Rasta” Piotrowski (vocals), Paweł Pasek (bass), and James Stewart (drums) are at the top of their game, delivering the goods at peak performance. Jinjer vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk and Machine Head front man Robb Flynn make impressive guest appearances. Flynn contributes a hauntingly beautiful vocal to the Cancer Culture track ‘Iconoclast’, with Shmayluk, a formidable screamer, going the the clean vocal route on track ‘Hello Death.
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TICKETS
€30.00 available online from Whelanslive.com & Ticketmaster.ie
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 10 DecMore Info
Whelanslive.com presents
CHINA CRISIS
plus support
Opium Live • Sun 10 December 2023 • 7:30pm
China Crisis emerged in 1981 from their native Kirkby in Liverpool as the songwriting duo of vocalist/keyboardist Gary Daly and guitarist/vocalist Eddie Lundon. Over the years they have been accompanied by a gifted and creative group of musicians both on stage and in their recordings, but always with Gary and Eddie at the heart. The group was part of an early 1980s Liverpool musical renaissance that included new wave legends OMD and the likes of Echo and the Bunnymen, Teardrop Explodes, A Flock of Seagulls, and Frankie Goes to Hollywood.
China Crisis first grew to national prominence in the UK when the single ‘Christian’ made climbed to no. 12 in the charts in 1983. They would go on to have eleven hit singles and three Top 40 albums in their home country, as well as considerable commercial success in Western Europe, ANZ, Southeast Asia and the Americas. In Ireland, they had 7 Top 30 hits in total.
They consolidated their breakthrough success in early 1984, when the single ‘Wishful Thinking’ also became a hit, reaching no. 7 in the Irish charts.
Citing influences as varied as David Bowie, Stevie Wonder and Eric Satie, it’s not entirely surprising that their sound was distinctive amongst their peers, often combining elements of jazz, reggae, country and other styles with their own unique melodies and harmonies. With their philosophy that “the song is the most important thing”, China Crisis didn’t just stretch the creative limits of the technology of the time, but incorporated horns, strings, woodwinds, pedal steel and did whatever they sensed would serve to create the best possible outcome for a given song. The result of their effort was a clearly identifiable China Crisis sound that stood out from the crowd.
The band’s third album, Flaunt the Imperfection, reached no. 9 in the album chart and included the hit ‘Black Man Ray’ – a true classic of the period.
This was followed up by ‘King in a Catholic Style (Wake Up)’, which charted at no. 6 in Ireland.
In recent times the band have undertaken extensive touring to mark the celebration of 4 decades of music-making, selling out shows throughout the UK the US, Canada, Australia/New Zealand and Europe. The band also released their “40th Anniversary: Live from the Liverpool Philharmonic”, a lovingly produced live concert video from their inaugural 40th Anniversary show which features songs from every one of their albums (some never before performed live), recorded in their hometown with an all-star 16-piece China Crisis band.
With a combination of truly engaging music, a good bit of Scouse humor, and the clear kinship the band have with their fans, any China Crisis show is one you leave happier for having been part of. Their live performances are truly must-see.
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TICKETS
€28 available online from Whelanslive.com
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 23 DecMore Info
FUN LOVIN’ CRIMINALS
100% Colombian 25th Anniversary Tour
plus support
Opium Live • Sat 23rd December 2023 • 7:30pm
Fun Lovin’ Criminals’ infectious blend of cinematic hip-hop, rock ‘n’ roll, blues-jazz , latin-soul burst onto the New York music scene in 1996 with the release of the worldwide multi-platinum debut album ‘Come Find Yourself’ on EMI Records. Their debut single ‘Scooby Snacks’, famed for sampling Tarantino movies such as Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, spent 17 weeks on the Billboard chart, quickly achieving gold status in the US.
The band became an international hit, settling down in the UK, where their multi-platinum debut album ‘Come Find Yourself’ spent an incredible two years in the UK album chart. FLC performed an infamously raucous set on the famous Pyramid main stage at Glastonbury ’99 and the rest – as they say – is history.
Fun Lovin’ Criminals have released 6 studio albums, 2 cover albums, 1 triple live album and various best of’s. They are putting the finishing touches on their 7th studio album to be released early 2023 to coincide with a world tour.
FLC are Europe’s best-loved “cousins from New York”, whip-smart story-tellers in smarter Saville Row suits who, through comically tall tales of living large in the neon metropolis via music, drugs, crime and existential ennui, launched a career in music.
The bands current lineup –
Brian Fast Leiser on lead vocals, bass, keys, horns, harp and programming.
Frank Benbini on drums, percussion and vocals.
Naim Cortazzi on guitar and vocals.
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TICKETS
€32.50 available online from Whelanslive.com
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 27 DecMore Info
MOVED TO OPIUM DUE TO DEMAND, ORIGINAL TICKETS STILL VALID
AMA Music Agency presents
KIERA DIGNAM
plus support
Opium Live • Wed 27 December 2023 • 8:00pm
Kiera is a female vocalist from Dublin singing on stages around Ireland since the age of 13. With live performances under her belt in The Point Theatre (now 3 arena), Vicar Street, Olympia Theatre, The National stadium, The Everyman Cork and Cork opera house to name a few.
Her first single “Ben” a cover of the Micheal Jackson hit went to number 1 in the iTunes Charts raising funds in memory of 5 years old “Batman Ben”.
Kiera has been accompanied on stage by many big name in the music industry such as Christy Dignam, Mark Feehily, Danny O’Reilly, Gavin James, Paul Brady Steve Garrigan, Paddy Casey and Mundy.
She has been performing the last number of years with her live full on6 piece band.
Keira will be following in her father’s footsteps with her Debut album due for release later this year and has already starting gathering rave reviews for her live performances.
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TICKETS
€16.50 available online from Whelanslive.com
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info - 28 DecMore Info
AMA Music Agency presents
KIERA DIGNAM
EXTRA DATE
plus support
Opium Live • Wed 27 [SOLD OUT] & Thur 28 December 2023 • 7:30pm
Kiera is a female vocalist from Dublin singing on stages around Ireland since the age of 13. With live performances under her belt in The Point Theatre (now 3 arena), Vicar Street, Olympia Theatre, The National stadium, The Everyman Cork and Cork opera house to name a few.
Her first single “Ben” a cover of the Micheal Jackson hit went to number 1 in the iTunes Charts raising funds in memory of 5 years old “Batman Ben”.
Kiera has been accompanied on stage by many big name in the music industry such as Christy Dignam, Mark Feehily, Danny O’Reilly, Gavin James, Paul Brady Steve Garrigan, Paddy Casey and Mundy.
She has been performing the last number of years with her live full on6 piece band.
Keira will be following in her father’s footsteps with her Debut album due for release later this year and has already starting gathering rave reviews for her live performances.
CONNECT
TICKETS
€16.50 available online from Whelanslive.com
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required.
Less Info