Author Archives: Culch.ie

Pop Culture Show Pilot: The Format

  By Culch.ie | February 26, 2012 - 11:00 am | Featured Post, Movies & TV, The Culch, TV
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Over the past week we’ve been trying something new. The Format, our pop culture web TV experiment, is the result of many hours of planning, filming and editing. As it is a pilot, filmed in Culch Towers (AKA Darren and Sinéad’s apartment), we would really love to hear your feedback. How did we do? What works? What would you change? Should we keep it up? What would you like to see us covering if we do? Any and all thoughts would be appreciated – we’re on a learning curve and we want to be better able to produce a show that viewer’s can have input on and look forward to. Oh, make sure you look out for the great viewer competition from Meteor. We wanted to bring together all of the many topics we cover on Culch.ie, present them to you in a different way, show you what we look … There’s more →

Events: The Kilimanjaro Rock Event

  By Culch.ie | February 20, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Events, Gigs, Random Whimsy
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In June, Culch’s own Jenny Foxe will be heading off on what has to be one of the biggest challenges of her life. She’s going to climb Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for Irish Premature Babies. The funds raised from this trek will go towards providing emergency accommodation for parents who find themselves separated from their infants due to transfer to specialised treatment units, which makes it an extremely worthy cause. As part of her fundraising she’s put together The Kilimanjaro Rock Event. It’s happening in the Gypsy Rose this Friday night (24th) and features live music from The Fendermen, The Big September, The DC Experiment and Machine Gun Baby. Tickets are only a tiny wee €10 so we reckon you should go along and throw a few sheckles her way. You’ll be entertained for your trouble and there’s also a raffle on the night with some fairly deadly prizes such as … There’s more →

New Music: Lightships – Sweetness in Her Spark

  By Culch.ie | February 17, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Music
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It was revealed at the start of the year that Gerard Love of Scotland’s Teenage Fanclub would be releasing a full album of self-penned tracks. Coming together under the name Lightships, the group of musicians features Dave McGowan and Brendan O’Hare of Fanclub as well as Bob Kildea, bassist with Belle & Sebastian and Tom Crossley, flautist with International Airport and The Pastels. Their debut single, ‘Sweetness in Her Spark’, taken from the album ‘Electric Cables’ is a dreamy tune to float away on with a light-filled video to match filmed in, would you believe, Glasgow? The album is released on Domino on March 30th. Meantime, have a look….    

Culch Valentine’s: The round-up

  By Culch.ie | February 14, 2012 - 4:00 pm | Random Whimsy
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There’s a certain laziness that pervades when something is a hobby and not a jobby. Sure you’d like to write acerbic, witty commentary of a Thursday, maybe a couple of gig reviews peppered throughout your week, dash off a Photoshop of something and a funny cat on a Saturday morning. But then there’s arse grooves in the couch; long, luxurious bouts of cheese eating and your addiction to SingStar to think about. And you just can’t do everything. You’re only one person. And you’re trying God damn it you’re trying. Here at Culch Towers, every now and then we fight off the blanket of lethargy and do a wee group project to bring us all together under a blanket of lechery. And what better theme to get handsey to but Valentine’s?* We’ve been just delira with the response to our foray into personal storytelling and we’ll try to get into … There’s more →

Culch Valentine’s: My secret admirer

  By Culch.ie | February 13, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Random Whimsy
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Hi there gorgeous, So, Valentine’s Day. Starry-eyed loser, star-crossed lover or cross-eyed malcontent, you’re bound to have an opinion on it, yes? Be it a memory, a barely-concealed urge to vomit, a poem for your other half that makes the rest of us vomit, a scribbled note on what a perfect valentine’s would be for you, a history lesson on the relics of St Valentine, an angry swipe at Hallmark, a cry for help because you don’t know your partner much better than you know your postman and you’re deathly scared of trying to shop for them or anything in between, we share those feelings and each day in the run up to the 14th one of Culch’s writers will bring you their own personal Valentine’s thoughts. With love and last-minute garage chocolates, Culch A hideous chud I was. An skinny incubator of late puberty, hormones and penchant for sleeveless knitwear. Until … There’s more →

Culch Valentine’s: How I learned to stop worrying and love the occasional bang

  By Culch.ie | February 10, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Random Whimsy
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Hi there gorgeous, So, Valentine’s Day. Starry-eyed loser, star-crossed lover or cross-eyed malcontent, you’re bound to have an opinion on it, yes? Be it a memory, a barely-concealed urge to vomit, a poem for your other half that makes the rest of us vomit, a scribbled note on what a perfect valentine’s would be for you, a history lesson on the relics of St Valentine, an angry swipe at Hallmark, a cry for help because you don’t know your partner much better than you know your postman and you’re deathly scared of trying to shop for them or anything in between, we share those feelings and each day in the run up to the 14th one of Culch’s writers will bring you their own personal Valentine’s thoughts. With love and last-minute garage chocolates, Culch I used to be very righteous about sex. (More a locked knickers type than surfer-esque ‘totally righteous, dude!’) … There’s more →

I Heart Tea Crowd Episode 9 – Dead Cat Bounce

  By Culch.ie | February 8, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Featured Post, I ♥ Tea Crowd, TV
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Comedy rockers Dead Cat Bounce have been on the scene since 2008, touring the circuit and regaling audiences with tales of ‘Overenthusiastic Contraceptive Lady’ and ‘Good Touch, Bad Touch’. A full band, with vocalist Jim Whalmsey, drummer Demian Fox and guitarist Shane O’Brien, the first few seconds of any of their shows will lull you into a false sense of musical security before they launch straight into lyrics such as ‘like a chimpanzee in a buffet car they’re grabbing at things before they know what they are … and trying to put them in their mouths’ (‘Christians in Love’) and ‘Me and my instructor tearing down the autobahn, doing ninety in a Mazda with the handbrake on’ (‘Switzerland’). Having caught them live a number of times, we can only say that comedy and rock go incredibly well together and their show, Howl of the She-Leopard, hits Vicar Street on the … There’s more →

Events: Tribes @ Academy 2 May 4th

  By Culch.ie | February 7, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Events, Gigs, Music
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For those among you who miss the glory days of Britpop, check out Tribes if you haven’t already and then grab tickets to their Academy 2  show on May 4th. With lots of guitar and hooky melodies, look no further than ‘We Were Children’ for your starter tune: Follow up with ‘Sappho’, ”When My Day Comes’ and ‘Corner of an English Field’ all taken from their debut album Baby.  Tickets are €13 from the usual. You’re welcome.

Album Review: Rebecca Gresty

  By Culch.ie | February 7, 2012 - 9:00 am | Music
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Rebecca Gresty’s Mad at the Seems [sic], is a big debut. The vocals and big band sound are immediately reminiscent of Imelda May but where May is infused with no small dose of cheek, Gresty often plumbs for a more reserved performance. Album opener ‘Mad at the Seems’ showcases her enviable voice to toe-tapping effect with a jazzy accompaniment that would sit well in a 1950s nightclub before sliding into ‘Leave Me Be’ with its more rock ‘n’ roll sound. Perhaps a symptom of spending life on the road as a touring band, some of the performances have a slightly jaded quality where more emotion is expected, but ultimately the seeds of something good are there. Rebecca Gresty Standout tracks like ‘Toast’  and ‘Nothing’ show that Gresty can give an emotive performance and ‘Rockin’ Horse’ gives a glimpse of how the band sound when they’re having fun, but the album … There’s more →

Pics: Launch of the Song of the Year Category @ The Meteor Choice Music Prize

  By Culch.ie | February 6, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Gigs, Music
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The inaugural Irish Song of the Year Category for this year’s Meteor Choice Music Prize was launched in style last Thursday night with acoustic performances from four of the nominees – The Kanyu Tree, This Club, Cashier No. 9 and Lisa Hannigan – in the cosy surrounds of the upstairs bar in Doheny & Nesbitt on Baggot Street. 10 songs in all have been shortlisted and are listed after the jump:

Reviewed: Carlsberg VIP Club @ The 02

  By Culch.ie | January 31, 2012 - 12:00 pm | Gigs, Music, The Culch
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There’s a certain amount of nostalgia attached to any walk down the quays for a concert at The 02. Undeniably an improvement on its previous incarnation as The Point Depot, you still find yourself with a hankering after a few merch stalls, a concrete floor and a balcony that really made you feel like you were taking your life in your hands. The fact is, we’ll always feel sorry for those young pups who never got to experience a concert at The Point Depot. In the same way they don’t remember the pound coin, they’re blissfully unaware of the amount of time you could spend queueing for the ladies loos while listening to the last few muffled bars of your favourite song creeping through from the main arena and awkwardly crossing your legs. Instead, they’re mollycoddled with multi-storey parking, drinks holders on the seats and a LUAS straight to the … There’s more →

Red Bull Launch Bedroom Jam Competition

  By Culch.ie | January 20, 2012 - 2:00 pm | Gigs, Music, The Internet
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Pictured below are band-of-the-hour The Minutes (see what we did there? ) rocking out at last night’s launch of the Red Bull Bedroom Jam at The Workman’s Club. If you think you’d look that good on stage and have the talent to back it up, then read on, this could be your big moment. Bedroom Jam is offering young Irish bands the chance to seriously kick-start their careers by performing at Irish music festivals in 2012, with the ultimate winner bagging a chance to record at the Red Bull Studio next autumn. We’re particularly interested in this competition because it relies heavily on how cool you are on the internet … or how well you can promote yourself at least… and we’re all about the internet self-promotion in Culch Towers. To enter Bedroom Jam, bands need to upload a video of themselves performing to the competition website, www.redbullbedroomjam.ie between now … There’s more →

Spirit of Folk 2012 – Call for band submissions

  By Culch.ie | January 11, 2012 - 10:30 am | Festivals, Gigs, Music
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If you’re a regular reader of Culch then you’ll know what an amazing time myself (Anto), Peter Donegan and Brian Greene had at Spirit of Folk 2011 (Day 1, Day 2 & Day 3 posts). It was a brilliant weekend from start to finish and brought together some amazing acts and people. 2012 is set to be bigger and the guys have just put out a call for band submissions. As they say themselves: We’re looking for folk music in the broadest sense. We’re looking for American folk, Irish Trad., bluegrass, folk rock, country and anything that fits our festival. Last year we had bands as broad ranging as St. John the Gambler’s eastern influenced, stomping Alt. Folk to Lisa O’Neill’s tender folk ballads. There’s no reason why this year’s line up can’t be just as diverse. Folk in its most basic sense is the music of the people so … There’s more →

2011: Let’s Hear It For The Best Bits.

  By Culch.ie | December 31, 2011 - 9:00 am | The Culch
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Well, that’s it. Come in, 2011, your time is up! And though we’re still busy sweeping up the debris after the budget and detangling mislaid election promises, let’s take a moment to remember the best bits of 2011, the stuff that didn’t make us tut, whimper or rampage across the Bog Of Allen throwing sods of turf at the sky. So pull up a chair (assuming there’s one you didn’t yet burn for firewood) and allow Culch.ie’s writers to take your mind off your boo-boos with our personal favourites from the year that was. A Head Full Of Jed 2011 definitely had its soaring pop culture highs and its devastating pop culture lows, from the joyful experience of standing front and centre at The Button Factory when Neil Hannon, Cathy Davey et al performed Vampire Weekend’s album for The JD Set in April, to the unbearable skincrawl of even accidentally … There’s more →