Irish gigs round-up

JULIA HOLTER, The Button Factory, Dublin, Wednesday.
JULIA Holter’s fourth album Have You In My Wilderness is still reverberating in critics’ heads as one of the albums of 2015 – in nearly all of the end-of-year lists.
The Californian singer-songwriter has morphed from the avant-garde folk and eerie Roxy Music covers on her first album Maria, for an album of lush symphonic dream-pop without going anywhere near the cheese.
With Holter on keys, as well as a minimal band on viola, stand-up bass and whispery electronics, don’t be surprised if you get tutted at for talking near the front.

KiNK, District 8, Dublin, tonight, 11pm (SOLD OUT)
BULGARIAN producer KiNK is the current holder of the Resident Advisor live act of the year award — and he’s in Dublin tonight to prove it’s just not a big PR social media blitz.
He’s over for his first ever District 8 live show, and if you haven’t seen him before you should check out his Boiler Room sessions on YouTube to see what the fuss is about.
For a start the normally zombified Boiler Room patrons are dancing their asses off, while KiNK jumps between synths, controllers, vinyl and other percussion toys, heavy on handclaps, soulful Detroit techno, rave, classic house and his own techno stomps.
Expect industrial strength techno from Paula Temple and her R&S labelmate Truss.

PLEASURE BEACH, Workman’s Club, Dublin, tonight (Sold Out)
BELFAST’S Pleasure Beach have sold out tonight’s gig at the Workmans on the back of one EP — but their live shows are doing plenty of heavy lifting as well.
With elements of Arcade Fire, Twin Shadow and even 80s fist-pumping Bruce Springsteen at his 80s fist-pumping best, Pleasure Beach have hit the red button for anthemic, without hitting any of the pitfalls.
One listen to lead single Go and you’ll see why they’re this year’s Girl Band — ones to watch from all sides.
They picked up plenty of traction after slots with Jape and All Tvvins last year, and they’ve hit the ground running already this year with a Longitude slot.
It’ll be good to see them in the Sweaty Workmans though.

RICHIE RAMONE, Voodoo, Belfast, tonight, & Voodoo Lounge, Dublin, tomorrow
WITH Ramones T-shirts not even cool enough for Penneys these days, someone’s gotta try to keep the legacy intact.
Joey, Johnny, Marky and Dee Dee are no longer around to call bullshit on the years of tacky appropriation, but third drummer Richie has staked a claim on the name and the trademark high-gear punk.
Richie joined the camp from 1983-87 and helped turn around the Ramones’ disastrous attempts at pop — and he’s picking up the sticks where he left off.
His album Entitled is a snarly, amped up slice of classic punk, with nothing post- about it.

ENNIO MORRICONE, 3Arena, Dublin, Sunday, SOLD OUT
ENNIO Morricone has such a far-reaching influence on music and film that he could well have scored the favourite films of four generations.
The eminent Italian composer secured legendary status with his soundtracks for the Serge Leone’s Fistful of Dollars trilogy, the Mission and Once Upon at Time in America – but at 87 he’s just scored Tarantino’s latest The Hateful Eight.
Even though he has hundreds of scores and compositions – from piano concertos and choral compositions to full on wah-wah 70s funk – his film work is still the biggest draw. It’s expensive, but Maestro Morricone is worth a Few Dollars More.

SLIPKNOT, SSE Arena, Belfast, Monday
WITH the rallying cry People = Shit, Slipknot were never the most subtle of teenage angst bands.
Iowa’s masked outcasts may seem a bit passe these days, bordering on comical – but they’re still the heaviest band you’ll catch headlining an arena this size.
Their latest album 5: The Gray Chapter is their most extreme since 2001’s Iowa, a muck-splattered downtuned cacophony that’ll keep the old guard happy.
A year ago Slipknot brought 90s nu-metallers Korn to Dublin’s 3Arena, but they’re digging even deeper this time for Californian thrash hardcore legends Suicidal Tendencies, with 50-year-old Mike Muir still sporting the bandana and fist-pumping like a teenager full of vodka.