SUNN O ))): The Limelight, Belfast, Monday 17th; Button Factory, Dublin, Tuesday 18th.
Part psychedelic drone metal seance, part bass frequency endurance test, Sunn O))) are one of extreme music’s most revered acts.
Pronounced ‘Sun’, the added flourish is a tribute to the SUNN amplifier, which illustrates the Seattle band’s bass fetishism – they even have a t-shirt with the slogan, ‘Ever Breathe a Frequency?’
Performing in monk’s robes, with Hammer horror levels of dry ice and riffs as heavy and slow as molten lava, it’s as out-there as you’ll get on a school night.
SAUL WILLIAMS: Sugar Club, Dublin, Wednesday 19th
Rapper and poet Saul Williams was last over in Dublin for the spoken word festival Lingo, but he’ll be in conventional form here, taking his experimental hip-hop to Dublin. His latest album MartyrLoserKing is another dense collection, with industrial beats framing his unique take on modern protest.
PRONG: Voodoo, Belfast, Wednesday 19th; Voodoo Lounge, Dublin Thursday 20th
On the go for 30 years, New Yorkers Prong have gatecrashed plenty of metal scenes, with elements of thrash, hardcore, crossovers and industrial spread over their 12 albums.
They approached the mainstream in the mid-90s with major label album Cleansing and its big hit Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck.
Now fully independent and still fronted by founder Tommy Victor, Prong have released four belter albums since 2012, and new record Zero Days is just around the corner.
Moo Kid 