Photo: Remy Connolly
Info: The second Canalaphonic Festival is just around the corner this weekend after the huge success of last years inaugural celebration of Irish music and culture. So, what do you need to know? Well first of all, just like last year, all events are free spread across venues from the top to the bottom of Rathmines, following the Grand Canal route through Portobello and ending at Whelan's of Wexford Street. Unlike last year, it ain't bring your own booze, but there will be bar facilities at the Main Stage area at The Leinster Cricket Ground in Rathmines, and obviously there are rumours the pubs will be serving alcohol too!
Who's playing and where? The organisers have put together two easy to follow guides for the Friday and Saturday and you can print them off below, or save them on your phone for ease of planning on the day. I myself will be working on The Sound Feed stage at The Barge on the Friday night so be sure to pop in and say hi to me and the team and check out the three acts we have lined up for our stage, Aural Air, TADGH and The Statics. Also check out my Spotify and SoundCloud playlists below covering almost all of the acts involved in the festival.
For all the most up to date info you can visit the official Canalaphonic website here http://canalaphonic.com/ or swing by and Like the Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/canalaphonic, or if Twitter is your thing, so here! https://twitter.com/canalaphonic
The Story Behind Canalaphonic
Canalaphonic grew from the proverbial little acorns when Dublin musician Sid Daly, guitarist of psych-rockers Mother Mooch, had a brainwave which involved sparking life into a vibrant but somewhat listless part of Dublin city centre, around the Portobello area of the canal, a small music festival. Through his friend and fellow musician, Jem Mitchell, he got in touch with innovative barber David Judge (Abner Brown) who was himself in the middle of creating a mini-music Mecca at his barbershop in the village. Daly and Judge turned small into large, catching everyone by surprise, no moreso than themselves, Daly recalling that it; 'turned into something absolutely amazing with something like 120 bands from all genres playing over 25 venues throughout Rathmines and Portobello, and somewhere around 4,000 people watching bands play on top of a barge at the Harbour!'
For all the most up to date info you can visit the official Canalaphonic website here http://canalaphonic.com/ or swing by and Like the Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/canalaphonic, or if Twitter is your thing, so here! https://twitter.com/canalaphonic
The Story Behind Canalaphonic
Canalaphonic grew from the proverbial little acorns when Dublin musician Sid Daly, guitarist of psych-rockers Mother Mooch, had a brainwave which involved sparking life into a vibrant but somewhat listless part of Dublin city centre, around the Portobello area of the canal, a small music festival. Through his friend and fellow musician, Jem Mitchell, he got in touch with innovative barber David Judge (Abner Brown) who was himself in the middle of creating a mini-music Mecca at his barbershop in the village. Daly and Judge turned small into large, catching everyone by surprise, no moreso than themselves, Daly recalling that it; 'turned into something absolutely amazing with something like 120 bands from all genres playing over 25 venues throughout Rathmines and Portobello, and somewhere around 4,000 people watching bands play on top of a barge at the Harbour!'
Photo: Remy Connolly
For anyone who somehow doesn't know, the other man behind the magic of Canalaphonic is the legendary Dave Judge, or as most people fondly know him, Abner Brown. Starting a few years ago with musicians coming into Abner Brown's Barbershop on the Rathmines end of the Rathgar Road, the intimate venue has now become one of Dublin's most iconic music locations. To find out a little bit more about the man, check out the trailer for the documentary More Than A Barbershop which is currently screening at film festivals around the country.
And oh yeah, so how about some of the acts then? Well I've got you covered there too! Enjoy!
Festival Time-tables - Click to Enlarge!
