Cheebah and all that - Limerick, Ireland

Blood and Fire in Limerick

DOM from Blood and Fire records at Strutt 28-10-07

Strutt at Dolans threw on some pounding techno for the masses tempered with ‘Other stuff’ upstairs that gave some mainfloor contrast. On Saturday it was Jazzman Gerald delivering Northern soul as Inland Knights and the likes of Dr Greenwood whipped up downstairs. Sunday night had GreenVelvet creating a Techno frenzy on the main floor (it never stopped!), balanced by the Tuff Reggae agenda of  Manchester's Dj Dom from Blood and Fire
In the 90s Blood and Fire were one of a significant group of Independant labels reissuing Reggae.
These were primarily dub classics from the likes of Prince Alla and the bench mark ‘Pick a dub’ by Keith Hudson, all presented with beautiful artwork. There were worries about the labels future over the summer but now they seem to be back.
Dom was the perfect selector this sunday.Coming on after a heavy dub session by the Broken Funk Crew,Pete, Johnny and ‘London Jim’ Dowling, he grabbed the mike with the effects pad and let loose. This was carnival soundsystem business as he chatted over Dancehall and bigged up some Ragga hiphop in a constantly changing set.I expected something completely different based on the labels history but this was infectious. You never get to hear hard dancehall these days and to cut it with dub just transmitted the womb enveloping goodtime feeling that is BASS. Dropping the Craggy Island anthem ‘Ghost town’ got the nod from the audience too.
A fantastic night and a credit to Cian,The Strutt crew and all the djs for the mash up of Techno heads and Beat nuts under one roof.

Paul Tarpey

P K Teaser

Spotted outside Courthouse in Limerick.

Update- National media has this story!

Shane

Dracula

A trailer
a photo
&
Booking details

Shane

Subterranean

"The hightlight of the (Henry's) documentary for me was the opening scene where they headed up the stairs. It made the hairs on my arm stand up.....it was magic to make your way up those stairs. The bass getting louder and louder. Such excitement."
Poster reviewing 120 BPM on PROC

While the memorable ascent of those stairs in Cork in the early 90s was so special, in Limerick in recent times we have reversed it. The climb up the bright stairs to the dark room with quality 4/4, ecstatic faces and a heaving dancefloor was probably the best thing about Leeside in the early 90s. Reggae nights in Limerick have provided some of the better nights out here in the two years and all are characterised by journeys  downstairs, whether it was the  well worn metal steps down to the Boat Club, the  hidden descent to Daffys or one of the myriad of stairwells síos to the underground. It was fitting then that newest addition to Limericks reggae nights- Roots Factory had its debut in the Underground as well. With Frances JC and Polands Cubeman Selekta at the helm, the night possibly also tells another story about the city but for us the anticipation was more about how they would succeed. The entrance to the club told all, the smoking area out the front was remarkably sparse and instead inside we found a very busy dancefloor, darkness, plenty of bass and a very happy and diverse crowd.

Who needs nostalgia?

Shane

this week

Three to remember

• Barry Warner in his first radio interview in over a decade on Near FM on  Aoife Ni Canna's 'Club Ceoil' show Listen live here It lasts an hour, and will feature Barry Warner's music, old and new, along with the chat.
• Weekender: Two coming up this weekend. Strutt has a massive one in Dolans with serious quality in room two with Dom from Blood and Fire flying in on Sunday for an exclusive Irish appearance. Jazzman Gerald is in the area on the Saturday. Meanwhile uptown, Greenhouse runs 'I Heart New York' with great guests on Friday, Saturday and Sunday full details here
• Dracula fever abounds and tickets are apparently selling fast. Don't sleep on it.

Shane

DJ Adam

DJ Adam Plays Mickey Martins Fri Nov 23.

Jetting into Town this month for a cultural one night stand is one of Londons hippest creatives Adam j Whittiker. A graphic designer by trade he has extended his job to include the running of his own record label ‘Unusual and Electric’,which allows him to release what ever rhythm he feels like! His determined passion for seeking leftfield sounds has led him to operate as a music consultant for TV and Radio ads and as a mixtape scientist for the London all night party crowd. These Tapes have made their way to Limerick over the last few years and with their clever blending of everything from Country music to Techno, have created a dedicated following for this ‘what is he going to do next’ Englishman.
There are 3 record releases so far on The Unusual and Electric Label and these extensions of the Mash ups found on his mixes have become staples for Limerick djs down with the Reggae, Hiphop, and Techno fusion. Adam will also be giving a talk in the Graphic Design Department of the Limerick school of Art the same afternoon, So if the name Nathan Barley from a TV show a couple of years ago means anything to you don’t miss this Cheebah night in Mickey Martins on the 23th

Paul Tarpey

Common Sense

'Like Father Like Son' at Cork Film Festival

• Hear the Block Radio Show from Spin Southwest on Digital Sole who are archiving it for download or streaming. Fela Kuti, Madlib,  John Holt and Jill Scott are just some of the names on the playlists. Also available to hear over there is the excellent Code's Chillax show and Dan Sykes Saturday night Dance show.
• See "Like Father, Like Son" at the Cork Film Festival on thursday 18th October at 11 in the morning and again that night in the Triskel. This short from Celene Natasha Murphy is a clever look at society's preconceptions through a child's view. Also at the festival on Wednesday the 17th, ex cheebah DJ Ciara Nic Chormaic is involved with a documentary on Cork Docks 'Na Duganna'. Meanwhile Ken O Shea's documentary on Sir Henrys has three showings. All of them have sold out. Shows the huge amount of Sweat nostalgia out there. Hopefully the audience will be happy with the talking heads format he employs, unfortunately little original inside Henrys footage is used. Sean O Neill, Jim Comet, Greg 'n' Shane, Mike Pickering and Mucca all speak.
• Taste the french toast in the wild onion and you are hooked. However a wealth of other lore about the place abounds and Val's Kitchen has captured the real flavour of  it. If  the Wild Onion reminds you of trips to the Market on a Saturday then Bock colours in the rest of the journey with an entertaining story of a Saturday well spent in the city. If you can't wait for the weekend, you can seek out good organic produce over at Ollie's place.
• Smell the talc as the Munster Soul Collective returns to Daffys on Saturday 10th November, downstairs. There are three DJ's from the Dublin Northern Soul club 'Sleepless Nights' coming over to spin some tunes as well as Franco and Martin Goggin from Cork. Upstairs will then see some modern and crossover soul.
• Feel the bass- Roots Factory arrives in the Underground this Friday night with JC and Cubeman. Should be really special.

Shane

Social Diary !

Teaspach and Rainbow Support fundraiser at the Rowing club Sat Oct 13

This party rounded up many of the Cheebah regulars who previously got down to a different groove in this clubhouse's cousin i.e the ‘other boathouse’ across the Sarsfield Bridge. So, a bit of a reunion of sorts with amongst others on the bill, Aoife Nic Canna and Pete the beat playing downstairs and upstairs respectively.
Pete did a 6 hour set of broken funk classics, and showcased the confidence he's bringing to the dancefloor style that he is developing in the Chicken and the Greenhouse.
Then, a very special guest in the shape of Keith Disconaut arrived to close proceedings upstairs. The Galway based Dj decided to end the night with a twisted selection of Acid House and the crowd loved it! No matter if its just a couple of  records or a full night, Keiths never had a bad gig in the10 years I've heard him play.
A salute to all who worked at and played for this great night in a classy building.

Paul Tarpey

Happy

A Night to celebrate Happy.

Friends and family of Pat Coleman,who departed far to early from this world, gathered to celebrate his memory in his local bar, Mickey Martins. Here every one knew him as ‘Happy’ as he was constantly positive in every situation and would bring this positivity into any conversation at any time. As such he was a touchstone around town for the many people who knew him. He was also an unintentional host for the bar with his salute for all passing when having a smoke at the door. If he didn’t know you, he wouldn’t leave it too long before introducing himself with a laugh.
His presence was all around this Sunday. Emma and crew had thrown a party that rounded up all who knew him for a befitting celebration, full on with vibes!
There was a la carte food, Fire eaters,and a non stop funky music soundtrack with Djs organised by Retromanias Phil Wade, all this and the lost Tribe of Mickeys ex-barstaff returning to man the pumps.
There was a lot work put into this as it was also a fundraiser for Happy's family which explained the riotous raffle at the end of the night. I know the Djs had the man in mind when they thought about what music he would like to hear, but it was the shouting and laughing into the headphones while announcing the raffle that was the real soundtrack tribute. Afterwards, Dj Niall Bourke summed it up by playing Primal Screams ‘Loaded, Blinks ‘Happy Song’ and Slams ‘Positive Education’. In a very touching speech Happys mother remembered her son and referred to ‘all the new children’ she now had.
Anytime in the future when these people get together for music and fun, Happy's presence will be there and strong . He will never be forgotten.

Paul Tarpey

Shannon

Once again the google era phrase "Controversial, artist, Limerick, Gangs" does the rounds. The morning talk show on  Newstalk 106 on Tuesday Oct 3rd is intensely discussing the latest ‘Artwork’ by ‘controversial, Limerick artist, Martin Shannon. In a group show that opens this Friday (Oct 10th) in the Thinkk Creative Gallery, Shannon depicts Liam Keane's iconic two-fingered salute framed with a halo.  The painting is titled “A Saint for Sinners”. It was intended to reside amongst pieces by established Limerick artists John Shinnors, Jack O' Donovan and Gavin Hogg amongst others. Of course the works by these practicing artists are now bookends to the Keane painting.

This is a very disappointing end to Shannon's Limerick commentary art series. This portfolio included the Eva approved ‘Stab City’ mural and the Printmakers approved "Armed Gardai move in" T-Shirt and poster. Both works that questioned media attitudes to Limerick and social concerns that surround perceptions about the city.

Each time these works were displayed ‘media commentary’ ensued and after the initial silence from the artist, (other artists or administrators always speak on his behalf at the beginning of each ‘controversy’), you will find him on the radio in a surprised tone defending the Artist's freedom of expression in the institutionalized lingo package of the 'artist as seer/outsider'.

Today on the radio the circus rolls round again. This time it was Gavin Hogg who announced that Shannon did not want to be interviewed and instead he put the case forward for freedom of expression etc. Some noticeable subtexts arose in this interview. ‘Does the artist know the subject or his family and associates? 'Hogg's unfortunate answer to the question was ‘No, but he knows some of their class'. This statement registered that ‘class’ as a described section of society that exists as intellectual (visual) subject fodder for these artist's who can decide how and when to ‘use’ them to highlight whatever they feel needs to be said. 'Their class', confines them as others in the context of the gallery and by extension in the context of the media. Should questions about regulation of these socio-aesthetic vignettes arise, an unacceptable loose collection of ‘freedom of speech’ posts are trotted out.

After the image was printed in a local newspaper the night before the radio interview, I received texts about it, I saw the image on another mobile phone owned by someone who saw it as just another photoshopped joke. None of this arose on the radio of course, because as a Professional Artist, Hogg's position was to defend the rarefied intellectual/commercial space of the Gallery and that which is contained within it. Hogg suggested that the importance of the Keane painting should be seen in light of these officially sanctioned previous works. By the end of the day word went around the town that Shannon's fellow exhibitors insisted the image not be hung. It now has a digital life of its own leaping from mobile to mobile, computer to computer. Ex-pats chuckle at the ‘cheek’ of it in bars in New York and Sydney and not one of them care about any sort of context Hogg or Shannon might apply to the whole spectacle.

As an irresponsible tactless exercise it rivals the Eva sponsored work a few years back when a visiting artist negotiated with the committee for the opportunity to ‘interview’ locals and paste the results around town. The process and subsequent art work upset many of the subjects. The ‘Artist’ suffered no penalties and with a nice socio-cultural project for his CV, moved on. This incident never made the papers, if it had, guidelines may have been discussed within the Artistic community.  If work that purports to comment on socio-cultural issues (e.g. the Keane family's history; Limerick) surely the artist has a resposibility to shepherd that work through the increasing sophisticated web of communication that is the public gallery. Shannon's exercise perhaps did not set out to be one of exploitation but through wilful negligance, will be seen as so.

Seamus Flanagan