Plugging your gig/event/book/magazine is not just for Christmas, you know. Plug away to your heart’s content but please be polite and declare an interest where relevant

Your first must-see new Irish band of 2009 will be Villagers, the new act fronted by ex-Immediate dude Conor O’Brien. They play February shows at Dublin’s Ruby Sessions (3), Cork’s Cyprus Avenue (17) and Dublin’s Crawdaddy (21). Their debut release, the “Hollow Kind EP”, will be released on band drummer (and ace Phantom FM DJ) James Byrne’s Any Other City label in February.

Fans of electropop with a swagger should get their tickets right away for Ladyhawke, playing Belfast’s Stiff Kitten on February 4 and Dublin’s Academy the following night. Video for “My Delirium” follows