The Guide: Imagining Ireland, Rick Astley, Pixies and other events to see, shows to book and ones to catch before they end

Event of the week

Imagining Ireland

Sunday, March 3rd, NCH, Dublin, 8pm, €25, nch.ie

As if an additional display of the range of Irish songwriting talent were needed, along comes Imagining Ireland to prove the point. The line-up is superb: Ye Vagabonds are traditional-music award-winners; Sorcha Richardson is steadily increasing her fan base with songs that highlight the connective intricacies and intimacies of relationships; Aby Coulibaly is a Dublin-based singer-songwriter with a Senegalese background and an ultrasmooth take on R&B; Susan O’Neill is a powerhouse of a vocalist who excelled recently via the collaborative album In the Game; Rachael Lavelle’s 2023 debut album, Big Dreams, is deservedly on the Choice Music Prize shortlist (the winner will be announced next week); and Moio is a producer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter who fuses fluid soul music with subtle hints of indie pop-rock. Go see.

Gigs

Rick Astley

Monday, March 4th, SSE Arena, Belfast, 6pm, £70-£35; Tuesday, March 5th, 3Arena, Dublin, 6.30pm, €44.05, ticketmaster.ie

The Ricknaissance continues for the guy whose 1987 debut single has given far too many people far too much karaoke pleasure for almost 40 years. That Never Gonna Give You Up remains Rick Astley’s best-known song says as much for its staying power as its TikTok-generated lyrics and video memes. But Astley has cleverly managed to invert pop snobbery to credible popularity with guest appearances at gigs by Foo Fighters and Blossoms (with whom he performed songs by The Smiths at last year’s Glastonbury). Expect more of the same at these concerts, with a massive singalong for that song.

Pixies

Friday, March 8th, until Sunday, March 10th, 3Olympia, Dublin, 7pm, €62 (sold out), ticketmaster.ie

It’s been almost 40 years ago since Pixies formed, and still they loom large on the cultural landscape. They formed in 1986 and split in 1993, then re-formed 10 years later with all four original members, Black Francis, David Lovering, Joey Santiago and Kim Deal. Deal left the band in 2013, since when Pixies have released four albums, the latest of which, Doggerel, from 2022, prompted the online music magazine the Line of Best Fit to praise its “bittersweet peaks and ironic edge”. These shows are sold out, but Pixies return in August for three open-air shows. Here comes your band?

Brilliant Corners Jazz Festival

Until Saturday, March 9th, Belfast, various venues, times and prices, brilliantcornersbelfast.com

One of Ireland’s best jazz festivals is back, and as usual it features a programme that delves into and pushes the boundaries of the genre. Highlights feature the Belfast-based drummer Stephen Davis debuting a new suite of music, plus the improvisatory trio of Christy Doran, Ronan Guilfoyle and Gerry Hemingway. Newcomers to the event include the French award-winners Nout, the Scottish noise-jazz-psych trio Aku! and the London-based Luke Bacchus Quartet.

The Shadow of a Gunman

From Saturday, March 2nd, until Sunday, March 24th, touring, druid.ie

Ambition, tragedy and humour line up against the background of the War of Independence in a production first presented as part of Druid Theatre’s 2023 play cycle of Sean O’Casey’s Dublin trilogy. The play, directed by Garry Hynes and featuring the Druid Ensemble members Rory Nolan, Marty Rea, Gabriel Adewusi and Caitríona Ennis, concludes its nationwide tour at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin (from March 21st until March 24th). Druid.ie has details of tour dates and venues.

Awards

RTÉ Choice Music Prize

Thursday, March 7th, Vicar Street, Dublin, 7.30pm, €33.15, ticketmaster.ie

Another year, another 10 albums to be discussed and dissected by the judging panel, and, no matter who the winner, another fine Irish album to add to your collection (if you haven’t already). The shortlist is made up of Grian Chatten of Fontaines DC, CMAT, John Francis Flynn, Kojaque, Lankum, Rachael Lavelle, Soda Blonde, The Murder Capital, The Scratch and Ezra Williams. As well as the announcement on the night of the winning album, winners will also be revealed in the Irish artist of the year and Irish breakthrough artist categories. The evening includes performances by seven of the shortlisted acts, while the morning after will include sore heads, hoarse voices and a few gongs on the mantelpiece.

Podcast

Talk the Talk

Thursday-Sunday, March 7th-10th, Sea Church/The Blackbird, Ballycotton, Co Cork, various times and prices, seachurch.ie

The inaugural Talk the Talk festival features established podcast voices (Blindboy, David McSavage’s That’s Why We’re Not Together) amid newish names (Hilary Rose’s Live Wild, Ciarán O’Rathallaigh’s Tales from the Pitch, Laura Cronin/Audrey Fitzhagan’s Hola, and The Murphy’s Pubcast, with Tony Kiernan and Fred Cooke). Podcast guests are as yet unannounced, but the blend bodes well for what promises to be an annual event.

In conversation

Miki Berenyi and Deb Googe

Friday, March 8th, Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda, Co Louth, 9pm, €22 (sold out), droichead.com

As part of the Night Moves series of programmed events that engage with night-time cultural experiences across Drogheda and east Meath, Droichead Arts Centre presents an evening of conversation and music with two of the UK’s leading female musicians, Miki Berenyi (of Lush) and Deb Googe (of My Bloody Valentine). Support is from the Irish psych-folk singer Aoife Wolf. The event is hosted by the Meath DJ Sinead Ní Mhorda.

Still running

Finding a Voice

Thursday-Sunday, March 7th-10th, various venues, times and prices, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, findingavoice.ie

Finding a Voice was founded in 2017 by the sisters Róisín and Clíona Maher, and has established itself as a leading music festival with women at its centre. This year’s event, its seventh, includes performances by Duo Anima, Evlana and Amerghin, as well as a talk on women in popular music by Dr Laura Watson. Full details are on the festival website.

Book it this week

Madagascar the Musical, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, April 11th-14th, ticketmaster.ie

John Bishop, Irish tour, May 21st-June 8th, ticketmaster.ie

Elbow, Trinity College Dublin, July 1st, ticketmaster.ie

The Corrs, SSE Arena, Belfast, November 8th; 3Arena, Dublin, November 9th, ticketmaster.ie