Other Voices: every music fan should experience the joy of what happens in Dingle

"Stream of tunes and the fireside chats – it's single file on Dingle's paths." Poet John Cummins had already written an ode to Other Voices by the time he was on the train home.

Cummins opened the Dingle festival, in typical idiosyncratic fashion for this December pilgrimage, regaling a crowd at Curran's pub on Friday with sensational poetry.

Lyrics and lyricism are central to this gem of an event, which has expanded throughout Dingle with free gigs in pubs, and a programme of concerts recorded for television in St James’ Church.

It's the 13th edition of Other Voices, and the crowds have grown. Tickets to the church are nearly impossible to come by (yet free), but there were plenty of fantastic Music Trail shows to see too.

This is a labour of love, and like many artistic ventures at the moment, resources are squeezed tighter than the punters in the church pews. But a resilient crew, a commitment to the cause of music, and a brilliant eye for booking talent, made Other Voices 2014 soar.

Phenomenal

On Friday night close to midnight, while St James’ Church was hosting the phenomenal twin sisters Ibeyi, Kormac’s Big Band kicked out the jams in An Chonair, and Dublin rapper Lethal Dialect played McCarthy’s.

On Saturday, Damien Rice commandeered the church stage, but the highlight of the evening was Young Fathers, a foursome of subversive punk hip-hop performers who confronted the crowd with a complex sound that was nothing short of genius.

Every music fan should experience the simple joy of what happens here, consistently one of the finest annual gatherings of music and music-lovers anywhere.