Saturday December 30th
Turn
Whelan’s Dublin 8pm €20 ticketmaster.ie
About 20 years ago, in Kells, Co Meath, three hopeful musicians formed Turn. Ambitions and dreams may not have been realised, but for a while Ollie Cole, Gavin Fox and Ian Melady made one helluva noise. Fox left the band in the early 2000s, but Turn continued to deliver mostly quality music as well as committed live performances. Also, the band's third self-titled album was on the shortlist of the inaugural Choice Music Prize (for Best Album 2005). Music industry matters looked good, but poor luck and other factors weighed against them, and the band broke up in the summer of 2006. Now occupied in other areas of the music industry, every once in a while the lads regroup for a grand oul bash'n'thrash, of which tonight is most assuredly a good example. Tony Clayton-Lea
Bry
Academy Dublin 7pm €15 ticketmaster.ie
This Dublin singer and songwriter is making serous inroads to crossover success, but – be truthful, now – you haven't heard of him, have you? Brian O'Reilly, however, is now legally Bry, and with over 350,000 Twitter followers you can firmly sense that next year will be the breakthrough one – ably assisted by the teenager's naturalistic grasp of online caring, sharing and gathering. The music (supervised by Polar Patrol Publishing, co-founded by Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody, Johnny McDaid and Nathan Connolly) is a smart-enough mix of pop and indie with a side order of a strong local accent, and most definitely has 2018 in its sights. TCL
Sunday December 31st
Turning Pirate NYE Mix Tape
Vicar St Dublin 7.30pm €36 ticketmaster.ie
It didn't take long, but this NYE bash at Vicar Street, fashioned by promoters Turning Pirate for several years, has become an annual tradition for clued-in music fans. The basic premise is an evening of party songs and collaborations among some of Ireland's most popular artists, so make way for the likes of James Vincent McMorrow, Lisa Hannigan, Mick Flannery, Booka Brass, Gavin Glass, as well as lead singers from HamsandwicH (Niamh Farrell) and BARQ (Jess Kav). Other acts, we are assured, will be announced closer to the night. TCL
Smithwicks 10 West
Keel East, Achill Island €45 smithwicks10w.eventbrite.ie
The Smithwicks 10 West New Year's Eve event on Achill Island feels like the perfect way to start a new year. Curated by Homebeat, your 24 hours on Achill will be one part wholesome and two parts craic. By day, outdoor yoga sessions and cycles or hikes along the greenway will give you the smug feeling that can only truly be captured in an Instagram post. By night, you will be left in the reliable hands of Daithi, Stomptown Brass, the Lumo DJs and Talos to help say sayonara to 2017. The ticket covers the daytime activities and access to the Smithwick's 10 West tent and two complimentary pints of Smithwick's. Accommodation is not included with your ticket. Louise Bruton
3Countdown Concert: Kodaline
Custom House Quay, Dublin 8pm €45.05 ticketmaster.ie
Dublin's Kodaline did something most unusual a short while ago – they cancelled more than 20 concerts scheduled across Europe for November and December. The reason the band gave was that a new batch of songwriting ideas had gazumped material previously earmarked for their forthcoming third album, and so they felt they had to take advantage. It's unlikely we'll be hearing any new material tonight, as the band have enough familiar tunes to pull them through what is bound to be one big, unabashed open-air party vibe. Special guests include rising Irish bands Hudson Taylor and Keywest. TCL
Midas Touch NYE Festival
Loughcrew House, Meath €47.02-€522.49 hghome.ie
The Hunt and Gather crew are hitting the nails on the head with this BYOB and fancy dress event that's taking place in the very decadent Loughcrew House. With buses to and from the venue included in your ticket, you can sail into 2018 on a wave of glitter and gold. With DJ sets from Nathan Jones, Justyna Koss, Colin Devine and Stephen Manning, you can hop from room to room, sampling disco, house, funk, techno and some straight up cheese. Various live performances will keep you ticking until midnight. Tickets are still available, with a group ticket going for €450 that covers 10 pals. LB
Delorentos
Whelan’s Dublin 8.30pm €22 ticketmaster.ie
If you don't fancy the open-air bash with Kodaline or the party-song vibefest at Vicar Street's Turning Pirate event, then perhaps an evening with Delorentos will blow away your end-of-year blues? Now with a decade's worth of music under their collective belt, the very fine Dublin band is putting on a gig that simultaneously celebrates their career to date in music as well as what may turn up from 2018 onwards. Expect a thrilling trawl through their five-record back catalogue, as well as a teaser or two from 2018's new album. Special guests to be announced. TCL
Mother presents: New Years Eve featuring Le Boom
Mother Club, Dublin €10-€15 bit.ly/mothernye
If you're knocking around Dublin on New Year's Eve and are at a loss with what to do, Mother will look after you. Mother DJs and local heroes Ruth Kavanagh and Ghostboy will warm you up with slivers of delicious disco and filthy funk, as well as some wonderful techno and electro music to get you moving. Listen out for the whopper Reflex remix of George Michael's Freedom 90 – Ruth really shines with that one. As soon as the clock hits midnight, the electronic pop whirlwind that is Le Boom will take over. Chris and Aimie have been winning over hearts and minds during their late-night festival slots all summer and if you somehow missed them, make a fresh start with them now. LB
Workman’s Club Bash
The Workman’s Club Dublin 8pm Adm free theworkmansclub.com
We like the tagline: "Three joints. Six bars. Four live acts. Ten DJ sets. Free." Across the venues of the Workman's Club, Garage Bar, Bison Bar, and BBQ, there is quite likely the best free-admission NYE's party in the country. Bands include Thumper, Inhaler, and Bicurious (expect the ears to ring come midnight as well as the bells), while guest DJ sets will be from members of Fontaines D.C. and Otherkin. Resident DJs (including Rob Smith, Tony Bones, Sam Morrissey, and Ronan Considine) will supplement the tunes with an array of wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling bangers. What's that noise? Your head, mate. Happy New Year! TCL
NYE 2018: Venus Dupree, Hipdrop, Daire Carolan, Sauce and more
Bernard Shaw, Dublin, free, thebernardshaw.com Starting out nice and early at 5pm, the Shaw will be buzzing by teatime. Taking care of business on the dance floor will be Venus Dupree, better known as Claire Hall, one half of Belfast's GIRL Collective. With the power she wields, she'll be turning the tiles of the Shaw into a New York ballroom disco. The Hipdrop Records gang will be sharing things up with some funk and neo-soul and the Sauce DJs will play a glorious mix of house and world music, plus many, many more. You can reserve tables for the night, just go to the Shaw's website for more details. LB
Thursday January 4th
Dublin Bowie Festival
The year kicks off in fine fashion with the third Dublin Bowie Festival. There is an impressive range of Bowie-centric activities (movies, quizzes, classic albums, dance workshops, glam/glitter nights, tribute gigs, etc), but two events that will strike the die-hard Bowie devotee with force are connected with the man's most famous, fabulous "creation" – Ziggy Stardust. Tonight, the festival commences with former Spiders from Mars drummer, Woody Woodmansey, discussing (with pop culture writer/critic Tony Clayton-Lea) his years in the Bowie/Ziggy space-time continuum (Sugar Club Dublin 8pm €15 ticketmaster.ie). On Monday, January 8th, Woodmansey and longtime Bowie producer and associate Tony Visconti, bring their band, Holy Holy, to Vicar Street, where they will perform the first ever live rendition of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in its entirety. To which we can say with complete and utter sincerity: wham bam, thank you ma'am! The festival concludes January 10th. dublinbowiefestival.ie TCL
