I missed the inaugural Naas Bealtaine Festival last year, and, as luck would have it, as I was busy trying to get a suntan on the south coast of Spain. Don't judge me, it was my first chance to travel since the pandemic hit, and I was not going to miss it!
However, after hearing who was headlining this years festival, I made sure to not miss out this year! Who was headlining? Oh only one of my favourite bands ever, King Kong Company!
The Naas Bealtaine Festival is a free festival, no tickets required, all you have to do is turn up. To make sure it all ran smoothly and to fit the largest crowd in, the Main Street of Naas was closed off to traffic, this doesn't happen all that often! Up and down the Main Street was littered with food stalls, musicians and other street vendors and artists. Poplar Square, at the Dublin end of the town, was the home for the Main Stage.
I'll be honest, I didn't venture up the town to the other stages, my back was in tatters, I was tired, the sun was in my eyes and the earths magnetic forces were working against me... I stayed at the Main Stage most of the day. I say all day.
Anyway, my day started off with Gemma Cox accompanied by Emily O'Rourke on guitar. The first time I saw her perform was 5 years ago, back in 2018, and it's been fantastic to see her grow as an artist.
Next up, for me at least, was Kendal Moody. I'd seen Kendal perform for the first time only a month previous and, even in that short space of time, she's become a far more confident performing. One to keep an eye on!
Now, I'm not sure what to call this next band... Are they Kovanta or are they Veto Code, I'm not sure!!! Either way, it doesn't matter, they rocked and the crowd, including a large section of their fans, loved their set. They're loud, they rock, sure what more could you ask for?
I may, just may have accidentally missed Cher-A-Mia, a Cher tribute act, so the next act I caught was a new one to me, Lypton Village. A really enjoyable set from them, a few covers mixed in with their own material, it really got the crowd dancing. Just perfect for a festival!
The main topic of conversation in the crowd all day, apart from the weather, was 'I can't believe King Kong Company are playing Naas!' and I had to agree, there was something surreal about it!
As I've said many times before, King Kong Company are one of the best live acts out there. I've never left a gig of theirs thinking 'yeah, it was good, but...' It's always full throttle from the off and they leave everything on stage, so I was expecting a lot!
I needn't have worried, they brought the full stage show with them! The lights, the lasers, the backing screens, the flags, Box Head... They brought the lot and the crowd, and I, loved every minute of it!
If you get to see just one band this summer, make sure it's King Kong Company!
I took a walk around Dublin today, thought I'd check out the buskers on Grafton Street. There's a fine history of busking in Dublin, acts like Hothouse Flowers , The Frames , Rodrigo y Gabriela , Damien Rice , Paddy Casey , Kodaline and a host of others all cut their teeth on and around Grafton Street. It stands to reason that some of those busking today will be successful in the future! So, who did I get to see today? Well, check out the photos below: Zoe Clarke Allie Sherlock Paul Jenkinson
Originally published 10/09/2013 on Chunk.ie So, there I was, wandering around the Electric Picnic wondering who I was going to watch next. One of the lads said he had heard good things about King Kong Company and that we should check them out, so off we headed to the Body and Soul Arena to do just that. As I mentioned in my review of the Electric Picnic, the gig was epic. I figured we just had to interview them here on CHUNK.ie, and here it is! First things first, congratulations on a storming gig at the Electric Picnic. It completely blew me away. Was this your first Picnic experience? We’ve been to many Electric Picnics over the years but just as punters, and it’s always been a great festival, so it was a fantastic experience to play at its 10 year anniversary. King Kong Company is a rather interesting name for a band, where or how did you come up with it? The name is taken from the film Taxi Driver. If you look closely, Travis Bickle is wearing a badge which says King
It's The Playing Fields Festival time again! TPFF23, it's third outing, is back and it's the same, but a little different also. For the first time, it's not just an Irish affair. The legendary Basement Jaxx headlined the Sunday night. Also, for the first time, it's under canvas. Not a big circus type tent, a more low rise, stretched canvas affair, as per TribFest a few weeks back. Given the state of the Irish summer, it was a great decision. The final difference was that I was only there for Day Two as I'd already arranged to bring my niece to see The Vamps , and that clashed with Day One. So, along with Basement Jaxx , who else was playing Day Two of TPFF? Well, we had: The Flavours Altered Lines Diversion Raging Sons Spring Break Roisin O and CamrinWatsin I think we can agree, that's a pretty good mix of rock n' roll, party time and dance music! Even under canvas, the stage was pretty big and sounded good
