HWCH Launch

Posted on 26th Jun 07 by Liam Tyrrell | 0

Artist: The Minutes" Angel Pier" Fight Like Apes
Author: Liam Tyrell

HWCH Launch " Tuesday 19th June 2007 " Palace Pool Hall.

Begob sure that's some wild weather we're having at the minute. And let me tell
you just how wild it got down the arse end of Camden Street on Tuesday night my
friends. The glitz and glamour of the Irish music scene has never before seen a
gathering such as this. In the plush" palatial surrounds of the Camden Pool Hall
"formerly the Palace nightclub.. ask anyone who went to college in Dublin in the
early part of this century.. they'll have some stories to tell to be sure" I was
virtually surrounded by stars. There was the 2 birds off that music show they
have on City Channel. There was the other bird from Channel 6's music show.
There were endless amounts of band members" promotional people" venue heads" and
sound engineers. There were even a load of birds wearing Phantom FM t"shirts"
which led me to believe that they had some affiliation to the only commercial
alternative radio station in Dublin. And then" of course" there was me" and the
3 vagabonds I gathered in from the streets to help me dispose of a glorious
quantity of free Bud" which we did" until it ran out. Power of the press my
friends" that uncanny ability to dry out even the most endless supplies of free
booze.

To the point though" surely there is one" what was this event" and why when the
invite promised free pool were all the tables covered up" Only the world's
keenest minds can answer these questions and more" on next weeks Braniac " mind
abuse. Anyhow" this years Hard Working Class Heroes festival had its virginal
covering dismantled in no uncertain terms at this coming together of schmoozers"
cruisers" losers" and boozers.

HWCH 2007 then" now forbidden from wearing white at its wedding" was launched on
the seas of rain that were pouring into Dublin" and had a massive number of
empty Bud and Bud"lite "surely an oxymoron"" bottles crashed off its hull. The
festival this year has moved" to" you guessed it" this reporters absolute
FAVOURITE venue in the Fair City.. The Pod Complex. Gigs will be held in
Crawdaddy" Tripod and some as yet unnamed stages. You may enter a contest to
name one of the nameless venues on the HWCH website HERE. I'll miss the trekking back
and forth around Temple Bar as I wander aimlessly in search of talent this year"
but cost is the king these days" and sure" having all the fans corralled like
patient sheep in one place will of course make keeping the riff"raff out a much
easier task.

Thank God for that. Anyway this launch wasn't just about pats on the back and
so"forth. The good folks at HWCH arranged some fine entertainment for the
evening" 3 bands strategically placed between timely announcements regarding the
festival's operation in the coming months. First up were The Minutes" some
typical Irish soft"rock here" they'd probably call it indie or some other crap
like that. Bands like this" two"a"penny at the minute" possible three"a"penny by
the end of the summer" and they'll be going five"for"the"ha'penny by the time
the christmas is over and the next wave of budding Snow Patrol's are founded. No
offence to the lads" sure they're great at what they do" an almightily talented
bunch altogether" fairplay to them.

When they finish we're told that this year's foreign invasion at HWCH will come
from Scandanavia. The bands have been hand"picked by the events organisers. I'm
not sure if that inspires hope or terror in my heart" I guess we'll wait and
see. I predict one of two outcomes. 1 " a plague of crazy Lordi"type rock bands
and industrial goths come marauding south and re"take Wood Quay "another
possible reason for the venue change" or 2 " a load of lo"fi" pixie"looking"
acoustic guitar and korg wielding blondes come south and send us to sleep with
their dream machines before re"taking Fishamble Street.

Angel Pier came all the way from London to play at the launch. Its amazing the
lengths some people will go to to support local talent. More of the
indie"soft"rock. Awesome stuff though. It made me want to pick up a guitar and sing in
my most whingiest high"pitched voice about how it would be better if that bird
on the bus had looked at me rather than getting off at Amiens Street. Sorry"
keep that one quiet" its my number one hit. I meant to keep it secret until the
ink was dry on the deal" you know yourself.

Interesting news this time" HWCH runs a photography exhibition each year of
local photographers who have photographed local bands. Cool huh" And this year"
as an extra special treat" 3 world renowned international superstars of
photography will be exhibiting alongside these Irish Peter Parkers and Jimmy
Olsens "sorry ladies" they're the only 2 photographers i know" i'll try think of
another one for next week". This could be the coup"de"grace of the festival. Who
knows who they have rustled up" and also" who knows what these famous snappers
will be exhibiting… Madonna eating puppies" Bowie doing a hornpipe" Elvis
saying no to a burger" I" quite frankly" can't wait.

Another interesting titbit is that this year" HWCH" in conjunction with Phantom
FM "insert your own cool swishy radio noise here"" will be operating a download
chart for all bands in the festival. The winner will be crowned most hard
working of all the hard working class heroes and will be sent immediately for
genetic reprogramming so that they may become Hard Working Class SUPERheroes.
Seriously though" this seems like a good move" inject a bit of local rivalry
into the scene " we may even reach the heights of Blur vs Oasis. Awesome.

The most hyped of the most hyped took the stage to finish us off" the free booze
was already finished off by this stage. Fight Like Apes I'm talking about of
course. Nowhere can you turn without some reference to this electro"pop group
cropping up. To be honest" I thought we left this kind of stuff back in the 80s"
but retro is catching up fast I guess. Maykay and her merry men lord it up over
the crowd and they bask in her reflected ego. Easy to look good given whats gone
before them I suggest" I'm rudely hushed by the praying crowd. Fair enough" they
must be awesome so. I'm right behind their campaign to be recognised as whatever
it is they're after. I'm off home to listen to some new wave for comparison.

Anywho folks that's your lot for now. Tune in next week when we'll be asking"
What has indie music got to do with indians"

Goodnight and Godbless.