Yeah mcd.ie states its sold out. I want tickets myself so if ya come across any, I'll buy one off ya. Bloc Party are really good and reckon they might be one of the big early surprises, not that surprising since their gig is sold out. Hopefully they switch to a different venue and sell more tickets.

did anybody see the gardening programme on BBC2 the other day with that garden in wiltononfoxhamplaceshire.. was fascainating! lol... next topic please!! Cheers Gar.. good stuff... sincerely, good stuff.

Cheers...I appreicate all the comments made even if it doesn't come across like that.

ah eoin was just bein diplomatic... sorry didnt mean to be smart!

fair play to the piece for creating this reaction and discussion! and, like, the writer too, obviously... i don't think i could care this much about any business designed to take money off me, and seriously, who cares if people stay late getting pissed in a pub? doesn't bother me....

Again, I was just highlighting all these various points in the piece. It doesn't bother me where certain artists drink, I used it to back up another point -of the artists exploiting the venue. And if Whelan's does good or bad business, it doesn't bother me in the slightest...as long as they book decent acts. If not then I will go to another venue. The article wasn't an attack...just an opinion piece. Cheers Kierry for the words though. And this is the last time I am explaining the article, I swear!!!!

I've been going to Whelans for years both as a punter and also djed there on a few occasions. Some of my favourite memories, like seeing wilco for the first time and playing guitar on-stage with them, are associated with Whelans. I'm not a fan of some of the singer songwriter brigade that play there but they pull in the punters and some of the more obscure bands that I've seen there haven't. I have to point out that the dj on friday and saturday is required to play 'the best indie album in the world ever' kind of set because that is what the crowd expects but thursday nights with john walshe (going underground-fm104) are ace and wednesdays (f**k em if they can't take a joke) give the dj carte blanche to choose what they like. Having played a couple of fridays there myself I have to say that it is surprising what tunes people don't get and what they do and if you try to be adventurous and fail it can backfire on you. Dj's generally don't mind playing requests but don't appreciate it if the people are very drunk, intimidating or are looking for a big change in tempo. I played in isaac butts for a while before they closed down for the makeover (opeing in march/april I believe) and it wasn't very enjoyable playing great alternative tunes to three people and a dog. Hopefully some of ye guys will check it out when it returns! regards, sweetie

bloddy hell ! you played guitar with Wilco, how cool, I'd give my left arm to play guitar with that band ! well obviously not as then I wouldnt be able to play guitar but you get the idea . Despite being in my 5 favourite bands ever I have still not been able to get to see em live yet

They played a kickin set at Oxegen last year. Hopefully they'll return over the coming months for a gig.

unfortunately dont think they will be they have dates in manchester, london and barcelona lined up soon, mini-tour, so doubt they'll be here soon anyway

Don't blame the DJs for playing the same tunes every night, blame the punters who only dance to songs they know and who desert the floor every time they hear something even slightly unfamiliar. I DJ at three indie nights a week and my two biggest guaranteed floor fillers of last year were Spitting Games by Snow Patrol and Mr Brightside by The Killers. Yet back in 2003 when those two songs were first released I emptied the place every time I played them. I had to wait a full year until the singles got re-released on major labels with a serious promotional push before I could play them to an audience and get a reaction other than total indifference. I can remember downloading 7 Nation Army a couple of weeks before it was released and I was counting the days until my next gig so that I could play it out. Yet when I finally played it that Wednesday at half one in the morning to a totally packed dance floor it died on it's arse. So many people started heading for the bar I had to whip the record off half way through. The same thing happened with Hey Ya! by Outkast when I first played it at a hip-hop night. Ditto Franz Ferdinand, Kings Of Leon etc etc. The majority of people in clubs just want to get pissed and get their hole. They don't want to be exposed to new music, they just want to hear something they can sing along to so that they can bounce around on the floor and rub themselves up against the nearest member of the opposite sex. Of course there are also a number of people who know their tunes and who want to hear new alternative music but they rarely make their presence felt on the dance floor. More often then not they're propping up the bar and nodding along with approval while the exodus is occurring. And in any case they're seriously outnumbered by the unenlightened majority even in a venue with the tradition of Whelans. But then when you take a look at the play lists of Tom Dunne or add up the amount of great albums that don't even get reviewed let alone recommended by Hot Press is it any wonder that the general masses are so ignorant.

Yes, Eoin, even though I can't play at all they handed me the guitar, plectrum and a mic and I can remember trying to do 'whole lotta love.' I would put them in my top five too although having met them again after the ambassador gig I have to say jeff tweedy isn't the most friendly bloke but he had a lot going on then and his music more than makes up for it. Wasn't mad about the oxegen gig though, perhaps I didn't know the new stuff enough back then. Wish they would come over here again after there london dates this year, though. Totally agree with Stroller about his comments on djing new music too. The only time you can get away with playing new stuff is possibly at the beginning of the night before a place gets busy. regards..

Very good points about the lot of the indie DJ having spent many years DJ-ing, stroller's mail hit the nail on the head. when it comes down to it, indie clubs attract the most conservative audiences of all. theyre like fianna fail voters. all they want to hear is the same ol hits over and over again. i remember talking to the 1st DJs who started in whelans and they said it was ridiculous because try as much as they could, it was the same ol' s**te the audience wanted to hear. they used to experiment with new stuff but the audience just wanted (back then) stone roses, happy mondays, house of pain, RATM etc. its different with house/techno cos the audiences are more interested in the overall groove and sound (and are also usually off their tits on something else). i wouldnt fault the DJs in whelans at all because no matter how committed toi new music you are, its the most dis-spiriting sight in the world watching the dancefloor empty as u play a tune u know in your heart of hearts is a winner. sure, some of u will say, i would love to go to whelans and hear bloc party, the magic numbers, secret machines, devendra banhart etc. but sadly, when there are only a dozen of u in the club at the same time, the muppets who want the indie hits win time and time again btw - strangest indie disco sight i ever saw in whelans was will "bonnie prince billie" oldham dancing to deelite's groove is in the heart.

Some excellent points made about Dj'ing that i hadnt considered. Considering how annoyed i can get with people when they come back to me recommending that i listen to an album that i tried to get them to listen to ages before, i can imagine that for a DJ its the same experience when a crowd does react to what they know and feel will be or is a great track.