First We Take Monaghan...
The Monaghan-Cavan area has been a bit of a desert in quality rock terms in recent years, but the new Monaghan-based Venue Promotions is set on changing all that.
Jackie Hayden, 01 Jul 2008
At a time when bands who have only had two ramshackle rehearsals under the belts seem to have a MySpace page, Adam Brennan was shocked to discover that none of the new indie bands he met in Monaghan had a web presence, or even know how to go about establishing one.
“They seemed to be totally lost, with no idea about how to go about even the simple task of trying to get a gig,” he says. “A lot of them wouldn’t know even how to go about getting a gig at the Backroom Sessions in Navan or contacting Derek Turner at The Spirit Store in Dundalk. Some don’t even have an e-mail address. We’re hoping to change all that, not just in Monaghan town but all over the county. What the area really needs is somebody to drive things forward. There seems to be nobody in the area who can help local bands make the contacts they need if they’re to progress their careers.”
For many years, Cavan-Monaghan was synonymous with country and Irish acts like Big Tom, but Brennan believes that’s changed.
“Monaghan town has a very good blues scene with an annual festival that sources bands in Mississippi and Tennessee. Much of its success was down to Shamie McKenna who owns The Brewery, the venue we use. But blues music doesn’t appeal to the younger age group. I think there’s a niche there for us to step into, targeting a younger audience with their own music. There used to a strong metal element, but up to now we had to source indie bands from Dublin, as the scene had become stale. But lots of good indie rock bands and college bands will emerge if the scene is given a bit of encouragement, and we hope to provide that.”
To encourage nascent Cavan-Monaghan talent, Brennan adopted a policy of attracting acts from Dublin to play in the area, and then giving a support slot to a local outfit.
“Some of the local groups have no experience whatsoever,” he explains, “so by linking them with a more advanced band we hope they’ll learn from them and start becoming a bit more self-motivated. Dirty Epics were very helpful to local bands with advice and so on.”
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