The Next Big Thing is a proudly DIY festival, curated by musicians for musicians. Music Editor Barry Fenton saw a new wave of home-grown talent first hand…
On Friday night, I stepped out of the blustery tail end of storm Éowyn into The Workman’s Club to watch Ex Oh Productions’ ‘The Next Big Thing’. I was first greeted by the distant emo screams and commotion of Raining In December - a post-hardcore alt rock group who specialise in high-tempo breaks along with metal sounds.
Headed up by Vincent Liu (Guitar and Lead Vocals), the band’s cordial vibe between songs contrasted their heavy sound and with a friendly atmosphere starting to fill up the main stage, it was clear the night had kicked off with a major bang.
What followed was a serious dilemma for me: whether to stay in the main stage to see Yes Chef! or delve into the cellar for Avenue 68. I went for the latter and it did not disappoint.
Avenue 68 plays a mix of RnB, pop-soul and jazz infusions to craft a silky live performance. The charismatic group showcase their debut single ‘venom’ which in their words “captures the struggle of recognising the pain inflicted by someone you care about.” It is poignant and only more striking by the calm and passionate delivery of lyrics by the band’s front-woman Lauren Woodyatt.
At this stage, a couple more drinks had been sipped to ready us for the next set: BBFT. This is an exciting duo - new to the scene and quickly making their mark. They blend just about everything under the sun: analogue, digital, electronic and acoustic, utilising choppy jungle breaks and euphoric trance synths, to waves of distorted guitar.
With sound engineers running from the stage to the booth and back, I was anticipating a more complex setup than usual. Static TV’s lined either side of the stage and as the lights turned to purple, two silhouettes emerged: one facing to the side operating a guitar and synth, the other behind drums.
BBFT open their set with the sound of running water; serene, almost pacifying the listener - at which point they launch into their explosive amalgamation of genres. The water continues to reemerge flowing from one song to another with the sound somewhat akin to Animal Collective or The Prodigy. At such an early stage it was impressive to see such a curated set.
“We are BBFT and we love loud noises”
- they proclaim in the middle of the set. The cacophony ended with a resounding note let to ring out as many listeners were left sufficiently exhausted yet energised. I didn’t think the speakers could take much more at this stage; I was wrong.
A heavy-metal band named AILSHA closed the evening with a stunning vocal performance from their lead singer. Dublin’s metal scene has a lot of untapped potential - Ex Oh Productions did a good job at putting this on display tonight.
As the evening drew to a close, it was clear how much undiscovered talent there is in Ireland. Workman’s ‘Next Big Thing’ is a strong counterpoint to the many who criticise the Dublin music scene for “all sounding like Fontaines”, or lacking in new energy. Every single act offered something different, from smooth, intimate indie/jazz to thunderous experimentation. If Workman’s “Next Big Thing” is anything to go by, the future of Dublin’s sound is in incredibly exciting hands.