Bono turns tables on pal Gavin as Electric Picnic off to a hot start – News

Posted by Jonathan on Sep 2, 2012 in bono, Charities and Benefits, Edge, electricpicnic, News & Rumors

By Ken Sweeney, Independent.ie Entertainment Editor

BONO was a surprise addition to the Electric Picnic festival when it kicked off in brilliant sunshine yesterday.

Arriving by helicopter at 6.15pm, the U2 frontman wasn’t performing but turned up to catch a set by his long-time friend Gavin Friday on the first day of the music and arts event.

For decades Friday has jetted around the globe as U2′s ‘special adviser’, giving them notes about their live shows.

But last night the roles were reversed as Bono sized up the former Virgin Prune’s performance on the main stage just after 7pm.

The only problem with having a superstar pal watching your show is that photographers’ lenses were all trained on Bono watching from the mixing desk rather than on the stage.

Playground

Nevertheless, Gavin dedicated his song ‘Angel’ to Bono and his wife Ali who are celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary this month.

It was Bono’s first visit to the Electric Picnic, which is now in its ninth year.

Take That’s Gary Barlow admitted on the ‘X Factor’ last weekend that he had never heard of the Electric Picnic, but for the 32,500 Irish music fans in Stradbally, Co Laois, this weekend it’s the highlight of their music year.

Wayne Stuart (30) spoke for many. Originally from Co Clare but now working in Glasgow, Wayne had returned to Ireland specially for the three-day event.

“It’s not just the music. There are so many other attractions to the Electric Picnic like Mindfield and Body & Soul,” he said.

“I’d describe it as an adult playground. I went to Oxegen for the first eight years but I’m not 18 any more and the age range at Electric Picnic goes from kids to senior citizens.

“I love the atmosphere so much that it got me back from Scotland.”

The biggest drawback to any Irish music festival is the unpredictable weather, but by teatime last night the meadows of the 600-acre Stradbally estate were bathed in balmy sunshine.

There’s more good news, with Met Eireann promising today will start off dry and bright, and tomorrow will be even warmer and sunnier, with temperatures hitting 20C or 21C.

Tailbacks didn’t prove a problem either, with heavy but steadily-moving traffic around Stradbally last night.

Spirits

That left one genuine problem for festival-goers — the clash of top names on different stages with Ed Sheeran, Christy Moore and Icelandic band Sigur Ros all performing between 11pm and midnight last night.

Even a three-hour set from Goth doom merchants The Cure tonight seems unlikely to dampen spirits.

One of the more unusual performers on the many stages over the weekend will be celeb agent Noel Kelly. (See The Diary — Review Section).

More used to representing Ryan Tubridy and Grainne Seoige, the 49-year-old will be fronting the Transformation Blues Band on the Salty Dog stage at 7pm this evening.

However, the NK management boss said his “singing the blues” had nothing to do with salary cuts for his stars in RTE.

Rather, he’s doing a favour for the band whose singer had been unavailable for the festival and looking forward to a return to his former role as frontman with Dublin blues band The Leadbellies.

Weekend festival tickets are still available for €230. Sunday day tickets are €99.50.

- Ken Sweeney Entertainment Editor

© Independent.ie

U2 New Album Expected For 2013 And Is Sounding Quite Different Says U2 Insider, Gavin Friday – News

Posted by Jonathan on Aug 22, 2012 in Album News, albumnews, dangermouse, newalbum, News & Rumors, Will.I.AM

by TripleM Sydney

U2′s record label over in the UK, Mercury Records, has put the Irish supergroup in their release schedule for 2013.

Now we’ll just add caution that when push comes to shove, U2 are the ones who decide when they’re ready to put out a new album, not the record company, but it’s looking good for next year.

The band have been working their arses off in the studio with a number of producers including Danger Mouse and Will.I.Am, resulting in material which U2 insider Gavin Friday has described as “really very, very different”.

In an interview with RTE Radio One’s Weekend On One program in the UK just last weekend, Gavin said: “I’ve heard a bit of… Danger Mouse is producing it, so it’s quite different.”

This backs up what Bono said earlier in the year during an interview on The Late Show on Irish TV.

“We’ve had the best three weeks in the studio since 1979. I think they [the other band members] are very aware that U2 have to do something very special to have a reason to exist right now,” he said.

Of course, there have been loads of rumours about a new album to follow-up 2009′s No Line On The Horizon. In fact, U2 have gone on record saying that they had made another record called Songs Of Ascent during the No Line On The Horizon sessions.

Also, they debuted some new songs on the U2 360 Tour including “Return of the Stingray Guitar”, which was an instrumental rock track that was the opening song on the European leg in 2010 and “Glastonbury” – which they wrote shortly after the end of the 2009 U2 360 tour and planned to premiere at the Glastonbury Festival in June 2010.

“Love Life and Limb” featuring “Lipstick” with Gavin Friday

Posted by SPun2U on Feb 23, 2011 in Non-U2 related

Dublin-based band Preachers Son (Brian Hogan of Kíla and Emmaline Duffy-Fallon previously of Engine Alley) released their debut album “Love Life and Limb” last Friday, October 15th. “Love Life and Limb” features the song “Lipstick” with Gavin Friday on vocals. The song, and the album, can now be downloaded from iTunes and CD Baby. Lipstick [...]

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“Love Life and Limb” featuring “Lipstick” with Gavin Friday

John Hinde – Wish You Were Here

Posted by SPun2U on Feb 22, 2011 in Non-U2 related

Written by Gavin Friday for The Irish Times supplement “The Moderns”, on the Irish Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition “The Moderns: The arts in Ireland from the 1900s to the 1970s” “Having recently come across a book of photographs of John Hinde’s Ireland from the 1960s and 1970s, I was totally taken aback that after [...]

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John Hinde – Wish You Were Here