Over the last two weeks the doors of MUZU have been revolving with young folk carrying guitars, drum sticks and keyboards. They have all been struggling manfully with the building’s unfeasibly steep stairs in the name of the Hard Working Class Heroes festival. If that name means nothing to you other than a clever pun, the aim is simple – to gather the cream of new musical talent in Ireland and present them to the public over the course of one weekend. Six venues, three days, a 100 bands. Throw in a photography exhibition brought to you by State Magazine, a Scottish showcase curated by Sons & Daughters and various industry panels and you have Dublin’s answer to CMJ or In The City.
This year MUZU has joined the party by offering every band playing a chance to shoot a live video in our, shall we say, homely studio situated at the top of the building. Hence the stairs. Under the watchful eye of mother hen Marina, they’ve been coming and going and man, there are a lot of them. Even for those who profess a finger on this sort of pulse, there are still surprises to be had. Heard of The Followers Of Otis, Dublin Duck Dispensary or Deaf Animal Orchestra? They’ve been round our place and eaten our biscuits and we approve. You can see them all on the HWCH channel here (www.muzu.tv/hwch) so see what you think. For our money, Heathers blew us away with the sheer power of two voices and one guitar, even from the floor below. We’re also rather partial to Heartbreak Cartel, The Holy Roman Army and The Hot Sprockets, all exponents of doing things a little differently.
And so the weekend approaches. There’s been the usual concerns about so and so clashing with so and so (see the times), but that kind of misses the point of the thing. You don’t really treat HWCH as a normal festival and go and see the bands you know – and with Super Extra Bonus Party, Fight Like Apes, Fred and more on the bill that’s all very possible. Instead, take a chance and dive in. If you find something you love then happy days. If it’s the opposite, well there are five other venues to choose from and anyway, each band only plays for half an hour and that isn’t exactly going to kill you now is it?
