Help me find good rock/punk shows or venues in Scotland and Ireland this March.

January 23, 2010 10:04 PM

Help me find good rock/punk shows or venues in Scotland and Ireland this March.

I'm going to be fulfilling a life long dream and visiting Ireland and Scotland this March. In addition to the mandatory cliffs, castles and breweries, I'd like to get a taste of modern Ireland. I'm a big fan of Celtic rock bands like The Pogues, Flogging Molly, The Tossers, Blood or Whiskey, etc. Can anyone recommend any good shows or venues to check out while I'm in town? I'll be in Glasgow March 7-13, and traveling Ireland March 14-20. Also, suggestions for a good way to spend St. Patrick's day are welcome!

posted by bloody_bonnie to Travel & Transportation around Scotland (3 answers total)

You're far more likely to catch a show like that in London or Chicago but anyhoo: popular bands in Dublin and Cork tend to play wherever they can fill so your best bet is to check the entertainment.ie listings or local equivalent. Your favorite band could be at the Point, the Olympia, the Opera House, one of the smaller university academy venues or who the hell knows where. Most people just come for the show and do their socializing at other bars before and after, or at least we do.

If you make it to Galway go to Roisin Dubh. It's an actual venue of the US sort that I believe you are looking for and seems to have music every night. Plus if the band sucks they have lots of books to read (more clubs should provide this service).

My only advice for St Patricks Day is to be as far from Temple Bar as possible.
posted by fshgrl at 12:15 AM on January 24, 2010

Not a lot happening in Glasgow Celtic rock-wise while your here but you could spend some time in Sloan's bar who have a Celtic folk night on a Tuesday and a full on ceilidh on a Friday. Plenty whisky and dancing to go round.

Keep an eye on the List Mag's site for what else is on...
posted by theCroft at 10:29 AM on January 24, 2010

I agree with fshgrl that Ireland might not have the gigs you're looking for. Thumped has pretty comprehensive listings for independent rock and punk shows and would be your best bet - the userbase skews Dublin but so do most music scenes, and you'll see listings for Cork, Limerick, Galway, etc there too.

I suspect you might find the energy of a trad session (performers playing traditional music in a pub, sitting and drinking with everyone else) closer to Celtic rock, so that might be worth asking about if you have specific places you'll be.

Seconding the Roisin Dubh, it's awesome.
posted by carbide at 10:39 AM on January 24, 2010