It can’t have been an easy task fending off worthy candidates like Sheffield, Norwich and Birmingham for the honourable title as the UK’s City of Culture. But the title was not usurped, for Derry’s historical city walls now stand 400 years on; an appropriate moment for the city to take centre stage.
A place which possesses a clouded history of uproot and destruction, there now stands a city reborn, vibrantly displaying the arts across many platforms. A physical change is visibly seen – the once prominent army base at Ebrington, forever bound to the site of Bloody Sunday, has gone. Perhaps more notably, a social makeover many believed would never arrive, has, well, arrived. Acceptance is now the order of the day.
So here it lies, a divide of class for so long, now linked symbolically by the recently built peace bridge. The river Foyle, once the home to many WW2 British fleet ships, now drifts as the swell sees fit. The people of Derry (or Derry-Londonderry as the promoters put it), have welcomed the arrival of the tourist gathering with welcome hearts. The city of culture buzzes with charm, mystery, history, and most significantly; music.
Through holding the status as the UK City Of Culture, brings great assemblage. Celtronic visits Northern Ireland for its thirteenth edition of live music, showcases, film screenings, seminars and discussions. DJ stars like the Russian Nina Kravis, with her hypnotising blend of house, techno and acid, and appearances from Belfast’s own Bicep and Le Carousel at Sandinos bar, Water st, draw quite the crowds. While the music represents a true rising trend, the crowd which adopt it are most certainly the excessively fun-loving generation. This is not a scene for the faint-hearted.
Music in Derry-Londonderry is expanding twofold in 2013, with performances from countless credible acts and the anticipated arrival of the Fleadh Cheoileann na hÉireann in August – an historical first visit north of the border for the much-loved trad gala. Goldenplec ventured north to see the music expansion firsthand. And under an impressive marquee, creatively named ‘The Venue’, Elvis Costello and the Imposters waltz onstage and launch into I Hope I Never Love You Now. Costello is dressed sharp, and stands lordly beneath his signature bowler hat. Rolling into the aptly titled Heart Of The City, with bassist Davey Faragher chiming in impressively on backing vocals, and the 1980 hit I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down quickly follows. Costello repeatedly shouts ‘stand up, stand up,’ and the crowd (quickly noticing the incitement) rise from their seats with haste.
The relenting pace grows further and, not to be outdone, drummer Pete Thomas lays some intricate drum fills during the Costello classic High Fidelity. Steve Nieve on keyboard, rather impressively visits vast musical universes within each song; exploring and playing with real freedom.
Born Declan Mcmanus, and described previously as a “pop encyclopedia,” it’s a struggle to summarise his work in any other way. He simply covers many genres. A mixture of pop, folk, jazz, blues, funk, atonal and anything you can quite conjure in under three hours. Costello began his career as part of London’s pub rock scene in the early 1970s and later became associated with the first wave of the British Punk/New Wave movement of the mid-to-late 1970s and has won numerous awards over his 40 years in music.
From album ‘Momofuku’, A Song With Rose makes an appearance to the delight of the audience. He illustrates music at its most expressive and boundless, while steeped in green light; singing flawlessly. His voice fills every pocket of silence in the venue. A natural with the audience, Costello regurgitates a story of some time spent with Johnny Cash, before attributing the anecdote with Cry Cry Cry. He playfully admits, “the record we made was terrible,” drawing a beautifully calming laugh from the audience.
During Ship Building, Costello disembarks the stage and proceeds on a journey through the arena, visiting the peripheral of every attendee. His modest way with the crowd heightens the mood. A mood of worship. He follows with the Notting Hill soundtrack She – actually not written by Costello but by a man named Charles Aznavour. He floats among those seated, grasps hands with those who follow him; the interaction between singer and assembly is quite mesmerising.
Costello exhasps a little, after such a strong vocal his emotion flows through the Venue as if the Foyle runs high. “Now we’ve got all them romantic songs out of the way, let’s play some rock n roll numbers,” states Costello, received with delighted applause. The Imposters lash into Josephine but the remainder of the show stagnates in parts, like most shows do, but things are kept neatly sewn together with other fan-favourites What A Good Year For The Roses, and Suit Of Lights. The human side of Costello is eminent. He tells another engaging tale of losing his father to dementia; how his father lost his humour, and somehow, his taste for Bushmills. How refreshing to witness such honesty from a global star.
Returning for an encore, a stiffened crowd lets loose once again with the beautiful Sleep Of The Just. His voice simply cannot be condemned; so solid and full of elation. More hits soon follow with Alison, Pump It Up and quite brilliantly (and most definitely unexpected), Purple Rain by Prince. The appropriate purple washing light reinforces the notion of a pro at work. Oliver’s Army rings out and everyone joins in with the singable tune to bring the night to a close; an exceptional performance, by an exceptional performer.
The recent feelings of many Derry natives were that such days of forward progression would never arrive. How satisfying it was for Goldenplec to therein witness this city explore many cultures, embraced jointly with music.
For further information on Northern Ireland go to www.discovernorthernireland.