Other Voices Cardigan has revealed the first five headline acts performing in St Mary’s Church across the three days of the iconic music festival form November 3-5.
The acts include Gwenno, whose latest acclaimed third album Tresor has been nominated for a Mercury prize, the first non-English language album to receive such recognition.
Joining Gwenno, from Wales and Ireland, will be the virtuosic harp and fiddle duo, Catrin Finch and Aoife Ni Bhriain, revealing their new stunning collaboration to a live public audience for the first time.
Performing in both Welsh and English will be Welsh drill artist Sage Todz whose track ‘O Hyd’ remakes Dafydd Iwan’s famous protest song Yma O Hyd and has been adopted by the Football Association of Wales in advance of Wales’ journey to the World Cup finals later in November.
The fourth artist announced is Stella Donnelly, the Australian indie rock singer-songwriter who grew up in Wales. Her debut album Beware Of The Dogs was released just before the pandemic to critical acclaim and was followed by her 2022 release Flood.
The fifth confirmed St Mary’s Church act will be the mighty Band Pres Llareggub. Owing to the age-old tradition of brass bands from the slate mining villages of North Wales, Band Pres Llareggub ascend from the ashes of the past and bring with them an immense dose of heavy brass!
The band’s music invokes the sumptuous flavours of New Orleans marching bands, together with Bronx-inspired Hip Hop and Welsh language pop music.
All performances from St Mary’s Church will take place in front of a public audience and will also be streamed globally for free via Other Voices’ YouTube and social channels.
The festival will be hosted by Welsh TV and radio presenter Huw Stephens and presented in partnership between South Wind Blows, Mwldan and Triongl.
Showcasing exceptional and emerging musical talent from Wales and Ireland is a cornerstone of the Other Voices Cardigan festival. This year’s fantastic line-up pulls strands and artists from right across music genres, including fresh talent that’s carrying the tradition into the future.
As Other Voices returns to Cardigan in style with the biggest celebration of music the town has ever seen, the performances in St Mary’s Church will be matched by 80 across the three days at venues all around the town, featuring a further 38 hand-picked artists on a Music Trail of discovery.
Other Voices Cardigan is also now revealing the full line-up for the Music Trail, a diverse list of amazing artists from Ireland and Wales, some familiar and some exciting new experiences.
Cardiff’s Red Telephone serve up richly layered neo-psych rock which has caught the attention of DJs such as Steve Lamacq and Gideon Coe. Emerging alt-folk artist Dani Larkin travels from Ireland with the beautifully delicate vocals of rising indie folk-pop star Katie Phelan and acclaimed Dublin poet Stephen James Smith, whose poetry videos have amassed over 2.5 million views.
From Wales, Matthew Frederick brings a distinctive and timeless blend of acoustic pop and indie folk, whilst home boy Rye Milligan incorporates indie, hip-hop, pop and electronica into his solo sets.
Also from Wales, Cynefin channels the vibrant oral culture of Ceredigion’s story and song, Tapestri is the beautiful pairing of folk/Americana duo Lowri Evans and Sarah Zyborska (SERA) and local outfit Samana bring their own brand of brooding psychedelia and atmospheric folk.
Expect heartbreak, happiness and late-night feelings from experimental pop outfit Hourglvss as they explore the realms of love, pain and youth through an electro girl pop lens.
Brazen, fiery and memorable, Dublin’s electro-pop artist Pastiche combines classic electronic pop, dark pop and a rebellious club kid sound mixed with her theatrical influences.
A favourite from last year’s online Other Voices was Cardiff’s Juice Menace, an unwaveringly powerful rapper poised for greatness and who recently represented the Welsh Women’s Football team on a global scale, sound tracking their qualifying World Cup matches with new single “For Her”.
Back to Ireland, Belfast’s Problem Patterns espouse queer punk furious – celebratory and up-lifting – whose outbreaks of fun and positive havoc are all part of the experience.
Sascha Samara is an alt-pop artist from Belfast, armed with candid lyrics and girl-next-door connection. There’s also timeless, cinematic, pop-noir from Dark Tropics, powered by analogue instruments and retro recording techniques.
Aberystwyth’s Ynys (Dylan Hughes, ex-Race Horses and Radio Luxembourg) will paint a rich collection of melancholic harmonies over a cinematic soundtrack of 80s sequencers, 70s string machines and fuzz guitars in a set filled with adventurous off-kilter psychedelia.
Cartin is one of the most electrifying talents to emerge from the North of Ireland in recent years, whose animated performances and captivating electronic productions, incorporating live guitar elements, have cemented his status as ‘next up’ in Ireland.
Festival faves Timbali & Peppery are Welsh DJ/producer Timbali, with his tight dubwise productions and eclectic style, plus Jamaican reggae dancehall artist Peppery.
Singer-songwriter and Dubliner David Kitt’s career has spanned eight studio albums and includes a double platinum achievement and an Irish No.1 chart topper. Self-produced grime artist LEMFRECK, who excels in unique storytelling with underground gritty sounds and honest detailed lyricism, was named one to watch for 2021on BBC Introducing.
Completing the line-up for this year’s Music Trail are popular Welsh singer-songwriter Al Lewis, bad-ass perfect pop-punk Derry girl band Cherym, Cardiff grime artist Mace The Great, hip hop duo Tebi Rex from County Kildare, boundary-breaking electronic Cardiff duo Roughion, noisy indie-poppers Seazoo from Wrexham and local heroes Einir Dafydd & Band.
These new Music Trail artists are in addition to the previously announced first 10 acts: from Wales, tradition bending Cerys Hafana, singer-songwriter Eve Goodman, chamber folk trio VRï, garage-rock foursome Los Blancos and rap duo Lloyd & Dom James.
From Ireland, acclaimed singer-songwriter Niamh Regan, electronic artist Daithí, slouch rocker Skinner, psych rock five piece MELTS and experimental musician-composer Rachael Lavelle.
The full performance schedule with dates and times will be announced in the coming weeks.
In addition to the inspirational programme of live music, Other Voices Cardigan will also present Clebran, a compelling and provocative curated series of discussion events that will explore and celebrate the enduring cultural ties between Ireland and Wales.
The events will feature artists, journalists, creatives and politicians, sparking enriching, lively conversations about how we perceive our world, language and culture.
First Minister Mark Drakeford said: “It’s so good to see the return of Other Voices to West Wales to showcase some of our best musical talent. I’m so glad that we are re-establishing this exciting event in the calendar. It’s a symbol of the importance of our cultural and business connections with our friends in Ireland.”
Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin TD said: “Other Voices Cardigan again promises a wonderful programme of live music which will enable outstanding performances to be enjoyed around the world.
“It is especially heartening to see audiences and artists coming together again in person. I am very proud that my department is supporting the programme again this year and strengthening further the cultural ties between Ireland and Wales.”
The Consul General of Ireland in Wales, Denise McQuade said: “We are delighted that Other Voices is returning to Cardigan this year. Ireland and Wales share rich cultural ties which stretch back many centuries.
“Other Voices provides an opportunity to build those ties and to highlight and share the best of contemporary Irish and Welsh culture.”
Early booking weekend wristbands, giving access to the festival events, are available now priced at £20, rising to £25 on October 13. Full details on line up and tickets are available at https://www.othervoices.ie/events/other-voices-cardigan .
Other Voices Cardigan is produced by South Wind Blows in partnership with Mwldan and Triongl and made possible thanks to the support and investment of Welsh Government and The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
