LITHA - A Summer Solstice Celebration
LITHA is a 4 day celebration of music and spoken word poetry across Tipperary to mark the longest days of the year, the Summer Solstice.
Litha was celebrated by the Celts to mark the period around the Summer Solstice and they believed that performing and celebrating would banish away evil spirits and usher in the warmest most plentiful part of the year.
To welcome the long summer days, CWB in collaboration with Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, and Tipperary County Council are hosting 4 shows in Roscrea, Carrick-On-Suir, Tipperary Town and Cahir from June 21 to June 24. These shows are suitable for all ages and tickets are only €5!
The celebrations will kick off at the magnificent Damer House, Roscrea on June 21 with HamSandwicH, who are fresh off their sold out Irish tour, and Seba Safe entertaining with exclusive acoustic sets.
On Wednesday June 22 we head down to Carrick-On-Suir with Phelim Drew alongside Ger Kiely, poet Stephen James Smith, 16 year old singer and poet Éire Ní Fhaoláin and Tipperary locals Kill ‘Em Charlie at the intimate Brewery Lane Theatre.
In Tipperary Town we will host an outdoor show beside the Excel Center with the enigmatic showman Jerry Fish (warming up for his exalted position of Ringmaster of Kaleidoscope Festival), Tipperary’s Kingfisher and special guests in performance on June 23.
Closing LITHA, DJ Kormac, who just successfully launched his label Always The Sound, along with a live string section and special guest vocalist MayKay will perform at St. Paul’s Church in the heart of Cahir on June 24.
Each event will kick off at 7pm.
Tickets are priced at just €5 and are available from Eventbrite here.
More information available from www.cwb.ie.
LITHA’s featured artists are outlined below:
Seba Safe is the brainchild of Dublin songwriter Micheal D'Alton and soon to be a force to be reckoned with in the blossoming Irish music scene. Spending the most part of 2018 locked away in a cabin in the Wicklow mountains he has been crafting a full catalogue of songs.
Writing candidly and honestly on personal relationships, love, loss and change which will soon be resonating with every listener.
Seba Safe's pertinent lyrics are wrapped in a sound that combines folk, dance and RnB. Debut single 'I Want' encapsulates the simple, selfish and soaring wants of a transient mind.
Stephen James Smith is a Dublin poet and playwright central to the rise of the vibrant spoken word scene in Ireland today. To date, his poetry videos have amassed over 3 million views online.
Hailing from Tipperary, Kill 'Em Charlie are a 5-piece indie rock outfit.
They have gone on to release their new single 'Hazey' in late 2021 which is available on all major streaming platforms. This is the band's first release since their debut EP and this new single marks a new chapter in the band's journey as they take on a faster, louder and more energetic sound.
For fans of Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand and Catfish and Bottlemen; Eoghan (Vocals/Guitar), Alex (Guitar), George (Bass), Patrick (Guitar) and Damon (Drums), are now looking to leave their mark on the Indie scene with more releases and big plans coming this year!
Jerry Fish is renowned as much for his showmanship as he is for his music. He's a carnival creator, circus ringmaster - complete with Vaudeville moustache - a playwright, singer, songwriter and poet.
Spawned from his Electric Picnic shows which became so popular that they gave him his very own stage "Wherever Jerry Fish goes, the circus is not far behind," he says. "It's a monster, but I love that whole fraternity. My motto is 'unity through diversity'. In a circus, everyone mucks in.”
With two recent releases, both penned by the late Daniel Johnston; ‘The Story of An Artist’ and ‘True Love Will Find You in The End’ (feat. Wallis Bird) and a new album in the pipeline things look to get busy for Jerry once again.
Mr. Fish's genre bending and idiosyncratic style of entertainment has made him a household name within the Irish Music industry. With two Platinum selling solo albums, an MTV award and IRMA Music Award, and a solid reputation as a supreme and spectacular showman.
We invite you to join Jerry Fish to ‘Celebrate’ the life of Ireland’s Greatest Showman!
With a brand new label up and running, a new album imminent and several film scores under his belt, Kormac returns for an intimate show at St. Paul’s Church, Cahir, as part of LITHA, featuring a live string section led by Ken Rice and special guest vocalists and instrumentalists. Kormac started out as a hip-hop scratch DJ and MPC beat-maker.
He has matured into an artist who brings a totally unique approach to his art, twisting samples and meticulous recordings of acoustic instruments into something entirely unique. His latest project, Equivalent Exchange, saw him write a full suite of material for an orchestra and a host of collaborators including Loah, Eimear Noone, Jack O’ Rourke and Stephen James Smith while working with acclaimed artist, Maser, on artwork and show visuals. They performed the material to a sold out Vicar Street and at festivals across the country.
For club shows, he brings his studio set up, a drummer and a massive LED wall showing bespoke visuals for alternative takes on his own material. His last album got him nominated for the Meteor choice music prize. He’s played festivals including Glastonbury, Bestival, Electric Picnic, Sonar and toured the UK, Europe, Eastern Europe, Australia and Canada alongside luminaries Portishead, Nas, Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth, Snarky Puppy and a host of others.
Current streaming figures are in excess of 40 million. He has just written the soundtracks for two multi-episodic TV series and has put the final touches to his next album. Kormac is currently scoring a feature film due for release during late summer 2022.