What the hell is BANTER?

BANTER is an ongoing series of informal discussions on pop culture stuff which kicked off in July 2009. All events are hosted by Irish Times journalist Jim Carroll

Currently, BANTER happens as part of THE BEATYARD at the Twisted Pepper and special one off events.

Details of future BANTER talks will be posted here when to hand. A full list of previous sessions is below so you can see (and hear - podcasts available where indicated) what we've been yakking about. If you want to contact us about any BANTER-related matter, email conor@bodytonicmusic.com or click HERE

July’s Banter saw us taking a trip to Letterkenny for the Earagail Arts Festival and a discussion titled 'Outstanding In Their Own Fields - Where The Irish Music Festival Goes From Here'

Over the last decade, the Irish gig-going community have demonstrated a huge appetite for summer music festivals. The attention paid every year to the Big Two (Oxegen and Electric Picnic), the number of standalone gigs for superstar acts (Lenny Cohen isn't coming back to Ireland for the third summer in a row because he likes the full Irish breakfast) and the rise of a new breed of micro-festivals like Castlepalooza, Indiependence and Glasgowbury is testimony to our fondness for letting our hair down in big fields up and down the country.

But will the current recession mean an end to this love affair? Has festival fatigue set in as the same old bands dominate the line-ups? Do punters want something more than just the communal good times in a wet Irish field? Has the rise in popularity of trips to foreign events like Glastonbury and Primerva lessened the appeal of the homegrown bash? And will we still be giving out about the kids at Oxegen and the price of Electric Picnic tickets in five years time?

On the panel: Paul McLoone (Today FM, The Undertones), Una Mullally (Sunday Tribune, TG4's Ceol Ar An Imeall), Declan Forde (POD Concerts and Electric Picnic booker) and panel chairman Jim Carroll.

For June's Banter we welcomed extra special guest Andy Votel, founder of Twisted Nerve & Finders Keepers records, to chat about his life in the music scene thus far. This took in his experiences in Manchester in the 90s as a remixed and artist for Grand Central and brushes with the likes of Texas and obsession with obscure foreign folk oddities. Check the recording out below...

March's Banter sessions took place on Saturday March 13th as part of the Beatyard and once again featured Richard Brophy stepping into Jim's shoes.

For the first talk, Richard delved into the raging storm surrounding the sudden growth of the Headshop industry in Ireland and the surrounding media furore. Joining him was a member of the local drug trade, who discussed the impact its had, the risks and the balanced point of view from a society beyond tabloid headlines.


The Donnacha Costello Story

For the second, Richard spoke to probably Irelands most celebrated and successful exponent of dance music, Donnacha Costello about his music, the influence of the likes of Steve Reich on his work & more.

February's Banter featured local journalist and writer Richard Brophy stepping in for Jim Carroll, who was away. The talks featured local promoters Come As Soon As You Hear discussing the merits of creative clubbing, the benefits of emphasising performance, unique ideas and the art of transforming a space and the various groups bubbling under in this niche of the Dublin scene.

The Lerosa Story

For the second hour, Richard spoke to local Italian expat and heralded producer Lerosa. This talk took in his releases on labels like Ostgut, the benefits of using hardware in the studio and his experiences as a foreigner in the small underground Dublin House and Techno scene.



The All-City Story with Olan O'Brien

Nearly ten on years from opening its doors in Dublin's Temple Bar and having operated out of four different buildings on the same street, All City's Olan O'Brien charts the trials, tribulations and triumphs of Dublin's only dedicated hip-hop and graff supplies store. Plus he talks about how the shop's label has evolved to the stage where its "7 x 7" release with cuts by HudMo, Mike Slott, Onra and friends was one of the must-have compilations of '09 for beats heads worldwide.

In Bloom: Irish Bands Now

2fm DJ Jenny Huston's new book In Bloom - Irish Bands Now tracks the current state of Irish rock with profiles of many of the leading players on the scene. However, just how healthy is Irish rock at present? Is it the same as it was in the 1980s and the 1990s? Are all these bands just hometown heroes with little chance of doing anything beyond Ireland? An assessment of the current state of Irish rock music with Jenny Huston and Nick Kelly (Irish Independent)



Gigging for a living

Peter Symes from Skinny Wolves on the who, what, how, where and when of promoting shows and running a record label

How to run a weekly clubnight

Is this really the hardest gig in showbiz? Dave Parle from Antics and Giles Armstrong from Electric Shock tell all

The Choice Cuts story

Interview with Choice Cuts¹ founder Mark Murphy




Review of the Decade

A rocket-powered blast through 10 years of pop culture - which will probably cover all you needed to know about the last 10 years but couldn¹t fit on a Tweet - with Richie 'Jape' Egan, Nadine 'Sunday Business Post/Phantom FM' O'Regan and Bodytonic's Trevor 'Tayor' O¹Shea.




90s vs 00s

A head-to-head with Dublin techno kingpins Francois (repesenting the 1990s) and Sunil Sharpe (repping the 00s) about which decade produced the most thrilling sounds and nights out in the capital city. The rumble in the Dubland jungle! The thrilla on Middle Abbey Street! The no-holds-barred heavyweight bout of the season! In conjunction with the Dublin Electronic Arts Festival (DEAF)

Meet the new media cats

Niall Byrne (Nialler9 blog, State magazine and the Irish Independent¹s Day & Night magazine) and Una Mullally (UnaRocks, the Sunday Tribune and Soundcheck) poke around in the Venn diagram between blogs, Twitter and the established media. In conjunction with Hard Working Class Heroes/



2019 AC: After Copyright

A keynote discussion with Anna Troberg, the Vice Chairman of the Swedish Pirate Party, who received 7.1% of the vote in the recent European elections in Sweden and secured the party its first seat in the European Parliament. A lively discussion from first principles about how the creative landscape might look 10 years hence, addressing the hot button topic of the hour. In conjunction with the Darklight festival.







Final Scratch Me Arse

Two pioneers of Irish clubland, Tonie Walsh and Paul Webb, shoot the breeze about the very early days of Irish clubland.






The A to Z of DIY

Dylan Haskins (Hideaway House, Exchange Dublin) and Niall McGurk (Hope Promotions) discuss alternative all-age gig spaces in Ireland and the politics of doing gigs in gaffs, church halls and community centres. The discussion was preceded by a screening of Roll Up Your Sleeves, Dylan¹s documenary about DIY culture and alternative ways of organising, working and thinking which is now out on DVD.







The state of Irish music radio - past, present and future

Paul McLoone (Today FM) and The Golden Maverick (Power FM) are the talking heads as we put Irish radio under the microscope.