In the last few years, they’ve won two Ivor Novello Awards, been nominated for a Mercury Music Prize and dropped one of the coolest live records by an Irish group. Villagers is the eclectic, electro-folk vehicle for the songs of Conor O’Brien and is the latest act to be announced by Derry’s Music City festival.
The festival returns to the walled city in the north-west for a fourth year, taking over venues large and small from 4th – 10th July.
You can catch the sublime songwriting talent and superb musicianship of Villagers as they headline the festival’s opening night in The Glassworks on 4th July. The former 19th-century church is the place to be for Folk and Tumble fans at this year’s festival as it also playes host to Soak and Saint Sister on Friday 8th July and The Willis Clan on Saturday 9th July.
There’s much more to Music City than headline shows though and throughout the week you can also catch performances from internationally acclaimed acts Girls Names and The Strypes with some of Ireland’s finest songwriting talent on show in the form of David Kitt, Malojian, Silences, Best Boy Grip and Exmagician.
Many shows are free to attend and tickets for headline sets look set to sell out quickly so head over to The Millennium Forum Box Office or wegottickets.com. For more lineup information, keep an eye on www.musiccityderry.com.
Music City 2016 is supported by Department of Culture Arts and Leisure, Department of Foreign Affairs, Tourism Northern Ireland, Derry City & Strabane District Council and Community Foundation NI Acorn Fund.