Groove Tube with Cian O’Connell

The second edition of Going Coastal takes place in Galway City this weekend, with the Bierhaus, the Róisín Dubh and the Blue Note playing host to six gigs across three days. It is a festival designed to celebrate the west coast of Ireland as a single entity for the arts.

Promoters from local nights A Modern Movement, Free House, Strange Brew, Lovesick and Little Island have each curated lineups for gigs on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, supported by the Galway City Council Night-Time Economy, Creative Ireland and Flirt FM.

Among those performing are T.A. Narrative, Daithí, Some Images of Paradise, In Athens and Field Trip, though the lineup stretches far beyond those names. David Boland is not curating a specific gig this year, but he is one of the organisers instrumental in piecing the programme together.

“The first festival that had this west of Ireland sort of concept was in 2019 before the pandemic and everything,” he says.

“To get it back going again last year was really because of the enthusiasm of people like John O’Connor in A Modern Movement and Jake Tiernan in Free House.

“Enthusiasm for the idea and the concept. It’s not just a music festival – it’s about connecting people. That’s really at the heart of it and it’s about supporting creative industries on the western edge.

“We’re trying to build a network and bring people to Galway to meet each other and form those connections that are so important to making music in a peripheral region.”

Boland is quick to heap praise on the Black Gate, who were vital in facilitating last year’s debut for Going Coastal. There is a community ethos shared by all of the promoters and venues involved in this year’s festival, as well as a balance of artists at various levels of their careers.

“We’ve such a strong scene in Galway,” Boland says. The beauty of it is there’s a diverse set of promoters who are bringing their own flavour to each night of the festival. Strange Brew is obviously a legendary night and has promoters who can get those headline acts like Daithí.

Pictured: T.A. Narrative, who will be performing in the Bierhaus for Free House on the first night of Going Coastal.