Live Music Spots I Rate

Desmond Hanrahan

@deso_fiver

8Items

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Not a comprehensive list, just the places I've actually gone to over the years when I'm not stuck in front of the snooker table or down Dalymount watching the Bohs lads give me a heart attack. Some of these are fancy now, some are still the same aul kip they always were. Bring your own opinion, I've plenty of mine below.

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Live Music Spots I Rate — 8 items
Name	Comment	Venue	Neighbourhood	Address	City	Type of Music	Best For
1Whelan's	Been going since before half the bands playing there were born. Sound still good though.	Whelan's	Portobello	25 Wexford Street, Dublin 2, D02 H527	Dublin	Singer-songwriter, indie, folk	A proper gig with a pint after
2The Cobblestone	No stage, no bother, just lads with fiddles in the corner. The way it should be, but sure look.	The Cobblestone	Smithfield	77 King Street North, Smithfield, Dublin 7	Dublin	Traditional Irish sessions	A proper session, none of your tourist nonsense
3Vicar Street	Table seating if you're past the standing-for-three-hours stage of life. I am well past it.	Vicar Street	The Liberties	58-59 Thomas Street, Dublin 8	Dublin	Mid-size touring acts, comedy too	Seeing someone you grew up listening to
4The Button Factory	Not really my scene anymore but the acoustics are decent, I'll give it that much.	The Button Factory	Temple Bar	Curved Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2	Dublin	Rock, electronic, club nights	Younger crowd, louder sound
5The Academy	Three floors of it. I stick to the ground floor these days, the knees won't do stairs for music.	The Academy	North City	57 Middle Abbey Street, Dublin 1	Dublin	Rock, indie, up-and-coming acts	Catching a band before they get big and the tickets get dear
63Olympia Theatre	Oldest theatre in the city and it shows, in a good way. Lovely old place, worth the ticket price.	3Olympia Theatre	South City	72 Dame Street, Dublin 2	Dublin	Big names, orchestral, variety	A proper sit-down night out
7The Grand Social	Good value and they don't charge you the earth for a pint, which matters more as you get older.	The Grand Social	North City	35 Lower Liffey Street, Dublin 1	Dublin	Folk, indie, DJ nights	Something a bit different without breaking the bank
83Arena	Only go if someone else is buying the ticket, the prices these days are an insult. Anyway.	3Arena	North Wall	North Wall Quay, Dublin 1	Dublin	Arena tours, the big names	Once-in-a-blue-moon spectacle gigs

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