<<This event is free as part of Culture Night however due to limited capacity you must register for a ticket in order to attend>>
Hailing from the Comeragh Mountains of County Waterford, The Wran are four brothers: Tommy, Danny, Seán and Stephen Dunford. They bring a fresh voice to Irish music, blending trad with punk and a hint of psychedelia to create music that feels both timeless and new. Drawing inspiration from Planxty, The Pogues and Lankum,
The Wran combines traditional and modern instrumentation, including banjo, harmonium, acoustic guitar, bass VI and drums. They are dedicated to keeping the Irish language, traditional songs and storytelling alive while continuing to push it forward in their own way.
After an explosive live debut in 2025, including accoladed performances at Glastonbury, Green Man, All Together Now, and Electric Picnic, the band went on to support The Scratch and Kíla, play Dublin’s Notable NYD festival, and sell out their first Irish tour. Beginning 2026 with a sold-out UK tour, The Wran are fast establishing themselves as one of Ireland’s most vital new bands.
“the sound of a band on the cusp of greatness” Rolling Stone UK
“To highlight Cliffords as ones-to-watch does a disservice to the staggering power and unlimited potential on display here: this is far more than just hype.” DIY Magazine
“[the EP] represents more than just a musical beginning; it captures what makes Cliffords such a compelling proposition” DORK
It’s been a busy and exciting few months for Cliffords as they introduced themselves to the wider world with their second EP, Salt of the Lee. It’s the sound of a band who made their initial moves outside of the glare of the music industry, and whose self-financed debut EP landed with much promise but without any pressure of expectation beyond their own. Salt of the Lee fulfils all that promise emphatically, and another thrilling next step for a band who are quickly on the rise.
Whilst Cliffords certainly continue to develop and discover both themselves as a band and their sound, they’ve already become a compelling proposition whose word-of-mouth live shows are the sound of a band on the brink of something very special.
Paul Brady has won Lifetime Achievement awards from both The Irish Recorded Music Association and the BBC. He was inducted into the British Composers and Songwriters Academy in 2004 and the (Irish) IMRO Songwriters Academy in 2013 and was further honoured by the President of Ireland with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015.
Here’s why.
Paul Brady
Paul Brady, singer, songwriter, musician and producer has for over fifty years been at the forefront of popular music in Ireland. Spending the first decade and a half of his career absorbing influences from Jazz, Blues, Pop, Soul and Irish folk music in bands while at college in Dublin, and later with The Johnstons, Planxty and Andy Irvine, his dramatic interpretations of classic traditional ballads such as Arthur McBride and The Lakes of Pontchartrain firmly established him as one of the cornerstones of the new wave of Irish music and song in the 1970s.
Around the end of that decade, he began to write his own songs and has since forged a reputation as one of Ireland’s finest singer-songwriters, releasing many popular and critically acclaimed records. Songs such as The Island, Crazy Dreams, Nothing But The Same Old Story, Nobody Knows, Follow On, The Long Goodbye, The World Is What You Make It and Paradise Is Here have, over the years, given joy and emotional sustenance to generations of Irish at home and abroad.
Not long after he released ‘Hard Station’, his first album of his own compositions in 1981, his songs started to come to the attention of artists worldwide and his first ‘cover’ came the following year when Santana recorded ‘Night Hunting Time’. Since then, his songs have been recorded by many international artists including Tina Turner, Cliff Richard, Cher, Carole King, Art Garfunkel, Bonnie Raitt, Joe Cocker, Eric Clapton, Trisha Yearwood and Phil Collins and closer to home, Ronan Keating, Joe Dolan, Dickie Rock, Maura O’Connell, Liam Clancy and Mary Black.
Paul continues to write, record and perform either solo, in trio or full band. A Paul Brady concert is always a special event.
He has been with his partner Mary Elliott since 1975. They have two grown-up children, Sarah and Colm and five grandchildren, Lyra, Sean, Finn, Leo and Olive. Paul lives in Dublin.
Leah Song is a storyteller, song-catcher, and cultural bridge-builder, best known as the frontwoman of Rising Appalachia alongside her sister, Chloe. She plays claw-hammer banjo, bodhrán, and guitar, and is a keeper of both traditional and contemporary songs. For over two decades, she has carried her voice across borders, blending Appalachian folk and global roots music into songs that honor both land and lineage. Her repertoire includes Southern folk, old-world balladry, and Appalachian traditionals.
Leah has studied and worked alongside some of the greatest musicians and culture keepers of our time, including Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Bobby McFerrin, Bruce Molsky, Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn, Sheila Kay Adams, Martin Hayes, Cathy Jordan, Moya Brennan, Martin Shaw, Winona LaDuke, Joanna Macy, and more. She is joined on stage by a rotating cast of incredible musicians and multi-instrumentalists. Join her in gathering tools and teachings of resiliency, music, mythology, and celebration through sound.
