Tom Jones, Skrillex, Madness, Two Door Cinema Club, James Morrison & David Guetta to play BELSONIC 2012.
BELSONIC in association with ABSOLUT returns to the unique surroundings of Belfast’s Custom House Square for a two week period this August! A hugely successful Northern Irish music event, Belsonic in association with ABSOLUT is set to bring an array of world class talent to this beautiful Victorian Square in the heart of the city’s revitalised and historic Cathedral Quarter.
Among the first phase of this year’s headline announcements are Tom Jones, Skrillex Two Door Cinema Club, Madness, James Morrison & David Guetta. Two Door Cinema Club will also be joined by special guests Noah & The Whale, while many more headline and support act announcements are expected in the coming weeks.
Previous headliners in the events’ five year history include Florence & The Machine, Paul Weller, Kasabian, The Specials, Paolo Nutini, 30 Seconds To Mars & Deadmau5 amongst many others.
Esther Small, Brand Development Manager at Dillon Bass Ltd. commented:
“We at ABSOLUT Vodka are delighted to be the headline sponsor of Belsonic 2012 once again for the fourth year running. Belsonic is the perfect match for ABSOLUT as both are contemporary, cutting edge and creative brands.
ABSOLUT is extremely proud to be associated with this hugely successful music event in Belfast and look forward with much anticipation to the arrival of an array of amazing international and local acts to Custom House Square in August.”
Belsonic 2012 in association with ABSOLUT Vodka:
Wednesday August 15th: Skrillex + Dillon Francis & Special Guests
Friday August 17th: Madness & Special Guests
Thursday August 23rd: Two Door Cinema Club + Noah And The Whale, The Cast Of Cheers & Special Guests
Friday August 24th: Tom Jones & Special Guests
Saturday August 25th: James Morrison & Special Guests
Sunday August 26th: David Guetta & Special Guests
Tom Jones
Tom Jones’ 46-year career has remarkably gone from strength to strength. Along with sustaining his popularity as a live performer and recording artist for more than four decades, he has garnered—at the age of 71—the best reviews of his career for his recent album, Praise & Blame (Island/Universal). Critics across the world are unanimous in their approval and admiration for both the recorded work and the performance of it in concert.
The Praise & Blame mantra was ‘get back to basics’, and the album was recorded as wholly live performances at Peter Gabriel’s studio in Bath, England, produced by Ethan Johns (Kings of Leon, Ryan Adams, Ray LaMontagne, Laura Marling, Paolo Nutini). The result witnesses a singer at the top of his game, with the songs themselves coaxing exhilarating performances out of Tom and his band at festivals and venues in the UK and Europe.
Backed by a red-hot band riding on slinky, rocking blues grooves, Jones’ singing shifts from an ominous bass growl to a raw, pleading tenor…smiling, joking and wielding his remarkable voice with a lusty, tangible pleasure.” Neil McCormick, The Telegraph“
Thomas Jones Woodward was born in Pontypridd, South Wales, Great Britain on June 7, 1940 to a father who worked the coal mines of the Rhondda Valley. After quitting school at 15, working a variety of manual jobs, singing in the clubs at night and marrying at 17, Jones went on to sign with Decca Records in London.
Jones has a fundamental interest in a wide range of music. Although he is well known for hits including It’s Not Unusual, Kiss, Delilah, What’s New Pussycat, I’ll Never Fall In Love Again and If I Only Knew, he is first and foremost a rocker with a true rhythm and blues soul. He has remained a vital recording artist, with his 1999 album Reload the biggest selling (5m) of his then 35-year career. Tom was a key player in Martin Scorsese’s Red White & Blues series, and in 2004 released an album of roots rock n roll with Jools Holland. Prior to 2010‘s Praise & Blame, his 2008 studio album, 24 Hours, was a critical career highlight with many of the self-penned tracks being an insightful and evocative reflection of his spirited and rich life. “24 Hours finds Jones vocalizing with an almost reckless exuberance” The Washington Post
Tom was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen in 2006, an honour he deeply cherishes. Other highlights of his long career include receiving a BRIT Awards for Best Male and Outstanding Contribution to Music, a Silver Clef Award for Lifetime Achievement, the Hitmaker Award from the [US] Songwriters Hall of Fame, and in 2010 the prestigious [UK] Music Industry Trust Award. He has been animated as himself in The Simpsons, Duck Dodgers, The Emperors New Groove; other film roles include Tim Burton’s Mars Attacks! and Angelica Houston’s Agnes Brown.
Sir Tom is indeed a living legend. His irresistible show traverses musical eras and genres, cuts across class divides and appeals to young and old, male and female, mainstream and cutting edge. The Godfather of modern soul, Sir Tom has always been about the power of the song, the power of the voice.
Tom Jones plays Belsonic at Custom House Square in Belfast on Friday August 24th.
Skrillex
Three time Grammy Award winning American Dance music producer Skrillex, aka Sonny Moore, returns to Belfast on Wednesday August 15th to headline Belsonic at Custom House Square, presenting a brand new groundbreaking Audio Visual live show.
Skrillex exploded onto the UK music scene in early 2011 with the crossover EPs “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites” and “Bangarang”, both of which captivated Dance and Rock fans alike. He was named the 2011 MTV Electronic Dance Music artist of the year, and was one of the BBC Sound of 2012 poll nominees. Skrillex is now selling out arena sized venues across the globe, and is renowned for his hugely innovative concert productions.
Two Door Cinema Club
Not since Snow Patrol can Northern Ireland boast a bigger success story in music than Two Door Cinema Club. Natives of Bangor town, this indie-rock three piece released their hugely successful debut LP “Tourist History” on French imprint Kitsune Maison in 2010, and have gone on to build huge fanbases in every corner of the globe. The Choice Music Prize winning LP spawned hit singles “Something Good Can Work”, “What You Know” and “I Can Talk”.
The band are currently touring the UK, headlining the highly prestigious NME Awards Tour, while work is underway on their eagerly anticipated sophomore LP release. They return to Belfast to headline their biggest Irish show to date at Belsonic in Custom House Square, Thursday August 23rd.
Two Door Cinema Club will be joined by English indie-folk stars Noah and the Whale, who broke onto the scene in 2008 with their debut single “Five Years Time” from the acclaimed LP “Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down”. However, it wasn’t until the release of 2011′s “Last Night On Earth” that they experienced large scale mainstream success, with singles “L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.” and “Tonight’s The Kind Of Night” garnering huge popular support.
Madness
Seminal 2Tone / Ska 7 piece Madness are one the most successful British acts of all time. Their 1979 debut LP “One Step Beyond” is considered a classic album, and was a key release during the late 70s Ska Revival centred in London. Subsequent hit single releases include “House Of Fun”, “Baggy Trousers”, “It Music Be Love” and “Our House”, along with 6 UK Top 10 LPs.
Madness continue to perform live with the core line-up which founded the band over 30 years ago, including cult front-man Graham “Suggs” McPherson. A brand new studio LP is expected later this year, following up the highly successful 2009 release “The Liberty Of Norton Folgate”.
Madness play Belsonic at Custom House Square on Friday August 17th, their first Belfast appearance since headlining at The Odyssey Arena in December 2009.
James Morrison
James Morrison’ incredible third album “The Awakening” has just been released on Island Records.
The album, his first for the label, was produced by Bernard Butler and was recorded at Konk studios in London. It follows the huge global success of James’s previous two albums which, together, have sold more than 4.5 million copies worldwide. His 2006 debut album “Undiscovered” topped the UK album chart whilst the 2008 follow-up album “Songs For You, Truths For Me” included “Broken Strings”, the collaboration with Nelly Furtado which sold in excess of 1.5 million copies.
“The Awakening” also includes an amazing collaboration, this time with Jessie J on the track “Up”. This, and one other track, was produced by Mark Taylor. All other tracks were produced by Bernard Butler.
James Morrison said; “Working with Bernard Butler on this album has brought a whole new dimension to the songs. For me this album combines influences stemming from my deep love for classic soul – Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding – with a sound that is contemporary. Making the album coincided with some very big changes in my life and I think it’s very evident from the music that this is the album I not only wanted to make but that I actually had to make right now”.
James Morrison headlines Belsonic at Custom House Square on Saturday August 25th.
David Guetta
French superstar DJ David Guetta is currently, and without doubt, the world’s most prolific chart-topping producer, boasting countless hits, and millions of records sales across the globe. His blistering Belfast debut performance on the closing night of Belsonic 2010 sold out months in advance, and those lucky enough to attend were treated to a massive audio / visual show, featuring a full set of Guetta’s best known hits. He returns to Belsonic on Sunday August 26th to present a mind blowing, all new live show.
David Guetta’s 2009 LP “One Love” yielded international hits such as “Sexy Bitch” (Feat. Akon) and “When Love Takes Over” (Feat. Kelly Rowland). Following this success, he was promptly snapped up to produce Black Eye Peas’ 2009 inter
national smash hit album “The E.N.D”, which boasts anthemic singles “I Gotta Feeling”, “Boom Boom Pow” and “Meet Me Halfway”. After yet another sell out season at his renowned “F**k Me I’m Famous” Ibiza based club, Guetta is scheduled to play his biggest London headline show to date, at Alexandra Palace on June 1st.
Guetta’s fifth studio LP, the Grammy nominated“Nothing But The Beat”, was released in August 2011, and went top five in 21 countries. It features collaborations with Nicki Minaj, Will.I.Am, Akon and Jessie J.
Tickets for Tom Jones, Skrillex, Two Door Cinema Club, Madness, James Morrison & David Guetta go onsale Monday February 27th at 9am from www.belsonic.com, Ticketmaster Outlets, www.ticketmaster.ie and The Stiff Kitten.
Tickets for Belsonic 2012 in association with ABSOLUT are priced from £28.50 + Booking Fee.
