There’s a quirky little music and arts festival taking place in Dublin next weekend, that you may not have heard about! It has an impressive list of performers, such as Katie Kim, Adrian Crowley, Howe Gelb, Bill Drummond and more. There are people from all areas of the arts, with writers, musicians, theatre makers, so something for everyone! Should be quite exciting.

YOUNG HEARTS RUN FREE – Raising money for the Simon Community

Present their first ever festival – NO IDLE DAY

Venues across Dublin Friday 10th- Sunday 12th October 2014 – www.youngheartsrunfree.ie

Young Hearts Run Free is a Dublin-based collective who put on unique music and literary events in aid of the Simon Community. They are holding their first ever festival, No Idle Day, Friday 10th-Sunday 12th October in venues across Dublin.

The festival is made up of eight wonderfully diverse events over the three days.

Festival highlights will include an evening with acclaimed music writer, and author of seminal books on The Smiths, and The Byrds Johnny Rogan, and biographer of Serge Gainsbourg and Leonard Cohen. Sylvie Simmons will perform songs from her new album, soon to be released on Light in the Attic records, and will be joined later in the evening by producer and musician Howe Gelb. Irish musicians Katie Kim, Jet Setter, Adrian Crowley and some surprise guests will also be performing.

Bill Drummond of KLF fame will give the world premiere of his performance lecture “How To Sell Your Soul To The Devil”, as well as bringing his knitting initiative to the morning walking tour, and there will be a chance to listen to the founder of Trunk Records (celebrated amongst many other things for releasing the soundtrack to The Wicker Man.) The National Concert Hall will be home to a double-bill of events, a talk with film maker Pat Collins (dir. Silence), and an exploration of favourite records with Jim Carroll, Donal Dineen, Eamonn Doyle, and many other No Idle Day festival contributors.

Sunday afternoon will be spent with John Osborne and his award-winning theatrical presentation John Peel’s Shed – this year is the 10th anniversary of the passing of the revered DJ. The event will also feature contributions from Nialler9, James Byrne (Villagers, Any Other City), and Foil, Arms & Hog, and The Dudley Corporation among others, with brunch provided by Forkful (Aoife McElwain).

No Idle Day will draw to a close with DJ sets from festival contributors on the Sunday night in Anseo.

Festival events will take place in venues including the National Concert Hall’s Kevin Barry Room, Marsh’s Library, Bello Bar, and Molloy and Dowling’s Opticians.

Siobhán Kane, founder of Young Hearts Run Free, says, “We’ve been wanting to do a festival for a very long time, celebrating great craft in music and writing, and inspiring individuals who work on their own terms.” She continues, “The homeless cause is very close to our hearts, and Young Hearts Run Free really emerged from a desire to do something creative to help address Ireland’s growing issue of homelessness over the past years.”

Tickets can be purchased from www.entertainment.ie. (And for Friday events at the National Concert Hall, from www.nch.ie.)