Tune in for some Extra special gigs

WITH the summer festival season lost, DMG Media, publishers of the Irish Daily Mail, The Irish Mail on Sunday and Extra.ie, has tuned up the mics to bring music back to fans.

The new Extra Sessions will give music fans their live fix throughout the autumn.

Over 12 weeks, music fans will get to see intimate gigs from some of Ireland’s hottest artists and up-and-coming stars.

DMG Media Ireland CEO Paul Henderson said: ‘The pandemic has devastated many industries, especially the Irish music scene. Artists have tried online performances and crowd-funding options with limited success.

‘At Extra.ie we have hired the acts and engineers for exclusive performances for our audiences. Lamenting the demise of the Irish music scene and suggestions that musicians should retrain is not good enough. We need to back the dreamers. Life without music is no life at all.’

Beginning next Thursday and continuing up until November 19, Extra.ie will bring live gigs directly to you, featuring some of the biggest names in Irish music. From well-known artists to upand-coming stars, these gigs will give you the chance to plug into your phone for the ultimate intimate experience or bring the artists into your home on screen to enjoy with friends and family.

From power-pop indie band Picture House to jazz chanteuse Mary Coughlan, and hip-hop sensation Jafaris to upcoming singer-songwriter Niamh Regan, there is something for every music fan – and it’s all free.

Every Thursday at 8pm the gigs will stream on our Extra Sessions page and will be available to watch until Sunday at midnight.

After each performance, the footage will then be donated to the individual artists for their own promotional use.

Extra Sessions will kick off with a performance by Coughlan next Thursday from 8pm. State Lights will perform the following Thursday,

‘We need to back the dreamers’

September 17, from 8pm.

The performances are recorded at the Wild Duck in Dublin’s Temple Bar, with full social distancing measures observed.

Wild Duck owner Gary Whelan said: ‘When we were asked by Extra.ie to get involved with this project, I said yes immediately as music has been close to my heart for years.’

To see these gigs, log onto www. extra.ie/sessions every week. The shows are subject to availability and future Covid restrictions.