It’s confirmed – something has definitely changed in the musical landscape beyond Wexford St. We’d had our suspicions last year with talk of DEAF and WONKY, then this summer Tullamore found itself hosting an alternative to Slane’s rock-studded festivities (staged by a bunch of volunteers, no less). So when it came to the attention of hotpress that the DEAF crew were back for a ten-day foray into all things left of field, we thought it best to get in on the action (if not the VIP bar).

This year’s Dublin Electronic Arts Festival comprised 40 events in 16 venues across our Fair City, with not an acoustic guitar or toe-tapper in sight. The weekend finale party, which took place over two nights in the Guinness Storehouse, featured a wealth of local and international acts, with the party extending over three levels on five different stages.

hotpress.com sent our intrepid reporters along to battle the freaks and geeks and document electronic music’s ever burgeoning influence on the Dublin music scene.

"For the first communion in the Dominican Republic, your mother makes you a special Guinness called a Sho-do."
Saturday's headliner Paul St. Hilaire gives hotpress.com his mother's secret recipe for the Guiness Sho-do. Read the interview here

How would you describe DEAF to someone who was deaf? hotpress.com asked DEAF-ites to put their experiences into words (a big call, as it turned out)...
To check out all the vox pops with punters and artists plus a photo gallery of the DEAF weekender, check out hotpress.com/photos/deaf03