Gigs you'll never see the like of again.

There's a lot of non-recency bias so gonna try counter it with some 2010 on.

I wasn't at it but by most accounts Rammstein in the O2 back in '12, insane pyro indoors ..will even more insane pyro outdoors in June make up for it I'm not sure.

Ratm in the O2 2010...just **** bonkers I thought crowds like that were a thing of the past even back then.

Faith no mores comeback in the olympia in '09...there's probably a show in the early 90s to match but I'm too young for that.

Interesting interview with an Irish music promoter who put on some famous names ( and an exclusive Def Leppard gig ) when they were starting out:

Prince, Parc Ui Caoimh, many many years ago, with my sister. Got a bus from Omagh->Dublin then another to Cork! Majestic!! Great memory.

Arthurs Days past... Snow Patrol in the Odeon, Emile Sande in Dakota.

Stone Roses - Maysfield Leisure Centre, Belfast - one of my first gigs ever, & was highly exciting for me! Probably never feel that level of excitement again. Then, as the first few chords of I Wanna be Adored ring out, well.....!!

David Bowie - Westpac Stadium, Wellington, NZ, 14.2.2004 - this was so bloody exciting! Pished rain all through it, but didn't care! Blew me away! Massive fan since then. It was just an opportunistic thing at the time. So glad I went.

Morrissey - Omagh Leisure Centre (my home town) (2009) - if someone had told me when I was growing up that I'd get to see Morrissey in my home town, I'd have said to get outta here! It was suitably surreal!

MBV, Mandela Hall, Belfast (1992) - what is this music?! Magical. Had tinnitus for 2 days afterwards.

Blur, same venue (1991) - they were touring Leisure at the time, & were quite indie/shoegaze almost. Memorably, a friend who went with me said they'd never amount to much!

Ride, same venue (1990) - look at the setlist! Supported by the superb Bleach (from Ipswich). This cemented my 'black' phase, where I was very shoegaze-y w/ a touch of goth.

The Divine Comedy - in a park in Omagh, in the summer of 1988 or 1989, I'm pretty certain! Neil Hannon is from Enniskillen, & I am almost sure he played as part of a local music festival in the town one summer, on a bandstand in the Grange Park. Or maybe that was a dream!

REM, supported by Oasis, Slane, 1995 - memorable as my youngest brother attended with me & he was mesmerised by the whole experience!

Sigur Ros, Madison Square Garden (2013) - a mesmerising band, in a very memorable, iconic venue - wondrous!

....amongst probably many others I've forgotten...!

Few from me (some already mentioned)

Radiohead - South Park, Oxford (2001) - it's unlikely they will play a headlining show that size again (it's up in the air if they will ever play again tbh), had a great line up (Sigur Ros, Beck, Supergrass) and they unexpectedly played Creep.

Beastie Boys - Electric Picnic (2007) - yeah the 1st show was great when the tent was rammed but the 2nd show the day after was better. Not as busy and the band were relaxed and having fun playing some stuff they didn't normally play. Obviously they will never play again but I am so grateful I got to see them.

Arcade Fire - Electric Picnic (2005) - Funeral took off between the time AF were booked and EP and they somehow ended up in the Electric Arena. The place was rammed and I've never felt energy like it at a festival show before or since.

Sigur Ros - Paramount Theatre, Seattle (2023) - Sigur Ros with a full orchestra, unlikely we'll ever see this again but it was magical and pretty different to a typical Sigur Ros show.

Squarepusher: Shobaleader One - Imperial, Vancouver (2017) - Squarepusher with a full live band playing all the hits. It was amazing to witness but unlikely they will ever play as a band again.

Yeah they definitely played 2 different sets - the 2nd set was always planned and was more focused on their instrumental work (they had just released The Mix Up). I seem to recall that both sets were in the Electric Arena, I think the 2nd set may have been on earlier than scheduled, I remember waiting for some food at a food stall near the arena and suddenly realising that they were playing. The time was probably changed to avoid overcrowding again.

Here are the 2 sets

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/beastie-boys/2007/stradbally-hall-stradbally-ireland-63d3128b.html

Agree that 2007 was one of the better ones. I went every year from 2005-2008. By 2008 felt like it had lost it's charm and started to feel a bit unsafe (to me anyway). I don't live in Ireland anymore but I wouldn't bother with it now even if I did live nearby.

It was also pissing rain at the time so a lot of bewildered folks popped in for shelter and copped that the Beasties were in full flow

I missed the previous night coz I left it too later to get into EA so was delighted when they shifted Sunday gig to bigger tent

They talk about that w.end and getting totally whacked out of it in the excellent Beastie Boy Book

Not a dance head but I believe the scene was good in the 90s and some big acts played. Came across this :

Memorable gigs for me:

The Foo’s at Tennants Vital up in Belfast back in 2012.

Wolfe Tones at EP last year.

Roisin Murphy at EP 2014.

The Cure at Malahide 2019.