Hairspray heaven!

With Steel Panther plunging the lows of the big hair metal days of the 80s, now comes the news that one of the leading proponents of the genre and the era, Ron Keel, is Belfast-bound! He is believed to be lined up as support for the legendary Y&T, who are reported to be lining up a Spring and Airbrake gig later this year. Watch this space...

Switch on to the Urban Voodoo Machine

The one, the only, the highly distinctive Urban Voodoo Machine are bringing their unique brand of 'Bourbon Soaked Gypsy Blues Bop 'n' Stroll', and its accompanying Tokyo Hotel live show, to Belfast's very own Black Box on Sunday 27 September. More to follow...

Belfast’s anti-cultural icons showcased at Waterfront

Anti’ - an exhibition paying homage to ten of Belfast’s most influential cultural icons - has opened at Belfast Waterfront as part of the trans 09 festival.

‘Anti’ documents the icons - people, places, songs, clubs and nights - that helped shape Belfast’s cultural heritage. Many of the icons originate from the Seventies and Eighties and are rooted in a level of ‘Anti’-establishment feeling that had a particular resonance.

People were invited to submit their own personal icons for the exhibition - those which they identified as having an impact on their lives and our wider cultural heritage. ‘Anti’ is an installation which reflects their collective voice.

The ten ‘Anti’ icons selected for the exhibition are:

Terri Hooley, the ‘godfather’ of Ulster punk;
the Undertones’ anthem, ‘Teenage Kicks’;
the DJ and composer David Holmes;
Fastfude, the online resource for the Northern Ireland music scene;
‘Across The Line’, BBC Radio Ulster’s programme dedicated to the local music scene;
Giros, the iconic punk / rock band venue;
‘The night the Clash didn't play’;
Therapy? - one of Ulster’s most successful punk rock bands;
‘A Little Solidarity’, a series of groundbreaking gigs by mostly unsigned bands; and
Rudi, one of Ulster’s most influential punk rock bands.

The ‘Anti’ icons have been displayed on toilet walls to reflect the gritty reality of the context in which they existed.

The often bleak setting young people in Belfast found themselves in, particularly during the height of the ‘troubles,’ meant that many threw themselves enthusiastically into the music scene and if that scene embodied a rejection of the status quo, then all the better. ‘Anti’ portrays this alternative culture, ensuring that when people look at the cultural heritage of Belfast they get more than ‘two tribes.’

Adam Turkington, Belfast Waterfront’s Arts and Community Coordinator and organiser of ‘Anti’, told Pied Piper:

“Belfast is steeped in culture. But we often fail to appreciate the full importance, magnitude and impact of the city’s popular music heritage - particularly that which has its roots in the ‘darker’ days of our recent history.

“This exhibition shows that there has always been a much more positive, creative and optimistic side to this great city.”

‘Anti’ is on display at Belfast Waterfront until Friday 31 July.

‘Anti’ is part of trans 09, Belfast’s summer festival which, until 31 July, is showcasing the cream of emerging contemporary arts talent from across Ireland, the United Kingdom and overseas. Full details of all trans events are listed in the trans 09 brochure and online at www.transbelfast.com

Metal on the Waterfront

Heavy metal is poised to take over the iconic Belfast Waterfront on Friday 10 July.
'Metal in the Afternoon' features four up-and-coming metal outfits - Escape Fails, Valkaine, Circadian and Silver Cord. Starting at 3pm. Tickets are £6.
The gig is being staged as part of trans:mission, a three day music festival-within-a-festival - i.e. trans 09. Further details from http://www.transbelfast.com/.

As promised - Amy 'Lita' Dumas interview

Amy Dumas - better known to many as high-flying, risk-taking (and, frankly, gorgeous) Lita from the WWE is currently touring in the UK and Ireland with her punk-rock band The Luchagors.

The tour comes to Auntie Annie’s on Wednesday 8 July. Tickets cost £12 and are available at the door.

Pied Piper caught up with the tattooed – and very media shy – lady, ahead of her visit.

PP: Hi Amy - what you are doing with yourself these days?

Amy: My schedule is much more relaxing. I must admit I enjoy it. I have a radio show on Project96-1 here in Atlanta I do on Sunday nights. It's a one-hour punk show, I love doing it. The last Saturday of every month I am involved with the Silver Scream Spook Show at the Plaza theater in Atlanta. It is a live improv-comedy show with elements of a variety show, vaudeville, and old style spook shows. It is a lot of fun to do. Also, I am always doing stuff with my band as well, even if we aren't on the road, we are at the rehearsal space and dreaming up future possibilities for the band.

PP: It’s been a few years since you left wrestling, do you ever miss it?

Amy: No, I don't miss it. Maybe if I didn't do any other form of entertaining in front of a live audience I would miss it, but I still get my fill of being an entertainer, just not in the ring.

PP: You have been working on your music career and even independently produced your debut album with The Luchagors. How has the music industry treated you, did your past career and high profile help or hinder your progress?

Amy: I would say the music industry has completely ignored us. It is very hard to switch forms of entertainment without some company or lable behind you. I would say may past career has been a catch 22. It has made for somewhat of an instant international fan base, but music people seem to be turned off. Until they see us live, that is.

PP: What inspires your music?

Amy: I would say day to day life can inspire me lyrically, but musically, I grew up on 80's and 90's punk and hardcore. The guys had more of a rock background, Jay, our bass player grew up on similar music. Band wise I would say 7 Seconds, Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, Lunachicks, X, as well as The Ramones, Alice Cooper, Thin Lizzy.

PP: Can I ask what your fondest memories of being a full time wrestler are?

Amy: I would say the time before I broke my neck, when I still felt invincible.

PP: Would you ever make a return to the ring, perhaps for one last match or storyline?

Amy: Sure, I have never ruled out a brief run, or a match. Just not a full time schedule again.

PP: So, now us British and Irish fans can look forward to seeing and hearing The Luchagors over the coming week or so, are you looking forward to the gigs and what can we expect from a live Luchagors show?

Amy: Well, definitely high energy, and anything goes. We don't plan a lot in our shows. Not even the set list. We just feel it out and make sure everyone has fun. I must admit, we put ourselves at the top of that list, though. But usually if we are having fun up there- you guys will, too.

PP: Do you find the life on the road any easier in a band than when you were wrestling?

Amy: Travelling with the band is completely different. Alone time is hard to get. We are usually piled into one room, but we chose that life. It's fun. Jay has fixed his snoring so that rules! With wrestling, there can be too much alone time, a lot of driving and a lot of hotel rooms alone.

PP: What’s next for yourself and The Luchagors?

Amy: We really want to concentrate on getting out a new album, so we will start writing and demoing that soon. Look out for it.

We certainly will – just as we’ll look out for you lot down the front come the 8th of July!

Former WWE Diva Lucha-goes on tour!

Known to wrestling fans as Lita in the WWE - or as Miss Congeniality in ECW - Amy Dumas had a remarkable career in the industry during the period between 1999 and 2007.

Her alignment with popular The Hardy Boyz saw her emerge as a role model for teenage girls across the globe. Her tattoos, attitude, ability and funky attire appealed to millions.

Her subsequent fall from grace, and eventual departure from the WWE was less favourable however. After a real-life affair between her and upper mid-carder Edge spoiled her relationship with Matt Hardy and spilled over onto WWE TV, Amy saw her onscreen character become a much hated sexed-up hanger on, simply there as trimming for Edge’s meteoric rise as the Rated R Superstar we know today.

Like the recently departed Vickie Guererro, Dumas saw her farewell from the company as a huge letdown, going out with a similar embarrassing incident as poor Vickie, hers courtesy of tag team Cryme Time. Although the four time women’s champ has returned on occasion to WWE screens, she is now retired from the ring – and she is very reticent to talk about those eight years of her life, as can be seen in the soon-to-be-posted interview with The Pied Piper.

Guererro should however take notice of how Amy used her departure to her advantage and has fared well in her ‘future endeavours’ (as the WWE put it). Pursuing her interests in music and singing, Amy and her boyfriend Shane Morton formed punk-rock band The Luchagorz in 2006, independently releasing their debut album in 2007 and have found themselves an in-demand act, playing around the US, Mexico. Now they are about to embark on a debut UK/Ireland tour this July and August , which brings them to Belfast’s Auntie Annie's Porterhouse on Wednesday 8 July. Tickets cost £12 and are available at the door.