AVA Festival: Leading dance music event returns to Titanic slipways

One of Ireland's leading music festivals is to return to the Titanic Slipways in Belfast this weekend.

AVA (Audio Visual Arts), now in its ninth year, sees established international musicians play alongside emerging local talent.

Acts include OR:LA, Goldie, Ben UFO, Central Cee, DJ EZ and Peggy Gou.

The two-day multi-stage event was preceded by Ireland's largest music conference in collaboration with Output Belfast.

On Thursday, some 800 delegates participated in over 30 Belfast workshops, masterclasses and panels focusing on creative and business skills within the music industry.

Sarah McBriar from Belfast launched AVA when she was 24, after working for the likes of Glastonbury and Warehouse Project.

In just a few years, she had established an event which leading club guide Resident Advisor describes as "one of Europe's smartest young festivals", with multiple satellite events and conferences across the world.

A self-described advocate for creative events, Ms McBriar told BBC News NI she was delighted with this year's production, which focuses on nurturing local talent.

"The main stage is pretty special this year, we've broadened it with an extra six screens, and it's slightly curved."

Speaking on the festival's increasingly diverse soundscape, Ms McBriar said she wanted to broaden the musical offering with "a bit of variation", having introduced urban music acts in recent years.

"Central Cee is dropping a new song with Dave, so that's going to be pretty special," she added.

"We're combining globally celebrated heavy hitters with local legends and next-generation talent."

Promoted as "an annual union for music heads in Ireland and beyond", AVA incorporates sounds as far reaching as rap, techno, grime and house spread across the length of Titanic Belfast's famous slipways.

The 2023 festival includes a newly created Pump House - an enclosed warehouse with an emphasis on "audio-visual-alchemy", which organisers hope will create a "harder, darker space".

Elsewhere, attendees are set to enjoy performances at The Nomadic stage - streamed globally by industry giant Boiler Room TV - and local, emerging talent can be experienced at The Grasses stage, in collaboration with BBC's Radio Ulster.

Making his AVA debut on The Grasses, Belfast DJ PAÜDÍE said he was "absolutely buzzing and slightly nervous" by the opportunity.

"I didn't expect to be on the line-up at all this year, it was a nice surprise to hear a few months ago," said the DJ, Padraig McKeown.

"I'm normally doing the production at the festival but it's nice to get a chance to play this year."

PAÜDÍE, who specialises in techno music, said he was amazed to be playing on a line-up that includes some of the genre's biggest names, including SPFDJ, Blawan and Héctor Oaks.

"I also can't wait to share the stage with some unreal local talent who I've watched here every year," he said.

He added that the festival brought a good buzz to Belfast with AVA standing out as the best weekend of his summer.

That is because it offers an alternative to what he called the "rinse and repeat" Belfast music scene, which can be limited by venue space.

Among this year's international headliners, South Korean deep house producer Peggy Gou will follow in the footsteps of Northern Ireland dance act Bicep by playing the main stage on Friday evening.

Saturday's event sees drum and base star Goldie in the top slot - he is best known as one of the pioneers of electro music after he released his first single over 30 years ago.

The English DJ was announced to the line-up last month, replacing a slot previously held by UK rapper Slowthai - whose name has also been removed from the official line-up poster for this year's Glastonbury Festival, as well Reading and Leeds, after he was charged with rape.

The rapper categorically denies the charges.

AVA said it could not comment on Slowthai's replacement for legal reasons.