Anhrefn, Not Our World, Keltic Konviction – Dublin 1989

May 19 1989

Anhrefn, Not Our World, Keltic Konviction

Old Man Of Arran

Anhrefn was the first band to travel to Ireland on John Robb’s recommendation. They rang me saying they wanted to visit Ireland and play as many gigs as possible. They were a great band to get gigs for. They lived in Caernarfon, near the ferry port in Holyhead, and had their own P.A. Their costs were low, they could come over for the
weekend and play anytime, and people liked them. It made it ideal for getting gigs outside Dublin.
I contacted Morty McCarthy, who had put The Membranes on in Cork, and asked if he could find a venue for Anhrefn, which he did. I also rang up venues in Donegal saying
that I was representing this Welsh speaking band and managed to find two places that were willing to take them. One was a glitzy hotel in Gweedore where they played as part of the weekend’s entertainment. Brendan, Michael, Martin and myself travelled up from Dublin to Donegal. We tried to sneak into the hotel room that Anhrefn were given but were caught by the manager. Anhrefn gave us the keys to their van where we sleptsoundly. Unfortunately for them the battery ran out on the van (must have been all that body heat). They eventually got back to Dublin for this gig. The Old Man Of Arran was an unusual place for a gig but we couldn’t find a place for the  specified night in our regular venues.We found a pub down by the Four Courts that needed a P.A. Anhrefn duly obliged . This night was also memorable for me for another reason. On our way home, walking down the Quays in Dublin we were confronted at knifepoint. We all managed to run to safety and then decided that we’d put no more gigs on in the Old Man of Arran, even though they didn’t want us anyway because of the noise.