At this stage everyone already knows all the details for this year’s Trinity Ball: dates, line-up, prices, etc., and most importantly, whether or not you’re going. The big question that remains then is what do people think of the whole thing? As what is unarguably the most anticipated (as well as the most expensive) music event on the Trinity calendar, opinions on it are always diverse and occasionally heated.
Overall reactions this year are very mixed – judging by the views in our opinions column and the general word on the street. In terms of the line-up, it doesn’t seem like many people are too excited, but at the same time it doesn’t seem like anyone is getting too upset about it either. For example on the boards.ie thread for its announcement most posts are critical, but with most of them it’s a case of thoroughly unenthusiastic complaining which, when converted from online venting into real-life opinion, registers as a very mild lack of satisfaction – a sort of “meh”. Most of the positivity present on the boards page takes the form of complaining about the complainers, but there is some real excitement to be found too, mostly for Dizzee Rascal and the DJ Violinist they’ve added for extra entertainment. Meanwhile facebook news feeds have been displaying countless posts asking for advice on whether it was worth going, with the most popular consensus being that people aren’t too pushed by the line-up but it’s worth it for the craic.
Personally I was familiar with embarrassingly few of the acts on their announcement, and having since given them all a listen I can’t say I’m a huge fan of any of them. There are a few, like the Mystery Jets, I’ll definitely be happy enough to see, but nothing that really excites me. Though it must be said that several of them, especially Dizzee Rascal, are undeniably big names, which certainly merits some respect (though after Mr Rascal’s recent Brits collaboration with Florence, I can’t help wishing we’d gotten the other half of that duo as our headliner).
Reactions were similar last time round, though in fairness to this year’s organizers it does seem most people are more impressed this time (judging by ticket sales anyway, with this year’s Ball breaking previous records for time taken to sell out). All across campus in 2009 there were some people to be heard complaining about the lineup, especially when the headliners were announced; meanwhile a few bewildered fans of The Script nervously claimed that they didn’t think they were really all that bad (their recent Meteor Award success proves that they’re good at what they do, they just don’t seem to appeal to the average college student). The internet too was, unsurprisingly, rife with criticism; skimming over the last.fm page which is still up for the event, the words ‘terrible’, ‘garbage’ and ‘rubbish’ stand out, with not much positivity to counterbalance them.
So why is there consistently such a lukewarm reaction? The obvious answer is that you’re just never gonna please everyone. Firstly, many people simply love to complain, and levels of bitching may well be arbitrarily linked to levels of quality in the actual product. Beyond that though, there are over 15,000 students in college, each with their own interests and tastes in music. Judging by societies alone we have the Music Society, the Alternative Music Society, Jazz Soc, Trad Soc, Orchestral Soc, Choral Soc, Singers, and the Chapel groups. Even within these societies individually there’re huge amounts of diversity, not to mention the thousands of other students who may not be active members of any of them but are still avid music-listeners. Generally this diversity is a great thing, it keeps things fresh and interesting and results in a wide range of music events being run around college. When this diversity becomes a problem though is when you’re trying to organise a massive college-wide event that will appeal to everyone. It’s pretty much impossible. Your two main options are either trying to have as much diversity in the acts as possible so there’s likely to be at least one band of interest for everyone, or else trying to stick with acts that have the most mainstream appeal and will thus appease a large number of people but leave the rest with nothing to excite them. The latter seems to be the main approach taken with the Trinity Ball, which is fair enough, especially when you take financial considerations into account, but it makes the whole thing a bit monotonous. Not that there’s no diversity this year; there’s the hip-hop of Dizzee Rascal, the indie rock of the Mystery Jets, the electropop of Uffie, and lots of stuff in between, as well as a nice mix of local and international acts.
Of course reservations about the line-up don’t necessarily stop people from going to the Ball – it’s only one aspect of the event, varying in significance to different individuals. The event has sold out consistently over the last few years, and doesn’t look set to slow down anytime soon. Ads on noticeboards around college with people offering to buy/ sell tickets at extortionate rates are a common sight in the interim between tickets going on sale and the Ball itself, and the urge to attend is of course also strong enough to tempt some people into trying to sneak in. Even if people are unhappy with the line-up there’s always the enticement of the chance to wander around college at 2am, off your face and in formalwear, with several thousand others, as well as the fact that in this environment acts previously unenjoyed may suddenly seem far more entertaining. As a personal example of this, take Uffie; I’d never heard of her before I saw the line-up, but knowing that she’d be appearing live in Trinity in a few weeks I decided I should check her out. Sitting at home on a laptop, fully sober and in a critical state of mind, I was horrified at just how awful I found her. But I’m sure that on the night of the Ball, lost amidst a crowd of shitfaced students, listening to her cover of Siouxsie and the Banshee’s ‘Hong Kong Garden’ (apparently set to appear on her upcoming debut album, Sex Dreams and Denim Jeans) and her sarcy ‘you may think my music is shit but joke’s on you cause I anticipated that and wrote this song about hatin’ the haters’ attitude, I’ll love her. Though just because the line-up isn’t all there is to the event doesn’t mean it’s not important or should be seen as something peripheral; people may be more than capable of having fun while listening to music they don’t necessarily love, but having good music surely can’t hurt; at the end of the day I know that regardless of context I’d rather be listening to Siouxsie than Uffie.
There are some people though who are stubborn enough to skip the event due to dissatisfaction with the line-up. I was one of them last year; it was my first year in College, I loved music, and I was generally enthusiastic about attending collegey events, but just didn’t feel compelled to go. I told myself, as do many others, that I’d definitely go some year just for the experience, but if the line-up was always that uninspiring I wouldn’t be arsed going repeatedly. Half the bands I’d never heard of and the other half I had little or no interest in. There were a few (most notably Fight Like Apes) I certainly would have liked to see, but I wasn’t prepared to pay that much for them. I ultimately regretted missing out though, and this year determined to go regardless of the line-up – whether this was a wise or foolish move remains to be seen, but I’m certainly not the only one taking this approach.
The contract with MCD for the running of the Ball is due to expire in 2012; where things will go after that remains to be seen. No doubt the issue will come up in next year’s Ents candidates’ campaigns, but given the success the Ball has had over the last few years it seems unlikely that there’ll be any drastic changes, and a renewal of MCD’s contract wouldn’t be much of a surprise.
Meanwhile, while we’ve been queuing in Front Arch in the rain for 2 hours, our neighboring universities having been running their balls. The DCU RAG Ball, aka Life-Wired Festival 2010, ran two weeks ago, featuring 14 acts (The Magic Numbers, Duke Special, Mundy, Mick Flannery, The Coronas, The Chapters, Sydney Sampson, Saccade, Neosupervital, Saving J, Grand Pocket, Orchestra, Japanese Popstars, Futures Apart, Silent Disco) for €25. Over at UCD they’ve apparently usurped Trinity’s claim to holding the biggest private party in Europe, since almost doubling their audience capacity this year. Not only that, but they’ve also managed to bag Jedward (an act whose absence at the Trinity Ball is clearly a sore point for many students, as our opinions column shows). Set to go down one week after the Trinity Ball, you can get yourself into this year’s UCD Ball for just €35. In practical financial terms then it seems like the Trinity Ball is the least sensible set-up for broke students, but judging by ticket sales it seems we’re more than happy to exchange sense for a more impressive lineup and a more unique location (as well as the luxury of having the lineup announced before tickets go to sale – something not afforded to UCDers).
Keepin’ it real with Joe
I spoke with Joseph O’Gorman, Secretary and Co-Treasurer for the Ball, to get an insider’s opinion on the realities of running things. O’Gorman, who has been involved in running the Ball since 1988/9, described how things are vastly different now from how they used to be, with increases in size, legal dictates and professional involvement transforming the Ball from what he described as a jolly old dance-fest, the highlight of which would be the Provost decreeing that dancing could go on for another half hour to the hurrahs of the student revelers in Front Square, to a corporate event controlled primarily by the external company MCD. He viewed these changes as largely positive, commending the smooth running of the Ball today and describing MCD’s work as “absolutely astonishing… the quality of the product that they deliver is second to none”.
O’Gorman was dismissive of people who idly complain about line-ups and things, “individuals you hear on the grapevine and all this threading stuff that people do on forums”, pointing out that those calling for drastic changes, or what they perceive as improvements, “aren’t putting up the money” and that the Ball is just one of many events for students throughout the year, and to blow all the college’s designated funds on one event would render the rest of the college calendar fairly empty.
Ball Opinions
Students give their opinions on this year’s Trinity Ball
Mary Elizabeth Bruton
If you’re like me, then watching Jedward perform on the X-Factor made you swell with pride in a way you haven’t done in years. The fantastic dance routines, the ingenious mash-ups and the amazingly bad singing are what make Jedward the best Irish export since the potato. So you can easily imagine my excitement when I first came across the group “JEDWARD FOR TRINITY BALL 2010”. Suddenly the ball, which I had been too cheap to go for the last two years, was going to become the social event of my life. I know that I’m not the only one that feels this way, as the group currently has almost 2,000 members. However despite the popularity of the group, and its awesomeness, Jedward are not playing at the ball. Personally, I have lost all faith in Ents for being unable to snag those babies. Listen, we’re not asking for a Vanilla Ice appearance (although that would be amazing), we’re just asking that while people are stumbling around the Trinity campus on the night, they can hear the magical voices of Jedward calling to them, like only Jedward can. So I say to you Mick, if you want to go down in living legend as the best Ents Officer Trinity has ever had, then get them in it. If not for me, for Ireland.
Michelle Doyle
Ok, so a little extortionate given that I’ll likely only remember to go to the gigs as an alternative to spending another hour loitering at the chipper stand in front arch. That said, I’m by no means turning up my nose to this year’s lineup, even if it is missing Jedward…
Yan Bourke
There are actually pretty decent names this year, just not what I’m into personally. You’re never gonna get a Trinity Ball that appeals to everyone. Most people have shit music taste anyway.
Caitriona Murphy
They spent most of the money on one, not even particularly great, big act, and then filled the line up with the typical electro-filled-unheard-ofs that only cater to one or two of the fan bases in Trinity. At least last year, with Calvin Harris, Ladyhawke and The Script you had three fairly big acts, each aimed at a different fanbase and all whose tents were packed. There may have been more complaining but last year sold out in three days, and at least everyone had something to go to. For a lot of people, this year’s line-up means being asked to pay €80 to see Dizzee Rascal, the only act they might have heard of.
David Halligan
When I first heard about the Trinity Ball last year I assumed, very naively, that it was an actual ball. I had anticipated a large ballroom with boys in white tie and tails and girls in floor length dresses. I saw cigars, monocles, top hats and waiters. I knew it was not going to be that cool. But I at least expected the college to provide something resembling a formal dance. I was soon shocked and disappointed (as were others) to find out that the Trinity ‘Ball’ was nothing of the sort. What the university calls a ball is really just a fairly average concert where you get to dress up. In fact even this small piece of formality in the dress code is pointless as somebody (maybe yourself) will probably spill their drink or even vomit over your finest clothes. In this year’s SU election campaign presidential hopeful Dan Reilly proposed the Ball be headlined by “English baroque soloists”. Although his campaign was frivolous his proposal was not far off what many of us want from the annual event (if baroque soloists aren’t your cup of tea how about some eighteenth century symphonies or even pre-war big band music).
At the very least the ball can be indoors and there can be actual ballroom dancing. Looking at the how the line up seems to get progressively worse I reckon we at least give this a chance. At the very least the college could stop calling what we have now a ball.
