The seventh annual Dublin Electronic Arts Festival (DEAF), independently run by veteran Irish music label D1 Recordings, has garnered a reputation as being one of the most forward-thinking events of its kind on Ireland's cultural calendar and a definitive first chapter in cementing Ireland's place a creative centre for the digital arts. Certainly DEAF's artistic remit has widened considerably since its inception, moving beyond the confines of its roots in club culture. Nonetheless, the festival has succeeded in remaining true to its core ethos: to focus on the experimental, and to promote a genuine inclusiveness in its approach to showcasing the electronic arts to new audiences in Ireland. Musical highlights include appearances from the revered veterans of electronic experimentalism Nurse with wound, White Noise live at the Sugar Club, Trans Am at the Village, M83 at Vicar Street, live Baile Funk set from Brazil's DJ Sandrinho at the Southwilliam and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop at the Digital Hub. The annual flagship event is the DEAF closing party and this year features a host of highly-regarded international names such as Model 500 featuring Juan Atkins and Mike Banks, Laurent Garnier and the Moritz Von Oswald Trio playing alongside the best of local talent including Americhord, Chequerboard and Rollers/Sparkers. DEAF is committed not just to the annual programming of a series of flagship events to represent them, but also to the establishment of a broader framework within which selected artists, producers and musicians are given an opportunity to present their work to Irish audiences alongside artists of international renown. DEAF runs in various venues in Dublin from 23rd to 26th October.
