With a line up of little known Irish artists, situated as far away from everything as possible, we weren't really sure if anyone would even turn up...but somehow it all worked out and Open Ear was go...

We figured we'd give it another go anyways and it turned out the first one wasn't a fluke...and we got Ambulance out of retirement for it too

By year 3 we realised that things don't actually get easier as you go along, but the rewards are worth it. 2018 also saw us expand to a four night festival & we started getting weird with it really late at night too, sleep concerts, black metal and all other sorts. It all felt like we'd gotten things much closer to what we wanted Open Ear to be.

In 2019 we became one with the island. A performance that literally took up the whole of Horseshoe Harbour, out there sound explorations in the abbey, church performances, and all the usual chaos of Jolly Roger & Banger Cliff. Where do we go from here...

We would suggest you don't try and produce a festival in just over 3 months. Post-Covid we brought things back to basics, like everyone else we were all on the mend but that didn't stop us from having some truly magical moments down North Shore.

2024 was time to step things up. And sure we even booked a few international acts! Yes the sun blew the spot up, but so did all the amazing performances alongside some new, exciting adventures across the island. In the face of an economic landscape that only makes putting on something like Open Ear even more difficult than ever, we departed Sherkin Island as a festival revitalised.