Speed Dating For Beginners

On Saturday, I was introduced to music industry speed dating. It was a racey little afternoon, linked into the the festival, A Little Solidarity, which I've mentioned before The idea was to take over some space in the Students Union, Queens University, to collect a dozen local industry figures and as many music acts, and to get busy.

Everyone had a five minute session with each other before the whistle blew and the circuit continued. That's not a long time to get into the psyche of a complex artist, to behold the nuances of their music, their graphics, press releases, press shots and schemes for world domination.

We'll, we all smiled and tried to push the positive. A few acts were terribly naive, but the majority arrived with media packs, marketing plans and pre-loaded online communities. They're a lot more aware than previous generations, less isolated and more prepared to work this industry caper.

There was some rousing stuff from Can Cite Scripture, who have already collided with radio guys Rory McConell and Stephen McAuley. We heard burning punk aspirations from Axis Of, and more melodious intent from Eskimos Fall and Kagura.

I'm not sure that anyone fell in love in their alotted five minutes, but the dates were honoured and the quest continues.