End of Year Roundup: Chris Carney (Threshold)

Photo: Chris Carney at Standon Calling

Continuing our run of end of year round ups, we've turned to Chris Carney to let us in on some of 2015's highlights. As a key player behind the annual Threshold Festival in Liverpool's Baltic Triangle, Carney has presided over five editions of the event, which puts a spotlight on the best up and coming artists, bands, poets and dancers from around the city.

Next year's edition sets up on April 1st, with the cream of Liverpool's creative crop gathered together for the weekend. Head here for more on Threshold Festival. 

Hi Chris. What's been the stand out gig/club night you've been to this year? 

Todd Terje and The Olsens at Glastonbury. I was there with Mixnots, playing for our third year running and out of the entire amazing line up he’s one of the only things I managed to see.

I’ve been following Todd’s career and playing at lot of his edits and tracks for years, my wife is Norwegian, so I was onto him early. This was probably the fifth time seeing him play, but with the live support form The Olsens playing his amazing album, I was just blown away.

Even though 'Inspector Norse' is done to death, I was still singing the tune with about 20,000 other people long after the music ended. There were even dancing girls (Watch Terje and The Olsens perform at Oya Festival below). 

Your best festival memory? 

We’d (Threshold) had a nightmare year in 2014, everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong all at once in the lead in. Funding cuts, drop outs, venue closures, controversy, illness, death, you name it, it was a bastard year. At the team after party when the festival itself had gone brilliantly for us, we were all dancing in District when DJ Rasp and Kid Blast dropped ‘Killing in The Name’ by Rage Against the Machine.

Every team member from founders and directors to first time stewards were jumping up and down middle fingers in the air shouting “Fuck You I Won’t Do What You Tell Me”. It was a cathartic moment and now the track is a fixture in our team after parties.

What were your five favourite albums of 2015?

Sufjan Stevens 'Carrie & Lowell'

Slaves 'Are You Satisfied?' (Listen to 'Cheer Up London' below)

Leftfield 'Alternative Light Source'

Kendrick Lamar 'To Pimp a Butterfly'

El Vy 'Return To The Moon'

What five tracks released this year have you been constantly listening to? 

Sufjan Stevens 'I Should Have Known Better' (Listen below)

Foals 'What Went Down'

J. Cole 'A Tale of 2 Citiez' 

Kendrick Lamar 'Alright'

Leftfield 'Bad Radio' feat. Tunde Adebimpe 

What piece of music news struck you most this year whether good or bad?  

All that absolute bullshit about Kanye headlining Glastonbury. I wasn't at it, I'm not a fan and don't care for the Pyramid Stage crowd, but what right have people got to protest a headline booking?

I was shocked at people getting refunds and starting petitions. Definitely some underlying racism going on in some cases. I think it made it even better that he was shit as well. I watched it on iPlayer and was very VERY glad I was watching The Family Stone at the time.   

What's been your biggest musical let down of 2015? 

Definitely the announcement of the closure of The Kazimier. It’s the closest thing I could have imagined to being part of a movement, you know like the Mersey Beat or Eric’s, I even missed out on Cream. The Kazimier has been something special, it’s a huge shame that it needs to end.   

If that hadn’t happened, I’d probably say The Prodigy. Just stop. Please.

Who has been your musical hero in 2015 and why? 

My wife Kaya, always. Her band Science of the Lamps have killed it this year playing all over the place including Great Escape, Tramlines and Deaf Institute. Big props to her and the band for starting to make waves, I know first hand how hard she works. 

What musical moment or release are you most looking forward to in 2016? 

Sigur Rós are touring, which hopefully means they’ll pick up a couple of festival dates. Yeah that’d be good. I’m also determined to make it to Festival No.6, I’m usually working on events in Liverpool when it’s on, but hoping I can swerve work this time. If Mixnots are booked for it then even better, but I’ll settle for Sigur Rós headlining. My family used to drag me round Portmierion when I was a kid, now I can’t wait to get there. 

Head here to get Threshold Festival tickets.

More like this? Read our End of Year Roundup with Mark 'Chinny' Davis (Alfresco/Cowbell).

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