12 Points Plus at Musictown - Dublin 13th of April 2016

Reflecting on the groundbreaking debut of Handel’s Messiah in Dublin, Musictown and IMC look now to the future, with a choice selection of European musical explorers from the canon of 12 Points. In Meeting House Square on Wednesday 13th of April, three exceptional jazz acts will perform to celebrate this important date in Irish musical history. And, in the spirit of the Messiah's debut in 1742, all proceeds from this 12 Points event titled 'To Handel With Love,' will go to two worthy charities, the Irish Youth Foundation, enabling future generations of young composers and creators, and Peter McVerry Trust, helping our city’s homeless.

Handel was highly regarded as a musical innovator and cultural trailblazer in his day. He was an early, pioneering 'European' both in attitude and output, and his music was influenced and informed by the myriad cultural tapestries of the continent that he embraced.Today, this attitude and approach is even more prevalent on the jazz frontiers. Jazz today is meta music. Absorbing and reflecting, brewing and distilling, creating and disrupting. With all this in mind, we bring you 17 innovative young musicians, the new generation of European adventurers for the 21st Century, featuring the riotously entertaining London quintet WorldService Project, Nordic punk-pop-jazz with Pixel from Oslo and Dublin’s own hip-hop collective, Mixtapes from the Underground.

“Stompingly raw and punky...a riotously entertaining live-band...highly creative” - The Guardian

WorldService Project are an exhilarating quintet from London led with missionary zeal by pianist Dave Morecroft. Their self-proclaimed ‘punk-jazz’ style creates an intriguing mix of Frank Zappa, Weather Report, Meshuggah and Stravinsky – all spiralling around in a Monty Python universe - Read more here.

“their ambient electronics and solemnly choral vocals are sophisticated, trance-like and catchy” - The Guardian

Pixel merge knotty jazz compositions with radiophonic vocal choruses by bassist and singer Ellen Wang,that are both catchy and satisfying. This is a band with real bite, bridging the gap between jazz and pop. Read more about Pixel here.

"A scorching collision of Jazz and Hip Hop” - The Irish Times

Mixtapes From The Underground is a fully live, improvised, Hip-Hop collective based in Dublin, Ireland. They are renowned for their incendiary shows and have garnered a strong reputation among Hip-Hop heads and jazz fans alike.Mixtapes acts like the DJ to the emcee, organically shifting the music in and out of styles, from Hip-Hop to Dub to Afro-Beat and everything in between. Check one of their performances here.

12 Points joins this year of commemorations in celebrating its 10th edition in 2016. Ten years of adventurous, stylistically diverse programming, a festival of discovery to highlight the hidden gems that reflect the contemporary sounds of Europe today. This somewhat unconventional 12 Points model attracts new audiences, challenges jazz stereotypes and mirrors the cultural heart of a progressive 21st century Europe.We think Handel would approve. As 12 Points is nomadic, alternating its location from Dublin every second year, this will be the only chance for Irish audiences to catch some 12 Points action this year, as the 2016 edition will be held in San Sebastián, Spain in July. With tickets at €5, exceptional music and all proceeds going to charity, this is a special event not to be missed.