Nestled in the picturesque gardens of Raheen House in Clonmel, When Next We Meet is not your typical music festival. Founded by musicians Kate Twohig and Eoin Hally, the festival has quickly become a beloved fixture in Ireland’s independent music scene.
The festival’s journey began in the uncertainty of 2020, when Kate and Eoin found themselves back in their hometown due to the pandemic. What started as a small industry workshop and a makeshift live gig in the gardens of Raheen House soon blossomed into something much bigger—a festival with a mission. When Next We Meet has grown in both scale and reputation over the years, this year it’s attracting headliners like Villagers, Pillow Queens, and Morgana, while still maintaining its grassroots ethos. But behind the scenes, the heart of the festival remains the same: a space where artists are valued, the audience feels like part of the experience, and the joy of live music takes center stage.
I had the pleasure of speaking with Kate Twohig, one of the festival’s co-founders, about the origins of When Next We Meet, how they select their lineup, and what festivalgoers can expect in 2025. She shared fascinating insights into the challenges and rewards of running an independent festival, the importance of fostering new talent, and—most importantly—their dream of one day bringing Caribou to Clonmel. Here’s what she had to say.
Alan: What inspired you and Eoin to create When Next We Meet?
Kate: Like so many people we ended up moving back to the town that raised us when the pandemic hit in 2020. At the time I was studying for a Masters degree (MA in Festive Arts in UL) and living with a pretty serious illness, so it made sense to move back home to Clonmel. Eoin had already moved back to self-produce a debut EP under his electronic-music project Vale in his studio. During that time, a gig with the Clonmel Junction Festival saw us leading music industry workshops online over two Covid-hampered summers, networking with local emerging artists and some of Ireland’s leading music industry professionals. That project was sponsored by Camida, who now sponsor us. It ended with a small informal gig at the back of Raheen House, and if my memory is correct, we could only perform live music while food was being served. A chat that evening led to the realisation that we all had a similar dream of running a music festival – and sitting in the garden of Raheen House, glowing after what felt like an eternity of no live music, the concept of what would become WNWMl was born!
Alan: How did your backgrounds as musicians influence the festival’s concept?
Kate: It was central really to how we wanted to approach the curation of the lineup, but also the vibe of the festival across the board. Between us we have strong memories of playing gigs where you feel maybe a bit undervalued, and then gigs where you come away feeling 10 feet tall. We wanted this to be a really welcoming and supportive setting, especially for emerging acts where confidence can be so easily shaken. We also wanted the audience to feel like they were an important part of the festival, not merely spectators of the game! Without an audience, there really is no show. Having been on both sides of the coin in terms of both running events and performing music, we had a good understanding already of what works and what really doesn’t!
Alan: Can you share the significance behind the festival’s name, “When Next We Meet”?
Kate: We were working with our amazing graphic design team, Hannah and Jess from Discomilk, and bandying ideas around. We had become stuck on this idea of trees, because who isn’t a fan of trees, being under trees, hugging trees? Our registered company name in fact is ‘Cranna’, coming from the Irish word for tree. But nothing was aligning. We stripped ourselves right back to what our vision was, the whole idea of audiences and artists coming together once a year, to meet over a common passion. Eoin, being the excellent lyricist that he is, spouted – and possibly misquoted – a Shakespeare line that made us all sit up – and thus, When Next We Meet was it.
Alan: How has the festival evolved since its debut?
Kate: It’s funny thinking back to that first year. It was as recent as 2022 but feels like a whole different version of the festival. We just couldn’t get momentum behind ticket sales in our debut year. It was like pulling teeth convincing people of our vision, we were met with fierce suspicion. The calibre of artist has alway been incredible from day one, Soda Blonde and a very new HousePlants headlined each night, but the trust we’ve built with the audience has seen a huge evolution. We’ve slowly expanded on things like capacity, the size of the main stage, food offerings… that kind of thing. Last year was a big change, moving the main stage into another area of the site, and adding the Hidden Gems stage, where before we were only able to facilitate a much smaller local artists stage. It’s growing in a number of ways each year, as we push ourselves, and trust ourselves a little more each time too.
Alan: What can attendees look forward to at the 2025 festival?
Kate: Last year’s festival hit a sweet spot for us both. The revamp of the site, the addition of more tickets each night, the good vibes and strong word of mouth that had spread about the festival, all led to a magic two days in Clonmel and we’re excited to build on that. The music being the obvious draw for most people, what I think is really special about WNWM is that it feels like you’re in your pals garden, having summer drinks and food, yet there’s a number of stages, food vendors, bars…and these insanely talented acts performing. It’s so laid back and such a pleasure to attend. It still has the energy and punch of any live music festival, but there aren’t arduous elements like walking long distances or pitching a tent.
Alan: How did you select headliners Villagers, Pillow Queens, and Morgana for this year’s event?
Kate: We have a wishlist that we created back in 2019, should we ever have the chance to run gigs, let alone a festival. We are huge music fans, and as musicians ourselves our list tends to be full of people we want to play with! There are some acts that are undeniable in their artistry, and that’s what we look at primarily. Not Spotify streams, or Instagram follows. It’s down to if an artist’s music makes us feel something, then they’re on the wishlist. We recognise, I suppose, when talent, creativity and hard work meet to create something really special. All three of these artists are just incredible talents and creatives, so we feel very lucky that they’ve said yes to playing in Clonmel in June. It’s going to be some show!
Alan: Are there any new features or surprises planned for the 2025 edition?
Kate: There is an endless list of things we want to insert and add and do with the festival. As with everything, it’s all dependent on money and funding! We are absolutely thrilled to have Bulmers on board as sponsors this year – we’re both made in Clonmel and have very similar crossovers music wise, so it’s the start of what we hope will be a rewarding partnership for both parties! We have ideas around utilising the After Party venue during the day, and really hope this can happen as it would add a lovely extra element to the event.
Alan: What has been the most rewarding aspect of co-founding When Next We Meet?
Kate: As the two pairs of feet on the ground running the festival, we literally don’t stop until the very last act on Day 2 are well into their set. We tend to find each other, and take a moment to stand back and watch it all. To see the smiles on peoples faces, to see that all these mad plans are actually happening, core memories are being made, after sitting at laptops planning for 9 months or so.. It’s surreal! Last year I found it all a bit overwhelming during Bell X1 and had to go side-stage and have a little decompression cry. I just feel incredibly grateful for every experience, good and less-than-good, that lead to those moments of pay-off, reward. No doubt we’ll look for each other again this year during Villagers set and have a hug!
Alan: Are there any dream artists you’d love to feature in future editions?
Kate: So, so many. We are listening to Róis at the moment on repeat. Lisa O’Neill is someone we’re entranced by too. Fontaines DC, Kojaque, Kneecap, Biig Piig. Loads of artists are wildly out of our reach but you’ve got to dream to stay sane in 2025! We’re manifesting a Caribou gig in Clonmel too (there’s a story behind this) and we won’t stop until we hear Can’t Do Without You reverberating throughout the valley of Sliabh na mBan… So if Dan happens to be reading this, give us a shout!
Alan: The festival plays such a big role in promoting Irish music, last year I saw the wonderful Seanie Birmingham at the festival and this year he’s touring with Amble. Is it a goal of the festival to try and help support these up and coming artists?
Kate: Oh absolutely. Seánie is a pure and driven artist and made all of his own opportunities, but we are an artist-led festival. I suppose what we mean by that is that we are artists, supporting artists. Sam Fender recently spoke about how all of this incredible music isn’t being heard because the music industry is full of the lucky few who have financial security, as making music is so expensive! That idea of opportunity being down to things like what family you’re born into, or where you live rings true I think for artists living in smaller regional towns like Clonmel. There’s so much talent, but not always the opportunities afforded to others so yeah, it’s definitely a big motivator for us. Creating a space and a platform for alternative music to be heard, that doesn’t get air time, doesn’t get booked by venues or pubs, that’s a huge reason we do this.
Alan: What role do volunteers play in the festival?
Kate: We have such a laugh with the volunteers, and wholeheartedly rely on them more than they know! There’s a core group of younger messers that remind us so much of when we started out volunteering on festivals – and then every age group right up to eighty years old that just love the buzz, and the chaos. A lot of them play music too and have played on the Hidden Gems stage, they’re class. It’s a real community there, between the volunteers, the crew, us and the artists. It’s always lovely to sit down after the day is over and stay up chatting til all hours. Real friendships have grown from it. Audiences will find our volunteers scanning tickets, wristbanding, flogging merch, and litter picking. They’re an incredible team.
Alan: How can fans and supporters stay updated on all the latest festival news?
Kate: There are a few ways! We’re on social media, particularly Facebook and Instagram. We’re moving away from X and trying to utilise our mailing list more this year. So if anyone is interested in staying up to date on announcements and offers, the mailing list is the place to be! You can subscribe via our website at www.whennextwemeet.ie. Just search for When Next We Meet on socials too, and we’ll pop up! Give Vale (@thisisvalelemusic) a follow too as he’s releasing some bangers later in 2025 – when all the festivities are over!
For all festival information and tickets head over to the festival website: https://www.whennextwemeet.ie/
Photos courtesy on When Next We Meet
Words – Alan Robinson @alan_robinson_photography