Quarter Block Party is back: Cork festival reveals lineup for July edition

 Elaine Howley and Craic Boi Mental are among the artists taking to stage at various venues around the city 

Craic Boi Mental and Elaine Howley - two of the Cork-based talents headlining the 2023 Quarter Block Party festival

Cork music and arts festival Quarter Block Party returns after its covid-induced hiatus and has revealed its roster for the 2023 event. 

Running from July 14–16, the festival kicks off in the St Luke's area, with the Chapel at Griffith College Cork playing host to ambient music from Jane Deasy and Muireann Levis, as well as a full-band set from Leeside experimentalist Ana Palindrome and collaborators - while a limited-capacity gig at Live at St Luke's hosts Flowers at Night and songwriter Elaine Malone's Mantua project.

Junk Drawer: among the acts playing at Quarter Block Party this year

Elaine Howley shares a stage with singer and songwriter Maija Sofia on Saturday, July 15, at Coughlan's back room on Douglas Street, while Belfast indie-rockers Junk Drawer play the Nest stage at the same venue later that evening, with support from Listening Face, a Cork alt-rock supergroup featuring members of The Frank and Walters, Hope is Noise and Slow Motion Heroes. 

Meanwhile, the Circus Factory plays host to the inaugural Brus Performance Marathon at 1pm that day, where thirty performers make a three-minute performance piece each, aiming to bring the Cork arts scene together.

Sunday sees a plethora of gigs happening between Cork Opera House's Green Room, PLUGD Records, and the Crane Lane Theatre, including Limerick rockers His Father's Voice, Fermanagh composer Róis, a showcase from local music collective Sunwell Tapes, and a rare Leeside live appearance from the Cork City Legend himself, rapper and producer Craic Boi Mental, while festival-closing fun comes from North Kerry noisemakers Messyng.

• Tickets go on sale Thursday June 1 via eventbrite.ie