Wedding Band Northern Ireland
The Usual Suspects: Live Music - So Good It´s Criminal
The Usual Suspects - The superb three-piece wedding band and corporate event band from Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Specialising in providing music for all tastes, The Usual Suspects have become immensely popular for Wedding receptions, private parties and corporate events as well as hotels, pubs and clubs.
A Wide Range Of Music To Suit All Tastes
Small, yet beautifully formed, this band of three lads, whose mission is to entertain and love every minute of it, play a wide rang of popular music from 50´s music, 60´s music, 70´s music, 80´s music, 90´s music and the best of music from the "Noughties" (2000 - present!)
Trust Your Wedding Entertainment To Experienced Professionals
And, with over 20 years experience each, playing Ireland North and South, they know exactly what it takes to make sure your event is one everyone will remember!
The lads have a sound and lighting system that is powerful enough for the most demanding of venues, while flexible enough to fit the most intimate of ocassions. This has been borne out as The Usual Suspects continue to play everywhere from the largest and most exciting of Ireland´s night clubs and dance halls to the most sophisticated bars and the cosiest of lounges.
A Busy month of Celtic Footsteps and Irish Castles
Date: 09 June 2009
May has been a busy month for us.
We´ve been working hard, playing some great gigs at weddings all over Ireland, and losing out on too much sleep! So much so that this site has been a little neglected of late.
So time for a recap of events in May 2009 for The Usual Suspects.
Celtic Footsteps are a toe-tapping success!
Quite a few of the weddings we play at will have some form of additional entertainment besides our band and perhaps a disco. Sometimes its a guest singer, sometimes its a Casino, and sometimes its a group of dancers
This weekend we met the fantastic Irish dance group "Celtic Footsteps" - a dynamic group of professional dancers from the heart of Tyrone.
Alice, Michelle, Declan and Cathal high-kicked their way through a half-hour set of lively, traditional Irish dance that had the wedding crowd clapping and cheering with delight.
Find out more about how to book Celtic Footsteps here.
Cabra Castle - spooky but homely!
We´re just back from Cabra Castle in Co. Cavan. Congratulations to Chris and Aisling who got married there.
Cabra Castle is a magnificent castle, with an obvious long and rich history. And, like many of the Irish castles we play at, it has that eerie, spookiness about it too!
We didn´t meet any ghosts, but we did meet some very friendly and interesting staff.
A special mention to Victor, the Ukranian barman, who had us intrigued as he told us about his homeland, his job as a trumpet player in a symphony orchestra and his decision to move to Ireland with his family. As the clock struck the small hours, Victor kindly offered to drive us to the bed and breakfast we were calling home for the night.
If it hadn´t been for Victor, we´d have had a long, long walk down a very dark and spooky lane. Thanks again Victor.
A sweet new sound to the suspects.
And finally for now...
Like most professionals, we always strive for better. A better way to do things, a better look, a better sound. A better level of professionalism.
We´ve always been complimented on our show and our sound. But, recently we had become increasingly dissatisfied with our sound. After some searching around and listening to other systems, we decided it was time to invest in a complete new sound system for the band.
We spent a few weeks trying out new gig rigs before settling on a superb Electrovoice Line Array system.
Many thanks to Glenn, Mark and Maxi at Park Audio Belfast who spec´d up the fantastic system that we´ve just taken delivery of.
The system is mighty powerful and superbly clear and clean.
And, to meet our #1 requirement, it´s still as flexible as our old system.
This allows us to use as much or as little of it as neccessary to enable us to play everywhere and anywhere!
A great system going for a song
By the way, our old system is now for sale. It comprises of 4x18" Subs, 4x15" Mid/Tops, 2x2Kw Amps, 12 Channel Mixing Desk, flight case, leads and stands.
If you´re interested in the system, then please contact us at enquiries [at] usualsuspects [dot] biz.
Two day bride seeking divorce already!
Date: 15 April 2009
Yesterday we wrote about Maura, the liveliest bride of 2009.
Well, as a follow on, it seems that Maura read that post and sent us a strongly worded email telling us exactly what she thought of us! uhoh!
Maura Wants A Divorce!
Only married a few hours, Maura has decided that a divorce may already be on the cards. I´ll let her explain:
Without The Usual Suspects we certainly couldn´t describe our wedding night as ´the best of our life´. I´ve never danced so much or smiled so often!
The band are absolute gents, and their set had something for everyone!
BOOK THIS BAND, THEY WON´T DISSAPPOINT!
I´m considering a divorce so i can have them play at my next wedding!!!
Maura and Damien McKenna
That last comment had us laughing out loud here at Suspects HQ!!!! LOL
So, we´ve offered to play at their 1st anniversary party, or even their 1st Christening party!
Why not take Maura´s advice? Book us for your wedding. You won´t be disappointed!
Maura wins the title of Liveliest Bride of the Year
Date: 14 April 2009
We´ve come across all types of brides as we take our wedding band across Nothern Ireland and Ireland as a whole. Some are quiet, timid young ladies. Most are pleasant and friendly. And some can be as dull as dish water, to be honest.
Then there are brides like Maura who got married yesterday! Maura is fun, lively and a bit on the crazy side!
Maura asked us to play whatever songs we we wanted to play - "Your the experts, so go for it" she said, "as long as there are no slow songs because I want to dance to every single song", she added.
And she did dance! She was never off the floor and encouraged everyone to join her.
She came on to the stage 10 minutes before we were due to get started and said, "Right, start our first dance now! I´m raring to get going!" And off she went dancing for the next 2 hours.
The Belfast Girl Plays The Bodhran
Half way through the set Maura came on stage again. This time, she brought her bodhran to join us in playing the Steve Earle/Mundy hit "Galway Girl". There she sat, pride of place, in the centre of the stage, with her new husband Damien watching intently, and she played til her arm nearly fell off! The crowd loved it. And so did we.
A dream bride for a wedding band.
Maura was a dream bride for a wedding band. Why? Well for three reasons:
- She recognised our experience, expertise and professionalism from this web site.
- She left us to get on with doing what we do best - entertaining wedding guests.
- She jumped right in, enjoyed her evening without a care, and encouraged every other guest to do the same!
Well done Maura. We´re delighted you chose us as your wedding band. You are without a doubt the liveliest bride of 2009!
And all the very best of luck to Damien, her new husband. You´ve chosen a beautiful and fun bride.
But oh my god, you will have your hands full!
Would the real Usual Suspects please stand up?
Date: 11 April 2009
We played a wedding in Co. Meath last week for the lovely Laura and her new husband Brian.
The couple had booked us through Trish O´Leary, a Dublin wedding planner.
Laura was a nervous bride
The wedding planner assumed we were from the Dublin area. Apparently there´s a band with a similar name in Dub. When she realised we were from Belfast, she and the bride became a bit nervous about how we would perform on the night.
Our usual quality performance wins the day
We turned up, did our stuff as professionally as always and then retired to the residents lounge with the wedding party to enjoy some criac agus ceol - and a few drinks too.
It was only then that we heard about their concerns and how relieved they were to have enjoyed our show very much.
A few days later we received these seperate comments from Trish and from Laura:
"Hi guys,
I just want to say you were fantastic the other night, we had such a good time. We were so happy with the show and so where all the guests.
I would definitely recommend you to anyone, so thank you so much!
Thanks again. All the best."
Laura & Brian, Dublin
"The Usual Suspects are a fantastic band to deal with. They are true professionals and the dance floor as packed all evening.
They performed a mixture of new songs and old classics and everyone at my clients wedding was very happy with their show.
I would happily recommend them to anyone looking for a great band for their wedding."
Trish O´Leary, Every Fete Wedding Planners, Dublin
So, thanks to Laura & Brian for their kind comments and wonderful hospitality after our show. And thanks to Trish from Every Fete Wedding Planners for booking the best Usual Suspects Wedding Band in Ireland!
Brian and Laura get into the swing of things as the night goes on!
New Belfast band are way out in Front!
Date: 22 February 2009
The Front are an exciting new young band from West Belfast
We´d heard great reports about them, but hadn´t had the opportunity to get to see them.
But this week, they covered for us at The Bot - and John and I called in to see Paddy and the rest of the lads.
They had the place rocking and we loved their big, live and exciting sound. We particularly loved their cover of The Killers "All These Things".
So, if you´re looking for a night out in Belfast, and live music is your thing, then why not check out The Front.
Your sure of a briiliant night out.
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The Usual Suspects, Northern Ireland
Top 5 Questions Answered
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Getting Married?
The Usual Suspects are perfect for weddings. Professional and versatile, the band will make sure the entertainment for your big day is perfect! Read More
Organising A Corporate Party?
Make sure your staff or corporate party is one everyone will enjoy! Our play list will have even the dullest wallflower rocking the night away! Read More
Need A Band For A Hotel, Club or Pub?
Looking for a professional sound for your hotel, pub or club? We've over 20 years experience entertaining all over Ireland! Read More
Useful Wedding Resources
We've pulled together information on some Northern Ireland Wedding Discos and other professional Northern Ireland wedding service. We hope you find it useful!
If you'd like your service included on our links page then just contact us