Kneecap announce London pub takeover

Irish rap trio Kneecap are bringing a little bit of Belfast to "the city that ruined half the globe" for a first public playback of their forthcoming album Fine Art .

The Belfast hip-hop crew - Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí  -will rebrand 525 Kingsland Road, London, E8 4AR as 'The Rutz', the name of the fictional pub in which Fine Art is set, on Thursday, June 13, for an evening which is also set to feature a traditional Irish music session organised by Lankum's Radie Peat and friends, a DJ set from the band's own DJ Provaí, and free Micil Poitín.

When the band announced their debut album Fine Art , they described its fictional setting as "a community boozer... built on a West Belfast side street."

"All human life is inside, either thriving, striving or skiving," they said. "There’s people just trying to get served at the bar or up on the stage performing; others are slumped in darkened corners or emerging bleary-eyed and coke-smeared from the toilets. Religious affiliations are irrelevant and the chatter is a intoxicating blur of English and Irish."

The doors at the East London incarnation of The Rutz will open at 5pm on. June 13.

The West Belfast trio appeared alongside Irish actor Michael Fassbender at the 'opening gala' of their self-titled biopic at the Sundance Film Festival London 2024 at the Picturehouse Central on June 6. The trailer for Kneecap, the film, was released the same day.

Kneecap will be released in Ireland on August 8, and in the UK on August 23. Dates for screenings worldwide will be announced soon, though the film will not be shown in Israel, as a protest against the on-going genocide in Palestine.

Talking with Louder , the Irish trio admit that they were more than a little bit sceptical when first approached by writer/director Rich Peppiattto with the idea of doing a film  - "The English have a reputation for exploiting the Irish" DJ Próvaí says with a smile - but ultimately Peppiattto's persistence, openness and enthusiasm for the project convinced that band that his intentions were sincere.

"We were obviously protective because if the movie was shite, we still have to be the band Kneecap," says Móglaí Bap, "whereas everyone else who was involved would walk away to their next project. We were conscious that if it's shit, we'd be kinda fucked."

The first Irish language film ever to premiere at the prestigious Sundance film festival in Utah , it won the festival's Audience Award, and was hailed by industry bible Variety as "bursting with unruly energy."

Watch the film trailer below:

Fine Art , will be released on June 14 via Heavenly. It features guest appearances from Fontaines D.C. vocalist Grian Chatten, Lankum’s Radie Peat, and rapper Jelani Blackman, among others.