• Chelsea Wolfe @ Button Factory, Dublin

    Chelsea Wolfe fans at this corner of Europe must have been keeping a close eye on the blogs and Twitter feeds over this tour, one fraught with trouble for the singer. A date in Poznan was cancelled due to Wolfe battling bronchitis. After losing her voice onstage in Budapest, the following night’s Vienna appearance was also cancelled, but the singer managed to gain the upper hand in the battle for the bronchial tubes to honour the rest of the schedule. In The Button Factory tonight, it’s as if each note is precious, each breath a blessing. Nothing is wasted. Wolfe…

  • King Kong Company @ Roisin Dubh, Galway

    There is no use in disputing the claim that Waterford’s King Kong Company are one of, if not the, best live act in the country now. In the past couple of years, since their grand comeback after several years off the radar, the five piece band plus dancer Trish Murphy have been crowned as lords of the summer festival, playing almost every one in the country this summer including three sets at Body and Soul. This unyielding capacity that the act have honed in the festival scenario makes it so that the exact same feeling is impossible to avoid at…

  • The Album Leaf w/ Lyla Foy, Grounds For Invasion @ Roisin Dubh, Galway

    Winter is definitely, definitely, definitely starting to sink its teeth into Galway’s spine on this particular Thursday night. What an absolute joy it is then to shiver into the Roisín Dubh’s candlelit main room; to take a seat and allow the three acts of tonight’s Strange Brew showcase to wrap the modest but attentive audience in music that is so reassuringly warm. First up is the local Grounds For Invasion (below). The duo of multi-instrumentalist Willow Sea and vocalist Tracy Friel are visibly comfortable playing on this stage by now and this contributes nicely to the intimate, comfortable atmosphere that…

  • Stiff Little Fingers @ The Academy, Dublin

    The last time I saw Stiff Little Fingers was when previous bassist Bruce Foxton was still amongst their ranks. With him having left the fold in ‘06, to say that tonight’s gig was something I was looking forward to would be an understatement. Entering the venue I was met by the ever familiar opening notes of the band’s ‘Go For It’, an instrumental track they’ve been arriving on stage to for many a year. Without a second’s hesitation the quartet of Jake Burns, Ali McMordie, Ian McCallum and Steve Grantley blast straight into early-era favourites ‘Nobody’s Heroes and At the Edge.  …

  • Kurt Vile w/ Lushes @ Vicar Street, Dublin

    As a preface-turned-thinkpiece, it’s probably important to note that I suffer from epilepsy and although I have my suspicions that this correlates with my connection to music, that hypothesis is probably, at best, pseudo-science. But then again, Neil Young – fellow epileptic – has, before even the diagnosis, been this writer’s favourite musician of all time, connecting in a way no other has before or since. Apart from, perhaps, the first time my teenage self heard Appetite For Destruction. That may seem a roundabout way of introducing a Kurt Vile review, but there’s an inescapable influence on those who channel…

  • John Grant @ Vicar Street, Dublin

    John Grant really loves his audience and judging by the crowd of his second sold out show of a two night stint in Dublin’s Vicar Street, the feeling is mutual. Delving straight into two tracks from his new album Grey Tickles, Black Pressure, it is not long before he’s telling us just how much. This new album might lack the consistency of quality in the tracks of its predecessors but those that he choses to play live are no doubt the strongest ones. This combined with Grant’s charisma and the addition of a four piece band and three backing singers …

  • Bully w/ The Winter Passing & Fangclub @ Whelan’s, Dublin

    Monday is a strange night for gigs in Ireland and it shows in the mostly empty main venue of Whelan’s. Fangclub take the stage as a line forms almost as far away from the stage as possible as though the crowd are sizing these lads up which can only make for a more daunting performance. Unfortunately there is little here that appears to win the crowd over. There are elements of grunge and Britpop, both musically and aesthetically, but nothing really new is offered from this. Fangclub are tight onstage and very good at what they do but they fail…

  • METZ w/ Oh Boland @ Whelan’s, Dublin

    It’s surprising that Toronto’s METZ didn’t come to Ireland when touring their self titled 2012 debut, given the appetite in this country for the sort of noise rock they trade in. So after a reportedly thrilling appearance at Electric Picnic this year, it’s nice to see them wrap up the current leg of their European tour behind even better follow up II with a stop off in Whelan’s. Sadly Protomartyr, who accompanied them on the UK dates aren’t present tonight, but Co. Galway’s Oh Boland more than make up for that. Their hook laden garage pop feels like it could…

  • Deerhunter w/ Atlas Sound @ Button Factory, Dublin

    Situated amidst the roar of stag dos and Central European tourists lying drunken on the wet cobblestones of Temple Bar there is a quiet anticipation in the Button Factory. Inside, ambient electronic music fills the near empty hall as a line of people gather by the thick metal guardrails to ensure they get a good view. The room continues to fill until there is little space left for those weaving their way to and from the bar. The quiet anticipation grows as some drink and chat whilst others stare to the stage waiting for any sign of activity. Bradford Cox…

  • Best Coast w/ Talos @ The Academy, Dublin

    If there’s anything eerie about this year’s Halloween it’s that conditions are strangely perfect. It’s a full blooded weekend night for one, and there’s barely a chill in the air; meaning that all the naughty princesses, sexy bunnies, near naked pandas and skimpy pirates can saunter to their respective engagements without the usual fear of hypothermia. Maybe that’s why The Academy is looking a bit neglected come eight o’clock when Talos take the stage. There’s a few scattered ambassadors for the night that’s in it; a convincing Juno, a noteworthy War Boy and a swaggering Dorian Gray but there’s a…