Green Day | 02 Dublin
Billie Joe Armstrong certainly remembers their appearance at a Hope Collective Saturday afternoon at the venue (then known as the Attic) in 1991, when people couldn’t dance for fear of the floor collapsing onto the pub below. So it’s not the perfect night, although it does have some perfect moments. What Green Day don’t have yet is the ability to stop you dead in your tracks, as with many of the bands from the big league that they aspire to join. They come close, but something is holding them back – hence maybe why they chose to dress up their show with all manner of unnecessary high jinks.
The world has shown that it’s willing to accept the new, grown up Green Day on record, surely they should have the confidence in us as a live audience as well? The dilemma is crystallised by the show’s finale, a spine tingling solo version of ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’ from Armstrong. The spotlight fades, our night has closed on an undisputed high. Until that is Tré Cool emerges from the wings to pull a few funny faces and hurl some drumsticks into the crowd. The moment is lost and a night of not inconsiderable bangs and crashes ends with a confused whimper. Sometimes you just have to accept that it’s time to grow up. Green Day’s journey across the Liffey and down towards the docks has taken them some eighteen years and through a number of very different guises – underground punk rockers, mainstream punk rockers, washed up ex-pop stars and now the intelligent face of American stadium rock. Which Green Day will we get tonight? As it turns out, a little bit of all of them, all mixed in with a spectacular stage show that puts most of the tours to pass this way to shame. It’s as if the pantomime has come to town early, with a riot of pyrotechnics, confetti, water cannons (yes, water cannons) and audience participation.
Like most pantos, however, we’ve seen a lot of these tricks before. On the American Idiot tour, to be precise, which visited the Point in early 2005. Open with a chunk of new material? Check. Follow it up with the older greatest hits? Check. Wrap yourself in the Irish flag and lead the crowd in a chorus of ‘ole ole’? Check. Get a member of the audience up on stage to join the band? Oh yes. There’s no doubting that Green Day, and Armstrong in particular, give their crowd value for money. Charging around the stage for the full two and a half hours of their set, he is forever cajoling and engaging with the O2 – be it through constant singalongs, dropping his trousers, firing t-shirts into the crowd and generally mugging it up while the five other musicians cover the gaps. He’s a charismatic presence alright and when it works – as when they get two fans up to sing ‘Longview’ – it’s great entertainment. Over the course of a whole evening, however, it does start to feel like the enforcded jollity of an office Christmas party, with Armstrong as the prankster who is desperate for the guests to have a good time, all the time. This approach reaches a nadir on their extended, silly hat wearing medley of ‘King For A Day / Shout’ (which again they’ve been peddling for a while now). That’s fine for the likes of NOFX, Less Than Jake and the other cartoon punks but Green Day should have a lot more to offer.
It seems to be a recurring problem for the band, just which version of Green Day should be leading the pack. There is a definite desire to stay in touch with their past (at one point a montage of old punk flyers seeks to put them in the context of contemporaries Fugazi, Operation Ivy, the Beatnigs and the rest) and they certainly connect with their past material in spectacular fashion, even as far back as Kerplunk (‘2,000 Light Years Away’). Whereas last time out the songs from Dookie sounded a bit thin in when played as a three piece, tonight sees Green Day do them justice – helped no doubt by the superb sound. Yet that was then and the band are at their most interesting when dealing with the now. The opening salvo of ‘21st Century Breakdown’ and ‘Know Your Enemy’ aside, the material from the new album doesn’t quite hit the mark. The representations from American Idiot, however, are stunning, the point where Green Day bring their various elements together - ⁞the rage of youth directed in a more meaningful direction, a musical maturing and that ever present knack with a melody. The most political they get, apart from the impressive images projected on the huge screen, is when Billie Joe wipes his arse on a U.S. flag thrown on stage but it’s these songs that have, so far at any rate, defined them as a band.
Review by Phil Udell | OMG Entertainment | Leading Entertainment Website with Music, Lifestyle, Comedy, Fashion, Games, Films, TV, Food, Drink, Reviews and Culture.
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Mumford & Sons | Sigh No More
On first consideration, Mumford & Sons seem to be an odd addition to the London music scene. With their acoustic blue grass and folk instruments, waistcoats and battered boots they would seem to be as far removed from the worlds of Dizzee Rascal and the XX as is humanly possible.
Then again, diversity has always been the city's musical strength and Mumford & Sons are not quite alone, with the likes of Noah & The Whale and Laura Marling along for the ride. Yet while those two acts have already made their mark to critical, if not commercial, acclaim. Marcus Mumford and his cohorts have bided their time before making their (major label) debut and it's a move that has paid dividends. Sigh No More is practically perfect, a heart rendering, emotive, inspiring, beautiful, loud, peaceful and just bloody good.
Yes, you could say I like it. Where to start? Well how about the beginning, as the title track slides quietly into being before bursting into like with a glorious vocal harmony, followed by a banjo led frenzy. Yes that's right, banjo. Mumford & Sons have been described as / accused of being a bluegrass band and in truth there are deep Americana influences to be found here, in the obvious instrumentation and gospel, but the four piece are more than a mere tribute act. Instead they take a range of influences and channel them into something quite wonderful.
Sigh No More is an album full of catchy, anthemic tracks that manages never to overdo it. The playing, arrangements and vocals are always understated, knowing the exact moment when to put the pedal to the floor - be it the brass on the two-step of 'Winter Winds'. 'Roll Away The Stone' and its hoe down or the surprising noise of 'Dust Bowl Dance'. Surprising because there are largely songs fragile of emotion, beaten and bruised by the realities of life and love. Such is the restrained nature of Marcus Mumford's anger - and there is anger here - that when he lets fly with a recurring expletive on 'Little Lion Man' it's far more shocking than the word itself suggests. But that's Mumford & Sons all over - an iron fist inside a velvet glove. Playing a banjo.
Review by Phil Udell | OMG Entertainment | Leading Entertainment Website with Music, Lifestyle, Comedy, Fashion, Games, Films, TV, Food, Drink, Reviews and Culture.
Foo Fighters | Greatest Hits
Even given the fact that their demise was sudden (if not entirely unexpected), it’s safe to say that the conversation as to which member of Nirvana would go on to have the most successful solo career was hardly a hot topic. If pushed, however, the smart money surely would have been on Krist Novoselic, the enthusiastic foil to Kurt Cobain’s tortured frontman. But the long haired guy at the back? Nice bloke and all that but he was, after all, just the drummer.
Fifteen years later and Dave Grohl hasn’t done too badly for himself. His Foo Fighters have grown from a completely solo studio project to a global status, stadium headlining rock band with six albums and a myriad of awards to their name. And now, also unexpectedly, comes their first greatest hits package (not, as Grohl is keen to point out, their greatest songs). While it will undoubtedly fulfil many Christmas wishes what it doesn’t do is explain quite how this workmanlike band got so big.
Put together in one collection, these sixteen songs reveal a band with only one setting – earnest, heartfelt but ultimately uninspired rock. If Grohl is a sparkling and engaging individual, which he is, something has got lost in translation. The shame is that the songs themselves aren’t bad, just presented in the usual plodding manner. These are tunes that sound good on the radio for sure and even better when backing one of the band’s fantastic videos but as great, timeless records go they fall well short.
Frustratingly, the Foos do have moments of potential greatness, when they escape their concrete boots and really soar. ‘Times Like These’, ‘Learning To Fly’, ‘Monkey Wrench’ and ‘Everlong’ (especially the acoustic version included here) are proof that there is something special here, just something that remains buried on far too many occasions. It certainly shows itself on ‘Wheels’, one of the two new tracks included. Born of exactly the same DNA as Tom Petty’s ‘Learning To Fly’, it demonstrates the same texture and knack for a great, harmony led chorus. It’s probably the best thing here, which can only be a good thing. It also means that while Greatest Hits might not change your mind about the Foo Fighters’ merits, it does hint that they could still surprise us in the future. How long though, are we prepared to wait?
Review by Phil Udell | OMG Entertainment | Leading Entertainment Website with Music, Fashion, Games, Films, Food, Drink, Reviews and Culture.
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David Gray - Draw The Line
David Gray - Draw The Line
Some would say Gray is a hit or miss artist. There’s rarely a middle ground with his recordsbut when he gets it right (which he does more often than not), he gets it very right - although arguably he’s never been able to top 1999’s White Ladder. That was then though and now is the time for his eight studio album and another attempt to emerge from that record’s shadow. As with all his albums, there are marked similarities to what has gone before, as well as moments that set it apart. Hair raising single ‘Fugitive’ is one such, and provides the record with a fiery opening. There are two wonderful duets here, the first on ‘Kathleen’ where Jolie Holland conquers with the marvelous melody from the very first piano chord and also on the closing ‘Full Steam’, performed with the gorgeous Annie Lennox and leaving the listener in the most optimistic mood.
Although it’s hard to see Draw The Line breaking any sales records for David Gray, his songs are still the perfect soundtrack to romantic films both real and imaginary, with something for both young and old in this album. His vocals do not worsen as the years pass and he clearly sounds more than content with his new band of musicians behind him, with a huge amount of energy throughout the record. Overall each track leaves you wanting and it’s clear that David Gray is back. We were four years waiting for this album, was it worth the wait? Hell yes!!!! Review written by Alan Clarke | OMG Entertainment
Spirit of Voice Festival
| | |  The most primitive and basic derivative within music, the human voice was on show last night in Kelly’s of Galway. And what a show it was. The night promised an eclectic bag of tricks, and it truly delivered. Playing to a packed audience, the night opened with “The Big Sing Multicultural Choir”. Angelic and uplifting, they sang African songs in unison. The audience swayed from side to side in step with the hypnotic rhythm of the songs.
A brief interlude and a complete change of direction brought the entertaining “Size2Shoes” onto the stage. A unique act, part comedy and musical, they played off each others energy with gusto. From Limerick, “Size2Shoes” use their wit and musical ability to produce an urban remix of contemporary songs. Beatboxing "Sweet dreams are made of these" by The Eurythmics stood out as a real crowd pleaser. Although their performance was highly entertaining and professional, it seemed lost in between the world music acts and might have worked better on a different platform.  Spoken word by Marty Mulligan followed and it was exactly that, spoken word. It was a pity Mulligan’s great effort and enthusiasm wasn’t matched by his ability. The words he spoke came out as inaudible raps. This left some audiences with confused expressions on their faces. A confused act indeed!
Following Marty Mulligan, the presence on stage of Linton Kwesi Johnson brought the crowd to silence. Johnson, originally from Jamaica, was electrifying. He recited his poetry with powerful eloquent words. Touching an emotional chord within himself, his Jamaican accent seemed to grow stronger as the night wore on. "’War war", he told us, "War". In between his poetry Johnson spoke about life as a black man in England. He referenced knife crime in Manchester and he spoke nostalgically about his late father. A voice for black culture in the 60's and still as powerful and relevant today, this was a rare performance that both inspired and awed. Well worth the wait to see a dub poet legend.
The night ended as it began, with African music. The Toluking Band played the remainder of the night away with African grooves that left a smile on the face and a bounce in the step of the crowd.
Photographs and Review by Patrick Naughton | patricknaughton.com |
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