Stop the presses; Tickets There is doing a review of Concerto for Constantine and The Aftermath!!! Holy God, I’ll bet no-one say that coming.
OK, so my interest for these two bands may be the worst kept secret in the world but when two of 2009 Tickets There’s Choice Award Winners get together to play a show, I sure as hell aint letting it go without dishing out some praise. It’s been a few months since I did a live review and I have written about these bands so much I’m running out of things to say, so please bear with me.
Radio City is less than packed when I arrive. The first band of the night, Audio have already finished and the fifty or so people in attendance are evenly divided between the smoking area and bar. Good atmosphere in the place and the Guinness aint too bad. Radio City is a nice little venue. Very small, very poky, dark and a lot of little nooks and crannies, all the perfect trademarks of any underground club. It’s also on the north side which makes a nice change from the Wexford street scene.
With pints in hand and Animal Channel all set up, it’s straight to the smoking area I go. Despite the fact that it’s been about three months since I saw an Irish band live, I have no interest in watching one I don’t know tonight. Especially when they sound exactly like every other indie/Franz Ferdinand wannabe out there. I did give them a few go while en-route to the bar but they just didn’t grab me. They sounded great and the songs were tight but just too done before. Thank god the real support of the night are just around the corner.
After last seeing them supporting The Stunning in Tripod, it was great to see The Aftermath back on a small stage. Johnny and the boys never have any trouble filling a big space but they completely own Radio City tonight. With an enthusiastic crowd down the front the band belts out one perfect song after another. Six Days to Saturday, All I Want Is For You To Be Happy, I Wish My Love Would Die, One is Fun and many more I cant remember (blame the booze) thrill the growing crowd. There’s no ego in this band and there’s no experimenting or retro rehashing attempts, just good, solid, catchy, perfect rock songs. How anyone could not love this band is beyond me. Also, how Michael Cronin (Drums) can play a set in a leather jacket is a mystery. Hopefully more people will start paying real attention to The Aftermath soon, because these guys deserve it.
It’s hard to believe it’s been year since Concerto’s first headlining show in Fibber Magee’s. 2008 saw Concerto’s audience grow from former JJ72 die-hards and local hanger on folk, into a real fan base. Mark Greany’s days with the popular trio are well and truly over and it appears he has found his niche with Gavin and Binzer. The sher presence of the lads ooze’s stardom as they command the stage and crowd alike. By now, their fans have become more than familiar with tracks like Gaps, Minsk, Wasps and Killing Fields. While newer tracks like The Last Swim are fast becoming favourites. Sadly, Concerto play a very short set, only consisting of seven or eight songs but the audience laps up every minute of it. There’s even some light moshing up the front for the heavier material.
Despite several notable missing songs such as Silver, Everything and Cats Cradle (I don’t think they played this, beer again), the band did treat the crowd to, two brand new songs. Hard riffs with some serious blues style lead all backed by furious bass and drum beats. With an announcement about an EP coming our way in May, the band jump into The Last Swim before departing the stage without an encore.
It may have been short but it was sweet. Sadly Sinead what’s her names DJ’ing manages to clear the venue out before Tickets There decides to throw in the towel and head home. Looking forward to the next one.
The Aftermath
Concerto For Constantine
'Ticket's There' - Irish and International Music Blog 