Vicar Street, November 1st

[ilwd]

Well that was pretty damn good wasn't it!? Having seen the lads about 37 times now, I have to admit that was probably the best they've ever been. Non stop energy, even during the slowset and then that encore just blew everyone away.

Still missing Idle Conversation but hey, maybe next time!

Can't wait for the new album. Roll on 2014.

[sobercolm]

Have to disagree. Have seen them myself around 20 times maybe & this was definitely not the best. The band are, as ever, top class, amazing &, as I've said before, are, in my opinion, the best thing out of Ireland in years & definitely ready to be the next U2 but... it doesn't seem to have transferred over to the larger venue. The festival gigs seem to have it, probably because the crowds are well up for it & the last Picnic gig was quality but last night was just dead as far as the crowd goes. Maybe that's the price of success but it's definitely hard to reach the dizzy heights of the 1st gig of the 2 in a row in Whelans or even the Ambassador, which wasn't even that bananas (though I still lost the plot completely). It's pains me to say it but last nights gig & the Button Factory gig have been the lamest yet from a crowd perspective. The songs just keep getting better & better but where the hell are all the head-the-balls for Leave It On? I got to go mental but no one around me was having any of it which is so disappointing. Maybe everyone just wants to hold hands & hear Swimmer (a killer tune I might add) but the energy has been seriously lost at the bigger venues (bar the festivals) which is a big thing for me. The music itself was amazing, flawless etc, as it always has been from these guys; they really are as good as it gets, but live, for me, it's just not working out any more. I'll be there when they play, I'm just not feeling it like I used to. Maybe it's me!

[ilwd]

I agree the crowd was a bit dead in sections but I was more talking about the performance of the band on stage rather than the reaction they got.