The Dirty 9s debut album launch

The Dirty 9s

Stop Screaming Start Dreaming launch gig

Crawdaddy

03/04/10

Angela Macari O’Looney

Popular Dublin Indie/Rock band The Dirty 9s have come a long way since I first saw them perform at the National Student Music Awards final in 2008.

Having won a competition on Irish T.V. show Deis Roc, they went on to release their debut single Lucy Opus, which was an enormous success. Corridors, another of their songs, was chosen for the Hotpress/ Oxfam compilation CD. They were also selected for the 2009 IMRO Showcase Tour.

The success story goes on, with them playing support to well known bands such as Republic of Loose, Delorentos, The Coronas and CODES.

Being a little partial about their sound and of the one and only Fergal Moloney’s vocals, I decided I had to be there on hearing about their debut album launch in Crawdaddy.

This exciting Easter Saturday gig included two excellent support bands.

The Good Fight

Hailing from Coleraine, Belfast, this foursome describe their music as Alt/ Indie/ Rock. The band are Ben Robinson – Guitar/ Vocals, Steven Gilpin – Guitar/ Vocals, Adam Montgomery – Bass/Vocals and Will Richie – Drums.

I enjoyed their sound, with Ben’s vocal range being a key feature. Each facet of this band is so necessary to the overall sound and I feel impressed at their ability to compose lovely arrangements which are extremely mature for their years. They performed Electric Flow, Landslide, Donegal, Kick Start, Not an example, Hospitals, Hats on Sticks and Glad you know.

Landslide – This number involves a sweet melody line, catchy backing vocals and guitars, a beautiful verse that is almost hymn like it is so haunting and when it speeds up for the chorus, things liven up. An alternating beat in this grabs my attention. Quite different!

The crowd were really enjoying this set. Kick Start is an anthemic number, with an explosive chorus, powerful guitars throughout and a delectable break.

Not an example involves a choppy beat for the chorus. For this song I felt that Ben’s vocals were drowned out a little by the other instruments. The overall sound was good however, crowd loving it!

Hospitals

There’s a change of pace in this song, as in quite a lot of the set and a sense of drama in the notation. Chords are rhythmic, with explosive bashing drums. A vibrant number!

Hats on Sticks

Guitars trickle behind the verse here, with close harmony and Ben’s passionate pouring out of the sad, soulful lyrics lending to this love song. Then a burst of energetic guitars take you into the chorus, chord combinations special.

Glad you know was the final song. This had yet more chops and changes of beat, adding to its charm. Guitars fab here, Ben going up to falsetto at times and a simply gorgeous chorus made it by far the most memorable of their set. I think of The Good Fight as a diamond in the rough, with a really promising future in front of them.

The Gandhis

Having reviewed their CD, I’m familiar with this bands material. So it was intriguing to hear the songs live. I wasn’t disappointed because The Gandhis are simply amazing. From start to finish, they were entertaining. Seamless and charming, songs from their CD were performed, with closer than close harmony, catchy riffs in just the right places and upbeat sing along melody lines.
Conor Deasy – Lead guitar/Vocals, Aidan McKelvey – Guitars/ Vocals, Niall Cullen – Bass/Vocals and Bazz O’Reilly – Drums are from Lucan, Co. Dublin and although their music is described as Pop/Rock/Alt, it involves just about every genre under the sun!

The Rudy Show was the first number, with an intro taken from an old song; Mr. Sandman. This goes from a reggae beat at the beginning, to a faster tempo later on. Harmony is delicious and the melody is upbeat, with lots going on from sweet ‘oohs’ to catchy riffs. Each member of this band contributes to the vocals, with Conor and Aidan featuring in most numbers.

The seductive funky intro to Mowtown Low-down served to captivate the audience, with its sexy baseline and flanger packed guitar chords, Aidan really getting the crowd behind him. The lead solo here is short, but very effective and the lads just ooze showmanship with flawless riffs and backing vocals throughout. Whoops of approval coming from the punters proved how impressive this song is live.

With its superb melody, cheerful lyrics and sing along charm, the theme song from their album You are my friend was brilliant, especially when the lads done a chorus acapella at the end. The guitar chords in this number are jazzy and sweet, vocals adorable, with Bazz tapping out the choppy rhythm, nifty lead riffs featuring, plus Niall’s bass framing the scene beautifully.

With only guitars doing the rhythm, the four lads did a harmonic number, which for me is their best; Primrose Lane.
This is a touching, bouncy piece where lyrics are hilarious, as they reminisce about schooldays, growing up, their first pint. But the highlight here is the close harmony in the chorus. It reminds me of a barber shop quartet!

They did The Elephant Man, with its crazy Ska/Punk, or ‘Skunk’ tempo. This is an anything goes song, where a bit of everything is chucked in. Despite this, the arrangement is very sharp, with unexpected key changes, jumps from minor chords to majors and general mayhem from the first to the last bar!

The Gandhis continued with Don’t you want to be loved by me, which has a very 60s dancehall feel to it and finally Zaza, a song involving choo choo’s sung in a jazzy discord, with a runaway train rhythm.
Both Aidan and Conor perform this song, with the full band joining in for the chorus. A cheeky, exotic guitar riff features in this number and it’s a great choice to take a fantastic set to a close.

The Dirty 9s

A sense of anticipation was even more heightened by the entrance music played for the stars of the show; The theme from 2001 A space Oddyssy rang out across the room.
Fergal Moloney- Vocals/Guitar, Cian McCarthy- Lead Guitar, Paul Rice- Drums, Keith Brett- Keys/ Glockenspiel/Synth and Stephen Dunne- Bass came on stage and began their set with a dramatic number.

Going Alone

Riffs in the verse of this song are brilliant and reflect the sense of urgency in the lyrics. Chords are striking behind Fergal’s first class performance. Wow!
This band are like a flower that has come into full bloom, now totally polished, totally mesmerizing!

Bursting with vitality, they then began one of my favourite Dirty 9s songs; Angel in the Shadows. Fergal is a unique front man in that he is so involved in each song, he draws you into the emotion and this is apparent when he does this number, which has a beautiful guitar riff intro, a thumping beat and a haunting verse.
Plucky guitars, powerful synth and that riff repeated throughout give this song life. Dynamic and superb, it gets me every time I hear it!

Car Crash

Fergal ever the professional introduces the drummer Paul, as he plays a little solo. This takes them into number three. Bass comes in and other instruments gradually join, becoming a crescendo of sound for the chorus, with the baseline from Stephen Dunne very prominent. Distortion packed guitars and the fab lyrics make this a really interesting song. Harmony is lovely here, the beat becoming choppy. ‘She’s a car crash, waiting to happen’; I like this and I loved the way it just finishes with ‘She’s a car crash’!

Corridors

A thumping drumbeat takes you into this. Keys are vibrant, especially the riff intro which is repeated throughout the song and is very sweet. There’s remarkable interaction between Fergal, the lead singer and Brett on keys. There’s a tangible connection between the band members that’s great to see.
All sing big ‘ahs’ for the middle eight; Very powerful before the return of the catchy riff, followed by a drama packed finish.

The Killing Moon (80’s cover)

Made famous by Echo and The Bunnymen, this number was very enjoyable. Keith on Keyboards performed backing vocals for this song. Chorus was lovely and chords in this were also superb!

Something Better

From the album, this number is plucky and energetic, with lots of focus on the throbbing baseline. In the chorus chords are big, distortion packed and totally alive. Lead riff is fab, rhythm pulsating and vital.

The Garden; A slower piece with soulful lyrics, a haunting electronic riff adding to its beauty!
Other instruments pull back here, allowing Brett on synth to perform a delicious solo. Trickling guitars, a barely there beat and the awe inspiring melody leave me spellbound.
Fergal introduces Cian on lead guitar, who is a true genius.
This lovely introduction is afforded to each musician throughout the show, which definitely gets a thumbs up from me.

Weeknight Lovers

This is a fast moving song with adrenaline charging through every note. The chords, melody and lyrics all give a sense of desperation. It describes love almost as an addiction. Guitars are excellent here, with splashes of lead and perfect riffs and hooks lending to the atmosphere. Dramatic drum rolls remind us of Paul Rice’s presence, with an amazing guitar solo from Cian before the big bashing finish.

Treating their audience to more songs from their album including Heartless (a cover), Trouble, Look to the left, Echoes, Hey and Lucy Opus, Fergal and his crew were outstanding.

Before beginning Trouble, Fergal paid tribute to Paul Walsh who was involved in advising the band and was among those who helped produce the new album.

This number begins with a trumpet-style intro done on synth. Beat is militant, melody beautiful, particularly for the chorus and from a very quiet first chorus early on, things build up in dynamics. For the last bit where Fergal sings Stop Screamin’, start dreamin’ the whole audience sing with him. Fantastic stuff!

Echoes has just about everything in it that for me defines The Dirty 9s. First class chops’n’rolls on drums, astounding guitars with a plucky riff a constant. Then of course our man Fergal’s light, but adorably passionate voice with splashes of harmony and a totally explosive finish!

Hey

Fergal invites a couple of girls from the audience to play tambourines in this song. It’s a cool punk-type tempo, which is a nice change of pace. Fun to dance to, with a sweet melody line and as per all songs is done with flair.
Well done to the girls who played fab percussion, for two amateurs!

Fergal thanks everyone on behalf of the band, including their families. Wrapping up with Lucy Opus, a great choice to take the night to a close, the lads could do no wrong. This number is sensational and like each of their songs has classic written all over it. I was on such a high going out, that I took a copy of Stop Screaming, Start dreaming home to remind me of a brilliant gig!