Gig at Whelan's

The Last Tycoons/ The River Valley Band/
Hitman Lord

Whelan’s

05/05/10

Angela Macari O’Looney

On my way home from an earlier gig, I ventured into a free gig in Whelan’s where a sizeable crowd was building up. With three very different acts performing, it was a great night and I’m glad I had a chance to acquaint myself with each. The headlining band was a charming ensemble, with a distinctive and extremely upbeat sound. The Last Tycoons are a hybrid of genres and definitely unlike the usual style of band doing the rounds.

Consisting of vintage sounding guitars, Pogues meets Rolling Stones lead vocals, soulful backing vocals and the liberal use of harmonica; they can pull you into their world and seduce you with their songs.

Also participating this night was a unique act; Hitman Lord, who is a young singer/songwriter with an interesting slant to his style. His music is described as Indie/Pop, but has a dash of soul and a splash of Rocktonica to add to his intoxicating sound. His influences include Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, X.T.C. and he claims that ‘Once you push with technology to find new sonic territory, there must be the beating heart of a blood and guts song, for music to have genuine gravity’. I like this sentiment!

Hitman Lord recently released his debut Self titled album with the help of producers Steo and Keith Farrell, who have been involved with names such as Pugwash, Neil Hannon, Boss Volenti and Mundy.

He performed Wanna healing music which has an explosive intro and a choppy beat. Chorus is catchy and with a memorable riff repeated throughout and a nice slowdown for the middle eight, this is a cool number. More N Dearly, Future, Shining and Who were other numbers in his set.

S.A.R. is his debut single and has exciting lead guitar in it. His vocals are pretty special in this. Chorus has a sense of mystery in the sexy notation. Guitar riffs and hooks are divine and create a pulsating rhythm.

Upside World is a slow number with a trickling riff intro, which is used throughout. There’s an oriental quality to this beautiful riff. Soothing, sweet and featuring this young mans unbelievable vocal range, this song is particularly outstanding.

I drank as
This has a three four tempo and a lovely chorus. It’s a number with a dramatic feel to it and fab guitar. Unusual and really catchy too!


The River Valley Band

With a full sound which includes Guitars, Bass, Electric Piano and loaded with excellent harmony, this fun quartet took a great evening to yet another level!

Hailing from Kilkenny, they are a mix of Blues/Folk and Classic Rock. With influences such as Bob Dylan, they style their music on Southern American Folk. Formed in ’07, they have become quite a success story.

Charlz was the opening number. Rhythmic, with cool harmony in the chorus, it’s a delightful song. I love the piano here and the jazzy wind down at the end.

Life I adore has a slinky beat and involves a great guitar solo. Harmony was excellent here also. Sliding notes on guitar and flourishes here and there on keys give it interest. They do a mock slow finish, but soon things explode into a lively, bashing last chorus. The building audience loved this!

They went on to do a long, but really enjoyable set. Freight train starts with bluesy piano, building up to a choppy but fast beat. The melody is catchy and simple, but with the close harmony throughout, it’s a top class number, with lots of show stopping piano riffs, drum rolls aplenty and a brilliant guitar solo just before the finish.

Hamburger Hill is one I particularly enjoyed, involving harmonica and fab guitars.
The Kid This had a very Bruce Springsteen style to it, with harmony in the chorus absolutely great, piano glissandos to beat the band and just about everything a fantastic number should have.
I love the bit at the end, where they add this gorgeous finale with a crescendo of sound coming from every instrument. They belt this out as if their very lives depended on it and you get a big rush of adrenaline and just have to stomp your feet.

The Last Tycoons

Steve Fanning-Vocals/Guitar, Dan Fitzpatrick-Guitar/Vocals/ Banjo, Aoife Ruth-Organ/Piano/Fiddle/Vocals, Matt Roddy- Bass/ Fiddle/ Vocals and The Hog- Drums/Percussion are the crazy, but very entertaining band who were the stars of the show this night.
They started with a lovely harmonic sung intro. Instruments were subdued, with no drums and then as a slow rhythm developed Aoife and Matt did some lovely backing vocals. His height and general stage presence give Steve great command over the audience.

They then burst into a totally explosive rock’n’roll style number called Speed. Guitar uses slider and fab lead takes the mood right up, with a sweet riff repeated throughout. Love the guitar!

Seven Days

A gutsy guitar riff in this number is the key feature. It has a catchy beat and a memorable melody line. Lyrics too are witty, with the backing vocals in the chorus fab.

Dry Law

Steve’s vocals are so like Shane McGowan in this number. Trickling guitar is sweet. He is passionate telling the sad story of prohibition of alcohol and the melody reflects the sorrow and the lyrics are poignant;Everybody’s jumping on the wagon, everybody’s gonna pay a fine/ everybody’s giving up their vices to the Lord, well I’m not giving up mine.
The closely sung harmony in the chorus is choral and lifts things brilliantly. Harmonica adds to the atmosphere too. Guitar, keys all totally beautiful here!

Casa Nova has a slinky, bluesy tempo.
Banjo and harmonica express the sentiment of this moody piece. Steve’s vocals are deep and downbeat. Lots of ‘oohs’ in the chorus and minor chords continue the low feeling!

One of my favourite songs of the evening was Sunrise which is fast moving, with a great chorus and some manic choppy guitar chords in it and riveting riffs. Banjo, harmony and harmonica filter in, adding to its charm.

Another song which is from their recently released album was performed. Who needs Radio (parts 2 and 3) is a blues style song, with a soulful refrain in the chorus behind Steve’s bassy vocals. All instruments very impressive for this song where Aoife sings the middle eight and joins Steve for the chorus.

A few covers and some more excellent originals kept the show going and all were performed with polish, charisma and style. There’s something irresistible about the combination of instrumentals, deep lead vocals and that extra ability to place harmony so well in each song.

This was a gig I had certainly not planned to be at. Yet I discovered a powerful sound in The Last Tycoons and the other guests who performed in Whelan’s this night. I wouldn’t consider myself a devotee of R&B or Folk/Rock, but I will be watching for an opportunity to catch all the participating acts again.