God used foresight when he designed Cork: the sweep of hillside encircling the city was surely erected to save the rest of Ireland from the massive noise levels of Cyprus Avenue on a chilly evening of March madness.
Massive for sure: Sonus strode across the stage shortly after 9pm with jangles in their pockets and songforms so elaborate and meandering they were almost in freefall before springing back to point again. I was seriously impressed and rather glad of the canny twist of fate that saw Sonus perform at all: first choice Silo were apparently evicted from the Cork heat after allegations abounded of clashes with Cyprus Avenue’s CCTV and a clandestine violin. Silo’s frontman Philip Murray swore there was more to the story but unfortunately it wasn’t enough to convince the organisers.
Sonus therefore did not have the lengthy rehearsal timespan of the other competitors but managed a lively set on the night, respect due in large part to Alan Matthew’s animation in the throes of guitar to a slowly-filling venue.
Rough around the edges in the same way coal and crystals are and possibly more appreciable on recording, (EP <-initial demonstration-> hits the shelves this Weds 26 March) Sonus did not make the final cut at the end of this heat but were nonethless delighted to be involved. Watch out for them this summer when they plan to capture every cave and castle in the country.

 

 

 

 

Philtre stormed into song shortly after, their contingent of fans cheering on the Tralee fivesome. Clearly inspired by the Nineties’ wave of alternative indie-rock they brandish instruments with south western swagger worthy of a nod or two from Stereophonics. With a harder edge to set them apart from the rest of the competitors and college favourites in general, Philtre knew their strength was a tight, focussed performance with each member dropping into groove like a well-oiled machine. The audience were even treated to some rock’n'roll spirit as their errant guitarist jumped off-stage and started giving it loads in the middle of the crowd. Certainly impressing the judges, they went through to the finals although there was little hint of the showband swagger when I met them afterwards, singer Dennis Boyle showing a modest face to many congratulations from well-wishers. I can certainly see a niche for this band amongst student fraternities and the NSMAs are a perfect showcase for Philtre’s potential.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Surprise of the night was Reasons To Be Beautiful’s ommittal from the finals. Utterly NME (textured fringes, sleek moves and sneers), RTBB took the stage after Philtre’s success and proceeded to reclaim the crowds’ heart as their own, launching into invigorating, sarcastic songs without a toss for anyone. Indeed they had every right: instrumentals of equal twang guitars/bass set to fine, intertwining melodies more aesthetically suited to punk-rock, their lasting impression is an Emo band without the misery, full of romanticised songs differently twisted. Regardless of the choice to send them home, I’m sure they’ll make their own way up the rockers’ road to Dublin.

 

 

 

 

Ladydoll were the last band to straggle on-stage, treating the crowd to a taster of their new Wax Lyrical EP. They’re an inventive five-piece converging talents of each member into well-layered, broad selection of songs. Finn Sedas’ dashes between keys and vocals were the glue to bind the performance into a cohesive whole. While I preferred the spikier sounds of RTBB and Sonus, it was evident by the cheering crowd in Cyprus Avenue that they’ve garnered a strong fanbase in their short tenure. The judges also agreed and Ladies will join Disconnect Four, Floyd Soul and the Wolf, Philtre and two new hopefuls from this week’s Dublin heat at UCD to battle it out in the final at the Village on April 24th.

 

 

 

 

Topping off the bill with a cherry-red lipstick smear of gyrating-good pop rock were local likely lads Lotus Lullaby who proceeded to lay waste to the stage and show the young ‘uns how showmanship is done. My gripes with the blue lighting really swung into gear as their high-octane performance was near impossible to capture in the darkness but they’ve whet my whistle to see them perform live at a bigger venue very soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Get ready for the next round and pop along to the UCD students’ bar this Thursday to see the final stage of regional heats when Leinster’s finest (read The Dirty 9s, Blind Pilots, Funzo and Jerome’s Law) give their all. The night’s headline act are none other than The Coronas, fresh from college themselves and sneaker-scuffing their way to big times. Tickets are priced €10 for a name on your rucksack…

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 25th, 2008 at 3:24 pm and is filed under Competitions, Music, Photography, Unsigned Bands. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.