Just got this e-mail:
Republic of Loose will play The Academy in Dublin on September 25th. It will be their first Dublin show since they ripped it up to over 20000 citizens of the Republic at Oxegen in July.
Tickets for the Academy Show are €22.50 Including Booking Fee.
Tickets are available from www.ticketmaster.ie
Strictly Over 18’s
Oh, I’ll be there, yes oh yes I will
I was at the Hold Steady last night, they really are the greatest band in the world. Before I tell you why though, I’d like to take a moment to rip into their support act.
The Loved Ones, they have almost as ironic a name as the Thrills as far as I’m concerned. In the same way that Ireland produces far too many gimp-wad-singer-songwriters, America produces far too many emo-punk* bands. How many variations on three chord, piano-means-we’re-sensitive-too, punk can you manage? These guys really stretched it. Formulaic to the point it was almost subversive; drenched, as it was, in clichés and irony. “this is a song about addiction”-proclaimed the lead singer before he burst into another bout of snarless shouting, blunt-edge rock’n'roll, the type of shit your mam thinks you like when you’re about 15.
Every song sounded the exact same, the only evidence that it wasn’t one big long wall of guitar being the stoppages between songs-all of which were for the purpose of dedicating it to someone, these guys clearly owe a lot of favours. There were a few variations on the theme though; the introduction of a piano which Ms bro L** correctly guessed would preclude ‘the reflective piece’ and the wholly redundant acoustic guitar for ‘the really reflective piece’. Seriously, fuck off until you have some ideas. Their best song was the closer, which was only half-decent because the Hold Steady got involved-Tad and Franz came out to kick some ass on guitar and harmonica.
They even looked formulaic. They had the ’skinny sensitive one’ on bass, the ‘monster’ on lead guitar, ‘the artist’ singing and ‘the nice one’ on drums. There was constant posing on all parts, some of it so cynical that you felt sorry for people who genuinely feel their own music-who don’t stop to check where the camera is. I also have a serious gripe with men who wear skinny jeans but that’s so far down the list of things I didn’t like about this band that its only getting a mention.
Compare all this posturing and self-consciousness to The Hold Steady, who saunter out looking like a bunch of mismatched geography teachers at a school disco-and rock the club to its knees! No bullshit, just straight up, been there and seen it all, rock’n'fuckin’roll.
Franz murdering a bottle of wine with a grin, big mean drums, Tad and Galin rockin’it harder and harder with every note and Craig Finn demanding that the audience get involved-forgetting his mic half the time because he was so into it-thats Music, thats rock’n'roll, thats genuine and thats passion. None of this poxy emo bullshit.
A decent bounce from the crowd but I was a bit further to the front than I’d like so I can’t really judge. You can’t bounce at the barrier because every time you go forward you crush someone, which isn’t very pleasant. I like jumping. I like gigs where you come out absolutely knackered, covered in sweat, half deaf and completely satisfied. Gigs where you come out knowing you’ve just been part of something special, where you know you’ve just shared everything with the crowd around you, where all our voices are hoarse and none of us care-gigs like last night. Keep your trendy, good looking bands. I’ll take the Pogues at Christmas, the Loose on the dancefloor and the Hold Steady turned up full-we’ll see who has more fun.
I can’t believe I’ve only been listening to this band for about a fortnight, I was singing along to so much of their set and the bits I didn’t know just made me want more of their stuff. I haven’t felt this way about a band since discovering Republic Of Loose or maybe Saul Williams(though Niggy Tardust was a bit disappointing). The Hold Steady probably aren’t as progressive as either of them but the attitude is there, the lyrics are certainly there and the live bit is…well….frighteningly good
*only punk in name because punk is really about tearing down everything that has gone before and starting from scratch, as opposed to copying the 5 billion or so other bands who sound exactly the same as you. Technically, Jay-Z is more punk than any of these gobshites. Actually, fuck it, Jay-Z is significantly more punk than these guys. Jay-Z is also one cool bastard.
**the older one, not to be confused with young N who recieved a stern lesson in drinking one fateful night. He never stood a chance, he was sitting between me and AAF for a game of kings. The ‘pick a mate’ card alone was devastating, the Joker/shot card was cruel but the “N has to drink twice anytime anyone else drinks” rule was frankly unnecessary.
“In the barlight she was alright
In daylight she was desperate
But thats ok because I was desperate too”
Its lyrics like this that have made the Hold Steady the greatest band in the world….ever. Their music won’t change your life but it will make it more fun. They hold sing-a-longs and anthems up as the pinnacle of musical achievment, the type of band you listen to solely to fit in at the live show; bouncing and screaching your lungs out, arms locked tight over the shoulders of complete strangers and soulmates.
Its Americana with a sound thats all too common but an attitude that smooths over all the cracks because this is music for people who like getting fucked up, singing along and filling their nights with passion and their mornings with regret……or something like that, less pretentious than I make them sound though.
They’re playing in San Fran next Tuesday, I’ve got my ticket, I’m getting drunk!
We went to see The Duke Spirit last night. I had never heard them before but Laneways described them as the definition of ‘her music’ and generally she’s pretty solid on that front so I tagged along. I mean c’mon, worst case scenario they turn out to be some fem-punk outfit singing about the emotional trauma of parents who are over-supportive and myself and AAF get filthies all night purely on the basis of having peni*, right? Right, where was I?
Oh the band, yes, the band-they were really good! Lead singer rocked it like a see-saw on a bouncing castle, no, really. The crowd was shit though, too cool to dance, which brought them down a bit but thats not their fault. And I don’t buy the excuse that they’re not a groove-worthy band either because superfan Laneways was giving it socks, I’m just chalking it up as further proof that the majority of ‘indy’ folk are just posers who don’t care any more or less about music than the airheads in XXIs. I just don’t get the mentality of going to a gig to watch and not be moved, not be a part of it, your better off staying at home. I dunno, I’m probably way off on this one and I know someone is going to make a valid point that blows my whole theory to shit. May as well say it now, if you reference lemonjelly or belle and sebastian in your response you can fuck right off down to the shop and buy some testicals**.
Another reason the crowd was shit was because everyone just dissappeard the second the show was over, no really, everyone. I know its a different culture over here and blah de blah de blah but c’mon people, lets get pissed! Nobody even hung about to meet the band(which to be honest, is something I don’t normally do either). There were so few people about that Laneways got all their autographs as well as photos with them before, with suprising assertiveness, giving out to them for not playing the songs she wanted to hear-respect!
The ride home is a whole different post but I woke up this morning and felt like death. My stomach hates me, whiskey hangovers always happen in the gut, and I always had a straight glass in my hand last night-its the type of hangover where you wake up and immediately know that the day will be spent paying for past sins, in a purgatory of flatulence and self pity. All they had was Jameson and Jack, both dirt, I’ve been a whiskey man long enough to know it was going to be bad but you always forget just how bad.
*yes, that is the plural and yes, its happened before. I have never been so intimidated as when a load of lesbians were hitting on Laneways and I simply was not allowed to talk under pain of castration-and thats a lot of pain
**Wow, this post really is a load of cock and balls(cough)-pun intended
Got the new album, its savage. Why am I not suprised? Because its da motherfuckin’loose!!
Republic of Loose Volume IV, I was gonna go through the album track by track talking about how deadly it is but I’m not bothered and I wouldn’t do it justice.
I won’t lie, the first track had me worried for just a second and the steady song veers dangerously close to soft R’n'B territory but when they start kicking they really kick. The sound has gotten much bigger too, this is about as close to perfect as an album can get without loosing its bite.
The Loose once again show themselves to be the only half decent band coming out of Dublin with a pair of balls to match some serious talent. Bring the Loose, bring the funk, make some love
Chiggidy check this out
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