Friday 27th May 2022
Having previously seen Dublin heroes Fontaines D.C. first ever festival headline set, and their first gig at iconic London venue Alexandra Palace, a small club show was about the only type of show left to tick off my list. An album release gig for their exemplary third album Skinny Fia would do just nicely, thank you very much…
I’ve never been to an album release show, but I must admit, as an old, old man, that the earlier start/finish time and lack of a support band was actually a massive treat for me. I checked to see if they were handing out pipe and slippers on arrival, but alas, that wasn’t the case.
Carlos O’Connell (guitar), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan (bass), Tom Coll (drums) and Grian Chatten (vocals) saunter on stage to the sound of American singer-songwriter Boz Scaggs crooning ‘I’ll Be Long Gone’. Sheffield goes mental. The band launch straight into Skinny Fia album opener In ár gCroíthe go deo, or In our Hearts Forever translated to English, a haunting sea shanty that marks another great leap forward for one of the world’s most progressive guitar bands. Fears that Fontaines might just play their new album in full with no acknowledgment of their two previous records are immediately allayed with the devastating one-two of A Lucid Dream and Sha Sha Sha – the latter sounding unstoppable in such a small and intimate venue.
Skinny Fia has been critically acclaimed everywhere, not least in my own house where my wife has developed an unhealthy obsession with both the music of Fontaines D.C. and the face of their enigmatic frontman. Indeed, happenstance sees us bump into Grian before the show, an event that leads to my wife admonishing me for taking Grian’s attention away from her because I was selfishly and thoughtlessly wearing a Fontaines t-shirt. What a bastard. Anyway, Roman Holiday is one of eight cuts from the new album and along with I Don’t Belong it allows the crowd a bit of respite from the heavier material.
Televised Mind cranks things back up to 11 but it is Nabokov that perhaps provides the night’s best moment. Bathed in feedback and building to a crescendo that Phil Spector would be proud of, Nabokov is the sound of a band operating at the peak of their powers. A sped up version of fan favourite I Love You receives a rapturous response before A Hero’s Death confirms this band’s status as one of the very best artists currently operating. Had this song been released in the mid ’00s it would be riding high in the charts and conquering indie discos nationwide. As it is, it still somehow feels like a cult classic, but with Grian’s sing-shout vocals cascading through the Foundry, everyone in attendance knows they are witnessing something that will live long in the memory.
The evening closes out with the title track from the new album plus an incendiary performance of Jackie Down the Line. As Grian sings the last ‘la la la’ and the crowd reluctantly accept there will be no encore, a kind of buzz begins to emanate from the stage and take hold in the bones of everyone watching. That dawning realisation that tonight we have witnessed something very special indeed. It’s rare to see a band so accomplished, so undeniably incredible, playing at such a small venue. We may never get the chance again. Drink it in.
Fontaines D.C. played for barely an hour at the Sheffield Foundry and it’s still one of the finest club gigs I’ve ever seen.
Life ain’t always empty.