Frank Turner returned to Dublin to perform his biggest headline gig in Ireland to date.  Support came from the energetic Larry and his Flask who delivered a highly entertaining punk-bluegrass  set. It was impossible to take ones eye off Jeshua Marshall, the most punk rock double bassist the world has ever seen.

Frank Turner gigs generally resemble a religious scenario. Turner is the preacher, singing from the gospel of life and rock n’ roll. Four Simple Words was the perfect song to begin with, gearing up the audience for an energetic evening. Already it was clear that Turner enjoys performing to an awestruck crowd.

This led into an enthusiastic performance of The Road which details the hard-working singer’s touring habits, fitting for his 1394th show. Fitting in with the prophetic atmosphere, Glory Hallelujah whipped the crowd into a frenzy lapping up the message: there is no hereafter, there is no god, just us so we better live life as well as we can and be good to each other in the meantime.

While Turner is society-weary and apparently angry about many aspects of life, there is a beautiful, tender side to him which was on display during the performance of his latest single,  The Way I Tend to Be. There was an almost silent break in the song which felt very raw to watch; it was clear there is a lot of hurt behind his energetic façade.

The highlight of the night came in a set of songs during which The Sleeping Souls vacated the stage and Turner and his guitar were all that remained. The Real Damage was followed by Tell Tale Signs; this is a heartbreaking song. It’s so easy to see past the  man on the stage when he is singing such a revealing song.  Love Ire & Song is one of Turner’s most impassioned songs; an anthem for those unwillingly growing up with a little activism still burning in their souls. It was evident in the intense, roaring fashion in which he spat the words that this song is about something he still feels strongly about. It was spine chilling.

Turner touched on his punk roots by throwing some extra gumption into Long Live Long the Queen; he certainly seemed at home rocking out to a song which obviously tells a story that is close to his heart.  The anthemic Photosynthesis was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the entire performance. The die-hard fans began sitting down to which Turner responded “Oh you’re doing the sitting down thing”; a recurrence in many of his gigs when the revelers sit on the ground and hop up when the song reaches its climatic burst.  Turner, the preacher, begged the crowd to agree with him that going to a gig isn’t about sitting in a dark room and getting drunk, it’s about leaving our differences at the door and joining together in a mutual love of music. It was hard not to agree with him.

Turner began a three song encore by saying he appreciates all his fans, new and old, but he has admittedly got a soft spot for the fans that were there entire time and he dedicates I Knew Prufock Before He Got Famous to the old school fans. The show comes to an end with I Still Believe. A fitting end to Turner’s ceremony: despite being older and experiencing a lot of downs over the years he still believes that Rock and Roll can save a soul. The crowd singing along, an enraptured flock chomping on every word he sings.

There were a few things that were glaring obvious: Turner genuinely adores performing and is grateful for the boundless support with which his fans reward him, there is a lot of pain and little of bit of punk which still remain in his heart and he can put on a bloody good show. Most people will have left The Academy on a high, as though they have been cleansed of their social aggravation having spent some time in the presence of a man who can put it all to rights with a handful of songs. Preach, Turner, Preach.