Gurriers at The Button Factory, Dublin on Friday December 19th, 2026

Gurriers, the last diamond to be forged from Ireland’s post-punk scene before the mine collapsed, played two sold-out shows in The Button Factory this week on a landmark occasion for a group who have outgrown their sweaty club origins.

2025 has seen many Irish acts make their debut in the 3Arena, Vicar Street and the 3Olympia Theatre. Having sold over 1,200 here, Gurriers natural habitat from now on will be those bigger venues and outdoor shows. But oh, how we will miss those sweaty shows in The Grand Social, for post-punk thrives in those dank, underground spaces. Gurriers, like Sprints before them, are about to change as they learn to fill those bigger spaces.

The truth is nobody can tell which way that will go for a band until they get there. The Wolf Alice of 3Arena is a million miles away from the Wolf Alice of The Button Factory and we hope Gurriers (and Sprints) find a way to bridge that gap successfully. Did you foresee Wolf Alice going the way they went, though? Probably not.

Tonight is a mixture of anticipation of what’s to come and appreciation for what’s gone before; a nod to those delicious, messy affairs in small rooms around Ireland, Europe and beyond that acted as a finishing school for Dan Hoff and co. If this is their graduation well then they’ve gotten a first.

Latest single ‘Erasure’ kicks off the shock and awe of the show with its pulsating bassline driving the crowd into hysterics and it’s not long before the first crowd surfers can be spied leaving their physical condition in the hands of strangers. Brain drain anthem ‘Dipping Out’ continues the frantic opening salvo with Dan Hoff goading his flock on to further heights.

The opening strains of their biggest song to date, ‘Sign Of The Times’ (not a Prince cover, but lord knows we’d love to hear their take on that), has the crowd humming the track’s guitar line, something which reoccurs as the night goes on.

In a poignant moment, they dedicate their album’s title track ‘Come and See’ to their sadly departed friend Liam Norton who would no doubt have been buzzing to see them performing in The Button Factory.

We are treated to a rather Rage Against The Machine leaning new song, with Dan Hoff pausing momentarily to say “Free Palestine” before launching into an impassioned rendition of ‘Nausea’. One of the group’s main calling cards, ‘Approachable’, sees the venue fall into complete insanity when the band split the crowd down the middle, while the show comes to a complete climax with ‘Des Goblin’ as various members of the group decide to join in with the crowd surfing themselves. It’s an appropriate end to a raucous evening.

Gurriers are going onto bigger and better things, but these are the days the hardcore fans who made them will remember in twenty years’ time.