Review & Pics by Robert O’ Connor
After a very quiet year from one of Dublin’s most beloved rock bands, it seems Jaded Sun are finally ready to get back on the track to stardom. John Maher and co’s hard guitar, soul driven blues rock sound is as likeable and crowd pleasing as it comes, so a launch show for the bands brand new EP, Whiskey Drinker is not something to pass up. Approaching the venue it seems many others feel the same and despite very few recent performances and almost no activity over the last year the band still pull a crowd big enough to fill the spacious live room in one of Dublin’s best new venues, The Workman’s Club.
Arriving on stage with too many houselights left on, Jaded Sun are greeted warmly by the quickly growing mass of dedicated fans, friends and family. Kicking off with the slightly bloated Fire from the new EP, the night gets off to a funny start. John’s onstage persona is starting to verge on blatant Chris Cornell plagiarism while the rest of the band do little to make themselves stand out from their equipment. Musically though, everything runs like clockwork. The heavily distorted, classic rock styling’s of Higher manages to grab the crowd’s attention and sees the room pack up while the monster riff filled Sweet Mary allows the night to fall into full hard rocking swing.
Obviously overjoyed at the turn out, the band play a stampeding version of Can’t Stop before introducing a new song entitled Left in a Hurry which is slated for their second album that John tells the crowd they’re hoping to record later this year. The band continue building momentum with one of their most appealing singles, Crave before once again dipping into their new EP for the slowed down, Breakdown Easy. A cover of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Running Down A Dream adds a bit of boisterous relaxation while the roof tearing Hey You reminds us Jaded Sun need no cover songs to get people on their feet. Two more new songs, When the Sun Shines and 24 Hour Party People Sing get a rapturous reception while She’s Got Class swaggers in to steal the night.
With a packed crowd of supporters, drink happily flowing and the bloody houselights still on, Jaded Sun receive a much warmer reception when they appear for the encore. Signaling their gratitude for the support, the band explode into Positive from Gypsy Trip with guitars set to kill and close the set with the nights crowing moment, a blistering performance of the Whiskey Drinker, a song that is destined to become a life long staple on their set-list. The guys have been working on Jaded Sun for over eight years, mixing different styles and achieving various degrees of success but now more than ever they are heading in the right direction. Gypsy Trip was an incredible album but judging by the new material and the Whiskey Drinker EP the best is still to come. Watch this space.
