Review By: Craig McDonnell
Photos By: Neil Dorgan
Overhead, the Albatross and Friend? both held their EP launch in The Workmans Club last Friday, 1st April. The former’s EP, entitled ‘Lads With Sticks’ has been out for quite a while now for free download, whereas the latter’s EP was released on the night.
On a personal level, this was the first time I have been to The Workmans Club. It is a venue that I haven’t had a chance to attend before. Also, it is the first gig I can recall going to which was free in.
I was very impressed with The Workmans Club as a venue. It is a good size for an intimate venue and the sound and lighting were excellent for both bands.
First up was Overhead, the Albatross. By the time they were ready to start, the venue was already pretty much full to capacity, so I stayed near the entrance instead of pushing through the crowd. This may have been a mistake, because throughout their entire set people were either pushing past to get further into the venue or closer to the stage, or they were pushing their way out to get to the bar. The atmosphere around where I was standing was also quite strange, with several people turning their backs to the stage and talking. The disadvantage of a free gig, it seems, is some people will come just for the occasion and pay little respect to what’s happening on stage.
However, that’s not to take away from Overhead, the Albatross’ amazing set. They played all 4 songs from their EP as well as 2 new songs which showed signs that this band are progressing rather than resting on their laurels. The highlight of the set for me came during ‘Jonah’ when, just as the loud ending kicked in, the people around me who had their backs to the stage were silenced and turned around to listen to the music and started smiling. By the time they played their last song ‘Footprints in the Blood Soaked Snow’, which ends with a kind of tribal chant that simply has to be seen and heard to understand, most of the crowd were literally turned and the atmosphere was electric.
For Friend?, I decided to move over to the other side of the room while the majority of people were still outside cooling down from an extremely hot venue. The crowd seemed to be slightly smaller for the second act of the night, but the atmosphere was much better from the start. Friend? have a similar sound to Overhead, the Albatross with one distinct difference. Overhead, the Albatross use piano to distinguish themselves, whereas Friend? have a violin player. They also had drum samples which didn’t really seem necessary or add any real dimension to the songs. However, when the songs got going, it was impossible not to begin to sway or tap your feet to the almost hypnotic music.
Their EP is now available in Le Rage on Fade Street and Spindizzy Records in George’s Street Arcade, priced €5.
