Midlake, John Grant, Jason Lytle.

When:
7th Nov 2010

Where:
Vickers Street, Dublin

The Gig:
What a line up! I've been a Jason Lytle (Grandaddy) fan for years and recently have been loving John Grant's King of Denmark album. These two provided stellar support for the towering Midlake.

Jason played a combination of Grandaddy songs and solo material to a half-full (but fully devoted) crowd. Ever wondered whether it's possible to base an entire oeuve on the ephemeral nature of technology as a metaphor for the decline of human relationships? No, me neither but Jason continues to plough this rich furrow beautifully. Midlake are clearly big Grandaddy fans as their excellent, if somewhat derivative, debut album Bamnan And Silvercork will evince.

Next up was John Grant, former singer with The Czars. His solo album has been a familiar soundtrack in our house so long as I'm the only one it it. I think my wife finds it a little overblown and melodramatic. I know what she means but it's redeemed utterly to my ears by Grant's mordant wit and poetic lyricism. Live, he blew the (now three quarters full) crowd away, those sublimely acerbic songs delivered in a rich baritone. If it wasn't for the fact that WORLD'S BEST BAND were up next on a tight schedule we wouldn't have let him leave.

I love Midlake. My five year old daughter goes to sleep each night listening to The Courage of Others. After a fourteen hour shift of constant activity the music seems to enchant her into slumber and she rarely makes it past Winter Dies. A powerful tool. I'm 43 years of age and I'm insanely happy to have an absolute favourite band again. They played for an hour and a half but it flew by in a heartbeat. Their orchestral, yet trippy, arrangements washed over me and the beautiful, otherworldly lyrics made my spine tingle. Time stood still and as I stood there, sipping my whiskey, a manly tear or two may have fallen (brackishly) down my face. But that's not definite.

The Audience:
Predominantly my own age group. The guy next to me had the same shirt as me. Red check. We agreed not to tell anyone how cheap they were. Soon after, he almost got into a fight with some drunk dude in front of him. No idea why. A fight at a Midlake gig! Unthinkable.

Food & Drink:
The usual fizzy keg, hangover inducing muck we get over in Ireland. I stuck with Kingsley Amis's favourite breakfast tipple. Large whiskey (Jameson's) and water.

It Made Me Think...:
About the olden times. 1891.