Musical Dublin - Dublin - page 457

The Contemporary Scene
The demise of the dance floor saw the return of the live gig as the preferred form of music-
al entertainment. The current scene is perhaps more rich and varied than ever, as every new
band and performer looks to negotiate the vicissitudes of the new-look music industry: luc-
rative record deals are as rare as hen's teeth, which leaves most acts reliant on gigging,
word-of-mouth and online media to spread their respective musical gospels.
There are far more bands on the scene than we have room to mention here, but the good
news is that there are gigs on all the time. Some names to look out for include alt-rockers
Kodaline, whose two EPs garnered huge critical acclaim (including a nomination for the
BBC's Sound of 2013 poll) ahead of the release of their debut album, In a Perfect World,
in June 2013. With more than faint echoes of Bon Iver and Ray LaMontagne is James Vin-
cent McMorrow from the northern suburb of Malahide, who released Early in the Morning
in 2012. One of the most anticipated releases of 2013 was Absolute Zero , the debut album
of Little Green Cars, a rock band with incredibly catchy melodies. Wexford-born folk sing-
er Wallis Bird released her third album, Wallis Bird , in 2012; on it you'll hear exactly why
she's labelled the Irish Fiona Apple or (if you like), a young Janis Joplin (and that's ignor-
ing the fact that she's older than Joplin was when she died). Fusing electronica with alt
rock is Richie Egan, whose band Jape released Oceans of Frequency in 2011 and picked up
their second Choice Music prize, Ireland's highest rock accolade.
But easily the most critically acclaimed new act around are Villagers, an indie folk group
fronted by Conor O'Brien, who writes all the songs and plays most of the instruments. His
particular brilliance is reflected in Becoming a Jackal (2010) and Awayland (2013), both of
which have been given lots of airplay in Britain and the US.
Need proof that Bono can still belt them out? Just listen to the live version of Miss Sarajevo, recorded in Mil-
an in 2005 and available on the All Because of You single. Luciano Pavarotti wasn't around to sing his bit as
he did on the studio version (on U2 and Brian Eno's Passengers soundtrack album from 1995), so Bono does
the honours - in Italian, and with a power and intensity that has reduced us to tears. Grazie, maestro.