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Irish Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Fontaines DC at Guinness Storehouse: A match made in heaven
Fontaines DC are the biggest Irish band in the post-band era. Bands are too much trouble – members won't do what they are told and an anachronism in a world where music, as Bono remarks, is increasingly assembled and not created. That they exist at all in the current music landscape is a marvel, but they are a band that has progressed with each album and kept a multigenerational fan base. Fontaines DC in the grounds of Dublin city's most famous tourist attraction, the Guinness Storehouse, was a match made in marketing heaven. Last weekend's Lovely Days Live was a successful attempt to marry top-class music with promotional activities without the flak visited on the Arthur's Day shindigs a decade ago. READ MORE The Storehouse is 25 years old and looms over the concert venue in the old yard at the front gates. Tickets for this concert and Saturday's one by CMAT were subject to a ballot and were immediately sold out. Grian Chatten stomps around the stage and cajoles the crowd into singing along, not that they need an invitation. Photograph: Tom Honan As a music venue, it is not optimal. It feels hemmed in between old buildings, the ground slopes down from the stage making it difficult to see at the back. The organisers should include a big screen the next time – if there is a next time. Lead singer Grian Chatten stomps around the stage wearing a scarf and shades on a cool and gloomy evening. He prowls and scowls and cajoles the crowd into singing along, not that they need an invitation. 'Dublin in the rain is mine, a pregnant city with a Catholic mind,' he sings on Big. There was no rain thankfully, as there's no shelter. Fontaines DC are one of the many Irish acts exercised by what is happening in Gaza at present and the looming court case involving Kneecap's Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs as Mo Chara. There was no rain thankfully, as there's no shelter. Photograph: Tom Honan He was charged by UK police with a terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hizbullah at a gig in London last November. He's due to appear in court in London on June 18th. Chatten dedicated their performance of Favourite to Kneecap manager Daniel Lambert, who is also the chief operating officer for Bohemians FC. The club brought out a Fontaines DC themed third strip last year that was very much in evidence on Sunday. 'Never be scared to talk about Palestine,' Chatten said, which was followed by a smattering of 'free Palestine' chants from the crowd. Later, he shouted, 'free Kneecap, free Palestine' as he walked offstage following the closing song Starburster. [ Workman's Club heyday: Where we rubbed shoulders with Paul Mescal, Fontaines DC and Morrissey Opens in new window ] Lankum's brand of soporific Celtic drone music needs a more intimate venue than this and it did not help that much of their gear never arrived from Stockholm. The band did, however, get animated about Gaza, as well. 'Genocide is for losers. If you do not call out genocide, you're an even f**king bigger loser,' came the cry from the stage. The muted cheers suggested most of those present were there for the music, not the politics. Conor Deegan of Fontaines DC. Photograph: Tom Honan Grian Chatten expressed support for Kneecap's Mo Chara. Photograph: Tom Honan
Perth Now
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Fontaines D.C. and Kneecap announce outdoor Belfast gig
Fontaines D.C. will be joined by fellow Irishmen Kneecap at Belfast Vital 2025. The 'Starburster' rockers have announced a huge outdoor gig at Boucher Road Playing Fields on August 29, as part of the 2025 festival in Northern Ireland. Fans who sign up to their mailing list before 8am on Wednesday (23.04.25) will be able to gain early access to tickets. A general sale will follow on Friday (25.04.25). Fontaines - who just announced a show with another Irish act, Lankum, at the Home of Guinness in Dublin on May 25 - have a couple of gigs with Kneecap this year. Kneecap are among the stacked bill joining Grian Chatten and co at London's Finsbury Park on Saturday, July 5. And at their massive Manchester concert at Wythenshawe Park on August 15. Amyl and the Sniffers, Blondshell, Been Stellar, and Cardinals will also join Fontaines in London. Fontaines — completed by guitarists Conor Curley and Carlos O'Connell, bassist Conor Deegan III, and drummer Tom Coll — broke onto the scene in 2019 with their debut album 'Dogrel'. Their fourth studio album 'Romance' found widespread success last summer, peaking at No. 2 in the Official UK Album Chart, and earned them two Grammy nods. The band are amid their mammoth sold-out 'Romance' world tour, with the next stop in Denver, Colorado on April 22.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fontaines D.C. Combine Bring Me the Horizon and Nirvana for ‘Like a Version' Cover
Fontaines D.C. have paid tribute to both Bring Me the Horizon and Nirvana during a recent cover performance. The Irish rockers unveiled their cover of Bring Me the Horizon's 2013 single 'Can You Feel My Heart' as part of an appearance on Like a Version, the long-running covers segment from Australian radio station triple j. More from Billboard U2 Are First Irish Songwriters to Be Named Fellows of the Ivors Academy Dancehall Star 1Ski OG Is Back With Two New Songs - And a New Stage Name The New York Pops to Honor Diane Warren at Carnegie Hall The performance was recorded earlier in the month, during the band's recent tour of Australia, though it was broadcast on the morning of Friday, March 21 (Australia time). Though triple j have long presented the covers as being live, Fontaines D.C. vocalist Grian Chatten told fans on Monday (March 17) the band were forced to cancel a run of shows in Mexico and Latin America after he suffered a herniated disc which left him unable to perform. As is standard for Like a Version, Fontaines D.C.'s appearance launched with a rendition of an original, with the band tearing through 2024's 'Starburster' before debuting their Bring Me the Horizon tribute. Though officially billed as a rendition of 'Can You Feel My Heart,' the performance shifts focus after the first chorus and sees Chatten instead singing the lyrics to Nirvana's 1993 single 'Heart-Shaped Box.' 'I think the sound of that song, the electronic elements, and just the general vibe of it kind of reflects stuff that we were touching on our last album, Romance,' explained guitarist Conor Curley in a post-performance interview. 'It kind of seemed like a good place to start, and it's a moody, beautiful song. I always get a little a bit nostalgic about that band just because it reminds me of reading and crying as a teenager and stuff like that, so I've always kind of kept tabs on them.' ''Heart-Shaped Box' is an absolute classic,' he added in reference to Nirvana's appearance in the performance. 'Grian just started singing it when we were getting the sounds, and it was almost kind of like, 'Do we switch it to that and use the instrumentation?' So, it kind of just made sense.' Notably, it's not the first time that Fontaines D.C. have been the focus of the Like a Version studio in recent months. In February, Porter Robinson used his appearance on the segment to cover the band's 2024 single 'Favourite.' ''Favourite' was, no pun intended, one of my favorite songs of the last year,' Robinson said after the fact. 'It was the song that made me a fan of Fontaines D.C. I just love it. I love major-key music. I love music that's extremely catchy and extremely hooky. And I love the way that this song feels like it's constantly tumbling forward.' Having first launched in 2004, the Like a Version series has gone from being a near-impromptu acoustic affair to featuring larger studio productions. Numerous artists have taken part over the past two decades, with the likes of Billie Eilish, Childish Gambino, Arctic Monkeys, and more reinventing classic tracks in the process. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
