The Goo 1
OCT '25 minute fundraiser gigs in Dublin this wee
kend, playing Fibbers last night in aid of their mate (Adam Moore with MS) and tonight a fundraiser for Maryum and her family in Gaza. They start proceedings with the slow intro and building beats of Seanchai and the crowd lap it up. They play at a furious pace and are definitely one of the most exciting live Irish acts out there at the moment. Halfway through proceedings Lango whips off his t-shirt saying there’s not much point having the A.C. on! He informs us that their album is mastered and they are planning a release date and they play a couple of the new tunes, ‘Glad Rags’, is typical of their sound and the crowd love it. Conor Doherty takes over full singing duties for two rockin’ covers, one being Christy Moore’s ‘Joxer’, where he launches himself a verse ahead at one point but sings his way back. The crowd sing every word. He also sings McAlpine’s Fusiliers originally made famous by The Dubliners. They bring a stompin’ gig to a close with ‘Old Dog’ off their debut full album and crowd favourite - Latchico. It’s rare you see a band like this in an intimate venue. A fantastic night for a worthy cause. Negro Impacto - IMMA - Anna Crowley As we come to the end of the summer 2025 festival season (which no doubt will be one for the history books), IMMA’s Earth Rising Festival, which explores the climate crisis and culture, was one of the last outdoor events to wave us into the colder months. Negro Impacto played a free daytime gig as part of the festival. The music stage was tucked into the corner of the museum’s courtyard and surrounded by benches for the crowd, which allowed the Dundalk duo to create a comfy, wholesome vibe, matching perfectly their neo-soul sounds. With the release of their much-anticipated EP ‘TV DREAMS’ in August, the band got to play some new tunes as well as their classics which have earned them a place as ones to watch in Ireland’s music scene the last few years. Chi-Chi’s velvet vocals paired with StrangeLove’s talent on the bass got the crowd up and dancing. Despite some technical difficulties, Chi-Chi also managed to get the crowd singing the chorus of a few of the songs. The duo’s stage presence and musical talent once again confirmed their spot as one of Ireland’s IT bands at the moment. The Animal Gang - The Grand Social - Betty Stuart The Grand Social isn’t short of sweaty Rock nights and The Animal Gang gave it one that’ll be remembered. They’re not trying to reinvent the wheel. What they bring is straight up, gutsy rock and roll, delivered with enough heart to carry the room. Frontman Kris Finn is the hook here. That raspy, lived in voice cuts like sandpaper on velvet, and you can’t help but notice his striking resemblance to Joaquin Phoenix. A great mix of intensity and persona that keep your eyes glued to him. He leans into the lyrics, even when the words occasionally stray into the slightly dated (“Gimme Love” felt like it came straight out of another time). Still, in the moment, the crowd didn’t care, they shouted it back like gospel. The band behind him were. Denis and Carl on guitars, Shakey on bass and Paul on drums create a gritty wall of sound. There’s nothing flashy about it, but it works, the kind of chemistry you only get from mates who’ve been playing together long enough to know when to push and when to hold back. It wasn’t perfect, a couple of rough edges but that’s part of the charm. The Animal Gang aren’t chasing polish, they’re chasing connection and in the Grand Social, they found it. Greg Freeman - Workman’s - Eli McGuire In wake of the ever escalating hype of alternative country acts coming out of America, Greg Freeman stands out for being heavier, sweatier, and overall, being a great live act. Opening up for Freeman was UK based indie-jazz songwriter Sean Trelford, who set the mood with Chet baker-esque love songs over slick fender jaguar playing. Opening alongside Sean Trelford was one of Dublin’s most essential bands right now, Burglar, who blasted out angular riff after riff, which definitely won the crowd over. Greg Freeman arrived on stage with a band lineup different to what you might expect if you have only listened to I Looked Out. One Guitar, bass, drums, and saxophone. This culminated in a more confident, atmospheric, singer-songwriter quality reminiscent of Paul Westerberg’s solo material than the Jason Molina inspired approach from earlier in his career. While Freeman opts to say as little as possible on stage, choosing instead to breath heavily whenever there’s a break in the set, he couldn’t resist regalling the audience with the story of him and his band having to open the back of their rental tour truck with a buzzsaw to gather their equipment for the night. That being said, make no mistake, Greg Freeman does not have to rely on showmanship to get the crowd going. All he needs to do is beat on the guitar like it owes him money to guarantee a good time for everybody in the audience. Steven William Hodd - Little Whelans - Steve Stone We were supposed to get Les Keye in support but he got knocked off his bicycle!!! (He’s bruised but fine... THIS PAPER sends our love...) So Nick Kelly, (DOGS/Fat Lady Sings) did it instead... Bit of a result, actually!!! Kelly seemed to enjoy it. WE DID! Not your standard fare? A song about the Carthaginian General Hannibal’s last Heffalump and one about that time Samuel Beckett used to drive ‘Andre The Giant’ to primary school... (No, really....) Stephen Hodd’s been here before but not in quite a few blianas. He’s been busy. (‘Passengers’, some ‘Session Playing’, the newest solo stuff...) Hodds ‘ouvre’ (ooh, there’s a word!) is based in Irish/Scots/Americana ‘trad folk’ but it’s a little more personal than that? He takes it personally? And let’s not piss about... Stephen Willian Hodd is a Rock Star in the kind of quiet Mike Scott, Mic Christopher, Glen Hansard kind of a vein? Just not exactly the same? He does look beautiful all up there on his 29