I always jump at the chance to attend gigs at small venues. The atmosphere is intimate and friendly. Tonight I was here to see three completely different local acts.
First onstage is up-and-coming singer/songwriter Josh Heneghan. Tonight Josh, who describes his work as “sad music for sad people”, plays a beautiful acoustic set, combining impressive guitar playing with gorgeous midwest emo vocals. I strongly advise listening to this lad’s back catalogue.
Nothing quite prepares me for the second support act The Praetors. Volume level is ramped up considerably as this hard rock trio blows my head off at their biggest gig to date. Ear-splitting rock riffs, pounding bass from newest member Lucas and a drummer with the most incredible chops. I can’t take my eyes off this band who sound like they have been playing together for a lot longer. Looking forward to seeing what the rest of this year has in store for them.
Now that I’ve caught my breath back it’s time for the main event. Conor Michael has been playing and recording for a few years now, after first picking up a guitar in 2017. After picking up Nova Radio’s ‘Unsigned Artist of the Year’ in 2019, Conor has worked hard gigging and recording. He also hosts open mic/buskers nights locally.
Conor appears on stage in a Ravenclaw snuddie (a bet with his partner Ashley). Tonight sold out so he had to wear it. I notice that he has a loop station set up. I’ve only ever seen Andy Bell from Ride use one live onstage. Conor has described himself as a ‘pound shop Ed Sheeran”. I couldn’t disagree more. Although there’s a definite influence, I can also hear shades of Damien Rice in his vocals. Conor’s songs are beautifully crafted and full of imagery. The additional use of loop station backing vocals and percussion brings the acoustic experience to a different dimension. There’s also a lot of self-reflection in his songs. From ‘Withe’, the words ‘I’m just myself and that’s alright with me” are printed on the back of key-rings that Ashley hands out to audience members; a lovely gesture.
As Conor powers through an impressive 12-track set, I watch the audience dancing, clapping and singing along, which is always good to see. From the beautiful imagery of ‘Lost in Space’ to the extremely catchy ‘I Can’t Love Again’, the set is over far too quickly. The crowd want one more, we get two more. My personal highlight is foot-stomper ‘Breaking Out of Here’, which morphs into ‘All Star’ by Smash Mouth. Everyone is singing along to this one.
I really hope that Conor’s first sellout gig is his springboard to bigger things. Tonight there was something for everyone. I need to give this 5 stars.
Kim Blu
Thank you a million for this!
ReplyDeleteTruly glad you enjoyed the show!!
Onto the next one!