The Bonnevilles + guests @ La Boca – 13/09/2010

September 16, 2010 No Comments

Ryan J McCormick of Kasper Rosa

The acoustic guitar echoed around Fountain Street, drawing people of all ages and music taste to this little room filled with the most chilled out and varied types of people possible. Thanks to Ryan, armed with a glass of red wine and his beautifully played guitar, there was not a tense body in the room, with people who had never even met before, sitting tight around tiny candle-glowing tables, engrossed in conversation.

After being requested to play a ‘Slayer’ song by one of the more eccentric members of the crowd, and to avoid causing any disrespect to the more ‘metal’ members of the audience, he opted to tell a joke instead – and of course, whether it be an 18 year old NOFX fan, or middle aged Dolly Parton lover, anyone can appreciate a ridiculously bad Shetland pony gag, but soon the awkward laughter that followed was muted completely as he belted out his beautifully heartfelt tune, Trains.

He quietly left the stage, empty glass and guitar in tow, with the most incredible modesty, expecting no applause or recognition, and sat straight back down at a little table full of his friends, with a well deserved red wine refill.

Like Statues

This duo arrived on stage with their two little acoustic guitars, and minus two members, faced with a crowd of chatterboxes, all of which totally silenced the second they introduced themselves. With no messing about, the singer got stuck right in, belting out notes from places unknown, with the most ridiculously effortless expressions on his face.

Just about halfway through their first song, a more expectant crowd began to form, with bearded 20-somethings in checked shirts and obscure band t-shirts entering one by one, most of them unable to find somewhere to sit, but somehow finding it impossible to leave, thanks to the violently romantic chords being bounced around the room, which did nothing but add to the amazing atmosphere of the whole place. Jaws were subsequently dropped and any laughter silenced by their beautiful song ‘Moving On’, a personal favourite of mine from their already excellent set.

After an awkward moment of indecisiveness, they ended their set with ‘A Journey to Speak Of’, and sneakily promoted their band’s MySpace, a website I’m sure will be checked out by many new and unsuspecting fans as soon as they get home… and sober up slightly. It was a case of  ‘one last time with feeling’ with this song, with the duo giving the most energised performance you can when sitting down and armed with 10lbs of musical brilliance.

The Bonnevilles

From the little town of Lurgan, two not so little men exploded onto the stage, dressed in matching Blues Brothers-esque threads, after some almost exaggerated setting up, leaving the impatient crowd feeling a mixture of relief and excitement.

In an instant, gone was the calming and romantic atmosphere created by the acoustic supports, thanks to Andrew McGibbon and an American style ‘Hey there’, to fit perfectly with their obvious Blues Brothers look. The nice little acoustics were replaced and overpowered completely by a drum kit played with such aggression that each crowd member’s little red, beating organ was left revelling in the utmost jealousy.

The crowd rose to their feet, blocking the view of my little blue-haired self, and with my notebook and pen feeling slightly neglected, I stubbornly stood up with them, and boy am I glad I did. Chris McMullan and his drum kit which, in my opinion, should’ve came with a warning label, had a clear ‘love/hate’ relationship, portrayed through his vigorous beating of it, leaving the crowd in awe of their excellence.

McGibbon’s raw Lurgan accent left even the most ridiculously ‘Aye yer ma’ born and bred Belfast members of the crowd confused as to what he was saying, but quite clearly caught was his random and unnecessary use of “bad lingo”, to prepare some of the perhaps less ‘street wise’ members of the audience of what’s to come.

In order to get the crowd dancing… something that you wouldn’t expect to see at a gig like this one, the front man sarcastically used flyers for this very gig as an incentive for them to do so, however he really didn’t need to, as with the blink of an eye, even the bar staff couldn’t control themselves, bustin’ moves like you’ve never seen before.

Before their closing song, the singer did the usual and expected thank-yous to the promoters, record label and the people who turned up to support them, followed by a more unusual and less expected description of his hometown, comparing it to Emmerdale, “with all of the violence and none of the charm”, tying in completely with what they were about to play, a song about this very place.

By Tasha Major

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