Live Review: Interference and Guests

Fergus O’Farrell, lead singer of the band Interference, died last year aged 48, when he finally succumbed to the disabling deterioration of the muscular dystrophy that he was diagnosed with as a child.

Alongside the care of his loved ones and of his wife, Lee, what kept Ferg around 30 years longer than the doctors originally predicted, was his passion for life; his humour and mischief; his love for the arts, people, fun and banter; and his outpouring of creative expression.

These attributes made Fergus the epicentre of a free-spirited creative community. That’s why, at this Vicar Street gig to celebrate Ferg, the stage is heaving with a roll call of Ireland’s top musicians, here to acknowledge him as both a songwriting maestro, and a master in the art of life.

Superbly directed by Interference guitarist, James O’Leary, the show is a mindblowingly brilliant, two and a half hour extravaganza involving dozens of musicians, including vocalists Glen Hansard, Paul Tiernan, Camilla Griehsel, Katell Keineg, Jerry Fish, Liam O’Maonlai and Ciara O’Driscoll. Backdrops of Ferg’s art create atmosphere for the soothing landscape of gentle songs like ‘Ti Ti’, ‘I Was Looking For Someone’, ‘Sail On’ and ‘Something Right’; while Mundy brings punch to Ferg’s fiery side, with his renditions of ‘Breaking Out’ and ‘Wild Cat Strutting Thing’.

‘Gold’, arguably Ferg’s greatest song, duetted in English and Irish by Glen Hansard and Roisin Little, Ferg’s niece, bring this uplifting show to an end, and the audience to their feet, united in joy and love for a beautiful soul, whose spirit lives on in his music.