Doubtless enthused by being picked as one of Hot Press’ ‘Hot For ‘07’ bands, The Hold Steady nip over on February 27 for a show in Dublin’s Temple Bar Music Centre.
This Brooklyn-based, Minneapolis-reared quartet, currently the most raved about band in America, are no spring chickens and my goodness, doesn’t it show.
And so the transatlantic battle for musical domination continues like some game of long distance ping-pong. This time last year it was all about the Arctic Monkeys, a couple of years ago it was Britpop. Come 2007 and all the buzz is around The Hold Steady, Decemberists and some bunch called Arcade Fire. Most exciting of all, however, are South California’s Cold War Kids. On the heels of last year’s astounding ‘We Used To Vacation’, ‘Hang Me Up To Dry’ is equally memorable, a collision between tight, clipped rhythms and raw, emotion-drenched vocals. Quite stunning, and you can’t help feeling that this is only the beginning.
With the sound of The Prodigy’s Marmite-esque set still ringing in our ears from last night, we arrive back on site to be greeted with some much needed Sunday morning sunshine.
Honorary Irishman Josh Ritter is still pinching himself after getting to play with Brooooce at the massive Springsteen tribute gig in New York’s Carnegie Hall.
NEWSFLASH! Bad tidings for Black Mountain fans, with illness forcing the hirsute Canadians to pull their gig tonight (May 13) in the Dublin Button Factory.
As of today, we at hotpress.com will be bringing you the full story from Oxegen 2008, including interviews with some of the biggest hits of the weekend.
From piano-plonking crooners to nihilistic electro-pop duos, the UK and US are bursting at the seams with fresh talent in 2007. Could there be a new Arctic Monkeys out there somewhere?
