There was a lot of expectation riding on Lisa Hannigan’s debut: she’d already acquired a high profile through her work with Damien Rice and on the exquisite Cake Sale duet ‘Some Surprise’, and had celebrity fans like Dido raving about the timbre and range of her voice. But the biggest surprise was her songwriting maturity and sonic vision: Sea Sew was a beautifully crafted and yet handmade-sounding record that oozed melody and diversity, evoking Van Morrison, Nina Simone and Tim Buckley.
Elsewhere, the songwriters won out (Duke Special, The Swell Season, Damien Dempsey), and even the rock and pop acts, domestic and foreign (Kings Of Leon, Snow Patrol, Duffy, The Script) betrayed a staunchly orthodox approach to the aesthetics of composition, recording and live performance (fractious debutantes Fight Like Apes being the sole notable exception). Bruce Springsteen put the seal on his mid-life rebirth (and this was before Workin’ On A Dream was released), basking in the glory of a series of extraordinary live shows. He didn’t want for competition though: similarly grizzled craftsmen like Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen and Seasick Steve also polled well. Yet more proof that London, Berlin and New York may cleave towards the innovators, experimentalists and bright new things, but Irish audiences remain staunchly traditionalist in their tastes. No country for old men? You must be joking!
THE FULL READERS' POLL RESULTS
Irish Band
1. The Script
2. Snow Patrol
3. Swell Season
4. U2
5. Bell X1
6. The Blizzards
7. Fight Like Apes
8. Republic Of Loose
9. Ham Sandwich
10. Fred
Irish Male
1. Duke Special
2. Damien Dempsey
3. Bono
4. Mick Flannery
5. Danny O'Donoghue
6. Van Morrison
7. Adrian Crowley
8. David Holmes
9. David Kitt
10. Luka Bloom
Irish Female
1. Lisa Hannigan
2. Cathy Davey
3. Roisin Murphy
4. Sinead O'Connor
5. MayKay (Fight Like Apes)
6. Enya
7. Imelda May
8. Laura Izibor
9. Mary Black
10. Mary Stokes
Irish Track
1. Lisa Hannigan - 'I Don't Know'
2. The Blizzards - 'Trust Me I'm A Doctor'
3. The Script - 'We Cry'
4. The Coronas - 'Heroes Or Ghosts'
5. Snow Patrol - 'Take Back The City'
6. Duke Special - 'Sweet Sweet Kisses'
7. Fight Like Apes - 'Jake Summers'
8. Republic of Loose - 'I Like Music'
9. Mick Flannery - 'Tomorrow's Paper'
10. Jape - 'Phil Lynnott'
Irish Album
1. Sea Sew - Lisa Hannigan
2. A Hundred Million Suns - Snow Patrol
3. Domino Effect - The Blizzards
4. Vol IV Johnny Pyro & The Dance of Evil - Republic of Loose
5. The Script - The Script
6. I Never Thought This Day Would Come - Duke Special
7. Fight Like Apes And The Mystery Of The Golden Medallion - Fight Like Apes
8. Ritual - Jape
9. And Winter Came - Enya
10. The Holy Pictures - David Holmes
Irish Most Promising Act
1. Mick Flannery
2. Laura Izibor
3. Fred
4. The Flaws
5. Concerto For Constantine
6. The Kinetiks
7. Heathers
8. Noise Control
9. One Day International
10. The Revillions
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