Freezer Sessions rolls into Sligo for the first time

Legendary venue McGarrigle's was the setting for the second of this December's Jägermeister Freezer Sessions and the Sessions' inaugural trip to Sligo. With four storming sets from the opening night in Galway still fresh in the memory, Friday's acts up the road had a job on their hands continuing the high quality. They pulled it off with aplomb, as all the great and good of the Sligo music scene watched on approvingly. It was clear from the get-go that the town was eagerly anticipating their first taste of Freezer Sessions action - each and every ticket had been snapped up and the place was already heaving when first act The Gorgeous Colours took to the stage.

Those punctually assembled were duly treated to five sumptuous songs from the Dublin five-piece, that called to mind the textures and Americana traces of Grizzly Bear and leaned lovingly on the melodies of Young and Bacharach. With Sligo connections and a few shows already under their belts in the town, their growing Connacht fanbase was present, correct and lapping up every second. The perfect way to ease us into proceedings.

Next onstage were local lads The Dead Flags, who kept the strong, eminently hummable tunes coming, with some added guitar grit. Their brand of pop-punk takes cues from the golden era of rock 'n' roll, and adheres to the doctrine that you're only as good as your last hook. They have bags of them, from spiky opener 'Anymore' to the mid-set peaks of 'Start A Fire' and doo-woppingly good 'You Got It Wrong'. Judging by the onstage moves, the band were finding it as danceable as the audience.

Moving into more experimental territory, homegrown instrumentalists Tucan were third up, boasting the most feverent support of the night. By this stage, there was scarcely room to move in McGarrigle's and Tucan seized the opportunity to whip the packed house into a frenzy with their captivating Spanish guitar sound. Operating as a three-piece (missing bassist Keith Kelly) they made up for their diminished numbers with sheer intensity and threw in an acoustic reimagining of The Prodigy's 'No Good' for good measure. Someone might want to tell guitarist Donal Gunne that Movember is over though - you'll have the opportunity to do so on Wednesday December 28, when the band play a Christmas show in Shenanigans.

And so to the headliners who were, conversely, the unknown quantity of the evening. Le Galaxie are one of the best live propositions in the country but, until now, they had yet to make their presence felt round this neck of the woods. That all changed last night with their first ever Sligo show, as they wowed an unexpectant crowd who danced, roared and fumbled around for their video phones to capture the chaos. Sky-scraping synths, mammoth drums and the coolest '80s vibes in the land, Le Galaxie ended the event on the highest of highs. Their connection with the audience was such that band members were clambering off the stage and into the throngs before too long, Le Alastair Galaxie taking the opportunity to hit his sticks off everything bar his drums. Guys were removing t-shirts, a girl's shoes went flying through the air - the miserable weather outside was completely forgotten. 'Midnight Midnight' and 'Heat City' wrapped up the Sligo leg in stunning fashion, marking the end of what is hopefully just the beginning for many more Jägermeister Freezer Sessions there. But you never forget the first time.

As part of the Freezer Sessions tour of the country, Le Galaxie will also play Waterford's Forum on December 10 and Crawdaddy, Dublin, on December 14.

Next stop... The Pavillion in Cork on December 8.