Gig Review: The Young Folk at the Academy

As Ireland natives The Young Folk prepare for their journey to Australia and America, they said goodbye to us here in Ireland with a brilliant live set at the Academy. The show kicked off with the new song “Morning Came,” as the venue filled up with loyal fans. There was a mix of old and new as the band put an emphasis on the sound of their recent album, First Sign of Morning, while also keeping the folkier-sounding old favorites like “My Friends” and “Way Home.” The newer tracks, such as “Wolves,” “Through the Wilderness,” and “Home” earn The Young Folk a place among those who are proving that the genre of “folk-rock” is anything but a contradiction. Looking at Tony McLoughlin onstage, with the straps for both a classic red Fender bass and a mandolin around his neck, it’s easy to see that they can keep their deeper folk roots, while turning up the strobe lights brighter than any other rock-and-roll gig.

The standout of the night was “I’ve Been Here Before,” which began with everyone crowded around one microphone, in an intimate, stripped-down performance before launching back into the chorus with an infectious new energy that filled the room. The audience was more than keen to participate as well, giving their best howls on the chorus of “Wolves” and singing along for the encore of “Home.” It was a perfect farewell as the band set off to start a new chapter abroad.

The Young Folk took the time to speak with us about their upcoming venture abroad. Keyboardist Paul Butler was optimistic, saying, “we’re getting a little bit of a break, which a lot of bands don’t. So we’re really gonna try and take it in our stride. And hopefully, the thing is, after we’ve traveled and been in America for a year or two, we want to bring the show back to Ireland, because you want to impress your own people more than anybody.”

Frontman Anthony Furey agreed that though The Young Folk are proud of their Irish roots, it’s time for the band to spread their wings before eventually coming back home. “We’ve kind of hit the roof,” he says, “not in the way that we’re selling out places, but we’ve gone as far as we can go in Ireland. That’s how we kind of feel at this point.”

As The Young Folk find themselves heading into new territory, they’re writing new music to expand their horizons as well. “The new album, (First Sign of Morning) is totally different from the first album,” says Butler. “The first one was more folk music, but this one’s completely alternative. It still has that folk feel to it, with the three-piece harmony, and the basics like mandolin, guitar and piano, but we added a lot of synths and a lot of soundtrack stuff that we’re into. So we really made an album that we were into. We’re starting to write our third album already, so we just want to keep writing.”

First Sign of Morning is available in Europe now, and will be released in the U.S and Canada early next year, possibly with the addition of some new bonus songs.