IMRO Showcase

Possibly the finest collection of unsigned Irish talent I’ve ever come across in rapid succession, ten acts from Wexford to Galway to Belfast to Blanchardstown were selected from fifty entrants as the winners of regional heats, sharing the stage for tonight’s grande finale in Vicar St.

MC’d by 2FM’s Dave Fanning, the line up included acts as diverse as the acoustic-driven Zeel, the Limp Bizkit-ish Superskin (complete with demarcation tape) and the fantastically layered, massive crescendos of Leya, a band whose glorious harmonies and melodic inclination make them a particularly interesting outfit to watch out for in the coming months.

The only all girl band to take to the stage was Wexford’s Jade, a ‘Chicks grown up’ four-piece with gorgeous harmonies and first rate musicianship. They were followed by Web, a band characterised by rolling guitar flanges and a vocalist that sounds like a mix of Bowie, Morrissey and Neil Hannon. Easy’s bass heavy sound and charismatic front man earned them a screaming ovation (though the fact that the singer Paul Matthews spent the majority of the set with his hand clutching firmly at his crotch may have had something to do with it, right girls?).

Glory, however, is reserved for my hi light of the night, the gob smacking Sonora – purveyors of tight, catchy, melodic, anthemic tunes laced with a voice that proudly declares vibrato cool again.

The phenomenal and now platinum selling Damien Rice sent us all home smiling, the evening served as a beacon for young acts, proving that you don’t have to sell your soul to make good music.