Live Report: Del Water Gap shines at The Academy in Dublin

There’s no denying that Del Water Gap knows how to entertain. Clad in a knee-length leather trench and cropped jeans, Del Water Gap, a.k.a. Holden Jaffe, had The Academy crowd wrapped around his black-polished finger.

On Tuesday night, two years after his Dublin debut on The Academy’s Green Room stage, Jaffe found himself surrounded by devoted fans for his sophomore headline, filling the venue’s Main Room and balcony. As the final show in his three year touring stint, Jaffe’s infectious energy blossomed in the sold-out music hall.

Credit: Bailey Shropshire

Following a dreamy set from supporting artist Jean Ryden, the Tuesday-night crowd roared with anticipation as Jaffe’s three-piece band made their way onstage single file. Last to appear, backed by the ringing intro of ‘NFU,’ was Del Water Gap himself, riding a high as cheers of excitement transitioned into the lyrics of the night’s opening track.

Without missing a beat, the band dove into each song, pausing briefly as Jaffe armed himself with an electric guitar before fan-favourite ‘Better Than I Know Myself.’ Complete with a near backbend over guitarist Nick Cianci, enthusiasm swelled as the duelling musicians tore through the song’s instrumental break.

Credit: Bailey Shropshire

Following an intimate rendition of ‘Doll House,’ which provided Jaffe with a necessary break from his kid-in-a-candy-shop bounds across the stage, the singer took a moment to address the crowd, reading off signs and cracking jokes as the band prepared for their next slew of songs.

Having traded his electric guitar for an acoustic Gibson, Jaffe continued the night with throwbacks ‘Laid Down My Arms’ and ‘Chastain’ before slipping on a pair of shamrock glasses, gifted to him by an eager audience member, and jumping into 2021’s ‘Hurting Kind,’ a pop-centric track about the all-encompassing power of painful romance.

The night continued with a roar of enthusiasm as Jaffe introduced his four-day-old single ‘Cigarettes & Wine,’ an ode to the tragic beauty of long-distance relationships created in collaboration with fellow singer-songwriter Holly Humberstone. Despite the track's recent release, devoted fans accompanied the indie singer on every lyric.

“I’ve made records for a really long time, and I didn’t think anyone was listening,” Jaffe said, explaining his brief run as an accountant. “I was dragged back by the universe into music, and all of you in this room are a part of that drag.” After the bittersweet admittance that his era of touring is nearing its end, Jaffe joked, “On that note, I’m gonna play a song about having sex.”

Disposing of his leather trench, the singer took a seat on the edge of the drum riser, purring, “She’s on pills, smoking menthols. Head to toe in YSL on the rooftop. I don’t care what we do as long as we don’t tell.” Reminiscent of Harry Styles’ similarly themed love song ‘Carolina,’ the bluesy melody poured through venue speakers as Jaffe gripped the mic stand, knees bent and eyes closed, bouncing to the smooth beat.

Credit: Bailey Shropshire

With a quick departure from ‘Glitter and Honey’s calm, seductive nature, the night took on a new life as Jaffe cried out “Time to wake up, Dublin!” Leaping from the drum riser upstage, he dove into a series of head-spinning, scream-in-the-car pop hits that brought an already energised room to the next level. The infectious trio of ‘Beach House', ‘Perfume’ and ‘All We Ever Do Is Talk’ brought the night to a raucous end as Del Water Gap, cloaked in a blanket-sized Irish flag that had been hung along the barricade early in the show, ran from one end of the set to the other, jumping, kicking and reviving the audience before hurdling himself over the barricade and into the pit.

Accompanied by the crowd’s thunderous applause, Jaffe sang his final song, rounding out three years of touring with the highly anticipated ‘Ode to a Conversation Stuck in Your Throat.’ The result was an unwavering display of community and camaraderie both onstage and off, a scene that perfectly encapsulated the meaning of live music and marked Del Water Gap as an artist to watch as he inevitably rises to stardom.

Credit: Bailey Shropshire