Marc Carroll @ the Sugar Club, Dublin

Even to the most fervent devotees of the Irish singer-songwriter scene, the name Marc Carroll will mean little. Woefully ignored by the masses, the Dubliner’s Ten Of Swords debut failed to impact when released in early 2002 just before the hunger for guitar-wielding troubadours took hold. With those at home unwilling to bite, Carroll did as he did at 16 and left for London. There he’s enjoyed modest success, receiving rave reviews from Mojo and Uncut. You might say that he hasn’t looked back.
Flying solo for his first hometown show in over four years, the full force of Carroll’s voice shines through, with simple guitar and piano backing bringing to the fore his strong lyrical ability. The anger of ‘Till These Bars Break’ and the enchanting ‘A Way Back Out Of Here’ are early highlights, though it’s his older, over-produced early material which benefits most from a stripped back live performance. The poppy ‘Crashpad Number’ receives early cheers while ‘Ms Lullaby’ and ‘You Saved My Life (Again Last Night)’ emphasise Carroll’s great gift of being able to powerfully take hold of an audience, while offering little but the sheer strength of his songs. Let’s hope the wait’s not as long next time round.