Red Letter Day

According to their press release, this Dublin three-piece believe that, “the song is master and image is slave.” Hmm…wouldn’t want to be seen as encouraging the slave trade in any way, but don’t audiences have to look at bands as well as listen to ‘em?
All that aside, Hummingbird purvey a kind of guitar-based, proto-grunge that was all the rage a decade ago. To put it another way they sound pretty much like Pearl Jam circa 1991, albeit with more acoustic guitar thrown into the mix. To be fair, the PJ comparison is mainly down to the singer, Niall McCarty, whose voice is a ringer for Eddie Vedder’s, with a hint of that bloke from Staind. But what about the songs?
They’re pretty damn impressive and well-recorded and mixed too. With a thumping bassline, rock-solid drumming and full-on guitars, the title track kicks butt. Not that it’s all hard ‘n’ heavy. ‘Second Guesses’ has an almost country-ish feel, while the ballad ‘The Falling’ showcases a much gentler side with McCarty excelling himself in the vocals department. Other highlights include ‘Sunlight Dancing’, which rolls along under an insistent shuffle, and the slightly U2 sounding call-to-arms that is ‘Waiting For The Healing.’
Impressive enough stuff.