Back in 2020, Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire, and Emily Robinson, made the decision to drop the word "Dixie" from their 13 time Grammy award winning band, The Dixie Chicks, making their name simply - The Chicks. This decision came about as a result of the Black Lives Matter protests, with Covid lockdowns giving the band time to come to this decision and show their solidarity.

As an extended form of activism, the band released their return to music, in the form of Gaslighter, their first album in 14 years. Shortly following, the band announced an international tour of the same name, adding Irish dates in early 2023.

Fellow Taylor Swift collaborator, Maren Morris, opened for the trio, with 'Circles Around This Town' kicking off the night in true country pop style. The singer followed up with '80s Mercedes' before addressing the crowd.

Now an international superstar, the singer confessed she had been longing to get back to Ireland since she played Country to Country back in 2017. "All my heroes are from Texas," Morris exclaimed as she expressed her gratefulness to be touring with The Chicks.

The musician explained the next song, 'I Wish I Was', describing it as a song about heartbreak - but one where "I was doing the heartbreaking." Morris was met with an exuberant reaction from the Irish country fans, as she moved through songs "for the drunk girls in the crowd," ballads, and more.

Maren Morris supporting The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

About half way through her 10 track set, the artist took a moment to intoduce her first number one single, 'I Could Use A Love Song', and talk about her decision to move from songwriting to becoming the person on the stage. Originally, Maren "didn’t want to be on stage, I wanted to write for people on stage," but after noticing how little radio play female country artists received, and after some of the bigger female country artists moving away from the genre or, in the chicks case, “country music left them behind because it’s fucking stupid,” the singer decided she had a responsibilty to record her own songs.

This opening act claimed Irish hearts, and definitely got herself some new fans in the 3Arena, as she closed out her set with familiar tracks, like 'The Middle', 'The Bones', and finally 'My Church'.

As Morris left the stage, old school grunge and rock music filled the arena, with the crowd taking a particular interest in 4 Non Blondes' 'What's Up?'. The arena heaved at the seems as the crowd trickled in, with "hey, what's going on?" bursting from their lungs.

The '90s tunes lulled to a close as The Chicks' opening colour-filled lightshow began. A mesh sheet adorned with the band's Gaslighter emblem, a flower-filled gas mask, hid the production on stage, with strobes and background visuals seeping through. As the sheet dropped, The Chicks, plus their touring band, were revealed, with the trio's signature harmonies filling the 3arena to the brim.

Naturally, 'Gaslighter' opened it's namesake show, with approximately 10,000 fans welcoming the Texas trio with screams. You could be mistaken for thinking you were listening to their most recent album, as the insrtumentalism and vocals were record level perfection.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

From a new track to an old one, The Chicks showed that an upward of 14 years break is nothing on their talent, with 'Sin Wagon' sounding just as it did on Fly, released back in 1999. Looking around the venue, there seemed to be no particular age range, gender, or genre of fan - with everyone from young women in cowboy hats to full families belting along to the track at the top of their lungs.

Another track from the latest release came next - 'Texas Man'. It became clear at this point that all the visuals decorating both the back of the stage and the side screens would be tailored for each of the tracks. A show of solidarity for Ukraine came with this track, as blue and yellow flags followed an animated "Texas Man" across the screen.

A solemn moment for Natalie came with 'Julianna Calm Down'. A single spotlight shon on the lead singer as delicate instrumentalism built up around her. Following this step away from their upbeat usual, Maines addressed the crowd for the first time. "We feel a great connection with Ireland," the front-woman proclaimed as the crowd cheered her on. She went on to explain that all of their lead fiddle player's (Martie) daughters are actuslly half Irish, while the rest of them just feel close to the nation. This became inscreasingly evident with the amount of Irish dancers seen throughout their background visuals.

A sea of fans sang every word to 'Taking The Long Way Round', as the trio swayed from new to old, with 'My Best Friend's Wedding' tailing the 2006 track. 'Sleep at Night' saw some passionate sing-a-longs, as the track details finding out about an affair.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

'Ready to Run' preceeded arguably the fan favourite track of the night - 'Travellin' Soldier'. Even Natalie was shocked by the intensity at which the crowd sang along, stepping away from the microphone to let the crowd sing a chorus to her and her bandmates. Not a dry eye could be seen across the venue as the ending notes rung out, this much loved anthem resonating with many onlookers. "We should just keep playing that one," a stunned Natalie laughed, commenting how she knew the Irish would love a good sing-a-long.

While the trio expressed their joy at the crowd reaction, the typical "olé, olé" chant erupted from the onlookers, delighting the American trio. "See if you know this next one," Natalie egged the crowd on, launching into 'Wide Open Spaces'.

'Tights On My Boat' came with amazing visuals of previous American President, Donald Trump, and Russian President, Vladimir Putin, riding a unicorn together through the sea - a show of the trio's opinion on current politics.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

An incredible mash up of 'Daddy Lessons' and 'Long Time Gone' came next, with video footage of the three women recording with Beyoncé in the background. The group's band came in close to create a jam session vibe - with one of their musicians whipping out a piano saxophone.

Following this incredible display of musicianship, a short break allowed for more unusual visuals to play while the crew changed up the stage. The visuals introduced the entire band with their baby pictures/videos - including two of The Chicks' children - Natalie's son, Slade, and Martie's daughter, Eva.

When the lights came back up, the band were situated in a slight semi-circle, almost like they were around a campfire. Inevitably this meant a slew of impending slow tracks - kicking off with 'Cowboy Take Me Away'.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

A small talking break allowed for Natalie to address the rumours that her son, Slade, would be playing the drums for this tour - hilariously instructing their drummer, Jimmy Paxson, to stand up, and introduced him as her son. Following on, the lead singer introduced her actual son, who pulled silly faces, sticking his tongue out as the crowd applauded.

Natalie introduced the next song with fondness - recalling how the trio recorded it a few days after Slade's birth. 'Landslide' was met with rapturous applause, showing how different their version is to the Fleetwood Mac original.

The group then turned their attention to Pride month - "I don't wanna preach but I just wanna say its so important to love people for who they are," Natalie commented. "We're all just trying to get by without any extra trouble."

Rainbow colours appeared across the stage as the trio explained how their next track is a celebration of pride, and a real "hootenanny". A Dolly Parton x Miley Cyrus combo was the only cover fit for the occassion, according to the band, and so, lyrics for 'Rainbowland' decorated the screen - allowing the crowd to sing along.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

A Patty Griffin track, 'Don't Let Me Die In Florida', came next, with the front-woman apologising to a number of Floridians in the crowd. All the different instruments on stage get their time to shine during this number - from mandolin to banjo, with Emily getting to show off her amazing resonator skills.

A quick stage change was covered with powerful visuals of numbers killed in mass shootings throughout the world. 'March March' of course accompanied these visuals, as the screens changed from images of the Black Lives Matter protests, to videos about the right to choice marches. Names of people killed by police brutality dashed across the screen, finishing on the iconic image of Emmett Till.

Another gut wrenching track - 'For Her' - came next, showcasing women across America and the world - in particular, relations of the women on stage, including Eva, Martie's daughter.

Sadness very quickly turned to enthralled screaming, as the opening harmonies of 'White Trash Wedding' captivated the crowd. The fast-paced, country heavy track had the crowd on their feet, grooving along to every perfectly placed note.

The Chicks at 3Arena on June 30th, 2023. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

Very suddenly, and somewhat surprisingly, a baby grand piano appeared onstage as the trio dipped into a newer track, 'Everybody Loves You'.

Natalie thanked the crowd, saying "until next time", before diving into 'Not Ready To Make Nice'. Thankfully, there was still one more track to be played - and what could be a better closer than 'Goodbye Earl'. The band played an extended ending, seemingly not ready to let go of the Irish crowd.

As the trio and their band said their thanks and gave their bows, a fan threw up an Irish flag, which Natalie wrapped herself in, before using it as a cape to run off stage.

For a band who haven't toured Europe in such a long time, it seems they've forgotten how deep a love their international fan base has for them. As they move through Europe, and onto the British Summertime Festival at Hyde Park, we hope they won't forget to return to the Irish shores, sooner rather than later.