W&H have visited a lot of Cork city venues over the past decade, but somehow Coughlan’s has eluded us up to now. A great shame, it transpires, for this friendly bar boasts helpful staff, a convivial atmosphere and a lovely, vibe-y live room. It’s the ideal place for primarily acoustic soirees such as this and warms the cockles for those of us who still miss the city’s much-loved Lobby Bar.
We’re here tonight primarily to witness David Hope launching his superb second LP ‘Scarecrow’, but as it turns out there’s a generous, three-act bill to savour, proffering quality from wall to wall. Up first is the highly-promising Galway-based MIRIAM DONOHUE, fresh from a year involved in the city’s Access Music Project and proudly promoting her self-released debut 6-track EP (mini-LP?) release ‘Bookmarks.’
Sporting a gorgeous pair of shoes and clearly comfortable on the acoustic folk circuit after supports to John Spillane and Jack L, she treats us to most of (actually, make that all) the tracks from the EP. Though mostly of the expected sensitive, introspective bent, tunes such as ‘Streetcar’ and ‘Waiting’ have a quiet determination about them, while Miriam’s likable vocal quirks ensure the likes of Suzanne Vega or Mary Margaret O’Hara spring favourably to mind. She’ll clearly have plenty more to embrace in the future, but for now her best is probably ‘The Plassey’: a vividly poised, Whiskey Galore-style tale of a famous shipwreck/rescue on Inis Oírr, the smallest of the beautiful Aran Islands which most of us probably know best from the opening credits to Father Ted.
It’s been apparent to W&H that DAVID HOPE has something special ever since we first clapped eyes on him with his talented Henchmen in Kilkenny back in the mists of 2010, but now his long-anticipated ‘Scarecrow’ has finally arrived, it gives him an excellent opportunity to show the much wider public just how far ahead he is in the ever-competitive singer/ songwriter stakes.
Not that this Clare/ Shannon-based troubadour is one to let the grass grow. Tonight’s show is the first of a ten-date Irish jaunt before an extensive Swiss and German itinerary kicks in and there’s already talk of a possible full-band Irish tour to follow that. Tonight, however, there’s just Mr. Hope, two acoustic guitars (one small enough to get around airline cabin restrictions, he tells us with some relish) and that instantly recognisable, gruffly affecting voice.
But it’s more than enough to convince. There are a few deviations off map (not least the brilliantly-observed London house party shenanigans of ‘Random Scandinavians’) but mostly we’re treated to ‘Scarecrow’s key tracks and they’re a delight, from a loose, but defiant ‘Hell Or High Water’, through the deftly-picked hobo blues of ‘See The Ghost’ and the touchingly fragile suicide ballad ‘Someone Else’s Mind.’ Pedal steel maestro David Murphy joins him for a resigned’ n’ blasted ‘Chasing Time’ and a rousing ‘Cloak & Daggers’, but it’s the fantastic, chilling folk-noir of the closing ‘Scarecrow’ that really brings on the goose pimples tonight. No wonder it’s giving Ed Sheeran a savaging in the proper, grown-up download charts right now.
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David Murphy then heads back onstage for an increasingly rare live outing for Cork/Tipperary/UK alliance MONORAIL. Well over a year has elapsed since their excellent ‘Sleepers’ debut LP, but while they’re in primarily acoustic/ stripped-down mode tonight, their confident set shows they remain as fine a unit as ever.
Highlights are abundant. They open with the elemental swoosh of ‘The Universe’ before treating us to the rat-race shunning beauty of ‘Calm Place’ and the brittle break-up song ‘Perch’ which – against the odds – features a magnificent (and just right) solo from bassist Don Rothwell. It’s hard to believe it’s their first show for some time, as they’re so quickly in command and by the time they’ve tangled with the breathtaking ebb’ n’ flow of ‘River’ and stretched out on the Doors-y groove of the impassioned closer ‘The Spy’ we’re none too keen to let them go. It’s just a pity we were too slow in suggesting their taut, funky cover of Dylan’s ‘Outlaw Blues’ for the encore. But hey: after so much great music, who really needs to ge hung up on pointless details?
David Hope online
Monorail Facebook page
Miriam Donohue Facebook page
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