Two things I've tried to avoid were met head on tonight as I went to see Fionn Regan play at Luminaire in Kilburn, North London. First off was the location itself, a legacy of starker times for Ireland in the 50s and 60s. Suffice to say it's not one of the neighbourhoods in London that I try to visit on a regular basis. In fact, it was my first visit to this Irish stronghold. Second thing that I try to steer clear of is the singer-sonwriter music fare that seems to prevail like a stale fart on the hallowed stage of Whelans on Wexford Street.

Thankfully neither turned out to be a disappointment. Take it as a given that Fionn Regan does what he does in a most accomplished manner. Something that becomes immediately apparent is the likeness of his singing voice to that of Ryan Adams, which usually isn't a bad thing. My introduction to him came by means of a PR throwaway CD, The End of History. Critical acclaim is his and there's no arguing with the fact that his recorded efforts are of a superlative quality.

That said, his live performance was a staidly affair. Tiredness on our part (In Fact, Ah neophyte euzie was also in attendance) does not help to heighten the sensory appreciation of music so you must forgive my bias. Towards the end, I was glad that the set had finished - never a good sign.

Tonight won't stop me from frequently listening to The End of History. I'm just not sure I can be bothered turning up for slow gigs any more.

Good thing I'm going to see Tapes N Tapes in a few weeks then.

tags:fionn regan

Published by Colm.