Opening the gig was local guitarist DaveBeMac. At times reminiscent of the great Andy McKee in his fingerstyle playing, Dave is fascinating to watch at his craft, playing his own compositions. Laying the guitar across his lap he plays it like a combination of strings, keyboard and percussion, weaving complex tunes across a rhythmic background. Held more conventionally he uses sampling to build layers of sound, adding fast fingerpicking to round off the depth of the piece. There are more influences in there than you could shake a stick at, but you get the sense of a true rocker in the heart of the music. He's funny too, with a fund of stories about the background to his writing. A perfect start to the evening.
This is the fifth Dallahan review I've written, so previous readers will be aware that I'm a fully paid up fan. Tonight's performance only served to confirm that. The ensemble playing is as tight and imaginative as ever, Jack Badcock's vocals seem to improve year on year, and it was good to hear an even stronger Hungarian influence coming through, courtesy of Jani Lang's fiddling and vocals. There were several new songs which will be appearing on their long overdue third album, out in October, which promise to make it every bit as satisfying as the previous two. The merger of Celtic and Eastern European playing styles and influences continues to produce a sound that is unique and enjoyable, and the band has a relaxed and engaging stage presence, much of it from Andrew Waite's interjections and the obvious friendship shared across the quintet.
So it was a shame that some people from a private party in another room made their way into the audience and talked during much of the performance, to the band's clear and justifiable irritation. Dallahan's music deserves so much more than that.
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