2023 - Favourite Gigs of the Year
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24-12-2023 11:40am#1
We did this last year and it was for a Top Three, but most people had additional honourable mentions.
My own top three would probably be:
Wilco, Cork Opera House
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, RDS (night two)
Depeche Mode, Malahide Castle
Wilco were phenomenal in the Olympia, but somehow managed to surpass it in Cork.
Springsteen's three night stand was fantastic, but night two, in particular, seemed to be the night of choice for those who did more than one show.
Depeche Mode in Malahide was glorious. Apparently galvanised by the loss of Fletch, Dave and Martin delivered - in my opinion - their best album this century and were as great live as they've ever been.
The top two don't feature in my photo collage above, as I made the decision to just focus on the gig. Likewise, the PJ Harvey photo (from night two) was one of only a handful that I took.
Honourable mentions:
PJ Harvey, Olympia (night one) - worth the admission price for Man-Size and Dress alone.
Elton John, 3Arena (night one) - I saw five shows on the tour and this and Cork 2022 were probably the best two.
OMD in St. Anne’s Park were magnificent (as always). It should be a showbiz maxim: Don't work with children or animals and never follow OMD on a bill. Soft Cell, never likely to work in daylight in a park to begin with, sank like a stone. Arguably the dud of the year.
2024 Gigs and Events: David Suchet, Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, The Smile, Pixies, Liam Gallagher John Squire/Jake Bugg, Kacey Musgraves (x2), Olivia Rodrigo, Mitski, Muireann Bradley, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Eric Clapton, Girls Aloud, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Rewind Festival, The Smashing Pumpkins/Weezer, Henry Winkler, P!nk, Pearl Jam/Richard Ashcroft, Taylor Swift/Paramore, Suede/Manic Street Preachers, Muireann Bradley, AC/DC, Deacon Blue/Altered Images, The The, blink-182, Coldplay, Gilbert O'Sullivan, Nick Lowe, David Gilmour, ABBA Voyage, St. Vincent, Public Service Broadcasting, Crash Test Dummies, Cassandra Jenkins.
2025 Gigs and Events: Billie Eilish (x2)
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Best performance - the Darkness, Wolverhampton
2nd - The Who, Hull
3rd - Kaiser Chiefs, Galway
Honorable mentions - Elton, Sting, The Hollywood Vampires
Best overall show - Sting, Blondie, Lyra and Joe Sumner, Malahide Castle
Best support - Michael Monroe supporting Black Star Riders, the Tramshed, Cardiff
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Peter Gabriel 3 Arena, superb night with Peter and band. Several tracks from the new album blended in well with all the old classics.
Iron Maiden 3 Arena. I was not too impressed when I saw the setlist but on the night they were incredible and probably the best I have ever seen them. The sound was great and Bruce's vocals were excellent.
Robert Cray in the NCH. Great gig from a fantastic musician and very humble man, sound on the night was excellent.
Honorable mention. Elvana in the Academy. Great craic and a great band to get a crowd going.
I got to see Guns N Roses in the Hollywood Bowl last month which was unreal and I doubt I will ever get near the venue again. Black Keys supported and they were great.
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