As long as Arthur's Day continues to flow, controversy and debate will surely follow. Praised and bashed in equal measure, the drink giant's divisive marketing wheeze has always been a frustratingly mixed blessing for punters who put live music ahead of the alcohol - the promise of headline acts in intimate venues versus the uncertainty of who might be there, where or when. All thanks to Arthur.
One must get ahead of the game, so when The Script take to the stage at Drumcondra's Ivy House pub before 7pm, for every loyal fan in receipt of last-minute tip-offs, there seems to be two who happened to be in the right place at the right time. As the word spreads and the audience (and temperature) swells accordingly, Danny O'Donoghue and his bandmates deliver a 40 minute pop-rock hit parade, the likes of 'Breakeven', 'Talk You Down', 'For the First Time' and 'Hall of Fame' all getting an airing. It's smartphone central, with swathes of a predominantly female crowd conflicted between savouring a sweaty Danny up close and personal and making the world know via social media that they are one of the lucky few. The band, meanwhile, relish the novelty. Since supernova-ing, the Script don't get to go back to their roots too often. Amid bouts of deafening shrieks from the crowd, Danny manages to extend a phone call to a privileged friend of an audience member and have a round of drinks (yes, that drink) "crowd-surfed" to him from the bar. While the faux-humility of the band's frontman can be somewhat grating in such a confined space, one cannot but admire his ability to make the crowd feel part of something special.
And so on to Whelan's, with speculation rife as to which of the big name acts would be pencilled in for a Wexford Street appearance. As it turned out, it was local boys made good The Script who managed to take their arena rock sound into the cosier confines of Whelan's and still sound like the slick, professional outfit they have become since forming in 2001.
Let's be honest -The Script are easy targets for music journalists who find their cloying, anthemic pop rock just a little too safe, contrived and chart friendly. But nobody who attended Whelan's last night could deny that The Script do what they do very well indeed - Danny O'Donoghue and the boys had the crowd eating out of their hands from the very first song. They played all the hits, with 'The Man Who Can't Be Moved' drawing a particularly rapturous response. The reality is that The Script are beyond the clutches of curmudgeonly hacks and journos and operate at a level where success is measured in multi platinum discs and audience participation on a grand scale.
And that was it for another year -Arthur's Day 2013 delivered the usual mix of local home-grown talent and international superstars and despite the cynicism and sniping that accompanied this year's event, it looks like it's here to stay.
Source: Entertainmentie / Dublin Weekender / Edited: DannyODonoghue.Net
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