Dogrel By Fontaines D.C.

We seem to be having a bit of an Indian summer at the moment. It was so nice on Friday I thought I’d go over to Warminster and meet a friend in ‘Spoons. That is the name we give to Wetherspoons. I don’t really like going in there because the owner is a big Brexiteer and is always gobbing off about it on the telly. She likes it though and it has a garden out the back where we sat in the sunshine. Also, you can get a bottle of chardonnay in an ice bucket for less than ten quid, which isn’t bad.

I thought I would treat myself to a new CD and nipped across the road to Raves From The Grave. We are lucky to have a music shop in a little town like Warminster, so I like to support them. I didn’t know what to buy though. In the new releases I was surprised to see a new album by The Subhumans. They are a local band who we used to follow about 35 years ago. They had a huge cult following at the time. It is good to see they are still going, but I don’t think I could listen to it at home these days. I had a good mooch through all the folky type music which is what I mainly listen to these days, but I couldn’t find anything that took my fancy.

Me in Spoons with Dogrel.

Then I remembered a band that I discovered recently called Fontaines D.C. and found their debut album in the section devoted to the Mercury Prize nominees. The album is called Dogrel which is a play on words of doggerel, a type of poetry with irregular rhythms. The band come from Dublin and I think they are the best new Irish band to emerge in years. I don’t listen to many groups these days. If you look back through my blogs you will see that it is nearly all singer-songwriters and solo artists. I think the last Irish band I really followed and bought several albums by were the Saw Doctors and that was a long time ago now. I could have seen Fontaines D.C. this year at Glastonbury when they played the John Peel Stage but I hadn’t heard of them then. It was only when a friend mentioned that they saw them on the BBC coverage that I looked them up on Youtube. If you are wondering about their name, they originally called themselves The Fontaines after a character in The Godfather, but then discovered there was an American band of the same name, so added D.C. meaning Dublin City.

When I got home, I put the CD in the machine and I haven’t stopped playing it since. As soon as I heard the first track Big I thought of another Irish singer I like called Damien Dempsey. That is probably because of the Dublin accent. The singer Grian Chatten should be complimented for keeping his accent and not singing in a mock-American voice which a lot of singers do. This helps the band to have their distinctive sound. He has a great speaking voice as well as on such tracks as Hurricane Laughter. The twin guitar sound is great as well. There are several songs that would have been hits in the old days. I particularly like Roy’s Song which did actually remind me a bit of the Saw Doctors. Every track on the album is worthy but the last three songs are outstanding. Liberty Belle is a tribute to the area of Dublin where they lived called The Liberties. Boys In The Better Land is a post-punk classic which must send the audience wild when performed live. Dublin City Sky is like a cross between The Velvet Underground and The Pogues. I think the great Shane Macgowan would be proud of this song if he had written it. I have shared a video of the band performing this song below if you want to hear it. I think you should.

I think Fontaines D.C. are going to be huge and I will follow their future career with interest. The Mercury Prize is announced this week and I hope they win it.