Indie rock powerhouses Larkin Poe brought their ‘Self Made Man’ tour to Dublin’s Vicar Street venue this week. It was a great display of musicianship from the Lovell sisters which left the crowd full of rock and roll energy for the rest of the night.
Before the Lovell sisters graced the stage support came from Northern Irish acoustic act Ryan McMullan. The mainly acoustic set was a surprisingly nice way to easy into the ferocious guitar sounds to come. Ryan started the set slow for the first 4 songs which included the lead single of his upcoming debut album which he asked the crowd to pre-order, which if you do I am sure you won’t be disappointed as he is a true talent. The end of the set picked up nicely including songs such as ‘Belfast City’ and ‘Bowie on the Radio’ which warmed the crowd up nicely for Larkin Poe.
Rebecca and Megan Lovell make the Nashville based group known as Larkin Poe. Known for there great guitar based style Larkin Poe brought it straight away starting with the title track of their latest album, ‘She’s a Self Made Man’ which the crowd loved from the word go! Big bass lines and tremendous guitar and slide guitar parts were at the forefront throughout the set showcasing a tremendous bluesy style.
‘Keep diggin’ was next , followed by my favourite song in the set ‘Trouble in Mind’ whose great bass line could be felt right in your chest. The guitar parts in this song also really showcased how well the sisters play off each other bouncing off each other incredibly well.
“Bleach Blonde Bottle Blues” was next up and Rebecca explained that it was a song written for her big sister Megan, this was another enjoyable guitar driven track.
The sisters then explained how their roots are in Blues music and proceeded to cover Son Houses “Preachin Blues”, which highlighted Megan’s fantastic Slide guitar playing which is a rare thing in Rock Music. A song about connection and singing a song loud with a crowd called “Holy Ghost Fire” was next up and made a beautiful moment as the crowd sang back while the band rocked out!
The rest of the set kept up the great roots rock style playing songs such as “Mad as a Hatter”, “Blue Ridge Mountions” and “Wanted Women-AC/DC” before ending with a cover of Robert Johnson song “Come On In My Kitchen”.
Overall it was a tremendous showcase of guitar music at it’s best with the Lovell sisters showing their class on the guitar and slide guitar. It was a true celebration of Rock and Roll which was an utter joy to watch!
