Kodaline at First Avenue, Minneapolis (04 March 2014) concert review

Jay Boland Kodaline

The Dublin band (singer Steve Garrigan, guitarist Mark Prendergast, bassist Jay Boland and drummer Vinny May Jr.) have had a slow but very steady rise in the U.S., after experiencing similar previous success in their native Ireland.



In the past year, we’ve seen them open for Airborne Toxic Event, play the smaller Turf Club in St. Paul, MN, and most recently, play to a devoted throng in the Mainroom at First Avenue. Add to that, last week’s appearances on American Idol and Last Call with Carson Daly, and you have the makings of a band rising up the right way, with hard work and touring.



Still in support of their debut release, In a Perfect World (RCA), the band has received good word-of-mouth and online buzz, all without much radio airplay (at least locally), and has cultivated a passionate, mostly female fanbase (their good looks probably don’t hurt). Sound-wise, they are a meld of their folk roots from Swords, Ireland with heartfelt and sometimes lovelorn lyrics, presented in a soaring Coldplay/Keane style of radio-friendliness.



The successful tour, which heads to Europe shortly, has had only a few hiccups thus far—having to cancel a couple Midwest dates in order to make American Idol, and the sudden dropping off of opener LP to the tour, just before the Minneapolis show.

Bora York: Dreaming Free Anthem Falls Music

Luckily, local dream-pop five-piece band Bora York jumped at the last-minute challenge, and opened the show with a short but satisfying set, in support of their latest, Dreaming Free (Anthem Falls Music). Headed by Chris Bartels, the band is a pleasant mix of boy/girl vocals with wife Rebekah, floating keyboard riffs, and jangly guitars, on tracks like ‘Close Your Eyes’ and ‘Open Tales’.



Kodaline then took the stage (amid the rabid screams of “marry me!” from the all-too-faithful) for a sweeping 75 min. set that already had most of the crowd in their corner before a single note was played.

Setlist Photo

“Life just keeps moving, the world gets stranger everyday” from opening song, ‘After the Fall’, could also be applied to describe the band’s rollercoaster ride of growing fame and the “how are you still holding on” end to follow up song, ‘One Day’, had the girls in the crowd swooning.



“We’ve known each other since we were about eight years old”, Garrigan mentioned as he intro’d ‘Way Back When’, which in part reminisces on some of the band’s youth and early friendship. ‘Lose Your Mind’, from the debut EP, was brooding with its heavy bassline, while the uplifting piano-driven ‘High Hopes’ had the crowd singing the chorus back to the band.

Steve Garrigan Kodaline

‘All Comes Down’ built into a swelling windswept song, with Garrigan emoting “it all comes down …to you” on what was the main set’s finale. The LCD Soundsystem cover of ‘All My Friends’ from their EP, was on the setlist, but unfortunately skipped.



The encore started soulfully as the band took to the edge of the stage, acapella, to perform their off-mic cover of Sam Cooke’s ‘Bring It On Home to Me’ with the audience snapping (or ‘clicking’ as the Irish say) along.



“This song isn’t on our album…but it means a lot to us” Garrigan mentioned as the band struck up ‘The Answer’, a light-in-the-darkness hopeful song about finding your way. Hit ‘All I Want’ closed the night, with Garrigan’s vocals on full falsetto and the crowd singing along to the “whoah-ohs” of the crescendo.



The “victory lap” for Kodaline continues, with a sold-out Spring European Tour then are off to Australia, but with a promise to return back here in October, to continue their rising… with more hard work and touring.