Brian BoyleSo far in Dublin this year, a sunny day is as rare as hen’s teeth. But luckily today, the missing in action blue skies made a cameo appearance to welcome American rock/metal hybrid Alter Bridge back to the city.
The Orlando four-piece are no strangers to these parts in recent years. Since their Dublin debut at the Olympia Theatre in 2017, their stock has risen rapidly, and promoted them to arena status.
Tonight was not a sell out, but the venue is configured to make it like one. Full house or not, the healthy looking gathering made their excitement known when the house lights went down at 9.15pm.
Deafening Silence
New song “Silent Divide” is not what you would call a ‘blow the doors off the hinges’ opener, but it didn’t have to be. When Myles Kennedy ripped his pic up the frets and cranked out the chunky riff, the surge of energy it let out done the job. However, things then went up several gears as the terrorising ‘Addicted To Pain’ marauded through the crowd with force.
Old And The New
Despite having a new self-titled album on the go, they didn’t flood the set with newcomers. But the freshly unwrapped “What Lies Within” and “Tested And Able” were justified inclusions amongst the more road tested material. Alter Bridge are long enough in the game to know you play to the majority and ring out the more familiar chimes.
“Cry Of Achilles” and “Fortress” kept the appetites satisfied, with the supreme vocals of Kennedy nailing every note.
The pit stop done Kennedy the world of good, and his refuelling paid dividends as he dug deep on “Open Your Eyes”. The crowd then got a piece of the action. They lifted the roof off the building on the chorus of “Broken Wings”.
High On Emotion
The emotional vibe stayed lit. “Wonderful Life” and “Watch Over You” hit all the right nerves with Kennedy showing all his versatility.
Those two wonderful renditions were to spell the end of the so-called quieter stuff. “Silver Tongue”, “Rise Today” and “Metalingus” took the main set home in an enthralling blaze of glory. The often unsung rhythm section of bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips were the usual consistent powerhouse they were put on earth to be.
Soaring Finale
The encore was a lively affair too. Kennedy teased out a bit of The Beatles “Blackbird” which as usual heralds the start of their own song of the same name. There’s no element of surprise here. The well educated crowd knew what was coming, but that didn’t stop them having a mass release of euphoria. The run through was textbook and every bit the out of body experience you wanted it to be.
In comparison, “Isolation” was a tiny bit of an anticlimax but done enough to close the night with a good bang.
Alter Bridge are from being in your face entertainers, you’ll never see them darting about all over the place like the Keystone Cops. Plain and simply, their music does all the talking, and long may that continue.
