The Thrills | The Parish (Austin, TX) | January 20, 2004 |
What should one expect out of a band from Dublin, Ireland? Maybe some resemblance to Riverdance and a bad temper? Well that’s definitely NOT what you will get from The Thrills, a five piece band just starting to break through in The States. Their sound is more closely related to that of The Beach Boys and other late ’60s American pop along the same lines, while at the same time adding in their own country-esque touch with the use of a banjo, steel guitar, harmonica and more.
On January 20th, 2004, The Thrills took the stage at The Parish in Austin, TX. Their set included 10 tracks from their debut album, So Much For The City, and a few new ones. The audience was packed in and the vibe in the room was incredible. Although listening to the album may leave you with the impression that The Thrills are quite mellow, their live show is anything but that! If you don’t believe me just take one look at Conor Deasy’s, the lead singer, spastic stage performance. Conor’s stage presence is characteristic of the best showman in the business. Even when the reed in his harmonica broke during the middle of “Till The Tide Creeps In” Conor kept his cool as if nothing happened and finished the song without it.
Going back to the music, The Thrills ever-so-pleasant harmonies of Daniel Ryan (guitar/bass), Padraic McMahon (bass/guitar), and Kevin Horan (keyboardist) filled the room with such a heavenly sound throughout the entire set that your ears actually felt relieved at the end of the night; as opposed to the typical bell-ringing sensation most shows leave you with.
Song highlights from the night included “Say It Ain’t So,” “Just Travelling Through,” and their encore performance in which they revealed another new tune “Not For All The Love In The World” and then closed the night with my personal favorite, “Don’t Steal Our Sun.”
The Thrills, to say the least, have brought a sense of hope that the music industry hasn’t lost its touch on picking out actual talent. This is one critic that will definitely be catching as many of their live shows as possible in the near future.