not a member? click here to sign up

Josh Ritter at Tripod, Dublin

A pair of well-dressed girls on the way out said it was the best concert they’d ever attended and who would argue with them?

Colm O Hare, 20 Sep 2007

Where did it all go right for Josh Ritter? The last time yours truly caught him live a few years back at Vicar Street, a fine set was greeted with appreciative but polite applause. Tonight the reception accorded him bordered on hysteria. Clearly the Dylan-inspired Idaho troubadour is now adored and feted in this country like few before him.

Why this should be the case is not - on the face of it - all that clear. Ritter’s songs are well-crafted, easy-on-the-ear, if cleverly derivative, while his voice is pleasant if indistinctive and anything but soulful. But like Nick Hornby’s hero in High Fidelity he combines a long list of averages into something much more than the sum of its parts. Add in his rangy good looks, shy-boy demeanour and you have the perfect package. His well-heeled audience certainly seemed to think so. Virtually everyone in the packed and sweltering Tri-pod sang along with every word of every song. Between numbers they hung onto his every utterance, shushing anyone who dared to speak above a whisper, and when he downed a beer in one gulp, he was cheered to the rafters. The band responded with a blistering performance while a five-man brass section added considerable punch to the sound. The set included long time favourites such as the plaintive ballad ‘Kathleen’ and the Dylanesque pair, ‘Harrisburg’ and ‘Snow Is Gone’ along with new numbers from The Historical Conquests Of... (arguably his strongest album to date) including the quite superb ‘Right Moves’. But the “highlight” for many was a so-so version of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘The River’ (performed sans microphone) which was greeted with the kind of delirium that the Boss himself would have been surprised at.

Along the way a beaming Ritter joked about his appearance on the Ian Dempsey show, offered profuse thanks to his Irish fans and local label boss [Dave O’Grady] and generally basked in the non-stop adoration that flowed stagewards. A pair of well-dressed girls on the way out said it was the best concert they’d ever attended and who would argue with them?



Page 1/2     <Previous 1 2 Next> 



Colm O Hare

Artist Related Content

Latest Related Articles For This Artist

Cover Story: Josh Ritter

When his marriage ended suddenly, Josh Ritter lost his way. He started drinking and wandering the streets. The only way to arrest the downward spiral was to pour his pain into his songs. The result is his most torrid album to date. He talks about the genesis of The Beast In Its Tracks and how he managed to banish the despair and build a new life...


Interview: 2013-05-07

WORLD EXCLUSIVE! JOSH RITTER DVD... ONLY 100 AVAILABLE!

Josh Ritter has recorded a series of very special performances for Hot Press readers...


News: 2013-04-26

Josh Ritter on the break-up of his marriage

"I kept away from bridges for a while", he tells Hot Press.


News: 2013-04-24

New Hot Press hits stands tomorrow!

In it, we meet the wonderful Josh Ritter, as well as catching up with Fight Like Apes, Thirty Seconds To Mars and Frank Turner...


News: 2013-04-24

Watch: Josh Ritter in session

The American singer-songwriter was in the studio with The Royal City Band...


News: 2013-03-07

Latest Related Videos For This Artist

Contact Us

Hot Press,
13 Trinity Street,
Dublin 2.
Rep. Of Ireland
Tel: +353 (1) 241 1500

Email:info@hotpress.ie

Click here for more contact information.

Click here to find out more about Hot Press

Hot Press always welcomes feed back so if you've got something to tell us click here.

Advertise With Us

For more detail on how to advertise with Hot Press click here or call us on +353 (1) 241 1540