First Cuts Gig feat. Floyd Soul & The Wolf and Michele Ann Kelly live at Paul Flynn's, Waterford

So you arrive at this gig and a block from the band gives you a set-list with 20 songs on it and you think, “Holy shit, we’ll be here for the whole weekend” and then the band hits the stage and takes you on a no-nonsense rollercoaster trip through the history of rock, stopping off at all the right places. For that’s what Floyd Soul & The Wolf did to a packed and appreciative audience. Lead by dynamic frontman Simon Merriman, the four-piece are a breath of fresh air, delivering short, taut songs, with not an ounce of flab on them, and with a real sense of joy and celebration.
The country-punk of ‘Secret Dancer’ and the harmonica in ‘Somewhere In Your Head’ suggest a Neil Young influence, but ‘I Am The Room’ is a furious Beatle-esque romp. ‘Miserlou’ evokes the memory of Link Wray, and the triumphant ‘Mr Shakey’ gets like a guitar shop gone berserk. ‘Stonewalkin’’ is swamp rock’n’roll, ‘Eye Of The Storm’ is a beguiling ballad, while ‘The Walking Dude’ could be the first example of sea shanty rock. But despite the influences, the band add their own unique flavour to the mix, with shifting arrangements that keep your attention riveted and occasional three-part harmonies that rattle and hum. Floyd Soul & The Wolf play as if all our very lives depended on it, and when did you last think that about any Irish band?
Earlier, Michele Ann Kelly, with her sidekick guitarist Max from Italy, battled against the Eurovision final and the Munster rugby celebrations, and eventually won over a distracted audience. ‘Somebody Someday’ was particularly relevant, given the Afghan protest in Dublin, while Kelly brought her soothing and reassuring voice to ‘When You Fall’ which even brought out the air drummer in a member of the audience, and ‘Close To Midnight’ had a subdued country feel to it. Kelly is a confident and sparky stage performer with a bag of nourishing songs that deserve to be heard far beyond these shores.