Live Report: James Vincent McMorrow at Trinity Summer Series

James Vincent McMorrow, in his signature getup of an Indiana Jones hat and navy button-down, strolled onstage with his band for the second night of Trinity’s Summer Series. Someone in the crowd points out he’s wearing exactly the same thing as last time she saw him perform, “but I’m totally okay with it.”

Sunlight illuminated Trinity’s Pavilion bar across the field as the band broke into the first riff of ‘Get Low.’ McMorrow wasted no time stretching his vocal chords until they were like a balloon about to burst. Backed by the harmonies of Theodora Byrne and Jill Deering, a stunning wave of sound swept over the campus-turned-venue.

The crowd-- which McMorrow said was the largest in Dublin he’s ever performed for-- cheered ferociously every time his engine of a voice drove through an impressive range of dulcet notes and raspy falsettos. It’s no surprise he was sipping a cup of tea between songs.

The band sailed through the first tracks of the set, which included ‘Breaking Hearts’ and ‘Down the Burning Ropes.’ Each song began softly, with either an ambient chord, guitar riff or beat, and steadily layered each instrument until it ended in a soaring culmination of sound. The structure felt formulaic at times, but the crowd still turned electric at every musical peak.

McMorrow didn’t address the crowd until after his fifth song. The singer wanted to pack in as many songs as he could.

“I only have an hour and a half and I don’t want to bore you with my shite-ing on,” he said.

The set moved into it’s mellow portion, and McMorrow belted out ‘National,’ the one song he played from his newest album True Care. In what appears to be a dose of humility, he seemed to only want to please the crowd with old favourites.

McMorrow’s band, which also included drummer Paul Kenny and bassist Joe Furlong, re-joined him onstage for the “awkward dance portion” of the set, which included an explosive performance of the track ‘Evil.’

The crowd was chanting for an encore before the band even left the stage. McMorrow obliged and came back for ‘And If My Heart Should Somehow Stop’ and ‘If I Had a Boat.’ The consummate professional, McMorrow sang his final reverberating note at 10.30 precisely. But it’s less easy to make the crowd oblige to noise ordinances.