Dan Byrne, Fireheart and Kit Trigg
Sheffield Corporation
Wednesday, April 1
Kit Trigg
The bundle of joy that is Kit Trigg bounds out, fires up his guitar and bathes the Corporation in his surf style songs that sound like a sunny day. Sweet of smile and humble of stage banter, Kit always seems so happy to be on stage and spreading feel good vibes (‘I Gotta Red Strat’), go live your life cos the stakes are so damn high anthems (‘Making It’), and screw the doubters/haters/dickheads soundtrack ‘Snake in the Grass’. There are cares and sadness in there too. ‘Grow With the Flow’ about the loss of Kit’s dear friend is a set staple sung with such emotion every single time. It’s a beautiful tribute and the almost capacity crowd make it all the more touching by being silent throughout. Launching straight into ‘Light at the End of the Tunnel’ the trio bring back the high and happy feels. Closing on ‘Goin’ For Glory’, Kit and his band leave the crowd glowing a little brighter than when they came in.
Fireheart
Fireheart? Fired out of a cannon more like. And a confetti one at that with the vibrance and colour these five hype men bring to the Corp. The Fireheart boys warned yer girl pre gig that they were different off stage to on it, and the transformation from chilled and chatty to charging across the stage and constantly interacting with the room is the kind that makes you widen your eyes and mutter ‘shit’ under your breath. Split personalities is an understatement. Because fuck, these boys have been through some serious shit, and in some cases are still in the midst of mental and physical health struggles – and more. The energetic, emphatic, Fireheart are a safe space (unless you find yourself in the unlikely situation of sharing their stage - where even drummer Chris is in danger of being fallen into at any point. From storming in with adrenalin shot anthem ‘Wild Hearts; Wild Nights’, giving everyone a bit of a breather with slightly slower ‘(Good is) Good Enough’, through to the tender guitar intro and soaring singalong lyrics of ‘Staring at the Sun’, Fireheart play fast, focused, unique rock n roll. And it’s underpinned by understanding the importance of giving everyone a good time and connecting with their crowd. Oh, and this is only their tenth show together as a band. Sure they sound good. But seeing is believing kids…
Dan Byrne
What a voice. What. A. Voice. Hitting every note and meaning each lyric, Dan Byrne is mesmerising as he sings his way through his soul-soaked pure rock set and is engaging and entertaining as he chats in between songs. He’s pretty much sold out The Corp tonight and this has gotta be the last tour Dan’s gonna be playing in venues this size. His voice is about a bazillion times bigger than he is – and his stadium-sized yet always intimate songs can’t be contained in this small space for much longer. Following sheer full throttle opener ‘Saviour’ with the heart-stopping, head back and scream seduction of ‘Like Animals’, Dan lights the touchpaper. Raw and emotional rollercoaster ‘Easier’ could make you cry. Well, it made yer girl go get a tissue at any rate. New track ‘Cherry and Leather’ is super heavy and the sleazy gospel vibe of ‘Praise Hell’ soaks into the enthralled Sheffield faithful tonight. Dan’s cover of Audioslave’s ‘Show Me How to Live’ has such a grinding groove it’s almost indecent. Penultimate song of the set ‘Hard to Breathe’ actually does feel claustrophobic with the imploring passion and power Dan puts into it, and you just wanna absorb every single second of last song ‘Death of Me’. Recorded, his songs are timeless classics as soon as they are released. Live, he’s the artist you cancel all plans for when he comes to town. Because Dan Byrne is one of the very best.
Dan Byrne
Fireheart
