Writing this on a train to Kildare as it has just turned to Sunday the 15th December.
The Frank and Walters delivered another stellar yearly Whelans gig. An intimate venue that you wouldn’t expect to be as high energy as it was.
Before and during the concert I met many familiar faces from last year’s Whelans gig who were all absolutely pleasant to talk to, including a couple travelling from Ipswich and a woman travelling from Toronto to see them.
The cork pop rock outfit absolutely tore the crowd in Whelans, I don’t think there was a point I stopped jumping and moshing, as I’m writing this my legs feel as if they have fallen off of me out of pure exhaustion.
Hits like “Colours” and “Fashion Crisis hits New York” had the crowd jumping and singing, others like “Landslide” and “How can I Exist” had the crowd emotional and also still jumping and singing, and the monumental Irish classic “After All” had the crowd in an absolute craze.
The Frank and Walters proved once again why they are Irelands premier statesmen of the indie scene, I’ve never seen a crowd more excited, more friendly and more wild.
As an aside from the performance, talking to the band after the show all of them were so kind and delightful to talk to, I got the lot of them to sign my first edition cassette of “Trains, Boats and Planes”, and got the lead singer Paul to sign my t shirt.
Overall one of the most energetic, emotional and enjoyable concert experiences I’ve had in a long time.
Stage Setup: 8/10, Simple but effective stage setup delivered a nice intimate yet energetic gig.
Band Performance: 10/10, the band are extremely tight and extremely on it night after night, sounding identical to the records and still somehow unique as a live experience.
Support: 10/10, Kilkenny outfit The Souther Fold delivered pure southern country bliss (or at least as southern in the country that Kilkenny is), and are one of the best supports I may have ever seen.
Merchandise: 11/10, still my favourite piece of concert merchandise of all time is my blue franks t shirt with the phrase “Who’s the Langer in the Franks T Shirt” written on the back, and this year they one upped it, not only did I pick up a Who’s the Langer T Shirt in another colour, they had their new 2025 Cork City FC away kit Jersey with the Frank and Walters written on the back collar and After All written around the sleeves.
Crowd: 11/10, The best crowd I’ve been in at a concert. There is genuinely nothing I can say to describe it, you’ll just have to go next time.
Overall: 10/10, The Frank and Walters have now solidified what will become my yearly Christmas tradition of attending their Whelans gig, or maybe even their Cyprus Avenue gig next.
Up Next: Elle Coves, The Academy 2, 21/12/24
Jays Concert Blog 