Ryan Bingham — LIVE REVIEWS

Having a new album to tour brings Ryan Bingham back to Dublin for a sold out show in Whelans. With his new three-piece band he has lost of none of the dynamics and overdrive that has been such a part and parcel of his live oeuvre.

The timbre of his voice is still one of a much older person, with a lifetime of experience. Yet Bingham is still young and draws his wry observations of a world he has encountered, first or second-hand, as he travels and performs. His fourteen song set included a selection of songs taken from all his four albums as he seems to discount a low key, independent debut.

From the current album, Tomorrowland, he naturally played a large selection which included Western Shore, Flower Bomb, Never Far Behind, Guess Who's Knocking and Too Deep To Fill. Earlier albums were represented by Dylan's Hard Rain, Southside of Heaven, Sunrise, Sunshine and Tell My Mother I Miss Her So. These were delivered with a variety of electric guitars that included a couple of Telecasters, a Gibson SG and a Les Paul as well as a host of effects pedals.

For a large part of the set Ryan led the sound on twelve and six string acoustic guitars. The latter lost a string mid-set, though he carried on playing with the offending string hanging loose, much like the band, who backed Bingham with a sense of accomplished abandon. Drummer Matt Sherrod, who played on the new album, with bassist Kelly Sherrod provided a solid rhythmic foundation for Bingham and guitarist Evan Weatherford to weave a rough but colourful cloth of hard guitars that was more rock than roots, although several songs were delivered in a subtler context.

The first two encores showed that Ryan Bingham is a very capable solo performer with his versions of Hallelujah and The Weary Kind, an obvious audience favourite which wasn't on the original set list and had not been included in the set on his last visit. The final encore song was a duel between both guitarists using glass slides for a climaxing and mesmerizing Bread and Water that left the mixed age audience well satisfied with their night out.

Review by Stephen Rapid. Photography by Ronnie Norton

The Sugar Club was not perhaps the best venue for Bingham who seems to prefer the audience upfront and personal and Bingham got everyone on their feet at the show's end. Indeed, due to a 10:30 nightclub curfew, the audience made no move to leave, instead demanding the band return for an encore which they duly did. The encore really rocked with both Bingham and guitarist Corby Schaub playing electric bottleneck slide on a bluesy extended workout.

The show opened with Bingham playing solo with harmonica. The band then launched into Day Is Done with gusto and the gig took off. Front and centre was Bingham's aged gravelly voice, an amazing sound that belies his years. He acknowledged the audience with "How you guys doing? Alright?"before delivering a set that featured songs from all three of his Lost Highway albums which included "a songs for all the mothers out there" Tell My Mother I Miss Her So. Those expecting something akin to his Crazy Heart co-write may have been disorientated by the sheer energy and noise that this band makes. Key to this is drummer Matt Smith and bassist Elijah Ford, both of whom shone, but special mention must go to Smith who drove the band and the sound. Schaub played mandolin and a variety of guitars that blistered in raw intensity. As with many bands, the live set is harder and more powerful that studio versions of the songs could ever be. Perhaps the most interesting section of the set was Bingham talkingof learning to play the guitar with Malaguena, a mariachi inspired version that featured Schaub on mandolin. This largely instrumental number was full of atmosphere and ability and showed Bingham as a skilled guitarist too. Requests came flying from the audience with South Side of Heaven from his first album being a particular favourite. Hard Times from that album also featured. The song Strange Feeling In The Air was prefaced by Ryan's remark that there was a lot of discrimination in the world but that this songs says "fuck to all that".

The set proper closed with a dynamic cover of Townes Van Zandt's Highway Kind which also featured opening act Australian singer/songwriter Liam Gerner on electric guitar. If that had been the closing it would have been a fitting tribute to a hero as well as a great song to end on. But then the audience, as mentioned stayed put and we got that encore. There's not doubt that all there were pleased with the show and that Bingham and the boys will be back.

Review: Steve Rapid Photography: Ronnie Norton