It's a pointer towards Tyler Childers' flourishing career that this evening's show takes place at a venue with a capacity three times greater than the Kentuckian's first date in Ireland in 2020. The tickets being snapped up within hours of going on sale also suggests that Childers could have comfortably sold out a number of nights in Dublin.
The support act this evening is West Virginian, John R Miller, returning to Ireland following his dates last year on the double-header with J.P. Harris. His well-received forty-minute set includes Shenandoah Shakedown and Looking Over My Shoulder from his 2021 album, DEPRECIATED.
It's the opening night of Tyler Childers' eleven-date tour of Europe, but there is no sign of anything approaching 'teething problems' in his one-hour, forty-five-minute, and twenty-four-song set. His powerful vocals stand out, and his band are razor sharp, both aided by a near-perfect sound in the venue.
He opens with the only cover song in the set, a blistering country-gospel take on Hank Williams' Old Country Church, before introducing his band. Five of these players, Craig Burletic (bass guitar), Rodney Elkins (drums), James Barker (pedal steel and electric guitar), "The Professor" Jesse Wells (guitars, fiddle and banjo) and CJ Cain (guitar), are long time members of his band, the latest addition being keyboard maestro, Matt Roland. A well-oiled machine, their collective playing is dazzling, and they appear to be savouring the experience of being back ‘doing what they do.’
Childers' engagement is courteous, self-deprecating and humorous. He tells of his relief at keeping jet lag at bay, despite different time zones on his recent travels to Hawaii, Nashville, Kentucky and Los Angeles for the Grammys (described by him as a 'celebrity safari'). He also genuinely repeats on numerous occasions his appreciation for the audiences and their engagement.
Half of the setlist is taken from his most commercially successful albums, COUNTRY SQUIRE (2019) and PURGATORY (2017). Highlights, of which there are many, include electrifying renditions of Bus Route (with extended piano and acoustic guitar outros), All Your'n, which merges into Purgatory, and the haunting instrumental Two Coats. Another standout is Born Again, described by Childers as a 'Hillbilly Reincarnation.' An acoustic solo four-song set also features, opening with Nose On The Grindstone, after which the crowd breaks into an extended chorus of Olé! Olé! Olé Olé! Childers' reaction switches from initial shock and surprise to ear-to-ear grinning at this impromptu response. Lady May, Bottles and Bibles, and Follow You To Virgie are also performed in the solo acoustic set.
Ditching the often-overdrawn drama of an encore, he announces that 'we're going to play a few more songs and then a few more.' With the band in full throttle, they finish with the beat-heavy Universal Sound and a rousing Heart You've Been Tendin.’
Looking around the room, I'm heartened by the age profile in attendance. A father stands beside me with his three teenage daughters; a married 'middle-aged' couple is next to me, and the demographic is a number of generations younger than the turnout for visiting roots acts for many years. It's been a long time coming - with little help from the music industry – but real 'modern country' music is finally making its mark. Tyler Childers, alongside others like Charley Crockett, Colter Wall, Sturgill Simpson and Ashley McBryde, deserve massive credit for sticking to their guns despite the lack of industry support and creating markets for themselves. That is very much on display this evening, and without a doubt, Childers will be headlining large festivals shortly. In the meantime, it's a memory worth cherishing, witnessing him and his comrades strutting their stuff so impressively in a smaller venue.
Review and Photography by Declan Culliton