James Vincent McMorrow

Like Bon Iver, this strapping Irish singer songwriter created a spot of self-imposed exile – in this case a beach house – in order to gather his thoughts and record tracks for his eventual debut ‘Early In The Morning’ album. In reality, just another gig as part of a tour, this Brighton Festival event struggled to fill capacity; perhaps not suprising for an artist with just one album under his belt. But his versatile, soulful and falsetto voice has many admirers, and that combined with his rugged, woodsmen look (a de rigeur look a la Dry The River et al), is positively libidinous for some in the audience. Plenty of harmonies dot the set which is heavily geared towards the mournful and downbeat (and leaning precariously close to turgid at times), and while there is nothing in the way of musical flair on offer, the band are tight and conjure enough gravitas to manipulate the emotions. McMorrow seemed to be having the time of his life, perhaps driven by the wonder of how he has arrived at such a place so quickly, so easily…

Concert Hall, Brighton Dome, 20 May 2012
Rating:
Jeff Hemmings