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As a fan, watching Fontaines D.C. transform over the past two years has been mesmerising. Their
headline gig at First Direct Arena truly feels like a culmination of their growth as artists.
The green curtain drops, the cheers intensify. As their eerie title track ‘Romance’ is performed, we
finally see what (or who) has been hidden behind the curtain for the opening song. It’s the 5-piece
post-punk band in their best era yet. They immediately follow with fan favourite and arguably one of
their best tracks, ‘Jackie Down the Line’. I have to say, I wasn’t expecting to see as many mosh pits as
I did to this song, but it was so worth it to get the central view of the iconic curtain drop. I guess it
just shows just how passionate Fontaines D.C. fans are, even if that means getting a slight knock
every now and again.
The support act, Sorry, was a great choice for the tour. I’ve been a casual fan of Sorry,
but hearing their genre-bending, grunge-y sound live earned them a quick addition to my playlist.
Sorry can’t be put into any single box or genre category, cementing them as the perfect opener for a
band like Fontaines D.C.
Despite having already seen Fontaines D.C. three days earlier in Manchester, I still felt the same
butterflies in my stomach when the curtain dropped - those same goosebumps when they played
‘Favourite’. Nothing can match that excitement, all-the-more intensified when watching them on an
arena scale. When seeing a performance makes me feel as moved as this, I know I can officially call
them my favourite band.
The band remain pretty static, allowing frontman Grian Chatten’s restless energy to dominate the
stage. He often moves in circles, flailing his arms, sometimes holding a tambourine or even the mic
stand, all while sporting a pair of sunglasses. The staging is just enough not to distract from the
performance - the ‘Romance’ heart from the album cover sits suspended above the band, and the
lighting carries almost every aspect of the stage. It embodies the emotions of the songs, and for me,
the best use of the lighting was when the background curtain split into three colours during ‘I Love
You’. Of course, this was to create the flag of Ireland.
A highlight of the show, as it almost always is, was the encore. Everyone waits in anticipation and
we’re not disappointed when the band take to the stage again with ‘In the Modern World’. The live
version of this song is even more entrancing than the studio. Hearing it live adds another dimension
to the heavy lyrics. Inevitably, everyone is waiting to hear the most popular song from the Skinty Fia
album, ‘I Love You’. It’s obvious that fans have been waiting to scream these lyrics back to the band.
Everyone’s passion is so contagious. It’s often hard to describe why you like a band’s sound so much
but I think ‘I Love You’ is the perfect summary of what Fontaines D.C. are all about musically and
lyrically. On hearing that song, it’s easy to see why they’re so loved.
Fontaines are often described as ‘poetic’ along with being ‘post-punk’. Their lyricism is certainly one
of their strengths with a few of their songs often beginning as poems. Hard-hitting lyrics paired with
a gritty, intense sound which grounds them in their Dublin roots are certainly an addictive
combination, and fans just couldn’t get enough.
I’ll be next seeing Fontaines D.C. next August in Wythenshawe Park, supported by the Irish rap group
Kneecap and the Mercury Prize winners English Teacher. This lineup is a mega showcase of talent,
and I’m intrigued to see what Fontaines has in store for this show and in their future.
Words by Amelia Ritchie (she/her)
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