FM104’s The Gig

FM104’s The Gig

What can you buy for €45? A used game for your Playstation/Xbox/PC/Switch? I guess. Or a ticket to see 6 Irish acts performing in the Olympia Theatre in aid of ISPCC Childline on a Friday night? Yeah, you can definitely buy that too.

ICYMI, FM104’s The Gig in aid of ISPCC Childline was on Friday the 13th of September and Craig Cooney, Wyvern Lingo, Soule, Chasing Abbey, Wild Youth and Gavin James donated their time and bucket loads of talent to the cause. So if you don’t fancy doing the maths, that’s €7.50 to see each act but all your money goes to help the most vulnerable children in Ireland.

The Charity

The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) is Ireland’s national child protection charity and their goal is to make the protection of children everyone’s priority. They provide services and support to the young people of Ireland including Childline, the free 24-hours a day/365-days a year national listening service for young people in Ireland (for more information visit childline.ie) and that is only one of the services they provide! They also advise the Irish Government on policy and practice change and work with state agencies, employers, industries, schools and various organisations to build awareness of risks to children. They are heavily dependent on fund-raising and donations in order to continue helping children in Ireland and for more information on the ISPCC, their campaigns and services or to even make a donation visit ISPCC.ie.

The Gig

With doors opening at 6:30 and 6 acts to get through, it didn’t take long for Craig Cooney to appear on stage. Relatively new to most people in attendance, the freestyle rapper/songwriter/singer/performer was nominated by Talent Nation to open the event and didn’t disappoint showing he earned and deserved his spot on stage. From his humble start, rapping in his room, to opening The Gig, the whole thing must have been a surreal experience for Craig and it was hard not to smile along with him as he beamed at the audience. Craig Cooney is definitely an artist to keep an eye on because Friday’s performance certainly won him plenty of new followers. Check him out on Facebook and YouTube (Craig Cooney Music) and Instagram to hear some of his music and see what he can do. My personal favourite is the track ‘Proud’ which you can find here. 

Following on from Craig, were the three wonderfully talented ladies of Wyvern Lingo, Karen, Saoirse and Caoimhe, who kept the crowd bopping with their bluesy rhythms and almost a capella tracks. The ladies sang with well practised harmonies, a sure sign of all the time they’ve spent together as musicians, and as always had an infectious beat at the core of their melodies. Their wonderful blend of R&B and indie music also included one of my favourites of theirs, ‘I Love You, Sadie’ and all too quickly the lovely ladies in white were done for the night. It’s clear that these Bray ladies are a force to be reckoned with as the crowd enjoyed their performance as much as they did. For more info on the amazing Wyvern Lingo go to wyvernlingo.com or find them on social media and if you’re looking for more of their music their self-titled debut album is always available to listen to on Spotify and I highly recommend it.

Soulé is an artist that exudes confidence in all that she does. The London born Balbriggan girl showed no fear as she stepped on stage and her entire set was electronic pop of the highest calibre and, when Soulé brought out her absolute banger “Love Tonight”, it didn’t take long for the crowd to sing back the catchy earworm chorus back to her. Personally, I love her track ‘What Do You Know’ and her catchy rhythms and bass lines make her songs perfect candidates to lodged in your head plus her latest EP ‘Love Cycle’ is absolutely worth a listen. Just by how she performs and the way that Soulé has created so many absolute crackers already, you know this young woman is onto something amazing and destined to kill it regardless of what she chooses to do. You can of course find Soulé on Spotify and social medias along with her official website souleofficial.com

Donning their signature tracksuits, the lads of Chasing Abbey took to the stage to a warm welcome and, at this rate, the Olympia should feel like a second home for these gents. Opening with ‘6 o’clock’ from their latest EP The Odyssey Project, Chasing Abbey were well able to keep the audience bouncing and singing along to some of their best known singles including ‘Choices’, ‘That Good Thing’ and ‘Talk To Me’. The bis, Ro, Bee and Teddy C, along with their DJ were energetic and got the crowd jumping and singing along and brought up the energy level. Their final song was a call and response, starting very very slowly to get the crowd in on the act and ending with that repeated phrase “Cause that’s how it is where you’re from, OK.” One of us (hint: not me) is very partial to the lads of Chasing Abbey and, as always, we recommend you check out their EP and their latest single ‘Dominos’ on Spotify and keep up to date with the Tullamore natives on Twitter and Instagram.

Long Time No See. That’s how Wild Youth decide to welcome you into their set. Building from one man on stage to five, including session bassist Twiggy, Wild Youth’s energy is set to 11 from the get go and is relentless. Front man, David Whelan, bounces and spins across the stage giving the Olympia audience a glimpse into the future as Wild Youth prepare for their winter tour and their two night stay at the Olympia in December. When their music is on the radio is hands down sad upbeat pop songs but on stage their is a big difference and it’s apparent why they’re growing at a phenomenal rate. Cruising through some of their more well known tracks in the form of singles and EP bops and a new song to some, and hopefully the next single, ‘Anywhere With You’ with well practised precision, Wild Youth close their set with their 2018 anthem ‘Can’t Move On’ much to the crowd’s approval. You can find Wild Youth on Spotify and all the usual social medias (@bandwildyouth) and, if you really enjoy what you hear, tickets are available for most dates on ticketmaster.ie

When a set begins with confetti cannons and ‘Glow’, you just know that Gavin James is set to get the crowd moving and dancing to his acoustic guitar and unique falsetto. With tracks like the iconic ‘Always’, ‘Hearts On Fire’ and ‘Nervous’ in his arsenal, it’s clear that getting the audience to sing along is not an issue for Gavin. Accompanied, almost all the time, by an audience of backing singers, Gavin’s set has so many recognisable songs and moments of sheer joyful mayhem (looking at you ‘Hearts On Fire’). Gavin reminisced about being an act at The Gig before and noting how his high notes weren’t going to be as easy to reach when he was performing at 50 but, for right now, every time those confetti cannons go off Gavin’s face is beaming. After a brief visit to the standing crowd, Gavin returns to the stage and invites any remaining artists to join him on stage for the grand finale of ‘Only Ticket Home,’…..more confetti!!! and that is how you end on a real high note. Gavin can of course be found travelling all over the world and tickets might still be available on ticketmaster.ie if you act fast and, of course, you can find Gavin on Instagram and Twitter and his music is on Spotify for your enjoyment. Enjoy some of the happiest sad songs around.

Overall

Overall, The Gig really is a showcase of Irish talent for a fantastic cause and the brain child of some very enterprising people in FM104. This event brings music and fund-raising together in perfect harmony and, at €45 a ticket, it isn’t overly expensive either considering the calibre of acts that volunteer their time for the event and for a very worthy cause. Besides, as Rita Pierson said, “every child deserves a champion who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be.” Be that champion.