Live Link Concert Review
Vin Rellis

10 February 1989

Let's begin with superlatives. This gig brought forth all the great emotions and feelings that have existed within human beings since the dawn of time. Let's add some blind praise. To say that Kalle Ryan's gig on Saturday night was extraordinary would simply be a feeble attempt to verbalise the singlemost important rock event since Woodstock, (and now for a dash of unabashed idolatry) if not the most important ever. Settling into calm fervour now. The show elicited feelings of ecstasy, humility, joy, potency, anger and fragility. And now rounding out the paragraph with the smug self-congratulatory bit. Feelings more often associated with reading Joyce, wandering in the Alps or simply sipping sherry at a brothel in Paris.

And so, onto the review proper. Cue warm yellow rivulet down trouser leg. Tonight's performance was the opening leg of the European "Footsteps in Chalkdust" tour, so we truly expected an event. Before the show even began we were subjected to strip naked at the entrance and endure a gruelling one hour 'Gestapo Style' interview (Patrons had been asked to arrive early). Fully clothed and conversational again, we were showered with flaky pastry, apparently 'symbolizing man's fragility and in equal parts, his proficiency with baked goods,' according to the press package. The hot dogs on sale at the venue were both hot and dogs. In lieu of an opening act, the onstage screens lured the audience into Kalle's world by showing them his documentary on the ancient Irish art of making Poteen. Amidst a cacophony of vacuum cleaners, clarinets and controlled explosions, Kalle entered the stage on a Harley Davidson clutching a small pistol. Firing two flares into the night sky, he signalled that the show was underway. As the energetic opening bars of "No problem, I'll do what you tell me" drifted out over the sound system, Kalle introduced the members of his band, two of whom he sacked mid-song. Wide eyed and hungry, the audience went into a frenzy as the band then immediately followed with a sure steady rendition of "Defrosting chicken breasts." By stamping such early authority, Kalle was able to take the assembled masses through an evening of musical magic. Not content to simply play his "hits," he experimented by playing new compositions, in addition to dark new interpretations of "Shiny Happy People" and "Tequila." The highlight of the evening was reserved for the encore when Kalle returned onstage entirely nude and performed a stripped down version of the current single "Baa Baa Black Sheik," followed by an explosive reggae interpretation of "Now that we've found love" by Heavy D and the Boyz. Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain seated.

Here come the platitudes. A night to remember for many a year. Kalle Ryan is a unique voice in a dense forest of ineptitude and with live performances of this calibre, we can only hope that he continues to grow for a very long time. Dash of pathos to close. This night was as close in spirit to the elation felt the morning after you have kissed someone you have liked for a long time.

(Five bottles out of five)