Sails at The Workman’s Club (Review)

Sails are a young Dublin band formed from a group of BIM students. They opened for The Hard Ground at The Workman’s Club on Thursday (25^th April).

They kicked off the gig at about 9.20 with an earthily beautiful track with a djembe for percussion. Normally they would play with a full kit but as they were missing their bassist they performed their songs more acoustically. The male and female lead singers harmonised beautifully in opening track Not for the evening. The more melancholy Winning Wars followed quickly-a track with a slight reminiscence of the Coronas, if mostly due to their pleasantly Irish sound. Other parts of the set had similarities with Of Mice and Men with the harmonies and striking instrumental moments. Inkmaps had a much more upbeat feel and tempo and new song Winter’s ropes was a much louder and more powerful number.

They finished with a crescendo of speed, volume and rhythmic tambourine with ever so slightly country Hallowe’en-a newly written song.

The set was really enjoyable and fit well with the act to follow. The use of the djembe, while not their usual style, really gave them a unique sound and allowed more emphasis on the vocals and made it easier to hear all the instrumental elements to the music. Sails really set the mood for the evening and warmed up the crowd with a fantastic set. For such a young group they really made an impression.

For more details about Sails, check out their Facebook page and Soundcloud.

Review by Kat Clinch