Ash - Rosemount Hotel, 28th March 2023
Words: Todd Lockley
Northern Ireland’s legendary indie sweethearts Ash at an all but sold-out Rosemount Hotel on a Tuesday night! It was one for the nostalgic shoe gazers who had grown up aching for that special girl or boy towards the end of the nineties. Every mix tape back in the day had one or two Ash classics on it and tonight would not disappoint! 30 years in the making and well worth the wait!
Local sweethearts Rinehearts kicked things off with a bubbly rendition of Goodness and they kept the near capacity early crowd in their hands from woah to go, playing the "awkward" support band spot. They moseyed their way through songs from their debut album including title track Can't Do Nothing and You Don't Have To Lie.
The inclusions of Olga Sigurthorsdottir and the guitar wielding and wailing Nici Ward from Lonesome Dove complimented the pretty harmonies of front man Benny Ward, mixing a little Ben Lee meets Jebediah sound with a Tim Rodgers-esque delivery. New single Powerlines was fun and I Don't Mind was a great way to finish up a solid appetiser. Check these guys out as soon as you can!
After a short turn around, the three lads from Ash rolled onto the stage to the chatter from classic album 1977 and launched straight into one of their greatest tracks, Goldfinger, signalling what would be a fun filled sing a long night, with many different accents echoing through the electric Rosie air. A Life Less Ordinary made an early entry, but it was fourth song Oh Yeah that caught these legends in their prime!
There seemed to be a great divide amongst the fans in attendance; either an original 1977 era fan or a Charlotte era fan. Either way, everyone enjoyed each other's company as the melancholy moments came thick and fast.
Lead axe man Timmy Wheeler always had it; sultry vocal, with the good looks and sweet delivery. However, witnessing bass genius Mark Hamilton in action was worth every cent of admission. The guy is a beast! Slicing his bass at fans in the front row like a lightsaber, striking more rock poses than a Kiss concert and facial expression that Dean Fucking Ween would be proud of.
Angel Interceptor got the biggest reaction of the night and why wouldn't it, with such bittersweetness. It's amazing how a band can be so sweet and tender and rock so hard at the same time. When Hamilton launched over the barrier to bust out his bass in the crowd, things went up a notch. Buzzkill was awesome and Cocoon thumped hard.
Rounding out the main set came those two songs you had forgotten about; the one that kicked it all off for Ash, Girl from Mars, which had a mini mosh happening down the front and Kung Fu, with everyone losing their shit.
After a short encore chant the boys returned to raucous applause and those in attendance were treated to Jesus Says and closer Burn Baby Burn. As the boys laid on the stage to take one last photo with an Aussie crowd, it signalled not just the end of the end of the show but the end of their tour down under. After getting up, Ash, looking pretty bloody pleased with themselves, treated the crowd to a three-arm linked bow. And so they should have… Ooooooh yeah! They rocked!
Local sweethearts Rinehearts kicked things off with a bubbly rendition of Goodness and they kept the near capacity early crowd in their hands from woah to go, playing the "awkward" support band spot. They moseyed their way through songs from their debut album including title track Can't Do Nothing and You Don't Have To Lie.
The inclusions of Olga Sigurthorsdottir and the guitar wielding and wailing Nici Ward from Lonesome Dove complimented the pretty harmonies of front man Benny Ward, mixing a little Ben Lee meets Jebediah sound with a Tim Rodgers-esque delivery. New single Powerlines was fun and I Don't Mind was a great way to finish up a solid appetiser. Check these guys out as soon as you can!
After a short turn around, the three lads from Ash rolled onto the stage to the chatter from classic album 1977 and launched straight into one of their greatest tracks, Goldfinger, signalling what would be a fun filled sing a long night, with many different accents echoing through the electric Rosie air. A Life Less Ordinary made an early entry, but it was fourth song Oh Yeah that caught these legends in their prime!
There seemed to be a great divide amongst the fans in attendance; either an original 1977 era fan or a Charlotte era fan. Either way, everyone enjoyed each other's company as the melancholy moments came thick and fast.
Lead axe man Timmy Wheeler always had it; sultry vocal, with the good looks and sweet delivery. However, witnessing bass genius Mark Hamilton in action was worth every cent of admission. The guy is a beast! Slicing his bass at fans in the front row like a lightsaber, striking more rock poses than a Kiss concert and facial expression that Dean Fucking Ween would be proud of.
Angel Interceptor got the biggest reaction of the night and why wouldn't it, with such bittersweetness. It's amazing how a band can be so sweet and tender and rock so hard at the same time. When Hamilton launched over the barrier to bust out his bass in the crowd, things went up a notch. Buzzkill was awesome and Cocoon thumped hard.
Rounding out the main set came those two songs you had forgotten about; the one that kicked it all off for Ash, Girl from Mars, which had a mini mosh happening down the front and Kung Fu, with everyone losing their shit.
After a short encore chant the boys returned to raucous applause and those in attendance were treated to Jesus Says and closer Burn Baby Burn. As the boys laid on the stage to take one last photo with an Aussie crowd, it signalled not just the end of the end of the show but the end of their tour down under. After getting up, Ash, looking pretty bloody pleased with themselves, treated the crowd to a three-arm linked bow. And so they should have… Ooooooh yeah! They rocked!