Cedric Has a Name – 14th June 2012

Cedric Has A Name with support from Ciaran Lavery and Best Boy Grip

Thursday 14th June 2012 – Catalyst Arts Centre, Belfast

If you want to launch an EP in a venue that in itself, is a distinguishing space – the Catalyst Arts Centre is the spot. The eerie atmosphere on first entering immediately sets the crowd up for the unforgettable evening. A sofa is set in the middle of this large spacious white room, with a few dim spot-lights, and a projector screen as a back drop to the stage set up. It was a key location for what was a set to be a really unique night.

Ciaran Lavery was first on the line-up, who is more commonly known as the front man of indie folk band, Captain Kennedy. Ciaran appeared on stage with his acoustic guitar and his husky melodic voice filling each corner of the spacious room. Although his unique sound tends to resemble that of the Tallest Man On Earth. The cover Ciaran performed of Bonnie Prince Billy, resulted in a calmness falling over the ever-growing crowd, each new comer trying to sneak in and prevent the bell above the door to ring. Ciaran’s voice was one of the most interesting parts of his performance as he combined soft tones that were almost a whisper accompanying his guitar melody. The crowd were mystified as to how just one man could produce a sound so beautiful that resonated in each corner of the room.

Next up, Best Boy Grip – two voices and a keyboard; the main man Eoin O’Callaghan as always accompanied by Shane McCullough on backing vocals. They performed their song “Monster and Me” from their “EP Barbara”, although this song has poetic lyrics they seemed to get lost somewhere in the large space. However after the second song they seemed to find their way and began to have some banter with the crowd while introducing each song. The two pitches of the different voices worked well off each other and I think their individual sound has filled a gap in our own local music scene. ‘Russian Roulette’ was a catchy wee number, the theatrical sound that they create, shone through particularly in this song and you could easily imagine it being in a musical somewhere in the future. They hassled Cedric for more time for another two songs which they belted out and finished up leaving the audience satisfied. Overall a crowd pleasing performance from Best Boy Grip and their forthcoming album will definitely be worth a listen.

Cedric has a Name, other wise known as Chris Steenson, finally appears on stage to finish what has been an impressive show so far. Before starting he humbly showed appreciation for the other two acts, and questioned how he could follow them. As this evening was to launch Cedric’s EP, “Farewell to Return”. He kicked off with, ‘Empty Avenue’ and continues with a few more from his EP including ‘Last Line’ with a few oldies thrown in to keep the audience happy. The sound Cedric creates with his fender is in many ways endearing. How he manages to draw the audience in, with his insightful lyrics. He forces the audience to pay close attention to the outpouring of emotions he has plowed into each song. He moves over to the keyboard to finish and performs one of his new songs, ‘I wish you well’ this song pulls at the heart strings and was a perfect way to finish what turned out to be a huge success from each performer.

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