Lou Barlow at the ICA

Lou Barlow

ICA, 26 November 2025

It was an evening of stories, banter, laughs and plenty of songs from Lou Barlow's long career in the alternative rock world, from Dinosaur Jr to Sebadoh to Folk Implosion, all in the intimate and friendly setting of the ICA. And apparently this show was all in aid of Barlow's wife getting to see My Bloody Valentine in Dublin: how lucky for us?!

St. Vincent at the ICA

Photo from St. Vincent's MySpace

St. Vincent

Blue Roses
ICA, 8 July 2009
Recently just about every new British female singer-songwriter that comes along sounds like they grew up listening to Kate Bush. It's a weird phenomenon considering that most of these young women are in their early 20s and Ms Bush hasn't exactly had the largest output over the last 20 years. But maybe these things need time to gestate and it's certainly a worthy testament to Kate's unique talent that her influence is finally so easy to see and that the acts she has inspired all happen to be excellent - think Bat For Lashes, Florence + The Machine, Marina & The Diamonds. The latest you can add to that list is Laura Groves aka Blue Roses, a cute-as-a-button Shipley singer whose self-titled debut is full of haunting acoustic laments that equally recall the stark beauty of Joni Mitchell's early albums, the more ethereal side of Stevie Nicks and, of course, the eerie yearnings of Kate Bush.

The Mars Volta at the ICA

 
The Mars Volta
ICA, 18 June 2009

The first time I saw The Mars Volta was as a fairly slim (compared to now) five-piece back in 2002, supporting Les Savy Fav. I was one of the few in the crowd specifically there for them, but despite the lack of a big crowd they were electrifying, combining all the energy of the At The Drive-In days with a new musical confidence (plus at the time they had a kick-ass female bassist - always a bonus). By the time I saw them again headlining their own show the following year they had attracted an army of dedicated fans since the release of their debut album De-Loused In The Comatorium, changed personnel, become even more assured and turned into this jazz-inspired, jam-friendly rock monster. It was a pretty epic transformation and, maybe because my fragile little mind couldn't take it, hearing my favourite songs from the album turned into sometimes pretty unrecognisable 30-minute jams was a bit much for me at the time.

Elvis Perkins at the ICA

Elvis Perkins In Dearland
ICA, 6 April 2009

It's been almost two years since I last saw Elvis Perkins In Dearland. Last time they were winding down the tour in support of Elvis' incredibly moving debut album Ash Wednesday. Live he had taken the downbeat songs and with his talented band, added a more joyous, celebratory feel to his music. His new album carries on that feeling, so it's no surprise to see a fiddle, double bass, trombones and other fun instruments litter the stage but it is a surprise to see Elvis himself (his real name: dad Anthony Perkins - that's right the Psycho actor - named him after his rock n' roll hero).