I AM A CULT HERO supported Noisettes at Dublin's Vicar Street as part of the October tour competiton. here's their blog:
We first saw the Noisettes perform at the Nottingham Arena (UK) on 17th November 2006, supporting Muse on their UK tour. Although we had never heard of them previously, we immediately admired the Noisettes' energy and the post-punk ethos permeating both their material and live performance. Despite having already been friends for years, by this stage we had not formed the band I AM A CULT HERO, and little did we realise that almost three years down the line we would be supporting the Noisettes at the first sold out show of their UK tour...
We stumbled across the Noisettes' myspace blog post purely by accident one evening in late August, and we almost didn't bother responding to it, as it seemed (at least from our point of view) like the chances of ever being picked were so minimal that it would hardly be worth the effort. This rather defeatist attitude was undoubtedly the result of a summer's worth of less-than-successful gigs in Nottingham which, all in all, had left the two of us doubting whether we even wanted to continue the band into 2010. However, something made us leave a response to the Noisettes' blog post along with some 740 other bands and musicians - and the rest, as they say, is history!
We couldn't believe our eyes when we received the email from Sarah, the Noisettes' management representative asking us to play the Dublin show - however, we very quickly picked ourselves up from the floor and began the not-so-insignificant task of arranging flights, accommodation and rehearsal time. Despite hailing from Nottingham, we had originally put ourselves forward for the Vicar Street show for two main reasons: a) because we never seriously thought we'd be offered the gig (particularly over all the Irish bands and musicians who had requested it); and b) our singer, Seán, is of Irish descent and has family in Dublin, and is always looking for an excuse to go over and visit! Considering such significance, we felt extremely honoured and proud to be asked to play in Dublin, of all places.
Having had a fantastic Mullen family reunion at the Shelbourne Hotel on the Friday night, we approached Saturday 10th October with a mixture of rising excitement and adrenaline. After a leisurely start and a brief run through of the set in the hotel room in Ballymun, we clambered aboard a number 13a bus with all our kit and headed into Dublin city centre. We arrived at Vicar Street in time to watch the Noisettes' soundcheck which, in itself, was amazing. We were then shown to our dressing room (complete with a fridge full of ice cold beer) by Caroline, Vicar Street's production manager, who was extremely kind to us throughout. We soundchecked, had dinner, changed our shirts, and before we knew it 8.30pm had arrived, along with the knock on the dressing room door requesting our presence on stage. The lights dimmed, the audience roared and we played out the most unforgettable thirty minutes of our lives! Seán's Irish cousin Maria and her friend Hilary were watching from the front row, which further heightened the emotional significance of the show. The Vicar Street audience were so warm and responsive - playing to them was a real honour, and we would like to use this opportunity to thank the people of Dublin for their support. So many people came up to us during and after the show, thanking and congratulating us, requesting contact details, photographs with us, and so forth. It was almost surreal - we were being recognised after the gig whilst walking through the streets of Dublin and weren't immediately sure how to react!
As if all this wasn't enough, after our slot we were treated to the best view in the house of the Noisettes' show. They are undoubtedly a fantastic live band and created an electrically-charged atmosphere within Vicar Street. Particular highlights were Shingai's jaw-dropping performance and Dan's guitar - playing at various points with his teeth! During the gig, Shingai spoke to the crowd about never giving up on dreams, which naturally struck a particular chord with us that night.
To summarise: an incredible, incredible night. We will never hear the album 'Wild Young Hearts' in quite the same way again. Finally, we would like to extend our thanks to the following: Aiken Promotions and all the staff and sound crew at Vicar Street, for all their warmth, kindness and hospitality; Sarah Wall and Crown Music Management; all our friends and family (particularly Liam Elliott, Maria Mullen and Hilary King); and finally, Shing, Dan and Jamie for allowing us this awe-inspiring opportunity. Thank you.
Ashley Dunn + Seán Elliott = I AM A CULT HERO.