Take the Stage

OLUND/LIRIELLE/THE BRIDGE/ST BRIGIDS

Duffy's 26th February 2026

I always enjoy visiting Duffy's Bar, always warm and friendly... and last night was for Luke's "Take the Stage" event... a bit of a mixed bag, but a thoroughly enjoyable evening... and good to see Luke himself back

First up was an artist totally new to me, Olund... I am not a fan of the use of laptops and backing tracks... however well constructed the backing tracks they seldom sound fully connected with the singer, more like karaoke. In this case the backing tracks sounded harsh and loud and Olund just shouted his way through a batch of songs... quite theatrical in style, but with no real substance... The overall sound was just loud and unappealing... sorry but i saw nothing whatever to enjoy about this performance.

Next up things got a bit better, Lirielle was playing only her 4th ever solo gig... Although the nerves showed through, she has a really lovely voice and sings well... her songs are also pretty good and she delivered a fine performance. Unfortunately, she doesnt play an instrument so also used a backing track... much better then the predecessor, but for me totally at odds with her own quite delicate performance. Lirielles voice and singing is relaxed and quite pastoral and would, in my view, be heard to much better advantage accompanied by an empathetic musician, maybe an acoustic guitar, keyboard or violin...in a more compatible setting the obvious quality of her voice and songs would be able to stand out.

Third up... someone i'd heard of but never seen... and what a revelation the Bridge were. The Bridge band formed from music sessions with Luke Broughton at The Bridge "Homelessness to Hope" project and are a real collective of individuals, all dealing with their issues and coming together in the universal language of music... Their material is all original and whether song or poem is delivered with care and sincerity... The musicians are never all on stage at the same time, but come and go and perform in different combinations, each one taking various different roles in the band. Luke himself is up there with them, performing and encouraging.

I absolutely loved this performance... totally inspiring and i cant praise Luke too highly for his work in creating and maintaining this ensemble... do yourself a favour... look out for the Bridge at a local venue and go and see them.. be inspired

Closing the show some high quality raucous rabble rousing in the form of the superb St Brigids... high on the punk attitude, their music ranges from quite poppy, to rock and punk... all played with massive energy and style and a real sense of fun... The material is all original and of a high quality, and having 4 of the band taking lead vocals, as well as harmonies and joint lead vocals, there was great variety in the styles from song to song, but all delivered with the same high quality and infectious energy... fabulous set, loved it!!

keep music live... keep music real... support your local venues