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JADED SUN Eamonn Doran’s 17/11/07

JADED SUN
Eamonn Doran's 17/11/07

On a rainy Saturday night, I took the Luas into town and headed to Doran's to hear

'Jaded Sun'. All I knew about them until then was that they played support at the last 'Bon Jovi' concert in Croke Park.

My nephew's, both musicians themselves gave me the low-down on how terrific this band were. I invited one of them to accompany me. I told him I'd go in early to get a nice place to sit and he warned me I wouldn't be sitting down for long. He was right!

I arrived early enough to see the first two bands and even then, there was already a good crowd building up. The first band 'Shallow Stream' did pretty heavy stuff and were enjoyable enough, the lead guitarist doing some fancy solos. I'd like to hear more of this band's repertoire. The next band 'Geriko' had a very 80's sound going on, but were extremely good, with one particularly memorable song called 'Take me all the way'. It had great riffs and really got the crowd going. Towards the end of this set, my nephew arrived. He commented that they sounded a bit like a band called 'Rage against the Machine'. I couldn't help commenting that they had a 'Squeeze' meets 'Metal' sound to me. Then again my comparisons are bound to be a little dated, as I'm of a slightly older generation of music buffs! There's definitely some excellently heavy distortion throughout a lot of their songs, but with a lot of very close harmony to lighten it!

We moved up towards the front as did most of the people in the place, as the 'Main attraction' took to the stage.

They opened up the act with 'Breaking Through', which is a rockin', fast moving number. The singer, John Maher sings a line as the intro, followed by rhythm, then a lead solo was played on a beautiful 'Gibson Les Paul', by a guitarist that can do it justice; Sean Gosker! John Maher has the most riveting raspy Brian Johnson- type
Awe-inspiring voice and a personality to go with it. The whole place just comes alive as AC/DC-style riffs and buzzing chords are belted out!

"Fever' was number two of the night and for myself and I'm sure all present, there definitely was a feverish frenzy of musical genius going on in this. It begins slow and choppy, as the singer sings 'I've got a fever!' It's not fast but has a great heavy rock beat to it. The chorus brings me back to yester-year and the wonderful and amazing days of Ozzy and 'Black Sabbath' the way it grows and develops to a fast tempo to come back down to slower verse, then back up again. This is a great way of keeping the listener on their toes.

'Higher', with a thumping' beat, great verse and a perfect build-up to a brilliant chorus, was next on the agenda. Lead guitar featuring in the early part of this song is absolutely dazzling, along with the second lead/rhythm guitar, played by Eorann Stafford. That 'Epiphone'guitar is magical, as he adds a touch of distortion in just the right places.
There's a sweet harmony injected into this number, sung by Damien Kelly on Bass. I love the echo-effect in the chorus! At this point in the evening I really felt 'HIGH'. On the 'Jaded Sun' sound!
The way John interacts with the audience is commendable, and definitely gets you feeling like you're being seduced. Cheeky and confident, he introduced what seemed to me like a favourite of his, 'Can't stop'. This got the fans going as they sang each line along with him. It starts with distortion rhythm, ballsy lead intro and goes into a slow verse, to develop to a faster and very catchy chorus. I watched that singer's energy with pleasure, noticing a tattoo on his right forearm. It looked like a 'Jaded Sun' logo or something, but it was cool, whatever it was.
But back to the music! There's an old fashioned 'Rock'n'Roll' style to this, much like one or two of Jon Bon's songs, but some serious guitar riffs not to be ignored, using lots of distortion. The tempo is so totally fast-moving and some amazing harmonics are thrown in for the last chorus.

'Hey you' was a slower number and different to the songs till now. It kinda got me thinking of 'ZZ Top' in the chop-chop rhythm 'n' blues style, with those little riffs at the end of each line. But it's catchy. Don't get me wrong! It just shows that this bunch of guys can be so versatile and it's got an 'OH SO SEXY' Vibe going' on. Wonderful backing vocals by the rest of the band too, giving a nice full sound.

My favourite number of the whole evening was next, 'Do it again'. Performed by this band in Croke Park at the 'Bon Jovi' concert, it gets my adrenalin pumpin'. John took off his t-shirt at this point exposing a nice physique! You just feel the crazy mood he's in and as he gives it everything, you get the vibe that he'd prefer to be gigging in Dublin than the States. I'm glad I had this opportunity to see them in this intimate setting, doing a 'home' gig. Wayne, my nephew commented during the show that the drummer here wasn't the same guy that played at 'Bon Jovi'. All I know is that right now, I couldn't fault the polished, un-ignorable beat in EVERY number. But most especially in this one!

Anyway, this song has a two-guitar intro, with both guitars playing in sync'. Great effect! From the get-go the vocals are alive, loud and rocking. It slows down to a sweet, melodic middle eight. But it climbs back up and WHAM! In –your –face guitar riffs with arrogance are coming at you. John was on the floor, on his knees and screaming out 'Do it again!' Sweat pouring down his chest, place hopping from the rafters. What a gig!

The 8th song in the set, 'Crazyman' starts with a slow guitar then suddenly, zap! You're taken to another level. Urgent and belting drumbeat takes you into a fast, choppy verse.
Chorus has amazing riffs, sliding up and down the frets of the Gibson, and you hear that distortion again. BIG drum rolls and perfect harmonics in the backing vocal throughout the chorus, rivet me to the spot. The guitar solo, played by Sean is magical. Then that two-guitars- in-sync style comes into the last chorus, giving that HEVVY sound!

'She's got class' was the last song of the evening, with a slow but seductive intro.
Drums feature big in this number, as this new drummer proves his ability. Lovely choppy, cheeky beat and lovely sexy guitar riffs using flanger. There's a great combination of both lead and rhythm guitars, not to mention the dirty, metal, bass sounds by Damien. This number has a stomping style, with little riffs throughout the chorus, which is sung in an 'am I tempting you?' way by John. Atmosphere throbbing, as a screaming lead solo is performed.

Of course there was no way that they would finish at this. There were shouts of 'One more song!' Then the band returned to the stage to give an encore. They did a number called 'Take me as I am'. This one had the crowd clapping and had a very Quo-style intro. Great lead riffs in each line as they raised the roof with the chorus. The bass was particularly noticeable in this one. They finished with a huge drum roll.

'Positive' was the final number of the evening. Last but not least, with a POSITIVE beat and a swinging chorus, followed by a beautiful lead solo, this is a number that would put you in great form. There's a weird and wild bit of lead played by both guitars in harmony that is show-stopping. Thumping drums and screaming, powerful vocals bring you to a long drum roll finish, to let you know THIS IS IT! My ears were ringing for some time after this experience but it was definitely worth it. 'Jaded Sun' have got themselves a new groupie. Me!

Angela Macari - O'Looney

Review written by: Angela Macari - O Looney --

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