Reviews: These Charming Men at Whelan’s, Dublin and Absolute Bowie at Islington Academy, London
Originally published on 11th January, 2020
It is a sad sign o’ the times when some of the only bands worth going to see are tribute acts – but that is where we are two decades into the new millennium, the result of brain-rotting ‘social media’ and vacuous conveyor-belt karaoke ‘talent’ shows. Depressing as it is to consider that there might never again spring forth the likes of The Smiths or David Bowie, we can still dream, and what better way to indulge such fantasies than to immerse ourselves in the sights and sounds of the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s?
I first saw Dublin northsiders These Charming Men in 1999, then again a year later, then life got busy and I forgot they existed. They were probably only in their late 20s and early 30s back then, but it turns out they’ve been doing this non-stop all this time and still play many times a year.
Proof of the devotion Morrissey and The Smiths still inspire was abundant at this show, which was uncomfortably full and included many a youngster who would have been about two or three years old the last time I saw These Charming Men play. Guitarist Gavin Murphy opened proceedings by playing a few songs from his debut solo album, with his son joining him onstage in a Smiths t-shirt (credit to him for passing on the torch to the next generation). Ordinarily I have little patience for the unfortunate support act, but some of his tunes were genuinely memorable and very Morrissey-like, so good for him.
The main event did not disappoint – all classics covered with the notable exceptions of ‘I Know It’s Over’, ‘Sheila Take A Bow’ and ‘Meat Is Murder’, the singer’s voice and impersonation were spot-on and the two guitarists extremely impressive. Highly recommended.
A short hop across the Irish Sea and a week or two later saw me witness Absolute Bowie marking four years since the great man’s passing with this, their annual big London show, which they must look forward to immensely after 12 months playing places like Tropic at Ruislip (a suburban football club-house). For the band it’s probably great, but for the audience, the Islington Academy is an awful venue – Arctic-grade air conditioning and terrible toilets, along with a distinctly un-glamorous crowd, considering who we were all here to pay homage to (though the latter is admittedly not the venue’s fault, and perhaps some of the 60-somethings here were once cool).
Now this is a really awesome group – each of the five members a master of his craft, and in frontman John O’Neil they have found a hugely enthusiastic and committed Thin White Duke. He seems to have done away with the Ziggy-era silver skirt he wore when I saw them three years ago, but then he is 54, so playing Bowie when he was in his 20s at all is a very admirable feat. No ‘Absolute Beginners’ or ‘Scary Monsters’, sadly, but we had a two-hour run-through of every period from ‘Hunky Dory’ right up to ‘Let’s Dance’, and four costume changes.
Given that the show took place on the actual anniversary of Bowie’s death, it was very moving when O’Neil pointed to the sky and noted that without the master, none of us would have been there – he also reminded us that no matter what era got us into Bowie, his magic would never leave us, and even included a reminder to “keep a little Marc [Bolan] in your heart”, also quoting Wilde at another juncture, all in his imitably camp-working class-‘Carry On’ accent.
Absolute Bowie play throughout England constantly, and occasionally Ireland and elsewhere – support them in their mission to keep our hero’s music alive.