BILLY MAHONIE + HOMESCIENCE
London Dublin Castle 10th July 2001
A packed venue for this low-key live premiere of some material from Billy Mahonie's next album 'What Becomes Before'.
Homescience (one album out on Damaged Goods, don't know much else about them) are on before Billy M, and there are obviously a good few people who have come to see them, judging by the reaction. I thought they started off sounding quite lame - more of the usual indie-jangle, but they had won me over by the end. Tuneful indie-pop not a million miles away from I am Kloot and the La's, it seems that their album may actually be worth investigating.
Billy Mahonie though, really rise to the occasion, playing one of the best gigs I've seen them do. The set is nearly all new material, carrying on from where 'the Big Dig' left off. If anything the arrangements sound fuller, maybe even more like a decent metal band than the post-rock noodling they get lumped in with. Still instrumental, still two basses and one guitar, but there seems to be more going on this time around. The band members all interact really well, and although I haven't heard the recorded versions, I imagine these songs are being stretched in all directions. They've certainly wet our appetites for the new album.
BILLY MAHONIE
London Oxford St Borders 29th September 2000
I reckoned that I had got a handle on Billy Mahonie by now. I had them down as instrumental post-rockers with a tendency towards abrasive metal, so it was mainly curiosity that led me to check them out in Borders bookshop. What would the punters think? Would they send people running from the reference and DIY sections in fear?
However I didn't count on BM doing an acoustic set! Despite a bit of a delay the four Mahonie guys take their seats and launch into an acoustic version of 'Watching People Speaking' which, if you know the version on the album, is probably even more of a surprise! It works too, and although the band do seem a bit nervous with their new temporary direction the assembled bunch of fans are more than happy.
What ensues is one of the best sets I've seen in this bookshop (and I've seen a lot of people play here). For the best part of an hour they play some mellower material from 'The Big Dig', some new songs (best of which seemed to be 'The Day Without End') and just to underline the surrealness of the occasion they add some banjo (!) to a couple of songs and close with a fine cover of Little Feat's 'Willin'.
A bizarre gig then, but one that for bravery and entertainment value deserves credit.
