Review Snapshot: Complicated relationships, disappearing band members and some of the best music of the 1970s - a thrilling tale well told in one of the most entertaining rock biographies of recent years. The CLUAS Verdict? 9.5 out of 10 Full Review: When Lindsey Buckingham stood on stage at Dublin's O2 in 2009 and proclaimed that Fleetwood Mac has had a complicated history, he wasn’t lying. Now, in 'The Definitive History of Fleetwood Mac', author Mike Evans covers it all superbly in every detail, including their many tangled love affairs and romances that even Hollywood wouldn’t dare to make a movie about. So let’s get this straight. Buckingham and Nicks were lovers and Christine married John. Mick married Jenny (Patti Boyd’s sister) and Christine had an affair with band member Bob Weston (who passed away in 2012). Mick divorced and remarried Jenny within four months, and Christine dated their lighting director. Jenny slept ... [Read on]

Review Snapshot: The release of new music from Kate Bush is always a monumental event. Seldom is wonderful, but '50 Words For Snow' is her second release this year, and her first studio album of new material in seven years - and as always with Kate, it’s quality not quantity that matters. The CLUAS Verdict: 9 out of 10 Full Review: The album title says it all. This isn’t a Christmas cash-in, but a seasonal album and the topic is definitely snow. The opening number ‘Snowflake’ sets the tone for the album with Kate playing piano while duetting with her son Albert (Bertie) who takes on the soprano role of Aled Jones singing “we’re over a forest / there’s millions of snowflakes” while Kate’s beautiful voice only adds to the mystique and beauty, with a sense of motherly love throughout. On ‘Misty’ Kate falls in love with the Snowman. While some might suggest double entendres to some of the lyrics &ldqu... [Read on]

Review Snapshot: His Royal Purpleness fulfils his appointment in Dublin, at the second time of asking, and makes it up to those disappointed fans first time round, with a show packed with classic hit after hit. The Cluas Verdict:9 out of 10 Full Review: Easily the most eagerly awaited gig in Ireland this year, Prince was determined to make it up to the Irish fans on Saturday night, and he did so, in front of almost 30,000 fans at Malahide castle. Wearing a creamed coloured poncho he walked on stage and started taking photographs of the crowd before opening with ‘Gold’. “I’m sorry it took so long to come to you” he said as an apology before immediately kicking in a storming collection of ‘80s classics. ‘Let’s Go Crazy’, ‘Delirious’, ‘1999’, ‘Little Red Corvette’ and ‘Take Me With U’ followed in quick succession and there was no doubt that he was determined to mak... [Read on]

Review Snapshot:  An 80s heart-throb making his debut appearance in Ireland has the crowd eating out of his hand with a mix of story and song from an illustrious singing and songwriting career that would have even his most cynical critics smiling. The Cluas Verdict: 8.5 out of 10 Full Review: Richard Marx! Now there’s a name from the '80s that we haven’t heard much from lately, but thankfully the man is back with a new album ‘Stories To Tell’, which includes some stripped down covers of his classic hits, and these are what he performed at Dublin’s National Concert Hall during his first ever gig in Ireland. Opening with ‘Endless Summer Nights’ and ‘Take This Heart’, this two hour show basically featured, one man, 2 guitars and a piano, and the occasional assistance of his mate Steve tinkling the ivories, but it really was a one-man show of music and chat, and what stories he told us throughout the evening. ... [Read on]

Review Snapshot: The legendary 1979 album performed in its entirety, coupled with a visual display to rival anything seen in a science fiction movie. This is as good as it gets. The Cluas Verdict? 10 out of 10 Full Review: Roger Waters show at the O2 in Dublin was a visual spectacle from the opening. The half constructed wall, with so many fantastic images projected onto it, dominated from the start of ‘In The Flesh’ and ‘The Thin Ice’. The sound for ‘Another Brick In The Wall (parts 1-3)' was crystal clear, during which the group of young school kids singing the chorus had hair standing on the back on my neck, while the huge Gerald Scarfe school teacher puppet with the large cane in his hand, moved eerily above the children as they sang “Hey Teacher, leave those kids alone”. The tracks were performed in the order they appeared on the album, as the bricks continued to be put in place during ‘Mother&rsquo... [Read on]

A review of Duke Special (live in Kavanagh’s, Portlaoise) Review Snapshot: While there’s no room in tonight's small venue for his piano, Duke Special still  managed to put all his energy, enjoyment, and drama into a gig which enthralled us for over two hours. The Duke managed to silence us with his fascinating stories and history lessons, bringing a different perspective to what can be achieved when you mix music and art. The Cluas Verdict? 9 out of 10   Full review: Having witnessed a few Duke Special gigs over the years, I thought I’d seen all this man has to offer, but I have to admit his May Day Bank Holiday performance in Portlaoise recently was the best I’ve seen him deliver. There’s standing room only as the venue cramped with 100 lucky people has an intimate feel to it, like he’s performing in your sitting room.  With at least six studio albums to his credit now, there’s no... [Read on]

A review of the album 'The Promise' by Bruce Springsteen Review Snapshot: An album of lost sessions from Darkness On The Edge Of Town that any of today’s pretenders to the throne would die-for. A collection of songs that ‘The Boss’ couldn’t find album space for now sees the light of day, over three decades later. It has certainly been well worth the wait. The Cluas Verdict? 7 out of 10 Full Review: After being proclaimed “the future of rock‘n’roll” in 1975 following the commercial success of Born To Run, Bruce Springsteen went back to the drawing board to dream it all up again. However due to legal disputes he was unable to release any new material until 1978’s Darkness On The Edge Of Town. What you’ve got here are 22 songs that chronologically belong between those two albums. Described by The Boss himself as “a great lost work recovered”, this album opens with ... [Read on]

Lady Gaga (live in The O2, Dublin) Review Snapshot: The Madonna comparisons are obvious. They both write and sing, the choreography is similar in parts, Alejandro is the new La Isla Bonita but I’ve never seen Madonna play the piano the way Gaga can. She’s here for the long haul and I’ve no doubt, on tonight’s performance we’re watching the artist of this decade. The Cluas Verdict? 9.5 out of 10 Full Review: The world’s current most famous pop star returned to Dublin for the first of 3 nights at the o2 for a two-hour show split into four acts culminating with her Monster Ball. Act 1 was set around a New York City backdrop for the opening numbers ‘Dance In The Dark’ and ‘Glitter And Grease’ as her green car breaks down in the Big Apple, but fear not, under the bonnet is a piano which she plays during ‘Just Dance’. There’s a constant changing of costumes throughout ‘Beautiful... [Read on]

A review of the album 'Science and Faith' by The Script Review Snapshot: On Science and Faith, The Script have continued where they left off with their debut album. Catchy melodies, lyrics that you won’t need a dictionary to explain, and songs that won’t change the world. But I mean all this in the best possible way. The Cluas Verdict? 6 out of 10 Full Review: While the world waited for the “difficult second album”, the Script have played it safe and repeated what made them successful in the first place. Opening with a very long intro ‘You Won’t Feel A Thing’ sees the rockier side to The Script, with them sounding not unlike No Sweat did two decades earlier, while Danny sings “I’ll stand in front / I’ll take the blow for you”. The single ‘For The First Time’ (a recent Irish chart-topper) is typical Script, while the title track has an intro to match Bryan Adams &lsq... [Read on]

Paul McCartney (live in the RDS, Dublin) Review Snapshot: 165 minutes, of 36 songs ranging from The Beatles, Wings, The Fireman and McCartney's solo material, throw in a fireworks display to rival Sydney Bridge on New Years Day and you’ve only a taster of Paul’s RDS gig in the summer sunshine.  The Cluas Verdict? 10 out of 10 Full Review: sung That seven year itch for a McCartney gig at Dublin’s RDS came back around last night, and in the summer sunshine he put on a stomping rocking show for nearly 3 hours, that would leave fellow musicians half his age speechless. The fact that his beloved England had a World Cup match at the same time meant that the gig was delayed in starting until half-time in the game. Was it worth the wait?   At 8:30pm the band walked on stage to huge applause, and began with Venus And Mars / Rockshow and Jet before McCartney tried a bit of the local tongue. “Failte Romhat Go Leir”... [Read on]