THE Vice Roys, who were the support act to Steve Earle in Galway on Saturday night, play the kind of souped up psychobilly that owes as much to the Pixies as it does to Hank Williams.
Hailing from Tennessee, they hit the stage like seasoned pros and were soon trading licks as sharp as their suits. Steve Earle joined them on stage for Walking Down The Road, the last song of their short but well received set, which deftly inserted a reggae beat into their hill billy twang.
After the interval, Earle reappeared with his band, The Dukes, and began his set with the title track from his new album, I Feel Alright. Almost immediately, however, it was apparent that Earle was struggling to find his stride. Not least of the obstacles in his way was the considerable audience inertia resulting from the promoter's decision to make this concert an all seated affair. Nevertheless, he battled gamely on trying to hide his annoyance with the hecklers. Eight songs in he hit pay dirt with Exit Zero, a song describing a peyote adventure.
He took it down again for an extended solo spot, giving us the confessional, Whiskey Got No Hold On Me, and the romantic, Valentine's Day, and plying us all the time with his San Antonio Texan charm. The band rejoined him for the honky tonk bolero of What's A Poor Boy Gonna Do, followed by the chugging power chords of The Devil's Right Hand. Still, some people, it seemed, had only come to hear one song and Earle, who had shrugged off requests for it all night, duly finished his set with Copperhead Roads his one mainstream hit. As much as he likes to tease, in the end Earle knows it's important to send the punters home happy.
