Protomartyr – The Button Factory – Review
by Killian Laher

Protomartyr – Live at the Button Factory, Dublin – 21-10-23

A quick return visit to Dublin for Protomartyr for a Saturday night gig at the Button Factory, having played there in May of 2022.  They were well supported by Irish singer Elaine Malone, who, with her band, played a rousing set.  Particularly impressive were the slinky Dark Rooms and heavy closer The Hunger, which the band blasted out.  An impressive set, expect to hear more about Malone very soon.

Protomartyr played a strong set themselves, with plenty off of this year’s Formal Growth In The Desert album.  Shorn of the steel guitar which graced the album, it didn’t take long to realise that playing live is where this band really excels.  With Greg Ahee’s tightly wound guitar riffs driving proceedings, the rhythm section kept it tight, and a keyboard player added texture to many of the songs.  It was singer/bawler Joe Casey who was the focal point, roaring his way through Make Way and 3800 Tigers.  On older material, A Private Understanding and a surprise airing of Maidenhead the band really showed their impressive musicianship, flipping between heavy passages and the subtler bits, allowing Casey to sing rather than shout his way through them, in between slugs of beer.  On the other hand, fans of their punkier material were well catered for with Scum RIse and Feral Cats, while Polacrilex Kid was almost rap!

Towering versions of the infectious My Children and the malevolent Pontiac 87 sounded, if anything, even better than the recorded versions before Ahee’s intricate guitar playing on Processed By The Boys brought their set to a close.  For an encore, the band barrelled through Jumbo’s and The Devil In His Youth before finishing with the downright groovy Why Does It Shake?  Protomartyr are one of the best live bands around and in Joe Casey, they have a compelling frontman, with a piercing stare and a commanding voice.