Declan O’ Rourke- The Olympia Theatre

Posted on 13th Nov 05 by Contributor | 0

Artist: Declan O" Rourke
Author: Deirdre Healy

Having never heard of him I"d gotten the debut album "Since Kyabram" out of the blue for Christmas and was impressed with Dublin singer/songwriter Declan O Rourke"s unique flair for song writing and the beautiful imagery he evoked in songs such as Last night in a dream and Marrying the Sea. So when I heard Declan was playing the Olympia I thought I might as well go along and see if his live performance was anything as impressive. I wasn"t disappointed. Declan"s interactions with the audience suggested a confidence I wasn"t expecting. When I closed my eyes and listened I realised he also displayed that rare talent that you don"t often find" an amazingly strong voice that commanded the attention of the room. To be honest" I could have been listening to his CD. Not a note out of place.

Declan started off the night with a couple of crowd pleasers from the album" namely No place to hide" Galileo" and One"Way mind. Even though it was a tame enough gig" the fact that the crowd sang along to all these songs was testament to Declan"s skill as a performer.

Far from resting on the laurels of his recent success Declan is at that exciting phase of his career where he is banging out excellent thoughtful and above all inspirational songs. Declan"s repertoire is a mixed bag of reggae" rock" classical and traditional. The themes of love and nature rear their heads again and again" and Declan presents them by using clear imagery and beautiful lyrics ins such songs as We didn"t mean to go to sea".. "Then you came down in to my arms/and closed your eyes/ when we awoke/we had been drifting".
Accompanied by 5 violinists" a cello" a double bass and a bass" Declan displays a palpable affection for the subjects of his songs. He introduces each song to the audience as one might introduce two particularly good friends to each other.

Songs of unrequited love "Did you lose it" " I"m giving up on you"were in parts both humorous "did you lose it" is a reference to giving a girl his phone number" and in parts sad. Being of the female persuasion I may be biased here but can you really tell me that touching lines like "Do you really think it"s so wrong/that I might miss you a little when you"re gone"" And in the new What can I do to make her mine" "She likes the way I look at her I know" the way she tosses back her hair" blended with Declan"s deep soulful voice would not bring a tear to the most hardened cynic among us"

Little wonder that he has so many female fans then" indeed even a sensible girl like myself in a happy relationship for years now began to wonder what our children would look like" and would my name go with "O"Rourke""
".But I digress from the main topic here" Declan"s true talent can"t be denied "but being a bit of a fine half doesn"t hurt as was confirmed by numerous shouts of "take your clothes off""" during some of the more serious moments of the gig Not by me I might add"ahem""

A pure romantic" Declan has developed confidence with the success of his album "Since Kyabram"" and has even ventured away from the ballads that comprise most of his album" in the shape of rock and roll numbers like "Red Rag".
Declan left the crowd wanting more and after doing excellent covers of Bob Marley"s "I don"t wanna wait in vain" and the classic Dire Strait"s "Money for nothing" as his final songs" Declan was enticed back to us once more and bravely played one of the greatest guitar songs of our time Bob Dylan"s "Don"t think twice". I"m sure anyone will agree that a man who can play Bob Dylan" Bob Marley and Dire Straits and bring down the house is one talented guy.

Declan is already developing a wide fan base throughout the country and if his performance in the Olympia tonight was anything to go by" it"s little wonder that he is being pipped as Ireland"s hot new singer/songwriter. On my return home that night I was asked "what kind of music is he then"". I found it difficult to put Declan"s sound into a category. I suppose he is definitely in the vein of "Irish Rock" and "Irish singer/songwriter"" one might even go as far as to say "folk". Whatever genre you choose to put him into" suffice to say that in terms of daring lyrics and raw talent no one in Ireland is doing what Declan is at the moment. If you consider yourself any kind of music fan and haven"t heard or seen him yet get out there now " and girls"don"t forget your cameras"".