St. Patrick’s weekend with the BCS lads has become a bit of a tradition in our house. The only down side this year was that thanks to having to drive to the gig it was going to be a very sober affair. While the Mahones might claim that “the more you drink, the better we sound”, I can now safely say that the Biblecodes sound superb drunk or sober. Fresh off their support slot on the Dropkick Murphy’s UK tour and straight out of the studio where the third album is well in hand, the lads played a blinder.

Opening with the stomping instrumental Rat’s Reels the lads quickly established that the tight, focused playing we’d seen recently at the Camden Roundhouse with DKM had not deserted them. The set was a great mix of new material, covers and old BCS classics. Let’s be clear, we are fans and are seldom happier than hearing the lads playing their own material. We were not disappointed. From their tribute to boxing legend Billy Conn (The Pittsburgh Kid) to London Irish rallying cry (Maybe it’s Because I’m an Irish Londoner) the Biblecodes showed that their material can stand alongside any of the bands they cite as influences. What stands out amongst the BCS own material is their ability to tell the stories of the Irish diaspora in songs that appeal to the “Friday night, let’s get hammered and jump around” crowd. From migrants leaving “County Cork in search of fame” to the “Newport and Mullranny boys along the Northolt road”, this is the story telling tradition of Irish music kept alive for the Twenty First Century.

The lads are about to embark upon a short US tour and if you are in the Philadelphia area on the 24th May, do yourself a favour, go along and get yourself a new favourite band.

Slainte

Neil & Katie Bates