“We’re The Strypes and we’re from Cavan!”

 

'Just so everybody knows,” said Josh McClorey, approaching the microphone on Saturday night, “we’re The Strypes and we’re from Cavan!”
The swaggering guitarist’s words sent up a roar that billowed the Blessfest marquee’s plastic-walls, echoing the swelling of pride the county feels for the local lads.
It felt like a little piece of Cavan history being made. Forget Anglo-tapes, new popes, and royal babies, with debut album Snapshot poised to hit the presses, 2013 is destined to be remembered - in Cavan at least - as the year of The Strypes.
Having injected some authentic rhythm and blues into the charts and set pulses of teenage girls from Killygarry to Kawasaki racing, the fourpiece were thrilled to return for a triumphant homecoming gig.
For over two hours The Strypes worked the capacity-plus crowd at the secret gig into a frenzy with a blistering set of blues standards and a handful of their own numbers.

http://youtu.be/iwlpncqMlZ4

“This is the best gig I’ve ever played in my life,” declared a breathless Josh.
Having supported Blur in Dublin just two days earlier, and stolen the show at Glastonbury last month, it could have been dismissed as mere hyperbole. But nah, this was none of the usual crowd plamausing bands spin to fans. Mingled amongst the sweat-drenched crowd stood their proud families and old school pals. They were home.

See this week's Celt newspaper for full review and pics galore!