Dolores O’Riordan and the Cranberries brought a harder-edged sound to their live set than their records. Photo from cranberries.com
By the time they started the third song of their set, the ever popular “Linger,” Dolores O’Riordan and had a packed eating out of their hands. O’Riordan, dressed in a crazed mirror mini-dress that looked vaguely like a disco ball, joyfully belted the chorus and got the crowd to sing it along with her.
In many ways, the Cranberries seem like one of those bands cemented in time, in this case the early-to-mid ’90s, when music seemed more open and bands could mix genres more freely. The Cranberries blend alternative rock with pop and indie sounds, creating an amalgam that sounds like no one else; even some of their native Irish tunes can be heard.
The band has been on hiatus since 2003, but you wouldn’t have known it from how tight they sounded. Guitarist Noel Hogan lit into fiery distortion on the opening song, “How,” while O’Riordan got the crowd going in a call and response on “Animal Instinct.”
While O’Riordan is an excellent singer, for the first third of the set last night her vocals were buried behind the wailing distortion of Hogan’s guitar and Denny DeMarchi’s keyboards and guitar. It was frustrating to not be able to make out most of the words to “Ordinary Day,” although O’Riordan did sing more clearly on the chorus.
However, by the time the band started the dreamy “You and Me,” the vocals had been turned up, and O’Riordan’s voice meshed beautifully with Hogan’s delicate fingerpicking.
Live, the Cranberries are a revelation. While their recordings have a smooth, polished pop sound, in concert, all of the familiar songs have an energy turned up in spades, and the songs take on a definitive punk edge. O’Riordan warmed up as the show went on, stalking the stage from side to side and dancing like a demented pixie. On “I Love You,” Fergal Lawler’s drumming was relentless and mesmerizing.
Of course, most of the hits were played, and it was impossible not to sing along with almost everyone in the crowd on “Ode to My Family.” Nobody sings like O’Riordan, her musical Irish accent adding just the right lilt to her delivery.
The band saved some of the heaviest songs for last, with a crushing version of “Salvation” and a set-closing “Zombie.” O’Riordan picked up a guitar and played the familiar solo line, and everywhere in the Gothic people were wildly cheering and singing on the chorus.
O’Riordan has a new CD out called “The Baggage,” and a couple of songs were played from it, including “Switch off the Moment” and a get-out-the-lighters-type song called “The Journey.” Her bandmates seemed to enjoy the new material, and there have been rumors that the Cranberries plan to release a new CD sometime next year, welcome news if true.
The three-song encore ended with another sing-along song, “Dreams,” which is probably their most pop-oriented single. Let’s hope there won’t be another six-year hiatus before the next Cranberries’ tour.
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Candace Horgan is a Denver freelance writer/photographer and regular contributor to Reverb. When not writing and shooting, she plays guitar and violin in Denver band the defCATS.
