Fontaines D.C. kick off their huge ‘Skinty Fia’ tour in style in Hull
It’s wild to think Fontaines D.C. only formed five years ago, in 2017. In a time span as long as some bands leave between albums, Fontaines have released three critically-acclaimed albums, sold-out Alexandra Palace, and the opening night of their Skinty Fia tour at the Bonus Arena in Hull confirms the sky’s the limit for the Dubliners.
Fontaines D.C. now have a healthy wealth of material in their canon to draw from in their performances, and intriguingly, it was new tracks from Skinty Fia which got the most raucous reception from the Hull crowd. Since releasing their debut, Dogrel, in 2019, Fontaines have grown naturally, with audiences gradually rising with every tour. Now, they are playing to thousands of people every night and look perfectly at home in venues of this stature.
Before talking about the magnificence of Fontaines’ set, support act Wunderhorse deserves praise. They are the brainchild of Jacob Slater, who had the full attention of the Bonus Arena with his grizzled grungey tones, which were utterly gripping. His break-out single, ‘Leader of the Pack’, sounded even finer live than it does on record, and ‘Epilogue’ acted as an emotional closer.
After a short interval, Fontaines D.C. made it onto the stage and made Hull on a Monday evening feel like a weekend. The arena was far from capacity, and the top tiers of the venue were curtained off with an area of seating, which made the show much more intimate than it sounds on paper. However, that’s part and parcel of playing an arena in a small city on a Monday night and doesn’t tell the whole story of the rest of the tour, which is largely sold-out, including three dates at London’s Eventim Apollo.
Despite not being sold out, that didn’t matter to Fontaines D.C., who provided value for money to everybody in the room. At a time when gig prices are becoming unaffordable for many and rising close to triple digits, but for £30, nobody can feel short-changed by the display put on by the Irish five-piece.
Fontaines opened their set with Skinty Fia cuts, ‘Nabakov’ and ‘In ár gCroíthe go deo’ before they took a trip down memory lane to Dogrel for ‘Sha Sha Sha’. Over their three records, Fontaines have grown with every release, but in their setlist, they all knitted together finely.
Throughout the set, waves of crowd surfers flew across the sky. Fontaines singer Grian Chatten also seemed to be in a jovial spirit and enjoying every minute of the carnival-like atmosphere. As a frontman, Chatten is simply one of the best around, and every time I see them perform, he continues to impress me more than the last.
With three-albums worth of material to pick from in their set, there was no filler and all killer from Fontaines. ‘Roman Holiday’, ‘Jackie Down The Line’, and ‘How Cold Love Is’ from Skinty Fia were particularly riveting moments, but there were no opportunities to make a quick exit to the bar. After bringing the set to a close with the titular ‘Skinty Fia’, Fontaines left the stage before returning to soak up the goodwill in the air to play ‘Boys In The Better Land’ and closing on the anthemic, ‘I Love You’, giving fans exactly what they craved.
If Fontaines D.C. maintain on their current trajectory, they’ll be one of the defining bands of the decade. Their evolution from post-punk upstarts to arena rockers has been a joy to spectate. Who knows what the next five years will bring? Anything is possible.
Visit here to view the rest of Fontaines D.C.’s tour dates.
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