BY EVIE MASON
Zach Bryan, despite his slightly controversial online presence, was one of the best concerts I’ve been to. You might hate his online presence, but you cannot hate his stage one, or raw talent – even if you tried!
We travelled all the way to Dublin for the concert, as I could not afford to do the Hyde Park shows. Although I was worried I’d miss out, it quickly became clear that Dublin just loves Bryan. The plane, even from East Midlands Airport, was full of concert goers in boots and hats, the city was full of tourists and locals all set out to see the concert. It is no wonder that Bryan needed three dates!
When we arrived at Phoenix Park, we were surprised to learn that the walk to the venue (at the other end of the park) was indeed 45 minutes long, at least. And to think that I didn’t believe the TikToks warning me not to wear cowboy boots! I think this would be my only complaint about the night – everything else was wonderfully organised and set up, security was great and everywhere felt very safe despite how busy it was. But the walk truly did feel like a hike, and there was no option but to walk – even if you caught a shuttle bus, I’m pretty sure it didn’t take you all the way down the (what felt like) never ending road. If you are someone who struggles to walk for whatever reason, without some assistance, I’d say that this may not be the venue for you unless there are alternate arrangements. It also torrentially rained on the way in and left everyone rushing underneath trees for shelter.
However, if we ignore the intense pain in my feet, I’d say that it was definitely worth it. The actual venue upon entering felt like a festival – it was all decked out with countless food and merch stalls, and a lot of it was decently priced. I ate a bowl of mac and cheese topped with bacon jam, priced at €8.50, and it was just delicious! The merch however, as expected, was very expensive.
Bryan’s support acts, Noeline Hofmann and The Turnpike Troubadours, were perfect choices even though I didn’t really know anything about them. I would definitely listen to them in the future though. Sitting in the sun listening to their sets was my idea of an ideal afternoon.
Just before Zach came on, it got very busy in the crowd, and it was a struggle to maintain our spot without being pushed away. I didn’t find the crowd too rowdy, but it was so busy that we couldn’t move backwards – I think it would have taken 15 minutes to reach the back of the crowd.
Bryan brought energy, passion and truly good music to the stage. As a big fan of his music, it felt so special and actually exceeded my expectations. He sounds even better live, and a lot of his lyricism itself feels so poetic. The brass instruments, strings and band as a whole were just amazing. The crowd absolutely loved him and were singing along to nearly every song. Some highlights definitely included ‘Pink Skies’ (everyone went crazy for it), ‘Overtime’, ‘Burn, Burn, Burn’ and ‘Revival’.
We were also treated to two versions of Heading South, as the first rendition featured a kid from the crowd playing the drums – not to be cynical but his sign said that he had been playing since he was 5 or something, but this can’t actually be that long a time as he only looked 7 or 8! It was very sweet though.
We were also treated to a surprise appearance from Dermot Kennedy and at least a 15-minute-long ‘Revival’! You should have seen my boyfriend’s face when Bryan’s banjo player fake collapsed on the stage, only to literally ‘revive’ – I decided not to warn him in advance.
The fairy lights, the set, the crowd, and even the barefoot walk back as everyone sang ‘Revival’ (most women had just removed their boots at this point). Zach Bryan’s concert was genuinely one of the best nights of my life.