Alana Springsteen – Live In Europe // First Time Flyers // Live Review // The Limelight // Belfast

The weather in Ireland is beautiful. Alana, on her European run, will no doubt have experienced some crazy temperatures, taking in Spain, the UK and Norway. She will remember this run for sure. Tonight, she plays at Belfast, The Limelight, in the heart of Belfast City Centre, and I hope she has a little time here to take in the sights, as the city itself is beautiful on a sunny day such as this.

Alana Springsteen is one of the highly anticipated young stars coming through Nashville right now, a talented young girl whose family recognised her talent at a very early on. They couldn’t do enough to support her, and from a very young age, she was setting Nashville ablaze, working with the best in the business, establishing herself as one to watch. Her debut album ‘Twenty Something’ in 2023 announced her arrival with a bang, and she hasn’t looked back since. Her follow-up ‘I Hope This Helps’ dropped back in May, and on the back of that we have the pleasure of her company here in Belfast this evening.

In tow with Alana, we have First Time Flyers, a melodic group of very talented musicians with a wealth of experience. Both sets of artists are new to me on the live stage, so I am really looking forward to seeing what they bring. It has been a wee while since I covered a country gig, so I needed that reset to get myself back to a more sedate frame of mind before I head off on my summer holidays!

We arrive at a very hot Limelight. The crowd are dispersed across the venue and outside trying to get some fresh air. It’s not long till First Time flyers hit the stage and burst into song. What a vibe these guys and dolls have; they play a quality set packed with country hits dappled with a few originals that set the Limelight alight! The two ladies in the band bust some serious moves on stage to get the crowd going, the araks are waving across the room, and the ladies are dancing far and wide! What a way to kick off the evening, the ladies and gents have glorious voices, they honestly could sing the phone book, as it is, we get treated to a melody of tracks from a host of country superstars and beyond. The craic, as we say, was 90!

www.facebook.com/firsttimeflyers

www.firsttimeflyers.com

Photography: Mark McGrogan

@flashartmark #flashartmark

A swift changeover, and it’s time for the lady herself, Alana Springsteen. This young lady, just in her mid-20s now, with two albums to her name, has a sizeable catalogue to pull up long, and she makes light work of it. She blasts through new and old material, and the limelight is loving it. Her thick southern accent soars across the room, her band gloriously on point! A simple four-piece with Alana switching between acoustic and electric, she orchestrates the crowd like they are putty in her hands. She has the most beautiful tone to her voice, so delicate yet effortlessly powerful on demand. She takes time to be as she says ‘Present” every night on tour, I am sure it’s hard at times with the frantic pace, the demands of the road but taking a little time to remind yourself to be grateful, she shares a few tracks that have helped her though her own personal journey ‘Don’t Stop Belivin’”, “Here Cones The Sun”, and “I’ve Got A Feeling” and Belfast is in fine voice as she delivers them impeccably.

After she invites First Time Flyers out into the middle of the crowd to sing “Amazing Grace’ a Capella and the room falls silent, phones raised, and to rapturous applause, Belfast explodes with approval. Toss in a cover of Natalie Imbruglia’s ‘Torn’, and I’m sold. She then takes Belfast through a melody of her darker more emotive songs and its here that the penny drops, this young lady, dripping in talent has live a life full of varying experiences that have completely enriched her musical vocabulary, she keeps referring to the challenges of recent years, breakups and her time in therapy, reflecting on herself and her life, so for somene so young she clearly has been through a journey. But what better way to live your life than enriching other people’s lives through music, through that sense of community that you have by the connection of a melody, a lyric, a story told that can travel across the globe and resonate in a small club in Belfast on a hot summer night.

They say you have a lifetime to write your debut album, but Alana’s sophomore album ‘I Hope This Helps’ really is a contrast in styles and musical maturity in this young lady’s writing; her sound now is so personal and emotive, and it plays out live beautifully. She really knows how to pull on those heartstrings as she pours out her heart on stage in a truly magnetic performance. I think I walked in here expecting a more fluid, easy-on-the-ear pop-country show, but what I found was an honest-to-god heartfelt songwriter who communicates her sound in a way that is impossible to ignore. Alana Springsteen is a revelation and one to keep an eye on for sure. It was great to have her in my city and to capture her live in a smaller venue that lets you get that up-close-and-personal experience. If you get the opportunity to catch a performance live, do it, as it truly is a performance you will remember. As the last chords rang out and the glorious melodies faded out, the hot, sweaty mess that is the Belfast crowd dispersed onto the quiet city centre streets as we clambered for air. Smiles as far and wise as the eye can see, ladies huddled together, grabbing that last selfie to celebrate a successful evening, creating memories together as we should. This is how you do it.

Hopefully, Alana will be back again in the not-too-distant future to pick up where she left off, continuing her Irish love affair and building those bridges across the ocean so we can all gather once again and celebrate a community of country fans in one hot, sweaty room. Till next time.

Go here to stream/download I HOPE THIS HELPS now.

Photography: Mark McGrogan

@flashartmark #flashartmark