The Trinity Ents Battle of the Bands competition wrapped up with its long-awaited finale last night in Whelan’s. Drawn from the best of the Trinity music scene, the four bands on show had qualified through heats and semi-finals and were gunning for a coveted spot on the Trinity Ball line-up.
The first Ents Battle of the Bands to be held in Whelan’s, the buzz from the crowd was tangible as students crowded in to see their favourite student bands. Whelan’s allowed the audience to get up close and personal with the performing bands – the balcony section was opened to allow people a view of the stage away from the unruly, mostly male, mob below.
The Enzymes opened the show. A very standard five-piece band, playing some good solid rock music, they were a fun primer for the show as a whole. Unfortunate in having to open the show, where the connection between crowd and performer still had to be forged, they did an admirable job in being enjoyable.
Playing original pieces and a cover of “Knocking On Heaven’s Door”, the Enzymes were definitely there and they definitely played. However, their set failed to really sell them as Trinity Ball heavy weights. A couple of artistic choices were made to varying success – leaving out the talented guitarist for a rhythm section jam was a risky move that worked to some extent. On the other hand, only having the bass player sing the final song was disappointing.
Cooks But We’re Chefs followed the Enzymes and flipped the script entirely. Naturals for the big stage, the seven-piece hip-hop jazz group walked away as deserved winners of the competition. Combining energetic brass arrangements with dreamy synth sounds, and joined onstage by guest rapper Methembe Mafu, Cooks But We’re Chefs seem like a band who are but a name change away from exploding onto the Irish music scene. The crowd was at its most boisterous, and its wildest, during their set. You can expect the same to be true come April 6th.
It was a tough sell then for TED to come after that. Trucking along without an MC, the group did an admirable job. With all focus on the the remaining members, rapping over a tight instrument section, it felt like the crowd was letting TED down. Thankfully, as the set continued, things relaxed as songs like “Cold Shoulder” and “Shawty” were played.
To close out the night was Dysfunktional. With jazz versions of “Sweet Dreams” by the Eurythmics, and the always appreciated Hot 8 Brass Band’s version of “Sexual Healing”, the band couldn’t help but be a lot of fun. Like Cooks But We’re Chefs, these are a group to watch in the future.
The Battle of the Bands has gone down as a success for both the bands involved and for Trinity Ents. While there was a curious preference for very large bands, and slightly more worrying fact that there were only two women performing on stage the entire night, the student act for Trinity Ball has been secured, and Cooks But We’re Chefs deserve their place in the ball.
Correction: 14:30, March 29th, 2018
An earlier version of this article stated that there was only one woman who performed onstage last night. In fact there was two. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said the guitarist from TED was missing. This has since been corrected.
