Able

‘Able’ – Track of the Day on Qthemusic.com

Able is track of the day on Q’s website:

You’d be forgiven for expecting something more morose from famed Dublin troubadour Gavin Friday. After all, adorning the cover of his new album Catholic is the rather sombre image of the man himself lying dead, with an Irish flag and crucifix mounting his corpse. But Able, the album’s opening salvo, is an elated blast of stadium-bating synth-rock that is more uplifting than elegiac. Writhing in the song’s spiralling keyboard sounds and gently chiming guitars, Friday purrs in his inimitable style about love, loss and letting go.

It’s a welcome return for the Irish impresario, who has spent the previous sixteen years dabbling in the world of film and theatre while enduring illness, a marriage breakdown and the death of his father. Buoyed by a pulsating bass line and Friday’s gruff half-spoken vocals, the song simmers and boils into a rousing frenzy of poeticism and rock panache, like U2 imbibing the introspective talents of Leonard Cohen. In short, it’s a captivating listen from a distinguished performer. Welcome back, Gavin.