The identity of a band on tour speaks to fans as much as their lyrical choices do, and Fontaines DC manages to seamlessly blend their concerts into a visual and auditory masterpiece. photo by Kira McBarron
International bands have always been popular in the United States, but, in recent years, Irish bands have been rapidly gaining traction.
I first heard Fontaines DC at an Arctic Monkeys concert back in 2023. Arctic Monkeys had been my top band of all time up until that opening act, when I fell in love with Grian Chatten and his band. From there on out, I spent my time memorizing every lyric, learning about every band member, and immersing myself in the group’s history. I learned the ‘DC’ stood for Dublin City, and two members both go by the name of Conor – but more importantly I learned about their message.
The group of five met at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute in Dublin and bonded over a shared love of poetry. They began creating well received singles in 2017 and gained attention for their raw post-punk delivery. Their debut album, Dogrel, was named after a working class form of poetry, and these songs were received with critical acclaim. The album earned a Mercury prize (an annual music award that recognizes the best album of the year by a British or Irish musical act) nomination and Album of the Year from Rough Trade. However, the group’s second album, A Hero’s Death, marked a tonal shift into a more introspective and layered form of styling. Released just a year after their debut album, the music featured the group’s willingness to evolve rather than stick to a winning formula, which led to a Grammy nomination. The third album, Skinty Fia, shed light on the Irish identity in exile. This album was when their work began to truly speak to me. Skinty Fia is an old Irish expression meaning “the damnation of the deer,” and this album was widely praised for the conceptual depth and maturity.
The group represents the fallout generation of The Troubles in Ireland (a period of ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland), as does their visual identity on tour. Their stage setups often utilizes low lighting and monochrome tones which reflect their artistic seriousness, while Grian Chatten’s passionate stage presence contrasts with the stillness of the rest of the band and creates a visual push-pull for concertgoers. Their wardrobe balances between personal aesthetic and the ruggedness of punk. All professional photography and music videos from the band are often rooted in Irish and European visual art traditions. They’ve also collaborated with directors, visual artists, and other bands in order to keep their music aligned with their themes of Irish identity and alienation.
The content of their music remains poetically layered and deeply informed by a combination of place, identity, and emotion. The group celebrates and critiques their city in equal measure by capturing the disillusionment of modern urban life. Their song Big on Dogrel opens with the defiant line, “Dublin in the rain is mine, a pregnant city with a Catholic mind.” On the same album, Liberty Belle and Boys in The Better Land reference characters of Dublin life, blending local color with broader themes of class, culture, and especially rebellion. Despite their post-punk style, Fontaines DC continues to uphold a critique of modernity throughout their work. Televised Mind on A Hero’s Death focuses on the media echo chambers of conformity, and, through their lyricism, promotes a more individualistic point of view for their listeners. Grian Chatten’s lyrics often expose personal struggle and a fractured sense of self, especially as the band gained international fame and moved away from Ireland. On Skinty Fia, tracks like I Love You deal with feelings of guilt, longing, and a true complexity about Irish nationalism and diaspora. On the same album, In ár gCroíthe go deo, meaning “in our hearts forever,” was inspired by a painful choice by the UK government, where the Irish phrase was banned from UK gravestones. The song mourns the cultural loss and misrecognition that Irish people feel as a result of British colonialism.
The group continues to be a positive change in the world by using their platform to advocate for ceasefires, and a stop to colonization. Despite their constantly shifting sense of self, the band’s newest release Romance continues to uphold their long for a world without limits. Their newest release on the deluxe of Romance, “Before You I Just Forget,” they bring back that mantra format by repeating, “decapitate the shine ‘cause people like that.” On their latest tour, Fontaines DC continues to represent Irish culture, post-punk ideals, and an overall understanding of self. Their hour and a half long set features different lighting to reflect the moods of the songs, but also a real lack of personal commentary in comparison to other artists – another reflection of the band’s seriousness regarding their message–as well as another example of their true individualism within their profession.
