4: FIGHT LIKE APES
Ireland has, quite simply, never seen a band like Fight Like Apes. It’s not because they eschew guitars, or use kitchen implements as stage props. It’s not because they treat each gig as if it were their last, and it’s certainly not because they’re inevitably destined for international renown. Mostly, it’s because the quartet refuse to take themselves seriously, acting as a palette-cleansing antidote to the dour “woolly jumper brigade” that dragged Irish music into the depths of despair not a decade ago. They’ve polarised opinions like no other band in recent memory too; those who “get” Fight Like Apes adore them unswervingly, while their detractors gnash teeth in search of adjectives to describe their “gimmick”. Yet it’s only a gimmick if there’s no substance underneath, and their astonishing debut album Fight Like Apes and The Mystery of the Golden Medallion , an album that encompasses melancholy and whimsy (both lyrically and musically), is testament to their worth.
(Lauren Murphy)
The 50 best Irish music acts right now - The Irish Times - Fri, Apr 03
This is one of the best assessments/descriptions of the band that I’ve read since they got “big” here and (to a lesser extent) in the UK.
