House Concerts York - ODI & Eoghan Colgan

ODi, Dave Redfearn & Eoghan Colgan
11 October 2008

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Review: by Paul Abraham:@ keepmusiclive

"House Concerts have been very popular and successful in America for a number of years, the concept is now becoming increasingly popular in the UK. One of, if not the most renowned and most respected is the House Concerts York.

Set-up by Tony and his partner Nicki, the independent non-profit venture goes from strength to strength with their informal and relaxed gigs. With just 40 places available the atmosphere is obviously intimate but respectful to the artists, who arrive from around the world to play at this very special venue.

The latest House concert to take place was on the 11th Oct when ODI and Eoghan Coglan travelled to the picturesque village 20 minutes from the centre of York. As the audience of various age groups took to their seats, surrounded by a collection of photographs of past performers looking down, from the white glossed walls, there was a feeling of expectation and excitement, what followed was possibly unique and very endearing. As the artists played, a pin dropped on the wooden floor would have sent vibrations around the room as everyone sat in perfect silence listening to every picked chord and every vocal range covered. Eoghan Coglan with his tales of song-writing and musical skills was the perfect support to ODI, with Claire Odlum and Dave Redfern demonstrating once again why they are a duo gaining big followings in both the UK and Ireland. The first visit to a York House Concert can feel a little daunting, as you ring the doorbell feeling like a double-glazing salesman, however, you leave 3 hours later with the wonderful inner glow of meeting new friends and wishing everyday life could give you the same feeling as this very special experience had."

"ODi is a singer/songwriter who manages to blend elements of Joan Armatrading's pathos, Beth Orton's eye for the quirky and deep with a touch of Dido's bedsit romance." www.musicreview.com

"This CD is magical from start to finish, ODi has a wonderfully expressive voice and writes passionate and engaging songs that will captivate even the most hardened critic". Rhythm & Booze Rating 10/10 Rhythm & Booze fanzine.

ODi is a new Irish female, singer songwriting talent originally from Ireland now based in Leeds UK she performs regularly on both sides of the Irish Sea.

ODi spent her early years in Wexford and Dublin listening to and being inspired by the likes of Bruce Springsteen, David Gray, The Frames and PJ Harvey to mention but a few. After taking in the music of such songwriters and the influences of the Dublin College scene which produced the likes of Damien rice and Bell X1, ODi was driven to write her own songs. These songs have already been described as "beautiful" "emotional" and "well crafted". Combine these songs with a unique and captivating voice (already likened to Suzanne Vega, Natalie Merchant and Beth Orton) and a bit of Irish charm and beauty you have a very exciting prospect for the very near future and years to come.

ODi has already made an impact on both sides of the Irish Sea and further a field with her debut single "Crawl" released in April 2007. Her Debut was received with great reviews, radio plays and invitations to play live sessions from the likes of Alan Raw (BBC Raw Talent) and Edel Coffey (Phantom FM Dublin) soon followed.

The single was backed by upwards of 100 live dates across Ireland and the UK in 2007, The tireless gigging resulted in ODi being invited to support Seth Lakeman (UKs nu folk star) at this years Beverley Folk festival. The huge crowds response was fantastic and one of the most significant points in the ODi story so far.

With word about ODi beginning to spread it wasn’t long before Ireland’s premier music magazine HOT PRESS featured ODi in it's “Headlining Act Article describing Crawl as an "Atmospheric 3 Tracker that displays ODi's vocal talent in all it’s genuine glory". Then after hearing the single and ODi play live, HOT PRESS General Manager and Irish music guru Jackie Hayden liked what he heard. After writing a great live review Hayden chose a batch of new ODi tracks as “Demo of the Fortnight” in his First Cuts column.

ODi kicks off 2008 with the release of her brand new single “What You Deserve” Recorded with Irish Producer Karl Odlum (Fionn Regan, The Frames, Gemma Hayes and Kila).

Reviews so far.................

"Ballsy folk from Leeds with a Damien Rice intensity and lilting female vocals, that can without warning spin off into PJ Harvey grungy rock. See brilliant single ’Crawl’........" Northern Monkie Promotions

"Artist of the month March 2007......Odi has an excellent dynamic voice backed up with passion in her music....Crawl is Superb 5/5." www.musicreview.com

"This CD is magical from start to finish, ODi has a wonderfully expressive voice and writes passionate and engaging songs that will captivate even the most hardened critic" Rhythm & Booze Rating 10/10 Rhythm & Booze fanzine

"Flawless vocals with a great deal of warmth that just invites you to get involved in the whole song..... Crawl will be on my mp3 player cracker of a song well worth the listen" www.essentialmusic.org

"Her songs demand to be listened to. I’m not a fan of camparisons, but Suzanne Vega had been born in Leeds (Wexford!!!) she would have been Odi" FATEA

website:

Eoghan played a great show here last year and we are delighted to see him return. In the past year Eoghan has played at the Wireless Festival in Hyde Park,and most recently the Q Awards Nomination Ceremony at the London's O2 Arena alongside Athlete, Hard-Fi and the Manic Street Preachers. His passionate and honest live performances are now in demand. Eoghan is currently writing and recording his first full-length album which will be released later this year.

If you like Travis or David Ford you will definitely like Eoghan. The final tune on his critically acclaimed six track E.P. I Can't Reach You Anymore is as good a heartfelt ballad about break-up as you'll hear from David Gray.

"When he sings, he makes you want to stop what you're doing and listen" [D.J. Spoony]

"He is the only artist in the competition (O2 Undiscovered 2007) with a God-given talent – that being his incredible voice. With the right help and development he could go on to sell millions of records." [Amanda Ghost, Grammy-nominated songwriter"]

"Eoghan writes wonderful and varied songs, tells great stories between them, and has a sensuous voice to boot. Catch Eoghan now while he's still playing intimate venues because, mark my words, he won't be playing them for long. Move over Damien (Rice), it's time for the sublime Mr. Colgan to take over."

"Meet Eoghan Colgan. He beat thousands of entrants and some cracking finalists to take the top spot – but picking this year's winner was no mean feat.

Eoghan is a 28 year old singer-songwriter from Northern Ireland. His songs are a hypnotic blend of soft acoustic/piano ballads, anthemic pop songs and funk/rock tunes.
One blinding final

After listening to thousands of demos, our A&R experts picked 30 top contenders. Our industry panel then narrowed this down to 10 finalists, with Ry Byron taking the wildcard spot.

Every one of the 11 finalists gave it their all for the industry experts at the Undiscovered Final. But in the end there could only be one winner.

Eoghan's sound was so original and inventive that it stood out the most for the panel. Later at the Undiscovered winner's party, he had the crowd at a standstill with his powerful acoustic rock, before they danced away to the pumping live sound of the supporting acts, The Ryes and Once A Thief.

From Undiscovered to the Big Time