Kelsey Heng on March 27th, 2018

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On Friday night, Dermot Kennedy, a Dublin street busker turned newest watch-list singer-songwriter, brought his sold-out U.S. headlining tour to the El Rey Theatre.

With Kennedy just getting started in his career and with only a handful of releases to his credit, the energetic crowd felt as if they were among the lucky ones. Let’s put it this way, he’s of those artists entrancing enough for fans to bring out the “I Do” signs out of hiding and unashamedly squeal fight at the end of the night over a tossed set list then walk away beaming to have torn off just a piece.

He’s been likened to Hozier or Bon Iver, which makes sense in his ability to craft music into a haunting emotive experience, but there’s also much to set it apart. Acoustic in foundation, every song layers on a modern take on hip-hop then douses it with a raspy Irish-accented storytelling that open wounds as much as asks them to heal.

There’s duality to everything Kennedy does, which shone through all night. Found in his unique open-mic acoustic sound mixed with urban hip-hop beats, his themes of bliss defined through sorrow, his Irish poetic rapture of life in lieu of death. Which the nearly pin-drop silent theater heard in his heart wrenching “Glory,” stating clearly in between his wailing, “I’ve learned that doves and ravens fly the same.”

Most of Kennedy’s lyrics combine yearning with acceptance, pining for the past and what could have been, coupling strength to face the way it all turned out and a resilience to celebrate the way it will continue to be. As a viewer, you can’t help but be left every song feeling that for every reason you have to smile, there’s just as many to cry. Or as he put it prefacing “All My Friends,” trying to be hopeful when it’s not easy.

In addition to playing eight of his released singles including “Young & Free,” “Glory” and “Moments Passed,” he performed two unreleased songs: one still only housed on YouTube (“For Island Fires and Family”) and the other still unnamed, but per the stage set list named for the time as “Malay.” The crowd was appreciative upon hearing the artist’s promise to be sharing much more soon.

Coming to the end of the night, Kennedy kindly warned the crowd it would be their last song, which everyone optimistically denied. But closing “After Rain” with the words, “she left her listener enthralled” seemed appropriate enough. Because enthrall you did, Mr. Kennedy.

Brooklyn-based singer Janelle Kroll opened the night with a performance showcasing last year’s album “Pretty Lie to Me.”

Setlist: An Evening I Will Not Forget, A Closeness, All My Friends, Young & Free, Island Fires, Boston, Malay, Moments Passed, Glory and After Rain.

Photos by Kelsey Heng