Review by Steve Bennett

When he set up Dublin's Comedy Cellar with Ardal O'Hanlon and others, Carmody laid the foundations for Ireland's modern scene and assured his place as a stalwart of the circuit.

But for all his experience, he remains pretty much your run-of-the-mill musical comic.

Outside of his songs, he seems surprisingly uneasy chatting to the audience, and when the stage lights failed during the Kilkenny festival show Chortle saw, he seemed to flounder. His determination to carry on regardless of the dark appeared less of a manifestation of a redoubtable 'show-must-go-on' spirit and more a lack of inspiration for anything else to say.

Whether the technical failings affected his routine, it's hard to determine. As a guitar act, he's less susceptible to such distractions as a chatty stand-up would be, and so could easily continue to plough through his repertoire.

And a pretty bog-standard repertoire it is, too. He mocks Irish folk songs with a spoof 'how to' guide; changes the words to old standards for supposedly amusing effect ("I say Bin Layden/You say Bin Larden...") and sings an extended song about playing football with his dog that falls awkwardly between amusing and whimsical, missing both by a mile.

The stand-up routines are equally uninspired -imagine how James Bond might eat his breakfast! - and though delivered with a modicum of charm, they fail to raise much interest.

Review date: 1 Jun 2004
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett