Milk. Concert Review: ‘Milk the Music’ Won’t Bore You
This Dublin-based band might bore you — or at least their song suggests so. With a sold-out crowd and a teaser of their yet-to-be released single “I Think I Lost My Number Can I Have Yours,” Milk’s first-ever New York City concert at Mercury Lounge was far from boring.
Here’s Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s review of the performance.
Milk ‘the Music’ is just getting started
The four-piece pop band is based in Dublin, carving a unique space for themselves in the alternative music scene. They were one of the 11 Irish acts chosen for 2023’s SXSW. In 2022, the group released their self-described “COVID song,” “Human Contact.”
“The song is about a longing for companionship and the feeling that you’re alive but not living,” Mark McKenna said (via Prelude Press). “Going through the same day on loop and the only comfort being the rest of the world is in the same situation, you just wish you could do it in a room together.”
This single was fitting the group opened their Mercury Lounge concert with “Human Contact” — especially because this was their first performance in the Big Apple.
New York City was spoiled with Milk’s sold-out concert
McKenna (vocals), Conor Gorman (lead guitar), Morgan Wilson (drums), and Conor King (bass) sauntered to the Mercury Lounge stage, performing tracks like “You’re So,” “Drama Queen,” and “A Little More.” McKenna mentioned this was their hottest concert to date, noting the “abnormally early show time.”
“We’re not used to it,” he joked. With McKenna teasing another New York City performance “very very soon,” fans anticipate more “Human Contact” with this indie group.
Milk scheduled concerts across the UK, in addition to performances at the Mercury Lounge in New York City and the Moroccan Lounge in Los Angeles — both of which sold out.
Milk brings ‘A Little More’ to the alternative music scene
As a live act, there wasn’t a sour note from Milk (pun intended). Each song thoughtfully and expertly transitioned into the next — almost surprisingly so. You wouldn’t expect a new act to start their set with an intergalactic ringback tone, rarely pausing between tracks aside from McKenna’s occasional blurbs.
The band even showcased their soon-to-be released single “I Think I Lost My Number Can I Have Yours,” which can best be described as an early 2000s pensive jam session meets The 1975.
In fact, there are obvious influences from the pop/indie/alt-rock scene throughout Milk’s discography— No Rome could’ve (and should’ve) been featured on “You’re So.” “A Little More,” in particular, is adjacent to “Undo” by The 1975. “Drama Queen” leans in Pale Waves’ earliest hits.
What makes Milk so exciting, especially as an early listener, is their potential. With a sound that explores the hidden crevaces of indie music, there’s no doubt they’ll be one of the “next big things” in the genre.
