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There are gigs where a crowd watches a band, and there are gigs where a crowd completely surrenders to one. Kingfishr’s show at Cardiff’s Depot was firmly the latter. From the second the Irish trio walked onto the stage, the atmosphere felt charged with anticipation. The venue was peppered with Irish flags and emerald jerseys, buzzing long before the first note rang out, but what followed over the next hour and a half was something far more powerful than just another indie-folk gig.

Kingfishr delivered a performance full of atmosphere, emotion and sheer intensity that held the Cardiff crowd captive from beginning to end. If you’ve ever been lucky enough to party with the Irish, this is how it’s done; the band lend their culture and Celtic sound to their dedicated fanbase, embracing them with an Irish welcome. They were warm, they were hospitable and they performed with grit and heart.

Following a slow-burning intro, the band immediately showed why their live reputation has exploded so quickly. Their sound – blending folk storytelling with huge anthemic energy – somehow managed to feel both intimate and enormous inside the venue’s industrial surroundings.

Vocally, Eddie Keogh was outstanding throughout. Whether delivering fragile, stripped-back moments or soaring choruses, his voice carried a raw honesty that cut through the noise of the venue effortlessly. What makes Kingfishr stand out live is their ability to create tension and release: songs often began delicately before building into explosive singalongs that had the room shouting lyrics back at the stage.

Tracks like Killeagh and Eyes Don’t Lie were clear highlights, greeted with deafening reactions from a crowd that seemed to know every word. This would contrast with pin-drop, vocal-led moments such as Shot In The Dark where there was an intensity in the room that felt collectively connective. The chemistry between the three musicians was equally impressive, carrying the confidence of a band growing naturally into bigger stages while maintaining the authenticity that drew fans to them.

By the closing moments of the set, the venue had transformed into one massive choir. Arms were raised, voices were hoarse, and the atmosphere bordered on euphoric.

Kingfishr, Depot, Cardiff, Tue 19 May

words DENIECE CUSACK photos STILL_SIN_

“What we always try to avoid is being really specific about, ‘You can do this and you can’t do that’, because fundamentally the responsibility is with Channel 4 and its production company, or with ITV or BBC or whoever is producing these shows, to get this right,” she explained.

Cardiff University professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones, known for his books on ancient Persia and the forgotten queens of Egypt, here turns his flair for lyrical interpretation of historical source-matter to one of the most storied cities of the Mesopotamian cradle of civilization: Babylon.

Occupying a unique place within Western understanding of the ancient world, coloured by the biases and agendas of those who have documented it, Babylon is known to many as the ‘quintessential city of sin’, as Llewellyn-Jones puts it. But beyond misunderstanding, slander and projection, Babylon is deserving of the kind of rigorous reassessment provided by Llewellyn-Jones. A thriving, mega-city for centuries, home to the fabled Tower of Babel and the Hanging Gardens, Babylon is brought brilliantly to life here. From its glorious peak, when it was “glistening with gold and lapis-blue glazed bricks” to its eventual decrepitude, Llewellyn-Jones gives the historical sources a light-touch, literary buff-up to cast a modern perspective on the city’s centuries of boom and bust.

For all that the dynastic turmoil and architectural triumphs of the great city dominate these sources, Llewellyn-Jones does what he can to get beyond the obvious and there are nuggets of fascinating detail dispersed through every chapter: the development of writing on Babylonian clay tablets; the importance of the cult of Marduk to the city; even what Babylonians would snack on. A highly engaging life story of a city of astonishing importance to the development of civilization.