Having fully intended to go to Kings Of Thrash anyway, the fact that Ireland’s XIII Doors were announced as the main support made this Tuesday night a much tastier prospect.
XIII Doors
The Sound House, Dublin – 1 September 2026
Words: Brian Boyle
Photography: Steven Maloney
If you possess their fantastic debut album Into The Unknown, then you already know the story with this exciting four-piece. Chancers they are not. Their multi-genre repertoire, which accumulates to a premium brand of rock and Metal, shows that they are a band who thrive on experimentation and ambition.
And they know their way around an aul stage too.
As is the case with the album, Unleash The Beast was the perfect opener tonight, because when these lads plug in, there is an untameable force about them.
It is over a year since they last played Dublin. That was as support to German legend Michael Schenker. And glancing around, there seemed to be a lot more punters familiar with the material, so much so that Into The Unknown and Face The Truth fared a lot better.
As professional and musically meticulous as they are, they are not exempt from an onstage blooper, though. When bass Goliath Pat Byrne’s strap hilariously decided to have a break mid-song, WICKED drummer and now expert Guinness guzzler, Gunnar Coston was on like a flash to rescue his rhythmic brother.
A moment like this only heightened the mood in the room, which rose again at the finale of Sorceress Of Lies, where some fretboard keepie uppies rounded the tune off with an outlandish bit of class.
Even the mid-tempo See How You’ve Come So Far could not halt momentum. The only thing that could have done with a drop was the temperature, which felt like it was rising with every note struck.
But soggy shorts aside, their 40 min set was utilised well, and having an eight-track debut album is handy for a support slot. They took it home with an energy-sapping Lean On Me, which showed in spades that they are as much about the vocals as they are about riffs and rhythms.
Just like last time, the chemistry with this band is beyond electric. The engine room of Pat Byrne and new drummer Jason Christy played like a pair who may as well be joined at the hip.
Add that to the guitar fire of main man DJ O’Sullivan and Flash Murphy, and you get one hell of a cohesive unit. The aforementioned Shannon man O’Sullivan, just over a week ago, was on the other side of the city, shoulder to shoulder with ex-Queensrÿche singer Geoff Tate.
Tonight he was front and centre doing Freddie Mercury Ay-Ohs with a bunch of sweaty Thrash Metal fanatics.
Fantastic.
