THE MUSE and the music got tangled up at Whelan's in Dublin at the weekend when Nick Cave's late reading led to the bizarre situation of expectant country fans enduring (silently in most cases) the antipodean's poetic ramblings while hillbilly partying was uppermost in their minds.

When BR5-49 finally made it on to the stage, this five piece Nashville newbie outfit proved a mite tentative and nervous. The rollicking good time mood of their ep, Live At Robert's, was a distant memory as the band struggled to find their feet. Their Fifties flavoured Jimbob suits and denim dungarees helped convey a sense of kitsch. Country music walks a thin line between effective emotion and overbearing schmaltz, and they were leaning heavily towards the latter.

However, as the 90 minute set progressed, the band so called after a phone number used in a "hee haw" routine began to outgrow their marketing persona. In particular, Don Herron (pedal steel, fiddle and mandolin) and Chuck Mead (electric guitar and vocals) began to string together some fine instrumental breaks as they did a rapid fire tour of country's rich past (Hank Williams, Johnny Horton etc). They also introduced some of their own material from the new album, BRS-49, show casing their ability to update the rockabilly sound without losing its credibility. It is the quality of their own songs which will determine whether or not BR5-49 are merely a fine bar band or something more substantial.

As it stands, BR5-49 certainly know their country tradition and, by the close, they had gained the enthusiastic support of Dublin's country fans, who are no slouches in that department either. "I want to move here", shouted singer Gary Bennett. Maybe he should, and then he could get rid of that awful suit.