Texas's music is for the most part unexceptional, radio-friendly stuff, which inevitably makes for polished but decidedly uninspiring concerts. Their performance at Dublin Castle was technically fine, but it lacked any serious sense of drama or excitement.
The band's greatest asset is singer Sharleen Spiteri, who combines a powerful voice with an assured technique. And behind her, guitarist Ally McEraine worked hard to avoid cliches and introduced an array of guitar techniques, from bottleneck to wah-wah. However, Texas still have a fairly limited range and the concert quickly began to sound repetitive. Hit singles from their most recent album, White On Blonde, were all received rapturously by the crowd: Spiteri gave an exceptional performance of Halo at the start of the concert, and made the encore, Put Your Arms Around Me, sound a lot better than it does on the album. Also, Black-Eyed Boy stood out for its focus and intensity. These were the highlights in a concert that had more than its fair share of dross.
There were two cover versions, and the choices (passable versions of Al Green's Tired of Being Alone and Marvin Gaye's You're All I Need To Get By) were indicative of the band's eagerness to be seen as not just a pop band, but as serious soul musicians. This eagerness reached its less-than-impressive apogee with the final encore: a rambling rendition of Say What You Want, weighed down by Spiteri's tiresome, exhibitionist vocals. The concert closed with a distinct sense of anti-climax.