Polar bolero & tessio joint headline, ulster sports club
An exciting evening for local music lay on the horizon in one of Belfast’s most loved music venues, Ulster Sports Club. Polar Bolero & Tessio host their joint headline show. Rolling in from the cold October evening, the atmosphere was relaxed, with people scattered across the dance floor chatting about what was to come.
The chatter quickly ceased as Tessio took to the stage. I took a brief moment to look around the room during their first song; every single person in the room was captivated, their eyes fixed on the folk duo in disbelief. Some staring with glistening eyes, some peering off in a daze and some looking to the roof trying to hold onto every second. As the set progressed we really got to see a glimpse of the duo's personalities. Between songs I didn’t know if I was still standing in Ulster sports club or watching an episode of “Live at the Apollo”. Their setlist pulled mainly from their self-titled album released last December, but it was a new track, “Tara”, that caught me completely off guard. It felt cinematic, the kind of song you could imagine in a film soundtrack. After I turned to my friend Niall and said, “wow.” Not many things make me audibly say that out loud. It was a really positive glimpse of what is to come for Tessio. Even after the set ended, Tessio’s music followed me, quite literally. In the toilets, a full chorus of whistlers carried their melodies through the room. If that’s not proof of a captivated audience, I don’t know what is.
I returned to the room as Polar Bolero took to the stage. I was excited to see them; I hadn’t seen them since Output 2024. It was a real change in dynamics but one that I wasn’t complaining about. What really stood out to me throughout Polar Bolero's set was that all members were almost surprised at each other's musicianship; to me, this was a beautiful edition – a band that practises and plays with each other all the time surprising one another by their sheer talent on stage. One instance in particular was when Michael McDowell filled the room with his Saxophone, I glanced at the rest of the band and they were in awe. Polar Bolero’s set was a mixture of some of their older tracks, their brand new track ‘Soar’, which released at midnight that night and a few teasers off their upcoming debut EP ‘Singing and Sailing away’ releasing the 2nd of February 2026. They ended with a brilliant rendition of ‘The weight’ by The Band; everyone in the room was singing, hugging each other or raising their glasses into the air. Polar Bolero exceeded my expectations and more; I can’t wait to hear the new Ep and see what they do next.
I left Ulster Sports Club with new songs coursing through my veins, a brilliant night of local music, and two extremely talented outfits that you must catch If you get the chance.