KEO AND BLEECH 9:3 DELIVER A SPECIAL SOLD-OUT NIGHT AT OH YEAH BELFAST
Near the Noise isn’t just about Irish artists - it’s about the artists who come here, play great shows, and help shape the scene around them. Keo, the four-piece alternative rock band from London, are absolutely one of those bands.
With Irish fans already firmly on board, it was no surprise that Keo’s long awaited first Belfast show drew a sold out crowd to the Oh Yeah Music Centre. Better still, they brought one of Ireland’s most exciting new bands with them for support: Bleech 9:3.
We arrived an hour before doors, expecting there to be a buzz around this one, and we were glad we did. Even that early, the queue was already building fast, with fans clearly eager to get inside. By the time doors opened, the anticipation outside was impossible to miss.
Some fans were even climbing up the window railings, trying to catch a glimpse of soundcheck. From outside, you could clearly hear Bleech 9:3 running through crowd favourite Ceilings, which only seemed to ramp up the excitement even more.
BLEECH 9:3
On that note, Bleech 9:3 might genuinely be one of the best support acts you could ask for on a bill like this.
From the second they stepped on stage, the energy in the room shifted. By their second song, the mosh pit had already kicked off - while we were left trying to keep hold of our camera for dear life.
During Jacky, which sparked one of the night’s earliest surges from the crowd, lead vocalist Barry jumped into the audience to sing face-to-face with fans, giving the room an extra jolt of chaos. Later, during Ceilings, he joined the mosh pit again, even giving the crowd a heads-up beforehand, knowing plenty of people had likely already seen videos of that moment online.
What stood out most was how complete Bleech 9:3 already feel as a live band. Barry’s vocals were strong, the heavier instrumentals hit hard, and they were effortlessly compelling to watch throughout. There’s something excitingly unpredictable about them, but it never feels messy - just confident.
It’s hard to believe their debut single only arrived in October 2025, because they already carry themselves like a band destined for much bigger stages. If this set proved anything, it’s that Bleech 9:3 are one of the most exciting breakthrough acts in Ireland right now.
Thankfully, Belfast won’t have to wait long to see them again, as they return to headline Voodoo in April - and based on this performance, that is not one to miss.
KEO
With the support slot setting the bar so high, the excitement for Keo only grew from there.
You know a band are doing something special when a room full of people know every word, despite there only being one EP out. The momentum Keo have built over the past year is seriously impressive, made all the more remarkable by the fact that frontman Finn Keogh is still only 21.
This may have been the London band’s first time playing Belfast, but there was nothing tentative about it. From the first song, the crowd were locked in. It genuinely felt like one of those nights where you know you are catching a band before they outgrow rooms of this size.
One of the standout moments came with the track Fly - a fan favourite that Finn shared he wrote when he was just 17, about the difficulty of leaving a relationship and the guilt that can come with it. While the track lives on SoundCloud rather than Spotify, hearing the crowd sing every word back made it feel even more significant in the set.
We even overheard someone behind us earlier in the night hoping they would play both Fly and Kind, If You Will - and thankfully for her, she got both. Later on, Finn asked the crowd whether they wanted to hear Stolen Cars or Kind If You Will, before joking that he had asked the wrong person when one fan shouted back: “Play both.” Honestly, we agreed.
Interestingly, Finn shared that it was the first time they had ever played those two songs back to back. He also explained that Kind, If You Will was written in the studio because he found Stolen Cars more difficult to sing - which, if anything, made hearing both on the night feel even more special.
They closed with I Lied, Amber, and a room full of people completely under their spell. Atmospheric and emotionally charged, the final stretch of the set only reinforced the feeling that Keo are right on the edge of something much bigger.
Their first Belfast show was not only worth the wait - it was one of the strongest nights we’ve seen so far in 2026.
As Finn Keogh himself put it:
“We’ve played some big rooms on this tour, but this one feels special.”
And in a room like that, it was hard not to believe him.
