E-Werk, Cologne, Germany6th May 2026
Glen Hansard - “European Tour 2026” - Support: Courtney Marie Andrews
Just a few weeks ago, Irish singer-songwriter GLEN HANSARD released ‘Don’t Settle (Vol. 1 - Transmissions East)’, the first of two parts of a live album capturing the performances he and his band gave in the spring of 2025 at Berlin’s historic Funkhaus in front of a few hundred fans.
‘Vol. 2’ is set to follow later this year. In the interim, GLEN HANSARD will be touring across Europe in May. We had the opportunity to attend his show on May 6 at Cologne’s E-Werk. It was an evening when finding parking around the E-Werk became a gamble, because concerts were taking place not only at the E-Werk but also at the Palladium across the street and the neighbouring Carlswerk Victoria and Club Volta, and many parking spots were unavailable due to construction. But none of that was going to stop us.
Courtney Marie Andrews
Support act COURTNEY MARIE ANDREWS kicked off the concert at the packed E-Werk in Cologne. The young American singer-songwriter wasn’t entirely alone, as she was accompanied by an equally young guitarist. Together, the duo performed a good half-dozen ballads, which were a bit too similar and could have offered more variety. Thus, the audience enjoyed a thoroughly pleasant set, during which the two likable artists took turns on stage playing guitar and keyboards.
Glen Hansard
It was around 9:10 p.m. when GLEN HANSARD and his band finally took the stage. The Irish singer-songwriter was accompanied by musicians, some of whom have been by his side for decades. With Rob Bochnik (guitar), Joe Doyle (bass), and Graham Hopkins (drums), at least three members of the Irish rock band The Frames were on stage. Although the band hasn’t released a new album in over ten years, their musical chemistry remains undiminished.
This was particularly evident during ‘Say It To Me Now’: All the musicians faced GLEN HANSARD and sought direct eye contact. It gave the impression that much of what was happening was spontaneous and that this visual exchange was necessary to perform the songs together. The charismatic frontman acknowledged the sight of the (almost?) sold-out venue after the song with a dry, yet visibly pleased remark: “I have to tell you: this is a musician’s favourite view... a full room.”
Musically, the band shone especially during the louder passages. ‘This Gift’, for example, scored with an extremely powerful finale that unleashed the band’s raw energy. An unexpected moment occurred during ‘Her Mercy’ when a fan at the very back of the audience suddenly joined in and traded verses with GLEN HANSARD for a brief moment. While the Irish frontman kept his stage banter to a minimum during the first half of the concert, he became almost chatty as the show went on. Before ‘Fitzcarraldo’, he spoke at length about his enthusiasm for Werner Herzog’s film of the same name. He said he had been particularly struck at the time by the passion of the protagonist, played by Klaus Kinski, who sets out to pull a ship over a mountain.
He also spoke about his discoveries in record stores: he often bought albums just because of the cover art. That’s how he discovered the evening’s opening act, Courtney Marie Andrews. The connection was ultimately made through a mutual acquaintance and a coincidence on an email list. Back to the album covers: GLEN HANSARD apparently also discovered the English Hardcore Punk band DISCHARGE through an album cover. The track ‘Drunk With Power’, which was covered that evening, turned out to be a bit of an outlier. In the nearly three minutes that this up-tempo track lasted, all hell broke loose on stage.
Before ‘Down on Our Knees’, he also shared a surreal dream sequence with the audience: In his dream, he had found himself in a flooded Berlin, while Joseph Beuys’s distinctive hat floated past him on the surface of the water on the flooded streets. The emotional highlight was - as expected - ‘Falling Slowly’. For the ballad, which earned him an Oscar nearly 20 years ago alongside Markéta Irglová, almost all the musicians left the stage, leaving GLEN HANSARD accompanied only by his keyboardist.
Later, support act COURTNEY MARIE ANDREWS returned to the stage for the song ‘Let The Good One Go’, while GLEN HANSARD discreetly held back on the backing vocals and watched his band’s performance with rapt attention. Those expecting an elaborate stage show were disappointed - those who came for the music were thoroughly satisfied. The visual concept was reduced to a minimum: sparse lighting that often illuminated the frontman only sporadically, and no decorations whatsoever, apart from a large, bright cloth hanging from the ceiling in the centre of the background.
This purism, however, only underscored the intensity of the evening. GLEN HANSARD and his band delivered a performance at the E-Werk that thrived on its immediacy and personal stories. Anyone who appreciates honest craftsmanship and authentic passion witnessed a concert here that needed no special effects to exert an enormous pull. Magnificent.
Setlist
01. Revelate (The Frames song)
02. Don’t Settle
03. Sure As The Rain
04. Say It To Me Now (The Frames song)
05. Gold
06. My Little Ruin
07. Didn’t He Ramble
08. Grace Beneath The Pines
09. Her Mercy
10. Wreckless Heart
11. This Gift
12. Great Weight (The Swell Season song)
13. Fitzcarraldo (The Frames song)
14. Down On Our Knees
15. Falling Slowly (The Swell Season song)
16. Drunk With Power (Discharge cover)
17. Let The Good One Go (Courtney Marie Andrews cover) (with Courtney Marie Andrews)
18. When Your Mind’s Made Up (The Swell Season song)
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19. Passing Through (Pete Seeger cover)
All pictures by André Wilms
