A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to win tickets to see Áine Cahill in London at The Lexington – a small pub in Angel. It’s a quirky pub with a music venue above it. After a disappointing Wagamama at Angel (NEVER go there) it was nice to sit in a squishy armchair with a drink waiting for the gig to start.
We caught the end of Nikhil D’Souza – he was fantastic, reminded me a bit of Scott Matthews. The venue was quickly filling up with people waiting for Áine to take to the stage. As soon as Nikhil finished we got to the front of the crowd.
The show begins..
Áine took the stage, and did an acapella rendition of ‘Bang Bang’ by Nancy Sinatra. Her haunting voice filled the room – it was bliss. This tiny lady can belt out a tune. She was then joined on stage by her keyboard player and violinist and the show began.
She is super talented, there are threads of Adele and Amy Winehouse in her voice. It’s smokey and sultry, powerful and rich. Before each song she gave a little introduction about the story behind it. I can’t really put into words how much I enjoy her.
As the set reached its mid-point, I turned to Miss A. Something wasn’t right – there was a glazed look to her.
I asked her if she was okay.
Nothing.
Within a snap, she started to fall to the floor. I quickly grabbed her, she was limp.
I was fucking terrified, just a few minutes before, she was fine – then really not well. The slight commotion caught the attention of the couple behind us. They gave up their seat and helped me put Miss A onto it.
I had no idea what was happening, Miss A was slumped and murmuring in the chair. I’ve had First Aid training, years ago – but instantly, it all went out of my head. I was terrified. Miss A seemed to be coming round. It transpired the guy who helped her sit down was actually a Doctor. One of the staff came over to see what was happening. Miss A was burning up – I could feel the heat radiating off her.
The member of staff rushed back with a bottle of water. Miss A was gradually ‘back in the room’ and was able to drink some.
I was relieved she was okay, but baffled as to what had happened.. It transpired that a very long time ago, Miss A had bouts of low blood pressure, and it flared. The doctor was recommending she lie on the floor to help blood flow to the brain. However a mid-gig floor isn’t a place to be. She just sat with her head down, occasionally raising it for sips of water.
The staff member and doctor were amazing – I felt pretty useless. There was nothing much I could do aside from reassuring pats on the back and getting her to keep hydrated.
While this was all happening, the show went on – my little crisis had a fantastic playlist.
I’m so thankful that there were nice people around to help, I honestly don’t know what I’d do. Hopefully nothing like this will happen again. If it does though, at least I’ll know that what it is!
As the gig finished, Miss A seemed to be back to herself – a little shaken, and very apologetic for the commotion. I was thankful it was relatively short-lived and not overly serious. It was nice to give Áine the round of applause she deserved. However, I was thankful to be leaving and getting Miss A home.
So – what did I learn last night? Áine Cahill is awesome live, my girlfriend has occasional low blood pressure.
Oh, and I’m shit in a medical crisis.
