In 2005, singer-songwriter Declan O’Rourke was approached by someone who identified himself as both a fan and a musician in a little band of his own.

“He said it was called Snow Patrol, and I genuinely replied, ‘I think I might have heard that name,’” O’Rourke recalls. “Years later, that man [drummer Johnny Quinn] still laughs when he tells the story because at that particular moment, Snow Patrol was topping the charts and selling millions all over the States. He said it was so refreshing to find someone who didn’t know who they were.”

It’s a position that O’Rourke may very well find himself in at the rate things are going. His latest studio effort, Mag Pai Zai, currently sits among the top 10 in his home country of Ireland, for starters. And he’s opened for everyone from John Prine and Badly Drawn Boy to friends Snow Patrol in recent months.

“They’ve invited me to go on tour with them around Europe and the U.K… lots of stadiums, Wembley Arena,” he says. “A lot of fun and the nicest, most down to earth group of fellows I’ve met in the biz over the last 10 years.”

This Sunday, Sept. 29, O’Rourke occupies the headlining slot on the 7 p.m. Iron Horse bill. Tix are $12.50 in advance (available at iheg.com) and $15 at the door.

 

The previous evening, a similar exercise in mutual musical appreciation will be exhibited as Rick Murnane (best known for his work with Group Deville) opens for Colorway at Noho’s The Elevens Sept. 28.

“I’m excited to share the stage with these guys,” notes Murnane. “They put down such killer grooves in the band Superkart and Dave [Hayes] is also Colorway’s bassist. I’m also thrilled to be opening for Colorway, of course. We’ve been trying to figure out a time and place to make this happen for a while now.”

“Our CD has been out a few months and WRSI has been playing one of the songs fairly regularly,” adds Colorway’s Alex Johnson, “so I’m really hoping to fill the room with people who want some new music played by some familiar faces.”

And want to get home early, apparently— this show is slated to run from 6:30 to 9 p.m. and admission is $5. For more info on the groups or the gig, kindly point your browser to facebook/com/colorwaymusic.

Same night, same city, local junk folk trio Rusty Belle rings in the release of its third studio offering—Common Courtesy—at the Parlor Room in Signature Sounds Studios (parlorroommusic.com). The new disc was produced by David Goodrich (Peter Mulvey, Jeffrey Foucault), engineered by Justin Pizzoferrato (Dinosaur Jr., Thurston Moore, The Pixies), and was reportedly recorded “in seven days, under a full moon, in the midst of a hurricane” at Easthamp’s Sonelab Studios earlier this year.

 

Last up, the Crawler isn’t quite sure how to file this one. It’s not a rock in a hard place—more like cool rock memorabilia at a place the Hard Rock won’t be. Or maybe we’ll just let Hard Rock historian/Treasures of the Hard Rock curator Jeff Nolan explain the 3,500-square-foot museum that will grace the Big E’s (thebige.com) Young Building through the Expo’s end on Sept. 29.

“We have spent nearly two years scouring our 77,000-piece collection to pull together a showcase that will wow our guests,” Nolan notes of the Treasures of the Hard Rock exhibit. “The collection showcases a unique part of music history and gives fans the opportunity to see that history firsthand.”

Some of the standouts from Nolan’s Treasure trove include original, hand-written lyrics to the Beatles classic “Help,” a ’90s stage outfit from Whitney Houston, Kurt Cobain’s eighth-grade yearbook and a Guild 12-string acoustic used by Bob Marley to record “Is This Love.”

Admission to the exhibit is free with Big E entrance ticket.•

 

Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 394-4262 or email garycarra@aol.com.