The Stunning

The Stunning

The Stunning are an Irish rock band from Galway, formed in 1987 and active again after an initial split in 1994. The current members listed are Jim Higgins, Joe Wall and Steve Wall. Their best-known songs include “Brewing Up a Storm”, “Romeo’s on Fire”, “Half Past Two” and “Heads Are Gonna Roll”.

Career

The band’s debut album, Paradise in the Picturehouse, reaches number one in 1990 and stays there for five weeks. Their second album, Once Around the World, goes straight to number one and becomes a multi-platinum seller. They sell more than 100,000 albums in Ireland alone, and songs such as “Got to Get Away”, “Half Past Two”, “Romeo’s on Fire” and “Brewing Up a Storm” become major radio hits.

After the split, Steve and Joe Wall form The Walls. Derek Murray joins The Sawdoctors, while Jim Higgins spends several years performing around the world with Riverdance before also joining The Sawdoctors. Cormac Dunne becomes a sought-after session drummer. Steve and Joe later set up the record label Earshot, later renamed Dirtbird Records, and release the debut album by The Walls, Hi-Lo.

Reunion and later releases

The Stunning reform for live shows in 2003, 2006 and 2008, and continue to perform afterwards. In September 2003 they play 14 sold-out shows to more than 20,000 people across the country. Their 2006 Christmas tour visits Dublin, Galway, Cork, Sligo, Castlebar, Ennis and Killarney. In 2008 they complete a 12-date Irish tour and appear at Electric Picnic in Stradbally, County Laois. In 2009 they headline the Friday night of the Volvo Ocean Race stopover in Galway city, drawing around 25,000 people to Galway docks.

In 2012, their 25th anniversary is marked by a six-date Christmas tour that visits Dublin, Kilkenny, Cork, Castlebar, Donegal and Galway. “Brighten up my Life”, their first original single since 1993, is released in 2017, and Twice Around the World, their first studio album in 26 years, follows in 2018.