Each song is like a 3 minute therapy session for him where he pulls his pain out for all to see. After seeing Mike Ireland live, I'm ready to throw a sleeping bag into the truck and follow them around the country. I had forgotten how truly powerful music can be. All that Southern Rock and 70s country had almost a soul feel to the rhythm section. Nowadays everything has a mechanical rhythm to it.
Every beat is exactly the same.
But when he does it, it works. It brings life to the music. If the song is making me dig in more and play faster into a chorus, the the song damn well needs to be played faster into the chorus. Live, the music takes you. In the studio it's different, but live, if the song wants to go somewhere, it's got to go there.