Gig Review... Dry The River @ King Tuts, Glasgow, 22nd April 2012

The last gig I had been to at King Tuts had been surprisingly quiet and for a band I had thought to be similar sized to Dry The River but there were no such fears for this gig as the band packed out the venue with every ticket sold. It is clear why the band's star is rising in such a way as they have some massive songs and a set of lovely softer tunes to compliment them. The night is opened however by two men playing acoustic on behalf of the band This Silent Forest, a Glasgow band who we're told normally have six or seven members and play electric. However, this did not detract from the performance in any way as the duo put on a tremendous set of songs they had rarely played live or even practised playing together before. I was so impressed I went straight to the merch stall and bought their EP after they had finished, which similarly has not disappointed. On this basis This Silent Forest are definitely one to watch.

Next up were the experimental Tall Ships with a dazzling array of loops and various tricks with their music. They got the crowd moving well but across the set as a whole seemed to lack the variation to really make them more interesting. A great start to the set but seeming to drizzle out partway through. Musically they were excellent but the songwriting seemed to have something lacking in some songs.



Dry The River took to the stage in style with single 'No Rest' soaring into every crevice of Glasgow's finest venue. The crowd, including myself, seemed surprised by the band's bold move to open with such a song. But the band really weren't waiting about and a series of their best tracks followed instantly, culminating in the epic 'New Ceremony' and 'Weights And Measures' with the band only halfway through their set. In the opening period of 'Weights And Measures' the band sang the introduction to the song without using microphones, with the crowd keeping respectfully quiet, leading to a wonderful couple of minutes as the atmosphere swirled around them tantalisingly.

The first half of this set had been incredible but sadly made the second half a bit of an anti-climax. Whilst the other songs on the set were touching and sound lovely on record, in the live scene the band would have been wiser to hold back some livelier songs to mix in with these to keep up the tempo. The baffling exclusion of the brilliant 'The Chambers And The Valves' also seemed strange and was a real disappointment. The band are clearly a great act who can sound massive but hopefully in the future they'll plan out their setlists a bit better. Only ten songs played on the night when they have a twelve track album and a poor order of tracks. I wouldn't let it put you off going to see them though because when they're at their best, they're brilliant.

Dry The River played:
No Rest
Shield Your Eyes
History Book
New Ceremony
Weights And Measures
Shaker Hymns
Family
Demons
Bible Belt
Lion's Den


Written by - Neil Shaw



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Gig Review... Sharks @ Oran Mor, Glasgow, 30th April 2012

When I heard Tribes were coming to Glasgow I was interested right away but for me this show was equally about the main band and their support act Sharks. Two of my favourite new bands on one bill looked sure to provide a great night, and this was indeed the case. Despite having made many releases over the last few years Sharks finally released their début album 'No Gods' in March and drew mainly from this album for their setlist.



Blasting onstage the band showed they have improved hugely as a live act from last summer with a bigger sound than ever and possibly the loudest performance I've seen all year. But their songs aren't just about being big and noisy as the likes of 'Patient Spider' and set closer and highlight 'No Gods' prove. Rattling through half of hour of their best songs the band get the crowd doing, many of whom have come along wanting to see Sharks as much as, if not more than, Tribes. Despite singer James Mattlock having a sore throat seemingly they take on the challenge and meet it. Sharks have managed to take the potential they showed years ago and have now stepped up to the next level. A great live act to match one of the strongest début albums of the year, it looks like things are going well for Sharks.

Sharks played:
'Til The Wonders Rise
Arcane Effigies
Able Moving Hearts
It All Relates
Fallen On Deaf Ears
Sweet Harness
Patient Spider
No Gods

Written by - Neil Shaw

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Gig Review... Tribes @ Oran Mor, Glasgow, 30th April 2012

When I heard Tribes were coming to Glasgow I was interested right away but for me this show was equally about the main band and their support act Sharks. Two of my favourite new bands on one bill looked sure to provide a great night, and this was indeed the case.

It would be fair to say things are going well for Tribes too with the band drawing a decent crowd in a fair-sized venue for a band on their first headline tour visit to Scotland. There was a good buzz around the venue as Tribes took to the stage and start off with my favourite song by them 'Whenever'. Luckily though, throwing this in first didn't prove to be an anti-climax. The band's album 'Baby' is littered with singles and sing-alongs meaning even on one album the band can pack the set with 'big moments'.



In a refreshing turn Tribes don't just perform the bare minimum number of tracks and saunter off, in fact throwing in no fewer than four b-sides, a lovely treat for the dedicated fans like myself. Some other bands I've seen recently could take a hint from this, it really beefs up the show for a new band. The quality is the main thing though and the band keep it up throughout. Coming towards the end of the set the band hit their strongest point of the night with a closing pair of 'When My Day Comes' and 'We Were Children'. The band then left the stage very briefly before returning for a rousing sing-along of fan favourite b-side 'Coming Of Age' to end a triumphant début Glasgow headline show and show they can back up their studio recordings live. All in all two great up and coming bands, Sharks were better in my mind but that does not take away from Tribes in any way.

Tribes played:
Whenever
Girlfriend
Sappho
Corner Of An English Field
Himalaya
Nightdriving
Walking In The Street
Face To Face
Not So Pretty
Halfway Home
Bad Apple
Alone Or With Friends
When My Day Comes
We Were Children

Coming Of Age

Written by - Neil Shaw



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Gig Review... Grouplove @ King Tuts, Glasgow, 21st February 2012

Having seen Grouplove play at two festivals last summer there was no doubt they are a good live act, but the question remained of how their own show would compare to a cut-down singles-based festival slot.

It's instantly obvious that the band are here to party, jumping around the stage before they’ve even started playing. 'Don't Say Oh Well' from the band's self-titled EP gets the crowd moving right away, and before the mood settles 'Lovely Cup' and 'Itchin' On A Photograph' are blasted out.



Grouplove are an unusual example of a band where four members of the band sing songs, with only drummer Ryan Rabin not getting in on the act. Frontman Christian Zucconi takes the lead on most of the songs but keyboardist Hannah Cooper is the first of the others to step up when she sings 'Love Will Save Your Soul'. Later on guitarist Andrew Wessen and bassist Sean Gadd take turns to sing 'Spun' and 'Chloe' respectively. Its not only that the four of them do sing, the fact is they all do it very well. Gadd, wearing a cowboy hat throughout the gig does most of the talking as the band try to catch their breath between each hectic tune.

The epic 'Gold Coast' is only other song performed from the band's EP with all but one of the tracks from début album 'Never Trust A Happy Song' being rolled out. The band are clearly enjoying themselves as Christian, wearing a Scotland t-shirt, tells the crowd they're going to play 'Cruel And Beautiful World', not normally in their setlist, because they love the Glasgow crowd so much.

Despite being a new band Grouplove have clearly learned the importance of a great encore with 'Tongue Tied' and the breathtaking 'Colours' heralding two of the biggest sing-alongs of the night. With the low ceiling in King Tut's it looks for a moment as if the band are going to go straight through whilst leaping about during 'Colours'. By the end of the show you really feel like you've seen a band who are performing well beyond their years. With Grouplove its not just a band playing a bunch of songs, a bunch of close friends putting their heart and soul into the thing they love doing with their life.

Grouplove played:
Don't Say Oh Well
Lovely Cup
Itchin' On A Photograph
Love Will Save Your Soul
Gold Coast
Cruel And Beautiful World
Naked Kids
Spun
Chloe
Close Your Eyes And Count To Ten
Slow

Tongue Tied
Colours

Written by - Neil Shaw



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Gig Review... Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds @ SECC , Glasgow, 24th February 2012

There's few people like Noel Gallagher in British music. Everyone knows who he is and millions of people see him as an idol. He was in the band many people believe defined English music for a decade and now he's a successful solo artist. It's fair to say the crowd are up for this one tonight.
Reverend & The Makers are on first though, to get everyone warmed up. When I first heard that they'd been announced as the support act I was pleased, I've always thought of them to be the sort of band I'd like. After hearing this though, I decided to give both of their album a listen and was very impressed, particularly with second album 'A French Kiss In The Chaos'. As a result, I was looking forward to seeing Jon McClure and co live. They played a nice mix of songs from both albums with a few new ones to boot. Despite the reaction hits like 'Heavyweight Champion of the World' receive, its brand new track 'Bassline' which steals the show. This will be on the new unusually titled album '@reverend_makers' and is an indicator that it could be another impressive album from the Sheffield troupe.

NME's Godlike Genius for 2012 has been filling arenas for his whole career with Oasis but now is the time for Noel Gallagher's first ever solo venture into such territory. And it sounds absolutely massive, the best Noel's ever sounded. He and his High Flying Birds really are on top form. Choirs and an orchestra help to bolster the sound of the impressive band which Noel has put together for the tour. The drummer in particular knocks out some huge sounding drum tracks. Old Oasis b-side '(It's Good) To Be Free' opens the show and is followed by a pounding rendition of 'Mucky Fingers'. It doesn't seem to matter which tracks Noel picks from his old band's back catalogue, they all sound great.



Having said this, the songs from his début solo album stand up very well to the classics, with songs like 'Everybody's On The Run' and 'If I Had A Gun...' drawing huge sing-alongs from the crowd. Noel has previously remarked that he's not the sort of performer who makes a big deal of where he's playing when talking to the crowd but he tells the Glasgow audience “It's been a privilege to play for you tonight, as it always is up here”. These words seem even more genuine in hindsight having read his blog where he calls the Glasgow gig a great night whilst criticising others show like London and Birmingham.
The noise level almost goes through the roof when Noel, with only two of his cohorts on stage, plays a beautifully stripped down version of 'Supersonic'. This is matched though by his encore, a real show of strength from one of British music's greats. My personal highlight 'Whatever' leads into 'Little By Little', 'The Importance of Being Idle' and finally 'Don't Look Back In Anger'.
Noel doesn't need Oasis, he doesn't need to play 'Wonderwall' and on this form I hope he keeps playing with his High Flying Birds for a long time.

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds played:
(It's Good) To Be Free
Mucky Fingers
Everybody's On The Run
Dream On
If I Had A Gun...
The Good Rebel
The Death of You and Me
Freaky Teeth
Supersonic
(I Wanna Live in a Dream in My) Record Machine
AKA... What A Life!
Talk Tonight
Soldier Boys and Jesus Freaks
AKA... Broken Arrow
Half The World Away
(Stranded On) The Wrong Beach

Whatever
Little By Little
The Importance of Being Idle
Don't Look Back In Anger

Written by - Neil Shaw

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Gig Review... Various Cruelties @ King Tuts, Glasgow, 21st January 2012

You can often feel a real of anticipation amongst a crowd at the gig of a rising band like Various Cruelties but it's clear to see the bands themselves are excited to be back in Glasgow playing the legendary King Tuts Wah Wah Hut with singer Liam O'Donnell telling the crowd how much they've been looking forward to this particular show.

But before they take to the stage local indie band Huevo And The Giant play a chirpy half hour set. It's clear they've roped in a lot of their friends to watch but the neutrals among the crowd are soon won over by their blend of cheery tunes with 'Wings (We Are The Kids)' being a particular highlight. I'll be sure to check them out again.



But as enjoyable as they were, Various Cruelties are a level up. They don't waste any time getting started, kicking off with the up-tempo 'Neon Truth' getting the crowd moving right away. If this wasn't enough new single 'Great Unknown' is up next as the band get into their stride. Across their forty five minute set they entice us in with their soul-tinted indie. With Etta James having passed away yesterday, the band dedicate 'She Is The One' to the former soul legend. They seem to have upped their game musically from their earlier releases with tracks such as 'Don't Want To Waste Your Time' sounding bigger than its ever sounded before with a beefed up beat behind it. Playing twelve songs, it would appear they may have premièred their whole album, and if so it looks like it's going to be a great début album!

With chanting for bassist Beanie throughout the show, the band take their leave after new song 'Beautiful Delirium' winds its way into their fans' ears. They're only off of the stage for a matter of seconds though before storming back on to finish with their biggest hit 'Chemicals', drawing a huge sing-along and sending fans and band alike home happy.

Various Cruelties played:

Neon Truth
Great Unknown
If It Wasn't For You
Magnetic Fields
Cold As You
Thrill Is Gone
Capsize
Dry Your Tears
She Is The One
Don't Want To Waste Your Time
Beautiful Delirium

Chemicals





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Written by - Neil Shaw