What better way to avoid the Sunday night blues than to attend a gig in one of my favourite little Glasgow venues with four (count em!) brilliant bands. Part of the series of the Endless Summer gigs in the venue, the line up was set to make this a very special night, and one which stuck two fingers up to the festivals that continue to lean heavily on white male guitar bands (says the aging white male who can’t play the guitar… but ), a fact which did not pass flinch. by… making a tongue in cheek comment about the line up being made up of white female electric guitar bands instead… Seriously though, on a night where England and Germany were battling it out in the women’s Euro’s, well done England… it was refreshing to be at a gig where male band members were outnumbered 2 to 1. And I hope as the father of two daughters who champions the cause of these bands, I am part of the solution rather than the problem…
Of course with a line up of such calibre, the night was destined to be a roaring success, which was exactly how things turned out. This is the way to do a gig, no messing about between bands, quick turnarounds with no hanging around, just enough time to get a quick refreshment between bands (alcohol free lager thanks to the archaic last timings of the Underground on a Sunday night…)
Miss the Occupier
Miss the Occupier got the job of opening proceedings, and a brilliant job they made of it too. The three-piece, their keyboard player having recently departed, had taken to playing older songs as a result, kicking off perfectly with Nothing’s Ever Perfect and treating the early attendee’s to a flawless set of their feisty punk attitude infused tunes that take in furious Wedding Present indie jangle, elements of US slacker rock and, in finishing off tonight with the outstanding I M Unique, covering off the top notch angular post punk territory. I first saw the band supporting Cud several years ago in the much missed ABC in Sauchiehall Street s, and somehow haven’t managed to see then since, which is criminal considering how good they were tonight. need to ensure its not so long the next time.
Sacred Noise
The same can’t be said for Sacred Noise, the newest kids on the block tonight, who of the four bands tonight, is the one which I’ve seen live most often, the last time only a couple of weeks ago. Two singles in and you could count on both hands the number of gigs they’ve played, but, excuse the profanity, fuck me, they get better each time I see them. Their sound tonight was immense, a huge wall of sound, acutely fraught and passionate, one which was led fearsomely by Anna on guitar who switched between quiet intensity and loud and all-consuming with ease. The “so laid back he’s almost horizontal” Sam on bass and powerhouse Robbie on drums are a symbiotic partnership, a solid canvas on which Anna can paint her pictures. Then the icing on the cake is Kirstin and her powerfully expressive vocal, more than a match for the fervent fury of the music, and with a fierce performance to match. Can’t wait for the next one.
flinch.
Talking of power, the wonderful flinch. have it in spades, their songs abound with extraordinarily perceptive and thought provoking lyrics, delivered in such an affecting manner. The power in flinch. songs doesn’t come in the same way as Sacred Noise, it is almost a complete turn around in that the most powerful of these remarkable performances flinch. are the most delicately delivered one’s. The one’s that have you marvelling at just how you can get such a quietly impactful noise from a guitar. The one’s that have tears welling in your ducts. Yes, that was me. I must bore the life out of people, I say this so often, but for it to mean something to me, music needs to make me feel. And by Christ did these songs have me feeling tonight. What a range of emotion. Wonderful. And what a version of escape from Rupture Farms!
Lemon Drink
So to headliners Lemon Drink, overcoming an initial sound issue early on to play an absolutely blinding set, the four came together in perfect synergy and taut vital exuberance, and having a lot of fun in the process. This was demonstrated in shedloads with an astonishing and ecstatically received “mash up” of Crush and Dua Lipa’s New Rules. Every band member was on fire tonight, but special mention to Lauren’s hypnotic bass playing particularly mesmerising me on the welcome return of their “fuck the patriarchy” song Pull Your House Down. With other set highlights including single Demon Drink, the magnificent Sip Sip and of course the superb cautionary tale that is A Song for You, this set was the icing on the cake for a wonderful night.
As I headed back to my car after the gig, I had a lightness to my step that belied the fact it was a Sunday night. Come on Monday – hit me with whatever you can. I’m ready for you.