Take one measure of Rum (Shack) add an intoxicating blend of three 100% proof bands and mix well with an effervescent crowd, fizzing in anticipation, and you have a veritable cocktail, enough to brighten another dreich night in Glasgow’s south side. The Rum Shack has built a reputation for itself as one of Glasgow’s best club-sized venues, and rightly so, a great atmosphere building in the bar next door, and transferring to the venue itself, a venue which has great acoustics and plenty of space to get great views of the stage and bands.
I was disappointed not to have made it though to Edinburgh for the first show by tonight’s headliners, Scorpio Leisure, when they supported Lydia Lunch. I’d been impressed by their recorded output and the tracks the bands bass player Coco (Colin J Whitson of Gin Goblins and Voicex fame) had shared with me. I had since been scanning the socials for any sign of further gigs, resigning myself to the fact I’d have to have a nosebleed venturing out of the Glasgow boundaries and heading out East to Edinburgh to catch the band. Not so, and when they announced the date in Glasgow, I was quick to snap up my brief.
The heady brew of entertainment kicked off in style with Spread Eagle, featuring the first of a cornucopia of members of classic post punk/alt rock bands to feature on the Rum Shack stage (and in the crowd) that evening, namely Jane Egypt and Annie Spandex of Lungleg. I think at this stage I need to reflect the thoughts of a friend who also wrote today about support bands, in particular due one he witnessed the evening after this gig. I am an advocate for getting to gigs early to see the support bands, in the past having been frustrated by friends who, having gone to a pub for a pre gig pint, take an age to finish or order another round when I was desperate to get to the venue. In fact in recent years, I’ve been inclined to buy many of my gig tickets based on who the support band is, stand up Watermachine, Sacred Noise, Junk Pups and Tina Sandwich amongst others. You never know what you might miss…
I shouldn’t have to say this after those comments, as I’m sure you’ll have guessed, getting in early to see Spread Eagle was a propitious move. A smile crept across my face as they launched into their set (without an intro – MC for the evening Tam Dean Burn temporarily awol at the time) and stormed their way through a gloriously triumphant set. A set which included a cover of Blue Monday, a cover like I’d never heard before, with almost a bluegrass folky feel to it. As the band victoriously brought their set to a thunderous conclusion, if someone had said to me, that’s it, the nights over, I would have gone home happy right there and then, such was the good feeling left by Spread Eagle. If you get the chance, don’t hesitate in catching them live.
Fortunately, the night was far from over, and with gaps between bands filled with engaging conversation with a wealth of good souls, things were panning out to be a special night.
The Rum Shack was a handy venue for the second band of the night, Casual Worker, who basically just had to nip up the road to play. Casual Worker have been gaining plaudits across the board recently ahead of their debut EP release on Last Night From Glasgow. In my youth, you’d be forgiven for classifying their sound as “goth” – after all, did Sisters of Mercy not have an electronic drummer in Doktor Avalanche? Keeping to the goth comparisons, as an aside, the bass player did appear to have watched many live Cure videos, his low slung, heads down bass style reflecting that of Simon Gallup.
Nowadays the band would probably be described as Electronic Synth laden, Dark Wave alt-pop. But forget labels. Whatever you might want to call them, the band was highly entertaining. You’d be forgiven for thinking they’d been on the go for years such was their classy playing, and the presence of Eve and her hypnotically engaging vocal. I very much look forward to catching the band again as they support bis and Slime City in St Luke’s at the latter bands album launch night in May. The future of music is in good hands.
The exhilarating nature of the evening continued with headliners, the intoxicatingly compelling Scorpio Leisure. I hate to use the word “supergroup”, but effectively that’s what Scorpio Leisure is. A coming together of the great and the good of the music scene, a solid rhythm section featuring Russell Burn (Fire Engines/Win) pounding the skins and Coco Whitson (Gin Goblins) creating the groove on bass, twin guitar assault from the two guitar supremos in Ricky Maymie (Brian Jonestown Massacre) and Mungo Carswell and completing the line up, the electrifyingly captivating Hettie Noir on vocals, bringing a certain vitality, spirit and charisma to the party.
The band gelled perfectly throughout, it was hard to know where to focus your attention with so much going on, each musician contributing a consummate performance that took in everything from the hypnotic urgent rhythms of Driving, through bass heavy laid back reggae grooves to an intense wall of sound, with Hettie more than a match for the fury of the music in her urgent and vociferously delivered lyrics. Brother of Russell, Tam Dean Burn (who returns to Glasgow as vocalist for The Scars in May at the CCA) took to the stage to introduce and thank the band before they all launched into a suitably anarchic version of Louie Louie to bring a smile inducing end to an immensely satisfying evening of music.
This was a gig that refreshed the parts that other gigs can’t reach, each ingredient complementing each other, from the three exquisite band performances, to the charming venue and the enthusiastic crowd, to create a unique and memorable gig experience.
