Monday 31 May 2010

Pooch and Spectrum, Saturday 29th May 2010

After a great night out watching Admiral Fallow on Friday night I was off out again on Saturday night with Lynn to watch Pooch in action at the pre-club band night run by Spectrum at McChuills.

McChuills was already pretty busy when we arrived around 8.30pm and the night got off to a nice started when Steph (one of the 3 brothers that run Spectrum) got on stage to introduce an Aussie he had met in London who is travelling with the ambition to play an acoustic set in every city he visits. As someone who has been travelling, this is something I appreciate and the guy was delighted to be playing to a good sized crowd.

The DJ played a load of great tunes that I have in my own collection; 'I Believe When I Fall In Love (With You It Will Be Forever)' by Stevie Wonder, 'Sweet Harmony' by The Beloved and 'Drunk Girls' by LCD Soundsystem.

Very sadly, Vendor Defender had to pull out of the gig after the singer received some terrible news. My thoughts go out to Zak who is a lovely guy.

So on to Pooch. I last caught Pooch in Maggie's Glasgow when they played a brilliant stripped back set. Tonight was full on electro for a crowd itching to get to Blackfriars to start dancing.

Pooch didn't disappoint. Lead singer Laura Boyd was dressed to kill in a vintage dress, stillettos and with Bowie-esque face paint. They ripped through a 30-minute set full of energy and style. The beats provided by the equally glamorous drummer Kirstin kept the pace up as Boyd played to the crowd, edging ever closer to the front of the stage until she was almost part of the audience.

I'm not fully aware of the titles of the Pooch songs and as the night was young, I don't think I would have remembered them anyway! However 'Masquerade' and 'Lights' are tunes that I know and they went down well with the crowd.

This was a match made in heaven, a party band for a party crowd and Pooch didn't disappoint. Boyd was clearly the star of the show, posing and pouting her way through the set, demanding the attention and affection of the crowd. Judging by the cheers for more at the end, she got it. But full marks to Pooch for finishing with no encore and leaving the crowd wanting more. Something more bands should do.

This was my first time catching Pooch in full on electro mode in quite some time and I will certainly be going to catch them again. I wouldn't be surprised if the Spectrum crowd have them back in the future.

The club itself had a real party atmosphere with the highlight being when the DJ teased in 'Song 2' by Blur for a quite euphoric reaction. A good night all in all. Just about recovered!

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