Named after the debut single by Teenage Fanclub.
This blog is all about being a music lover in Glasgow; reviews, interviews, memories, old faves, new discoveries (past and present), playlists and more. Thanks for visiting - I hope you discover something amazing you have never heard before, or that you rediscover an old favourite.
Regular features/playlists; Never Ending Mixtape / Cover Version of the Month/ Trust Me.
Insta - @everythingflowsglasgow
Teenage Fanclub have announced a series of 3-night shows in Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham and London to play songs from the incredible run of albums they released on Creation Records through the 1990's to 2000.
1991 - Bandwagonesque
1993 - Thirteen
1995 - Grand Prix
1997 - Songs From Northern Britain
2000 - Howdy
I take a look back and play a song from each album and a favourite b-side from the era.
I wasn't going to write a live review on last night's Teenage Fanclub show. After Saturday night at the Barrowland (see previous blog) I thought it would be largely the same set with just a few changes - kind of like they had been doing for the whole tour. The Fanclub geek in me had kept an eye on the setlist's that fellow fans posted on social media throughout the last two months.Thankfully, I was wrong.
My reward for going 2-nights running (as if there was every any doubt I wouldn't) was a fantastic show. A very confident and relaxed band completely changed the set around, bringing in gems from Songs From Northern Britain; Planets - sheer beauty, Speed Of Light - uplifting and magical, Can't Feel My Soul - Eight Miles High style guitar, and Take The Long Way Round - euphoric. There was also an outing for Radio from Thirteen and it was joyful, the band romped through it.
Photo by Alan Clarke
The Go-Between's cover from Saturday night was replaced with a glorious cover version of He'd Be A Diamond by The Bevis Frond. The Fanclub version, originally found on the b-side of I Don't Want Control Of You, remains true to the original but with just that special dash of Fanclub zip. Blake and Love sung beautifully together.
We were standing two rows from the front and the whole show was just a joy to watch and listen to. Norman was in top form between songs with the recurring joke of 'We've not played this for a while. Oh I shouldn't have said that' becoming funnier as the night went on. The whole band were smiling and at times they seemed moved by the response to the songs.
The closing instrumental section of The Concept with Blake and Love on angelic harmonising duties was particularly special last night. The guitars were warm and loud, the combination with the harmonies sounded sublime.
The band have been working hard to promote their latest album Here and it is a cracker. Songs like The Darkest Part Of The Night, Thin Air and First Sight are up there with the bands best. They fairly sped through the gorgeous I'm In Love last night.
The promotion continues into 2017 with a London date, several European dates and then trips to Japan and Australia already in the calendar. I hope there will be a triumphant return to Glasgow or a Scottish festival in the pipeline.
And although Here is one of my albums of the year, I can't help but dream of some special 20th anniversary shows for Songs From Northern Britain - an album that the band have played more songs from on this tour than any other.
The two Glasgow shows have only strengthened my love and appreciation for this truly special band. And I'm going to see them again on Wednesday thanks to my friend Lorna who got two tickets in the BBC ballot. and also thanks to my very understanding wife!
Primal Scream still have it in abundance. I never doubted it, but it was nice to get it rammed down my throat at the ABC in Glasgow last night.
The Scream Team delivered a blistering set of rock ’n’ roll, electro, dance and punk rock, leaving Bobby Gillespie and Andrew Innes’ hometown in raptures.
Hannah Marsden from The Snides joined the relatively stripped back band (only 1 guitarist) on stage for much of the show last night and she looked incredible. Dressed in a pop star dress with immaculate hair, she shocked and shimmied alongside Gillespie and brought a new dimension to the live show.
100% or Nothing followed by the single Where The Lights Get In opened proceedings. The reaction to these new songs was extremely positive, with many around me going crazy and singing a-long.
The Primal’s then thrilled the crowd with a double dose of rock ’n’ roll in the form of It’s Alright, It’s OK and a ferocious punked up and funked up Jailbird. They cranked it up a notch and flew threw Accelerator at breakneck speed. Gillespie looked in his element.
Highlight from the new album Chaosmosis was When The Blackout Meets The Fallout - under 2-minutes of pop-punk-electro with Gillespie and Marsden singing together and looking like they were having the time of their lives.
Primal Scream turned a Wednesday night into the weekend, blasting through Kill All Hippies and following it up with Shoot Speed, Kill Light. Two incredibly powerful tracks with Simone Marie looking super cool on bass and taking real pleasure in firing out the ferocious riffs.
Cry Myself Blind was beautiful. A sober and straight Gillespie sounded better than I have ever heard him. Innes was outstanding on guitar throughout the night, his riffs and licks on this old fave were soulful and tugged on the heartstrings.
Golden Rope from the new album merged straight into Swastika Eyes and the place erupted. Bobby Gillespie doesn’t smile that much, but he delivered some beautiful grins towards Innes, Simone and to the crowd.
The rock ’n’ roll gem that is Country Girl caused mass pogo-ing, dancing and singing in the crowd with chants of ‘here we, here we, here we f**king go’ when Bobby slowed the band down. Gillespie was visibly moved by the Glasgow crowd then changing the chant to ‘Bobby, Bobby, Bobby f**king G.’
Rocks swiftly followed, still sounding fresh and vital 22-years after release. It was fantastic to hear electric guitars cranked up to the max at the ABC last night and some good time rock n roll.
The encore started with a blissful I’m Losing More Than I’ll Ever Have before Bobby said ‘and then Andrew Weatherall and some chemicals turned it into this’ and the place went suitably bananas for the classic that is Loaded. It was great to get lost in the music and dance like there was no tomorrow.
Movin’ On Up kept the high going and then we were all off into the Wednesday night air to cool down and discuss Electric Fields and Kelvingrove Bandstand.
Keep on keeping’ on, keep on keeping’ strong
Primal Scream play;
Kelvingrove Bandstand and Ampitheatre - 11th August (tickets on sale on Friday) Electric Fields - 26th-27th August (tickets on sale now)
Idlewild returned to Glasgow last night for the first of two sell-out shows to promote their new 'comeback' album Everything Ever Written. (see review here)
They played an absolute blinder, Rod Jones put in an astonishing performance on lead guitar, with echoes of Jack White at times, Peter Buck at others. Roddy Woomble was passionate and assured, often stepping side stage to enjoy watching and listening to his band.
Yes Idlewild are back, Woomble, Jones and drummer Colin Newton are now assisted by Andrew Mitchell, Hannah Fisher and Lucci Rossi - 3 extremely talented multi-instrumentalists that also added backing vocals and delightful harmonies.
The band were on fire, starting with Nothing I Can Do About It before launching straight into You Held The World In Your Arms. We were standing at Rod Jones side of the stage and it was an absolute pleasure to watch the guitarist in spellbinding form at such quarters.
Woomble quickly discarded his tweed blazer as the band swiftly got down to business, hitting their stride from the off. The audience reacted accordingly, the love and passion for Idlewild was evident from the roar that greeted their arrival on stage but it developed throughout with outbreaks of pogo-ing (and a mosh pit at times) and a mass sing-a-long at others. There will be a few hoarse voices today.
Little Discourage, Love In A Hiding Place, Roseability, A Film for the Future, Captain, Every Little Means Trust were played in quick succession by a band on top of their game - Woomble taking his mic from the stand and patrolling the stage, Jones leaping about on to the drum riser and then back to stand like a rock god on top of his monitor.
Idlewild have a stunning back catalogue and they have added to that with their latest gem of an album.
American English was greeted like a long lost cousin whilst (Use It) If You Can Use It from the new album was probably my highlight of the night. The closing instrumental was sensational with Jones guitar soaring. The duelling guitars were a real highlight of the night - sounding superb.
El Capitan was ferocious before Utopia brought a sense of calm before an epic Scottish Fiction closed proceedings with Woomble ensuring the full band came to the front of the stage to take acclaim from a crowd that were blown away by an incredible performance.
Believe by Vigo Thieves was re-released recently to coincide with the song being chosen by the Scottish FA as then anthem for the nations Euro 16 campaign. It is the perfect choice - Strachan has restored the fire in the soul of the players and the supporters, people believe again.
I was delighted when I found out as the band are huge supporters of the national team. Barry follows the team home and away as a committed member of the Tartan Army and it was only last year that Gordon was creating a bubble bath in Trafalgar Square in London when down watching Scotland against the Auld Enemy!
Gordon Phipps - it's always the bass players that are the party animals!
The band are growing from strength to strength, a summer of festivals followed by an Autumn tour led to the offer of 4-dates with The Courteeners (including 2 at the Barrowlands) and Vigo Thieves will be rounding off 2014 in style with their second headline show at the ABC in December. It promises to be quite a party.
Vigo Thieves have worked hard to build a word of mouth following that will only grow - especially when they release their album. 2015 promises to be a big year for the band so I decided to look at a few of the many reasons why more and more people are believing in the Vigo Thieves.
Vigo Thieves at the SFA launch of Believe
REASONS TO BELIEVE
The songs
Vigo Thieves wouldn't have generated this much noise if they didn't have something about them but at the end of the day it all comes down to the songs. People are looking for songs to sing-a-long with, to dance to, to jump around to, to fall in love with, to look for hope in, or to soundtrack their nights and their life. This band have the songs to do that - attend any of their live shows and you'll see just what they mean to people.
Vigo Thieves have been building a top rate collection of songs over the last few years. More and more people are waking up to it - songs like Heartbeats, Forever, This Love, Believe and Steal Your Heart are festival and stadium anthems in the making - the hooks, riffs, refrains, beats, choruses are all there. People are already singing a-long to the hooks and riffs at the shows.
The enthusiastic responses at live shows and the growing scale of them has only encouraged Stevie Jukes to write bigger and better songs - anthems to be sung loud and heartily.
I'm fortunate to have heard some demos of songs that Vigo Thieves are working on in the studio and they sound incredible.
It isn't just the live environment that these songs work in, they sound incredible on the radio and their anthemic and cinematic nature has been picked up by the Scottish FA, it is surely only a matter of time before they are soundtracking games, adverts, films and shows.
The video of This Love displays the cinematic widescreen feeling of Vigo Thieves
2. Positivity
Vigo Thieves are all about heart and soul. They give it everything and the lyrics of Stevie Jukes highlight that. Examples?
Got to wake up, live for today Stay young in your heart and young in your mind - Steal Your Heart
Love is the fire that's burning, when your heartbeats - Heartbeats
You're looking for the love to heal the pain from all the scars So live for the moment and you'll shine like the stars - Steal Your Heart Pt II
Lets live forever, together we can stay young - Forever
It's not just the lyrics, Vigo Thieves are positive in everything they do - their live shows are a celebration, they are always looking to improve, develop and grow, their attitude and commitment is like no other I have experienced. Which leads on to...
Drummer Alan Jukes has the best seat in the house
3. Vision and leadership
Stevie Jukes had a clear vision for Vigo Thieves when he started out. 'Start with the end in mind' is one of his key philosophies and one that has served him and the band very well. Stevie has combined his talent for singing and songwriting with sheer hard work and resilience to get Vigo Thieves to where they are. He won't rest until he has taken them as far as he can possibly go - and that is all the way.
These qualities and more have helped drive the band forward more than anything else. I've never been anything less than impressed with Stevie, his natural charisma on stage and off has helped create opportunities and develop lasting relationships.
Stevie Jukes knows how to get a crowd on his side
4. A real band
Vigo Thieves didn't stick an advert in a magazine or online, they didn't come together through management or a record company, they are a true band. Stevie and drummer Alan are brothers, Gordon on bass and Barry on lead guitar are long term friends with the Jukes brothers. Chris Gorman on keys, synths and backing vocals joined after producing early demos and being the unofficial 5th member. Recognising his importance to the developing sound, Stevie likened him to 'playing piano like Elton John and having a voice like Jesus'.
The band gel superbly on and off stage, there is a real chemistry between them. Stevie singing his heart out, Alan a power house on drums, Gordon keeping the songs flowing on bass, Barry adding flourishes and riffs on guitar, Gorman helping to take them to the next level. Chris Cruickshanks joins the 5-piece on saxophone, creating a Springsteen feel to songs like This Love.
Vigo Thieves stripped back in session
5. The shows
I've mentioned the live shows turning into celebrations. I've witnessed incredible scenes at King Tut's, T in the Park, Wickerman, the Arches, the ABC, Barrowlands.... The momentum is with this band and the bigger the shows, the more they respond and the more they give.
For an unsigned band to have sold out the Arches and got over 1,000 people into the ABC is an incredible achievement - they still haven't released an album! The songs, the shows, airplay and word of mouth is generating something special and they won't be unsigned for much longer.
Vigo Thieves at the ABC in Glasgow earlier this year - a celebration
Back in October, a week before it opened, I was invited for a lunchtime look around PCL’s new venue – Broadcast, formerly known as The Local.
It is a cracking little venue, the upstairs bar is very cool with it’s open brick walls and a long classy looking bar. The chef formerly worked at the Crabshakk, so they are making a big play on the food front as well. The dressing room is possibly the coolest in Glasgow (not that I have been to every dressing room to compare them all), the sound system is state of the art (courtesy of one of the venues partners) and the vibe in the basement gig/club is one of warehouse cool.
In terms of size it is pretty much the same as PCL’s previous venue, the Captains Rest. That is where the similarities end though – this is a cool and modern bar with excellent facilities, a far cry from the shabby chic of the Captains Rest. Anyway, the visit got me thinking about the incredible number of venues packed into our city centre, we are music crazy, but can they all survive?
Broadcast is the newest venue to Glasgow, the UNESCO City of Music. The city is bursting with venues of all shapes and sizes offering live music.
Have I covered them all?
Barrowlands – the legendary Barrowlands has been hosting live music and dancing for decades. I have experienced some of the best nights/gigs of my life in this venue, bouncing on the hallowed sprung dancefloor and singing along with all my heart. I would always encourage a touring band to choose the Barrowlands over the Academy any day of the week purely for the atmosphere a Barrowlands crowd can generate. There is also the small Barrowlands 2 downstairs.
McChuill’s – Just along the road from the Barras is one of my fave pubs in Glasgow and it also offers live music. There are worse places a new band could play as McChuills is a big music pub, especially keen on vintage mod sounds.
Maggie Mays – Despite being at (what some would call) the ‘wrong end of town’. Maggie Mays has built a good reputation for live bands and indeed has won awards. They have invested money in the downstairs basement to keep up with the competition and have a friendly and pro-active approach to bookings.
13th Note – I have fond memories of the 13th Note as it is where I put on my first gigs as a promoter with Futuristic Retro Champions. Brendan O’Hare (former drummer with Teenage Fanclub) used to be the sound engineer which was an added bonus. The great thing about the Note was that if they made a certain amount at the bar (it used to be over £200) then you got the venue for free! So if you pack it out you can make a considerable amount of money.
Mono – An under-used venue in my opinion. I love the whole vibe of Mono, proudly independent, it has a record shop, Stephen Pastel works there…I just wish it did more and invested in a backline and PA system in order for more bands to play there.
St Andrews in the Square – Gorgeous building where my wife and I had our wedding. I caught Rachel Sermanni here back in January and it tends to mainly be used for Celtic Connections, weddings and ceilidhs.
Old Fruitmarket – Cracking venue with bags of character where I once stood next to Sean Lennon after he supported Air circa 2001.
Merchant City Halls – This isn’t used very regularly for the typr of gigs I go to but I did catch Joanna Newsom playing there and it was incredible, brilliant sound and acoustics.
Classic Grand – The upstairs hall looks fantastic, it isn’t used a great deal and they do seem to be putting on lots of metal and industrial nights.
The Arches - Definitely more suited to club nights than gigs due to the fact the sound can 'escape' from one arch into another, but still a brilliant venue with a real atmosphere. The Cafe Bar is a great place to hang out.
Subclub – Doesn’t put on as many gigs as it used to. I once caught The Kills there and my mate was lucky enough to see Franz Ferdinand. A Glasgow institution.
Pivo Pivo - Despite being close to Stereo, the Old Hairdressers and The Arches, Pivo Pivo isn't deemed particularly cool. That doesn't stop them putting on gigs practically every night though. More suited to new bands rather than established.
Stereo - a great venue for bands and club nights, cheap to rent with an excellent sound system. Great bar upstairs as well. I've put on a few nights here, good capacity so real scope to make money.
Old Hairdressers - Across the lane from Stereo, the Old Hairdressers is a multi-purpose art space for shows, club nights and bands. Great vibe.
The Admiral - Good basement for club/band nights, more suited to the former if honest. Holds the cracking Melting Pot night.
Flat 0/1 - great concept - a party flat with great tunes, live music and pretty cheap booze. If only they could invest in a decent sound system (note - they may have done since I was last in). It is definitely all about the vibe in here rather than quality sound. Home of MILK and some of Glasgow's coolest students.
Bloc - a party pub since it opened that made a name for itself in music with a little help from Detour, LAID and the Blochestra sessions. Always friendly and happening with excellent independent promoters like Gerry Blythe from New Life.
Slouch - competing with Flat 0/1 and Bloc for cool new music wasn't going to be easy and although Slouch tried for a while they are now distancing themselves by going for covers, blues and the odd young band that isn't cool enough for the other two. Good pub grub.
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall - the grandest setting in Glasgow? Brilliant sound and acoustics, I always enjoy nights in here.
Sleazy’s - a Glasgow institution with its basement venue having played hosts to pretty much everyone that has ever done anything of note in the Scottish music scene and beloved of guests from across the waters.
Broadcast - as mentioned at the start of this article, the new PCL venue to replace the Captains Rest.
The Box - still going strong by offering free music 7-nights a week, also branching out into comedy.
The Art School - the rebranding of Capitol to The Art School has totally changed the perception of this venue, sadly I wasn't particularly impressed with it when I co-booked it for a show earlier this year. Despite selling it out 6-weeks in advance and warning the management to have enough bar staff on they didn't bother their asses. With Sleazys and Broadcast just across the road it will be interesting to see how the Art School competes on a live music front.
The Garage - servicing students for decades, I used to go clubbing there when I was a mere teenager. One year in the mid-90's i saw Radiohead touring The Bends, The Boo Radleys with Wake Up Boo and The Bluetones. It doesn't host as many gigs as it once did but it still packs an impressive punch when it does.
G2 - the smaller venue of The Garage
CCA - I love the CCA, it is still pretty under-used in terms of gigs and club nights. I did catch a fantastic performance from Gerry Love's Lightships earlier in the year. Great bars and vibe.
ABC & ABC2 - The ABC is a world class venue. The set up is just pretty perfect for a gig; large wide stage, bar at the back, wee bar at the side, easily accessible toilets (take note Academy), balcony with another bar....sound system is great too. Near enough replicated in minature form with ABC2.
Oran Mor - I do like Oran Mor. The stage is nice and high, the sound is good, it is handy for the underground and loads of other lovely bars nearby.
Brel - One of my fave bars in Glasgow and I've seen some cracking gigs in there too, notably Remember Remember earlier this year.
SWG3 - Super cool arts venue suitable for gigs and club nights. Old skool warehouse vibe. Jim Lambie's Poetry Club - in an old railway arch next to SWG3 this is hush, hush cool for now (still no website or Social Media). Invite only for gigs and parties. They don't even have a website. Thankfully my sisters band TeenCanteen were invited to play and it is an incredible venue, really cool.
King Tuts - My fave venue, I wonder how many gigs I have been to in here?! Highlights over the (almost 20) years of going there include; Beck (just after 'Loser' was released), The White Stripes, Arthur Lee & Love (twice), John Squire (when he opened with the instrumental of 'Resurrection') and many, many more.
The Academy - I've been to some good gigs here but the Barrowlands pisses all over it for me. The lack of toilets on the ground floor for guys is just ridiculous. That said it sounds brilliant and it has a certain charm, I guess I am a little blinded by my love for the Barrowlands and the fact The Academy has robbed the Barras of some cracking gigs.
SECC - Huge, cavernous and inpersonal...but necessary for bands of a certain standing. I have still been to some exceptional gigs here, notably U2, Dylan in an all-standing arena, Neil Young and The Who. Also has the Armadillo next door where I once went to see Kylie and got a seat 3-rows from the front - happy days!
The Hydro/SHAG - Coming soon, looking good and will be capable of bringing some huge names and shows to Glasgow.
