Flaming Lips at Kelvingrove Bandstand

WOW. Last night's Flaming Lips show at Kelvingrove Bandstand as part of the Summer Nights series was truly life affirming. 

Psychedelic pop songs about love, life, death and the universe. Songs about humans triumphing over machines and determined scientists racing to find cures. I found myself crying during the beautiful Do You Realize? Tears just started flooding down my face. I can't remember the last time that happened to me at a concert.

We were treated to multiple blasts of confetti, inflatable pink robots, huge colourful confetti filled latex balls/balloons bouncing around across the Bandstand - one burst above me and it was wonderful, I have the burst balloon at home - Flaming Lips memorabilia! The light show was sensational, lasers beaming out, bright lights, Wayne Coyne swinging a huge bulb around on a lead, a bright, bright light directly behind the singer cast beams everywhere, he got into costumes and balls ...

I'm still smiling. I'm exhausted just reflecting on the show, Coyne must be shattered, but energised by knowing that every time his band play, they bring absolute joy to people.  

Lynn and I started in the very back row of the Bandstand, determined to see the full wide screen spectacle. But as soon as the opening synth teaser to The Golden Path started, we picked our way down to the front to join my sister Carla and friends who had been there from the get go. The Golden Path is a real favourite of ours.

She Don't Use Jelly is glorious guitar punk pop with a psychedelic tinge. The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (With All Your Power) was hugely uplifting. The aforementioned Do You Realize? is even more powerful live than it is on record, truly beautiful. A cover of Sabbath's War Pigs was heavy and fun and the closing song Race for the Prize was triumphantly joyful.

Everyone left smiling and buzzing. Mission accomplished.

See some videos below.

Sienna Spiro at O2 Academy Glasgow

 

Photo by Zoe

A number of months ago I heard some music coming from my daughter Zoe's room that caused my ears to prick up. The vocals were outstanding. I asked who it was - Sienna Spiro, she's all over TikTok was the answer. 

I checked if she was touring, but her SWG3 show in Glasgow was long sold out. It was subsequently upgraded to the O2 Academy, but tickets went in a flash.

Late on Friday afternoon, a source came good for a couple of tickets and we were going. We got parked round the corner and there was a sense of anticipation hanging in the air outside the Academy, with people looking for tickets and kids getting their photo under the sign displaying Spiro's name.

We headed down the right hand side towards the stage and stood just at the end of the bar for support act Debbie's set. Her voice was stunning and the crowd gave her a brilliant reception.

The stage was set for Sienna Spiro. Steps led up the centre of the stage, larger platforms were set to the side halfway up for piano and drums and there were huge false retro speakers. Motown songs were played in advance to get the crowd pumped as the final checks were put in place before Spiro and her band took to the stage.

Photo by Zoe

Spiro came on to a huge ovation. The crowd went crazy throughout, singing-a-long to the steady string of singles that she has released over the last few years. Opening with The Visitor, Spiro's voice was sublime from the off. Rising with ease. This despite suffering from the flu.

Her backing band were sensational. Bass, guitar, keys and drums all locking in for ballads and grooves. Spiro looked sensational, dressed in a 60's style dress and high boots, immaculate shiny dark hair. 

Material Lover, her latest single, was delightful, Spiro walked from one side of the stage to the other to huge acclaim. The crowd sang every word and were genuinely going crazy. Spiro will surely be playing the Hyrdo the next time she is back in Glasgow!

You Stole The Show was a personal highlight for me. Moody cinematic strings, Spiro's voice sounding hurt and lost before rising, racked with emotion, for the chorus that sent tingles down my spine. What a beautiful song! 

Wrap me in your arms again

The adrenaline makes me shiver

Show me that you're genuine, that I'm safe again

That you came here different

No time to define, but before we get closer

I ask if you love me, and you just shrug your shoulders

Spiro introduced a new song called Great Expectations that sounded extremely promising, this young starlet is set to soar through the remainder of 2026 and into 2027.  

The crowd response was nothing short of fanatical, with several teenagers being carried out from the middle after fainting through the heat. Cups of water were passed out regularly and Spiro was quick to alert stewards to flashing phone lights that friends held up when someone was in trouble.

Die On This Hill closed the show. It already feels like a modern classic. It sure sounds like one. Spiro singing beautifully over gentle piano, voice rising again for a stunning chorus that is set to become a festival anthem. 

I'll take my pride, stand here for you

No, I'm not blind, just seeing it through

You take my life just for the thrill

I'll take tonight, and die on this hill

I always will

This was a spellbinding performance. Spiro is only 20 years old, yet to release her debut album - although she could already release a compilation of her 10 singles that have been released to date. One to keep a close eye on!

5 from Happy Mondays

Photo by Kevin Cummins

I often think that Happy Mondays don't get the credit they deserve. They were like nothing before or since. Unmanageable, inventive, street wise, not only at the heart of the scene, but dealing drugs for the scene and also soundtracking it. Of the time, but completely different from any other band around. 

24-Hour Party People was the title of their third single and it described them perfectly. The Mondays lived and breathed the lifestyle. It seemed like they didn't stop from 1987 - 1992, releasing 4 albums and a string of singles. 

The band were self confessed drug fuelled scallies and chancers. Their don't give a f**k attitude was pure punk. Happy Mondays were out for a ride and they were going to ride things until the wheels fell off. 

Would anyone other than Tony Wilson and Factory Records have invested so much time, patience and money in Shaun Ryder and co? The Mondays grew and developed with the times, but there is also an element of the band being in the right place, the right city (Manchester), with access to the right club (the Hacienda), at the right time (Acid House), when the right drug came out (ecstasy) and on the perfect record label. 

The Mondays had something; raw and untamed. Pure but dirty. Post punk, post funk, double double good. Wilson saw it and so did New Order, Mike Pickering and others in and around the Factory scene. The band learned to play their instruments along the way - but they always had an ear and feel for a groove. Producers helped bring some structure to their madness - John Cale, Martin Hannett, Paul Oakenfold . Listen back to those first few albums and you can see the direction of travel and how producers helped them to develop their sound. 

You couldn't create the Mondays. They were real, genuine and complete one-offs. That's what made them so magical. You didn't know what they were going to do next - what they would create, what Ryder would say or do, or if they would show up! They had the look, the flares, the drugs, the club, the label, the songs, the producers, the front man and ... Bez!

Listening back to some of my favourite Mondays tunes, watching YouTube clips and reading about their adventures has been immensely entertaining. My big takeaway has been how integral Mark Day's guitar is to a lot of the Mondays songs, especially my favourites. The reverb drenched Performance, the baggy riff that is central to Kinky Afro, the scuzzed Chic riff on WFL .. Day (and indeed the rest of the band) are rarely talked about when it comes to the Mondays. Along with Gaz Whelan on drums and Paul Ryder on bass, the beats and grooves they conjured up were sensational.

Against all the odds, Ryder and Bez and co are still touring and will be playing 3 sold out nights at the Barrowland Ballroom next week to celebrate 35-years of their seminal Pills, Thrills & Bellyaches album.

Here, in no particular order, are 5 of my favourite Happy Mondays songs (moments and stories!).

1. Performance

The Happy Mondays drug consumption was merrily discussed in the music weeklies as much as their music, if not more. And no wonder! They revelled in the lifestyle, on stage and off. And ... they made it look fun, to the extent they turned Manchester into Madchester.  Things were bright for a long, long time, before they turned decidedly darker.

The first time I heard Performance was on a Happy Mondays and Stone Roses VHS cassette bootleg that I bought from a record fair. The bootleg mashed together band interviews, performances and videos recorded from the TV. I played that video to death.

Photo by Kevin Cummins

My jaw dropped when I saw The Mondays playing Performance on Tony Wilson's Other Side Of Midnight show. Visibly off their heads, Bez dancing in a trance around the set, looking like he is attempting the breast stroke through air. Ryder just eggs him on, vibing off him. The chemistry, no pun intended, between them is incredible. At 1-minute 42 seconds into this performance, Ryder is literally playing his maracas on Bez. The energy is off the scale. I can't take my eyes off them, even all these years down the lines.

The reverb on the guitar is sublime, The Mondays are completely locked in to create an infectious groove, while Ryder and Bez look like they are having the time of their lives. Bez, eyes shut, just constantly grooving. Ryder somehow loses his glasses and at 2-minutes 40 seconds, when Mark Day takes off on an inspired solo, Shaun is off to groove with Bez, squatting, vibing, his mate is lost in the groove. Utterly spellbinding.

2. Kinky Afro

Late 1990, certainly in terms of chart performance, was peak Happy Mondays. Step On, the lead single from Pills, Thrills & Bellyaches reached number 5 in the charts in spring and seemed to hang around all summer. Kinky Afro, the follow up, wasn't released until October and it also reached number 5.

The groove of the song originated from bass player Paul Ryder jamming around Hot Chocolate tunes that he had been listening to. Gaz Whelan came up with some beats and the working title of the song was Groovy Afro, changed to Kinky Afro after The Farm released their Groovy Train single.  They took the groove out to LA where the band were going to work with Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osbourne.

Oakenfold and Osbourne cleaned and polished the Mondays sound. They kept the grooves that the band had displayed on the likes of Wrote For Luck and Hallelujah, but gave them a sheen that made them more radio and chart friendly. What would Pills, Thrills & Bellyaches have sounded like if Martin Hannett had continued as a producer following his work on Bummed?

Photo by Kevin Cummins

Any excuse to get on an E!

However, the band had already moved on with the W.F.L single that saw Vince Clarke and Paul Oakenfold (through his Think About The Future) remix Wrote For Luck. 

The change in producer certainly helped with the Mondays sound. Some would say they transformed it. However the move from recording Bummed in Stockport to Pills ... in the sunshine of Los Angeles also played a part. You can almost feel the sunshine and warmth coming out of the record. Factory also licensed the album to London Records - the Mondays were going big time.

The groove is there from the off, synth strings, Day's guitar riff, then Ryder coming in with a catchy vocal melody with self-confessional and self-reflective lyrics. 

Son, I'm thirty

I only went with your mother 'cause she's dirty

And I don't have a decent bone in me

What you get, is just what you see, yeah

Ryder's hook for the chorus is a cross between Bruce Willis in Die Hard and Lady Marmalade by Labelle. The instrumental section comes back to Day's circular guitar riff. The video is like the Mondays take on Robert Palmer's classic Addicted To Love promo - more colour, street clothes for the band and Shaun's hairstyle looking like he could be in the Inspiral Carpets.

It was the first song they'd written that felt like a massive pop song. Rowetta, The Guardian, 2014

3. Stinkin' Thinkin'

Tales of the Mondays heading to Barbados to record Yes Please, their fourth album, are legendary. Factory allocated a phenomenal £150,000 budget and Barbados was suggested as a location as there was no heroin available. However, there was a bountiful supply of crack. The Mondays, by all accounts, were in complete disarray there were marriage breakdowns, copious amounts of drugs and alcohol and mere scraps of songs to take to Barbados.

Shaun Ryder reportedly spent 20-hours a day smoking crack. Bez broke his arm 3 times - crashing a car, in a speedboat accident and when his girlfriend sat on it. This resulted in some legendary photos of the dancer with an external metal brace pinning his arm together.

Ryder sold his clothes for crack, sun loungers for crack and even held the master tapes to ransom. The £150,000 that had been budgeted was now a drop in the ocean. 5-weeks in, the Mondays had only completed one song. The album eventually cost £380,000!

Despite the frazzled and fractured state and status of the band, Stinkin' Thinkin' is a gem. The groove is like Barry White and his band if they landed in Manchester and had a weekend at the Hacienda - soul funk sleaze, super cool. Ryder is half singing, half whispering;

Kiss me for old times sake

Kiss me for making you wait

Day's guitar lifts off a little, in tandem with Shaun changing the vocal melody

I've got to pick out what's in the pockets

So I can leave those pockets clean

It's a delicious groove, the Mondays just keep it going and Ryder, as he always does to the best grooves and riffs, lifts his own game too. Rowetta's vocals add extra soul and a club feel. This is a real favourite of mine. 

4. W.F.L. - The Vince Clark Remix 

For their 1988 Bummed LP, that Wrote For Luck featured on, the band worked with Martin Hannett, consuming ecstasy on a daily basis and taking in all kinds of influences to create sounds on whatever instruments they could get their hands on. 

Hannett found an incredible guitar sound for Mark Day, one that, even through all the synths and beats, is central to Wrote For Luck. A funk punk Chic sound, scuzzed up and drenched in reverb. 

Wrote For Luck starts at pace, big beats and Day's guitar over the top, Shaun then begins to sing and spout his unique poetry over the top.

You were wet, but you're getting drier

You used to speak the truth 

But now you're liar

You used to speak the truth 

But now you're clever

The original version of Wrote For Luck has a sense of urgency and even danger to it; a raw white boy funk groove stretched out to a little over 6-minutes, riding on Day's guitar, Shaun groaning and moaning an extra little melody to add to the feeling.

Vince Clarke, in his W.F.L remix totally gets the groove and brings the bass to the fore, the guitars (at least at the start) are gone, the beats are more clubby, the synths are making all kinds of cool noises and it's Shaun at the heart. The original raw version is just cleaned up a little, becoming more clinical ... more chemical. 

The guitar groove is finally dropped in for the last 2-minutes and it sounds even more glorious over the menacing bass groove that Clarke has created and the clubby beats. The video captured the times perfectly - Ryder off his face in a club, ecstasy fuelled grin plastered on his face, with everyone around him going for it big time. FULL BLOG HERE

5. Hallelujah - Club Mix

It's difficult to pinpoint peak Happy Mondays. In terms of success, there is no doubt that it was the Pills, Thrills & Bellyaches album, singles, tours and festivals. Musically and in terms of being completely in the zone as a band (totally original) and with culture, I'd argue that it was in the last quarter of 1989 through the W.F.L single, which was followed by the Madchester and Hallelujah EP's, just before the whole rave/house music scene went overground.

The Mondays released their Madchester Rave On EP in November 89, with Hallelujah as the lead track. Memorably, they played Top of the Pops with fellow Mancunians The Stone Roses who brought out the phenomenal Fools Gold 9.53 the same month. Check my blog on that landmark release HERE.

Ryder and Mani discussed taking acid and mixing the bands up, but I'm glad that didn't happen. The Roses went out and smashed it out the park, looking impossibly cool. Their appearance on TotP is still discussed regularly to this day. For some reason, the Mondays isn't. 

Kirsty MacColl joins them in double denim (she sang on one of the remixes) and the TotP camera doesn't really know whether it should be focusing on Ryder and Bez or not! Given the amount of times it pans away from them for extended passages, I like to imagine the producer and directors of the show screaming 'move away from the mad men, not the mad men!'

The Hallelujah Club Mix has both Andy Weatherall and Paul Oakenfold working on their magic on the Mondays sound. The result is sensational. Like a pure MDMA rush - a synth bass groove, a scream of hallelujah, chemical beats, house piano pushed to the fore ... Weatherall and Oakenfold have fun - dropping things in, taking them out, building it up, letting it fall and then lifting it higher. 

Ryder is almost rapping in his own distinct Mancunian style;

Hallelujah, hallelujah

Shaun William Ryder

Will lie down beside you

Fill you full of junk

Then the Mondays go off on one, Day's piercing guitar then falls back to a dirty groove, things are stripped to the persistent house piano and a beat, Ryder returns and the Mondays, aided by Weatherall and Oakenfold, roll on. There is an energy and urgency to this song and mix that can't be replicated. Magical.

The Charlatans - Barrowland Ballroom - Dec 25

Last night The Charlatans played the famous Glasgow Barrowland Ballroom for the 17th time. By my reckoning, I think I've caught them 10/11 times out of 16. Pretty good going. They should really just book an annual night/weekender given their affinity with the venue, Glasgow and Scotland.

It's a home from home, like a cup final of a gig for band and audience who share and display genuine affection for each other.

The Charlatans played with, and generated, incredibly energy, lifting the crowd, who in turn, lifted the band to even higher heights.

Tim Burgess was like a kid in a sweet shop on a trolley dash. The happiest guy in Glasgow, a smile so wide and bright that The Charlatans probably didn't need a light show. He was beaming throughout, radiating pure positive vibes.

I first caught The Charlatans live in April 1994 when they played The Tramway as part of Radio 1 Sound City in Glasgow. Tim Burgess was mesmerising, dancing about the stage, looking super cool. The next day I queued in the rain to meet the band at Tower Records to get loads of CD's and records signed. 

I have no idea how many times I've seen the band or Tim play since. God, it's been over 31-years. I'd hazard a guess at between 50-60. The Charlatans and Tim are frequent visitors to Glasgow and were regulars at T in the Park. 

Riding in on the back of We Are Love, their 14th album, Tim had announced that the band would be playing a 2.5 hour set (with a short 10-minute break) with no support. Fans were encouraged to make sure they were in promptly for the band taking to the stage at 8.10pm. 

There was a small squad of us. Me, Lynn and our friends Robbie, Clare, Joe, Emma and Susie. I bumped into many more friends from down the years in the venue. Great to see my friend Gerry with his son Liam, he wasn't the only Dad introducing the next generation to The Charlatans last night - good to see.

Kingdom of Ours is a slow burner - an opener to allow the band to find their groove, which develops as the song goes on. Then Tim took his jacket off and Weirdo had the place bouncing. It  never stopped! That hammond sound! Beats and bass and then the piercing guitar - sublime!

For the Girls is a real favourite from the new album, super melodic and soulful. North Country Boy was euphoric. Many a Day a Heartache flowed effortlessly and by this point I had ventured from underneath the glitter ball to 3 rows from the front by Tony on keyboards.

Just in time for one of my very favourite Charlatans songs, the absolute banger that is Oh! Vanity. The band didn't let up, rolling out the extended groove of Let The Good Times Be Never Ending,  the powerful Blackened Blue Eyes and then .... Then. Modern(ish) day psychedelia, still sounding super fresh and vital.

No wonder the band needed a 10-minute break to compose themselves! 

10-minutes (on the dot) later, The Charlatans returned and started their second set of the night by jamming the intro to Forever, dedicated to Mani. This glorious song has a menacing groove, before breaking into a beautiful piano led section that ends with Tim declaring.

I know my star, I know my star

Is a brighter star, brighter star

Forever be in my arms

Gorgeous! 

The Charlatans were in full flight, new singles We Are Love and Deeper & Deeper sound like set staples, Tellin' Stories was gorgeous - the perfect winter warmer, Just When You're Thinkin' Things Over was spine tingling perfection, with Ride's Loz Colbert joining on percussion. Toothache was a deep, down n dirty groove, Soul Saver sounded like it could save lost souls and last night The Charlatans may well have managed that with their performance. Smiles all round. Life affirming stuff. A stunning trilogy from their eponymous album.

New song Appetite sounded even better live than on record, especially when Mark's guitar kicks in. In the Tall Grass was a welcome deeper cut, before Tim and co eased into top gear with a spellbinding One To Another - epic, powerful, groovey ... arms in the air on stage and off. The groove at the end was one you wanted to keep on going.

But ... as it ended, we were straight into another groove as The Only One I Know was teasingly started before the place exploded again. Wow! Hearing the Barrowland Ballroom sing the chorus of everyone has been burned before, everybody knows the pain was incredible. Like a mass choir, it was like our hymn. The Barrowland is our church.

Tim touched upon the audience response several times through the show - off the scale ... the best venue ... the best crowd ... the best city. 

Closing with a sublime Get On It, with another extended jam at the end, Loz Colbert gelled effortlessly with the rest of the band. Martin Blunt in shades, holding the groove throughout the set, Pete Salisbury on drums - driving things on, Tony on hammond and keys - not to mention his stunning backing vocals and Mark Collins on lead guitar.

BOOM an encore of Now Everything was followed by Tremelo Song (one of my real favourites from last night - from an extended list!) and then Sproston Green. The long intro started slow, almost delightfully sticky and sludgey, before becoming beautifully sugar sweet as the band stirred it up and found the mix.

This one knows, she comes and goes

And when she goes, she goes

What a night! Thank you to The Charlatans for giving me so many of them down the years, likewise to the Barrowland Ballroom and to all the fans who grace it. I am still buzzing!

Tim Burgess at FRETS Strathaven Hotel

Pre-lockdown, I really enjoyed heading through to Strathaven Hotel for an intimate performance by Norman Blake and Euros Childs. Jeez, almost 2-years ago! 

The gig was one of the first to be put on by Douglas MacIntyre of FRETS Creative, also of the band Port Sulphur and Creeping Bent record label. A man with many strings to his bow.

You can read or hear about all of them in an interview and podcast that Douglas has previously helped me out with.

Douglas MacIntyre interview

Douglas MacIntyre podcast

Strathaven is a lovely little town and the hotel is stunning. I can highly recommend their pints of Moretti - beautifully chilled and refreshing! I couldn't wait to get back over for another show. Rightly or wrongly, I hadn't quite felt confident enough to go to The Bluebells back at the start of September, but now the plaster is well and truly ripped off and I am thoroughly enjoying being back at gigs. 

Friday night was my 6th in 2-months. Not bad going for someone in their mid-40's with 2 kids. I'd be quite happy to continue the 3 per month ratio!

Tim Burgess, Mark Collins, David Scott, Stuart Kidd & Duglas T Stewart

I was particularly looking forward to Tim Burgess, Norman Blake and Duglas T Stewart playing together. 3 singer-songwriters and band leaders that I have followed and admired for 30-years.

Sadly, as a stark reminder that the pandemic isn't over, Norman had to pull out of the show after testing positive. Duglas kindly updated us to say that Norman is doing well and on the mend.

The FRETS shows do start early and unfortunately we missed the first BMX Bandits song - Duglas with his friends David Scott and Stuart Kidd. But we were in luck, there were a few seats in the 2nd row, so we settled in for the rest of a lovely soulful set.

Duglas was his warm, charming and passionate self. Dedicating the song Jean by Rod McKuan to his late Mum, telling us of how his Dad used to sing it across the kitchen table to the love of his life. 

Duglas spoke about how much this song means to him in a podcast we recorded way back in 2016 that you can check here Other highlights included A Missing Front Tooth from the recently released My Chain album was a melodic delight, Foggy from the Bee Stings album was beautiful and a pleasant surprise.

After a short interval, David Scott was back on with Stuart Kidd to perform as The Pearlfishers. I have to confess to not being incredibly knowledgeable about their back catalogue. Highlights were a couple of songs from their 2007 album Up With The Larks. Guitars and voices entwined, beautiful harmonies and melodies.

Just after 9pm Tim Burgess walked from a side door and up on to the stage. Wearing a long overcoat, plain white t-shirt, faded jeans and classic Reeboks, Tim picked up his guitar and took a seat to a huge ovation.

Highlighting that this was his first ever solo acoustic show, Tim did seem as nervous as he said he was, however he still had the confidence to begin with a brand new song called Here Comes The Weekend. Beautifully melodic, telling the tale of a romance across the seas involving calls and messages, it sounded super cool. 

Watching Tim playing acoustic up close was a real treat. His songs were stripped right back, highlighting how strong his vocal melodies and song structures are. The Charlatans Trouble Understanding got an early outing alongside solo material from 2020 releases. A handful of songs from I Love The New Sky and the beautiful Yours To Be from the Ascent of the Ascended EP. The latter has become a real favourite of mine and I really appreciated seeing and hearing Tim playing it in this way.

I thought I liked you, but I love you

That's how things can go

I may seem distant, but I heard you

Playing on the radio

Tim then shouted for his friend and band mate Mark Collins to come on stage to a large cheer. Mark looking super cool in desert boots, jeans, mod jacket and haircut. 

After playing Different Days and Emilie, Stuart Kidd came back on stage for the 3rd time to add harmonies and percussion on a trio of Charlatans classics. Hearing The Only One I Know stripped back to the bones was remarkable, the way Mark and Stuart played/jammed it was brilliant. The crowd sang along heartily. Then .... we had Then. Another song I didn't anticipate hearing in acoustic form. And it worked.

Photo by Ross Sinclair

North Country Boy was a delight, the melody changed to suit. Tim didn't play Doors of Then or White when I saw him recently at King Tuts, so it was fantastic to hear them.

The laid back friendly nature of FRETS and the evening was highlighted and underlined when Duglas and Davie came back on to the stage to play BMX Bandits seminal Serious Drugs. Duglas and Tim traded verses and I think everyone's heart felt warmer afterwards. 

Tim then sent his love to Norman and said that the best way to do it would be to play a song called Norman .... Norman 3. After a false start, the makeshift band played it superbly, another real heartwarmer with everyone in the room singing the Yeah, I'm in love with you refrain.

Just to turn the feel good atmosphere up a further notch, Tim invited a young boy in the front row up to play keyboards and we were treated to a 1-minute performance of the theme from Halloween. (I think!) It was a lovely moment, as was Tim singing to Douglas' daughter. From our position across the aisle we could see just what it meant to her.

There was more to come. Impossible brought a half dozen people waltzing down the aisle, singing a-long and punching the air, causing smiles in the crowd and onstage. Here Comes A Soul Saver and Just When You're Thinking Things Over caused a few more people to get up and dance at the end. 

Afterwards it was so good to speak to friends I haven't seen for a while. Everyone was basking in the warmth generated by the show.

It's so good to see Tim so busy and buzzing with his solo album and with The Charlatans recent A Head Full Of Ideas boxset/best of. He has the best of both worlds - small, laid back and intimate shows in King Tuts and the Strathaven Hotel and then back in Glasgow in December at the Academy.

Check the FRETS website for future gigs and sign up to their newsletter.

Wet Leg at McChuills

Wet Leg, Hester Chambers & Rhian Teasdale

Wet Leg came to my attention in the summer when 6 Music grabbed a hold of their glorious pop punk debut single Chaise Longue and just wouldn't let it go. And anyone who heard it, held the song close to their hearts just as tightly. Funny, catchy, urgent, cool, full of hooks and brilliant guitars - the sound of summer.

Around that time the band announced a tour, including a date in my favourite Glasgow pub - McChuills. You can read all about my love for the bar HERE

I grabbed a couple of tickets and kept an eye on the band. Wet Leg followed Chaise Longue with the superb Wet Dream, more energetic new wave pop, full of yelps, funky beats with scratchy, noisy and vital sounding guitars, suggestive lyrics and enough hooks to floor Tyson Fury.

What makes you think you're good enough

To think about me when you're touching yourself?

It very quickly became apparent that Wet Leg were one of the hottest new bands in the country and that McChuills was going to be far too small a venue to meet demand. I fully expected the gig to be upgraded to St Lukes or King Tuts.

Thankfully it wasn't. Both for the 100 or so people in McChuills and for Wet Leg on stage. They won't be playing that many more gigs where they are just a couple of feet from the audience, staring into the whites of their eyes. 

It was actually quite refreshing to read the band come out in some recent interviews and admit that they were still developing, so playing shows like this was really important. And it is, playing packed intimate venues like McChuills is both fun and a great road test for both band and songs.

As it was, there was a stage where I thought the gig wasn't going to happen as the sound engineer wrestled for 45-minutes to fix an issue with a microphone on stage, looking a little flustered at times as the crowd began to grow a little restless.

So instead of a 9pm start time, Wet Leg finally came on at 9.45pm, quickly bursting into action and winning the crowd from the get go.

Wet Leg are Rhian Teasedale and Hester Chambers, but when they play live they become a 5-piece. Their drummer was brilliant, downing beers in between songs and driving them along. Teasedale and Chambers both played guitar, the bass was groovy, underpinning everything, while at times there was a 3rd guitar or keys/synths.

There was a brilliant rawness about Wet Leg last night. They were tight but loose and they have found a sound that generates fun and excitement on stage and off. Chambers held her guitar high, playing inventive solos and riffs around Teasedale's rhythms. 

Wet Dream was played early on (full setlist below) and most of the songs were upbeat, spiky, melodic and fun. Supermarket sounded like a lost gem from the Britpop era; slightly ridiculous but so catchy I almost found myself singing along. Think Elastica meets Sleeper with Jarvis Cocker on writing duties.

There was a couple of slower numbers and towards the end Teasedale brought the band into a huddle on stage to decide how many songs they could still play. We got another 3, all fun and full of energy, the band having real fun with the instrumental sections in Angelica, with Chambers and Teasedale bending backwards as they played their guitars.

Of course, there was only one song that could close the show, there was no encore. Wet Lege ended with the brilliant Chaise Longue, the crowd singing along, shouting the What? section to in answer to Excuse me.

Frantic, furious and cool, McChuills went suitably wild. Wet Leg easily showcased that they have more singles and what is bound to be one of 2022's most anticipated albums up their sleeves. They were the hottest ticket in town last night and it looks like their April show at The Mash House in Edinburgh is already sold out. Hopefully they add another Glasgow date - be quick in trying to get a ticket if they do!

It's always good to catch a band on the up, it will be interesting to see just how high Wet Leg can go. 

Introducing - Brontës

 

Kristen AM Brodie Photography

Back at the start of July my friend Steven posted a video on his Facebook page saying that his daughter Eva had formed a band. Steven has impeccable taste in music (a real mod and northern soul fanatic) so I clicked to watch the video (see end of blog) he had linked.

And I was impressed! Brontës looked great and sounded superb, playing two original songs; First Hand Arrogance and Down To You, sandwiching a cover version of Shakira's SheWolf in between!

I found myself replaying the performance a couple of times, realising how much I was missing getting out and about in Glasgow to hear guitars and watch cool young bands. They just looked in the zone, locked into grooves, cool vocals, but also having that edge of this - this is us. They weren't trying too hard, like many bands do.

First Hand Arrogance has real tight groove, allowing the two guitars to drive things along over the top of it, in a kind of punk Chic style, going all rock for the chorus in a quite delicious way over a come and get it, first hand arrogance hook.

Down To You starts of really playful; musically and melodically, reminding me a little bit of early Vampire Weekend, but the vocals are just beautifully dreamy, the duelling guitars work so well - one all scratchy punk funk, the other picking out a kind of dancey riff. 

I thought I'd find out a little more ahead of their first ever gig, taking place at King Tuts this Thursday with Spyres - who I also intend to feature in a future blog.

How did the band form? How did you get to know each other?

Yana and Amelia started the band after finishing college in 2019. Erin, Jon and Eva joined a little bit later. We're from different places out and around Glasgow and we met through college / university / going out.

How did you start creating music? Does anyone take lead on writing? Or do you jam ideas?

We all study music and wanted to be in a band. We take turns writing lyrics but jam the music together.

Kristen AM Brodie Photography

Do you take influences from any bands? What do you all listen to?

We get a lot of influences spanning different genres, including Foals, Bombay Bicycle Club, Donna Summer, Mazzy Star, James Brown, Massive Attack and our all time favourite - Pitbull.

You're about to play King Tuts, is this your first ever gig? How are you feeling about it?

Yeah, it's out first gig as a band and we're really excited and a bit nervous to play to a crowd, but we can't wait to get out there and cut our teeth.

You launched Brontës with a recording of a live session performance. What gave you that idea?

We share a studio with Weekend Debt and Stoned Immaculate and Crowded Flat use the space to record their sessions. We were asked to record one and thought it was a different way to launch our sound and see the reaction we got ... which was overwhelmingly positive.

And this prompted Last Night From Glasgow to sign you up. Will you be releasing anything soon?

It was a total shock to be signed as quick as we were and we're so thankful to LNFG for picking us up and giving us the opportunity. We're in the studio soon and should hopefully have a single out in the near future.

So much is changing, but do you have any more shows planned? Or anything else for the rest of the year.

We have a couple of shows coming up towards the end of the year, so keep an eye out and make sure to come along. We'll be spending a lot of time in the studio writing new material and recording.

CLICK HERE to watch the Brontës Crowded Flat session if you don't see the video below.

10 from the Stone Roses

Following on from previous 10 from ... blogs that have included Primal Scream, The Charlatans, The Lemonheads and Belle & Sebastian (see the end of this blog for links), I strangely found it harder to narrow down a list of 10 of my favourite Stone Roses songs, despite the fact that they have a much smaller back catalogue to choose from. Very early on it was clear that I would be leaving out 3 or 4 real favourites.

For me, The Stone Roses were the most perfect band in the world for around 3-years. From the release of Elephant Stone in 1988, through 1989 when the band released their eponymous debut album and the Fools Gold single, to Spike Island and Glasgow Green in 1990, they couldn't put a foot wrong.

The hair, the clothes, the personalities, the politics, the belief, the artwork, the singles, the b-sides, the album, the ambition with music and shows, landmark gigs that were like cup finals ... the Empress Ballroom, Alexandra Palace, Spike Island and Glasgow Green.

Stone Roses, Charing Cross, Glasgow

Sadly it was 1991 before I got into them when I was 15, so I then spent 4-years waiting for them to release new music! But in that time I bought everything on 12-inch, 7-inch, CD and cassette, including bootlegs. I hunted down old Melody Makers and NME's in Virginia Galleries in Glasgow and basically devoured every piece of music and information I could find about the band. Old interviews turned me on to Love, northern soul, The Misunderstood

I remember the video of the legendary Blackpool Empress Ballroom show coming out in 1991. I bought it at Tower Records and went home to watch it several times. They were magical, I wanted my hair like Ian Brown, I dreamed of playing guitar like John Squire, I marvelled at Reni playing drums so effortlessly and how Mani was so super cool.

Stone Roses, Glasgow Rooftops

The music weeklies tried to track the Roses down to find out what was happening with the follow up, but after a long court case against Silvertone, the band all moving to various parts of the country, relationships breaking up and forming, becoming fathers and different kinds of drugs, not to mention lack of management, a healthy bank balance and no set deadline, the Roses were in no rush or state to make a new album.

Which, on reflection, is a real shame. The way they moved from their debut LP to grooves like Fools Gold, One Love and Something's Burning leaves fans wondering what kind of blissed out tunes they could have created during that time.

There was finally activity in 1994 with the release of Love Spreads as a single and then the Second Coming LP. I took days off work to buy them and remember going home and literally watching my record player as I placed the LP on, wondering what would come out of the speakers.

The Second Coming didn't flow as effortlessly as the debut, but it still hangs together as a good album. Rough round the edges at times with the beautiful Tightrope, breaking into electronica with Begging You, there is the well publicised rock/Led Zep riffing at times, epic soundtracks like Breaking Into Heaven, loose jams and beautiful songwriting like Tears. You can read my blog on The Second Coming HERE

Try as I might, I couldn't get a ticket for their Barrowland shows that winter. Reni left, Squire broke his collarbone and their 1995 Glastonbury headline show, which would surely have been a triumph, was stolen by Pulp, Squire left and the Roses died a very public death at the Reading Festival in 1996 as Brown and Mani played on.

So I never saw the Roses first time round or through the Second Coming. I did catch Brown and Squire several times, I bought Mani a pint or two one lunchtime, I even caught Reni play Tuts with his short lived band The Rub, I saw Brown and Squire both do sets largely of Roses songs and I caught Mani loads of times with the Scream.

And then ... the Roses were reforming. I caught them in Amsterdam and cried, I had my mind blown on the Sunday at Heaton Park, I was left underwhelmed when they revisited Glasgow Green and then reminded of why I loved them at the last ever T in the Park.

The new material was exceptionally disappointing and they dragged it out for another 2 years. They got the paydays they deserved and brought joy to fans across the world. And then that was that.

If I consider the Roses to have been the perfect band for a few years, if I have loved them since the age of 15 (30-years!!!) how do I choose my 10 favourite songs?

Well some favourites have had to be left out including the mellow grooves of Going Down and Shoot You Down, the chiming flowing Mersey Paradise and the epic Tears.

But push come to shove, at the time of writing, here are my 10 favourite songs by the Stone Roses.

Sally Cinnamon (12-inch version)

The Roses formed in 1983, releasing their debut single So Young/Tell Me in 1985, but it was the release of Sally Cinnamon in May of 1987 when The Roses sounded (at least on record) like they had found their sound.

Gone were the brash sounds of the debut and in were melodies and chiming Byrds-esque guitars, then with a roll of Reni's drums, we're off and Ian Brown is singing of being chased by rain clouds that would join his tears and allay his fears, girls tasting of cherryade and a girl sent from heaven.

The little lift into the first chorus of sent to me from heaven, Sally Cinnamon you are my world is immediately transferred into the next verse

Pop, pop, pop, blow, blow, bubble gum

You taste of cherryade

Squire lets rip on guitar after the second chorus, the Roses are in full bloom; 

Then I put the letter back, in the place where it was found

In the pocket, of a jacket, on a train in town

The single version comes in just under 3-minutes, the 12-inch allows time for a little jam outro with Reni sounding superb on the drums. Timeless and thrilling guitar pop.

Made of Stone

Sometimes I fantasise 

When the streets are cold and lonely

When asked by the NME what Made of Stone was about, John Squire replied that it was about scoring the winning goal in the FA Cup final dressed as Spiderman on a Harley.

The chorus hints at the desolation and frustration caused by the Tory government across Britain in the 80's. The streets are cold and lonely, cars are burning and Brown asks; 

don't these times fill your eyes?

Squire's guitar intro sounds melodic, melancholy and sad, but Brown's verse seems to lift the guitar into the euphoric chorus. And oh what a chorus, all of Heaton Park seemed to be lifted a foot in the air when this kicked in back in 2012. To hear 75,000 people singing sometimes I fantasise, when the streets are cold and lonely was an experience I will never, ever forget.

After the second chorus Squire gives us a beautiful soaring solo leading to a third and final chorus, before a chiming guitar outro leads us to the conclusion.

Anyone who wonders why the Roses mean so much to people after all these years should listen to this song.

She Bangs The Drums

Guitar pop perfection. Mani's bass groove, Reni on hi-hat action and then Squire kicking in with heavenly sounding guitar and Brown singing about hitting the groove.

Kiss me where the sun don't shine

The past was yours but the future's mine

You're all out of time

The second verse ends with Brown and the band lifting the song effortlessly into the chorus

Through the early morning sun

I can't see her, here she comes

She bangs the drums

And then we're into another outstanding uplifting skyscraping chorus and there are no words to describe the way Brown is feeling, sometimes there just are no words, sometimes you just know.

The Roses then lead us on a glorious 40-second instrumental, taking us higher, dropping it down, rising again before guitars, bass and drums crash together twice to lead us into another chorus that feels like even more of a rush than the first one. 

It's not enough, the chorus comes again before Squire's guitar chimes through to close. She Bangs The Drums is a sheer rush of guitar pop perfection in my book.

Ten Storey Love Song

This should have been the comeback single for me. I cried when I saw the Roses in Amsterdam in 2012 and they played this. Ten Storey Love Song sends tingles down my spine every time I hear it, the way the band lock into the intro groove before Ian comes in with one of his best vocal performances backed by Squire's chiming guitar.

When your heart is black and broken and you need a helping hand

When you're so much in love you don't know how much you can stand

I'm not sure what the hell the chorus means, I don't care, it is a Ten Storey skyscraper of a love song. Squire's lyrics, Brown's voice, he has enough love for two when his partner is down. Beautiful and uplifting, the production is sublime and Squire dazzles on guitar.

Standing Here

I should be safe forever in your arms is a lyric that melts my heart every time I hear this song.

Starting with Squire conjuring glorious sounds from his guitar, the band then fall in behind him, Mani and Reni lock into a groove with Reni shuffling effortlessly about the drums. Squire just sounds like he is improvising over the top of them, a beautiful jam. Listen carefully for Reni's stunning backing vocals at times.

I really don't think you could know that I'm in heaven when you smile

As a teenager Standing Here appealed to me more than any other song for a while. Lines like that described how I would feel every day if a girl I fancied smiled at me. 

The breakdown into I don't think you think like I do (another amazing lyric) then leads to arguably the most beautiful 2-minutes in the Roses cannon.

Squire's guitar is just so considerate and melodic, Brown's whispered vocals are spine tingling, Reni is just soooooooo good.

I could park a juggernaut in your mouth

And I can feel a hurricane when you shout

I should be safe forever in your arms

Tightrope (album + Crimson Tonight EP live version)

The Roses spent a long time on The Second Coming, yet one of my favourite songs sounded like it had been bashed out round a campfire on acoustics. 

John Squire's lyrics make it clear that he was hopelessly head over heels in love when he wrote them. Reni's backing vocals are sublime, Brown on lead delivers one of my favourite performances. You can hear someone talking in the background at one point, it all adds to a charm that is remarkably different to any other Roses song.

Lyrically, this is like a big love poem.

In the half light of morning, in our world between the sheets

I swear I saw her angel wing, my vision was complete

And I know I'll never want another lover, my sweet

Can there be more in this world than the joy of just watching you sleep?

I don't know just what to feel

Won't someone tell me my love is real?

Are we etched in stone or just scratched in the sand

Waiting for the waves to come and reclaim the land

The live version on the Crimson Tonight EP captures Roses mania and Brown in fine voice as the Roses flow through the song backed by the crowd.

The rawness of the album version against the tenderness of the song, the way Squire is pouring his heart out in the lyrics, sung by Brown, it's a gem.

This Is The One

This Is The One is simply majestic. Squire's guitar sounds thrilling at the start as it chimes and crashes before leaving Mani's bass to rumble beautifully, before the chimes come back again, this time crystal clear, another crash and then Ian Brown comes in with possibly his best vocal performance.

Talking of plans, desire, promises ... this is the one.

Everything bursts to life when Reni comes in on drums;

I'd like to leave the country, for a month of Sundays

Burn the town where I was born

The trick of quiet / loud / quiet / loud has been worked by many bands over the years. On This Is The One, the Roses go for it, chorus after chorus as Squire's guitar sets a course for the sun.

It may go right, it may go wrong

This is the one, this is the one, she's waited for

Tears filled my eyes every time I saw the Roses live when they played this song. It is packed with emotion, delivered with care, finesse and also with power.

Check this live professionally filmed footage from Coachella

Waterfall (12-inch mix)

This is the Roses at their best for me, vivid imagery from the lyrics, a real kind of house groove to Mani's bass, Reni just totally on it with his backing harmonies and beats, Squire's gorgeous chiming guitar and then the instrumental section which highlights what a brilliant band they were, everything gels. 

The 12-inch version has the band jamming for over 2-minutes at the end, the Roses enter into a glorious flow, bring it back to bass and beats and then Squire kicks in with some wah-wah guitar before gradually coaxing riffs mixed with more wah. At 4 mins 55 the band then kick into a final flourish; Reni, Mani & Squire on fire.

Now you're at the wheel

Tell me how, how does it feel?

Fools Gold

Fools Gold is the sound of Stone Roses at their peak, almost 10-minutes of funk groove via bass, beats, wah-wah guitar, samples and the coolest person in the world at the time on whispered vocals about friends searching for gold and ready to steal it off each other.

Nothing that the Roses had produced, not even the album closer I Am The Resurrection, hinted where they were going to go next.

The Roses went off on one, sampling the beat from Bobby Byrd's - Hot Pants (bonus beats) with the bass line from Young MC's Know How, which itself was loosely based around guitar from Isaace Hayes Theme From Shaft.

The bass line is inspired by Young M.C's Know How 

which was a tune we were really vibing off at the time 

Mani

Fools Gold was recorded over the summer of 1989 and released in November of that year. If the Roses album had been the soundtrack to pre and post club parties, Fools Gold became the sound of the party - the real indie dance crossover - if there really is such a thing, the Roses would pour scorn on such statements, they simply made the best music they could.

The beat and bass groove are in from the start, it's fresh, it's funky, it sounds like nothing 4 white boys from Manchester should be creating. But then things were changing dramatically in 1989, particularly in Manchester, a city embracing ecstasy and all kinds of music from Detroit to Ibiza - people wanted to dance and expand their horizons - international, continental.

Brown doesn't take long to come in the gold roads sure a long road, winds on through the hill for fifteen days

Things move up a notch for the I'm standing alone ... section and all the time the beat and bass keep grooving while Squire coaxes majestic sounds from his guitar.

By the time Brown whispers his last Foo-oo-oo-ools Gold we still have over 4-minutes left of this incredible tune and we are treated to the magical delight of Reni, Mani and Squire vibing and riffing off each other. They sound in their element, in the zone, in their own world.

On the Sunday at Heaton Park my mind was blown by the psychedelic funk the Roses produced during Fools Gold. The Shane Meadow filmed footage remains utterly joyful to watch, the smiles on stage, Ian walking along the crowd, Squire going crazy, Reni being Reni, the band just gelling. WATCH HERE

I Am The Resurrection

The epic closer to the Roses eponymous debut highlighted what a magnificent band they were. 

Starting with Reni's pounding drum beat, Mani joins on bass and then Ian comes in on vocals. It's not long before Squire is adding gorgeous riffs and flourishes over it all. 

The verses flow through to an absolutely euphoric chorus that has Brown straining for all he is worth to deliver it. A short instrumental leads back to the chorus again.

I am the resurrection and I am the light

I couldn't ever bring myself to hate you as I'd like

Resurrection then breaks down to close at 3-minutes 35 seconds, before Mani fires a little bass riff that then leads to a further glorious 5-minutes of Squire, Mani and Reni taking the listener on a real journey into the heart of the Roses.

They could play! The Roses are let loose to display their majestic powers, there is another brief pause at 5-minutes 15, before the band jam on for a further 3-minutes, Squire takes things to another level as his guitar soars from 5-minutes 57, before bringing it down to beautiful chimes at 6 minutes 17. 

The band build up again, Reni pounds on his drums like a Motown classic, Squire is firing off all kinds of sounds on his guitar and Mani is holding things together.

Utterly magical. Check the version from Blackpool Empress Ballroom HERE where the band stretch it to beyond 12-minutes. 

PREVIOUS 10 FROM ... BLOGS

1. The Vaselines

2. The Lemonheads

3. The Pastels

4. Primal Scream

5. BMX Bandits

6. Belle and Sebastian

7. The Charlatans

8. Hope Sandoval 

9. Edwyn Collins

10. New Order

11. Carla J Easton