Gig reviews

Badly Drawn Boy / Malcolm Middleton

Queen's Hall
14/02/2006

To those unfamiliar with Malcom Middleton – and there will be a fair few on his tour with the wooly-hatted one – there must be unspoken thoughts. E.g.: is he really that miserable? Opening with ‘Desolation’ it`s not the cheeriest of starts. For those who do know Malcolm`s work, A Brighter Beat is of course just that – a lively and (comparatively) chipper affair, but for those doubters (and those involved in the counseling and therapy careers) things are – surely? – put in perspective with `We`re All Going to Die’. Malcolm is still not one for audience interaction, though he cracks a smile on stumbling over the lyrics of ‘Speed on the M9` more… “Badly Drawn Boy / Malcolm Middleton”

Brand New

Carling Academy
09/02/2006

There`s a high chance that unless you were an emo kid about four years ago, Brand New may have passed you by but after the release of their new album `The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me`, they`ve started turning heads again. If you don`t know who they are, this is the band who sold all those t-shirts that said `Mics are for singing not for swinging` on them more… “Brand New”

The View / The Automatic

Carling Academy
04/02/2006

Unless you`ve been living in a coconut hide for the last few years, you`ll be well aware of just how quickly an act can emerge from the Clap n Parrot circuit and be propelled into the utmost echelons of stardom. From Enter Shikari`s math Metal Gabba outselling many a pop act live (having released virtually nothing to date) to cod-falsetto twerp Mika instantly topping the charts, times are-a-moving more… “The View / The Automatic”

The Sounds / Leatherettes

Westport Bar
24/01/2006

It`s a game of two halves tonight` Dundee duo Leatherettes play sleazy, Kills-like rock `n` roll to an empty floor, the audience hiding in the shadows. Live they are a frustrating proposition, half irritating, half brilliant. Like the anti-heroine of Richmal Compton`s Just William books, when they are good they are very, very good ` particularly on the genius set closer which recalls the Lounge Lizards seminal take on `Money`, with its clipped beats and laconic vocal delivery ` and, when they are bad they are very, very` well irritating really more… “The Sounds / Leatherettes”