Anyone who knows Adam Stafford’s signature live track ‘With Handclaps’ will know how he builds the song from layers of guitar tracks so it sounds like Bruce Gilbert, Vini Reilly and Lester Square (look em up, non-80s pop fans) are jamming. Here he takes use of technology to a whole new level – laying down a Platters-style vocal (I could be harsh and say Flying Picket, singular) he again layers the sound, dropping in bass/didgeridoo noises, beatboxing/fake drums and more and more vocals. Whether this is a show-stopping (ok, show-starting) party piece is soon answered, as he continues his set in the same vein with some decidedly soulful vibes mixing with full-on noise – all driven by instruments which just happens to be his voice. Even when everyone from KT Tunstall to Andrew Bird are doing the solo orcherstra thing, Stafford takes it to a whole new level, with some success.
Lyons are a bit of a conundrum in more than one way. Comprising (on paper) Glasgow stalwart John B McKenna and Fearghas, drummer from Three Blind Wolves, who announce that since someone’s in Mexico (the country rather than the band, though we can’t be sure) they’re playing as a three piece instead of a duo. Their set is as confusing, some decidedly heavy-handed riffing and detuned guitars, but once the drums bring a more settled rhythm, they settle into some very Glaswegian post-pop – closer to McKenna’s stint in El Padre: dark, but peppered with very definite hooks and riffs.
Marble Valley, Steve West tells us, are known for being a “party band” before launching into a rocking ‘Artificial Pistols’. And while it’s not all feelgood tunes, they do have more of a danceable vibe than West’s other band, Pavement. A six-piece, the band include members of former Jeepster act Salako and it may be this curious mix that produces the bouncy, upbeat set they deliver. Or it could be the Buckfast (“we just call it ‘wine'”, insists a passing member of Mogwai) which West offers to the audience. ‘Bing Bang Bong’ is done in five seconds – barely anyone notices – and they’re onto the Beta Band-fired hoedown ‘Hick Hop Hop’ which West suggests makes him feel like he’s back in Oklahoma. We can assume that the linedancing types there know how to party.
‘With Handclaps’ surely?