Let the sun shine.
With a backing tape before their arrival that had the crowd whipped up into frenzy, The Sunshine Underground wasted no time in maintaining the adrenaline in the crowd. Even as the band were making their way onstage, RoomThirteen were asked if there were any pills kicking about by a youngster in the crowd, and although he was sent on his merry way with a refusal, the music would have given him a boost, if nothing else did.
When you look onstage and see a band with a stand for their cowbell, the impression of what sort of sound they'll be dishing out is pretty obvious and The Sunshine Underground didn't disappoint. The percussion led to a pretty pounding start and the crowd were a lot more involved than they had been for the New Young Pony Club with the handclaps and screaming being evident from the off. Which is all-good, however in Glasgow there is a bad element whereby any song with a consistent beat seems to encourage the crowd to chant "here we, here we, here we fucking go" over and over, and tonight was no exception. At first, it is always funny to hear but as it continues throughout the set, the novelty starts to wear off and grate. Not that the band seemed duly concerned as they continued to bash their way through the songs.
Lead man Craig Wellington attacked the stage with all the bounce and vigour of a young Damon Albarn and again this was replicated in the po-going that was kicking off in the crowd. Although the best moments were the ones that were very up-tempo, its not to say that there was only type of sound coming from the band. When the guitars were pushed into the mix, the more song-based element of the output came through, even invoking memories of London based punk and ska, such was the sneer of the delivery.
The last three songs of the set were immense, taking the crowd to a high level and as the cowbell solo rattled through the last track, meshing with the guitar drone to conjure up a 1960s psychedelic track and provided a rather climatic end to their set. The Sunshine Underground were in a good position on the tour, not being the opening act but not having the pressure that was placed on the two main acts, and they took this opportunity superbly.
With a UK tour to follow in April and May, expect The Sunshine Underground to have a real chance at burrowing overground and building on their fanbase.