The Brian Jonestown Massacre @ O2 ABC, 18 May
Newcombe and his band dispatch the hits with relentless purpose
Tonight Anton Newcombe looks like a man with something to prove as Glasgow is treated to two full hours of classic BJM material – no new songs, no encores and only one minor drama courtesy of a disintegrating snare drum.
Stubbornly taciturn from the get-go, Newcombe barely acknowledges the crowd as his band dispatches the hits with relentless purpose. Vacuum Boots' vituperative vox and snaking, stirring guitar lines send the crowd into raptures, Wasted vibrates with fucked-up intensity and Swallowtail conjures an atmosphere of desolate, forlorn beauty.
The real treat of the night though, is seeing recently reconciled band member Matt Hollywood step up to the mic and nail a handful of self-penned tunes such as the riotous Not If You Were the Last Dandy on Earth and the devestating Cabin Fever – his childlike modulation of the lyrics "It's easy/when you realise you're nothing" coupled with the most incredible chord progression providing perhaps the most stinging emotional hit of the whole evening. [Mark Shukla]