West End Festival @ Oran Mor, Glasgow, 18 Jun
The diversity of Scotland's music scene is showcased at Oran Mor's annual all-dayer
Warm sun, a beer garden and live music to suit all different tastes; what more could you want from a Sunday?
It may have been the weather keeping people outside that resulted in a sparse crowd for the first couple of hours of this year's West End Festival all-dayer. They missed out as the acoustic duo The Miss's take to the auditorium upstairs. It’s a stunning venue, all murals and stained glass windows, and Michelle Low’s voice soars to the heights of the high ceiling.
Downstairs in the venue, Indigo Velvet are making a fine racket. “We’re just going to hit with tune, tune, tune, tune” says front man Darren Barclay, as the tropical poppers launch into another weather-appropriate song. This is a theme of the day, as bands try and cram as many songs as they can into their short set times.
It’s barely after 5pm when a rave-like vibe breaks out downstairs thanks to HQFU aka Sarah Stanley whose dance beats are given an extra drive by the addition of live drummer Audrey Tait. For those not yet in the mood for that, Michael Cassidy provides a more relaxed atmosphere upstairs in the Whisky bar.
The crowd grows by the time Aberdeen outfit The Little Kicks step up to perform. Fresh from releasing new album Shake Off Your Troubles they provide a rocking, energetic set that gets the crowd in the mood for the night ahead.
A highlight of the festival is Neon Waltz, who pull up to the festival in a borrowed brewery van. The buzz around the John O Groats six-piece has been building for some time and has only escalated since the release of latest single Heavy Heartless and the announcement of their debut album Strange Hymns, due in August. This buzz is clear from the number of people singing back to the band, with a few even sporting Neon Waltz t-shirts.
The band seem to get better and better with each passing gig and it’s clear that they are on the cusp of something. They have the songs, and they have the attitude as well as an understated confidence – Strange Hymns may be the thing that propels them into the mainstream.
Back in the auditorium upstairs Mull Historical Society aka Colin MacIntyre gives a solo show – just him and his guitar. “You’ve caught me in the middle of making a new Mull album and writing a new novel, so fuck knows what you’re going to get,” he laughs. What we get turns out to be a set mainly from the early days of Mull Historical Society, including plenty from 2001's debut Loss, including singles Watching Xanadu and Barcode Bypass. We also get the album's title track, which MacIntyre dedicates to the victims of the Greenfell Tower tragedy, explaining he lived close to the building during his time in London.
This West End all-dayer excelled in celebrating the diversity of music in Scotland, and in looking beyond the often over-represented central belt. There was something for all different ages and musical persuasions, whether you wanted to jump about to rock music or nod your head to more stripped back offerings. Above all, it helped showcase the vast talent on offer in the Scottish music scene.