Frightened Rabbit & Meursault

Opening for Scots indie heroes Frightened Rabbit is a rather daunting thought, given the sons of Selkirk’s reputation for producing exhilarating live performance. But the Edinburgh-based electro-folk six piece Meursault produce a barnstorming performance in what is their biggest gig to date.

From the warm welcome they receive onwards, the band underline their credentials as Edinburgh's most exciting and innovative band. Following on from debut record Pissing on Bonfires/Kissing With Tongues, the new tracks played tonight suggest tremendous ambition, with some African stylings in the percussion and ominous electronic work underpinning the howling vocals of singer Neil Pennycook. The plaintive ‘A Small Stretch of Land’ is a brave choice in the set, but wins over an initially noisy crowd.

Since the release of second album Midnight Organ Fight in 2008, Frightened Rabbit have quickly established themselves on the indie circuit and gathered a fanatical support. This writer has seen the band a number of times, and the 'Frabbit generally create an intense and rewarding experience – but the atmosphere generated tonight is absolutely sensational. The band themselves seem taken aback by the sheer volume that is created by the Queens Hall crowd, with classics from said album Good Arms vs. Bad Arms and My Backwards Walk roared so loudly as to drown out frontman Scott Hutchison.

As has become traditional, the singer performs the album's centrepiece ‘Poke’ without amplification, but by half-way through he doesn't even need the guitar as the audience takes over. It’s a wonderful piece of honest entertainment rarely seen on the stage these days. Of the new songs, two are hard-rocking slices of pop that immediately have the feet tapping, while the slower burning ‘Swim Until You Can’t See Land’ is a future favourite. With a third album due in early 2010, Frightened Rabbit can do no wrong.

“Please keep coming to see us!” pleads Hutchison. But with gigs this good, there’s no shadow of a doubt.