Caribou @ Barrowlands, Glasgow, 24 Jan
The stars align to bring one of the most jubilant acts going to Glasgow on the very day we're allowed back in the club
TAAHLIAH's raved-up beats are the first thing you encounter once inside the Barrowlands tonight, followed by the TV crew gleefully filming concert-goers on our latest “Freedom Day”. It's a bit on the intense side for 8pm on a Monday night, skirting through PC Music-esque rubbery bass, happy hardcore and your typical club fare, but the sense of relief and reckless abandon ahead keep it from being too much.
After the relatively subdued New Jade, Caribou launch right into Odessa. One of Dan Snaith's most recognisable songs, it hits like a fiery meteor – the stage bathed in deep, flashing reds – amd gets the crowd moving as Snaith's whispery falsetto glides atop the the pounding percussion. Now operating almost as a traditional band, the crunching guitar lines ring out and the presence of live drums gives an extra oomph to every song (even more so when Snaith joins as a second drummer).
The first hour or so is a mixture of the band's last three albums, with 2020's Suddenly providing a lighter touch, and oft-needed respite, from extended jams like Bowls or Silver. But things are taken up a notch with Sun, which is drawn out to over ten minutes of fevered breakdowns and chaotic strobes. It's the most euphorically clubby moment of the night and people are 100% here for it.
The gorgeously sentimental Home is the only time for a breather in the last section of the night, which then moves through brilliant new song You Can Do It and Never Come Back, with the encore simply a stunning rendition of Can't Do Without You. The entire shows builds beautifully to this final song which delivers on the finely balanced indie-electronic dynamic.
It's an easy cliché to throw around words like “cathartic” and “liberation” at a big, indoor event the very day it's allowed again, but Caribou really are the perfect act to see on this day. It seems like the feeling isn't lost on Dan Snaith as he exits with raised fists, the shouts and stomps echoing long after the stage empties.