Clairo @ O2 Academy, Glasgow, 16 Mar

“I’m too happy right now to play with reverb”, says 26-year old Claire Cottrill, aka Clairo, into the microphone before starting on 2019 fan-favourite Bags. The crowd erupts into deafening cheers: in spite of the song’s sad nature, there's an atmosphere of joy and excitement permeating Glasgow’s O2 Academy on this Sunday night.

Clairo, who has been putting out songs since she was 13, seems entirely in love with playing music, and the crowd can tell. Flanked by her wonderful band, she comes across almost shy – wearing big headphones instead of in-ears, and making it repeatedly clear to the crowd that flash photography is prohibited at this particular show. Yet her commentary throughout the set, as well as the smile that seems almost permanently fixed on her face, make it clear that she's genuinely happy to be here.

There is a subtle performance happening here, a very specific vibe created by the band to shape the audience’s experience. Piled together at the front of the stage like the famous intro from Friends, the band make a show of drinking wine from long-stemmed glasses and chatting inaudibly amongst themselves before ever taking up their instruments – this, the glittery backdrop and the big headphones perched on Clairo’s head all make it seem like we're witnessing an intimate session at some 70s recording studio, rather than a live show on a chilly Glasgow evening in 2025.

Image: Clairo @ O2 Academy, Glasgow, 16 Mar by Rosie Sco

Playing mostly songs from her most recent album, Charm, the band do a fantastic job of making the record come to life. In particularly, multi-instrumentalist Hailey Niswanger stands out, providing the striking flute and saxophone solos that give the album its distinctly jazzy feel.

That the focus is really on the music is evident, too, from the lack of stage announcements. While Clairo does speak up to thank the crowd for being there and to tell us about her day out in Glasgow, she keeps it to a minimum apart from that, letting the music and the skill of her fellow musicians speak for themselves. The result is a natural flow of music that enraptures the crowd and leaves even the seated portion of the venue swaying gently in their seats.

That people feel captured by the music is evident, too; relatively few phones are held up throughout most of the show. While hits like Sofia and Flaming Hot Cheetos are bound to be filmed, we are not faced with the sparkly sea of phone screens that seems to dominate so many gigs these days. Clairo’s music does really seem to transport us back to an earlier time, one most of us would be too young to actually remember but which seems all the more captivating for it.