Sick Of It All and The Unseen - King Tut's @ Glasgow

With a twenty year career marred by the now-commonplace accusations of inciting violence and selling out, Sick Of It All {5/5} arrived on stage all grins and no baggage, pounding their way through a set that would challenge any old soul not to have a good time. The skill and raw enthusiasm these guys have at their disposal means that live, they haven't tarnished in the slightest after two decades. Two songs in and Disco Sucks – Fuck Everything had adolescent lungs yelling like furies before skinny black-clad bodies began tumbling across the heads of the Tuts crowd. Lou Koller's Glasgow vs Edinburgh baiting to the strains of the Braveheart score led to the funniest mosh-off imaginable and by the time an unbelievably well-versed fan got on stage to take lead vocals, no-one would need convincing that Sick Of It All are hardcore's endearing drunken uncle who reminds you why you love him when he does his thing at a party. The Unseen's {3/5} support was solid, their beach-punk sound smattered with metal-style solos that made for an exuberant but uneven set. None of these uncertainties bothered the kids down at the front though, screaming along, punching the air, eyes ablaze with excitement, and they've always been the ones that this sort of music was made for. [Caroline Hurley]