The Magic Gang @ The Liquid Room, Edinburgh, 23 Sep

With a surfeit of tunes and a knack for simple lyrics that sweetly capture the ups and downs of life and love, The Magic Gang easily win the hearts of their audience tonight

Live Review by Max Sefton | 25 Sep 2018

The first thing you notice when you walk in The Liquid Room tonight is how young everybody is. For girls in their festival gear and boys peacocking in their polo shirts this is obviously a big night, albeit one where the merch desk is set to do much steadier business than the bar is.

Support comes from Drip Gloss and the glamorous The Ninth Wave whose fusion of the new romantics dress sense and some killer choruses makes them ones to watch. They’re better when the cymbal crashes are toned down and their two singers get a chance to strut their stuff though.

The chants when The Magic Gang take the stage are almost deafening. Opening with Alright, the quartet are almost supernaturally buoyant and the audience match them note for note, even singing along to the guitar lines as if the lyrics alone aren't enough. On Jasmine, the crowd obediently clamber on one another’s shoulders as the band weave their spell wreathed in green smoke.

The Brighton quartet are tightly drilled, neatly shuffling the dozen or so tracks from their debut album to deliver exactly what the audience crave. Slippin’ is a peppy Britpop singalong while the piano-led Take Care spreads their message of good vibes around the room. With their catchy pop songs, fluttery harmonies and unabashed energy it’s no surprise that The Magic Gang are that rare thing; a guitar band recently signed to a major label.

Your Love captures the spirit of The Coral or The Libertines at their most whimsical while the Beatles-y stripped back Life Without You shows off a knack for breezy melodies. Ending on the Brian Wilson inspired All That I Want Is You, the floor shakes as the crowd chant its 'Oh Brian, won’t you come out?' refrain, causing frontman Jack Kaye to describe this as one of their best shows to date.

With a surfeit of tunes and a knack for simple lyrics that sweetly capture the ups and downs of life and love it’s no surprise that The Magic Gang have won their audience’s young hearts.

https://themagicgang.co/