The Physics House Band @ Hug & Pint, Glasgow, 8 May
The Hug & Pint have thought everything through this evening – earplugs sit in a plastic pint glass where fans are stamped in as they wander downstairs. An earthy rumble of feedback sits in your chest as you walk through, even in those still wolfing down a curry above. The fuzz clears as you open the door, replaced by shrill static. Tonight, prog-rock of all shades is on the cards, and surrounded by towers of amps, InTechnicolour are excavating the crowd’s inhibitions.
The Physics House Band’s first support of the night balance metallic riffs, brooding melodic vocals and sharp interplay. It’s "Rawk" in every sense, with the hammed-up lyrics and crunchy textures you’d expect. Despite the grave tone, what InTechnicolour do share with their tourmates is a relentless physicality.
Glasgow’s Dialects offer the other side of the coin. Their dextrous guitar songs flip emotion with each shift in time signature, spidery freakouts melting into cool, radiant passages. These pieces build narratives out of winding structures and alien textures from a collection of pedals. When the band take a moment to soak up the room’s energy on When You Die, You are Truly Alone, they’re downright beautiful.
By this point, the basement is packed, but The Physics House Band are cool enough to emerge from behind the crowd, bobbing onto the small stage, now full of keyboards, computers, loops, and phasers that the band seamlessly cycle between. Samuel Organ is balancing most of these effects, colouring the raw musicianship of his bandmates with cosmic moods. This band is a machine; the determined thrill of their playing would be enough, but it’s the care they take to make this music a voyage that’s most impressive. On their two brief albums, this has been emphasised through seamless transitions. Live, the effect is just as powerful, the narrative now expanded across the two projects.
Prog, especially the nostalgic King Crimson variety The Physics House Band are indebted to, frequently suffers from cheesy textures and self-seriousness, but their sound design is vibrant and playful tonight. Mobius Strip is a lurching beast, its locked groove growing more threatening with each loop. We’re minutes in and Dave Morgan is already sweating, throwing his body into every crash like he’s auditioning for Whiplash. On Calypso, punishing kicks are offset by contorting bass and a slinky Korg arpeggio that’s just as fun to watch Organ settle into as it is to hear. It could be the theme to an anime far too expensive and complex to get funding.
As the band loop back to Mobius Strip on their finisher, they’re not afraid to keep things pure and simple. Tension. Build. Release. Lots of thrashing. Crowd Goes Wild. The Physics House Band are only settling into their stardom, and already they harness a rare sharpness.