The The @ Barrowlands, Glasgow, 4 Sep

While The The don't deliver the most dynamic performance tonight, there's clearly plenty of political bite in these old dogs yet

Live Review by Claire Francis | 07 Sep 2018

We're a few songs deep into The The's Barrowlands set when we overhear one woman turn to her friend and declare, "that opening number was pish." The song in question is Global Eyes from the group's forgettable 2000 release NakedSelf. As an opener for the 'comeback special' tour of Matt Johnson and co, after nearly two decades in relative obscurity, you've got to agree it doesn't make for the most thrilling of starts.

The The certainly have no shortage of material to choose from – and no shortage of loyal, long-term fans, as the packed venue attests – and they do turn things around with a quick-succession stream of their most loved hits. A rousing rendition of Heartland prompts the first of many singalongs, and the jazz-inflected, swaggering delivery of The Beat(en) Generation, with its featherlight drumming, has a sea of people with raised fists chanting: 'Open your eyes, open your imagination.'

Politics is perhaps the thread that most strongly links The The of old to the present day. The vocal dissatisfaction with the likes of Thatcher and Reagan that shaped tracks like Heartland and Armageddon Days Are Here (Again) is sadly all too relatable, while Sweet Bird of Truth, released in 1986 when the US was bombing Libya, could be the tragic backing track to the current Syria crisis. While The The don't deliver the most dynamic performance tonight, there's clearly plenty of political bite in these old dogs yet.

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