Music
Kill the Waves, King Tut's Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow
Jonathan Geddes
Four stars
There is something satisfying when a multi-band bill delivers both diversity and talent, and this showcase, part of the New Year's Revolution series at King Tut's, provided that.
Openers Woodwife displayed folksy roots and dramatic, near Gothic sensibilities in equal measure, aided by an alluring vocal from frontwoman Freya Giles. At times they were reminiscent of the greatly underrated Australian band Howling Bells, and the resulting set bubbled along nicely, albeit without ever totally erupting.
More directly punchy were Static Future, who came on like Vampire Weekend fresh from binging on Irn Bru, all guitars, drums and bongos. This was heavily moveable guitar pop with roots that stretched back to Talking Heads in their hits era, and while that's well travelled ground, the Kirkintilloch group covered it well. The melodies were consistent in catchiness, and both Is This Real Love and set-closer Marseille could liven up any dancefloor.
A more cerebral touch came from the fresh-faced AmatrArt, who barely looked old enough to be served at the bar, never mind perform. Yet their songs were impressively assured, and while their early recordings possess a more haunting tone, in a live setting there was considerably more funk on show. Some songs were occasionally guilty of being too scattershot to fully connect, but this was still promising.
Oddly, headliners Kill the Waves saw the crowd thin out considerably. A shame, for they're a creative band, although they didn't help matters by underpinning their set with a lengthy tune that embraced prog rock excess too much. The remainder, however, displayed plenty of easy to admire clever pop, with flourishes of strings and guitar, although hindered by a somewhat sedate atmosphere.
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