IMUSIC LIVE REVIEWS
I TRIED EVERYTHING 10 Sen. MYSELF IN AN ADVERT
BEACON BLUE
lngiiston Arena, 1 April
So who to blame for this evening of anti-climax — the venue, the audience or the band themselves? For those of you who know lngiiston cattle market, the ‘revolution’ is that the arena has
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snoufl IN THE 5 (mar co-
DAILY PAPERS 11;
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been divided into three equal areas. Lavish black drapes partition the stage from alcohol and food balls that have all the atmosphere of a refugee camp. The boon is that with the curtains the sound quality has vastly improved. However, it there’s a complete lack of audience atmosphere in the first place, it’s a bit of a wasted gesture.
It’s all too polite, an enjoyable evening’s entertainment for could-be lovers. Reaction was uniform by album. ‘Whatever You Say . . .’: the half-dozen people who bought it mouth the words, the rest just pretend, nod their heads and clap politely. ‘Feilow Noodlums’: a few scream, some even jump up and down, but most lust clap politely. ‘When The World Knows Your Name’: most people have this album and so tracks are dutifully received with less reserved polite clapping. ‘Baintown’ teetered on the edge of excitement and DB were on to a winner if they played ‘Dignity’. They didn’t. Clap politely.
As a band, they display the worst taste in fashion this side of What Every Woman Wants; only drummer Douglas Dog seems not to have fallen prostrate at pop stardom’s fickle feet. Lorraine McIntosh pouts and strums, while hubbie iiicky can’t decide
red beacon lamp, or stand-up 9 comedian with a string at amusing monologues. A lot of thought had been put into the lavish set, a lot of time spent to entertain musically, but sadly it all seem to be wasted. While it was an enjoyable, professional performance, it just lacked balls. ‘Shed Bule,’ shouted a Tannadice Street die-hard. ‘Too right pal,’ replied Boss. For a split-second, we were united, pining to be somewhere else in another town; crivvens, even Dundee had more appeal at this stage of the proceedings. The conclusion is that 5 either Deacon Blue should be banned from playing in Edinburgh, that their : audience should be given an ectasy tab on the back of their ticket or that lngiiston should be blown up. Delete as appropriate. (Philip Dorward)
HEI- SUEDE
Plaza, Glasgow, 1 April.
Taking time out from the tea dances and bingo, The Plaza is the ballroom arena to which pop phenomena come to meet their makers. In December 1991, The Farm chugged through, last spring Primal Scream moved on up, next month PJ Harvey will do likewise. And right now it’s the turn of Suede. That’s only four gigs in this mini- Barrowland, and all variously the brightest sounds of their respective times.
Sadly, first support Thrum are also a sound of the time - a dreary, dripping, bleuuurgh oi lackadaisicai rock. A.N. Other wearying Glasgow band who don’t even have the decency to bury some semblance of melody or
I coherence within their cacophonous I thicket. Their version of Boy Drbison’s i ‘Crying’ is as peely-wally as the man i himself was and as rotten as the man 1 himself is.
But at least Thrum aren’t as bad as
; Sharkboy. The Velvet Underground
: reunion tour has kicked off early, but ! Lou, Mo, Sterling and John have
i forgotten all their songs. So instead
here’s performance (f)art, with a
; jumble of cello, trumpet, noiseless
guitars and nut-numbing vocals.
; Sharkboy are deeply, deeply
Q depressing. Bring back the birch.
- And so to Suede. Naturally, they
.. shine. Their album, hitherto (just) a
perfectly agreeable collection, takes
\ on new resonances and curves as
i Brett gies it laldy, pouting and
.. preening and chiding the crowd
1 (‘You’re not cheering loud enough’)
like a balletic schoolmaster. He’s not
i just WEARING a big girl’s blouse . . .
g This is great. Brett makes the perfect
tortured torch singer and the
: consummate decadent rocker. John
, inman meets Marc Bolan with an anus mirabilis. Carry on camping.
Then there’s Bernard Bresslaw, sorry
I: Butler, who believes all the god-like
; guitarist accolades that have been
_ flung his way — with good reason and
f to good effect. He peels off
vertiginous heavy metal ascents and
; descents to match Brett’s angst-filled
l whoop. An hour long, no encores, no
5 pack-drill. A perfect pop snapshot and
i a brightly-spotlit sound of the times.
l For sure, they’re tyking us ovah. (Craig
i McLean)
V BOOK NOW
Concerts listed are those at maior venues, ior which tickets are on public sale at time of going of press. ‘
ROCK
I GLASGOW BARRDWLAND (226 4679) Hothouse Flowers. 30 Apr—l May; Stereo MC's. 21 May; Brian May, 6 Jun.
I GLASGOW CELTIC PARK (227 5511) U2. 8 Aug.
I GLASGOW CONCERT HALL (227 5511) Alvin Stardust. 23 Apr; Neil Sedaka. 28 Apr; The Silencers. 16 May; Crystal Gayle. 23 May;
I Showaddywaddy. 24
May; Bay City Rollers. 29 May; Nanci Griffith. 8-10 Jun; Jethro Tull. 11 Oct.
i I GLASGOW GREEN (031 ' 556 1212) Fleadh. 5 Jun.
I GLASGOW PAVILION (332 1846) Five Blind Boys of Alabama. 3 May. I GLASGOW SECC (031 557 6969) David Essex. 8 May; Michael Bolton. 9—10 May; Iron Maiden. 21 May.
I EDINBURGH MEADOWBANK (557 6969) Prince. 29 Jul.
I EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE (557 2590) Bjorn Again. 4 May; Velvet Underground. 1—2 Jun; Brian May. 4 Jun.
I EDINBURGH IIUEEN’S HALL (668 2019) Midge Ure. 5 May; Louden Wainwright Ill. 10 May; Average White Band. 17
May.
I EDINBURGH USHER HALL (228 1155) Neil Sedaka. 27 Apr; Buddy Guy. 23 May.
JAZZ
I GLASGOW CONCERT HALL (227 5511) Glenn Miller Orchestra. 18 Nov. I GLASGOW CITY HALL (227 5511) Dankworth Generation Band. 6 May. I EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE (557 2590) Harry Connick Jr. 31
May. I EDINBURGH QUEEN’S
7 HAI1(668 2019) Courtney Pine, 7 May; Wynton
Marsalis. 3 Jun: Carla Bley. 30 Jun; Georgie Fame. 8 Jul.
‘ I EDINBURGH USHER ; HALL(2281155)Syd
Lawrence. 5 May.
FOLK
I GLASGOW PAVILION (332 1846) Wolfstone, 9
T May. I GLASGOW RSAMD (332 .3 5057) Banal and Gleus.
30 Apr; Two Women of Song. 8 May; McKenna and Jackson. 15 May.
I EDINBURGH QUEEN’S HALL (668 2019) Scottish Folk Charity Concert. 23
Apr. I EDINBURGH USHER HALL (228 1155) Clannad.
22 Jun.
LIGHT
I GLASGOW CONCERT
HALL (227 5511) Elaine Page. 20 May; Victor Borge. 1 Jun; Patsy Cline Tribute. 28—29 Nov.
I GLASGOW PAVILIW (332 1846) Rita MacNeil. 29 Apr.
I GLASGOW SECC (031 557 6969) Johnny Mathis, 26 Sep.
I EDINBURGH USHER HALL (228 1155) Brenda Cochrane. 16 May.
CLASSICAL
I GLASGOW CONCERT HALL (227 5511) Victoria de Los Angeles, 7 May; St Petersburg Phil. 11—12 May; Leipzig R80. 17
May.
I GLASGOW RSAMD (332 5057) Cancons y Obres de Piano. 23 Apr; Scottish Ensemble. 23 Apr. 12 Jun; Opera Gala. 24 Apr; Acad Cham Choir. 29 Apr; Fou Ts‘ong. 30 Apr; Sergei Babayan. 30 Apr; Smith Quartet. 2 May; Academy Nowi. 6—7 May; Banks- Martin, Cook and Rojas. 8 May; Chamber Group of Scotland. 9 May, 13 Jun; King's Consort, 14 May; Boyd and Tomes, 14 May; L/es Cuivres, 15 May; Acad Wind Ens, 21 May; Owen Murray. 21 May; Kathryn Stott. 21 May; Jun Charn Orch. 5 Jun; Glas Cham Orch. 6 Jun; Zoe Alambicum, 19 Jun; St Mary‘s Concert. 20 Jun; Jun Orch. 26 Jun; Magic Flute. 28 Jun-l Jul. I GLASGOW TRAMWAY (227 5511) VS (SCO). 20—23 May.
I EDINBURGH QUEEN’S
l HALL (668 2019) Scottish
Ensemble. 25 Apr; Florilegium. 28 Apr;
5 Apollo Sax Qt. 11 May;
King‘s Consort. 13 May; Kathryn Stott. 20 May;
Stephen Kovacevich, 29
May. I EDINBURGH USHER
HALL (228 1155) Kevock Choir. 24 Apr; SCO Opera Gala. 12 May; RSNO Proms. 29 May, 1—5 June.
I SUBSCRIPTION SEASONS Programme details and tickets for RSNO. SCO. BBC SSO. and CGPO concerts are
x available from
Ticketcentre. Glasgow (227 5511); Usher Hall, Edinburgh (228 1155): Queen‘s Hall. Edinburgh (668 2019). Tickets for Scottish Opera from Theatre Royal, Glasgow (332 9000); King's Theatre. Edinburgh (229
1201).
32 The List 9 -22 April 1993