GIG REVIEW : FRIGHTENED RABBIT : GLASGOW ARCHES : TUESDAY 30 SEPTEMBER 2008

It was two years and a day ago that I started TVV. The whole ethos has always been, as the blog name suggests, to resurrect some cracking old tracks that might otherwise have been generally forgotten, or in many cases be near impossible to get a hold of unless you buy them second hand on vinyl. I more or less give new acts a bit of a wide steer.

More or less.

Regular readers will however know that I have long been a champion of Frightened Rabbit, ever since good old Comrade Colin brought them to my attention in late 2006. Earlier this year, after being lucky enough to see them a few times gigging to support the release of Midnight Organ Fight, I offered the opinion that Frightened Rabbit were the best band to come out of Scotland this century. A few weeks later, I did post a slightly negative review of a gig they played at Oran Mor in Glasgow (and got a fair bit of abuse from those bothered enough to leave comments behind).

Last night was, without doubt, the biggest gig the band have played so far in their career, in front of a sell-out crowd at The Arches (I'm guessing capacity in the region of 800-1000). And there was loads of evidence that the boys have cracked it, as far as the home audiences are concerned anyway.

Well before the gig commenced, people were making their way to the front for a good view. When the band came on, there was a bit of surge as folk continued to push their way forwards. Someone from the back of the hall threw a half-full plastic glass of lager which soaked a number of us (including myself and Comrade Colin) down at the front. The band started up and there was a massive word-perfect singalong which didn't stop until the close of the gig an hour or so later.

The sound system was way bigger than I'd seen the band use before, not to mention a very professional light show (not sure if they now have their own guy or whether it was someone provided by the venue, but it was well impressive even if most of the time, other than lead singer Scott, the band were in semi-darkness).

And then there was the actual gig itself. Despite the size of the venue, this was a band totally at ease during the performance thanks to an audience that was eating out of their hands. Earlier in the year, at the aforementioned Oran Mor gig, I felt that the audience was a mixture of fans and the curious, the latter wanting to see what the hype was all about. Now, I reckon its just full of folk who have quickly fallen in love with a tremendously entertaining foursome.

I now know just how privileged I was earlier this year to see the band at much smaller venues than that of last night. But I'm not going to turn into one of those muso-snobs who will say they were better then than now. Far from it. (But I do wish they hadn't been so quick to drop the older material - only a spellbounding and pounding Square 9 broke up a set drawn entirely from the current LP)

And so to the punchline.

Frightened Rabbit, on the evidence of last night, are ready to take on the world and conquer it - and that ladies and gentlemen, can only be a good thing.

I still don't imagine there being a better LP in 2008 than Midnight Organ Fight (although who knows what October and November will bring), and while I know I will be at gigs later this year that will be magical for all sorts of reasons, I'll always remember that I was lucky enough to be in the audience watching a band I've long wanted to go mega come of age before my very eyes. My personal favourite on the night??

mp3 : Frightened Rabbit - My Backwards Walk

Thanks guys. Good luck with the tour in Europe and America.