Live Review

Young Rebel Set – King Tuts, Glasgow

• 31st Oct 2010

The night before Halloween saw a large crowd, many in fancy dress, enjoy a fine evening of music in spite of occasional sound issues. The four band bill was headed by the excellent Young Rebel Set.

The Craybees from Ayr got things moving with a set that rocked, and rocked hard. The band is as yet unsigned, but their combination of strong vocals, decent guitar work and a dynamic drummer would suggest that a deal shouldn’t be too far away.

Cattle and Cane were next up and their folky acoustic style went down very well. Lyrically their songs were perhaps a little repetitive at times, but the combination of acoustic guitar, keyboards and fiddle gave an interesting sound. Vocally they combine a male lead with female harmonies; always a good arrangement when delivered as well as these guys do.

The Imagineers, a local Glasgow band, were the best of the support acts. Technically the four piece band are very good musicians, with subtle melodies and infectious hooks. Their indie sound has a subtle Spanish feel to it, most notably on Mariana, one half of their first single release. The other song, Fairground, was also lively and well performed. Expect to hear more of The Imagineers over the next year.

Young Rebel Set topped the bill in impressive fashion. This was the penultimate show of 18 night headline UK tour and they looked like a band on top form. Singer Matty Chipchase led the band superbly, his evocative and at times haunting vocals sounding clear and strong.

The Stockton On Tees based band has a very North Eastern feel to their music, and from the accents in the crowd it seemed that they had brought a few fans along with them. Their excellent single, Measure of the Man was dedicated to Tony Mowbray, the new Middlesbrough manager, showing their where their footballing allegiances lie.

YRS have some fine songs at their disposal and mixed the slower numbers in with the rootsy flavour of much of their set. Won’t Get Up Again, described as a love song in the loosest sense of the term, was expertly delivered, while Wicked Ways was a frenzied excuse for dancing, not that the animated crowd needed much encouragement.

The set was closed, much too quickly it seemed, with If I Was. As the crowd sang along, the sporadic sound problems that had been occurring all night hit Chipchase’s acoustic guitar. In frustration he slammed it to the ground, causing some damage to the malfunctioning instrument.

Well, there was only one way to go from there, and the guitar received the full Townshend treatment, being reduced to a pile of well smashed wood in the middle of the stage. The rest of the band looked on in amusement, but continued playing, professional to the end.

This was the second time I have seen Young Rebel Set live and I was very impressed with this performance. There was an intensity that the previous show had perhaps lacked, taking their set from good to excellent. It was unfortunate that the curfew reduced them to forty minutes or so on stage.

With an album due for release in 2011, there is much more good music to come from Young Rebel Set.