Live Review

Transfer – King Tut’s, Glasgow

• 6th Jul 2011

San Diego rockers Transfer stopped off in Glasgow to play a fine set for a large midweek audience as part of a 12 date UK tour that finishes with an appearance at T In The Park this weekend.

Support came from young Glasgow rockers Hurricane Party, playing their first gig under a new name, having previously been known as Weekend City Scene. They are young and raw, but their sound is powerful and full of promise. The songs are generally simple but filled with an almost manic energy. A cover of Good Golly Miss Molly was perhaps a little ambitious but they acquitted themselves well and the closing track, the one the band is now named after, was a fine rocker.

The boys from Transfer wandered onto stage, set themselves up and then exploded into action almost before the house lights went down. Recent support slots have brought the band to the attention of British audiences and they lived up to their reputation as fine live performers with a set full of dynamism and authority.

Lead singer Matthew Molarius has a tremendous stage presence, alternating between two mics with slightly different sounds as he belted out the lyrics to a series of big songs full of solid verses and anthemic choruses.

Andy Ridley on drums played like a man possessed while lead guitarist Jason Cardenas provided some searing solos that kept the temperature high. Shaun Cornell on bass also played keyboards on several tracks, adding yet another layer to the already vibrant sound.

Transfer self-released an album back in 2009, Future Selves, which will be reissued in the UK in September and several tracks from it featured in the set. The single Losing Composure was a standout, a slightly more restrained track with impassioned vocals. The Possum started slowly before a bid drum roll followed by the twin guitars of Cardenas and Molarius kicking in took it up a notch or two.

The closing White Horses doesn’t appear to be on the album, which is a shame. It was the closing track of the set and it rocked in epic fashion, the guitars wailing over a strong beat as the band wrung out every last drop of energy before closing with one final crescendo.

This was my first sight of Transfer live and hopefully it won’t be the last. This was a fine, if too short, performance from a band who know how to play live rock music and do it well.

Brooksy, or Glaswegian Craig Brooks, played after the headliners with his band. The more mature performers played a soft rock set that felt like an epilogue to the evening. Brooksy has a decent voice and Loved Anymore, a tale of heartbreak, was well delivered, as was the closing Like The Sun.