Live Review

We Are Augustines – Arches, Glasgow

• 8th Oct 2012

We Are Augustines returned to Glasgow a mere five months after their last visit to play a fine set last night. The band has toured almost constantly for well over a year now, capitalising on the success of an excellent debut album. And the fact that this show was held at a larger venue than the last proves that their popularity continues to grow.

Dubliners Kodaline were the support and their decent short set was well received by the large audience. The young four piece band have a nice line in emotional indie rock with a solid sound and some great vocal harmonies. In A Perfect World was a good song well delivered and the slower It All Comes Back To You, a keyboard driven slower track, went down very well. Interesting name, interesting band. And they received a much bigger ovation than most support bands do.

We Are Augustines burst onto the stage and straight into action with a hard rocking version of Philadelphia (City of Brotherly Love) from their fine debut album, Rise Ye Sunken Ships. Lead singer Billy McCarthy had a smile on his face all night long and he and bassist Eric Sanderson played to the crowd well, clearly delighted by the tremendous response.

Three songs in McCarthy took a brief break to explain that he had been ill but hadn’t wanted to cancel the gig, which of course brought a roar of approval. He also recalled Sanderson’s crowd surfing escapade at the last Glasgow show, but the gap between stage and audience made a repeat performance impossible.

The set came mainly from the album with passionate, high octane rock the order of the night. Juarez saw the crowd taking over the vocals for the chorus, while Augustine was delivered in superb style, with McCarthy’s vocals strong throughout. The slower East Los Angeles was a brief respite, with Sanderson on lead guitar at the very edge of the stage, getting as close to the audience as possible.

The rarely played Rise Ye Sunken Ships, a title track that eventually did not make the album, was a treat, another big rocker keeping the pace high before Rob Allen’s insistent drumming led the band to Headlong Into The Abyss. The set was closed with Book Of James, a crowd favourite delivered with real feeling and passion as the frenzied crowd sang along to every word.

The band exited the stage but not one person left. The loud demands for an encore were quickly answered and they returned to play a second version of Philadelphia (City of Brotherly Love). For this slower interpretation Sanderson played keyboards whole McCarthy stood alone, centre stage. He asked for the lights to be turned onto the crowd who again took over the vocals.

Before the final track McCarthy took a moment to thank Scots fans for their support. We Are Augustines have been regular visitors, with this being their fifth Scottish show of the year. The band’s hard working attitude and solid blue collar rock really endears them to audiences in Glasgow.

The big finish was past single Chapel Song, another huge rocker played with real power. McCarthy ended the night flat on his back, having apparently given everything, but he still managed to get up for one last burst of rock before it was over. Despite calls for more the night had ended, but the band did return to climb down off the stage and thank the audience for their support by shaking hands and hugging as many as they could.

We Are Augustines always deliver great live performances and this was no exception. Their lead singer may not have been in perfect health, but still conjured up a memorable set for his fans. They clearly enjoy performing and the emotional nature of their music lends itself well to the type of energetic performance they specialise in.