Live Review

Bedouin Soundclash – King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow

• 31st Oct 2010

Tonight you could be forgiven for feeling like a hippo. Not because you are fat, ugly and endangered, but because you are wallowing in the thick muddy bass in the hole everyone calls King Tuts Wah Wah Hut. Put simply, a bass fest like no other.

First to lavish the hearing senses are The Ordinary Allstars, which is a contradiction in reality, not in terms. You know this from their first off-beats when they combine jazz, reggae, funk and hip-hop, This was the time they had played Glasgow though you may never have guessed it with a tight professional set, at a pace unrelenting. Still, the hardly known Allstars do have a bit of work to do. Their single ‘I Don’t Like Hip-Hop’ gets a chorus, but encouraged by MC Hasta “When we say, I don’t like Hip-Hop, you say, I love hip-hop”, Their raps are good enough with a set of youthful joy, vigour and humour.

The more mature and soul laden The Skints take the stage next. Their set inspired by a different range of reggae dub twining of which the echoes of the Mad Professor or Scientist should be pointed out, rather than that of King Tubby or Lee Perry. They are electro in sound and electric in presence. However, they are by no means short of talent in either direction. Marcia, not only the vocal staple of the group, but her talents extend to the keys, saxophone, flute and melodica. Josh creates more skanks and guitar quirkiness with Jamie the drummer holding things together and is described as “having the best voices of a drummer”, as someone said in the interval between this and the next band. No-one remembers Phil Collins on a night like this. The riotous, raucous, rapture is saved for the grand finale of their set, this being the classic reggae standard, ‘You Don’t Love Me’. Everyone is now lifting their legs in mock marching fashion as bums wiggle in the same circular motion as a roundabout. They combine the best parts of roots reggae with the modern sound of electronics.

The crowd is bubblin’ hotter than water in a kettle. The two support acts have set the bar high. This is one of those nights where the headline act will sink or swim. Bedouin Soundclash chooses the second option with more records than Michael Phelps.

Having played the same venue just over four years ago, you might have been expecting more of the same old thing from them. Bedouin Soundclash are not like that. Not just content with showcasing the new stuff to the converts, tracks like ‘Mountain Top’, ‘Fool’s Tattoo’ and ‘Rolling Stone’ contain the freshness of ice cold orange juice somewhere in the tropics. They play the classics too, ‘St. Andrews’, ‘Money Worries’, which has a little bit of The Clash’s ‘(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais’ for good measure.

Besides, who could forget the indomitable ‘When The Night Feels My Song’. Nobody has forgotten the words and quickly becomes reminiscing of their Leeds Festival appearance. A euphoric sparkle as a sell out crowd attempt to drown the band with song, Jay the lead singer tries to fight back, but to no avail, this just encourages us to sing harder and louder than before. Glasgow resident Ruairidh said at the end of the gig, “I’m not going to be a gosh person, but that is one of the best crowds I’ve ever been in”. You have the Bedouin Soundclash to thank for this feeling.

“One more tune, one more tune, one more tune, one more tune” is the exit chant as those who were on stage are the only ones to leave the packed venue. They quickly return to do an encore of not one, but two tunes with Jay dothing his hat at the many followers, humbly thanking them for the support. Eon and Sekon with no attire on their head, shake the hands of the many already scrambling for a souvenir of the night.