Vintage Guru Stage
Live Review

Vintage Guru Stage, West End Festival – Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow

Glasgow’s West End Festival is a well established community event that includes a parade, a carnival and all of the other attractions you would expect. But it was the live music on show that attracted me to Kelvingrove Park.

There were several different stages set up and I decided to concentrate on the one hosting some of Scotland’s best up and coming talent. The stage was sponsored by Vintage Guru, a Glasgow clothing store that sells some great vintage/ retro clothes.

Our host for the day was local DJ Jim Gellatly, who is known as a keen supporter of new talent on the Scottish music scene. He introduced eleven bands on a varied and entertaining bill that attracted a fine crowd.

Punto The Feef got things moving around noon. The young Glasgow rock band has a dynamic sound and put on an energetic performance. The vocals sounded a little off early on but this was soon fixed and the lead guitarist contributed some nice solos. Their set ended with Drop Poison from the band’s debut album, which will be released later this year. I’m looking forward to that one.

Little Bhudda from Fife were very good too. Lead singer Kat McDonald was backed by keyboards and bass and her vocals were aggressive yet tuneful over a heavy mix. The band describe themselves as trip hop and they combine dance, pop and rock into a lively sound that has a new wave feel to it. Tilt Switch was full of energy while The Machine had a dynamic electronic beat that saw McDonald dancing all over the stage, and a fair few of the crowd joined in too.

The Coy Dogs from Glasgow play rockabilly with wild abandon and they really got the audience moving. The pace was fast and the music ferocious as the twin guitars and double bass combined to thrill. New Dogs in Town from their forthcoming EP and an excellent cover of Summertime Blues were the highlights of a fine set. The music may have been old school but the performance was modern and vibrant. Great fun!

Toni Etherson slowed things down a little. The Glasgow singer songwriter normally plays a solo acoustic blend of pop and rock, but for this set was joined by a backing band. And the additional musicians created a canvas for her lovely voice to work on. The soulful To Be The Best was superbly delivered and the closing Hold Me Tight was a fine pop song with emotional vocals that wouldn’t sound out of place in the charts. Toni is going places.

Baudelaire has been described as Scotland’s Gaga, and the burlesque look of singer Michelle and her two dancers seemed to back this up. But while the performance was lively and visually appealing, the rather bland pop songs saw the vocals run out of synch with the backing tape on several occasions. I’m hoping this was just an off day.

Underclass from Edinburgh raised the temperature once more with a fast paced set of rock music. Their sound is driven by the keyboards and their lead singer demonstrated a good vocal range. Their single Bruised Eyes was full of frenetic power chords while the slower No Love with the vocals over a piano part showed a softer side.

Selective Service played an excellent set as always. Their rock sound has a wide range of influences. giving a lovely variety to the music. The opening You Best Believe had a bluesy feel and featured the Hammond organ, while Cathy Bennett had a strong reggae guitar part. And older song Greyhound Blues showed that they know just how to rock it out too. A quality performance.

UKreign were billed as the headliners, coming on around 4pm. The Glasgow indie band has a blues influence to their music and a powerful sound featuring keyboards and twin guitars, as well as a dynamic lead singer. New song Turn Me On was excellent as was the slower I Am Forever, which offered a little variety. They have good stage presence and clearly enjoy playing live music. A band with a great deal of potential.

Strawberry Ocean Sea are always excellent live performers. They have a big rock sound that is dark and atmospheric yet the lyrics are uplifting. The deep lead vocals are a contrast to the delicate lead guitar fills and there are anthemic choruses aplenty. Their single Down By The River is a fine rock song, while the closing Strawberry Ocean Sea was an impressive finale to a very good set.

Gav Livz and MC VA are very different. Billing themselves as the New Educated Delinquents (NEDs) they performed a very Glaswegian brand of rap. The lyrics are full of humour and they got the crowd involved in the act. At times I couldn’t quite figure out whether their approach was totally serious or more than a little tongue in cheek, but the younger members of the audience loved it.

The Imagineers from Glasgow closed the show with a typically high quality set full of passion and dynamism. From the opening introduction to Fairground through to the mesmerising Mariana they took the audience on a musical journey that sparkled with their Latin infused approach to rock music. With only a short time to play the band tore through the set in fine style. This is a band on the verge of big things.

The Vintage Guru stage provided over six hours of quality entertainment from some great young Scottish acts. And the number of people who stayed around for most of the afternoon was a good indication of a very successful event.

Same time next year, folks?

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