Live

Kate Nash, Black Kids

Ross Cunningham 07/03/2008

Tonight Glasgow's famous Barrowlands Ballroom played host to the Keyboard playing, lemon eating Kate Nash with support coming from the soon to be all-conquering Black Kids. Every single trip to the Barrowlands seems to start the same way for me, and that's with the most vigorous search known to man. These bouncers should be airline security and I'm sure if they had their way that the rubber glove would have made an appearance. Anyway after the full contents of my bag, wallet and person had been emptied out and investigated by the boys in blue I finally got to venture up the stairs and into the venue. After a quick stop at the bar I made it into the crowd just in time to have the lights dim and a massive cheer to go up as Black Kids took to the stage.

Lead singer Reggie Youngblood announced that this was their third time playing Glasgow and mentioned how much they love the city and people before ripping into the always uplifting “Hit the Heartbrakes”. An eight-song set then followed which was brimming with angular guitar, electro-synth and keys and got the whole of the Barrowlands shuffling their feet on the sticky floor. Every song they played went down exceptionally well with the crowd, “Listen to your Body” is surely going to be a future single while “I've Underestimated My Charm Again” and “Hurricane Jane” from their excellent “Wizard of Ahhhs” EP were welcomed in like old friends. “Black Kids” biggest cheer of the night however was somewhat inevitably saved for future single “I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You” which already had some of the crowd enthusiastically singing along. After playing set closer “Look At Me When I Look At You” “Black Kids” exited stage left having climbed another rung on the ladder to their apparent 2008 world domination.

Miss Nash now had the unenviable task of following a support act that could have just produced a set to blow her off the stage. Bouncing into the Barrowlands and receiving the customary warm Glaswegian welcome she sat at her keyboard in front of her band and a stage decorated with a velvet curtain mirror balls and a rectangular sign emblazoned with her name surrounded in lights. After saying hello she jumped straight into an up-tempo funky extended version of “Pumpkin Soup”. This was followed by “Shit Song” and then she started having some difficulties with her onstage monitor. She struggled through playing the likes of “Mariella” and her two other previous singles “Mouthwash” and “Foundations” remaining upbeat and chatting to the crowd, and to her credit taking it all in her stride also self confirming her T in the park appearance.

The best section of the set for me was when she moved from her seat at the keyboard and took up her acoustic guitar to play “Birds” and “ Nicest Thing”. These two songs were however also marred somewhat by poor sound and a crowd that contained sections that seemed more intent on talking to each other than listening to the gig. I guess that's the price you pay for having “fans” that might be there only on the strength of one song.A couple of new songs featured in the set, one that you could imagine was heavily influenced by her boyfriend Ryan Jarman from The Cribs which was a heavy punk sounding number that included the line “you don't have to suck dick to succeed”.

She came back on and finished the set with soon to be single “Merry Happy”. All in all it wasn't really the best of nights for Kate Nash and I'm sure she would admit that herself but as I said she remained professional and battled through the technical difficulties. One thing that was apparent from tonight however was that a Kate Nash gig would be a good place to meet women as they outnumber men by about 10 to 1.