On an evening when the England team headed North to contest the oldest rivalry in football, Scotland’s Dead Pony headed the other way to visit Leeds on their first headline tour. Geoff Shaw was there for Re-Sound.
The grassroots music scene in 2023 faces a tough time with the double whammy of post-pandemic and Brexit impact allied to the cost of living challenging young bands as never before. One band seemingly determined to defy those odds are Dead Pony, a four piece from Glasgow, who spent lockdown creating and crafting a number of songs that have steadily seen digital release. With “normality” returning, 2022 and 2023 have seen them put in the hard yards appearing as support for bands such as Chvrches, Sum 41 and Courtney Barnett whilst also sneaking on many a festival bill.
It’s to a wet Leeds (it really does always rain for any gig RESOUND asks me review) that a sold out Oporto welcomes them. This isn’t an anomaly – to sell out all the gigs on a first headline tour must feel good, and it is a buoyant band that takes to the stage, launching straight into opener Bullet Farm with the siren intro soon lost in the pounding drums and jagged guitar riff. Add in the urgently demanding vocals of singer Anna Shields, a whirlwind of a presence centre stage, and the blueprint for what is to follow is laid out.
With a set that draws initially from those lockdown EPs, it’s clear that this is a band that have honed their heavy post-punk sound during those endless support slots. Whilst Shields is an enchanting ace in the pack, the enormous guitar sound of Blair Crichton frequently conjuring a wall of guitar that errs on the right side of nu-metal from the shadows stage right offers hooks aplenty. Combined with the taut metronomic drumming from Euan Lyons and the bass rumble of Liam Adams, it is a powerful and potent sound assaulting the senses of the packed compact venue.
Recent single Cobra receives an enthusiastic reception whilst a long standing set standard in a cover of Maneater suggests Ms Furtado would’ve benefitted from a lot more guitar in her original.
Taking a breather from covering every inch of the stage, Shields teases mention of a debut album (available to pre-order now for those going to the gigs on the tour) before introducing a couple of songs from said LP that indicate this Pony isn’t a one trick one.
Early single Sharp Tongues from 2020 gets the set back on a more familiar path instigating visits into the crowd by first Shields and then Crichton, the latter launching himself guitar and all to trigger a pit that picks up for the rest of the set.
After a closer of 23 Never Me and an expression of gratitude for all in attendance, the band exit the twelve song set to a rousing applause. With a sell out tour to complete (if you have a ticket, get there early for the enjoyable support, South Parade) and a debut album incoming, it looks like the upward trajectory of Dead Pony is set fair for a good while – catch them sooner than later as the bigger venues they visited as a support act will be calling for them in their own right.
Words and pictures: Geoff Shaw @gsmusicphotos