Kurt Vile and the Violators rushed onto the stage to be greeted by a packed Queen Margaret Union in the West End of Glasgow.
The band was looking energised and happy to be in Glasgow. Kurt had a quick chat to the audience professing his love for the city. After reacquainting himself with the smiling faces packed in front of him it was straight into a set filled with the psychedelic folk rock his fans have come to know and love. On reflection Kurt is probably the most chilled out man ever to come out of Pennsylvania, looking like he’s on stage straight from a session at a skatepark.
Kicking off with ‘Palace of OKV in reverse’ from his most recent album ‘Watch my Moves’, giving us a masterclass in vocal harmonies and showcasing his fabulous finger picking skills. Hiding behind his ultra-long wavy hair he effortlessly made his guitar sing for an enthralled crowd hanging on every note. It was perfect tone setter for the duration of the next few hours. The band played hits spanning his various albums such as ‘Bassackwards’ and ‘Check Baby’. With such intense playing technique on display, the guitar tech was kept busy all night, quickly swapping and tuning guitars after almost every song.
As Kurt played ‘Runner Ups’ the whole of QMU was flooded in an enveloping red light, setting the scene for the moving ballad perfectly. The crowd and Kurt were connected in this moment, quietly shuffling with eyes closed, tuned into to the haunting lyrics that we can all identify with, making it hard to not think about our own futures and past experiences. A quick glance at the song’s conclusion led to an explosion of cheers from the audience, it was a special moment to see such a connection. A few tracks lifted from most recent album keep the sense of energy and anticipation alive, ‘Say the Word’ and ‘Mount Airy Hill’ are punctuated by a barrage of colourful light flooding the room. Kurt’s best-known song ‘Pretty Pimpin’ was next on the agenda and as you’d expect, it got the crowd moving, shouting every word, hugging each other, pints in the air and generally just loving the vibe and sound – a guaranteed crowd pleaser!
A few more songs closed out the main set before Kurt and the Violators departed for a quick break before encore, ‘Hunchback’ and another huge hit ‘Walkin on a Pretty Day’ to keep the audience going.
After departing the stage for another quick breather the room was soon filled with a barrage of shouting ‘We love you KV!’ and the old faithful ‘one more tune, one more tune!’. The band duly obliged with the funkier sound of ‘Like Exploding Stones’, a welcome change of pace which soon had the whole hall dancing. The show was concluded with ‘Cool Water’ a perfect slow ballad to bring in an excellent night of excellent music.
Words and Pictures: Mark Gillies
@magphoto__