Chalk and cheese? Right and wrong? Black and White? Och no!
Perhaps more like my Ying and yang kind of a day. The mother in law is visiting this week and we had promised her a trip to the Royal Yacht Britannia as a birthday treat earlier in the year. As with many best laid plans, it never quite came to fruition. We decided that we would take her along today and the heavens blessed us with calm seas and bright skies. Ok, many of you know that the yacht was retired a number of years ago and it is now in dock at Leith Ocean Terminal. But it certainly made for a great day. The tour is worth making time for. The contrasts experienced above and below deck are quite something… A real look at how the other half live. Oh, and the Royal tea room does cracking scones. Mother in law highly recommends the Victoria sponge too.
Ah yes, contrasts! So, that was my day. The evening, somewhat in contrast and definitely more my thing. Off to Glasgow’s Nice n Sleazy I ventured to see local band The Velveteen Saints.
Changed days from rocking up at gigs five minutes before the main act is on stage.
We were in Nice n Sleazy promptly, at 2015. The first pleasant surprise was bumping into Mr Nick Fraser. I seem to be making a habit of that lately. What a gent! During our catch up, I find, as I am, he’s excited about the lineup.
First up was singer songwriter Daniel Meade.
Immediately it strikes me that his style of music is quite different to that of the band at the top of the bill. That’s encouraging though, it shows The Velveteen Saints are intent on giving tonight’s crowd as much variety as possible.
There’s a definite country vibe going on with Daniel, his guitar alternating between upbeat and soothing songs. The melodies are catchy and the mix makes for enjoyable listening.
Dressed in suit jacket, tie, red shirt and jeans, Daniel is a storyteller.
Initial thoughts are of.. I’m not quite sure…Dylan? A Glaswegian Cash? Gram Parsons?
All in there, but it’s probably Hank Williams who if,he’d popped in would have been tapping his cowboy boots in the same fashion as me, thinking…this guy is real good.
Lyrically, there’s a lot of thought gone into these tunes.
From “It’s hard hard hard, help me carry on, for the song” and
“Thank you for the good times and
“Headstone where her heart used to be”
Finishing with a bit of a country stomp, perfect for getting you in the mood for what was to come, and just right with Sleazy’s ceilings too. Just high enough that you won’t bang your head, low enough that you’ll catch your hands if aloft whilst jumping.
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/64473721″ params=”auto_play=false&show_artwork=true&color=ff7700″ width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]
Next up was The Minx. they’re from Manchester and have a sound that has been influenced by bands through the ages. They kick off with a heavily laden Buzzcocks sound. My eye caught bassist Stephen’s Specialsesque strap holding the guitar and I wondered what else we might expect.
What we got, was big keyboard, punky poppy boppy numbers that were effervescent and engaging.
As the sound of “I don’t like you, you don’t like me” began to catch in my brain I thought how perfectly it suited the Dr Martens and turned up jeans donned by a couple of members of the band.
Fusing genre upon genre there was something in here for everyone.
Just like one of the title’s…”I found my head”. It was rocking amidst more long keys and outros, which brought the set to a close….with a bang!
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/49317867″ params=”auto_play=false&show_artwork=true&color=ff7700″ width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]
Which brought us to The Velveteen Saints.
“I hope you’re feeling generous” the first words didn’t take long to receive a response.
As the lyrics “You need me” shot out across the crowd, I felt myself thinking that right now, the music business really does!
These guys give us Rock n Roll like it used to be… And yet not!
Mama didn’t raise no fools here, they began to sing.
Although many of their influences are clearly from the past, they combine that so sweetly with an attitude that could only be born of modern day Glasgow!
Wake me up..kicks it with style. We feel the drums, then Juliet.
Follow these guys and you certainly wont die alone!
They have character, charisma, on stage presence, tunes that rock and attitude.
Top marks Nice n Sleazy, a sterling nights music.
In short, If you are looking for something to put the oomph back in your record collection, check out The Velveteen Saints. They will not disappoint.
After a performance like tonight’s and with tunes like those, Rock n Roll is (most certainly not) dead!
http://soundcloud.com/the-velveteen-saints/rock-n-roll-is-dead-facebook
