There’s only one word to describe London’s Scala – intimate. You could stand at the back of the stalls or on the top balcony, or even sit on one of the sofas in the middle balcony and still be in spitting distance of the stage. Unless you’re sitting in the Glass Bar, where your spit won’t get very far. But it’s a fantastic venue, and tonight it is well served by three fantastic bands.
We all know how it’s supposed to go with gigs. The first band are meant to be shit, the second better, and the third amazing. Tonight is not one of those nights. First on are Airship from Manchester. Their opening song starts out as a kind of folky shoegaze, all nice and gentle, before suddenly exploding into a tremendous wall of noise. It’s really quite shocking, but also quite brilliant. The first song is particularly great, and the rest aren’t bad either (apologies for me not knowing their names). The only crime here is that there aren’t more people around to see them, as the venue is only half full at the time. Fortunately their lead singer looks like Jesus, so he can smite the relevant offenders. Very promising indeed.
Next up are We Were Promised Jetpacks. Their opening track is nothing short of epic, the lead singer shrieking away behind a sound that is distinctively their own. Much to my surprise, they throw out Quiet Little Voices as their second song. I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing this song before, and played live it’s somehow even better. The venue is full by now, so everyone gets to appreciate it, and it is well received. If WWPJ can make an album with some more songs like they play tonight, they could well be massive. At the very least they should get to headline their own shows in venues like this. With a little more experience under their young belts, jetpacks may not be enough to get them to where they want to go.
And so to the main event. Frightened Rabbit are warmly received onto stage, and get straight into it with 'I Feel Better'. Having only heard their acoustic album, hearing them as a full band is really something special. While some songs can seem better acoustically, here the songs are enhanced. They aren’t quite a different animal, more of a different breed, but they keep their charm. Singer Scott Hutchison announces that it is nearly a year to the day that Midnight Organ Fight was released, and that this show is the biggest they have played. This intimate venue seems absolutely perfect for them though. They seem genuinely humbled, before launching into 'Fast Blood', which is played with a delicacy that captures everyone.
Scott engages with some light hearted banter with the crowd, including a story about a strange old man, and an attempted conversation with an incoherent fan. 'The Twist', with the full band behind it, becomes more uptempo from the ballad it perhaps truly is. It’s no bad thing as it's now more of a celebration. In contrast, the next song is a haunting 'Good Arms vs Bad Arms', just to keep us on our toes. 'The Modern Leper', again with the band treatment, turns into a bit of a stomp.
The band invite Ross Clark onto stage to play the mandolin (fortunately not produced from his arse) on 'Old Old Fashioned', which is just a superb song, superbly played. 'Head Rolls Off' has Scott singing about “making tiny changes to Earth.” I think they have done more than that to this crowd, who seem to adore every song, and rightly so. The excellent 'Backwards Walk' follows, and is just spectacularly delivered. This is becoming something very special indeed.
By the end of the set, it’s almost euphoric. The crowd demand more when they leave. It’s hard to judge a crowd for a band like this, whose songs you can’t really dance to, or nod your head to enthusiastically, but the air is full of quiet awe. Scott answers the call for the encore on his lonesome, singing an absolutely spellbinding 'Poke'. The crowd dare not move, speak, even breathe, so entranced they are. In a nice touch, sections of the crowd sing the ‘ooh ooh ooh’ part, and it’s just magical. Scott is genuinely appreciative, and the rest of the band join him for 'Keep Yourself Warm', which everyone sings the chorus to, even if they hadn’t heard it before. I leave with an extremely satisfying warm feeling, and a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon.
Even having to get on the Tube with a load of smug Gooners can’t dampen my spirits. An absolutely brilliant night that won’t be forgotten.
Posted In Live Reviews, Apr 16 2009.
Words - Paul