GIG REVIEW: THE LAZYS Take To The Attic, Glasgow

THE LAZYS make their debut in Glasgow, Scotland and leave us all thoroughly impressed. Add to that three excellent support bands and we were left with a night to remember.

Having said many moons ago I would not return to this venue as it is my least favourite in the city I had to eat my words as there was no way I was missing this show and a big part of that was down to the support bands of whom LAST ALIBI were the first up.

These boys never disappoint and of all the Glasgow bands I see often they are probably the least regular which always means I am raring to go for their set tonight. I was also looking forward to see Andy Christie’s brand new purple guitar but alas, due to crap lighting I was barely able to make out the man never mind the guitar.

These boys are on fire as always and have a great catalouge of tracks even if they only have one EP out. It is still funny to hear “Vice City” being introduced as a new song as I cannot even count how many times I have heard it live but the proof is in the pudding and I love it every time I hear it.

There is no time for messing around with their very short set so the guys just get down to business and for me the highlight is always “Prophet and the Thief”. This is just pure genius and epitomises exactly what the band are about…a solid rhythm backbone, immense guitar and a faultless raspy voice. If only you could lift a band and drop them in another decade as these boys would be kings in the 80s.

Next up was one I had been looking forward too in SALT RIVER SHAKEDOWN. The name maybe new but the band is not. They used to go under the moniker Magik Trik and I caught them a good few times. They were young and didn’t really know what their direction was. Having not heard any new material it could have went either way and I was hoping it was the bluesier route they had taken as the glimpses they showed of that in the previous incarnation was definitely the strongest attribute.

Guitarist Alek McMillan was where my focus was on those early shows as he jumped out at you. I have no idea how young he was back then but he must have still been at school but that boy could play guitar.

So I stood there waiting with baited breath and my hopes came true with the very first notes of “Sweet Thing”. They had made the right choice and with the absence and transition from old band to new they have grown massively. The new sound suits singer David MacFarlane much better and he has also dropped the guitar to focus on vocals.

It has to be said the boys brought a good deal of the crowd here tonight which considering they have no music released and do not even have t-shirts yet is good going.

I had a quick glance at the set list prior to them coming on and was surprised to see only four songs but by the time they finished second song and cover “Voodoo Child” I understood why. This was a song they covered previously but this was a different beast altogether. This is a risky move to cover but my god they nailed it, Alek was a demon on that guitar and David owned the whole venue.

After that rendition it was going to be hard to beat but with “Your Wings to Fly” they managed it, a very heavily Rival Sons influenced song with seriously deep blues. I absolutely loved this song and as they finished with “Feast for the Wolves” I am seriously chuffed for the band, they have made a difficult choice and ran with it and I can tell you now it will pay off. These boys are going to be ones to watch out for.

Support for the whole tour was Canadian duo THE STANDSTILLS. I had never heard this band previously but I walked away with their latest release which is four killer tracks and creates way too much sound for two people.

The two members created one hell of a noise tonight and they won every single person here tonight. The fuzzy guitars and brutal drumming with both members singing left you battered and bruised and with Renee Couture having a love affair with heavy doses of cowbell I was in heaven.

This was a hell of an introduction to one hell of a band. Make sure you check this band out right now.

Amid the darkness THE LAZYS took to the stage and within seconds I knew this was going to be a hell of a show. They walked out pumped up like The ultimate Warrior back in the day, it was like an adrenalin party on there and they dragged the whole crowd with them. What is it about Aussie bands? don’t they get out very often? Are they caged up in that massive country? Do they take on a different persona in a northern hemisphere? Who cares this was entertainment personified.

After “Howling Woman” the boys look on in awe as they look at each other and singer Leon Harrison says I cannot believe we are in Glasgow, home of Jimmy Barnes, home of AC/DC…home of Bon Fucking Scott and so the boys are just as happy to see us as we are to see them.

The boys name may not have spread that far yet but after seeing this show they will never play a hall like this again as they are way too energetic to be kept tied down to a small stage. Luckily I will catch them again in the summer at Ramblin Man so if you are going to that make sure you do not miss them.

Debut album “Tropical Hazards” is pure rock dynamite and with a crowd pleaser like “Little Miss Crazy” this is festival fun but in a small hall it is utter chaos. That Aussie sound mixed with 80s hair metal backing vocals and attitude makes for pure fun and enjoyment.

With Aussies there has to be songs about drinking and sex and with the latter it is hidden not so subtly in “Half Mast Blues”…there is no Moby Dick here…or is there?

With “Louder Than Youth” it almost takes a Beastie Boys turn but it is excellent and everyone gathered here have already realised we are witnessing a band on the edge of greatness. I was there tonight in my Black Aces t-shirt(before I had purchased the boys Little Miss Crazy one) and both of these bands would make an immense double bill. The same energy, the same talent and the same damned craziness.

The time flew by tonight and in what seemed like minutes we have come to the last song in “Nothing but Trouble” but as guitarist Matty Morris leaves the stage under spotlight held by singer Johnny Fox he weaves through the crowd and makes for the bar(now that is a shocker eh?), he climbs atop and plays like an inmate that should have been included in Alice Cooper’s From the inside album.

He dances amongst the beer taps, he is upside down and he plays flawlessly throughout. The Lazys are entertainment that should be bottled and passed amongst the rock world as they have something very special. They are going to grab the music world by the balls and like a pit bull they will squeeze till we all submit, then they will move on to world domination.

Images and words Ritchie Birnie : first posted at Jace Media.