Under the strange but true even if you don't really care category of useless information, this Bluesbunny rarely sets foot in the city centre on a Saturday night. Awoken, however, by a phone call to find myself with a late afternoon hangover and a new sense of purpose, it was off to Pivo Pivo to see The Merchants, What The Heroes Say and Scott Peden.
To Scott Peden then. One man and his guitar is a pretty common sight in the venues of this no mean city but somewhat unusually he looked like he wanted to be on that stage. Like the proverbial Greenwich Village folk song salesman, he seemed to have song about everything including, of all things, Sauchiehall Street. Worth a listen, especially as he has his debut album "Every Dog Has His Day" coming out at the end of February.
Around the next corner, as they say, were What The Heroes Say. Wearing their Oasis and Kasabian influences on their sleeve didn't stop them from stamping their own sonic mark on the room. Displaying a very respectable standard of musicianship always helps make a good impression, of course, but the cherry on the cake was John Davidson's vocals that mixed anguish and sentimentality to good effect. Altogether, What The Heroes Say were an easy band to like.
Hitting the freeway of life with their feet firmly on the floor were the Merchants. In these days of marketing hype and digitally enhanced perfection, it is rare to see a band so devoid of pretensions. The Merchants just went on stage, turned up the volume and said what they wanted to say. Rough and raucous they were, but those of you who remember the last great youth rebellion that was punk would soon have recognised the spirit behind "Get Yourself Together" and "No More". I also have to admit that it was refreshing to see that band that could pump up the dance floor with songs of protest. Loud and proud all the way.
Although the street had come down to the basement tonight, it was now my turn to return to the street. Pausing for a moment to watch the pretty girls go by, I reflected on the fact that none of them could match her. It's the Saturday night circus and I'm the clown.