Another night and another basement. High on life but low on caffeine, I followed the dull red glow of anticipation into the bowels of the 13th Note to experience the aural pleasures of Barn Owl, The Lonely Oatcake and Go Lucky.
And, without further ado, on to the case of Go Lucky. Possessed of an unassuming charm, one man, his wife and a pal tinkled and twinkled their way through a set of superficially twee songs. Only there was actual depth in there with a strong undercurrent of approaching middle age providing the lyrical driving force. While they sounded like they would be right at home singing to you in your (or perhaps even their) front room, there was the potential for greatness in those songs. Theirs was a short set that left me wanting more.
It’s not unknown for me to spill the metaphorical blood of the insipid male singer songwriters that pollute Glasgow but The Lonely Oatcake escaped the sharp knife of sarcasm tonight. Devoid of the navel gazing self pity beloved of his many contemporaries, Tommy (on guitar and fractured vocals) and Ben (on violin) instead took a more direct approach to the square peg in a round hole scenarios that life brings lacing the results with the kind of black humour that only a true misfit can carry off. Ben’s violin added a near country flavour making my disassociated mind think of them as a cross between The Just Joans and a Nashville songster like Bob Cheevers. It was refreshing to encounter a band that didn’t sound like a clone.
Last on and a man down were Barn Owl. In these recession driven days of discounting, you might think that 20% off would represent a bargain but not tonight, unfortunately. Instead, the result was an awkward and unconvincing set that was pretty much what you would expect of a folk flavoured indie pop band from around these parts. No doubt there will be better nights for them.
All done and just in time to catch the impressive sight of two women fighting in the street over a man. Actually, it was over a pizza but I like to think that, on the streets of Glasgow at least, romance might not be dead. In case you were interested, it was a ham and pineapple pizza.