This is first time I’ve been in Flat 0/1 and I am more than glad to get inside anywhere from this sickening burst of weather we’ve been having. I hadn’t heard the best things, on entrance it’s all very 60’s living room like an extension from the Flying Duck’s kitchen, but being welcomed by charming hosts and a selection of biscuits you can’t hold many grudges.
It’s the third MILK and I am guilty of missing the previous two but this one seems a bit special, a glance at the line up explains why. The brilliant live experience that is John Knox Sex Club and only the second ever gig from ‘supergroup’ Cheesecake.
First up it’s “Bon Jovi Sex Machine” or “The Joe Pesci Emergency Response” or “The Alfred Hitchcock Colostomy Experience” or something I missed or indeed John Knox Sex Club. These guys play one of the most uplifting riotous shows in Glasgow at the moment.
As they begin a lone fiddle breaks through a blurry mist of sound that melds together in euphoric beauty. Chants of “all that is lost will be found” break the barrier as frontman Sean Cummings delivers strong heartfelt lyrics until the rhythm section explodes into action onto an already captivated crowd.
Songs building in similar ways throughout the set, quiet, dream like starts expand into massive climaxes time after time, it’s inspiring stuff. The presence and delivery these guys have throws any comparisons out the window, these guys are their own band. You don’t even need to see them to be dragged into their sound, many can’t, such is the venue.
‘William’ breaks the slow building mould by hitting us hard from the off and doesn’t let up as the power of the performance pushes through and the presence of Cummings becomes more apparent. They close in typical fashion on that song I can never find a copy of, the one they always finish on, you know? Cummings wandering round the crowd hugging everyone which people in the front take over the mike to scream “we’ll stay as close, as close as we can” before guitarist Rory Anderson flies into the crowd to end the set on a riotous note. Top that Cheesecake!
Next up is the late addition of Three Blind Wolves, playing without a PA at the back of the room, you would imagine talking would drown out a set like this but it is credit to the strength of frontman Ross Clark’s vocal chords that this is pulled off excellently. I find it hard not to have a dig at Clark at the best times but this is impressive, and he’s one of very few that could pull it off.
As he leads his fellow Wolves to the centre of the room the set carries to a brilliant end, Feargh adding snare and Davy some mandolin and banjo to proceedings, dragging out a set that on paper really shouldn’t work. But credit to them it does. Do I get a prize now? No, the chemist is dead.
Cheesecake take the stage last and it is fitting as surprisingly their sound has a much more club vibe than what proceeded. This is not what I expected a ‘supergroup’ of members of Frightened Rabbit, Union of Knives and Galchen would sound like, and it appears it surprised a few others to who remain static down the front for long into the set. Still the surprise is welcome as not only are they very different from what I expected but they are much better too.
Other ‘supergroups’ have failed to deliver but this is refreshing, the well thought out minimal techno thrusts people onto the dance floor well before the DJ has come on. Equipment problems stall the set, but soon they are back on track a touch of disco draws the front into more enthusiasm while the back of the room are already giving the music recognition it is designed for.
In terms of dance enthused music this is by no means the best Glasgow has to offer, still, given time this could come into its own. Flat 0/1 wasn’t really designed for this but throw them in a dark room with flashing lights it will surely excel and get limbs flailing. It’s enjoyable stuff, the static down front doesn’t do it justice but as drums clatter and synth buzzes it hits the spot for most.
An excellent night for all and one that could be hard to top but I’m informed they’ve got something up their sleeve after a little break. Watch this space.
Photos: Kenny McColl
Last song is called ‘witness’. This is a live recording from a few years back. Thanks for the write up!
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