PAWS are back, on their “like eightieth night of tour”, but the fatigue does not hamper the live show.
Having released second LP Youth Culture Forever in the States while touring with We Are Scientists, the album came out over here last week.
PAWS are coming into their own this year on the wave of garage-punk taking over the indie scene.
Frontman Phillip Taylor has an eloquently simple and swear-ridden way of putting neurotic feelings about himself and the people around him into lyrics: “do you believe that our race has been run?/if the answer is yes then please tell me who won”.
Clad in a thick beard and TYCI t-shirt, he emits throaty, emotive shouts, like an unplugged Kurt Cobain.
Taylor punctuates every song with a “thanks guys” and gives one very impassioned speech about what it means to come back to the city that created them.
A cellist joins the trio to provide musical meat on three new songs, the addition is novel and perfect, giving the lo-fi guitars a solid stringed bed to rest on.
Billed as an album preview show, PAWS play most of the new material; notably omitting the brilliant ‘Narcissist’, which has been getting airtime on 6 Music.
‘Give Up’ is fast and catchy and new single ‘Owl Talons Clenching My Heart’ has a meandering, stream-of-consciousness lyrical line, while previous single ‘Tongues’ is all treble guitars and rolling drums.
A lot of tracks from 2012 debut Cokefloat! are sung back by the keen young crowd, including ‘Catherine 1956’ and ‘Get Bent’.
Ryan Drever, who joined the line-up only last year, proves his worth by playing on songs written and performed before his time; apparently with next to no practice.
The set ends as the album does, with Taylor playing the sentimental and melancholy ‘YCF’ alone.
‘War Cry’ is a minor-key lament which morphs into a five-minute jam of feedback, battered-out chords, and hair-whipping.
In what will be their last show in these parts for a while, PAWS are off into the big wide world with a fully formed sound and a hometown seal of approval.
Words: Ellen MacAskill
Photos: Michael Gallacher
