The last time Brooklyn indie rockers Parquet Courts played Glasgow it was late in their tour, it was Halloween and by all accounts it was wild; I didn’t quite make it along with the small distraction of Nick Cave up the road.
Now, less than a year later they’re back on the first date of another tour promoting their third full-length Sunbathing Animal, a record that’s developed the band’s been pretty much solidly acclaimed and has developed the band’s garage rock roots further, but if the last time they were in Glasgow was ‘wild’ then tonight doesn’t really live up to expectations.
Perhaps this is down to the band needing find their feet on tour again, maybe it’s the poor mix in the hollow sounding SWG3, it could even be down to the very middle aged audience (still one I can’t quite fathom) but something doesn’t quite click tonight.
Andrew Savage’s delivery doesn’t lack the usual intensity, and his characteristic sneery yelps are at points are encapsulating as is Austin Brown’s more absorbed delivery, but the new tracks, while sounding great on record, don’t cut it tonight and the crowd lacks anything that could be considered ‘wild’ unless an old number or two are set loose.
The hooky post-punk of ‘Borrowed Time’ being one particular incident where the crowd show glimpses of letting loose, but it’s not the performance or song choice that lets tonight down, it’s a combination of factors.
Still, these boys carry plenty of attitude and power through an oddly subdued Saturday night Glasgow crowd, and although this time it may not quite have worked Parquet Courts have enough in their locker to keep plenty interested the next time they roll into town.
Photos: Warrick Beyers
