Colleen Green takes to the stage for her Scottish debut, mutters some lines, then plays a couple of songs… then walks off; just the line-check then.
She returns a few minutes later to start the show properly.
Halfway between her traditional live setup, herself – guitar and drum machine, Green has chosen to employ a live drummer for this tour.
Her album, I Want To Grow Up, was released at the start of the year was the first that saw a full band line up.
As a result the album has the muscle that lifts the songs up to classic Weezer/power pop territory.
Green puts on her dark Jackie Onassis/Wayfarer shades and starts off with the title track.
The live drums are restrained and stick to the programmed feel of a machine – no flash fills or explosions.
The focus of the room is on Green, her vocals are given the slightest layer of reverb and are what carry the show.
Green’s voice is soft but not weak, it gnarls when she requires it to stress a phrase and there are plenty of chorus that hook the listeners ears, ‘Grind My Teeth’, ‘Wild One’, ‘Things That Are Bad For Me (Part I & II)’ are all as catchy as their LP versions.
The setlist leans heavily to IWTGU, with a majority of the tracks being aired, notable exceptions being the excellent ‘Deeper Than Love’.
It’s a short set, just under 50-minutes, however given the nature of the songs and the format live, over an hour may have been stretching it a bit thin.
It will be interesting if Green returns to the strict solo performer set up or expands with a permanent band; the limitations of only committing halfway is what really pops out during this performance.
Green has excellent songs and is charismatic as a front woman, but what is needed is her to find the context she wishes to situate herself in a live setting.
