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Review: Teenage Fanclub

The ‘Glasgow Scene’ had a massive impact on the music world a good few years ago, and while perhaps it’s not the major force it once was, it’s never gone away. Primal Scream are here in a few weeks, Belle and Sebastian played here not long ago and the likes of Mogwai and Jesus and Mary Chain are still making new music, but my personal favourites were always Teenage Fanclub. Touring with them are one of Glasgow’s most exciting new bands, Spinning Coin; evidence, if it were needed, that new music from the UK’s third largest city is still relevant today. Proof positive that you should always get there to see the support band. They were as fresh and exciting as it’s possible to be on a cold November night, and provided the perfect aperitif to the main course, the return to the Leadmill of Teenage Fanclub.

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I did begin to wonder how many of their old fans would turn up. After all, until this year, it’s been quite a while since they’ve released any new material. Although they were prolific in the nineties, they’ve only made two new albums since 2005, so I was pleased to see that fans of well written, exciting indie-pop hadn’t decided to stay home and watch re-runs of Poldark, but were here in large numbers. The band played just what the we wanted to hear; a selection of the newer stuff from their most recent album Here, along with the classics from their nineties albums such as Songs From Northern Britain and their most celebrated collection, Bandwagonesque from way back in 1991. Their songs have lost none of their brilliance, and no song really eclipsed any other in making me realise what a talented bunch they are. All three of the front-men write the songs, and they each of them sing their own compositions, which are pretty much equally spread throughout the evening. Teenagers we may no longer be, but we know a great band when we see one.




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