Photo: www.suzanneoxley.co.uk
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Two years ago The Bravery were riding high, playing to sell out crowds and enjoying a well publicised (and slightly pathetic) feud with The Killers. But fortune doesn’t always favour the brave. While The Killers’ success escalated to a headline slot at Glastonbury, The Bravery fell off the radar. Now the New Yorkers are back with a new album and rebuilding their presence in smaller venues. Tonight it’s Thekla’s turn.
First up though are Cat the Dog - a guitar heavy four-piece with big hair and incessant punk riffs. So loud the ship visibly shakes, the band’s grunge tinged set is a full on ear assault. The set closes with the semi-industrial single 'I’m a Romantic'. The Cinematics are next up. After spending four months playing all over America and Canada and two weeks into this tour the Glasgow band has the set down to a fine art. Frontman Scott Rinning’s vocals are soaring, even anguished on ‘Human’, single ‘Strange Education’ and ‘Keep Forgetting’ has a jabbing dance feel akin to Bloc Party. It’s tight, structured and gets a good reception.
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Finally darkness descends for The Bravery. Flashing lights radiate through and the band strides on stage. Gone are the leathers and mowhawk, now wearing a tie, shirt and jumper, singer Sam Endicott looks like he’s raided Brandon Flower’s old wardrobe. It’s a look that gets many of the hearts racing as one shouts out “hey sexy!” They are showmen and they’re obviously used to playing much larger venues. The light display is impressive for the size of the stage and Sam struts about the stage confidently, slices the air with his guitars and swing mics around. ‘Honest Mistake’ and ‘Unconditional’ are instant crowd pleasers and new single ‘Time Won’t Let Me Go’ fares well. But it’s a case of style over substance – too often vocals are drowned out by guitars and synth so it’s hard to gauge songs from forthcoming album ‘The Sun and The Moon’ and leaves whistling on ‘Bad Sun’ a damp squib.
Their performance makes up for the lack of depth to the songs. Sam has been a hit with the ladies and as Gigwise leave the ship we overhear some debating what qualifies as stalking. From the mischievous glean in their eyes, he’d better be on his guard.
