The Pigeon Detectives - Stereo, Glasgow - 05/03/17

Rebecca Brierley

Mar 8, 20174 min read

Rocking out a different venue in a different city almost every night must be thirsty work for The Pigeon Detectives, but there they were at Stereo, a little bar and gig venue tucked away on Renfield Lane. The venue was filled to the brim with fans of all ages, ready to get a taste of the band’s old and new music.

The night started with Franklin, who began their set with an instrumental track and their backs to the audience while they set up Go Pro’s to record their performance. They all wished each other luck with fist bumps and began to give Glasgow a sample of their fresh sound. Their music was upbeat and calm, yet the energy the guys had stuck out to me. You could tell that performing gives them a buzz as they swayed around playing their instruments, smiling at the crowd and giving it their all. The North London lads seemed to get the crowd going as they were all dancing along and cheering them on. Their sound has an Arctic Monkeys vibe mixed with Foster The People. Tracks you could dance to or relax to over a beer.

By their third song in their set, the crowd clapped so hard. They won the crowd over. Their lead guitarist had broke his finger on the tour, yet he did not miss a note or mess up his chords. He was practically flawless. To have an injury and still have the energy and the determination to play is so inspiring and leaves Franklin in my good books for support acts. They have the sound that could lead them to headlining their own gigs. They could work a crowd, they had superb energy and you could tell that they enjoy playing together.

At last, The Pigeon Detectives were next. The lights dimmed as they walked over to the stage. The crowd roared. The band from Leeds were set for a night of rocking the house down and the Glasgow crowd were parched. The set began with ‘Enemy Lines’, which is from their new album ‘Broken Glances’. The crowd sang along as Matt Bowman jumped around the stage to look at every audience member. He grabbed a bottle of water, sipped a bit, spat it into the air, poured a bit on his head then threw the rest of the crowd. Matt jumped around so much, one of the monitors unfortunately hit Richard (the photographer and also my fiancé) in the leg. Luckily, it didn’t cause any injury, just minor bruising. It did not dampen the night.

What can I say about the night? There was a lot of water. A LOT. Being at the front of the stage, it felt like a splash zone after each song. Not that it was a bad thing, it was refreshing. Every song had a bottle of water involved and thrown at the audience. Matt even poured a bottle of water over a fan’s head, which the fan really enjoyed. He also gave bottles of water to some audience members saying “look after us and we’re gonna look after you”. The fan was invited onto the stage later in the show to sing along and then stage dived into the audience. The band encouraged crowd members to piggy back each other and jump around. He took a phone from a fan in the crowd and filmed the band playing for them. He whizzed around to each member of the band to film them for a few seconds before handing it back to them (hopefully not water damaged) The energy was out of this world. Out of all the gigs I’ve been to, I haven’t been to one as lively, energetic and raw as this one. I left the venue feeling so happy and lively.

But what about the music, Rebecca? How was that! Well, reader. The Pigeon Detectives were phenomenal. Their energy, their stage presence, everything about them really made their music as lively as they are. Their new material is fantastic. Be sure to check out ‘Wolves’, as that was one of my many favourite tracks played on the night. It has a chilled, relaxed vibe with sad tones and gets better as it builds up with heavier drums part way through the track before going back to a catchy hi hat and cool guitar riffs. Of course, hearing their old material such as ‘I Found Out’ and ‘You Better Not Look My Way’, which had the floor vibrating as the crowd jumped to the rhythm.

The Pigeon Detectives are still touring until the 15th March so now’s a good time to book your tickets, and if you intend of being close to the stage, get a rain mac.