After two long years away it was amazing to be back in Glasgow Green covering Scotland’s largest music festival. A line up filled with loads of different genres and styles of music, there was something for everyone; from the some of the worlds biggest artists on the Main stage to the best up and coming Scottish artists on the River stage, TRNSMT is a festival where you can find a new artist you’ll love.
FRIDAY
The first artist we caught over the weekend is a band that’s no stranger to being featured on here, Glasgow’s very own Gallus. A band we have followed for a long time now here at DM, it was brilliant to see the guys get a good sized crowd down at the River Stage. With a catalogue of catchy tunes and an ever growing fan base, Gallus are really going places and this performance at TRNSMT could really be a big milestone in the bands history. If they are playing a gig near you then we highly recommend you go an see them, you won’t be disappointed.
THE LATHUMS credits: Martin Low
Next up we managed to catch The Lathums rocking the King Tuts Stage. The English rockers from Wigan may have only formed in 2019 but there is a lot of momentum behind this band and the Scottish public took to them early on in their set. Their catchy sing along tunes and the charismatic charm of lead singer Alex Moore have really helped propel the band on the path to great things. Their debut album “How Beautiful Life Can be” is due to be released towards the end of September and without doubt there is a huge possibility this will go straight to number 1 which will be no less than this likeable band deserve.
Back to the River Stage and this time we managed to catch the brilliant Walt Disco performing. Another band who are no strangers to Discovery Music and its been great to see them flourish over the years and really make their music sound very unique and their style stand out in the Scottish Music scene. Performing crowd favourites such as ‘My Pop Sensibilities’ and ‘Cut Your Hair’, Walt Disco had the crowd captivated. With James Potters unique vocals, it’s easy to see why Duran Duran have asked the band to support them at one of their upcoming gigs.
As the sun was setting over Glasgow Green, it was time for another one of Glasgow’s favourite bands, The Ninth Wave, to take to the River Stage to headline and close the opening night of TRNSMT. Personally speaking, this was one band I had been looking for seeing all day and the never fail to disappoint and put on a great show. Performing songs such as “Used To Be Yours” and “New Kind Of Ego” which are real crowd favourites, they also performed new single “Piece and Pound Coins” which sounded great live and can see it being a permanent feature on future set lists. The combination of the light show and the sun setting was the perfect end the performances on the River Stage and The Ninth Wave headlining was the icing on the cake. They are destined to hit the big time and go on to be a very successful artist in the very competitive music scene and performances like this one will do their chances of this happening no harm at all.
Back at the main stage Emma had the pleasure of catching the days final acts including Inhaler. Dublin’s finest young fourpiece walked on stage and the familiar synths of ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This’ echoed out into the mainstage crowd. The lads were filling in for The Snuts who unfortunately had to pull out at the last minute, but Inhaler never disappoint and were on top form as always. Their set was comprised mostly of tracks from their debut album with tracks like ‘Who’s Your Money On? ( Plastic House)’ which carries a real 80’s vibe with funky basslines and Elijah’s brilliant vocal delivery. The fast paced ‘We Have to Move On’ followed and the mosh pits began to form at the front, before the chilling ‘My King Will Be Kind’ slowed the tempo down a notch and got everyone clapping to the beat. Singing along “I fucking hate that bitch” will never not be cathartic. Closing the set were firm fan-favourites ‘Cheer Up Baby’ and the huge ‘My Honest Face’ which had everyone singing along.
Stockport’s Blossoms were next to grace the mainstage, another brilliant band who have been making huge waves on the scene recently. The indie outfit opened with fan favourite ‘Your Girlfriend’ and played flawlessly through the set, from crowd-pleasers like ‘I Can’t Stand It’ and ‘Honey Sweet’ to the softer ‘My Swimming Brain’ every track was well received by the sizeable crowd. As always ‘Charlemagne’ had everyone singing along, pints in hands and pals on shoulders. The set was their third time playing TRNSMT and their evolution into a well-rounded band is evident as they continue to grow and produce more mature tracks.
As the sky got dark Sam Fender took to the stage and played a magical pop-rock set. It was brilliant to see him after a postponed show at The Barrowlands earlier in the week. After greeting the crowd, opening track ‘Will We Talk?’ kicked things off with that familiar drum intro and the mosh pits began to form as Sam and his band delivered a stellar performance. The emotional ‘Dead Boys’ followed and took a respectful tone, touching on the serious topic of male suicide. The smooth sax on ‘All Is On My Side’ was a highlight, as well as fan favourite ‘The Boarders’ with its pounding chorus, all of which are taken from his 2019 album Hypersonic Missiles. Next up was 2018 offering ‘Spice’ followed by a recent b side titled ‘Howdon Aldi Death Queue’ and his latest release ‘Get You Down’. Then Sam treated us to a brilliant cover of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Dancing In The Dark’ which received a brilliant reception from the crowd. The brand new nostalgic ‘17 going under’ was a highlight for me, it might be my favourite Sam Fender track yet and his performance was charged with raw emotion. The explosive ‘Play God’ hit the mark with its soaring chorus and political jabs, and the anthemic ‘Saturday’ had everyone singing along. The set ended on the massive ‘Hypersonic Missiles’ which is undoubtedly a live fan favourite and ended the set on a high note. Fender is unquestionably one of the UK’s finest young acts.
The final act drawing the first day of TRNSMT 2021 to a close were Manchester indie giants Courteeners. The band have played the festival before in 2018 alongside more of this year’s headliners like Liam Gallagher, it would have been nice to see some different acts on the bill this year considering the breadth of all of the brilliant new acts who are emerging out of the UK but nevertheless Courteeners are always a pleasure to see. The setlist was comprised of the usual fan favourite tracks like ‘Are You In Love With A Notion?’, ‘Bide Your Time’ and ‘Not Nineteen Forever, as well as a Liam Fray acoustic section where he performed stripped back versions of ‘Please Don’t’ and ‘Smiths Disco’. The highlights of the set were definitely the tracks from their latest album; the psychedelic pop ‘Better Man’ and the tender ballad ‘Hanging Off Your Cloud’ were beautifully performed, soaked in strings whilst the fast paced ‘Heavy Jacket’ has quickly become a Courteeners classic.
SATURDAY
As the rain threatened to fall over Glasgow Green, Day 2 for kicked off for us at the King Tuts stage as we just managed to get into the crowd in time for Voodoos performing. A band known for their high energy and passionate sound, it was great to see them perform on the stage at Scotland’s biggest music festival after lockdown and seeing that they haven’t lost this intensity, if anything it had only increased. They sounded brilliant and the crowd which had gathered to see them agreed. Every song was met with mosh pits which is always a sure sign to know the crowd are enjoying themselves. Playing crowd favourite such as ‘Garden Ornaments’ and ‘Going South’ this was the perfect way to kick off the day!
Next up was a trek over to the Main stage to see London rockers Sea Girls. A band who are known for their indie anthems and very high level performance levels, it’s always a pleasure to catch these guys live and this performance was no different, it was one of the highlights of the day. The band always mention how much they love playing in Scotland its easy to see why. The mass sing-a-longs and bounces to all their tunes just shows how loved they are up here. Sea Girls have this rare quality that their songs sound better live than recorded, I can’t explain why they just do in particular ‘All I Want To Hear You Say’ and ‘Call Me Out’. It was great also to hear new song ‘Sick’ performed live for the first time, this will definitely be a crowd favourite in the future.
Back over to the King Tuts stage and we were greeted with Edinburgh natives Retro Video Club. Due to a couple of last minute call offs due to covid, the late call up of RVC was very welcome. A band known for their catchy songs and crowds, the band rattled through their half hour set in double quick time, usually a sign that a performance was great and this undoubtedly was. Ever the professionals, you wouldn’t have guessed the band were called up at 10pm the night before. This was a highly polished set including fan favourite songs ‘Psycho’, ‘Addicted’ and ‘Chemistry’. The old saying goes better late than never, and this is very true about having RVC performing at this years TRNSMT.
Closing the River Stage on Day 2 were Glasgow’s very own Lucia And The Best Boys. Another mainstay in the Glasgow Scottish music scene it’s always fantastic to see the band playing live. The band last played TRNMT in 2018 so this was a welcome to return the line up. As the daylight disappeared from the sky, a large crowd had gathered to watch and they were not disappointed. With great stage presence and a great band around her, Lucia is one of Scotland’s best live performers and it was clear why. The set list included ‘Somewhere In Heaven’ and the very catchy ‘Perfectly Untrue’ complete with dance moves! This was the perfect ending to another fantastic day in the heart of Glasgow.
Emma made it to the green just in time to catch Glasgow’s sensational Dylan John Thomas play an energised set at Tuts stage. Its easy to see this guy is going places, all it takes is one look at the mosh pits to see how adored he is. Highlights included his new tunes ‘Jenna’ and ‘Feel The Fire’ as well as the classic ‘Nobody Else’ and of course what would a Dylan John Thomas set be without a class rendition of ‘Ring Of Fire’? His dedication and talent will pay off soon so keep an eye on Dylan, big things are sure to come for him and this is only the beginning.
Also performing on Tuts stage were Declan Welsh and The Decadent West. The East Kilbride group were a pleasure to finally see perform; all driving guitars, fast-paced drums and huge choruses, their set featured brilliant tracks such as ‘No Fun’ and ‘Parisian Friends’. Declan makes a brilliant frontman, he had the crowd in the palm of his hands at all times with his emphatic vocal delivery and plenty of personality. Its easy to see how they have gained themselves a reputation as one of Scotland’s most exciting live bands.
Over on the main stage Scottish rockers Primal Scream came on around 8pm and delivered a euphoric set of some of their best tracks. From the nostalgic ‘Movin’ On Up’ to the hit ‘Swastika Eyes’, the entire set was enjoyable from start to finish. Bobby Gillespie had the crowd captivated from the first ‘HWFG’ chant and he seemed to be having a blast on stage. The highlight was undoubtedly ‘Loaded’ which felt surreal to finally see live and really got the crowd moving. With great visuals, singalong choruses and plenty of sentimentality its clear the band still have plenty to offer and heaps of energy.
Finally the last act of the day was rock n roll icon Liam Gallagher, who’s voice is still going strong and sounding amazing. He performed a long set, a mix of Oasis classics like ‘Supersonic’ and ‘Acquiesce’ which pleased all the dads in the crowd as well as tunes off his 2 solo albums which resonated more with the younger fans. It was the perfect end to the day as Liam always pleases the crowd; flares were lit, pints were spilled and there was a beautiful sense of unity as the crowd belted all of the song lyrics back to him. ‘Wonderwall’ closed things off and everyone wandered home for the night in relative peace and harmony.
SUNDAY
The 3rd and final day of TRNSMT 2021 kicked off and the weather managed to hold out, despite the forecast. Due to being no trains running on a Sunday, getting to Glasgow Green was more tricky than the previous 2 days. By the time I arrived I managed to catch some of Swim School‘s set over on the River Stage. The Edinburgh based band have been around for a few years now but in the last 12 months things have certainly stepped up a level and playing at TRNSMT is another notable achievement for the group. This is the first time I have managed to catch the band live and will certainly be keeping an eye out on more of gig dates. Their set list included “Sway” and “Let Me Inside Your Head” which sounded great in person. It was clear from this performance why big things are on the horizon for this Edinburgh 4 piece band.
Next up over on the River Stage was Falkirk artist Aaron Smith. Performing a set full of self proclaimed sad songs, this was one of Aarons first gigs gigs in 2 years and he had a great turn out for it. Aaron playing the guitar, accompanied by a keyboard player, managed to hold the attention of the crowd for the full set and got a great reception after each song. The singer-songwriter has been tipped for stardom since bursting onto the scene in 2019 with debut single “Unspoken” and after this performance its clear to see why. Aaron is one to watch for the future.
The final act we managed to see were Snow Patrol. The band formed in Dundee with most of the members being from North Ireland, however they are adopted Scots. They played a full set of crowd favourites from start to finish, probably my favourite set of the whole weekend. Snow Patrols lead singer Gary Lightbody was visibly moved by everyone in the crowd singing along to every song, so much so that when a chorus of “Here We Fuckin Go!” rang out in the crowd it put him off the start of a song! I cannot recommend enough if you get the chance to see Snow Patrol then absolutely go along and see the live, you will not be disappointed!
We cannot wait for TRNSMT 2022 and cannot wait to cover it all for you!