It was take two for Edinburgh band Retro Video Club as they take to the stage for the first night of two sold out gigs in Glasgow’s iconic King Tuts. 5 years on from their first experience in Tuts, the boys from the capital have came leaps and bounds over the years and are showing exactly why they belong at the very top and undoubtably deserve their place on those famous stairs.
Over the last two years the band have dropped several huge singles that have really set the tone for what’s to come in the next chapter. Hard hitting tunes like Disaster & Checkmate we’re just made for big nights like tonight – most recent single Faking comes with that same calibre. Personal favourite Cloud Nine was an instant hit from the get go, an emotional connection just makes that song that extra bit special.
George O’Hanlon
Only support of the evening was Londoner George O’Hanlon. A captivating set that had the attention of not only myself, but the entire room. A citing of inspirations by him include Bob Dylan and Jeff Buckley – even in his early twenties, he brought a great raw sound to his 30 minute set that would make you think he was a veteran on the big stage.
When playing live he captured an on stage presence of early Ed Sheeran and his lyrics echo Ben Howards emotive melodies. At such a young age he’s shown he deserves such high praise and be sure to hear his name more regular in the future.
Retro Video Club
‘Welcome to the world of the modern youth’ ripples round a packed to the rafters Tuts – it was time for RVC. The energy in the room was there from the first intro of Youth to the extent you could actually feel the floor shake. A solid kick off to the night and it was a case of start as you mean to go on – a live debut for new single Faking leading into to quote Liam “one of the lockdown” singles, Checkmate.
After such an explosive start, the crowd showed no sign of slowing down and neither did the band. 3am and 2017 single Famous rallied the crowd into a frenzy before a well needed slow down even at this stage of the night with Cloud Nine – as previous mentioned a song with a personal connection, a very special addition to such a special night – and then comes Night In, another perfect song that really connects in various different ways.
When the acoustic comes out, it can only mean one thing and on nights like this you can be certain your ears will be left ringing in the best possible way – but before this Liam treats the crowd to a brand new unheard acoustic song Save Me that he dedicated to his mum – a song that was beautifully performed with so much emotion and love poured into it. From the new to the classic, Noir receives one of the biggest receptions of the night to the extent you couldn’t hear yourself sing.
The run in to the end of night one was closing in and after a few slower singalongs, it was in typical RVC fashion to finish the best way they know how. It saw a mixture of old and new from Disaster & crowd pleaser Boys Like Me to a huge finale and top of the pile favourite Chemistry rounding off what was quite simply a spectacular evening.
Nights like these make following live music the pleasure that it is – the electric energy on and off the stage seeing young and old fans discover the bands of the future add to the endless emotions felt throughout the night. It was a night that makes you know for sure you’ll look back and say “I was there”.
