All My Friends have made quite the name for themselves as one of the top D.I.Y. promoters in Aberdeen in recent times, bringing bands from far afield as well as providing live opportunities to alternative bands in the local area. 1 year and 11 gigs later, here we were for number 12 in the form of a supergig/birthday party! With 8 bands on the bill, there was plenty to look forward to.
Doer opened the mega-gig playing their first ever live set. Considering this was their first outing, there were no hints of nerves with the band giving a confident and fiery performance full of fun. With punk influences galore and a minimal stand up drumming set-up I was instantly sold. Covers of The Damned’s Neat Neat Neat and Talking Heads’ Psycho Killer were perfect for warming up the crowd who made it down early for the 4:30pm start.
zerofate were up next, a young local band with an affinity for Shoegaze and bags of potential. Citing Cocteau Twins and Slowdive as important reference points, they stormed through a set of originals with single overthrown and new song hello standing out. I can’t wait to see how they evolve over time although I do think adding a bassist into the mix would definitely catapult their sound to new heights.
Ochre were the first non-local band of evening, making the journey all the way from Glasgow to join the party. Their set was an explosion of immense post-punk/hardcore tracks, leaving a lasting impression on the Aberdonian audience. The atmosphere created by the instrumental band members turning away towards their drummer truly allowed the rawness of lead singer Scott McCaughey’s performance to truly shine.
Local legends, Seas, Starry closed out the first half of the evening promoting tracks from their latest album ‘Cosy Boys’. Breaking boundaries with their instrumental genius, those who witnessed their set were as equally enthralled by their comedic timing in between the music as they were by their jaunty tracks. The Song Bad Company from the Album Bad Company by the band Bad Company is certainly in the running for my favourite track title of the year but it’s Wet Wedding that truly stole the show with its ear worm of a riff.
Then in true birthday party fashion, there was an intermission for cake and Mario Kart.
Opening the second half of the evening were Track Outside. Another young band with a bright future ahead of them. Their set was full of light and shade with a well-executed dichotomy between the heavy and atmospheric which was boldly performed. With no releases as of yet, I’ll be waiting patiently to see what they can cook up in the studio!
TigerDrive have been a staple of many an All My Friends gig so it would feel wrong to not have them on this celebratory line-up. Since my first live experience of them earlier in the year, they’ve come on leaps and bounds in their tightness as a group and overall performance. Despite a recent injury, lead singer Poppy Wishart still gave it 110% with the crowd bringing the energy to match. TigerDrive continue to set a high bar for alt-rock bands in the local area.
Penultimate band Clean Slate were our other visitors of the day, also coming from Glasgow to share their ferocious fast paced punk. The duo certainly had bite, playing tracks from their debut EP ‘REN SKIFFER’. A full throttle sound which was rough around the edges in the best way.
Our final band of the evening was The Sun Day, an absolute dream of an indie alt-rock band who played a set of crowd pleasing tracks perfect to close out the celebrations. Pretty Boy (Crawl) produced the ultimate singalong moment of the night, showing they were more than worthy of the headline slot. Another band I can’t wait to see in action again.
Overall, this was the ultimate party with something for everyone. Happy Birthday to All My Friends and here’s to another successful year of shows in Aberdeen!
Enjoy tracks from the bands in the playlist below!