30 June 2026
A celebration of all-female, all-rebellious, power-anthems
“Jagged Little Pill” was blaring, yellow rain weather warnings illuminating the already-soaked M8, and my teenage girl passengers were hooked: Alanis Morissette had saved me and all of my friends from actually dying from heartbreak, way back when, in 1995. At last: we were allowed to heal by raging and crying and dancing and screaming. She had earned the title of matriarch of positively expressed female emotion (yes, rage is one of them) by being the first to flick the middle finger to the patriarchy of pop. “You Oughta Know” (the greatest break up tune of all time) was positioned as the lead F-bomb shocker of the album and single-handedly paved the way for all future female artists to truthfully express their darkest experiences. I had promised my girls a festival of all-rebellious, all-female power-alt anthem rock, with a feisty supporting line up of Lucia & The Best Boys, Skunk Anansie, and WetLeg. Not to mention, the headline, the queen, the mentor, THE one and THE only, THE Alanis Morissette.
Motivated by the pro-action back-story, the girls and I hot-footed it down the leafy entrance avenue, immediately surrounded by cone-hat wearing, well-oiled 40-somethings (all “needing a wee”). High humidity and high nostalgic weegy funny in the air. My first Bellahouston visit, describing it as ‘friendly’ would be a massive understatement. Think chilled-out picnic rug vibes, helpful queueing staff (‘Och just join in here, hen’,‘Have a brilliant night’) and the best burgers in the west, and we felt instantly welcome (and, and, and, even better…..we whispered….the rain clouds had vanished).
Eager to get merch, we only managed to catch the final happy thankful perfect pitch of Lucia and the Best Boys, but, it made us super keen to see her in October at the Barrowlands, as she continues to promote her 2nd album ‘Picking Petals,’ out on 31st July. A true Glaswegian music scene girl, her glam rock tracks in this set included ‘Better For the worse’ and ‘Lonely Girl’ (collaboration with Lauren Mayberry (Chvrches).
Next up, Skunk Anasie, the high energy alt rock professionals, with a huge fan base already packed to the front, instantly loving every single note. Skin, introducing herself and the band, huge warm infectious giggle, incredible pink knee-high socks, smiled us all on board. There to promote their new album ‘The Painful Truth’ (showcasing tracks such as ‘An Artist is an Artist’) they also delivered the classic defining 90’s tracks (anyone need a break-up track to haunt their ex?), ‘Hedonism’ and ‘Weak’. I had time travelled back to 1996.
Skin’s energy and vocal power (not to mention her athleticism: using speaker stacks to bounce off) remains the same. Even more relevant than before, her pro-human, pro-kindness message struck a chord with all, and a new generation of fans have been born.
Skunk Anansie. Photo credit: Alison McIntosh
WetLeg, new to me but not to 3 million others, hit us with a sound that could compare to post-punk Sonic Youth vibes. Like them or be confused by them, they undoubtedly had us visually and sonically mesmerised. Opening with ‘Catch these Fists’ from the new album ‘Moisturizer’, Rhian and Hester took us on a jangly guitar-and volume-heavy journey of body positivity, self-expression and self-aware satire. ‘Mangetout’ was a standout new track, but the mega-fans lapped up ‘Chaise Longue’ from their self-titled debut album. They smiled knowingly at us, at themselves, and infected the crowd with a ‘can’t look away’ curiosity.
Rhian Teasdale, WetLeg. Photo credit: Alison McIntosh
And, now for the big moment…..air warm (still no rain!!!) with anticipation, energy recharged, picnic rugs discarded, 35,000 thousand got hydrated, and to the front. Still, lots of breathing space, which Alanis would approve of (anyone fancying a meditative experience in LA as her guest? Scan the QR code now!)
What a joy this set was, in its entirety…a technically superb band, a powerhouse voice even better live now than recorded 30 years ago, and a physical presence of dance (a lot, lot, lot of striding out), and swooping and circling. The trademark glossy hair (long, middle parting, wavy) had me making a mental note to research supplements. She looked every inch the Alanis of the desert video, in black leather (this time with floaty ribbon sleeved silk shirt: for the spinning visuals).
Alanis Morissette. photo credit: Alison McIntosh
She spoiled us with a mixed bag of tracks, but it was absolutely ram-packed with the classics. The aim of this tour (UK and Ireland and Europe) is to delight crowds and enjoy performing, marking over 30 years of success post-‘Jagged Little Pill’.
The cleverness was in the ups and downs and twists and turns of weaving in positivity, reflection, gentle compassion, rage and uncertain anxiety. The hopefulness and faith in life’s direction (kicking off with ‘One Hand in my Pocket’ end section including ‘Ironic’) was intertwined with healthy dollops of rage (‘Right Through You’, ‘You Oughta Know) and tempered with gentle reflection (‘Mary Jane’ and ‘Thank you’, ‘You Learn’ and ‘Perfect’). We were singing and dancing and swaying through collective smiles and tears. The crowd’s subconscious lyrical knowledge of ‘Ironic’ united us, no matter the age. Musically magical, switching in guitars (the sparkly gold one a particular favourite) and segueing between songs fluidly (a wee bit more chat would have been fun), we were witness to perfectly polished pros at work.
She was absolutely unstoppable, absolutely relevant and absolutely a role model for every single fan, new and old. Turns out that the M8 yellow extreme heavy rain (you would be crazy to stand in a field for 6 hours) weather warning served as the metaphorical takeaway message of the night…..this might be a disastrous wash out, but it might be OK, let’s just give it a go and roll with the punches. You might just find that “everything is going to be quite alright.”
Video credit: Alison McIntosh