Playing the last show of his European tour, The Dare brings rock’n’roll to Glasgow’s QMU.
Babymorocco opens up the gig with a high energy, playful set. With electro pop bangers like ‘Body Organic Disco Electronic’ and ‘Really Hot’, he gets the crowd in the mood and jumping around. After asking the audience if they are excited for The Dare to come on, he says “I love him so much, I’m going to marry him you know”, injecting some humour in between songs.
The Dare takes to the stage to none other than ‘Open Up’, with innuendo laden lyrics and a daring, gritty sound from the get go. Next he plays an energetic performance of ‘Good Time’, commanding the stage with confidence.
‘Sex’ makes the whole venue shake as the crowd yells the lyrics back to The Dare. For ‘Perfume’, there is an electric energy and it’s clear that the song is a crowd favourite. Someone throws a tie on stage, which he swings around his head as he sings the tongue-in-cheek lyrics.
In between songs, The Dare says to the crowd, “if you give it to me, I’ll give it right back to you”, drawing on the suggestive humour which is integral to his brand. ‘I Destroyed Disco’ has screaming vocals and is one of the loudest songs of the set, with the crowd shouting the lyrics as the music fills the whole room.
There is an air of mystery about The Dare as he paces the stage and observes the crowd. He says “it’s Friday night let’s get together” and then ‘You’re Invited’ plays as he gets down to the barrier and sings directly to the people in the front row. The bridge has more groovy vibes, which is a contrast to his usual gritty sound that the crowd responds to with frenzied screams.
During ‘Lights Camera Action’, The Dare is very at home on the stage, going between the mic and DJ decks. With soaring choruses, this performance captivates the crowd and someone even throws a bra on stage. For ‘Bloodwork’, red pulsing lights match the rumbling, dark sound of the track. The crowd erupts as a sample of Charli xcx’s ‘Guess’ plays: “Send them to The Dare, yeah, I think he’s with it”.
‘Elevation’ serves its purpose, elevating the crowd’s mood with its sexy, synth pop sound. It has soaring, anthemic choruses and a feeling of nostalgia about it as golden lights create a dream-like atmosphere.
The last song before the encore is fittingly titled ‘You Can Never Go Home’. Due to its indie pop sound and emotive lyrics about club culture, this track felt like the perfect faux ending to the show. When the song finishes, he waves and blows a kiss to the crowd as he leaves the stage.
The audience loudly chants “one more tune” and The Dare reappears, responding to the crowd’s wishes by saying “I’ll give you three, I just needed a little drink”. ‘Movement’ builds up to screaming vocals and as the song climaxes, you can feel the music in your whole body before the music cuts abruptly and the crowd roars with excitement.
During ‘All Night’, he goes up to barrier as arms are reaching for him and the crowd chants the lyrics loudly. This performance in particular makes the gig feel like a rowdy party or 90s club night.
The last song is his biggest hit ‘Girls’. The crowd’s energy is very high during this song, with everyone all the way up to the back of the venue dancing and jumping around to the infectious track.
I must admit that this is one of the loudest concerts I’ve ever attended, owing to the speakers lining the stage and The Dare’s ability to get a crowd going. He’s bringing indie sleaze and clubbing energy back and I, for one, am here for it.