THE TWILIGHT SAD // LIQUID ROOMS, EDINBURGH
The Twilight Sad finish their European tour with a storming set at The Liquid Rooms.
PICTURE: CALUM MACKINTOSH @AYECANDYPHOTOGRAPHY
★★★★★
The Twilight Sad are one of Scotland’s most consistently excellent bands. They excel at gloomy post punk music made riveting by pulsating guitars and colossal sounding keyboards.
Tonight, they are supported at the Liquids Rooms by unassuming Glaswegian singer-songwriter Michael Timmons. He quickly wins over an appreciative crowd with deadpan humour (he remarks wryly upon both the miserable nature of his songs and how many “hits” he has). However, what really stands out is his reverb leaden guitar playing and delicate voice which make his songs evocative and memorable.
Shortly afterwards the Liquid Rooms swells to capacity and the excitement amongst the crowd as they gather for the main event is palpable. The Twilight Sad begin their show with There’s A Girl In The Corner, which is a perfect set opener as it’s brooding keyboard melodies and ominous lyrics highlight the gripping tension that makes their music so captivating. This is followed by, an extremely enthusiastic reception for their first ever single That Summer, At Home I Became the Invisible Boy. This song highlights what a highly engaging frontman James Graham has become as he empathically spits out the lyrics adding extra drive and gravitas to the dense post punk guitars.
Amongst the selection of songs from their strong back catalogue, the Twilight Sad also drop some new songs tonight. The first of these to be played is the song I/m`` Not Here (Missing Face) this has an instantly memorable chorus and devastating accusatory lyrics regarding the demise of a relationship. This is sure to be a live staple for what will hopefully be many years to come. The other new tracks played are VTr, The Arbor and Videograms. The songs sound like classic Twilight Sad and this bodes well for their new album It Won/t Be Like This All the Time, due next year.
The best moments of this flawless set are saved for the end. As a tribute to Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchison they cover Keep Yourself Warm. The audience sing along with every word and the emotion is overwhelming as many are reduced to tears.
They finish their show with two songs from their debut album 14 Autumns and 15 Winters, Cold Days From the Birdhouse followed by And She Would Darken the Memory. Every lyric is screamed back at the band with fervour by the crowd. As the Twilight Sad leave the stage to the sound of distorted guitars ringing out one thing is clear, that with exciting new songs and a sold-out show at the Barrowlands to look forward to 2019 will surely be another fantastic year for them.