PVRIS // O2 ACADEMY, GLASGOW
PVRIS return to Scotland for an outstanding show at Glasgow’s O2 Academy.
★★★★☆ (4/5)
Getting to know PVRIS is like opening an alternative pop selection box. With music that jumps from upbeat pop to songs that are hard, charging shredders; they appear to hold nothing back in their creations. Looking polished but with a strong vibe of independence, the group have a very authentic feel which they have built up through a substantial career that kicked off in 2009 under the name Operation Guillotine. As the group’s membership evolved they now stand as a duo of the multi-instrumentalists Lynn Gunn and Brian MacDonald.
PVRIS’s third album Use Me was released in August of 2020 and achieved strong reviews and chart success in the UK. With the tour on the cards last April, they postponed it for a year with speculations about work on a new album. Now that they have been able to finally get on the road with the record, it has resulted in a heavily sold UK and European tour that filled venues up and down the country.
The first support of the night was Texan pop-punk artist Maggie Lindermann who attracted a big crowd and performed with a punchy energy that got the cheerful crowd moving. Lindermann will only be performing with the tour for the first week of shows so attendees of the UK shows were treated to have seen her set.
Next up was the fire cracker, Charlotte Sands who is joining PVRIS for the whole tour. Dressed like a vixen Freddy Krueger, Sands seemed to spring back and forth across the stage. With boppy-punk songs, this Nashville artist clearly had a lot of fans in the crowd and her set was celebrated. With the confidence of a seasoned professional, this young singer looked elated as she moved the crowd.
The stage set up for PVRIS was like a futurist indie dream with neon beam lighting and brushy plants on the stage. Gunn took to the stage in an androgynous, formal, preppy look and MacDonald stood in a lit up section of the stage where he was shrouded in pink light.
As the night’s performance Glasgow’s O2 Academy was the second night of the tour, the set felt fresh and the duo appeared excited. Kicking off with the new track Animal left for a roar from the crowd. With a set list that mixed older and more recent tracks, PVRIS gave the fans exactly what they wanted and the room felt elated. Heads bobbed, arms raised and bodies swung; people really got into it.
The evening went with pace and mid-set track Fire stood out as one of the best night. As the night drew to a close with tracks including Anywhere but Here and Death of Me before an encore of My House and Hallucinations, the charging tempo of the show made for the sense that it had only just begun. Gunn engaged the crowd with charming humour that appeared natural and off the cuff; between songs there was laughter among adoration.
PVRIS are a group for music fans to watch. They are smorgasbord of musical delights that will capture attention in a subtle but spikey way. With a new release on the cards and with their knock-out live performance, it’s clear that they are capable of big things.