21 May 2010 (gig)
24 May 2010
As far as hype goes, This was one of the biggest buzz gigs for a new band in West of Scoptland history. Having already accumulated more than 2,000 fans on Facebook before they`de even played live their was an air of expectation gripping Ayr tonight. More than 200 people packed into Fury`s nightclub to see a band who had so far made their name with high quality and original self-produced tracks. With this amount of interest there was bound to be a bit of pressure not that you would notice it from the guys as they set up their gear and went onto play a storming set with a confident stage presence and a great sound throughout.
They opened with a surprising cover version which was Kanye Wests `Golddigger` it may have seemed a strange way to kick of proceedings but as soon as lead singer Mark Welby kicked it off accapella style and Taay started flowing effortlessly suddenly it all made sense. It really gave every member of the band a chance to show what they could do and get the crowd to put their Friday night dancing shoes on.
Next they played a couple of new tracks the crowd had never heard before but pretty much gained the full command and respect of the heaving crowd. Its hard to pin this band down. They have an almost metal edge, A scottish rapper and a soulful singer and it all these different styles blend to make something unique. The bass-lines make you want to jump around as soon as a song kicks in so credit to the enigmatic Stefan Bone for that. They then added another few cover versions showing incredible diversity from Foo Fighters then the Flobots However, their version of `Deeper Underground` was a joy to behold and in my opinion the pick of the bunch. They really nailed what was a very tough song that I have never witnessed anyone else attempt in the live arena.
But it was the final 3 tracks that the audience had been waiting for that really got the party started. `Spirit of the Underdog` a down n dirty catchy hip hop ditty sounded just as good if not better than the recorded version that normally features U.S rapper MOS from Crew 54. Taay spat fire and never missed a beat or dropped a lyric to catch his breath (the reverse is usually all too common in the genre) and it the overall sound was huge as the full band gave it an almost Rage Against the Machine feel to it that even had someone dressed as Jerry from Tom n Jerry bouncing along to it.
The sing-a-long moment though was reserved for the epic `No Chance Love` which gave Welby the chance to show off his vocal range over the haunting guitars of Danny Paton and top drawer drumming from Colin Irving. The song has HIT written all over it and could be stuck in your head for days.
Its safe to say though that they saved the best for last with `Reality Cheque` a song about the state of commercial music. A little nod to Linkin Park on the guitars, Angry flowing poetry from Taay and note perfect singing from Welby who plays devils advocate during the song and boasts `Im on the ladder where are you?` as Taay refuses his offer of commercial success `you had the X, What happens next?... I dont want to be a V.I.P` A fantastic finale that had everything.
In my opinion it wont be long till these guys are on the ladder and setting it on fire. Still a young band with a lot to learn and a lot to prove but they have all the right ingredients, Tick all the right boxes and are making real music that stands out from the crowd. They definitely have the ability and desire to go on and do something really special. You can check them out at:
http://www.facebook.com/theunderdogtheory
