Eastern Promise
Platform, Glasgow
01/10/2011

Already a highlight of Glasgow’s musical calendar, Eastern Promise returns for its second year with a line-up as eclectic as that of the first. Curated by local hero Alun Woodward, co-founder of the Chemikal Underground label and former Delgado, the festival is nowhere near as parochial as might be expected, playing host to an impressive roster of European acts over its two days.

Day 2 kicks off to little fanfare as Norway’s Silje Nes takes to the the stage with only a guitar and sampler at her disposal. Though her performance does at times feel too delicate and indirect, her captivating presence and frequently discordant approach to song structure make for an auspicious introduction. Headliners To Rococo Rot are much more forceful. The Krautrockers’ instrumental compositions are eminently danceable and ooze personality, their tumbling bass lines locking into complex drum patterns and layers of fuzzy electronics.

Brighton’s Animal Magic Tricks, an infinitely captivating purveyor of lo-fi, fares less well in the venue’s cafe, her set ignored by an indifferent audience eager to stock up on refreshments. “Next here, please!” hollers a canteen worker over her plangent vocals and old-timey organ sounds. Not even donning a mouth-guard and proceeding to wail unintelligible histrionics over swathes of white noise can reverse the artist’s fortune. Conquering Animal Sound succumb to a similar fate, though put up less of a fight, falling back on the hypnotic Bjork-isms that seem to come to them so naturally.

The only Glaswegian band on tonight’s bill, The Pastels are also the most conservative. They may close their set with the relentless psych work-out of ‘Baby Honey’, but for the most part they indulge their more recent tendencies towards mid-paced, pastoral jangle. That they deliver the best set of the night is testament not only to Stephen Pastel’s songwriting abilities and the group’s feel for the material, but to the continued health of the city’s music scene.

Lewis Porteous