The JD Set
ABC 2, Glasgow
17/06/2010

Tonight is very strange indeed. You see this particular leg of The JD Set sees some of the more obscure figures in modern indie descend on Glasgow to perform Madonna songs. Here’s a sample of the weirdness: we kick off with James Yuill’s synthy take on ‘Frozen’, preserving the hooks and adding heavy disco bass. 

cocknbullkid is next, clad in white dress and silver cross pendant, doing and initially uncertain ‘Open Your Heart’, while Casiokids add enthusiastic percussion to ‘Holiday’. The catchy cheesiness of the song remains, even when you realise they’re singing it in Norwegian.

Then, it’s back to cocknbullkid, who handles ‘La Isla Bonita’ much more convincingly. ‘Dress You Up’ is taken down a notch to become a sultry, downtempo breakdown. Some fans are taking the theme seriously – one in a ‘Blonde Ambition’ outfit, another throwing shapes and sporting a Madge tattoo.

Malcolm Middleton, Adem and Johnny from Silver Columns are next up with an acoustic take on ‘Stay’. “This is the part of the show where we depress the shit out of you.” says Johnny, and indeed Middleton has a gift to turn anything he sings into the sound of a wet weekend in Falkirk.

‘Vogue’, stripped of its chorus, becomes a reverb-heavy rave tune as Silver Columns enjoy adding their Hi-NRG beats and falsetto vocals. Middleton’s delivery of the spoken-word list of movie stars in his dour Scottish accent (rather brilliantly) nudges the whole thing towards parody.

The former Arab Strap man returns to his acoustic guitar for ‘Over And Over’, which is neatly transformed by Johnny’s folkie harmonies. cocknbullkid takes the vocal for a slow-build gospel rendition of ‘Like A Prayer’, making this version prettier and more restrained than the original.

‘Borderline’, the most original collaboration of the evening, sees Adem wield a Tenori-On which picks out the melody in LEDs and electro chimes, while Johnny and cocknbullkid share the vocals.

Finally, in a triumphant close-out, ‘Into The Groove’ brings all the musicians back on stage, and we’re immersed in the greatest Madonna pop song of all. Reworked as a full-on electro jam session, naturally. 

A brilliant, bizarre experience.

Lucy Brouwer