It’s chilly in Glasgow tonight, but inside the sardine can-like Captain’s Rest it’s damp with the sweaty condensation. Beyond the crowd stand Vivian Girls, level with the audience, who crane over each other to catch a glimpse of one of the most vital and influential bands of the last couple of years.
The set is one marked by contrasts between overtly noisy songs and more melodically-developed numbers, especially apparent among the newer material. An early highlight is “Wild Eyes”, which remains as catchy as ever. “He’s Gone” rendered a cappella silences the somewhat rambunctious audience: unaccompanied, the Girls make even more apparent their already obvious harmonic skill at, and underline the ’60s influence running through their melodies – in this context chanelling the earlier part of that decade’s doo-wop and ‘vocal’ groups. It stands out, not only because it’s so different from the rest of the set (and it is easy to criticise them – initially at least – for an apparent sameiness), but because it’s an inspired and captivating manoeuvre, markedly so when so many ‘indie’, ’rock’ or ’punk’ bands are merely content to thrash blindly away at their instruments with little innovative flair.
The playing seems to have improved somewhat (not to say that it was weak before), but there is the occasional tempo slip: this, however, can only serve to remind that for all their sweet harmonies and pop sensibilities, Vivian Girls are a garage band, and a far beyond average one at that.
Front-and-centre with the band’s newer material are Cassie Ramone’s melodic guitar solos, which betray what one would assume is a certain Cobain influence – though one could postulate this as merely the result of common influences. That said, it’s difficult to believe they had never listened to Cobain favourites The Shop Assistants.
“Can’t Get Over You” carries a real resonance of heartbreak, the melody as classic girl-group as it could be. Before long, they’re done, after just 45 minutes of sugar-and-spice-infused, and utterly thrilling noise. They leave the stage through the applauding crowd, and in a particularly Glaswegian move, some members of the audience block the stairway and tease them into returning to the stage. Unfortunately, they don’t make it before the PA beats them to it, leaving the performance little more than a perfect memory in these fans’ hearts and minds.
Our Verdict:
Andrew Hill is a freelance music journalist and guitarist for Edinburgh band Sellotape. 
