Glasvegas

Glasvegas, the Scottish band launched by the man who discovered Oasis, Alan McGee, and authors of one of the most interesting debuts of 2008 - released in Italy only this year - have come to Italy to promote their album, playing shows in Rome, Ravenna, and tonight in Milan at Magazzini Generali. Despite the enthusiastic reports from those who had seen them on the previous two dates, tonight the Scottish combo disappointed much of the audience, mainly due to frontman James Allan and some less-than-perfect sound issues with the instruments. Credit must go to Glasvegas for still selling out the Milan show and for playing in a venue not exactly renowned for its great acoustics. In Ravenna their support act had been Heike and The Giggles, while in Milan the opening slot went to Toomuchblond, an up-and-coming Florentine band launched by Mtv.

The Scottish band take the stage fairly late, at half past ten, with "Geraldine", the single currently in rotation on the biggest music channels, which nonetheless leaves a slightly bitter taste. Singer James Allan has a look that stands out - a pompadour quiff à la Joe Strummer, big sunglasses and a T-shirt bearing John Lennon's face. He shows charisma and stage presence, but his voice repeatedly falls short. Things don't improve with the following "Lonesome Swan": everything feels slower and more tedious than on record, which - it's worth remembering - barely has a single weak track.

Some fans drift away disappointed from the front rows, while others start grumbling outright. Tonight the Glasvegas sound – a blend of Coldplay, Bloc Party and shoegaze – is indeed less gripping, and even the sound engineers struggle to reproduce it properly, especially at the start, since the guitars sit noticeably lower in the mix than everything else. The lighting, on the other hand, hits the mark and looks fairly spectacular, with bold, original colours. The drummer, the chubby-cheeked Caroline McKay, gets her fifteen seconds of fame when, after the second song, the singer introduces her and asks the crowd for a special round of applause.

The first real thrill comes with the gorgeous "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry", a genuine stadium anthem. Four more songs follow, but the feeling is that Glasvegas keep playing the same song over and over, with far less spark than on record. Thankfully, at eleven o'clock comes a truly stirring version of "Go Square Go", sung by practically the whole crowd, which finally seems capable of getting the show off the ground. James thanks the audience repeatedly with clasped hands, at times even beating his chest, and even throws in a few mini-chants for Milan, though the impression is that he does this every night, in whatever city he happens to be playing (in Rome, for instance, he did exactly the same). The front rows are now won over, and Allan often lets his fans take the lead on the most famous verses.

The encore includes "S.A.D. Light", with a longer drum intro that works well this time, "Please Come Back Home" – taken from the Christmas EP "A Snowflake Fell" – sung very badly and quite out of tune (and dedicated to his mother), and finally, perhaps the most famous and eagerly awaited track of all, "Daddy's Gone".

The show was brief, lasting only an hour, though it should be considered that Glasvegas have just one album and one EP to their name – still, quite a few people didn't seem all that upset about it.

The impression is that the Scots are nonetheless a great band who simply had an off night. After all, they themselves had admitted to the press that their live performances still needed some work.

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