Brighton’s Fickle Friends are making some of the freshest indie-pop music right now; their Glasgow show was every bit as glitzy and fun as one would hope. The band had two openers, the first being a local acoustic act, Be Charlotte, and the other being the up-and-coming Marsicans.
While Marsicans were not exactly for everyone, it seems very clear that this stylish band from Leeds are destined to be very successful, a rare trait to see in a supporting act. They were flashy, confident, charismatic, and played bright and endearing pop rock music that made a crowd of people who had presumably never heard of them joyously dance from their first song onwards. I would not be surprised if this time next year they are embarking on their own tour.
Even getting over a bad cold, Fickle Friends’ lead singer Natassja (Natti) Shiner is an entrancing presence, leading the glitzy pop band through an entertaining show. Opening with the driving and catchy ‘Bite’ it was clear what kind of a show the audience was in for, that is, one of driving synth leads, loud bass and rhythm, and glamorous melodies and high notes from Natti, providing bright warmth to the cold Glasgow night.
Their setlist continued to be made up mostly of fun pop hits, with a few ballads mixed in there such as ‘Paris’ or ‘Hello Hello’. Highlights of the night were the catchy ‘Brooklyn’, a song that made me rather nostalgic for home in the Northeast US, the powerful and crowd-pleasing ‘Hard to Be Myself’ and new single ‘Heartbroken’, which was built off one of the coolest pop synth leads the band has written so far.
The other musicians in the band may have been lacking in the clear stage presence Natti has, but still played tight and accurate, unafraid to jam or crack a smile at high points in the set.
As most Glasgow clubs mandate bands stop playing at ten, and since Natti was under the weather (which she kept needlessly apologising for in between water sips from her cute pineapple water jug; her vocals still sounded effortless), they did not do an encore but did play their usual encore songs at the end of the show, ending with their big hit and dancy crowd-pleaser ‘Glue’, which featured Natti hanging over the barrier into the crowd.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable night full of bright pop music. While some of the music seemed a bit repetitive, the lyrics a bit shallow, and the crowd lacking in the manic energy expected at concerts, even causing Natti to note that Glasgow is usually more energetic, it was still a very enjoyable set. Anyone who likes fun indie synth-pop should check out their singles, they are certainly worth it.
Image: Rob Bazaral