Ahead of their Glastonbury set, Australian producers The Avalanches took to Glasgow’s QMU for a Monday night of dance, strobes and euphoric pop, a gig that was intended two years or so prior to coincide with their We Will Always Love You LP release.
Renowned for their 2001 Since I Left You album, which outlined that this duo can finesse a sample whilst keeping the production skittish and experimental, Australian producers The Avalanches don’t tour often, let alone come to Scotland as part of their touring schedule. The Avalanches made their comeback in 2016 with the album Wildflower, which followed a notable break of over a decade and a half since their well-received debut LP.
And then four years later they released their most recent offering, We Will Always Love You in 2020, and the band reissued Since I Left You, with bonus tracks and remixes, collaborators and feature artists to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Once I saw that they were hitting Glasgow it was imperative to see these producers live, at least to remove the question of what to expect. But the gig was far from what I’d anticipated.
With a set list for a Monday night that would see many getting excited about the weekend, I didn’t jump to it like many attending. As a fan of their more sedate and breezy production of Since I Left You, I was hoping for more of this summer vibe glistening the walls of the student union venue. Strobes, high energy bouncing and bass-swelling synths filled the room, and it was set alight with an altogether unexpected zest.
With most tracks played from the most recent LP it was enjoyable to note that tracks like ‘Since I Left You’, ‘Electricity’ and ‘A Different Feeling’ were on the set list, with no ‘Frontier Psychiatrist’ being the elephant in the room. However, like the producers, most were here for the new album and it was tracks such as ‘Song for Barbara Payton’ and ‘Oh the Sunn!’ that got the biggest reactions. Altogether wild for a Monday night, the lads kept it bouncy.
