The Reeling, Glasgow review: 'don't underestimate the vibrancy of the trad scene'
Occupying a middle ground somewhere between the Killers and Big Country, Tide Lines are representative of a new spirit in traditional music, writes David Pollock
The Reeling, Rouken Glen Park, Glasgow ★★★★
“You've even patched Kylie Minogue to see us,” laughed Tide Lines singer Robert Robertson, in thanks to the large crowd turning out for his band’s Friday night headline set at Glasgow’s third annual Reeling festival. While this celebration of traditional music might not have much in common with one of the world’s biggest pop stars, don’t underestimate the vibrancy of the traditional scene in Scotland at the moment.
Tide Lines are representative of the new spirit in their scene right now, and their set here could have easily fitted in at TRNSMT.
Tide Lines stand in a middle ground between the Killers and Big Country, while Robertson’s earthy, impassioned spit ‘n’ sawdust vocal is reminiscent of Bruce Springsteen and Sam Fender. Set highlights like Heroes, 17 Again and the joyous Any Heart in a Storm were hopeful and redemptive guitar rockers.
Then songs from the new album Glasgow Love Story paid loving tribute to the city these Highlanders call home, from the moody synth movement The Hardest Miles to the folky tribute to Glasgow’s shipbuilding heritage By the Quayside and the wistful Homeward Bound. That song, said Robertson, was about heading home up the A82 for summer, a journey he said all Gaels know.
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Elsewhere on a bill also featuring Gnoss and Beinn Lee, the connection between Glasgow and the Highland tradition was explicit. Siobhan Miller – who shifted between the pure trad of the birling Tranent Wedding and a more retro style reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac – paid tribute to the folk pubs of Finnieston which were her refuge when she moved to the city aged 18.
One of those pubs, the Park Bar, lent its name to the gladed second stage, where in the absence of a full line-up until the festival fully got started on Saturday, experienced musician and caller John Carmichael led a big ceilidh with all ages enthusiastically joining in. It’s hard to see how any more fun could have been had with Kylie at at the Hydro.
READ MORE: Album reviews: Tide Lines | Willie Nelson | Màiri Morrison & Alasdair Roberts
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