PUP @ Cathouse, Glasgow (12th April 2019)

with Milk Teeth and Gender Roles

WORDS: Joanne Gray

This gig was a bit of a last minute one for myself, as I wasn't quick enough to get a ticket first hand when they went on sale. Congrats to PUP for pretty much selling out their entire EU and UK tour within a few weeks. Thanks to a heads up from Jack over on MOPE (check out his page for music reviews here while you're at it!), I managed to get a ticket from someone in the That's Not Metal community (another podcast you should check out while I'm in a recommending mood) and got myself over to the first gig I've been to at the Cathouse in a few years to see a couple of bands I'm well in on.

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The first band that was on were the only band on the bill I was pretty unfamiliar with before seeing them that night other than hearing their name mentioned a few times. Brighton based trio Gender Roles had a grungy sort of indie-punk sound that reminded me a bit of Fangclub but with a bit of a softer more jangly feel to their music. With a Pixies-esque quiet-loud dynamic mixed with a modern indie rock feel, Gender Roles sounded like a band that were very well suited to the Big Scary Monsters label that they're signed with. 

Slacker vibes exuded from this band throughout their set, from their stripped back appearance of their set up to their laid back attitude to playing and interacting with the crowd. Even in the band's heavier, more distorted moments where the guitarist and bassist would cut loose a bit more, there was a consistent carefree feeling that underpinned the full set. 

Even though Gender Roles would have had more impact for me personally if the heavier moments had a bit more of a bite to contrast with the cleaner tones, this was more of an issue relating to my own personal taste than a lack of a decent musical performance. Even though most of the audience, including myself were unfamiliar to the band, there was definitely a sense of goodwill that grew throughout their set so that by the end, most had warmed considerably to Gender Roles. A pretty good opening act to be sure, and one to check out if you're into any modern indie with a bit more of an edge to it. 

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Next up were the most famous (and perhaps the only) grunge band to hail from the mighty Stroud: Milk Teeth. This is a band that I've seen a few times in the last few years, but this gig was the first time I've seen them play as a three piece. I've been looking forward to seeing them play live after they released the awesomely grungey 'Stain' at the end of last year. Go check that out if you haven't already.

What was immediately noticeable was that the chemistry onstage was perhaps the best I've seen of the band yet. New guitarist, Em Foster (primarily from the band Nervus) and Becky Blomfield clearly get on like a house on fire as they exchanged grins and offmic banter during and in between songs. As per usual, drummer Oli Holbrook was great to watch as he gurned and smashed his way through the set in his typical humorous and energetic manner. With three members onstage rather than five (or four, as was the case after the departure of guitarist Billy Hutton), it felt like there was more space for the band to just perform some great energetic grungy 90s alt rock songs without any of the internal chaos that seems to have followed Milk Teeth for the last few years. 

Largely consisting of the material from the Be Nice and Go Away EPs, as well as some newer material, there was a sense that the band are focusing on the more recent material of their catalogue so far. It was pretty cool to see the older songs 'Vitamins' and 'Brickwork' performed with the new lineup though, I've got to say. I'm very much hoping that from what I saw during the set that the band can have a bit more stability with their new lineup. Musically, they didn't seem at all hampered by the loss of members in the slightest. 

Unfortunately, I did feel like the performance of the band was affected by a few factors. Firstly, I thought the sound was pretty poor for their set. Prior to starting their first song, Em seemed to indicate to the sound desk that Becky's vocals were low in the mix. This turned out to be an issue throughout the set, where I could barely hear her vocals at all and I was only a few rows from the front. This issue wasn't resolved as time went on, which only led to Em's harsher vocal lines overpowering the clean main vocals throughout. This was annoying because, the band were otherwise sonically tight, but the one factor did have a bit of an impact on the show as the key vocals hooks were at times completely inaudible. 

Strangely, the other issue involved the energy of the crowd, which seemed pretty lacklustre throughout. I realise that Milk Teeth are a little bit musically different from the headliners, but I was surprised by just how unfamiliar the crowd was with them as a band. This led to a lack of engagement from the crowd during the set, as no one was really moving around or singing along. I'd like to think that the band at least made an impression on the crowd though, as there was enthusiastic applause throughout and particularly by the end of the set, which contained the killer one-two of 'Owning Your Okayness' and 'Stain'. 

This wasn't the best time I've seen Milk Teeth live, but the issues of the set weren't down to the band on the night. I'm looking forward to seeing them at Slam Dunk, and very much hope that they do a headline tour in the near future, as their current lineup seems to be onto a winner. If you're a fan of 90s grunge and haven't checked out this band yet, you really need to. 

Check out the new song 'Flowers' from their set below:

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Onto the main band of the evening, one of Toronto's many great punk bands, PUP thankfully didn't have the same issues of unfamiliarity or dodgy venue sound. As soon as the band took to the stage with the newer track 'Morbid Stuff', the venue erupted into raucous jostling and shouting. As the gig was completely sold out, and the layout of the Cathouse is... interesting to say the least... it did very quickly feel like there wasn't much space to breathe in that crowded room. It definitely felt like a proper sweaty punk gig from the get go.

And this worked amazingly for the band whose sense of fun couldn't help but blend into the songs which exude sarcasm, frustration and bitterness. The cathartic sense of release which bounced between the crowd and the band was pretty infectious. Even after I moved up to the raised left hand side of the room a few songs in to avoid getting pushed back by the crowd, I got the sense that I was still involved due to the awesome performance of the band. I've seen PUP twice before now as a support band, and they have not yet failed to impress me due to their enthusiasm, energy and abundance of killer songs.

Speaking of which, a good chunk of the set that night was from the newest album, 'Morbid Stuff', which had only been released a week or so before this gig. You wouldn't have known it from the response of the crowd who were singing along to every word of these newer tracks. It was awesome to see such a reaction to new material from the band that already has such a killer catalogue. I've yet to give this album the attention it deserves but from the few listens I've had so far, I know that the response was pretty well deserved. And that goes for the rest of PUP's set. 

Regardless of whether they were playing heavier metallic hardcore-tinged ragers ('Full Blown Meltdown', 'Free At Last', 'DVP', 'Reservoir'), off kilter melodic punk tunes ('If This Tour Doesn't Kill You, I Will, 'See You At Your Funeral', 'Sibling Rivalry'), chirpy indie-infused pop punk ('Dark Days', 'Sleep In The Heat', 'Kids') or the softest song the band have written to date, 'Scorpion Hill', PUP are a band who straddle the line between a humble sense of joy and riotous chaos just perfectly. Forever feeling like a band whose wheels could come off at any moment but they never do just makes PUP look, sound and feel so authentic as a punk band the entire time they're onstage. And it's all really rewarding to experience. 

One of the highlights in this regard was when singer Stefan spontaneously launched himself over the barrier into the crowd and the singer from Gender Roles joined the band onstage to help out with one of the later songs as it was the last date of the tour. The chaotic nature of the band is evident in between songs as well, as the banter between the band and crowd involved tales of Buckfast, drugs and getting chucked out of the O2 ABC due to intoxication and/or troublesome behaviour. 

It's all in good nature though, as they grin away to the audience retelling the stories. There was a clear sense of pride from the typically humble Canadian band as they told the crowd how stoked they were to have sold out all their shows on this EU/UK run. Big shout out to the band for organising fundraisers for each of the dates as well (the Kinning Park Complex was the charity selected for this Glasgow show. Great to see.).

Therefore, by the time PUP got to the end of the set with the mammoth two-in-one song closers 'If This Tour Doesn't Kill You, I Will', and 'DVP', the energy throughout the room was simply electric and the crowd was at risk of drowing the vocals of the band out entirely during those colossal singalongs. Wonderfully life-affirming end to such a killer set. Even though I didn't get very involved during the gig because I hadn't listened to the band properly in a while and it was a bit too crowded for myself, this beer-soaked furiously joyful show was such a fun time. PUP may well be one of the best live punk bands on the planet right now, and that's not an exaggeration in the slightest. Go check them out if you ever get the chance. You won't regret it. 

If you need any further evidence, check out a video from their set below:

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And there you have it. Thanks very much for reading, and be sure to check out the bands mentioned in the review and leave a comment below if you wish. 

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