Why go to one Hamish Hawk gig, when you can go to two? Well, that was my reckoning after having seen Mr Hawk and his band in Manchester the night before the release of the new album, A Firmer Hand. The gig was performed earlier in the evening, which suits an old fart like me right down to the ground. Manchester was over with by 8.45pm and if the rest of the shows were going to be that early, I decided on adding Edinburgh to my list of shows. Also, I hadn’t had the opportunity so far to see Hamish perform in his hometown, which I thought had the potential to make things a wee extra special.
This leads me to a review of both shows in one big old post. I don’t have a lot of time on my side right now. I’m in the closing stages of getting the Simple Minds book completed, so it will be a pretty concise affair for me.
On Monday night the weather was a bit dreich, not to the degree where it made queuing up outside St Luke’s too uncomfortable. I got chatting with the fans either side of me waiting in the queue. Lovely people. We headed for the front barrier together once we were let inside. I didn’t fancy walking back to Queen Street alone after the show, so I asked the OH if she would come and escort me home afterwards.
To my surprise the gig went on for longer than it did in Manchester. They arrived on stage promptly at 8pm on the dot, but performed more songs off the album than they did in Manchester – and came out for an encore. It had just past 9pm as they were performing Caterpillar for the encore and I knew the OH would be waiting outside for me now and if we were going to make the 9.30pm train back to Ashfield, I’d have to leave right that moment!
When we got inside the venue earlier in the evening, I had spied posters on the wall for the gig and decided that when it came time to leave, I’d help myself to one of the posters on the way out. I weaved my way through the crowd and got to one of the side walls and grabbed a poster and met the OH at the door and we legged it back to Queen Street. We got to the train with just two minutes to spare. I felt awful for having to leg it and not have the chance to say goodbye to the people I’d befriended in the queue, as well as to Sarah who I first met at the Blitzkrieg shop when Hamish did a signing for his previous album, Angel Numbers. Had I’d not left when I did, it would have been a two hour wait for the next train.
As for the gig itself? I can’t praise Hamish and his band enough. They are just amazing. It was great to hear more of the songs from the album performed on Monday, including Questionable Hit, which I really love as it has that kind of cynical snark wrapped up in a pure pop melody. I love it when people deliver dark in a shiny box. It’s everything that’s “nasty” about the music biz, everything that’s false and duplicitous about the industry all conveyed with a pop sensibility. I love it. It was great to hear that. I also really love Autobiography Of Spy. Hamish has a fantastic baritone voice and its really pulled off to perfection on Autobiography Of Spy. Also, how he couples lines, his use of half-rhymes and things. I just love how he structures his lyrics and how he makes them fit into the song’s melody. He’s absolutely ace. Also there is just ssoooo much energy at a show. He bounces about, prawls, hovers over the crowd – he’s always on the move. Call me nuts, but he gives me a surge of the feeling of what it must have been like to witness Jim back in the day, when Mr Sexy was a wee boy and was all snake-hipped and feline on stage back in 1981/82.
On Tuesday for Edinburgh, I made a day of it. Work on the book has been all-consuming – I needed a day away from it. I met Michelle and we headed off to the capital together and had a nice long lunch at Bonnie & Wild in St James’ Quarter.
I had been to the Liquid Room only once before and that was with Birdy to see Kular Shaker. It wasn’t the best experience for me that night, so I had reservations about going back to a gig at the Liquid Room, especially alone – but with the gig ending early, I knew I’d be making it back to Glasgow easy peasy.
A repeat performance for me in terms of queuing up to get in. Michelle kept me company for a wee bit until she needed to head off home. I then got chatting to the couple queuing in front of me who I had recognised from pervious HH shows but wasn’t sure which one(s). As it turned out, the lady remembered me and it was the Galashiels gig we had got conversing at previously.
I had queued up earlier in Edinburgh so got myself closer to the middle of the stage. I was a bit to the right of the stage from the audience view at St Luke’s, but still with a great view. At the barrier I got to talking to Dawn and her husband. I have to say that Hamish has a wonderful fanbase with lovely, friendly, chatty people. I really do feel like a part of something special with these wonderful people.
They were just a wee bit late arriving on stage – by like two minutes. This time I really wasn’t clock-watching. I was going to enjoy the whole gig and not rush off early. And what a gig it was. As wonderful as St Luke’s was. As lovely as it is to hear the Mauritian Badminton Doubles Champion 1973 performed in ‘a Glaswegian chapel,’ as well as hearing a few other songs played off the album, there was something extra special at the Liquid Room on Tuesday night. Hamish seemed more relaxed and chatty (don’t get me wrong, he was chatty in Glasgow too – and cheekily responded to some of the crowd banter he was getting) and genuinely just bowled over by the crowd’s responses and adulation. He’s always wonderfully humbled and full of genuine humility.
I now find myself absolutely panicking like mad watching them perform Caterpillar after Andy injured himself at the Barras back in February. They still go full-on mental at the end. Andy’s flailing his guitar about and Hamish is rushing back and forth across the stage and they get so close to banging into one another. Andy was so near to whacking Hamish with his guitar a couple of times on Tuesday night. I have my heart in my mouth watching it. I also have to give a shout out to Stefan Maurice, the drummer. I love his playing style and the sound he produces. He’s fabulous. All the band are. And to be fair, they are somewhat overshadowed by Hamish’s incredible stage presence. He really is a fantastic showman. The whole band perform like legends. The songs are all performed so fantastically well. They are truly faultless each time I see them.
I wanted to stay around after the show in Edinburgh, but there wasn’t much at the merch stall. The security emptied the venue pretty quick and it didn’t seem like the guys were going to be hanging about. They had a show in Aberdeen the next night and so I wasn’t sure if they’d be hanging around. The show was over by 9.10pm, so I decided to make my way back to Waverley station and not hang about outside. I was bummed not to get the chance to at least say hi/bye to Hamish, but I got the chance at Manchester so it was okay. It made a change to go to a gig in Edinburgh and be able to get the last train home to Ashfield once back in Glasgow.
Both shows were incredible. St Luke’s it was really balmy – I think because the weather was dreich it made it a sweaty and sticky. I was beiling afterwards! Edinburgh was cooler and the atmosphere was different. Both nights were great, but there was just an extra feeling at the Liquid Room – in front of a home crowd, I guess. Although Hamish is equally loved in Glasgow.
Anyway, I’ve said much more than I meant to. As for the cheeky removal of the poster off the wall at St Luke’s? It wasn’t until I got home that I realised it wasn’t a poster for the show that night – it was advertising the shows coming up in February in Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Oops! I felt very bad once I’d seen that. Naughty me!
I got some fabulous photos from the Edinburgh. A few good ones from Glasgow too – Hamish is great to photograph! Below are the two songs I recorded – one from each show. Desperately from Glasgow, and Dog-Eared August from Edinburgh. Enjoy!
