Photo Credit: Stevie Kyle
It doesn’t seem like five months ago that Sam McTrusty and co. took 2025 TRNSMT Festival by storm after playing a memorable set on the Main Stage. They also announced that same weekend they would be back in Glasgow in December for the tenth anniversary of the Great Divide album, in fact tonight’s show sold out so quick that they had to add another show. With a support slot for McFly during the summer as well as an appearance at the Slam Dunk Festival they have had quite the year.
The tour poster has the support band for they two shows as … Twin Atlantic! Yes the Glasgow boys head back in time to 2009 and play debut album Vivarium in full and in track sequence. The stage setup is interesting here, we have chosen to stand at the right hand side of the stage where drummer Joe Lazarus has his kit set up right at the front of the stage side on so the fans can get a birds eye view, and what an incredible drumming performance he puts on for us during this first part of the show where they play all eight tracks from Vivarium. This is the way forward for future music show’s, while taking nothing away from the other band members Lazarus is an absolute showman on the drum kit. “This is what our gigs back in 2009 were like” says frontman Sam who also comments on the bands former tour manager attempting to crowd surf during the set. Guitarist Barry McKenna excels on the opener Old Grey Face while the highlight for us had to be Human After All with the chorus going down really well with the knowledgeable crowd. The old ballroom is buzzing with excitement tonight for a special homecoming show that proves how much the band are still loved in their hometown. 9/10
The music during the set switch is an odd mix of classic rock and 1990s indie-rock, the stage setup is now completely transformed with the drummer sadly now hiding at the back of the stage. Little did we realise that after hearing the eight tracks from the Vivarium album there were still an incredible twenty-one songs to be played. In the end it turned into a music marathon for everyone in the ballroom and the old spring loaded floor must have been under severe pressure tonight, the security certainly were once the crowd surfing began!
Around 9pm Twin Atlantic take to the stage with Strauss classical song Also Sprach Zarathustra playing them on to a huge roar from the sell-out crowd, the energy in this place is unreal now as the set begins with a surprising Heart and Soul. This is by far the band’s biggest song to date and we thought that it would be kept to the end of the night … well it was actually, they played it twice with McTrusty commenting later “this is the only time we will play the same song twice at the Barrowland”. This first version went down a treat with the crowd who were very vocal and enthusiastic throughout the night, Fall Into The Party was played perfectly while the crowd are invited to get down low for I Am An Animal, maybe we got down too low for this one as it was struggle to get back up! In between Cell Mate and Why Won’t We Change a couple from the Free album are played – Yes, I Was Drunk and Free being the songs. Free was one of the best of the set, they also played World Class Entertainment and Meltdown from the Meltdown album sandwiched in between a cover of The Corries classic Flower Of Scotland. The whole of Scotland is still getting used to the fact that the countries football team has finally qualified for a World Cup after twenty eight years, so of course you wouldn’t expect anything less than a mass singalong of the national anthem from the patriotic crowd.
Sam McTrusty had a great rapport with the crowd as he always does during the near three hour show, the piano version of Rest In Pieces slows things down a little to allow everyone to get their breath back with this being followed up by another one from the Free album, Make A Beast Of Myself, let the mosh pits and crowd surfing commence! This second part of the show moves back and forth from album to album but it is two from the Great Divide that tug at the heart strings with The Ones I Love and Oceans going down really well with the crowd. As we move towards the end of the set Sam apologises to the fans for the show being so long … nobody looked as if they were complaining though as we get to hear the excellent Brothers & Sisters and Barcelona (the only one from the POWER album). The energy level in the ballroom is at fever pitch now as No Sleep gets one of the best crowd reactions of the night, the four band members are solid during this one. Heart and Soul (for the second time) allows the crowd to use any last energy they had before we move off into the night with more lasting memories, there were some great moments only a home crowd could provide.
There was one more show the following night during this very short tour at Islington Assembly Hall in London, the guys will be hitting the road again with McFly during 2026 and no doubt will have more headline shows to look forward to. 10/10
Written by: Alan Brown
