Gig review: Trapped in Kansas, Glasgow

YOUNG Ayr-by-way-of-Glasgow math rock quartet Trapped in Kansas exemplify an impressive go-get-'em attitude among many new Scottish bands. Far from waiting for the record industry to come to them, they've taken an active approach: this was the first date of a self-promoted tour of Scotland and almost every song in their setlist was an EP track or a single – either self-released or put out by a local indie label – underscoring a prudent goal to rapidly get all of their music out there.

TiK's tunes are characterised by shifting tempos and complex time signatures and the highly-skilled guitar technique of two-handed tapping – once the preserve of showy noodlers such as Eddie Van Halen but shrewdly reinvented by credible US bands such as Maps & Atlases. The intricacies of their music seemed to hold TiK back a bit from delivering a tight and properly high-impact live show, but that'll come with time.

Beardy, flop-haired frontman Finn Le Marinel favours a wilfully wimpy vocal style which, even if irritatingly affected at times, is distinctive. Towerblock built to a rousing refrain, while the band's latest single I Was Born possessed a melodic and rhythmic dexterity that recalled everyone from Foals to Broken Social Scene. It was TiK's closing number Frances – which bassist Chris Ward said would be "loud, loud and loud" – finally delivered a rock-out sucker-punch pointing to promising future horizons.