Music review: Eastern Promise

Any night that concludes with Alexis Taylor taking requests for stripped down versions of Hot Chip tunes can't be a bad one can it? The choirboy-sweet voiced frontman of the London dance-pop heroes' set of sombre solo songs for piano was a delicate highlight of the second night of a weekend of fine music in Easterhouse '“ and there's a phrase you don't read all that often.

Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip PIC: Rick Kern/Getty Images

Eastern Promise ****

Platform, Easterhouse

Organised annually by arts centre Platform’s music programmer Alun Woodward, formerly of The Delgados and a founder of independent record label Chemikal Underground, Eastern Promise exists to not only bring together eye-catching combinations of leftfield artists, but to bring them to one of Glasgow’s much less than fashionable suburbs (there’s a bus laid on from Mono in the Merchant City, so no excuses about not knowing how to get there).

The Friday night had seen performances from Emma Pollock and Rick Redbeard among others. Saturday’s line-up began with the delectably wonky indie-pop sounds of Bristol’s Snails, followed by a rickety and rackety turn from space punk trio The Flexibles, which could justifiably be termed trippy were their singer-guitarist Sorley Youngs – schoolboy son of experimental musician Richard Youngs, who also featured on drum machine – not much too young to be into that kind of thing.

Hen Ogledd – a collaboration between outsider folk singer-songwriter Richard Dawson and Welsh free harpist Rhodri Davies – served sublime noise. Grumbling Fur couldn’t help but draw obvious comparison with Super Furry Animals with their cosmic psych-pop jams and furry animal costumes with creepy glowing eyes. Hearing Taylor conclude with soft and soulful readings of Boy From School and Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue was a rare pleasure.