Thrum, Edinburgh review: 'Bellshill's Janis Joplin'
Thrum should be performing at a sold-out Barrowlands, not a small club in Edinburgh, says David Pollock
Thrum/Radhika, Wee Red Bar, Edinbugh ★★★★
Newcomer and support act Radhika hasn’t been around for long, but her album Cine Pop has already gathered lots of praise outside of her notable Glaswegian indie lineage (her dad is Sushil Dade of the Soup Dragons and Future Pilot AKA).
Appearing here as part of an acoustic duo with promoter and former Creeping Bent chief Douglas MacIntyre, Radhika’s songs were less the silken dream-pop of her records and more a rootsy, wistful kind of analogue folk. Cocoa Butter Eyes, she said, was her “love song for the universe” and Future Me is “my wee eco anthem”, written when she was ten. They’re innocent but bittersweet.
There were versions of Hindi song Tum Hi Ho and Since Yesterday by Strawberry Switchblade, a big influence on Radhika because “seeing Scottish women do it made it seem more possible”. In this stripped-back context what really shone beyond her songwriting was the delicate precision of her voice, its versatile, melodic qualities elevating an already enjoyable set.
Thrum’s Monica Queen, meanwhile, is a vocal belter whose power remains undimmed since her band’s arrival and near-brush with fame more than 30 years ago. The occasion for this reunion is the deserved reissue of the band’s 1994 debut album Rifferama, and its songs sounded emotive and precise here, even at high volume.
Musically led by founding guitarist Johnny Smillie, they spun through the reflective Hey Joe, the prowling So Glad and the mountainous Rifferama itself, touching base with The Exciter from their 2011 second album Elettrorama and a closing cover of their own, a mournful take on the Ramones’ Sheena is a Punk Rocker.
Thrum play like Buffalo Springfield, while Queen – more famous for her guest work with Belle & Sebastian and Snow Patrol – sings like Bellshill’s Janis Joplin. This masterful, heart-grabbing performance left us wondering why they were playing to a few dozen in an Edinburgh club and not a sold-out Barrowlands.
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