DESPITE the enthusiastic endeavours of Paolo Nutini and his band, racing down the M8 to headline George Square after opening the Hogmanay party in Edinburgh, this seemed a more muted celebration than in years gone by. The addition of a huge karaoke s
ystem, conducting the reportedly 10,000-strong crowd through renditions of 500 Miles and Auld Lang Syne, was a welcome innovation, even if the animated lyrics felt laughably redundant.
Nevertheless, there was a steady stream of revellers heading for the exit after the bells, betraying the fact that this bitterly cold evening never quite caught fire. Nutini's These Streets and supporting rockers Idlewild's You Held the World in Your Arms might reasonably have been expected to prompt the sort of sustained arm- swaying and rabble-rousing demanded by such an occasion. Yet the former especially was delivered in such a modestly low-key manner by the Paisley-born troubadour that perhaps a little more gauche grandstanding was in order. Not that the 21-year-old, bluesily husking up his versatile voice and carousing like a shambling scarecrow, didn't put his heart and soul into a compelling performance, showcasing raw cuts from his forthcoming second album. But in terms of connecting with the huddled masses, unsigned Falkirk rookies The Ray Summers, plucked to open the gig by public vote, rather stole his thunder.
Granted, their ska-infused sound appeals more in what it recalls than any intrinsic quality of its own, but singer Andy Ure has a Gruff Rhys-like presence and songs like The Shepherd are damnably catchy. After their recent five-night residency at King Tuts, Idlewild turned up looking like they meant business, beginning with Love Steals Us From Loneliness, singer Roddy Woomble's forlorn vocals plaintively distilling the deepening chill in the air. The insistent Little Discourage animated the audience somewhat, but a perfunctory support slot doesn't suit the panoramic sweep of Idlewild's material and a disappointingly listless In Remote Part/Scottish Fiction closed an underwhelming set.
Nutini fared better, with new track Candy a quirky, lusty number that looks set to be a hit and Simple Things ultimately turned into a lively hoedown before Jenny Don't Be Hasty finished his set on a high. Sporting outlandish blonde wigs to a man and led by the kittenish "Dirty Harry", Blondie-support act Bleachie then rocked the remaining crowd capably into 2009.
The full article contains 413 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
