As most of Glasgow gather at the green for the annual November 5th fireworks display, a smaller crowd has gathered in The Garage for a very different sort of explosive display. Tonight being the fifth Glasgow Dillinger show in five years, it’s unlikely that this is many of tonight’s attendees first time experiencing the spectacle of the band live, and I can’t imagine many of them are disappointed at missing the fireworks. New Jersey legends Dillinger Escape Plan are notoriously ferocious live and, straight off the back of their 2013 album One Of Us Is The Killer, tonight was never going to be a disappointment for fans of the band.
Before the headliners we are treated to a fantastic performance from London based instrumental noise-rock trio Three Trapped Tigers, making their first visit to Glasgow since their triumphant performance supporting Deftones in February of this year. The group take to the stage and effortlessly crank out a selection of songs from their last album Numbers: 1-13, as well as a selection of obscure early career tracks and cuts from their upcoming album. It didn’t seem to matter whether the crowd knew the songs or not as by the end of the set everyone was very much in the groove. They won’t have any problems selling tickets when they get around to playing that headline show they keep promising us.
But then comes the moment everyone has been waiting for; the lights go down in the packed Garage and the crowd are left to stare into a darkened stage with two video screens flickering images of the band’s latest album cover with the occasional aggressive flash of strobe lights. The room continue to stare at this as a solo piano track gradually loudens and the tension in the room slowly builds. After a slightly ambitiously long introduction the math legends finally take to the stage led by Infamous frontman Greg Puciato and begin their seventeen song set featuring tracks from across their 16 year career. The sheer ferocity of the band’s live show is rivalled by none, as they fly around the stage, guitars swinging, bathed in the glow from a wall of strobe lights as the video screens flicker on and off in time with the music, showing an array of bizarre images and clips which some keen-eyed punters could identify as being from a variety of cult movies. As usual in the band’s live show, the stage is not big enough for Puciato and guitarist Ben Weinman, as they decide to enter the crowd, Weinman walking on the shoulders of the crowd without missing a note and, after instigating a rather large circle pit, Puciato decided to jump in himself, increasing the frenzy.
The band end their set but leave the crowd demanding more, and moments later the 5 piece return to the stage with a cover of the Aphex Twin classic Come To Daddy before bursting into fan favorite 43% Burnt, during this final song we see the large front man scale the Garage’s balcony before flying off into the hands of the crowd.
The Dillinger Escape Plan might not to be everyone’s taste musically, in fact some people might find their music down right terrifying. Regardless, you will be hard pressed to find any band out there put more into their live show and although I didn’t catch this year’s firework display, I am willing to bet it was tame by comparison to what was on offer in the Garage this November 5th.
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