Declan Welsh & The Decadent West - Live
SWG3
Monday, 22nd November 2021
After what seemed an eternity, I managed to get along to my first gig since March 2020. In a near perfect moment of symmetry from our last “Pre-Covid” gig my daughter & I retraced the walk from Partick train station to the SWG3 campus hidden behind the railway arches that run along the north side of the Clydeside expressway. It had been a long 620 day wait since our last concert together, so even on a cold Monday night in late November a live set from Declan Welsh & The Decadent West was definitely one that we were looking forward to.
With the lights dimmed & the level of anticipation rising, Declan, Ben, Murray and Duncan strode on stage in front of a fully charged and expectant crowd. The Glaswegian indie rockers produced a flawless night of entertainment and passion as they seamlessly powered through tracks from their 2019 debut album Cheaply Bought, Expensively Sold as well as their EPs All My Dreams are Dull (2018) and It's Been a Year (2021).
Opening their set with No Fun the capacity crowd were rushing to the front to get involved in the party centre stage. From the energetic pogoing in front of the band to the synchronised dancing amongst friends near the back if the hall, everyone was caught up in the animated performance. From start to finish there was no let up in the synergy between the crowd and band.
Almost every song focuses your thoughts on everyday conversations and interactions that we tend to overlook, but Declan and the band shrewdly make the ordinary seem exceptional with an expressive dialogue that pierces both verse and chorus. Recent single Another One demonstrates impeccably how the group capture the mood and moment of the isolation we've all endured lately and the challenge of embracing each other again.
By the end of the night we had been treated to a hip-swaying and boisterous 16 song set which included Absurd, Times, Parisian Friends and Do What you Want. When the lights came up after the last song there was a healthy mix of young and old making their way to the exits, exhausted but positively buzzing.
The strength and depth within the Scottish music scene at the momient is nothing new, historically our wee country has produced some of the most iconic bands and songs across the decades. The new generation of artists galvanised by potent riffs and social commentary are lighting the path towards a return to live music for a voracious fan base. This was perfectly on show when Declan Welsh & the Decadent West wowed the sell-out crowd at SWG3.
