TENEMENT TRAIL is over for another year and it’s fair to say that the tenth edition will surely do down as one of the best in the festival’s storied history. Music fans turned out in their droves on Saturday 12th October for Scotland’s biggest and best music festival of discovery and a line-up that was bustling with talent from the very first note.
Fifty acts performed across nine venues at the special tenth edition, as we once again took over some of the nation’s best-loved venues such as the world-famous Barrowlands, Saint Luke’s and the stunning Barras Art and Design.
And with a line-up brimming with local talent as well as a vast array of hotly-tipped prospects from further afield, Glasgow’s East End was definitely the place to be on Saturday as it was brought to life by the festival’s famous atmosphere and spirit. Every venue was packed from the off as thousands of festival-goers withstood the showers and dashed from gig to gig in the hope of discovering their new favourite band or artist.
So, with plenty of memorable moments scattered throughout the day, let’s look back on some of the highlights of Tenement Trail 2024, from us and you…
Our first bands of the day kicked off proceedings at 2pm; Scotstown Dance Band played to a full capacity room at Van Winkle – bringing their folk anthems all the way from Sunart in the Highlands, complete with rousing accordion and their Ardnamurchan Camanachd shinty tops.
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Elsewhere, BBC Introducing took over Barrowlands 2 with a stacked lineup of fresh talent One of the most well-attended sets of the day came from the newly minted YESANDMAYBE who won over a lot of new fans with their big pop anthems. Think The Killers, The Strokes and even Phoenix and MGMT – these guys are destined for big things.
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Over at The Winged Ox, Irvine singer-songwriter made a strong impression in front of a packed room.
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Emerging from the studio for her first live solo performance, Amelia Sinclair Kidd (formerly of The Ninth Wave) hypnotised a busy crowd at St Lukes. Known as SIN_CLAIR, she commanded the stage with an ethereal confidence – merging soaring harmonies with industrial drum machines and hypnotic piano lines to great effect. Holding the room to a standstill with stunning songs that took influence from Burial, The Horrors, Bjork and Yves Tumor, we can’t wait to see what comes next.
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Following some indie-pop gems from the brilliant Former Champ at BAaD, the Barrowlands played host to a number of exciting bands, like Majesty Palm who brought their alluring electro-pop to the iconic stage.
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We also brought back secret sets to this year’s lineup – bringing four acoustic sets to The Gate. The buzzy cocktail bar proved the perfect hideaway from the main stretch of the festival – hosting the likes of Slix, Parliamo, Bottle Rockets and The Zebecks who performed a mix of acoustic covers and original material.
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Later in the day, Gourock five-piece Slix dropped the acoustic guitar and plugged back , delivering a high-energy set at the Barrowlands. Warming the crowd up before Overpass and Declan Welsh & The Decadent West, they performed one infectious anthem after another with gusto, looking right at home on the iconic stage. It’s clear to see why they’ve started to make waves well beyond the confines of their hometown.
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At the same time, Van Winkle was being transformed into a club for half an hour with the bold, hard-hitting sounds of Roller Disco Death Party. Having just released their new single ‘Keep The Balance’, they were in scintillating form – Neal McHarg’s pulsing synths bolstered by Amelia Boyle’s pounding live drums. And while the room quickly reached capacity, the sound could barely be contained in those four walls – quickly becoming a big highlight the day for many.
Over at BAaD, The Era made their TRAIL debut with a strong set of moody, brooding numbers – elevated by their iconic Celtic clasarch. Meanwhile Dutch Wine absolutely packed out Barrowlands 2 as part of our BBC Introducing collab. The band have gathered a strong cult following in the last couple of years that’s only getting bigger. They’re a formidable live act – brimming with a raw, potent energy that really comes to life in the venue – while the addition of Lou Mackey adds an exciting new dynamic to their sound.
Over at St Lukes, the brilliant Parliamo set the main stage alight while Lacuna showed their live prowess in the Winged Ox. Edinburgh singer-songwriter Samuel Nicholson is no stranger to captivating small venues – but his confessional songs felt just at home in BAaD, at times pensive, haunting and dark, and others large and absolutely epic.
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Neon Waltz have always been an accomplished live act – and they were in fine form at St Lukes, performing material from their 2017 debut album ‘Strange Hymns’ and the more recent ‘Honey Now’. The renovated church proved the ideal location for their rousing anthems, each song expertly built up and Jordan Shearer leading each sermon with a relaxed confidence. Tracks like ‘Heavy Heartless’ and ‘Dreamers’ are every bit as heartfelt and impactful as they were when they were first released, with the latter in particular met with boundless enthusiasm.
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As we marked the festival’s tenth year, it was only fitting that our headliner was Declan Welsh & The Decadent West – a band we’ve supported since their very formative years. Since first making his TRAIL debut as a solo artist back in 2014, Welsh and his band have appeared at the festival numerous times over the years – rising through the ranks to become a bonafide headliner. Of course, they headlined the Barras last year, but this was their biggest TRAIL moment to date – and an iconic moment that will live long in the memory. On this occasion, he brought with him a cohort of musicians and backing vocalists to fill the stage, and with a strong and lengthy songbook to pull from now, including two albums and multiple EPs, it made for an electrifying set.
It was a set filled with rousing singalongs, innovative musicianship and emotive rallying cries – his impassioned words on the ongoing atrocities in Palestine striking a powerful chord with the crowd. An artist who continuously uses his platform to raise awareness, his latest single ‘Inaction’ is a direct response to the continued inaction of our politicians, media and general citizens – and it was met with a fervent responses just a day after its release.
Shifting from the potent indie bangers from his debut to the more introspective, brooding and at times blissfully hazy sounds of his second album ‘2’. Highlights included rapper Paque joining him for a fun, high-energy version of ‘Aw The Time’, while the brilliant ‘Times’ ignited mass love-ins across the room. It was a festival-headlining set in every sense.
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The music wasn’t done there though. Before the BBC Introducing Scottish Act of the Year Bottle Rockets took on our infamous midnight slot over at McChuills, VLURE unleashedpure chaos over at Barras Art and Design in a set that will surely go down as one of the best in the festival’s rich and storied history. The Glasgow outfit pulled absolutely no punches for their long-awaited hometown show – delivering a set that was visually spectacular as it was sonically. Hamish Hutcheson’s vocals boomed over the fervent crowd, the band’s heady cocktail of post-punk, proto-techno and industrial-tinged 90s rave incitingpure mania and a delirium of sweaty bodies. There aren’t many live bands out there like VLURE and they brought it home in absolutely riotous fashion – pulsing with pure hedonism and irresistible hooks. Unreal scenes.
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And just like that, Trail was done for another year. We’ll be back next year on Saturday 11th October, with early bird tickets on sale here.
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