Gut Reactions (post-gig memories and other trips): The Real People, Drygate, Glasgow. Saturday 19th October, 2024

Two brothers reform their band, which split during the 90s, and tour. Sound familiar?

No, it's not Oasis playing Drygate in Glasgow at £18.50 a ticket (there is no greedy dynamic pricing for this gig). These guys are from Liverpool, but they did play a part in making the Oasis boys the superstars they became.

I was apprehensive about attending this gig. The RAF roundel, in their name, suggested 'mod' music, which was reinforced by the clothes the band wore on the poster. I have a history there going back to a Saxon gig in the eighties where a gang of mods came looking for trouble outside the Apollo and chased a group of us down to the Savoy Centre in Sauchiehall Street, resulting in one of us needing hospital attention. This tarnished my view of the whole mod musical scene with their Adidas/ Fred Perry T-shirts, posh clobber and fancy sideburns.

I'm sitting upstairs in Drygate. The room where the band is due to play is empty because all the fans are in the bar. A superfan is holding court at the bench table next to mine when one of the brothers appears. Warmly greeting the superfan, he gets introduced to everyone at the table. It's a lovely moment to witness one of the originals saying hello. It sets the friendly tone for the evening. I begin to relax.

Hardly anyone comes through to see the support act, The Belugas. From their accents, the band sounds local. The lead singer has more charisma than the rest of the band combined. The guitarist and bassist look nervous, like it's a school concert and they need to concentrate on playing. Either that or they don't understand that they need to sell their performance to win the crowd's time investment. Overall, much like caviar, the Belugas were not to my taste. They were lacklustre.

The sparse crowd grows substantially by the time The Real People take the stage—not that it's busy. The venue seems bigger than necessary for the size of the crowd. Initially, it was scheduled to take place at Broadcast, but that Glasgow venue closed due to flooding. I take up a position close to the front. A core group of fans are ahead of me, but my view is still clear. One notable lady, clutching her 7" vinyl and T-shirt, busts her moves directly in front of the band. Another in a Barcelona sports jacket dances like she has Tourettes, all spiky moves and leg jerks. I wonder if this is how mods dance.

The band is excellent. With the two brothers on dual vocal duties, the rhythm section providing a solid, driving beat, and the two young guitarist and keyboard players giving it their all, the band produces a tight, powerful sound. I have no prior knowledge of their songs, but I enjoy them nonetheless. It is easy to hear where Oasis took their influence (need I remind you, this band predates Oasis).

They play for a solid hour and a quarter and finish bang at 10 p.m. The crowd doesn't disperse, expecting an encore, but the band don't return. The lack of change in the audience lighting doesn't help matters (the fairy lights, strung across the entire ceiling, were not switched off during the performance). Eventually, they realise the show is over and depart.

I really enjoyed The Real People, much to my relief and surprise. Worth checking out.

Setlist