LIVE REVIEW: Delain @ The Garage, Glasgow
DELAIN are still in damage-control mode following band-leader Martijn Westerholt’s decision to dismiss the rest of the band in 2021. Since then, he’s pieced DELAIN back together with friends old and new, most notably Diana Leah who takes over vocal duties from breakout star Charlotte Wessels. This is Glasgow’s first chance to see DELAIN 2.0 as they set off on a UK jaunt in celebration of new EP, Dance With The Devil.
Up first is DAMIAN WILSON, who we miss due to some logistical issues at the venue, but who we later discover gave out chocolate coins during his set. He also appears by the door at the end of the evening to personally thank everyone who showed up. He comes away from the night in everyone’s good graces, even if we unfortunately missed his set.
STONE BROKEN are equally pleasant in their own way. There’s something comforting about their nuts-and-bolts rock ’n’ roll; you know where you are with them and you like where it is. On the night, it’s music to clap along to rather than lose your mind, but in the right room their riffs are meaty enough to get the party started.
Frontman Rich Moss jokes about being told he talks too much, but it’s the right attitude to win over a diverse crowd who are charmed by his friendliness and his rock-radio-ready voice, which brings to mind Grant Nicholas of FEEDER.
Decked out in checkered shirts and backwards caps, they are the opposite of the headliners’ pomp, but as seasoned pros of the UK live circuit, they are a tight unit. New song Remedy goes down a treat and, like the rest of their set, owes a certain debt to American mainstream metal with its blend of hard-hitting guitars and instantly memorable choruses. A safe pair of hands with the professionalism to get rooms of any size moving.
Rating: 7/10
Lit by LEDs from their keys, drums and mic stand, and dressed to the nines in blood-red outfits complementing Dance With The Devil’s artwork, DELAIN bring the glam to a Friday night in Glasgow. They’re met with a rapturous reception, a reaffirmation of Westerholt’s decision to keep going after an ambiguous parting of ways. Each applause, from a crowd of all ages, is akin to a welcome. It’s all an enthusiastic endorsement for this new line-up to pick up the ball and run with it.
The band journey through all eras of DELAIN, from their debut’s The Gathering to live premieres of The Reaping and Dance With The Devil. Crowdpleasers Suckerpunch and We Are The Others receive the same rapturous reception as always, and are met with relief these songs live on, faithfully reproduced by Diana Leah.
It’s not flawless. Having Leah so low in the mix is a problem when DELAIN’s strongest asset is their vocal hooks. What can be made out sounds as if she is game to make these songs her own, but the band need to trust her to take centre stage and make it her own. Their confidence in her will be the difference between this iteration of the band feeling like a legacy act covering old material and the start of something bigger and bolder. Songs like Your Body Is A Battleground still hit hard, musically and lyrically, and with any luck there will be more of this quality in DELAIN’s future.
But for now, it is enough to have them and their songs back. New hits like The Quest And The Curse are greeted like old friends, and classics like Get The Devil Out Of Me are too good to let lie. If this album-and-EP cycle is about reassuring fans, then based on tonight’s reaction, they have knocked it out of the park.
Rating: 7/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Glasgow from Duncan McCall here:
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