Clinic, Stereo, Glasgow

Photo: Michael Gallacher
In a musical universe where, instead of Elvis, the Beatles or the Stones, the brightest shining stars are Bo Diddley, Kraftwerk and Sun Ra, Liverpudlian quartet Clinic find their orbit. Since their first EP in 1999, Clinic have established their own paradigm and finely honed their singular sound.

Support band Mugstar, who must be depriving at least one Geology department of their PhDs for the evening, register a high score on the Hawkwind scale and provide an introductory dose of drone and rhythmic noise. Green-lit dry ice like a cloud of poison gas envelops the room and the lively crowd greet Clinic’s trademark surgeon’s scrubs and masks as if there’s nothing remotely sinister about them.

You, from seventh LP Free Reign, dispenses with drums in favour of programming but retains a time-honoured melodica riff. Hypnotic, metronomic, absorbing, at times downright Dadaist, Clinic can turn their hands to almost any genre and still sound distinctly themselves. A rockabilly cover, ‘Tough Love’, breaks this concentration with an injection of loud energy.

‘King Kong’ pits urgent keyboards and sci-fi noises up against bongos and more drum machine – the newer stuff has less of the tom tom drums which were in danger of becoming a cliche in their sound.

“IPC”, says frontman Ade Blackburn, his interjections polite yet minimal from behind his torn mask. He’s referring to debut single ‘IPC Subeditors Dictate Our Youth’ – wherein Clinic’s template was established early on – clever titles, heavy beats and enigmatic vocals.

‘Lion Tamer’ has the detachment of Wire and the weirdness of Devo. Within the space of a few songs they’ve invoked trip hop, heavy psych, baggy, surf and happy hardcore, all without ever really sounding like anything other than 100% Clinic.

The pithy ‘Seamless Boogie Woogie, BBC2 10pm (rot)’ highlights Free Reign as something of a renaissance for the band. ‘See Saw’’s clarinet and heavy swirl of 1970s jazz inspires jerky dancing in the now sweaty crowd. ‘Evil Bill’’s familiar melodica intro is a blast from the past, between other tracks which include ‘The Second Line’ and ‘Walking With Thee’. There is nothing extraneous, all is musically lean and creatively sharp. For all their strange trips, stylistic ticks and rhythmic repetition, Clinic never become self indulgent and remain one of the most peculiarly distinctive bands around.