Pere Ubu, Mono, Glasgow

Photo: Michael Gallacher
In keeping with their long-established abstruse persona, tonight’s Pere Ubu show in Glasgow is unsettling and hilarious in equal measure.

Bandleader and founding member David Thomas is one of rock music’s great eccentrics and as a stage presence, he is always compelling. Whether it’s prowling the stage while berating his band for any mis-steps or sitting back in a hard backed chair glowering at the crowd he is the prime focal point.

At times tonight’s gig resembles a stand up comedy set as Thomas, clad in a bright red hat, goes off on entertaining tangents spinning a flight of fancy about Pere Ubu actually being a multi-million selling stadium band who were, in his words, “bigger than rice pudding.” He’s the conductor warping the audience’s mind: “Everyone in this room is dreaming, I’m the only one that’s awake,” he states mysteriously.

For all this weirdness, there are still thrills to be had. Opener ‘Love Love Love’ is among the band’s most direct songs and is shot through with abandon, much to the crowd’s delight. Elsewhere, stunning post punk classics like 1976’s ‘The Modern Dance’ are speckled throughout. Much of tonight’s set though is drawn from this year’s ‘Lady From Shanghai’ LP. Its off-kilter ramblings come off well in a live setting, the band’s dynamic line up aided by electronic wizard Gagarin give songs like ‘Thanks’ a menacing tension.

Thomas’ rants and ramblings become ever more elongated as the show progresses. There is a wonderfully delicious moment of irony just after he announces the song ‘Musicians Are Scum’ when drummer Steve has to bashfully shout out to borrow the support band’s snare drum after breaking his. Perhaps, not quite all musicians are so bad.

Not all of this gig succeeds, a few of the songs are prone to drifting aimlessly but when the band is as special as Pere Ubu, no one really bothers too much about self-indulgence. Tonight’s show is a special evening in the company of a man and his band who are still wilfully oblique.