SUPERORGANISM: Live in Glasgow's SWG3 (20/10/18)

I will admit, when it comes to talking about seeing Superorganism live, I am not the most impartial person to ask.

Superorganism, if you haven’t yet heard their effortlessly catchy, “Everybody Wants to be Famous“, are an eight piece band. They currently live together in a shared house in London, and their approach to everything – including their songs – is wonderfully eclectic.

I have been following Superorganism’s self-described, “DIY pop production house” blend of music pretty much since the beginning, after a friend linked me the amazingly weird music video for their debut single, “Something for Your MIND”.

Since then, I have eagerly tracked each new release of their music, and seen them live in concert a total of three times. The first being October 2017 in London’s Village Underground, and the most recent being this week, in Glasgow’s SWG3 TV Studio.

The venue itself - the Warehouse in SWG3 - was a really good size for a still emerging band such as Superorganism. At around 450 people, it was full without being uncomfortable. While the audience was primarily made up of people around my age, in their twenties, there were a few older faces in the crowd as well. Although, this didn't surprise me too much; Superorganism have a catchy style of music, and my own mother saw them live back home in Belfast.

The opening act, Chai, were a fantastic mash-up of genres that played fantastically off Superorganism’s own eclectic style. They were fun, with their matching outfits and choreography making the performance really noteworthy. It can be difficult to envision an appropriate opening act for Superorganism, as they're such a strange mesh of sounds - and yet Chai managed to perfectly fill the opening.

Superorganism themselves were, as always, effortlessly cool. Their thrifted clothes and large numbers mean that they fill the stage in a very visually powerful way. This image is further enhanced by the moving projections that play on the wall behind them, correlating with each song.

The overall effect of this means that Superorganism live shows tend to feel more like an expierence than a concert; closer to something you'd see in the Tate Modern than SWG3. It’s something which I believe truly sets them apart; not many other bands filling the same size venues succeed at this level of sheer charismatic performance.

Lead singer Orono was completely on form, confidence clear in the way she carried herself. Her banter with the crowd was funny and charming, [“You know what a weaboo is? Well I’m like that but for Scottish people.”] The whole time she was on stage, she felt very present and aware of her audience and performance. It allowed the concert to have a personal feel, more like you were both sharing the time together, rather than it just being another location on tour.

I will say, I feel that the sheer dramatics of their arrival was somewhat lacking this tour compared to the previous times I’ve seen them. While it was still powerful, I felt it didn’t quite hold up to their strongly established standards. However, I do think that their reshuffle of the set was done well, and it allowed each song to compliment the next better, making the overall music heightened and more enjoyable.

As always, Superorganism’s set drew to a close quickly. The only real critique I have of their live performances is that they just don’t have enough material yet to truly pad the run time that they need, and so I, and their other fans, are left wanting more.

One thing is certain though - I'll still be checking Spotify frequently, eagerly awaiting what new mix of sounds and feelings they smash together next!