Photo Credit: Andy Ford
Green Lung’s live performances have been referred to as a masterclass in metal and we couldn’t agree more as the Glasgow Cathouse was at full capacity for this show. In fact most of the dates on this UK tour have sold out, which says a lot about how much this band’s music is respected.
After queuing for fifteen minutes we gained entry just as the first song from tonight’s support band Boss Keloid was finishing. The Wigan band have been on the metal scene for some time, forming in 2010. During this time the band’s line up has had several changes and currently are Alex Hurst (vocals), Paul Swarbrick (guitar), Liam Pendlebury-Green (bass) and Stephen Arands (drums). They are a prog rock/metal band and tried their best to get the crowd warmed up for the main act, but to be honest it was a very sleepy crowd at the Cathouse tonight with only a few people singing along with many also deciding to talk over the band’s performance. We thought their set was excellent though, as they worked through songs from their 2021 album release Family The Smiling Thrush. Hats The Mandrill and Chronosiam were the stand out tracks as guitarist Swarbrick and vocalist Hurst gave everything they had and their intensity during these songs was memorable. The band had released single Winehorse only two days previously and this was played for the first time live tonight. 7/10
The Cathouse was pretty packed out by the time Green Lung took to the stage and their set had a roaring start as the first guitar lines from The Forest Church were played by Scott Black as vocalist Tom Templar opened with the lyrics “Do you see the spire/Choked with briar and thorn/Do you hear us chanting/Our hymnal to the horns”. The crowd burst into life chanting the chorus back to the band as the room was electrified with emotion. Green Lung have a tradition of writing epic ballads lasting well over five minutes perhaps taking inspiration from bands such as Iron Maiden, and there are definitely Maiden influences in their music. The addition of John Wright adds depth to the sound with his organ/keyboard playing as can be heard from the opening notes of next track Maxine (Witch Queen). Both of those opening tracks are taken from their latest album release, their third album This Heathen Land, which landed on 3rd November and we would get to hear a few numbers from this album. In fact we would get to hear seven of the nine tracks from This Heathen Land, which is a good return for this first night of the ‘A Journey Into Occult Albion’ tour.
It’s hard to believe London band Green Lung were only formed in 2017, they play live like they have been around forever. During the encore they played Let The Devil In, a track from their debut album Woodland Rites in 2019, the Black Sabbath influence could be heard clearly which the band admit to having drawn inspiration from during their recording process. The band-crowd connection towards the end of the set was intense as everyone sang their hearts out knowing the night was coming to an end soon. Definitely a quieter night at the Cathouse with no circle pits or crowd surfing but the crowd still appreciated the two hours of music with Green Lung playing well over an hour long set. The band are heading out on a European tour in March and April 2024 and we would highly recommend seeing them. 9/10
Written By: Alan Brown
