The first time I heard Glasvegas the Scottish foursome whose name, if you hadnt already surmised, is a cross between Glasgow and Las Vegas they reminded me of another widely lauded (yet all-but-forgotten) U.K. band, the Doves. Like that group, Glasvegas crafts rock of the stately, brooding, epic, cinematic variety, with a taste for gray-sky melodies and an ear for Phil Spector-style wall of sound production. Singer James Allan comes from the Bono school of over-emotive crooning, but its not really a deal breaker. The band actually gets compared more to the Jesus and Mary Chain than U2 probably because early champion Alan McGee (the Creation Records founder and one-time Jesus and Mary Chain manager) compared them to J&MC and everyone else ran with it but I dont really hear it. Theyre far more refined. Glasvegass self-titled debut album, which came out just a few months ago, is all the rage in England. And deservedly so. Who knows about the bands staying power, though Id catch them now, before they fly away never to be heard from again. Like the Doves.
Sat., Jan. 10, 8 p.m., 2009
