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The life of a support band is not an easy one, especially on the second division indie circuit. They generally consist of some dismal fourth division no-marks who've been roped in to doing the tour because of being mates with the headliners. Which makes it all the more enjoyable when you arrive at a venue like the Roscoe on a Sunday night to be greeted by a support band who are actually quite good. Step forward the Grim Northern Social who take the weird muscial landscapes of the Cooper Temple Clause, a touch of Gay Dad's "lying in the gutter looking at the stars" dreaminess and Arab Strap's piss 'n' vinegar but secretly tender world view and mash the results into something genuinely exciting as evidenced on the likes of "Clash Of The Social Titans" and the excellent Supergrass-style closer "My Favourite Girl". Occasionally they veer into lo-fi unambitiousness as on the dull "Nothing's Impossible" but overall, a pleasant surprise indeed.
This could've spelt trouble for the Cosmic Rough Riders but if anything, tonight shows everyone's favourite group of Teenage Fanclub wannabes progressing along very nicely. The departure of singer Daniel Wylie has seen the group attain a much tighter sound under new frontman Stephen Fleming and lose a lot of the Syd Barrett-style psychedelic whimsy which was holding them back a bit before. Unsung hero of the night is drummer Mark Brown who smashes his kit like an octopus on speed and adds some much-needed backbone to the group's repertoire. Hence the old songs they play tonight ("The Pain Inside", "Glastonbury Revisited", "This Gun Isn't Loaded") sound much more streamlined and direct than before and are much better for it while the new stuff ("Justify The Rain", "Because You", "For A Smile", "Now That You Know") sounds near-as-dammit perfect, the sort of songs you always wanted groups like Teenage Fanclub to write but they never quite did.
With a fourth Top 40 hit under their belts, it seems that the Cosmics are still very much out there and still one of Britain's most under-rated bands. If they continue improving at this rate then the next tour really should be worth waiting for.
Reviewed by Andy James
