Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh
3 stars
“This is mental, man,” says Tommy Reilly after a packed club has just sang along to every word of Gimme A Call, the song that captured everybody’s heart on Sunday afternoon TV talent show Orange Unsigned Act. He’s not wrong. Six months ago, Reilly was slogging it out on the Glasgow open mic circuit. Today, he not only made posh boy Blur bassist Alex James cry en route to victory, he’s also got himself a record contract and is finding extra nights being added to a sold out tour of Scotland and beyond.
The appeal is simple. Reilly is a lovelorn singer/songwriter who sounds as vulnerable as they come and looks like a rabbit blinking into the headlights of some particularly terrifying vehicle. The last time someone left themselves so emotionally exposed in a Scots accent was when Aidan Moffat embarked on his Arab Strap adventure. Reilly manages it without the dirty bits, and beyond the puppy dog geekyness has a common touch that transcends his glaikit demeanour.
When he plays piano, Reilly sounds like some raw hybrid of Billy Joel and The Waterboys Mike Scott. The fact that he means every word is one thing, but you really hope that through all his endeavours he finally gets the girl. He may still be coming to terms with the live thing, but for now, Reilly is a phenomenon. The trick now is to see whether he lasts beyond this initial five minutes of fame. On this showing, it looks like Gimme A Call could become as anthemic as The Proclaimers Letter To America. Now that really would be mental.
The Herald, March 3rd 2009
ends
3 stars
“This is mental, man,” says Tommy Reilly after a packed club has just sang along to every word of Gimme A Call, the song that captured everybody’s heart on Sunday afternoon TV talent show Orange Unsigned Act. He’s not wrong. Six months ago, Reilly was slogging it out on the Glasgow open mic circuit. Today, he not only made posh boy Blur bassist Alex James cry en route to victory, he’s also got himself a record contract and is finding extra nights being added to a sold out tour of Scotland and beyond.
The appeal is simple. Reilly is a lovelorn singer/songwriter who sounds as vulnerable as they come and looks like a rabbit blinking into the headlights of some particularly terrifying vehicle. The last time someone left themselves so emotionally exposed in a Scots accent was when Aidan Moffat embarked on his Arab Strap adventure. Reilly manages it without the dirty bits, and beyond the puppy dog geekyness has a common touch that transcends his glaikit demeanour.
When he plays piano, Reilly sounds like some raw hybrid of Billy Joel and The Waterboys Mike Scott. The fact that he means every word is one thing, but you really hope that through all his endeavours he finally gets the girl. He may still be coming to terms with the live thing, but for now, Reilly is a phenomenon. The trick now is to see whether he lasts beyond this initial five minutes of fame. On this showing, it looks like Gimme A Call could become as anthemic as The Proclaimers Letter To America. Now that really would be mental.
The Herald, March 3rd 2009
ends
Comments