Mick Hargan and the Proposition / Maeve O'Boyle

Photo © David Taylor

The Mill, Oran Mor, Glasgow.
Thursday 4th June 2009.

Every alternate Thursday, Oran Mor, an old converted church at the top of Byers Road, in the heart of Glasgows West End, becomes The Mill. This is where a leading Beer brand take over the downstairs venue and offer up and coming bands the chance to showcase their sound. The tickets are free, although you are required to provide them with a mobile number when you text for the tickets in advance. It seems like a good deal, the bands get a chance to play to a crowd, the services of a photographer and a couple of numbers recorded for exposure on The Mill website, the crowd get the chance to see the cream of new music free of charge, the only downside is the lack of choice in the beer department, but for a night of free music, you can't complain too loudly.

I headed down on the 4th June, primarily to see Mick Hargan and his band The Proposition. Mick Hargan has been part of the Glasgow music scene for a number of years and already has an acclaimed debut album "Conversations Between Us" to his name as well as appearances at many festivals and has played alongside such bands as The Frames, Aberfeldy and The Stranglers.

Photo © David Taylor

The first act on was Glasgow based singer/songwriter Maeve O'Boyle and her band. I hadn't seen Maeve prior to the show, but had read good reviews. She played a good solid set, performing songs from her upcoming album "All My Sins", produced by Blue Nile producer Calum Malcolm, including the current single "Carnival Attraction", her debut single, "Swimming Upstream", and the heartfelt story of breakup "Romeo" . I really enjoyed the set, as did another fan/admirer who presented Maeve with a bunch of flowers midway through. With friends and co-writers including Ricky Ross, Gordon Goudie and Francis MacDonald, I think we can look forward to hearing more from Maeve O'Boyle.

www.myspace.com/maeveoboyle
www.maeveoboyle.com

Photo © David Taylor

Mick Hargan is known for the variety of his shows, he can play solo with an acoustic guitar or with any number of musicians, and no two gigs are ever the same. For this gig, he played with his band, The Proposition, who provide a harder, rockier sound than that heard on his debut album. The band came onto the smoke filled stage and kicked off with "Beautiful You" and "Magic Sponge", starting at quite a tempo, slowing down a bit for "Mercy Me" the song featured in the movie "Descansos", the set continued apace and included, amongst others "Remedy" from "Conversations Between Us" and the forthcoming single "Adulation". Mick and the band were then joined on stage by Glasgow Blues guitarist Dave Arcari for a version of Johnny Cash's "Cocaine Blues", this was a great cover with Arcari covering almost every inch of the stage. The set ended with Mick playing solo for the track "Found".

www.myspace.com/mhargan

With The Mill being a weekly occurence, it would be easy for the quality to suffer, but on the evidence of this gig, with two quality acts, this will be a night that can run and run.

David Taylor