Ed of the queue

EDITORS, Barrowland, Glasgow

THE fizzing synthesiser sound - part Blade Runner, part Eraserhead - is swelling to fill the whole venue.

Centre stage, Editors frontman Tom Smith quickly reassembles the words to In This Light And On This Evening.

"Glasgow's become the most beautiful thing I've seen," he sings in a voice that's as deep and dark as an ocean floor.

For at least a full second, the crowd's roar threatens to drown out the band themselves.

And suddenly drums, guitar and bass burst in and the roof of this legendary venue is in danger of being blown off completely.

For anyone who was in doubt, tonight's extraordinary show proves once and for all that Editors are heading for U2- style superstardom,

In a set built around songs from the brilliant new In This Light And On This Evening album - which is set to top today's chart - plus hits like Munich, Bullets and Blood, they continually prove they've got what it takes to be indie's first stadium-fillers.

Electrifying versions of Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors, new single Papillon and fan favourite You Are Fading made a great gig, exceptional.

"See you next year," says Tom when it's all over. Pity we'll have to wait so long.

JAMES DOUGLAS

PAOLO NUTINI, O2 Academy, Glasgow

THE success of his stunning Sunny Side Up album has made him the hottest star in Britain right now.

But judging by the sweltering conditions inside the packed-to-the-rafters Academy, Paolo Nutini isn't just raising temperatures on the charts.

Not since the Arctic Monkeys played here at the peak of their debut album hysteria, has an act come close to matching the incredible reception that the 22-year-old from Paisley gets when he arrives onstage.

The noise is so intense the walls seem to shake and - predictably - the temperature climbs another few notches.

No need then for the electric fire that he's got onstage with him.

Two days earlier, at his intimate Rock Against Racism gig at St Bride's in Edinburgh, Paolo was on dynamite form, delivering rapturously received acoustic versions of favourites like Alloway Grove and New Shoes,

At the Academy, the electric guitars are plugged in and, with a band that swells to a ten-piece at one point, he's ready to rock.

Opening with the raucous ska of 10/10, he unveils a perfectly- pitched set that's a mix of his 2.2-million-selling debut These Streets and the new record.

And while there are plenty of great musicians onstage - including genius guitarist Donny Little, who delivers some astonishing playing throughout - the up-for-it crowd join in with gusto.

When trumpeter Gavin Fitzjohn lets rip on High Hopes, for instance, the place erupts with a gale of cheers and whistles. And when Donny unleashes an incredible, otherworldly solo during a sensational version of Candy, it's to a backdrop of yells and whoops.

Great as the band are though - and make no mistake, they're WORLD class - over it all is that supernatural voice.

On the spine-tingling Growing Up Beside You, Paolo veers close to the Celtic soul of a young Van Morrison before conjuring up Every Picture Tells A Story period Rod Stewart on Sleepwalking.

He's on devastating form on first album hits like These Streets, Last Request and Loving You too, his vocals soaring and swooping over those trademark guitar parts. There's even a stunning version of Love's classic Sixties psychedelic hit Alone Again Or.

But really it's all about Sunny Side Up - an album of stunning quality and class. And when he breezes through the Louis Prima homage of Pencil Full Of Lead, you can't help but see he'll be drawing bigger crowds in years to come.

TIM BARR

FRANZ FERDINAND, Ironworks, Inverness

SQUEEZED into every corner of this 1,000-capacity venue, the Franz faithful are treated to something special from the moment the band crank up the opening riff of Do You Want To until the last dying moments of feedback from climactic set closer Lucid Dreams.

"It's f****** magic to see you all again," grins frontman Alex Kapranos, who's looking remarkably cheery for a man who's set to be on the road - through gigs in Japan, Russia and Brazil - for the next five months.

The set draws equally from each of their three albums with the likes of What She Came For and No You Girls sitting neatly next to old favourites like Michael and Walk Away. Take Me Out - down on the setlist, in a strange nod to Macbeth, as "the Scottish song" - is, like all the rest, delivered with raw energy and split-second timing.

This Fire, Matinee and Tonight LP standout Turn It On are cracking but, as a reward for their incredible reception, the crowd are treated to a live version of Franz's LCD Soundsystem cover All My Friends. It's a brilliant mix of Franz's floor-filling pop and LCD's electro melodies.

If they're on this kind of form at the tour's start, the end will be incredible.

PAUL CAMPBELL

ECHO AND THE BUNNYMEN. Barrowland, Glasgow

BILLOWING clouds of dry ice, long black overcoats, Ian McCulloch's perma-scowl . . . the more times change, the more the Bunnymen remain the same.

New album The Fountain, out this week, is a return to the form of the Liverpool legends' 1980s heyday - though tonight the set focuses on luminous classics like Rescue, The Back Of Love, and the jangly euphoria of Bring On The Dancing Horses.

The highlight comes when Glasvegas star James Allan duets with Mac on A Promise. At the end, he crouches before the band in an "I'm not worthy" salute. It's a reminder that their magic is still special.

BARRY NICOLSON

THE NOISETTES, ABC Glasgow

ONE-woman whirlwind Shingai Shoniwa outshines the ABC's giant mirrorball with a high-energy performance that proves she's got star quality in spades.

A natural extrovert, with a super-smooth soul voice, she belts through crowd-pleasers like Don't Upset The Rhythm, Wild Young Hearts and, standing on drummer Jamie Morrison's kit, Saturday Night.

The London three-piece spring a couple of surprise covers, including Killers classic When You Were Young and T-Rex's Children Of The Revolution but the overall highlight has to be heart-tugging ballad Atticus. It's sung by Shingai, not from the stage, but while she's balanced precariously on the ledge of the first floor balcony. Spectacular stuff.

ELLIE CADDELL

THE MACCABEES, ABC Glasgow

"IT'S nice to see so many smiling faces in here," grins guitarist Felix White as the Brighton-based five- piece - tonight augmented by a brass section - bring their Wall Of Arms tour north.

They kick off their set with the brooding indie of the new record's No Kind Words before unleashing ALL of 2007's Colour It In debut. The infectious energy of old faves like X-Ray, Lego and the mainstream- stroking Toothpaste Kisses proves irresistible.

Frontman Orlando Weeks has a superb voice and it's showcased perfectly on the jagged pop of Can You GIve It. When it all ends, with an ace Love You Better, the smiles are even bigger than when we started.

ANDREW CURRIE

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