A first last night - well, kind of. I entered what was once the lair of The Man - Ivory Blacks in Glasgow, which until a wee while ago, was one of the city's most notorious P2P venues (P2P means, essentially, the promoter gets the choice of your first-born should you take a show there).
This is maybe a tad unfair - the venue is shrouded in mystery, the previous owner who gave it its name, Robert Fields, apparently claims that it wasn't Pay to Play until after he sold it. certainly it's been synonymous with the ripping-off of young upcoming bands.
Under its new guise it seems to have taken steps to shake off its reputation. Mainly by booking touring acts more usually gracing the stages of the Note or Sleazys, but to be fair, it's filling a gap in the burgeoning live scene in a city which has seen any pub with a spare corner and a 13 amp socket get on the venue bandwagon.
There is one point which seems like a legacy of the previous management - a decidedly curious mix of bands. Not quite the folk / death metal/techno combinations you get from a promoter intent on throwing together any bill just to rake in cash from the pals of said acts, but Sheffield's finest guitar/laptop abusers 65 days of static, and Aberdonian noisemongers Fickle Public, sit uncomfortably withat least one of the support acts, whose name I didn't catch but whose use of funky bass and sax leaves any members of the audience not there to hear them somewhat bemused.
The venue does have the legacy of a decent sound system however (a bit muddy at times but serious gear with half-a-dozen mikes on the drumkit alone). Also there's an area - behind a VELVET ROPE! - to the side for the bands to leave their gear and keep a tantalising distance from their fans (probably essential for the Sheffield troupe given the adulation shown).
Good sets from the 2 main attractions, by the way, though you'll have to read itm? to find out more...  ¶ 12:05 PM