Music
Passenger
O2 Academy, Glasgow
Marianne Gunn
four stars
PASSENGER, aka Mike Rosenberg, started his stellar set with an apology, as he grovelled to the capacity crowd for cancelling his Barrowland Ballroom gig six months ago: "I was at death's door; thank you for giving us another chance."
This streak of humility continued in an even more self-deprecating manner when he quipped about his status as a one-hit wonder. "We only have one famous song, so we're going to play it 15 times." Let Her Go came much later in the set, of course, and although there were perhaps a little too many extended endings from his slick new(ish) band, Rosenberg did dispel the myth about being a mere one-trick pony.
Urging his fans to enjoy every single moment in Life's for the Living also revealed a manically bouncing left heel from the former Buchanan Street busker. Following your passions and dreams was something he urged too, and he later gave an impassioned speech about living in the moment and not just on Instagram. A lilting folk number – featuring the strong influence of Paul Simon – preceded the Brighton lad confessing that the "happy" section was over. "It gets miserable right about now."
The "misery" highlighted one of the major problems with gigs these days: rude people. As easily gleaned, Whispers is a storytelling style track that requires a little respect and this moment served to highlight the incapacity for hushed silence in modern day life. A self-policing and defensive Glasgow "shoosh" marred the atmosphere slightly until Rosenberg's lyric from I Hate, calling out "ignorant folks, who pay money to see gigs then talk through every f***ing song."
Some covers from his Sunday Night Sessions album (Sound of Silence and Fast Car) bridged the gap to the encore, which featured Glasgow anthem Feather on the Clyde and a sing-along version of Holes. From his latest number one album, both the title track and Beautiful Birds prove there are many more melancholic yet ultimately uplifting stories to come from this gifted singer-songwriter.
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