Wednesday 12th May 2010 @ Colston Hall, Bristol

Scouting For Girls, Britain’s latest pop-sensation? Or just more sing-along fodder for the Glee generation? Depending on your viewpoint on this band, tonight was either going to be a feel good, dance your heart away evening that makes you want to forget all your inhibitions, or the most irritating night of your life. It’s hard to be indifferent to Scouting For Girls or to even say they’re a Marmite band (you either love them or hate them), with this band it’s not quite as simple as that. Marmite you can just ignore; Scouting For Girls with no.1 singles and radio play a plenty, you simply can’t.

Tonight’s show is everything you might expect, especially with the crowd gathered here; largely families, couples that look as though the male half has been dragged along and girl’s night out parties. Roy Stride is their master of ceremonies, a lead singer who is two parts front-man and one part CBBC presenter. From opening song, Skip A Heartbeat, the crowd dances and jumps and screams every word back at him. This, it seems, pretty much sets the tone for the rest of the night. Scouting For Girls have found a formula and they’re sticking to it. However, when the chorus is reprised slowly for a crowd sing along at the end of every song, the more seasoned gig goer could be forgiven for getting more than a little irritated.

Newer songs from the group seem to attempt to add some edge but when that song is called Little Miss Naughty, it’s clear to see what their target audience remains. Even the most imaginative hook of the night has an already-done-before vibe recalling Gorrillaz hit Feel Good Inc. Each song seems to lift the crowd a little bit more, winding them up like a jack in the box as they jump higher and higher to whichever pop-melody is thrown at them next and there is never a lull in the evening’s proceedings.

Cynics will undoubtedly not be sold on Scouting For Girls but the impartial journalist in me tells me to call tonight’s show as I see it. The best metaphor it seems is that of the family-friendly Hollywood blockbuster: Follow the formula; all flash and bangs, easy on the eye lead players and all the action beats in all the right places even if upon further inspection not containing any real substance.

www.scoutingforgirls.com

Adam Hooper
Photos by Laura Palmer