Review: The 1975 take on two sold out shows at Glasgow’s OVO Hydro

It’s an undeniable fact that Matt Healy is currently one of the most controversial figures in pop culture, his personal and public affairs regularly scrutinised in mainstream media, however there is no question on the man’s ability to put on a show. The 1975 initiated the UK edition of their latest tour, Still At Their Very Best, with two sold out performances at Glasgow’s OVO Hydro, the prospect of which stimulated so much excitement in fans some felt compelled to pitch up in tents outside the venue over 48 hours before it was due to begin, enduring sub-zero temperatures while sleeping on concrete all to secure a spot at the barrier. ‘Still At Their Very Best’ is a very fitting sentiment for the band. 

A black curtain bearing a projected logo which spanned the length of the stage dramatically dropped to the floor revealing an elaborate set very intricately depicting the insides of a suburban home. Two large screens showed Healy lying on a couch smoking a cigarette and gulping down a pint of Guinness triggering a roar from his bulging audience. He stumbled across to the piano and commenced with a series of hits from their most recent album Being Funny in a Foreign Language. 

He embraced a character for the performance, embodying a person who was gradually losing control of their life and had submitted to alcohol abuse. It may have been influenced by a past version of himself, possibly the person he was when he wrote many of the songs. The band were not simply playing music they were telling a story, one that was fuelled on emotion and vulnerability and executed with passion. 

The concert was split in two parts, the first half underlined by these theatrics varying in tone and pace, taking the audience on a journey. The frontman utilised his entire playground running around the set with cameras chasing him, even ending up on the purpose built roof for one solo song. Overwhelmed by a series of world news events blaring from a TV screen - the Titanic submarine crash, Noel Gallagher, the war in Gaza, XL bullys, the coronation of King Charles - he then climbed into a television box and so commenced the second part. It was all very entertaining. 

This was when the traditional gig started and Healy began engaging with the audience more directly. The crowd began to consistently jump here and didn’t stop until the show was over as he tuned into both older and newer material. 

I left the venue in high spirits impressed by what I had just witnessed. The 1975 are arguably the biggest band in the world but it’s not difficult to see why considering what they clearly evoke in their fanbase. In 2010 a band called Drive Like I Do played a support slot to a sparing crowd at King Tut’s. This week, now under their new identity the same individuals played to over 28,000 people in Scotland’s biggest venue.