As interesting venues within Edinburgh go the ex-Veterinary School of the city’s university ranks pretty highly. Where else can you see a gig in what used to be a dissection room or the like? Fitting too that tonight’s bill features two lots of animals, albeit one of them is plastic.

Having found Eagulls to be one of the highlights of my first trip to Wakefield’s Long Division festival back in 2013 I’d a fair idea of what to expect from them in the flesh (hence why the trip along was made). Given the worthy press & praise they’ve received since then & for the release of their debut full-length last year what did come as a surprise was the size of the crowd that had bothered to show up. For a three band line-up, with a headliner rising like the Leeds lads are, the door price was practically what I’d have expected to pay for the same level of show a decade or more ago. For there to be barely 100 punters along was highly incongruous.

Those that had taken the time to make it to the show though witnessed a fine, if largely unintelligible, performance from the quintet, who rose above the recurring technical niggles and George Mitchell’s throat problem manfully. ‘Nerve Endings’ and the bulk of the Eagulls album were run through in short order whilst new songs ‘My Life In Rewind’ and, particularly, ‘Dead Roses Bloom’ amply showed that they’re still hard at work in the creative department and that there’s been no drop off in quality. Do yourself and them a favour and see them if they come to town.

First on stage tonight were Glaswegian trio Halfrican, sportily clad in matching training tops and short shorts. Calling to mind the likes of Violent Femmes, Pixies and very early Therapy (as well as Journey on new song ‘Tell Me’) theirs was a tight set raced through with gouts of energy and enthusiasm. They’ve a split single coming out on Gerry Loves Records in a couple of weeks (‘Down To Fuck’ being their track on the release) and you can hear their previous double A-side release on Glasgow’s El Rancho on soundcloud here.

The meat in tonight’s sandwich were stalwarts of the Edinburgh scene Plastic Animals, who’ve thankfully it seems been getting a lot of such gigs of late. As laidback between songs as ever they enjoyed a thunderous level of sound for their seemingly short set of well crafted shoegaze & beyond, including ‘Holiday’ and ‘Floating’. No announcement of upcoming shows or releases but we did get to find out it had been Alanis Morrisette’s birthday earlier in the week (mainly because it’s the same day as singer Mario’s).

What do you mean I look like someone in my Thirties! Sure, I just asked the American woman next to me if she was retired (travelling a month through Europe like that), so it might have been a not-so-veiled shade, but still, where’s the love man? I’m going to Barcelona, for a festival, that’s where the love is supposed to be at! Nah, just kidding, it was lovely talking to her on the plane on the way to my festival of choice, Primavera Sound in Barcelona.

The Wednesday already sees some treats, completely free of charge to boot! There’s a bit of rock, with Albert Hammond Jr. (yes, he of The Strokes) doing his thing with his band. A few minutes in, we know where the rock-yet-cleanliness of that famous band comes from, with Albert Hammond Jr. doing the punk/rock thing layered and noiseless. As in, I can hear the multiple instruments and their riffs, and it doesn’t all collide into this wall of noise where you don’t even know what’s going on (and the festival will have a few of those, let me tell you). Naturally, he plays some of his work, though he throws a nice little cover in there as well, to keep things fresh. It’s always good to be dancing to some of that clean punk while asking yourself If you have ever fallen in love with someone you shouldn’t have fallen in love with.

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark is the band to end the Wednesday on the ATP stage, and boy, these geezers still know how to get the party on. Sure, if you don’t like your '80s synth pop cheese you might have a hard time enjoying yourself. But I always have a hard time keeping the fun in, and the Spaniards in front of me don’t even have a clue on how to do that. Which, I reckon, is a good thing. This is all out fun, or “electro-pop” as they call it, admitting that it’s not going to be pretentious or artful, and they’re proud to be wearing that badge. So in the audience we’re dancing, on stage they’re dancing HARD, and everyone is smiling because it is just this slice of catchy fun. They end with ‘Electricity’, bookending a string of hits and the fun that goes with them. They even play a new song! Madness.

On the first real festival day it is time for the “little guys”. The two main stages I leave alone for now, instead focussing on some newer names I haven’t had a chance to see live yet. One of them being Viet Cong, whom I now don't really regret having missed prior. Where Albert Hammond Jr. played his rock/punk cleanly, here everything sounds like the same fuzzy ball of noise with vocals I’m not quite sure I need to hear again. The band on the stage nextdoor has way more distinguishable instruments. I have seen Mdou Moctar before, a band from Africa whose sound is more Western blues than you’d expect at first glance. They sure know a thing or two about rhythm and playing that blues guitar, with a smittering of funk in there too. But when I saw them first time around I remember that, at one point, they gathered so much momentum that the crowd, during one particularly funky blues track with ace rhythm guitar, started to dance collectively. This time around, whilst still a good listen, that didn’t really happen.

Kelela is next up on the same stage, and she is quite the presence. Not only that, but she has quite the voice as well, and over beats and space she uses that to great effect. The instrumentation is an Apple computer producing trap-like beats that I never really particularly care for, nor do I think this is going to be the end of her musical progression. Not because I don’t like it, but because I do think there is some room to get more out of that (though a complete change in the kinds of beats she uses I’d totally be in favour of, but that’s personal of course). Her voice, certainly, isn’t the thing that is keeping her from anything, and her stage presence isn’t either. The music does lay down the atmosphere though, giving it a sense of cool. Certainly she is one to keep an eye on, whether it is going to be for the next big thing or that cult act that is exactly right for that particular niche.

At the small H&M Pro stage Rebeka is up next, and their brand of synth-pop is the kind I like. The female vocals are nice and deep, and they fit the kind of atmosphere (slightly melancholic) they want to exhume. The beats and synths, in the mean time, are smooth and clear, and they give you every opportunity to be dancing. Which, luckily for me and unfortunately for them, is not really a problem as there’s quite a bit of room on the floor left to get down to. Other people’s loss I reckon, as the band has songs. Nicely structured, catchy dance songs. A track like ‘Melancholia’, for instance, or the relatively new ‘Breath’. The two are getting busy behind their hardware, with the female part of the duo doing some dancing mixed with some karate kicks to get some energy going for the crowd to play off of. I’ve seen them before once, and I do fancy their sound quite a bit, and live they don’t disappoint here in Barcelona.

Moving to the way bigger Ray-Ban stage, you immediately know you are in the presence of some acts that are enjoying some mainstream success. Which is a good thing for them, as they produce some mainstream sounds as well, so where else will they get their success from? Chet Faker is up just before midnight, and when he launches into a solo edit of a track the girl behind me casually drops a Just the best song everrr. Chet Faker does know how to play, mixing jazzy sounds and lines with a more mainstream core sound to keep everyone hooked. His vocals, too, are nice, reminding me a little bit of Jamie Lidell (in terms of sound, not in terms of all the other stuff Lidell manages to do with his vocals). A track like ‘Gold’ is a good example of the mass appeal, with the way the beat works, which is very nu, I find. Though I won’t be refreshing my browsers when tix for his next gig go on sale anytime soon, I do see the quality here, and it is nice to see how all these jazz sensibilities creep into his set.

Jungle closes out my day on that same Ray-Ban stage, and here, too, you have this mainstream slick all over it. Attracting a rather terrible mainstream crowd, I might add, who care more for having fun despite the music, and at the cost of people who might actually want to have fun to the disco Jungle is putting out there. That disco is the pop radio version of disco. Super slick, super smooth, and really easy on the ear. Which on one hand is a good thing, on the other hand it doesn’t really add oomph, cheekiness, rawness, or plain fun to the sound. And live, moreso than on album, it felt as if the pace stayed within a rather narrow range. There’s also not really any on stage craziness, even though disco does tend to lend itself to a bit of showtime. For disco (though the omission of the word “pop” is troublesome to me I find), this is a rather vanilla show. Though, as evidenced by the mass amount of people out here, no one says no to vanilla.

Having been once, more noticed as Hozier’s backing singers, Wyvern Lingo, who are also label mates and County Wicklow residents, have seen firsthand how their friend Andrew Hozier-Byrne has rapidly managed to propel himself to the forefront of mainstream music, and as the crowds got bigger, so did the desire for Wyvern Lingo to give it a go themselves. At the Glasgow Barrowlands, the trio from Bray, Ireland threw down a marker and started to mark out where they were going. 

Since stepping out from behind the shadows, Wyvern Lingo released The Widow Knows E.P and what we got to hear was a band representing music to its core by seamlessly blending different styles and genres into something all their own. Set opener ‘Sweet Life Ruiner’ kicked the night off as mellow jam music that blends everything from funk to smoky champagne jazz which bubbles below the surface.

At times Saoirsha Duane's Gibson guitar meddles in Incubus’ more funkier elements before walking bass notes take us closer to Frank Zappa’s door but without ever knocking. The pop melodies and precise harmonies which got them the spot as Hozier’s once backing band bring the track together.

Caoimhe Barry (Percussion/Vocals) was the first to take centre stage as lead vocal duties work on rotation from start to finish. The second track of the night, ‘The Widow Knows’, see the trio take a verse each and possibly the only glitch of the night was that Sirsh’s microphone could have been up a notch as at times it fell below the music.

Following on, as The Widow Knows E.P does, is one of their most outstanding tracks ‘Fairytale’. A haunting, hypnotising piano arrangement and vocal harmonies led by Karen Cowley (Keys/Synth's/Vocals) create a slow rhythm and blues feel packed with soul. Karen also featured on a duet with Hozier on his excellent album track ‘In a Week’. Tonight, however, we got a taste of things to come in the future.

Brand new song ‘Run’ and forthcoming Letters E.P track ‘Letter to Willow’ was met well by a growing crowd who were hush during the performance, but showed huge appreciation between tracks and at the end of their set. The omission of their well sought after acapella track ‘Used’ is a sign that the girls are now going in high gear and in one direction.

WL already have quite an extensive catalogue of songs and although their main style is encompassed around a crossover of R&B and pop, their willingness to dabble in more old school styles of music does bring Jeff Buckley to the fore as their main influence.

Now fresh from their Hozier UK support tour, Wyvern Lingo are travelling back home in preparation for their headlining show at Whelans in Dublin. With few remaining tickets available, we have an exclusive live video released today of ‘Letter to Willow’ to see why you should be there. Check it out below, you just gotta love the cowbell!

Images from the show are also available here.

Toy Soldier are here in the Grand Social tonight launching their new EP Breathe. It’s been three years since their debut album Calling Up The Dusk. The EP features new singer Fionnuala Curran.

There are about 100 people here tonight, not bad for a Thursday night but a band with their ability deserves more. The new release and video should garner them some attention in that regard.

Guitarist Cian Walsh and drummer Fergal McCarthy take their places at either side of the stage as a feedback lead intro builds to a crescendo and McCarthy hammers his drums into life. He beats his skins like a metal drummer and the result is visceral, particularly for those near the front.

Fionnuala appears from the wings in a hood and cloak and joins in on beats for the opening song 'Garden of Eden'. The sound is poor initially. The engineer seems unfamiliar with the band and it is some way into the set before the sound cleans up. When the mix does improve, Toy Soldier shine.

They make a big sound for a three piece. All three line up at the front of the stage and the set-up is rewarding visually as the audience get a clear view of McCarthy’s animalistic, tribal drumming and intriguing hybrid analogue/ digital drum kit.

The drums are very much the lead instrument with all else slave to the beat. There are a lot of layers to the songs. Curran’s lead vocals make for strong songs with big choruses and each member of the group is also singing throughout.

Walsh’s dirty guitars lend another dimension to the set, helping Toy Soldier avoid sounding like just another beat- heavy pop group. They project a danceable, post punk sound and add a sleazy groove that’s reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age or Bon Scott-era AC/DC. The lack of a bass player is more than compensated for by Fergal’s programming, making for a good mix of electronic and organic music.

Comparisons to recent and older acts run rife through the room; Human league and Ting Tings especially. They have been compared to Blondie in the past but I don’t see it; except for their drummer who does come across a little like Clem Burke.

There's no shortage of quality floor fillers here tonight. Lead single 'Breathe' stokes the crowds enthusiasm. A smooth and smart reworking of Everything But The Girl's 'Missing' is greeted with rapture.

Toy Soldier are still raw. They look the part. They have the songs, the theatricality, and the potential to go a long way. They are diamonds in the rough waiting for a chance to sparkle.