Blue Rose Code

12th August 2017

Berits & Brown, Coatbridge

I have attended gigs in some weird and wonderful places over the years, but few as singular as this.  Berits & Brown's is a sort of upmarket eaterie – bistro, I suppose one may call it - which has seemingly been randomly and incongruously transplanted into the midst of the Lanarkshire industrial estate Eurocentral.  I cannot imagine the place attracts much in the way of passing trade, probably subsisting mainly by providing working lunches to expense-accounted high-flyers from the surrounding offices.

As Wife and I arrived this evening the whole estate was eerily deserted with the exception of a hundred or so music-seekers squished into the restaurant.  A lucky few had been able to dine beforehand and retain their table seats, but the rest of us had just to make do the best we could.  I dragged a couple of wicker chairs in from outside, and was childishly chuffed to find Ross (Mr Blue Rose Code) Wilson himself holding the door open for me as I struggled in with our seating.

I had seen Ross perform a short solo acoustic set supporting Sinderins a few months back and had been keen to hear more.  This evening was also a solo acoustic job, and although Ross is both a fine guitar player and a stunning vocalist, ninety minutes of solo acoustic stuff was perhaps asking just a bit too much of the ears of both myself and Wife, given we were each unfamiliar with pretty much all of the music played this evening.  

That being said, I got the impression a significant portion of the set was from the upcoming Water of Leith album, which would have been equally unfamiliar to the rest of the room.  And they certainly lapped it up; Bluebell, Sandaig and especially Child all sounding magical.   

But I think before commenting too much more on Blue Rose Code, I think I shall wait until after I have attended the upcoming full-band gig scheduled for St Luke’s Church in Glasgow.  Which should also ford me time for a little bit of homework beforehand.

Ross in pensive mood

Blue Rose Code - Berits & Brown August 2017

Setlist

Bluebell
One Day at a Time
Julie
Ebb and Flow
Love is...
Sandaig
In the Morning
Rebecca
Polaris
Pokesdown Waltz
Brave Cedars and Pied Wagtails
Edina
Whitechapel
Grateful

Encores
Child
This is not a Folk Song