Photo + Words: Jess Plunkett
“Nobody comes to a Scouting for Girls concert and expects not to dance!”
Two decades in and Scouting for Girls (Still) know how to turn a room into a dancefloor. Back at the O2 Academy Liverpool for the Everybody (Still) Wants To Be On TV Tour, the band brought all their classics, along with that relentless energy we all know and love.
The set design featured old-school TV screens playing archival clips, throwback visuals and flashes of past performances, immediately getting the crowd reminiscing. Their goal was clear from the off: create one big unified space. Front runner Roy Stride bounced onto the stage, video recorder in hand, filming the crowd for the big screen.
The audience interaction didn’t let up all night either. He got people to hug the ones they love, then ran onto the balcony, simultaneously giving me a heart attack as he suddenly appeared behind me. (I’m still wondering how he got up there so quickly?!). It did the trick, though, as within seconds he had every single person in the room involved, including one lucky fan who got to sing along with Stride himself. This is a band that connects with their audience and appreciates the small things, a motif that, according to Stride, runs throughout the entirety of their upcoming album.
And it didn’t stop there. Stride took a moment to shout out a fan who had been coming to Liverpool shows since the early days. Having been to two Scouting for Girls gigs myself now, it’s clear to see why he keeps coming back, and the band certainly don’t take that for granted, either, ensuring every time he comes is as energetic as ever.
The set stuck closely to the classics, with ‘She’s So Lovely‘, ‘Elvis Ain’t Dead’ and ‘This Ain’t a Love Song’ all getting huge reactions. The only new track, ‘These Are The Good Days‘, was met with a warm response, keeping that same feel-good energy they do so well.
The set stuck closely to the classics, which is exactly what the crowd wanted. Twenty years on, Scouting for Girls are still built for moments like this.
“See you next year!”…
Taped Magazine 