Review and photos by Annie Barber.
Nina Nesbitt kicks off the Glasgow show of her ‘Mountain Music’ tour with ‘The Apple Tree’, a track first released on her debut EP in 2012. Packed with nostalgia, this song is a nod to her newly established independent record label, Apple Tree Records, which Nesbitt runs with her manager, Vicky Dowdall.
Angsty single ‘Anger’ is a rocky and passionate rendition, which gets the crowd fervently finishing off the lyric “Oh you told me I’m not pretty when I swear// Well fuck you”. When introducing ‘Painkiller’, Nesbitt talks about how many people, especially men, are taught not to express their emotions and turn to drink or drugs to suppress emotions, and comically admits that when she’s stressed, she batch cooks. It’s a stripped back performance with delicate piano and strong vocals, highlighting the rawness of the track.
She speaks to her younger self, and to the crowd, saying “if you have a dream, this is a sign that it’s going to happen”.
Before playing ‘Big Things Small Town’, Nesbitt asks if there was anyone from a small town or village in the crowd. A lot of hands go up. It’s symbolic of the type of music she makes; music for people who have always felt like they’re on the outskirts of society. She speaks to her younger self, and to the crowd, saying “if you have a dream, this is a sign that it’s going to happen”. She also sang a verse written for Scotland, in which she sang “when I say I’m Scottish well it always makes me proud” and “it’s the last night of tour so tonight I’m on the toon// probably hit up Nice N Sleazy end up in the Blue Lagoon// singing 500 Miles, what a tune”.
‘Mansion’, a touching song about valuing yourself and knowing your own worth, resonates with the crowd. People are dancing and telling each other they love each other during the performance. Before playing ‘Parachute’, she crowns it her favourite track on the album. For Nesbitt, the song is about being an introvert and finding that one person who understands you. She declares “tonight I do feel like that’s you, Glasgow”. With soft piano and vocals at the start, then a build up of drums and guitar leading up to the first chorus, this creates a euphoric and ethereal performance.
Nesbitt’s vocals and stage presence have improved since her early years, as she belts out the lyrics and commands the stage with ease.
When talking in between songs, Nesbitt says she feels that there are many parallels between her latest album and her sophomore album, ‘The Sun Will Come Up The Seasons Will Change’. She reveals that they were both written during very turbulent times in her life and that writing provided her with an escape and a “much cheaper form of therapy”. After a tear-jerking ‘Last December’, she plays a stripped back, acoustic version of her hit ‘The Best You Had’. These two performances especially highlight how Nesbitt’s vocals and stage presence have improved since her early years, as she belts out the lyrics and commanded the stage with ease.
Her cover of ‘Caledonia’ earns a loud response from the crowd who sang along and put up their phone lights, which creates a touching moment. She aptly finishes the show with ‘Coming Home’, much to the crowd’s delight, enlisting a unified audience to support her with the harmonies. A strong performance enlivened by Scottish patriotism shows Nina Nesbitt at her very best.
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