MAGICAL, MINDLESS AND METAMORPHIC: LAMBRINI GIRLS BRING MAYHEM TO GLASGOW

LIVE REVIEW | LAMBRINI GIRLS w/ Loose Articles | GLASGOW ST LUKES 9th April 2025 by Anne Kelly

Sometimes when you go to a lot of gigs, things can become a bit samey. The band appears on stage, they do the usual “how you all doing [insert city]”, “are you having a good time?” and “I wanna hear you make some noise” – you catch my drift. All absolutely validated phrases to make on stage, and we’d be insulted if you didn’t, but then there are bands like Lambrini Girls who rip the rule book right in front of your eyes and deliver something extraordinary. Demolishing that fourth wall which often separates the artists from the audience, Lambrini Girls combine the two, creating something magical, mindless and metamorphic in its wake.

The evening kicks off early with Manchester’s Loose Articles. Sharing that it’s their first night opening for the Brighton duo, and initially, it shows. A couple of songs in and the first night nerves are melting away, with the quartet coming into their own and owning the intimate St Luke’s stage. Attempts to engage the growing crowd aren’t really met with much enthusiasm, however, the response is overwhelmingly positive and the tunes are absolutely bangin’! Possessing beguiling riot grrrl energy at their core, each track is delivered with a ferocious passion that steals your gaze. It takes until their penultimate track ‘Unpaid Intern’ for the crowd to really begin to participate, with a limbo, nonetheless. Loose Articles are a band I would love to see on their own territory, with a crowd actively ready to play.

From the moment that Lambrini Girls Phoebe and Lily walk on stage, alongside their drummer tonight, there’s a brute rumble throughout the room. The vibration from the speakers flutters in our bellies and there’s something special brewing in front of us. Within the first few beats of ‘Big Dick Energy’ there’s flock of petite bodies surging towards the centre, ready dive into the depth of the pit.

It may only be the first track of the show, but already we are making space for Phoebe to step into our space, eradicating the need for any divide and encouraging even the more passive crowds to get down and dirty.

As the leader of the show, Phoebe Lunny is one of the finest on the punk scene. The epitome of punk values, Lunny’s entire performance is engulfed in pure unadulterated fire. The passion and frustration drips from her every pore, and then some. Not one song goes by where Lunny doesn’t bring the crowd into the performance. Often found orchestrating circle pits with her index finger, or demanding the crowd “take their anger out” on each other – or even Lunny herself – with a firm reminder that “if someone falls, we pick them up”.

What I personally love about Lambrini Girls is their confidence to speak out over key injustices. ‘Gods Country’ is introduced as a statement against the English Government, followed by a heightened “Free, Free Palestine” roar from the room. ‘Company Culture’ delves into misogyny, while ‘Bad Apple’ fuels hatred of the police. It’s around this point, mid set, that Phoebe decides to use the crowd as a human platform, being assisted in standing tall above the bodies below; all before dropping into the pit, being surfed back to the barrier and rightful space on stage.

Other highlights of the night find themselves right in the heat of Lambrini Girls 2025 debut album Who Let The Dogs Out with tracks ‘Filthy Rich Nepo Babies’ and ‘No Homo’. ‘Boys In The Band’ – from 2023’s ‘You’re Welcome’ EP – offered yet another poignant moment of reflection with the crowd. Addressing the toxic nature of exploitation seen within the music industry, Lambrini Girls urge their audience to speak out against those taking advantage. The message? You see somebody behave questionably, then you call that shit out. Lily goes on to share the shocking statistic that less than 10% of sexual assaults lead to conviction. The pair emphasise the motive of “believe the victim” and as a community, we’re here for that. Feeding off the fuel of the frustration, the band finally launch into ‘Boys In The Band’ and the fury engulfs the room.

There’s no moments to catch your breath at a Lambrini Girls show; every moment is an intense as the next, leaving you gasping for air and anticipating Lunny’s next move. “We’re gonna play a song called ‘Craig David’” Lunny announces. “When I say Craig, you say David. Craig!” – “David” scream back the room. After a bit of chat with the crowd again, it’s time to open up that pit and make space for our preacher tonight, Phoebe Lunny. She doesn’t hang around long though, before stating “hold on, I’ll be back in a minute” before disappearing from the room. An anticipating silence fills the venue before we spot Lunny’s platinum curly locks emerge on the balcony.

Opting for the lesser of dare devil stunts, Phoebe doesn’t launch herself from the balcony (I imagine the venue risk assessment didn’t give the go ahead) but instead instructs a human pyramid. Barely a second to process the reality of this and four young men volunteer themselves to crouch down on all fours. On climbs another 3, before 2 more dainty volunteers are raised above them, all before the final participant is lifted to the top. A moment almost over before it’s even complete, the bodies are wobbling, however, the community of the crowd comes together and stabilises, allowing a healthy and safety nightmare to take centre stage. Can it get worse? Well, Lunny’s commanding index finger reappears from above, instructing a coordinated circle pit to move around this human pyramid, all before it disintegrates and the room is back to crashing bodies in the more typical mosh pit fashion.

Already feeling I need a lie down from just witnessing the madness, the final track of the night allows for a final celebration. ‘Cuntology 101’ has everybody in high spirits, with the stage being abandoned, and the girls joining the crowd one last time. It’s an incredible high to end the night, but Glasgow crowds are not content without an encore, so with a bit of encouragement, Lambrini Girls return with “One More Tune”. A sea of bodies take one last chance to surf, and of course, our leading lady also takes complete advantage of doing the same, complete with guitar in hand.

Usually, if I seen a headline act leave the stage on less than 15 songs, I’d feel a little short changed. Yet, tonight comes in at just 12/13 tracks and Lambrini Girls delivered at least 3 times that in energy and performance value alone. “It more than just a gig, it was an experience” has often become a throwaway term in regards to capturing the mood of live music, but in terms of Lambrini Girls, that phrase couldn’t be anymore accurate. If you have the chance, make sure you get down to a Lambrini Girls show for an unbelievable night of mayhem.

Tickets for this run of Lambrini Girls shows are completely SOLD OUT, however the Brighton duo return to UK stages in November with last tickets on sale HERE!

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Anne Kelly

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