It's been ten years or so since I last saw Portishead at the Glasgow Barrowlands and it's been 10 years or so since they toured and recorded their past masterpiece 'Portishead'. The new album is typically leftfield and their performance at Edinburgh's Corn Exchange was nothing short of excellent (excepting the acoustics of the ECE). Portishead are a better live band than they are in the studio, the polish of the studio is worn off and what we are presented with is a raw and unnatural aural force to be reckoned with.  I sincerely hope it doesn't take another ten years for them to record the next album and tour again, and I sincerely hope they never use the Corn Exchange again if they do return.....

So....quick rant: I hate the Corn Exchange, it's a big old barn of a place with the worst acoustics and layout in the world, even my toilet pan has better acoustics. What is it with the conference centre business? Just because you have a big box you can fill up with 2 to 3 thousand bodies doesn't automatically make you acoustically eligible to host gigs. The last time I saw a band at ECE was when The Beta Band played and it was a bloody awful sounding and laid out venue back then.

Verdict: 7/10 - let down by choice of venue.