The French Wives are back. They never went away of course, but guitarist Scott is back and the Wives are fully formed and writing once more. After some support slots and a successful jaunt to Rockness the band find themselves headlining in Glasgow again and a packed Captain’s Rest waits with bated breath.

Something is definitely added to the live sound in Scott’s return and seeing the band whole and with one of their main creative influences back is to see a band with a bit of a shot in the arm. Old favourites like ‘Your Friends and Mine’ have just a stab more conviction and there’s renewed vigour in the performance. Of course ‘Halloween’ and ‘Capilano’ are as entertaining as ever, but there’s something else afoot tonight.

At somewhere around the midpoint of the set there comes a moment which seasoned Wives-watchers have waited a long time for – a new song. ‘Dogfight’ fits right in. A stop start chorus and the usual glorious abundance of violin are more than enough to spark interest in more to come and the tune is well received.

We end the night in rather odd fashion with the Wives coming down into the audience and doing an acoustic rendition of Passion Pit’s ‘Sleepyhead’, a song first performed in a little caravan backstage at Rockness for the Vic Galloway BBC Radio 1 show only days earlier (listen to the full session here). Synths are replaced by the ensemble of voices, the striking motif over the chorus transposed to violin and the whole thing terribly ambitious. It works, performed with sufficient lightness of touch to let the venue go with it and provides a fine ending to the show. There are more songs on the way and, on tonight’s evidence, plenty of interested parties.

Pic: Fraser McFadzean