Writers
It was in the basement of Stereo, one of Glasgow’s many thriving music venues, that The Lottery Winners took to the stage with their charismatic charm. The English indie-pop band comprising of Thom Rylance, Robert Lally, Katie Lloyd and Joe Singleton opened with ‘The Meaning of Life’, a smooth-paced pop tune which set the tone for the rest of their set. Their frontman Thom encouraged the crowd to move forward creating an intimate atmosphere throughout the performance. The band transitioned into one of their most popular songs, ‘Elizabeth’, a pop crowd pleaser, which echoes The Smiths. This connection was confirmed after the show, when Thom told The Glasgow Guardian that The Smiths “helped shape him as a performer”.
Tracks like ‘I Want to be a Beauty Queen’, which plays on Thom’s insecurities about his appearance, ‘Young Love’ and ‘I Know’ were all well-received by the loyal fans. It was midway through that the set took a change with the band performing a solid cover of ‘It Must be Love’, giving a nod to Madness who they supported on tour last year. The other members left for the next piece; Thom decided to bring things down a notch and perform a solo track ‘I Will Always Love You’, the only slow song of the set. Despite the change of pace crowd participation was not lost with the frontman asking the audience to join in on the catchy chorus where he found the Scottish accent to be quite amusing.
It was here where the atmosphere slightly changed with Thom specifically picking out a girl from the audience and continually flirting with her. Although this is evidently part of his showmanship it did seem a little over the top. The rest of the band did return to the stage and belted out ‘Pretend’, a strong and chanty anthem with the whole room joining in on the ‘ah, ah, ah!’. The last few songs really showcased the rest of the band’s talents, with Katie and Rob both showing off their skills in solo vocal parts. It is the eclectic collaboration that sets the band apart from others alike; Katie and Rob’s voices are much softer than Thom’s broad Morrissey tone, almost giving a folk vibe to the pop band.
It becomes clear why The Lottery Winners have recently been signed to Warner Brother Label with their radio friendly and relatable lyrics. When they do go on to be bigger Thom will have no problem entertaining large crowds as he managed to conduct the room as if it were Hampden Park and not a small 100 capacity basement in Glasgow. Thom did explain to us after the show that he “used to dress up as Freddie Mercury and do little shows for his teddy bears”. Humble despite his confidence, he does well not letting the other band members be overshadowed as it is a collective charm that give The Lottery Winners their edge.
