- The last time I saw Sam Shepherd, AKA Floating Points, he and Daphni were turning out a six-hour feast of humid vocal nuggets at Barcelona's absurdly picturesque El Monasterio of El Poble Espanyol. The Sub Club in mid-April might not be such an easy sell to tourists, but you'd struggle to guess which set was played where if you listened to recordings of them, so heavy was Shepherd's focus on disco, funk and soul in Glasgow, with only sparing detours into more electronic territory.
For what was his first Glasgow show in three years, Shepherd headlined Thunder Disco Club's first party of 2015. Residents Hammer and Jubé's warm-up started robustly, leading with tracky fare to the tune of Omar-S's "Thank U For Letting Me Be Myself." Eventually, the clubbier cuts gave way to the likes of NuBYON's "More Than Enough," paving the way for the night's main attraction.
There's something refreshing about Floating Points' enthusiasm behind the decks, exemplified by the sheer ebullience of his selections. His two-hour slot felt as upbeat as ever, as the London artist eased us in with an airy intermingling of house and disco, before diving headlong into a spell of full-fat soul, dropping James Brown's "Body Heat" among others. A well-worked half-hour detour into techno followed, but it wasn't long before we were back dancing to funky, spiralling keys and the classic soul shuffle of Alkalino's "Times Are Hard." A full-length airing of Brenda Harris's wonderful "Making Love Will Keep You Fit" was one of Shepherd's final gestures, sending us off into the slightly chilly night in every bit as summery a mood as he'd helped conjure in Barcelona last year.