Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets, Glasgow review - 'Gary Kemp wasted no time howling at the moon'

This celebration of the early work of Pink Floyd ranged from mighty standards to lesser-known gems, writes Fiona Shepherd

Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets, Armadillo, Glasgow ****

Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets are an odd supergroup with a clear calling – to celebrate the early catalogue of Pink Floyd, from gauche garage pop singles Arnold Layne and See Emily Play via primo art school psychedelia to their first ambient prog incursions, unearthing some of their lesser known catalogue alongside some of the mighty standards.

Mason was joined in this mission by former Blockheads guitarist Lee Harris, Pink Floyd live bassist Guy Pratt, composer Dom Beken on keyboards and New Romantic-turned-“prog rock king” Gary Kemp who wasted no time howling at the moon on opener Astronomy Domine.

Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets PIC: Jill Furmanovsky

The spirit of original Floyd vocalist Syd Barrett loomed large. His original rollicking vocal was incorporated in their rendition of early beat number Remember Me. Late keyboard player Rick Wright was also celebrated via the wistful reverie Remember a Day before the band made the musical leap to prog odyssey Atom Heart Mother, a melange of ambient serenity and quasi-funk rocking.

The “heavy metal” Nile Song was a pleasing outlier, before Mason claimed back his gong on the slinky Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun. Pratt, temporarily relieved of bass duties, also joined in the gong show and took in good humour Mason’s quip that ”I’ve only ever worked with two bass players and they were two of the most difficult people I have ever worked with”.

The second half opened with the cowbell, quaint organ and lopsided vocals of The Scarecrow, while the groovy Lucifer Sam was hard to resist. However, the rest of the show was dominated by the sprawling epic Echoes, with its melodramatic riffola and harmony vocal embellishments, and an encore outing for the bassy arpeggios and synth oscillation of their audacious anthem One of These Days.