It’s a cold Sunday night in Glasgow and the OVO Hydro is lit up green for a storming return of Kneecap. Normally Scotland gets the smallest show on any UK tour as the population density just doesn’t compare to the rest of the UK, but this time it has been turned on its head. Over four years they went from playing the Glasgow Garage (~700 capacity) in 2021 to selling out the OVO Hydro (~14,000) in 2025. Which is a meteoric rise by any measure. They also do this with local independent promoter Triple G and with a show this size, they could easily talk with the big faceless promoters, but they have actively chosen not to. They’ve certainly had their fair share of publicity, for better and for worse. Which also led to them being pulled from Glasgow-based festival TRNSMT earlier this year. They have a message and an ethos and rarely ever compromise. Ironically, as much as their music is far removed from the genre, I’d say this is one of the more “rock ’n’ roll” attitudes in the music industry I’ve seen in a long time.
For those that don’t know of Kneecap; I, first of all, would be surprised as they have been in and out of the news for most of this year. But they are an Irish hip hop group from west Belfast that rap in English and Irish. They released their first single only eight years ago in 2017. They even have a biographical film that was released in 2024. They are very forward about their politics. They promote Irish Republicanism, Irish language rights and most notably their support for Palestine and condemning the Gaza genocide, which is what you have most likely heard about them.
My own introduction to Kneecap was while in the back of a car in Ireland on the M7 being driven from Limerick to Dublin after a show in Limerick the night before. We were headed to see the Phil Lynott statue before the flight and we had been listening to a variety of songs from the Thin Lizzy back catalogue. My Irish friend thought I’d get a kick out of the song “Get Your Brits Out” and it stuck with me and before I knew it, I was digging more into the band, their music and what they had to say.
Before I even reach the venue, I already see keffiyehs, tri-colour balaclavas and Celtic colours heading in the same direction. The closer I get, the more I hear chants and singing, which reminds me more of a football match than a concert. There’s a buzz in the air and that electricity only rises as we head in. The crowd was filled with a mix of backgrounds and counter-cultures. Burberry hats and designer jeans through to metalheads wearing football colours and punks that had politics on their mind.
The support for tonight is Miss Kaninna, hailing from Bruny Island, Tasmania, and is the first independent Aboriginal woman to ever be nominated for a debut single at the ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Music Awards. After supporting Amyl and the Sniffers and Kneecap in Australia, Miss Kaninna finds herself all the way in the UK and even in Scotland in an arena. Which I don’t imagine was something she had expected! After an intro by DJ and manager Ali Tomoana, Miss Kaninna storms on stage oozing with attitude and this is backed up with a strong message which would come between songs. There was also a surprise that she had been desperate to show the crowd that Kneecap had assured her would get quite the response. This came with the unzipping of her jacket to reveal a Celtic top with “Kaninna” on the back which was met with a roar from the crowd. Anyone that wasn’t already paying attention was now under the thumb for the rest of the set. We are also encouraged into one of our first (of many) chants for the night. This was “Always was. Always will be. Aboriginal Land.” This strikes a chord with a crowd that has occupation on their mind when it came to politics.
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As we wait for Kneecap to come on, I can see more and more balaclavas being pulled on and fixed into place. The excitement is very real as we are all aware such a huge force of people are here for the same thing. The introduction kicks off with simple but bold white text. “ISRAEL IS STILL COMMITTING GENOCIDE AGAINST THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE”, “OVER 100,000 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN MURDERED BY ISRAEL IN 24 MONTHS AND THEY CONTINUE TO ETHNICALLY CLEANSE PALESTINIANS FROM THEIR HOMES & LANDS”, “THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT IS COMPLICIT BY ALLOWING ARMS SALES TO ISRAEL” and “SPEAK UP TAKE ACTION FREE PALESTINE”. Tonight isn’t just about the music, it’s about an intrinsically linked topic: politics.
First song of the night is “3CAG”, played over the PA, which is also the intro to their most recent album Fine Art. “3CAG” is slang for MDMA, which is another frequently used topic in the trio’s music: drugs. DJ Próvaí comes on the stage with a backpack, which is then revealed to have an LED panel lit up with the Celtic Football Club badge. The first song with the full trio is “It’s Been Ages”, with the lyrics “All your fault cause you made us famous” feeling so right. The production level is so right for this show, enough to warrant an arena, but without it being Rammstein. Massive screens at the back with customised visuals for each song and just the three Irishmen on stage giving us music and spreading their important message.
The room doesn’t calm down for the rest of the set. This certainly goes down as one of the most energetic crowds I’ve seen this year (only challenged by Turnstile). There are spilled drinks everywhere, scarfs are being held in the air, everyone sings along and roars in agreement to every statement spoken. We’re even told “You go to other cities and put on a show, it’s good craic. You come to Glasgow, and the crowd puts a show on for us.” It’s easy to assume their political side is there to divide, but that’s not their intention. They speak of community and “Parful” which explains the joining of what would normally be split groups coming together through raves in the north of Ireland. They have been down the barrel of the gun when it comes to legal issues and have come out the other side when they’ve stood themselves in these David versus Goliath situations. If anything, they’ve been left stronger for it.
I would argue this band is far closer to punk than anything else. The music is only a piece of the puzzle. The words, the mindset, the experiences, the politics and the infectious nature this band has taken around the world count for a lot. This is a very real anger, but I don’t think it’s hate. It’s a passion for wanting something better. I walked away feeling like I witnessed something important. I hope it is important.
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Photos by Alan Swan
