Goblin @ The Arches, 25 Feb

Tonight sees the first-ever Glasgow performance from legendary Italian prog outfit Goblin, chiefly known for their luridly engrossing soundtracks to Dario Argento classics including Suspiria and Profondo Rosso. Thoughtful scheduling provides two support acts that chime perfectly with the tone of this Glasgow Film Festival event: OV set jarring bursts of industrial noise to excerpts from the films of Kenneth Anger and Derek Jarman; while Calum Davidson provides a playfully creepy piano soundtrack to Buñuel and Dali’s classic surrealist short Un Chien Andalou.

Following these carefully structured multimedia performances, the visual elements to Goblin’s set are a little disappointing, consisting only in the occasional screening of Argento clips, chosen seemingly at random. This laziness makes the dated elements of Goblin’s work more obvious: the cringeworthy funk-rock workouts, in particular, would be less tedious if synchronised properly with the visuals.

Yet nothing can mar the thrillingly visceral power of Goblin’s most famous pieces: the highpoint, inevitably, is the Suspiria theme, its hypnotic, ritualistic dance sounding as terrifyingly weird as ever. Similarly, Profondo Rosso retains its inexorable, demonic weight in the live context. While a shorter and more carefully-synchronised set would do these moments greater justice, their intensity remains, and evidently no amount of cheesy funk can dilute it. [Sam Wiseman]