Clubs

Edinburgh's Cabaret Voltaire venue to close for refurbishment

Owners G1 promise 'a wholly new look' for club and music venue

3 Feb 2012

Veteran Edinburgh club venue Cabaret Voltaire is due to close for six weeks, from Mon 20 Feb–Sun 1 Apr. The club will be subject to a major refurbishment according to a statement released by G1 Group, who have owned the venue since July 2011: ‘A six…

Edinburgh's Bongo Club eviction threat

The venue's lease to be terminated early by landlords Edinburgh Uni

7 Feb 2012

Out of the Blue, the charity organisation that runs Edinburgh venue The Bongo Club, has been served eviction papers by the venue's landlord, Edinburgh University. A statement on the Bongo Club's website said: 'This notice terminates the lease a whole…

Sex in the 21st century - Valentine’s Day Clubs

5 Feb 2009

With Valentine’s Day landing at the weekend this year, there is ample opportunity for those hoping for a love injection on the dance floor Love will be in the air like a tropical smog on 14 February, and every club and bar you walk into will be playing…

Glasgow Roller Disco

13 Aug 2009

Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll Dig out your skates (they’re also available to hire on the night) as roller disco mayhem descends on Glasgow, recreating the New York sounds of disco with a modern twist. DJ sets come from Jackmaster, Rustie (pictured), DJ…

Hogmanay 2008 - Clubbing

11 Dec 2008

‘It’s on’ is the simple motto which Glasgow überclub Optimo are using to promote their famous Hogmanay special – it’s at the Fruitmarket again, and will see Twitch and Wilkes joined by Glasgow Italo-punks Den Haan and laptop-wielding Parisian show-offs…

Hot 100 2011 - No. 49 to 1

The definitive list of Scottish creative talent

16 Dec 2011

The Hot 100 is the definitive list of Scottish creative talent. From fashion designers to performance artists, everyone who has made a sizeable splash in 2011 has a place in this countdown. It’s for people who’ve created a buzz, but it’s also about…

Top 10 Clubs: Glasgow

Best nights out in the West

10 Sep 2010

David Pollock heads to Scotland's spiritual clubbing home and brings you his top nights, from the finest DJs to the mightiest spin doctors

Crate Digging: The Riddim Tuffa Crew

Edinburgh based duo Adham and Frontline Selecta pick some tunes prior to their Wee Dub Festival set

2 Feb 2012

Last year was a really good year for us as we managed to launch our own label and put out a few records. Riddim Tuffa feat Little Kirk ‘Kill Them Out’ (Tuffa Dubs) is a regular stamper in our DJ set. The groovy bass and amazing vocals from Kirk is a…

Plastikman 2010 tour - Richie Hawtin interview - full transcript

24 Jun 2010

Are you based in Berlin permanently these days? I'm in Berlin looking at a beautiful blue sky, which isn’t as common as it should be, I go between here and Canada. I would say I'm travelling more than I'm anywhere. There's such a good music…

Edinburgh's Az-tech club comes to a close

Residents head up final night at The Caves

3 Nov 2010

‘Az-Tech started as a breaks night. We just wanted a place to play out the music we like and bring breaks to Edinburgh,’ explains Amy Fowler (aka resident DJ Siren). ‘But it’s evolved, our music policy is really loose, it’s just party tunes.’ Broadening…

Top 10 Clubs: Edinburgh

Best nights out in the East

10 Sep 2010

It may be a smaller scene than it's Weegie counterpart but the capital still has plenty to offer the discerning club-goer from pop parties to hardcore techno nights

Lynn Macdonald, manager and promoter at the soon-to-close Soundhaus - interview

The Glasgow techno den plans final parties for massive send-off

2 Feb 2012

The first that Lynn Macdonald (manager and long-time promoter at Glasgow techno den the Soundhaus) heard of the venue’s death was in an impersonal email she found in her inbox when she arrived at work one morning. ‘It was heartbreaking,’ she says. ‘I…

Chris Duncan of Sub Club discusses plans for the venue's 25th anniversary

9 Jan 2012

You’ll probably be hearing a lot more about this as the year progresses, but it doesn’t do any harm to draw your attention to two anniversaries happening in Glasgow in 2012 – one big and one absolutely enormous, and both under the same roof. This is the…

The Hot 100 2011: 100-50

The definitive list of Scottish creative talent

16 Dec 2011

100: Gordon Ferris. Kilmarnock crime author makes good. The already packed Scottish crime writing field has finally found a bit of elbow room for another burgeoning talent. Joining the likes of Rankin, Brookmyre, McDermid and co is this Ayrshire-born…

Pioneering spirit - Andrew Weatherall interview

7 Jul 2010

To say that Andrew Weatherall has had a diverse career is a bit of an understatement. He started way back in the late 80s DJing the backroom at Shoom (often credited as the birth place of Britain’s acid house scene). ‘I’d be the kid that would play at…

Dr Sketchy’s Anti Art School

7 Aug 2008

I blame after-school ‘buff club’ for the prudish apprehension I felt on entering Dr Sketchy’s Anti Art School. The life drawing class of my youth utterly succeeded in repressing my schoolgirl giggle. Week after week the models’ towelling gowns would…

Glasgwegian drag artiste Lady Munter discusses club night Menergy

'Scotland’s only trans club and gay dance party’

2 Feb 2012

Have you ever been named Attitude’s 66th most influential LGBT role model? Didn’t think so. But Lady Munter has. The organiser of Glasgow’s Menergy club night was flagged up for praise by the magazine in 2010 for services to drag (on the same page as…

Crate Digging: Scuba

The Hotflush label boss gives us his top five tracks ahead of his set at the debut EQTV party

16 Nov 2011

The first track they did together, ‘Swims’, still isn’t out yet but it’s one of the most recognisable club tunes of the year; however I think Boddika & Joy O ‘Froth’ (Unreleased) is much better. It’s a lot deeper, a lot more atmospheric, though still…

Richie Hawtin resurrects iconic Plastikman persona for world tour

DJ and producer on the makings of his audio-visual spectacular

9 Nov 2011

Richie Hawtin is one of the most high profile DJs and producers working today, with activities incorporating several record labels, software and hardware products and a globe-spanning tour schedule. Known for distinctive and intense DJ sets, it might…

Interview - Slam talk us through 20 years of Soma Records

Glasgow label that gave us Daft Punk, Ewan Pearson and Funk D’Void

15 Mar 2011

To celebrate Soma’s 20th anniversary, Orde Meikle, one half of label founding fathers Slam (alongside Stuart McMillan), takes us though the history of Glasgow’s favourite electronica label.

Robyn set for UK tour to promote Body Talk series

Swedish pop genius - Robyn interview

10 Sep 2010

Remember that song? The one that went, ‘Show me love. Show me life. Baby show me what it’s all about.’ Yep? Well that was Robyn, back in 1997. And the track, ‘Show Me Love’ was a worldwide supersmash that reached number eight in the UK. And now…

Ruby Fruit launches gay women's club in Glasgow

18 May 2010

A criticism often levelled at the gay scene, both in Glasgow and Edinburgh, is that there’s a dearth of club nights for women – particularly women over the age of 30. Fed up with this situation, a quartet of Glasgow girls are launching an alternative…

Carl Cox revisits Colours at The Arches

30 Mar 2010

It’s hard not to get excited about a DJ set from Carl Cox every time he returns to Scotland. Picking up the nickname of the ‘Three Deck Wizard’ in the 80s, he’s been at the forefront of dance music since the beginning, and is a true ambassador for…

Underneath The Arches

8 Jan 2009

Glasgow’s Arches, as anyone who’s worked there will tell you, is the sort of place that doesn’t so much defy your expectations as consistently confound them. Audiences might marvel at the sort of building that can stage a theatre show, art exhibition…

Justice

PROFILE

1 Sep 2006

Name Justice Occupation Your summer-soundtracking ‘Friends’. Who are they? French duo Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay, who toiled in electro-producing obscurity until getting their big break as remixers/cut-up auteurs with one of the summer’s…

Seven reasons to attend Cab Vol's seventh birthday

Edinburgh venue celebrates 49 dog years with three weeks of events

2 Feb 2012

1 Supernova Kicking off the Cab’s month long ‘seven splendid events for seven splendid years’ Glasgow tech-house and minimal night Supernova makes it’s Edinburgh debut with the tough techno sounds of Karotte (Cocoon). Fri 3 Feb. 2 Musika & We…

Lindstrom - Six Cups of Rebel

A blast taking in slamming synth boogie to shameless pomp metal

27 Jan 2012

(Smalltown Supersound) Like a cosmic disco Ulysses, Lindstrom has felt his way through space, to traverse the Balearic and land upon the wild party island of Six Cups of Rebel. This isle is full of noises, from slamming synth boogie to shameless pomp…

Five reasons to go to Skrillex

The dubstep remix master is coming to Glasgow

16 Nov 2011

1 Scary monsters Skrillex favours the ‘kitchen sink’ approach to electronica, the more is more method, piling electro squelches, acidic explosions, scratched up breakbeat and filthy bass wobble onto the heaviest dubstep you can imagine. 2 Very metal…

DJ Yogi Haughton presents Scottish Soulful Weekender

Dumfries event features Todd Terry, Kerri Chandler and Joey Negro

18 Oct 2011

A weekend of soul music held at a hotel in Dumfries & Galloway sounds almost like a niche market event, a retro get-together for old school Northern Soul junkies to relive the glory days. Yet Yogi Haughton, the promoter of the first Scottish Soulful…

DJs Radioactive Man and Billy Nasty team up for Radionasty

The twosome are to appear at the Caves courtesy of Jackhammer

17 Oct 2011

Radioactive Man and Billy Nasty have both played Jackhammer before but now they’re back in a new itineration, as two-headed techno mutant Radionasty, and drawing on both their styles to create a fresh new sound. ‘Our first track was quite dark fast…

Profile: DJ and producer Maya Jane Coles

The multi-talented tech-house queen visits Musika

21 Sep 2011

She’s been producing since she was in her mid-teens nearly a decade ago, but for young Londoner Maya Jane Coles the years since have provided a steep learning curve. Her real breakthrough track was last year’s ‘What They Say’ on Real Tone, a song which…

A guide to the music genre Footwork

Clubbers Decktionary

16 Aug 2011

Footwork aka [Chicago] Juke (see also [Detroit] Jit, Shangaan electro) proper noun: so-called because of the associated dance crazes – essentially a contemporary form of break dance; wildly uptempo (140–170 BPM), characterised by syncopated beats…

Crate Digging: Before he lays waste to the Slam tent techno titan Dave Clarke takes us though his favourite albums

22 Jul 2011

I’m going to go completely vinyl, as you are probably aware I haven’t actually played professionally with vinyl for at least nine years so I’m going to go ‘back in the box’. I’ve had Devo Freedom of Choice (Warner Brothers) since it came out, I…

Deadmau5 set for Braehead Glasgow show with Magnetic Man, Calvin Harris and Zane Lowe

A look at the Canadian DJ and producer's rise to fame

10 Dec 2010

How the hell did Deadmau5 get so big? The Canadian DJ and producer has been a powerful force on the commercial end of the dance music circuit for a couple of years now of course, but this month is set to prove he’s no longer just another face in a crowd…

Glasgow clubnight I AM reinvents Tuesdays at Sub Club

Mystery duo launch night playing electro, disco, Italo, hip ho and dubstep

15 Sep 2010

Residents: They go by the names Beta and Kappa. ‘We do a few things in Glasgow but we’d rather go with these faceless names, we might even perform in masks,’ explains Kappa. ‘It just gives you that chance to start from scratch and you know people aren’t…

Eddie Halliwell, Judge Jules and Marcus Schossow set for Inside Out

19 Jan 2010

Pressure isn’t the only night to up sticks while maintenance work is carried out at the Arches as Inside Out also makes a temporary home at the O2 Academy. Their first show of 2010 features the usual big house and trance action you’ve come to expect…

Labels of love: Numbers

29 Oct 2009

Based in: Glasgow Roster: The first three releases will be by Lazer Sword, Redinho and Taz Buckfaster, with more artists to follow. Bosses: Jack ‘Jackmaster’ Revill, Calum and Neil Morton, Richard Chater and Adam Rodgers. Sounds…

Richie Hawtin

The Detroit techno man plays Glasgow

20 Aug 2009

Despite hailing from Oxfordshire via Canada, Richie Hawtin was part of the second wave of Detroit techno innovators, his Plus 8 label and Plastikman alter-ego helped set the ground work for the minimal scene. He’s slayed the Slam Tent at T in the Park…

Kapital

5 Mar 2009

MINIMAL Although Kapital’s promoter and resident DJ Barry O’Connell describes his night as plugging a specific hole in the Edinburgh clubbing market, it still draws from a broad spectrum of musical influences. ‘Kapital is mainly minimal techno,’ he…

Scotland The Great - We are good

22 Jan 2009

Bin the shortbread tin! Trash those Runrig albums! Here are, in The List’s humble opinion, some real reasons why Scotland is worth shouting about

The Hot 100 2008

11 Dec 2008

It’s been a helluva year. 2008 has been a time of significant global change, socially, politically and culturally, with Scotland no exception. So here, for your delectation, is The List’s pick of the 100 people, places and things that rocked our world…

Junior Jack & Kid Creme

18 Sep 2008

Over a year ago, Byblos planned their big launch party, with the DJs Junior Jack (pictured) and Kid Crème in place, but due to circumstances beyond their control the venue wasn’t ready, so JJ and KC never even saw the decks and spent the night cooped up…

DJ Sneak

7 Aug 2008

The Telefunken team are joined by an acknowledged master of Chicago house in the form of DJ Sneak, for his first Edinburgh show in five years. Moving to Chicago from his native Puerto Rico in 1983 he quickly soaked up the sounds of Frankie Knuckles…

Vince Ray

21 May 2007

Name Vince Ray Occupation Cult pop artist and leader of The Boneshakers What’s the skinny on this bloke? The man is something of an underground legend when it comes to design, especially on the alternative scene. He designs album covers, mugs…

Preview of 2012 - The best events this year

Featuring the Cultural Olympiad, The Dark Knight Rises, WU LYF, Glasgow International and more

9 Jan 2012

It’s 2012, but fear not, things aren’t as bad as they seem. Before you decide to occupy government property, or smash a brick through Dixons, take heart in the folklore of a simpler age. For when times are black, you can always rely on the comfort of…

Lock Up Your Daughters Glasgow clubnight

Collective responsible for Glasgow’s only ‘network for creative queers’

29 Jun 2011

Take Lock Up Your Daughters (LUYD), the collective responsible for Glasgow’s only ‘network for creative queers’. They make zines, run music events and are now delving into LGBT-friendly filmmaking to add another string to their bow. It might make you…

RockNess 2011: Bus times, line-up and stages

New stages, weekend highlights and travel times

27 May 2011

RockNess have laid on three brand new arenas for 2011. Firstly, the Rock’n’Roll Circus will showcase cutting-edge music and comedy talent from the likes of Jamie Woon and The Cuban Brothers. Secondly, Glasgow clubbing institution Sub Club will present…

Lizzard Lounge back for Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival 2010

Fred Wesley and Rumba Caliente Afro Latin Soul Orchestra head up club's return

23 Jul 2010

Toby Shippey, the founder of the Lizzard Lounge club night and later Scots fusion group Salsa Celtica, is waxing nostalgic about the good old days. ‘We used to bring bands over from Cuba and New York,’ he tells, ‘and they would say: “This is the best…

Cotton Cake vs Thunder Disco Club

5 Jul 2010

Two of Glasgow’s finer club nights team up for a new quarterly night of house, disco, kitsch electronic delights and more besides, all in aid of the Princess Royal Trust. With visuals by Joe Crogan, photography by Tommy Ga Ken Wan and reportage from…

Jazz Bar hits a high note

9 Jun 2010

Huge congratulations to Edinburgh Jazz Bar following their award for the UK Jazz Bar of the Year. The award was presented to Jazz Bar creator Bill Kyle last month, and marks the third major award the venue has picked up in under a year, having been…

Labels of love: Display Copy

19 May 2010

Based in Glasgow Roster Konx-Om-Pax, with more to follow. Bosses Sound designer, director and animator Tom Scholefield, also known as Konx-Om-Pax, who has worked with labels like Warp, DFA, Planet Mu and Numbers. Sounds like…

Roll Deep guests at Mood, Edinburgh

18 May 2010

Name Roll Deep Occupation Grime stars turned chart toppers More info please East London grime collective whose ranks currently include MCs Wiley, Skepta, Riko, Scratchy, Breeze, Jet Li, Manga, Brazen, J2K, Killa P, Little Dee and Flow Dan…

Optimover: The end of Optimo - A legendary club night

15 Apr 2010

Somehow, phrases like ‘the end of an era’ seem too melodramatic for Optimo (Espacio), a club which just cut the crap and got on with defining Glasgow’s Sunday night. For the past thirteen years, its residents JD Twitch and JG Wilkes (aka Keith McIvor…

Trance giant Tiesto set for Edinburgh date

25 Feb 2010

Whatever you might think of Tiësto you cannot deny he’s perhaps the world’s most successful DJ. He was the first DJ to play a solo stadium show (rocking 25,000 people at Arnhem’s Gelredome in 2003); he was the first DJ to play at an Olympic Games…

Cabaret Voltaire celebrates fifth birthday

Guests include DC Breaks, Slam, Fenech-Soler, Zane Lowe and Tom Middleton

17 Feb 2010

‘Cabaret Voltaire is one of the most atmospheric spaces you could ever find an underground club. It’s a very rare music-orientated team that work here. We’re a little family that are incredibly passionate about what we do, and I feel that really comes…

Bonobo set for Edinburgh show at Departure Lounge

17 Feb 2010

Name Bonobo Occupation Soul, jazz, hip hop and electronica producer of note What kind of monkey business is this? OK, very clever. Bonobos are indeed a species of small Chimpanzees (which are apes not monkeys for the record) but the Bonobo…

High Tease & Vegas!

4 Dec 2009

Another classy team-up from two of Scotland’s most glamorous events, which offers something for boys, girls and all of Glasgow’s most stylish performers. First, High Tease presents a host of burlesque performers, including Des O’Connor, Jonny Woo, Gypsy…

The Slow Club

19 Nov 2009

As the name suggests, The Slow Club doesn’t go for furious beats and sweaty dancefloors. ‘It’s the dark candlelit bar at the end of the world where everything is not quite right, yet perfect, somewhere to get lost in, immerse yourself in,’ explains…

Wickerman Festival 2009 - DJ Danny Rampling interview

23 Jul 2009

It might not be on the same scale as T in the Park or Rock Ness but the Wickerman is happily striding forth into its eighth year as an alternative to the many big buck corporate festivals. Wickerman aims to create a friendly atmosphere and a good time…

Burlescape

25 Jun 2009

What is it about burlesque just now? There’s a new club or class popping up every day, hundreds of dancers queuing up for slots at nights like Club Noir and Rockaburley, and now here comes the Glasgow Cabaret Festival, a week-long festival all over the…

Profile - Glasgow Mod Weekender 2009

11 Jun 2009

Occupation Although many clubs around the city specialise in the same retro sounds, the Glasgow Mod Weekender is a definitive four-day event that offers a comprehensive celebration of Mod music and styles. This will be its seventh year. For younger…

Seinan Music

2 Apr 2009

TECHNO Producer and DJ Rick Bull, aka Deepchild, has just woken up on a Friday morning in Seattle and is in contemplative mood. ‘I was in Detroit a couple of days ago,’ he says, ‘and it’s hard not to be moved by the desolation of the place. There’s a…

DJ Craze

11 Dec 2008

Monday special from How’s Your Party? but hey, it’s Christmas, and they’ve got DJ Craze on guest duties. Famed for his hip hop and breaks sets and furious mixing skills earning him the prestigious World DMC Champion trophy a record breaking three times…

Profile - Armin van Buuren

18 Sep 2008

Name: Armin van Buuren Occupation: The reigning number one DJ in the world, if you believe the readers of DJ magazine. But of course, you don’t get to such a pinnacle of global popularity these days without playing trance somewhere in your set, and…

Student guide: Clubbing hitlist - Glasgow

15 Sep 2008

David Pollock selects the top ten club nights you cannot afford to miss. OPTIMO Riding the crest of a wave for the best part of a decade now, JD Twitch and JG Wilkes’ Optimo (Espacio), which borrows the aesthetic of early 80s New York nightlife and…

Tasty sub - Glasgow Sub Club honoured in Resident Advisor poll

7 Aug 2008

Glasgow clubbing institution the Sub Club has been honoured with a place in respected dance magazine Resident Advisor’s Top 10 list. The Sub Club was placed inside the worldwide Top 10 in three out of four categories, including Atmosphere, Programming…

Sick Note

31 Jul 2008

The weekly indie/electro night surpasses itself for its first date in August with a live set from none other than arch trouble makers Selfish Cunt (pictured). With a name like that you know you’re not in for an easy ride, so expect a confrontational mix…

Club promoters get heated over fly posting

27 Mar 2008

Club promoters and police are at loggerheads over the increasingly heated issue of fly posting in the capital. Club promoters told the The List they feared the increasingly ‘heavy handed’ approach of the police could have a detrimental effect on the…

The Beat Club

23 Aug 2007

Residents So far Pinup Nights are confirmed to launch this new venue. Guests We are promised top quality bands and DJs from the get go. Music policy Varied and eclectic. What they say ‘In these days of large, homogeneous, soulless operations…

Flying Duck

16 Jul 2007

Kitchen clubbing Sandra Marron checks out yet another quality independent club venue, as the Flying Duck opens for business in Glasgow The Flying Duck is the type of club you will be hard pushed to find anywhere else in our fair city.

Profile - Kenny Dixon Jr

Profile

23 Apr 2007

Name Kenny Dixon Jr Occupation Modern-day torch-bearer for the Detroit techno sound, and indefatigable producer, label boss, alias collector and live DJ. Where might I have heard of him? If his given name doesn’t ring any bells, his arguably…

Venue Closure: The Riverside Club

THE RIVERSIDE CLUB

27 Feb 2007

VENUE CLOSURE The Riverside Club may be a big old ceilidh hall on the south of the Clyde that has doubled as a club venue for the past decade. But it has become one of the best leftfield venues in Glasgow, home for many years to nights like Goodfoot…

Clubbers' Decktionary: Liquid Funk

Drum & bass sub-genre originated by Fabio and LTJ Bukem

2 Feb 2012

Liquid funk aka Liquid drum & bass or just plain Liquid, proper noun: drum & bass sub-genre, so generally very much up-tempo (160-180 bpm), taking influences from soca, Latin, disco and jazz as well as funk, featuring more live instrumental parts and…

Clubbers' Decktionary: Witch House

A guide to the myriad genres of clubbing, from Trouble's DJ Hobbes

5 Jan 2012

Witch House aka Haunted House or Drag, proper noun: usually down-tempo to mid-tempo (80-120 bpm), dark, syrupy fusion of hip hop with goth, industrial, noise, drone and/or shoegaze elements. Its main practitioners also favour the use of occult symbols…

Numbers discuss the club/brand's New Year plans

Hogmanay celebrations in both Edinburgh and Glasgow lie ahead

13 Dec 2011

It’s been another good year for Glasgow’s ever-growing clubbing export Numbers. So big, in fact, that they need a whole three cities to contain their send-off to 2011. First they’ll be warming up with a set at Edinburgh’s Sneaky Pete’s the night before…

It's Funtime - Edinburgh pub quiz that thinks it’s a 70s gameshow

The all-singing, all-dancing brilliantly twisted world of It's Funtime

18 Nov 2011

All across the country this coming Saturday night families will sit down in front of the TV to watch people be mocked and derided in the name of entertainment. They’ll gawp at the outrageous outfits worn by the mentally unstable on X Factor. They’ll boo…

Interview: Richie Hawtin - Plastikman Live 1.5 tour 2011

Full transcript of interview with minimal techno producer and DJ

8 Nov 2011

Live music concert seems inadequate term to describe your current live show. What exactly is this thing you do now? Well live music exists somewhere between music, theatre and circus right? You're there to entertain and grab the people. I think what…

Crate Digging: Deetron, aka Sam Geiser

The Swiss DJ gives a sneak peak in his record crate ahead of his appearance at No Strings Attached

17 Oct 2011

Scuba ‘Adrenalin’ (Hotflush Recordings) has been a constant in my set since I got it a few weeks ago, because the crowd reactions are always amazing. The combination of Detroit-ish bassline, euphoric pads and the vocal works beautifully, it’s a real…

Clubbers' Decktionary: Chiptune

DJ Hobbes guides us through clubbing's myriad genres

19 Sep 2011

Chiptune proper noun. aka 8Bit, Bitpop, Bitcore, Nintendocore Any tempo but generally fast (ie 130-180bpm), the sound of 8-bit and 16-bit micr-chips from classic arcade games from the late 70s and early 80s, hand-held computer games from Nintendo and…

Cabaret Voltaire's Alternative Freshers' Week

A list of reasons to attend the week-long club extravaganza

19 Sep 2011

SBTRKT Welcome to Edinburgh, say Cab Vol, as they introduce nine big student specials in a row. Allow us to take you through who’s appearing, starting with Young Turks-signed London producer Aaron Jerome, aka SBTRKT, playing at Sugarbeat. The…

Crate digging: London Elektricity picks 5 top tracks

Hospital Records head returns to Xplicit

24 Aug 2011

From the 1976 Big Terror Movie Themes album, Geoff Love & His Orchestra ‘Three Days of the Condor’ (Music For Pleasure) is an amazing piece of lounge dirty funk. I was Geoff Love’s roadie on his tour of Gibraltar in 1986. Along with the orchestra’s horn…

Ben UFO guests at Glasgow dubstep club Kollektiv

Co-founder of second wave dubstep label Hessle Audio

10 Aug 2011

Alongside Ramadanman and Pangaea, Ben UFO is one of the founders of second wave dubstep label Hessle Audio, which was one of the first of the genre’s dedicated labels to originate outside London. Although he’s originally from the capital (with a mother…

An introduction to Krautrock

Clubbers Decktionary

3 Aug 2011

Proper noun: eclectic style, originally German, mostly instrumental and usually combining a traditional rock band line-up (guitars, bass, drums) with electronic instruments; often characterised by a four-four time signature and stripped-back productions…

Crate digging: Benedict Bull of Skull Juice

Promoter of London’s High Horse and resident at Bleed takes us inside his record box

13 Jul 2011

My favourite track at the moment is Oneohtrix Point Never ‘Nobody Here’ (Memory Vague, Root Strata). It’s just an amazingly beautiful piece of music, I’ll never get tired of it. I’ve played with him a couple of times and I still get that insecure fanboy…

No Lights, No Lycra: the dance-in-the-dark craze hits Glasgow

13 Apr 2011

As a wise man once said, you can’t start a fire without a spark. However, now you can go dancing in the dark, as the No Lights, No Lycra craze has finally arrived in Glasgow. Starting in Melbourne in 2009 and spreading worldwide soon after, NLNL is a…

5 reasons to go to... Deadly Rhythm

Alex Surguladze's brand new dubstep, grime and garage night opens at La Cheetah

7 Mar 2011

1. It’s a brand new night, sort of ‘It’s an extension of a night I ran down in London,’ says promoter Alex Surguladze. ‘As the three of us who ran it have moved around the country [he’s in Glasgow to study] we’ve taken it with us, so there’s still a…

Crate digging: Kris Wasabi (Wasabi Disco) gives us a peek at his playlist

Featuring Moodymann, The Dirtbombs, Cottam and more

1 Mar 2011

‘The original Moodymann ‘Freeki Mutha Fucker (Juan Atkins remix)’ (KDJ) is amazingly sleazy, total boner disco. This remix is straight out of Detroit so it adds action strings and a nice synth line, without losing the hypnotic sleaze of the original.

Wee Dub Festival hosts Vibronics, Radikal Guru, Brina and Jammin J

Studio 24 event bring many types of dub music together

19 Jan 2011

With Scotland hosting many reggae and dubstep nights in both Glasgow and Edinburgh, the overall dub scene is most definitely healthy and super vibrant. And, thanks to Gregory and Selecta Mania, two pals, DJs and promoters under the umbrella of Lion…

The Hot 100 2010 - Mark Millar, Kevin Bridges and Alasdair Gray take top 3 spots

Our annual chart of the people from Scotland being interesting, successful and creative

16 Dec 2010

The Hot 100 is a list of Scots who’ve made a sizeable creative splash in 2010. It includes musicians, artists, writers, actors, fashion designers, technological innovators, shop owners, festival directors, record label heads and one mad cyclist.

Glasgow club Blast Off 2011 hosts Optimo's JG Wilkes on Jan 1st

Nice’n’ Sleazy’s now-traditional New Year’s Day party

10 Dec 2010

Name Area 51 Presents Blast Off 2011 What is it? Nice’n’ Sleazy’s now-traditional New Year’s Day party, for anyone who thinks one whole day of partying just isn’t enough any more. Residents Gordon Mackinnon, aka GK Machine (Zoo Muzik), one…

Exposure: S-Type

Homegrown beat-maker launches EP at Mixed Bizness

24 Nov 2010

Bobby Perman’s new single on Scottish label Phuturelabs isn’t his first, but it does signal a change of musical direction under his production alias S-Type. The Edinburgh-raised, Glasgow-based brother of Dougal (who runs Radio Magnetic, where Bobby…

New Edinburgh club Soul Kitchen plays hip hop and soul

Hip hop, souls and soulful house on menu at Medina

19 Nov 2010

Edinburgh’s club scene isn’t as bad as its detractors might make out, but it isn’t thriving. Fewer good venues have been taking up the slack over the last decade, which is why anywhere that’s trying to do its own thing should be celebrated. Take compact…

The best Hallowe'en music and club events in Edinburgh and Glasgow

29 Oct 2010

HALLOWEEN CLUBS There’s blood on the dancefloor as Hallowe’en takes over clubland. First up, Hung Up! host the annual Optimo (Espookio) as Glasgow’s weirdest Hallowe’en party rises from the grave (The Sub Club, Sun 31 Oct). And if there’s dressing up…

Paul Van Dyk set for Edinburgh date at Colours

We take a trance lesson from from the master

7 Sep 2010

Trance has succinctly risen to the top in terms of popularity when it comes to clubbing, the pulling power of names like Paul van Dyk, Tiësto and Armin van Buuren mean they can headline festivals across the globe. But beyond the readership of DJ…

Claude VonStroke guests at Cotton Cake

Filmmaker-turned-producer plays Glasgow date

7 Sep 2010

Cotton Cake have secured yet another quality guest as Claude VonStroke mans the decks this month. A filmmaker who turned to techno/minimal/electronica with the release of his underground hit ‘Deep Throat’ in 2005 before launching his own DirtyBird…

Der Supermax Love Machine

Brunswick Hotel, Glasgow, Sat 28 Aug.

19 Aug 2010

Although Supermax is only celebrating its third birthday, DJ and co-promoter Billy Woods has had plenty of time to hone his tastes over the last 15 years. His first big gig was a residency at Melting Pot, then he co-ran his own monthly night called…

Confusion is Sex

12 Aug 2010

Things are always a bit strange at Confusion is Sex, and here they take a turn for the even weirder as CiS host a ‘Hentai Tokyo Party’ for a dose of cortex searing neo-gothic Japanalia as drag acts, Manga erotica, the Kamikaze Girls, burlesque and more…

Headspin festival date to be its last

DJ Yoda date marks end of 12 years of clubbing

3 Aug 2010

As Headspin comes to an end, DJ/promoter Allan Dunbar talks to Henry Northmore about their final date and why they’ve booked DJ Yoda to play their last night.

Hot Mess takes modern angst theatre into the nightclub

Experimental look at contemporary relationships from hot young playwright

27 Jul 2010

Despite feeling increasing pressure to give in and follow every other hot young thing to London, playwright Ella Hickson doesn’t want to leave Edinburgh behind. A graduate of Edinburgh University, Hickson wrote and directed her breakthrough Fringe play…

Liquid Room re-opening delay moves Sasha Edinburgh show to HMV Picture House

13 Jul 2010

The Liquid Room is no longer able to reopen this weekend for Sasha's performance, but the world renowned DJ and producer is still to play in the city for the first time in 7 years. One of Edinburgh's most frequented clubs, the Liquid Room closed 18…