Music, Previews

25 things you might not know about Tom Waits

17 Jul 2008

The chance to see Tom Waits, one of the planet’s true music raconteurs, is worth £100 of anyone’s money. But did you know he once worked for the coastguard? If not, Jonny Ensall suggests you read on…

5 Reasons to Go See - Jay-Z

17 Jul 2008

He stuck it right up Noel Gallagherafter Noel made some rash remarks about Jay-Z being chosen to headline Glastonbury this year. In retaliation, Jay-Z ran an intro tape mocking Gallagher, then proceeded to lead the huge crowd through a sarcastic version…

Brigade

17 Jul 2008

When it comes to rock us Brits are often in the thrall of the US, and Londoners Brigade certainly don’t buck that trend with a mix of pop punk meets post-hardcore, featuring Will Simpson (brother of Busted/Fightstar frontman Charlie) on vocals and…

Dananananaykroyd

17 Jul 2008

PREVIEW FIGHT-POP Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, Wed 30 Jul; The Arches, Glasgow, Thu 31 Jul ‘I break an average of three drumsticks per show,’ nods John Baillie Jnr, one of the two drummers in crashing, Glasgow guitar-rock band Dananananaykroyd.

Flaming marvellous - Wickerman festival

17 Jul 2008

David Pollock meets apisrant Scottish indie heroes Attic Lights, one of the plethora of quality acts at this year’s ever vibrant and varied Wickerman festival

Kora

17 Jul 2008

With a platinum album that has spent six months inside the New Zealand top 20 with rave reviews, the Maori brothers that make up four fifths of Kora are on something of a roll. Their sound is a unique blend of reggae/roots/dub/rock for which the quintet…

The B-52s

Preview - Carling Academy, Glasgow, Mon 21 Jul

17 Jul 2008

Aside from almost daily radio outings for ‘Love Shack’ and ‘Rock Lobster’, new wave pioneers turned camp party pop stars The B-52s have been all but unheard of since their last album Good Stuff came out in 1992. The Athens Georgia quartet have been…

Edinburgh Fringe - LGBT Highlights

17 Jul 2008

Allan Radcliffe selects the best the Fringe has to offer in comedy, theatre and music

Music - List picks

17 Jul 2008

Jay-Z Sadly not collaborating with the Butthole Surfers across town on the same evening, Jigga man shows us how it’s done after his triumphant Glasto shindig. SECC, Glasgow, Sun 20 Jul. (Rock & Pop) Butthole Surfers and Desalvo Texas’ most wonderfully…

Sound offering - sound 2008 Festival

17 Jul 2008

It might be all quiet in the Central Belt, but the cultural flurry up North continues this fortnight with the launch of sound 2008, which sets its musical stall in Aberdeen this October. Now in its fourth year, the multi-genre festival will feature two…

5 Reasons To Go See - Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip

3 Jul 2008

They’re unclassifiable - to some they’re outsider pop, to others they’re hip hop played through a punk filter. Then again their recent debut album Angles could easily be called lo-fi electronica mixed with spoken word poetry. Whatever, the end result is…

Rock of Ages

3 Jul 2008

In a bid end that long-standing argument about just how old that guy from The Prodigy really is, Josie Balfour digs out the birth certificates of those appearing at T in the Park.

Good Vibrations

3 Jul 2008

One of the Capital’s most exciting visitor attractions, Our Dynamic Earth, has teamed up with Edinburgh International Science Festival to bring you Good Vibrations. Join Maestro and Bella as they embark on a journey of discovery to find out how noise is…

Duty Free

3 Jul 2008

The Cab once again bring us an enviable line-up of the best up-and-coming live acts Scotland has to offer all at the bargain price of absolutely jack. Not only are they free entry but you can enjoy the guitar/synths line-up of Smoked Glass and psych…

Exposure - Ross Clark

3 Jul 2008

Looking like the bastard rockabilly son of a Proclaimer and with a singing voice like a shot of raw Glasgow bluegrass, 20-year-old Ross Clark’s exuberant, sweat-drenched live sets have been getting him a reputation. He sings brainy songs about girls and…

T in the Park - Biffy's James Johnston recommends

3 Jul 2008

I n Case of Fire Festivals are always a great place to check out new bands, and T in the Park has a great tradition for uncovering hidden gems. In Case of Fire are definitely worth checking out. We played some shows with them last year in their native…

T in the Park - KT Tunstall

3 Jul 2008

‘I remember playing T in the Park for the first time in 1996. I was 21 and a backing singer with the Skuobhie Dubh Orchestra, the band led by the man now known as King Creosote. We played in the ceilidh tent and Radiohead, Alanis Morrisette and Beck…

T in the Park - Panic at the Disco

3 Jul 2008

It’s hard to be cool when you were ‘discovered’ on the internet by Pete Wentz with only three songs in your repertoire and your ‘fans’ were a few thousand e-friends who thought you were totally hot. Still, you’ve got to give Panic at the Disco points…

T in the Park - Rob da Bank

3 Jul 2008

Richie Hawtin ‘Spastik’ ‘Will he play it, won’t he play it? Hawtin is the don, and this record lives on and on. This track IS the Slam Tent at T.’ http://tiny.cc/Plastik Aphex Twin ‘Analogue Bubblebath’ ‘Heard this at sundown at Sonar…

T in the Park - Running order

3 Jul 2008

FRIDAY MAIN STAGE The Verve Richard Ashcroft and co make a long-awaited return promising all the hits and some newly recorded material. Stereophonics Welsh outfit still successfully peddling their distinctive brand of pub rock with…

T in the Park - T Break Stage

3 Jul 2008

Friday State of Affairs Promising Edinburgh-based foursome who cater in wonderfully heartfelt indie rock. No Kilter Excitingly frenzied math-punk quartet from Glasgow. Figure 5 Much-adored skiffle-tinged, psychedelic garage pop…

T in the Park - The Fratellis

3 Jul 2008

The Fratellis aren’t a band you’d think of as suffering from existential self-doubt, eh? But a spell out of the spotlight has left singer and guitarist Jon Fratelli with the slightest lingering doubt about his band’s success and longevity. ‘I’m…

T in the Park - The Ting Tings

3 Jul 2008

Walking through Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens with the band who are number one in both the UK singles and downloads chart is a cheerful feeling, and it’s not purely down to the bright, sunny Saturday afternoon weather. Katie White and Jules De Martino…

T in the Park - Up-and-comers

3 Jul 2008

MGMT What Psychedelic synth-pop duo from Brooklyn Unique Selling Point They sound wonderfully woozy on record but the MGMT live experience reveals a harder, darker and much more edgy side to the band. Imagine full-on swampy rock colliding with…

Come on Gang!

3 Jul 2008

INDIE Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Thu 10 Jul ‘I’m a nightmare on a train,’ says Sarah Tanat Jones, drummer and lead singer of Come on Gang! ‘I’m that annoying person who can’t help tapping a beat with my feet or hands. Or both.’ She wanted to channel her…

Harmonia

3 Jul 2008

KRAUTROCK ABC, Glasgow, Fri 11 Jul As long lost supergroups go, the reignition of Harmonia is the musical equivalent of discovering some buried mythical city. When Michael Rother, Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius got together again in 2007…

Stapleton

3 Jul 2008

INDIE ROCK Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, Glasgow, Tue 8 Jul It must be tiring, constantly being referred to as unsung heroes. Who wouldn’t rather be a sung hero than an unsung one? If Scottish outfit Stapleton feel any of that frustration they hide it well, but…

Steve Mason - Black Affair

3 Jul 2008

The last many people will remember hearing of Steve Mason was when, in April 2006, he prompted much head scratching amongst the press by cancelling a nationwide tour with his post-Beta Band project King Biscuit Time, before leaving a curiously oblique…

Also Released - Music

3 Jul 2008

Daedelus - Love to Make Music To (Ninja Tune) This leftfield hip hop doyen takes a few trips into the unknown, expanding his repertoire of beats bleats and cuts into hunks of textured, hypnotic, mirthful magic. Our Sleepless Forest - Our Sleepless…

Cappella Nova - Voices of Scotland

3 Jul 2008

CLASSICAL St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh, Fri 4 Jul A fascinating concert of sung Scottish texts from the 6th to the 16th centuries seems the ideal way to close an international conference on the language and literature of Scotland in mediaeval and…

Dundee Guitar Festival

3 Jul 2008

The sixteenth annual celebration of the guitar as an international line-up returns to take over the Marryat Hall in Dundee. Hungarian duo the The Katrona Twins (11 Jul) Poland’s Andrzej Mokry and Czech soloist Pavel Steidl (both play 12 Jul) and ending…

Extra Golden

3 Jul 2008

Described as ‘an incendiary union of Kenyan benga and Stateside rock’ there’s a soft side to these cross-continental superstars. Their track ‘Obama’ is dedicated to the Presidential front runner, not for political reasons, but as a thank you for helping…

Kylie

3 Jul 2008

She may have been in the headlines for her health troubles and boy troubles more recently but now it is time to remember why the world really loves Kylie. The show. While Madge is throwing in Pantera covers to her set and bashing on her Strat and…

Pentangle

3 Jul 2008

Legendary folk-rock-jazz ensemble who's roots stretch back into the 60s. Pentangle are back with their original line-up of guitarists Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, singer Jacqui McShee, bassist Danny Thompson and drummer Terry Cox. They also take a…

Red Sparowes

3 Jul 2008

Los Angeles post-rockers Red Sparowes have supported the likes of Dilllinger Escape Plan and feature members of Isis, Halifax Pier and Angel Hair. They plough a deliberately experimental furrow of epic ambient rock, but distinguish themselves form the…

Errors @ Duty Free

19 Jun 2008

ACID POP Sick Note @ Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, Thu 26 Jun Sunlight, oxygen, small blue pens from Argos . . . it’s true that all the very best things in life are gratis. Add to that list the selection of no cost delights that is Duty Free, Cabaret…

Exposure - Fête de la Musique

19 Jun 2008

Our friends the French want us to join in their national festival of music, where streets and concert halls across France get taken over for a day of free gigs. L’Institut Français d’Ecosse has hosted its annual mini-fête for over 20 years now, and this…

My Bloody Valentine

19 Jun 2008

SHOEGAZE COMEBACK Barrowlands, Glasgow, Wed 2 & Thu 3 Jul There are some musical reunions the whole world wants to happen, and others that start out and then fall away without the populace paying the slightest bit of attention. Then there are…

Sergeant

19 Jun 2008

ROCK/POP King Tut’s, Glasgow, Fri 20 Jun ‘I wasn’t prepared for the sublime genius of Sergeant,’ says Alan McGee, who believes the Glenrothes band is carrying on a great tradition of perfectly-crafted sunny Scottish pop songs. ‘They have that slight…

The Undersea World of Bubble McBea

19 Jun 2008

CHILDREN’S OPERA Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Fri 20-Sun 22 Jun The words ‘children’ and ‘opera’ aren’t often found in the same sentence. But over the past few years, Scottish Opera has managed to make the artform not just accessible, but great fun.

5 Reasons To Go See - Reggae

19 Jun 2008

It’s hot - Nothing says summer like sweet reggae music. That enviable Caribbean climate seems to emanate from the speakers, giving all a feel-good, lazy day, sunshine quality. It’s just the weather, right? It’s heady - While great for kicking back and…

Bobby Watson

19 Jun 2008

GLASGOW JAZZ FESTIVAL Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, Sat 28 Jun There was a time when Bobby Watson was a regular visitor to these parts, both in his own right and with the great 29th Street Saxophone Quartet, but it has been a while now since we had the…

Chris Bradley

19 Jun 2008

Expect a subtle mix of alternative rock and classical elements as Chris Bradley launches his new album Voices in his native Edinburgh. He started as a child singing with the prestigious St Mary’s Cathedral Choir, then joined a jazz band before finally…

Harry Smith Anthology Remixed

19 Jun 2008

When American song-collector, artist, ethno-musicologist and experimental filmmaker Harry Smith released The Anthology Of American Folk Music in 1952, it was a labour of love which had a huge influence on the 1950s so-called Folk revival. Without this…

Hey You Get Off My Pavement!

19 Jun 2008

‘You know how you learn from bad experiences?’ muses Paul Ranter in relation to Hey You Get Off My Pavement!, café/bar/record store Mono’s sun-drenched inaugural festival of 2006. ‘Well everything went perfectly that year, so we didn’t learn anything.

Homegrown - Glasgow International Jazz Festival

19 Jun 2008

GLASGOW JAZZ FESTIVAL Various venues, Glasgow, Fri 27–Sun 29 Jun The annual Homegrown showcase at the Glasgow Jazz Festival has expanded considerably since the inaugural event in 2005, which featured a single concert with four bands at the Ramshorn…

Polar Bear

19 Jun 2008

Aberdonian drummer Sebastian Rochford and saxophonist Pete Wareham have stormed Glasgow with Acoustic Ladyland, and now bring this rather different take on jazz-meets-punk-meets-electronics fusion to the city for the first time, with Mark Lockheart…

Sheryl Crow

19 Jun 2008

Perhaps not the chart force she was back in 1994 with ‘All I Wanna Do’, but Sheryl Crow has grown, and now provides a more mature and considered take on American pop with a heavy country slant. Not surprising that her music has grown in scope and pathos…

SNJO plays Steely Dan

19 Jun 2008

GLASGOW INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, Tue 24 Jun The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra have always covered a wide-ranging repertoire, from swing era staples such as Ellington, Basie and Goodman through to newly commissioned…

The Hebrides Ensemble

19 Jun 2008

CHAMBER OPERA Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Sat 21 Jun Based on George Mackay Brown’s prose and re-imagined by Scottish composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, The Martyrdom of St Magnus was always going to leave an extraordinary legacy. Uniting the talents…

Tomasz Stanko’s Nordic Quartet

19 Jun 2008

Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stanko has been a leading light in the European jazz scene for over three decades and continues to develop his own distinctive take on a European jazz aesthetic, accompanied by a young band that includes sensational Swedish…

Hydro Connect festival line up 2008

17 Jun 2008

The Hydro Connect Festival takes place in the stunning countryside around Loch Fyne within the grounds of Inverarary Castle between Friday 29th and Sunday 31st August 2008.

Misterstourworm and the Kelpie’s Gift

5 Jun 2008

ORCHESTRAL CD Circular Music, Mon 9 Jun Back in 2003, Billy Boyd was a well kent face in Scottish theatre but the world had yet to know his name. At that point, composer Savourna Stevenson and writer Stuart Paterson secured Boyd’s services to narrate…

American woman - Estelle interview

5 Jun 2008

Estelle is a busy lady. It takes three weeks, three reschedules and three attempts at a transatlantic phone call to finally get a word with her. ‘Yeah man, its been promo city lately’ she giggles from a room in the heart of her US label Atlantic’s…

Atmosphere

5 Jun 2008

HIP HOP Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Tue 17 Jun No matter how tired commercial hip hop becomes there’s always a smattering of inspirational characters to breathe some life into the scene. Innovators like MF Doom, Madlib and Shape of Broad Minds keep us on…

Liza Minnelli

5 Jun 2008

SHOWBIZ LEGEND SECC, Glasgow, Fri 6 Jun There aren’t many people for whom the word ‘legend’ is applicable, but Liza Minnelli is certainly one of them. Tales of marital woe and substance abuse may have dogged her personal life, but Minnelli’s career…

5 Reasons To Go See - Theo Travis's Double Talk

5 Jun 2008

1 He’s got a sound in his head Double Talk was put together specifically to explore a sound that Theo had in his head, featuring his saxes and flute alongside the brilliant Mike Outram on guitar, Hammond organ wiz Paul Whittaker and ex-Fairground…

Fleet Foxes

5 Jun 2008

Seattle five-piece Fleet Foxes are signed to one of the city’s most legendary labels Sub Pop (as well as Bella Union). But it’s as far from grunge as you could get, except for their gorgeous, ramshackle nature. Despite a few shaggy rock outs the band…

Foy Vance

5 Jun 2008

Expect an alternative take on the singer-songwriter set up from Foy Vance, who has picked up comparisons to everyone from Van Morrison to Stevie Wonder. Counting Pete Townsend, Bonnie Raitt and David Holmes among his admirers, Vance weaves soul, blues…

Joan As Police Woman

5 Jun 2008

It’s hard to categorise Joan As Police Woman (aka Joan Wasser and her band). She’s worked with Rufus Wainwright, is one of Antony’s Johnsons and creates intelligent, thoughtful music with a punk rock attitude. ‘I’ve called it punk rock R&B but American…

RockNess

5 Jun 2008

The first genuine music festival of the summer season is upon us! Rock Ness decamps to the banks of the mythic Loch Ness. Headed by Fatboy Slim and featuring Razorlight, Editors, CSS, The View and Underworld, the list of star performers just goes on and…

Royal Scottish National Orchestra: orchestra+

5 Jun 2008

NEW COLLABORATIONS Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, Thu 19 Jun The names Elvis Costello and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra aren’t likely contenders for appearing in the same sentence. Neither are the RSNO and Video Games Live. More regular…

Black Kids

22 May 2008

INDIE King Tut’s, Glasgow, Wed 4 Jun They’re not going to teach your boyfriend how to dance with you, but tipped-for-greatness combo Black Kids are hellbent on entertaining the Tut’s crowd as part of their UK and Europe-wide tour. Speaking from…

Le Weekend

22 May 2008

JAZZ Tolbooth, Stirling, Fri 23–Sun 25 May With Triptych now but a memory, the eclecticism of Le Weekend is brought into even sharper focus as an important vehicle for music that eludes the attention of more conventional mainstream events. This year’s…

Three Harbours Arts Festival

22 May 2008

We’re all about the community arts festivals this week, it seems. Summer is finally coming, and we can’t think of a nicer way to spend a sunny weekend than tracking down art in unusual places. So, in East Lothian, the main premise behind the Three…

Leith Festival

22 May 2008

To commemorate the annual clamjamfry of community celebration way down dockward, we thought we’d treat you to a picture of everyone’s favourite Leither. Okay, everyone’s favourite fictional Leither. We’re not just gratuitously posting pictures of…

Glasgow Americana Festival - Jason Ringenberg

22 May 2008

If there was ever a singer who fits the dewy-eyed, British notion of Americana as thinking man’s country music, it would be Jason Ringenberg. With the social conscience of Steve Earle, the cheekbones of (a young) Johnny Cash, the punk aesthetic of Joey…

Public Enemy

22 May 2008

HIP HOP ABC, Glasgow, Tue 27 May Do you know the one about the ahead-of-his-time internet entrepreneur, the clock-obsessed reality TV star, and the boyish looking, alleged anti-Semite? No punch line here, just excerpts from the long and vivid history…

5 Reasons To Go See - Bob Mould

22 May 2008

Hüsker Dü - Mould was singer and guitarist with seminal American hardcore outfit Hüsker Dü. Throughout the 80s they released a string of hugely influential records including Zen Arcade and New Day Rising. Their unique blend of thrashy punk, melody and…

Also Released - Music

22 May 2008

The Futureheads - This is Not the World (Nul) Much underrated Mackem quartet unfurl this, their third album, showing considerable depth to their harmonious fevered guitar pop. Highly recommended. Radiohead - Best Of (Parlophone) Despite being…

Opera Circus: Differences in Demolitions

22 May 2008

OPERA Tron Theatre, Glasgow, Wed 27 & Thu 28 May; Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 31 May Think of Bosnia and Herzogovina and the chances are that ethnic cleansing and bloodshed spring to mind. Yet, this Balkan country, where east meets west, has a rich…

The Felice Brothers

22 May 2008

The dual influences of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen may weigh heavy on this New York quartet’s self-titled debut album, but that’s not to say they’re without their own ideas. They tap into a similar vein of vivid, florid storytelling that the Boss…

The Hazy Janes

22 May 2008

So we get ten minutes of sunshine and everyone’s out in their undies setting disposable barbecues aflame on any spare patch of grass around. Rely then, on The Hazy Janes to provide a soundtrack for such clement weather and general hedonism. New single…

We Are the Physics

22 May 2008

Modesty rarely prevails in the braggadocio-strewn world of rock music so when this frisky quartet named their debut album We Are the Physics are OK at Music it seemed for a minute that being demure and was going to overtake skinny jeans on the fashion…

Tigerfest

8 May 2008

This year’s Tigerfest once again brings some of the most exciting Scottish acts to Dunfermline and Fife, but also branches out with gigs in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Names like Twilight Sad, Teenage Fanclub’s Norman Blake and Paul Haig will all be gracing…

Cadence Weapon and J-Live

8 May 2008

HIP HOP Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Mon 19 May; The Ivy, Glasgow, Tue 20 May In the space of two albums, Rollie Pemberton (aka Cadence Weapon) has cut a compellingly maverick path across the hip hop landscape. His first record, Breaking Kayfabe, set…

Exposure - No Age

8 May 2008

Set to be the breakthrough band from Los Angeles arts space The Smell, No Age have unleashed a scuzzy noise-pop masterpiece in their Sub Pop debut Nouns. Guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/singer Dean Spunt crank out a joyous racket that suggests a…

Feist

8 May 2008

One of the founding members of Canadian supergroup Broken Social Scene and former flatmate of Peaches, Leslie Fiest is now best known for that video ‘1234’ as featured so ubiquitously in the iPod advert. However this takes nothing away from the simple…

Gregory Isaacs

8 May 2008

REGGAE Citrus Club, Edinburgh, Tue 20 May Born in Kingston Jamaica in 1950, five years after Bob Marley, Gregory Isaacs’ musical trajectory offers a fascinating counterpoint to the beloved Rastafarian musician. While Isaacs’ early inspirations came…

Ladytron

8 May 2008

Cool electronic pop as Ladytron once more stride into the live arena, testing the waters before the release of new album Velocifero in early June. Effortlessly crossing the club/live divide they’re in demand as DJs and musicians, even going on to remix…

MGMT

8 May 2008

PSYCHEDELIC ROCK The Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Fri 9 May A lot of bands take themselves too seriously, but not MGMT. For evidence, get yourself to YouTube and check out the video for fantastic recent single ‘Time to Pretend’, a song satirising the…

O2 Undiscovered

8 May 2008

Tell ya, kid. These days, everybody wants to get into showbiz. O2 Undiscovered, which lands in Glasgow this fortnight, is the latest in a fast-growing succession of hands-on networking events offering the public a chance to meet and get advice from…

Rachel Unthank and the Winterset

8 May 2008

FOLK Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Fri 9 May; ABC, Glasgow, Sat 10 May It’s a decidedly domestic vibe at chateau Unthank when Rachel comes to the phone. ‘I’ve just been doing a bit of gardening and I had to go into town to pick up a new cello case,’ she…

Sonic Boom Six

8 May 2008

PUNK Barfly, Glasgow, Sun 18 May Less than ten years ago, bassist/vocalist Barney Boom’s only audience were the people who showed up to parties he was MCing at. These days, he’s touring internationally, as part of the Manchester-based quartet, the…

Tinariwen

8 May 2008

Formed in 1982 in Muammar al-Gaddafi’s camps of Tuareg rebels, Tinariwen mix their traditional music Tishoumaren (‘music of the unemployed’), with electric guitars to create world music at its most thrilling aided by a distinct 70s rock edge.

Willard Grant Conspiracy

8 May 2008

Willard Grant Conspiracy, the disparate alt.country band led by the gravel-voiced Robert Fisher numbers in excess of 40 musicians from all over the world. Since Fisher started it all off in 1996, the group’s output has been prolific: seven full albums…

5 Reasons To Go See - King Creosote

8 May 2008

1 He’s royalty Kenny Anderson (aka King Creosote) is a local legend responsible, along with his label Fence Records, for a renaissance of Scottish folk, lo-fi, electronica and rock. All done from a bolthole in the East Neuk of Fife. Clever, eh? 2…

Also Released - Music

8 May 2008

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (4AD) This was recorded in a remote cabin in the wilds of Wisconsin and it sounds like it. A gloriously minimal and spectral solo debut from Justin Vernon. Jack Marchment - Corydon and Manjrekar (Benbecula) Inspired…

Leith Festival announces line up

8 May 2008

Leith provided further evidence of its status as one of the city's most vibrant areas with the launch of its annual festival. Organisers revealed that the Leith Festival would showcase its trademark brew of home grown talent, alongside big name…

Scottish Opera: Falstaff

8 May 2008

OPERA Theatre Royal, Glasgow, Tue 13, Thu 15, Sat 17, Wed 21 & Sat 24 May; Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Wed 18, Sat 21, Thu 26 & Sat 28 Jun Long before any government directives on obesity, Shakespeare’s Sir John Falstaff knew all about the challenges…

Willie Nelson

8 May 2008

COUNTRY Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow, Thu 8 & Fri 9 May There is a certain evergreen enthusiasm about Willie Nelson that makes him unmistakably a country musician. They all have it, or had it: Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, Johnny Cash. It’s the blinding…

Conor Oberst and Gutter Twins for Hydro Connect festival

7 May 2008

Bright Eyes head honcho Conor Oberst brings his new band The Magic Valley Band to Hydro Connect festival this summer. This will be Oberst’s first venture to Scotland in this new guise.

Nick Cave

24 Apr 2008

Nick Cave is in his car. It’s a big car, but no Chelsea tractor. He’s in the driving seat, howling madly along with the bombast blaring out of the speakers. This isn’t a cruise down endless stretches of autobahn, freeways of America or through the arid…

Vampire Weekend

24 Apr 2008

The Paul Simon revival, inexplicably, just might start here. Preppy New York quartet Vampire Weekend borrow elements of their sound from Afrobeat, post-punk and new wave, but the fact of four well-off white kids co-opting African rhythms can’t fail to…

Adele

24 Apr 2008

POP Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 26 Apr Nineteen-year-old South Londoner Adele has some big shoes to fill. Already being hailed as ‘the New Queen of British Soul’ and ‘the New Amy Winehouse’, she bagged the Critics Choice prize at the Brit awards…

Ulrich Schnauss

24 Apr 2008

ELECTRONICA Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Sun 4 May Without British Forces radio, Ulrich Schnauss’ brand of transcendent electronica wouldn’t be quite so lovely. In early 90s small-town Germany, it was the only way quintessentially English bands such as…

The Xcerts

24 Apr 2008

INDIE Barfly, Glasgow, Tue 6 May Indie rock is the musical opiate of the masses. Recapture that first hit ecstasy with The Xcerts, a fresh-faced three-piece from Aberdeen and Exeter. Get Cape Wear Cape Fly liked their fully-formed, captivatingly…

Pendulum

24 Apr 2008

DRUM & BASS Carling Academy, Glasgow, Sat 3 May Pendulum, the drum & bass production trio from Perth, Australia shifted more than 200,000 copies of their debut album Hold your Colour. Like Roni Size, LTJ Bukem and a few others that had gone before…

5 Reasons To Go See - Willy Vlautin

24 Apr 2008

He’s an amazing singer, songwriter and frontman For the last 14 years, Vlautin has fronted Richmond Fontaine, the alt.country outfit based in Portland, Oregon. Eight finely crafted albums have seen him evoke the ghost of Gram Parsons in telling intimate…

Black Acid

24 Apr 2008

ROCK Nice’n’Sleazy, Glasgow, Tue 6 May Nice’n’Sleazy is an aptly titled venue for the debut of Richard ‘Death in Vegas’ Fearless’ new psychedelic scuzz rock outfit, Black Acid. The five-piece – a full band replete with Farfisa organ and Fearless on…