Music

Die Antwoord - SWG3, Glasgow, 12 Nov 2010

Doing for post-apartheid South African underclass what punk did for UK guttersnipes

22 Nov 2010

With their fresh new Zef style, South African rap-rave crew Die Antwoord performed a high energy, jam-packed line up of catchy rap, indecent exposure and 'next-level-beats' from their debut album $O$. A crowd of expat South Africans, indie kids and…

Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II

Buoyant, but lacking dynamics that made last year’s album instantly spine chilling

23 Jan 2012

(Southern Lord) The follow up to last year’s Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I surveys the same improvised and stripped down hinterlands of its predecessor, reviving their string section in favour of the amplified nature of their previous…

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…

YolanDa Brown

11 Jun 2009

SOUL JAZZ Twenty-six-year-old London-born saxophonist YolanDa Brown is already remarkably successful, winning a MOBO award last year and collaborating with Alexander O’Neil, Mica Paris and The Temptations, all on the back of just two self-released…

Glasgow Film Festival highlights

A selection of the best events at GFF 2012

3 Feb 2012

Music We’re excited about DIY promoter Cry Parrot’s event with soundtrack dark lord Umberto who will provide the music for a secret film of his choice (SWG3, 25 Feb, 8pm). Douglas Hart, founding member of The Jesus and Mary Chain, has made videos for…

The xx lined up for Edinburgh Studio 24 gig

23 Feb 2010

Everybody loves The xx. The Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening loves them so much he asked them to play the upcoming edition of the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival he’s curating. Rob Da Bank loves them too, so he’s booked them for Bestival this year. The…

Florence and the Machine: Lungs

9 Jul 2009

Worth bagging for the staggering drive-pop grandeur of ‘Rabbit Heart (Raise it Up)’ alone, this surprisingly compelling debut from skewed London chorister Florence Welch largely justifies, and even outshines, the hype. Abounding with curious musical…

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…

Slipknot - All Hope is Gone

4 Sep 2008

Slipknot - All Hope is Gone (Roadrunner) Slipknot could so easily have been a gimmick. Nine masked men in boiler suits battering out heavy metal. But from first single (‘Wait and Bleed’ back in 1999) they have constantly proved their musical…

Bombay Bicycle Club and Friendly Fires join Primal Scream at Edinburgh's Hogmanay 2012

Mark Ronson and Kassidy also set for New Year in Scottish capital

28 Oct 2011

Bombay Bicycle Club and Friendly Fires have been confirmed as joining Primal Scream on the bill at Edinburgh's Hogmanay 2012. Fresh from their European tour, Bombay Bicycle Club will be performing at the Concert in the Gardens, the music and…

Steel Panther, Saxon and Dilinger Escape Plan added to Download 2010 bill

23 Mar 2010

A further 22 names have been announced by rock and metal festival Download to perform on the 2010 bill. Steel Panther, HIM, Saxon, Airbourne, Coheed & Cambria, 36 Crazyfists, Dilinger Escape Plan, Dommin, Taking Dawn, Unearth, Cinderella, A Day To…

La Roux

9 Jul 2009

Good pop music is instant, but great pop music lasts forever. Elly ‘La Roux’ Jackson, with hair like a winsome gingerbread Mr Whippy, a voice like spun sugar and on the receiving end of more hyperbole than Cristiano Ronaldo, Kanye West and Susan Boyle…

Emeli Sande - Our Version Of Events

Powerful, sophisticated and smart mix of stripped down, acoustic songs

24 Jan 2012

(Virgin) Just imagine it, Adele and Emeli Sandé down the pub, putting the world to rights over copious pints. Men? Screw ’em. Hype? Whatever. But the main reason they’d make great gal pals is because they’ve both worked out ways to channel their…

Gary Numan announces UK tour

The 'Cars' singer will pull over in Glasgow on Wed 23 May

9 Feb 2012

Electronica icon (and licensed aircraft pilot) Gary Numan has announced a full UK and Ireland tour to take place this summer, in celebration of his new album Machine Music: The Best Of Gary Numan. The tour features just one stop in Scotland, at the O2…

Lana Del Rey - Born to Die

The starlet's debut album outshines the blogocentric hype

8 Feb 2012

(Polydor) Amid the conspiracy theories, the double-standards, the cosmetic surgery obsessions, the questions of authenticity (or lack thereof – like pop was ever without a scheme); amid the histrionic revelations (how dare she have tried before!…

Storm Thorgerson

30 Apr 2009

Born in 1944, Storm Thorgerson’s childhood would not have been thought unusual were it not that he went to school with Roger Waters and Syd Barrett. ‘Roger and I had two connections, one of which was through our mothers, who happened to be pals, and…

GFF 2012 - Silver Apples set for Glasgow Music and Film Festival

Live set from the cult 60s space rock pioneers

27 Jan 2012

When Simeon Coxe III took a 1940s vintage oscillator onstage with him to liven up the psych-rock band he fronted, sparks flew to the extent that half the band left, and, with only drummer Danny Taylor in tow, Silver Apples were born. With their name…

Errors - Have Some Faith In Magic

Superb third album that should push the foursome out of Mogwai's shadow

6 Jan 2012

(Rock Action) Lazily regarded as Mogwai-lite for most of their seven year existence, Errors’ third offering finally sees the Glasgow foursome shrug off the shackles of their legendary label founders’ early patronage. Anyone with half a brain could…

Celtic Connections 2012 line-up announced

Glasgow traditional music festival features 2100 artists and 300 events over 18 days in 20 venues

26 Oct 2011

This year's festival will include 2100 artists, 300 events, 20 venues all over 18 days. Being that winter is in the offing, you now wake up in the morning for work and its dark, you then head home from work and its dark. One thing that will surely…

Brazil! Brazil!

Capeoira kicks, samba hips and footie tricks

8 Aug 2010

Brazil! Brazil! is like the fantasy beach party everyone wants invited to. Chilled-out Brazilian beats to rival Astrud Gilberto, buff bare-chested guys wheeling out jaw-dropping capoeira kicks and backflips, voluptuous feather-topped girls in bling…

Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young

29 Oct 2009

(Rough Trade) The List is quite frankly gagging for a new Strokes record … it’s been three years ferchrissakes. But until we get one, Julian Casablancas’ debut (easily the Strokes-iest sounding of each member’s solo projects so far) will do nicely.

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…

Corinne Bailey Rae set for Glasgow date - interview

10 Mar 2010

First record you ever bought? A 45 of Prince’s ‘Thieves in the Temple’. I got it from a ‘Boyes’ [bargain department store] in Scarborough. First film you saw that really moved you? E.T. First movie you ever went on a date to? The English…

Metronomy - Pip Paine (Pay The £5000 You Owe)

4 Dec 2009

Because Music Re-releases are a little pointless, aren’t they? If we didn’t give a monkeys about your album the first time around, why should we now? Well, quite frankly when it comes to Joseph Mount aka Metronomy, you should always give a monkeys.

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…

A-Team - The Musical

22 Jul 2009

Pity the poor fool who misses out on scoring a ticket to this musical version of the legendary 80s TV adventure series about a quartet of ex-crack commandos-turned-mercenaries. So, can Faceman hold a tune? How are Hannibal’s harmonies? What’s BA’s…

Preview 2009 - Pop Music

8 Jan 2009

‘Pop is back!’, Same Difference exclaim in typically camp fashion on the advert for their not-so-innovatively-titled debut, erm, Pop. Simon Cowell’s karaoke factory might not be the best example of it, but their statement is bang on. Strictly speaking…

Singles of the Month: Withered Hand and King Creosote & Jon Hopkins

Django Django, The Twilight Sad and more also reviewed

3 Feb 2012

Come hither and let us imagine a world, a perfect world – a realm in which Kim Wilde is engaged in a goth-disco tryst with The Sisters of Mercy. Think about it. Harder. Got it? Congratulations, you are now playing ‘Lafaye’ (●●●●, Full Time Hobby), the…

Film You Instead shot at music festival - David Mackenzie interview

Hallam Foe and Young Adam director on making a film at T in the Park

18 Feb 2011

David Mackenzie, director of Hallam Foe and Young Adam, discusses his new movie You Instead, a rock'n'roll romcom that aims to capture the excitement of T in the Park.

Autumn Season Preview: Classical Music

What's ahead in the next few weeks

17 Sep 2009

It’s autumn, the leaves are turning and it’s that time of year when classical music’s own type of seasons start up again to keep everyone going through until the Spring. A major difference this year is that the orchestras are returning to their…

Enter Shikari show at Edinburgh Edge Festival

Hardcore dance punk for teenagers to pensioners

13 Jul 2009

For readers of a certain age, Enter Shikari might be a baffling proposition. Coming on like sonic napalm, their mix of hardcore metal and hard, fast trance beats firebomb the senses with speed and intensity. ‘To the greengrocer I’d say, we are just an…

Exposure: Cage The Elephant

11 Nov 2008

Who are Cage The Elephant? They are ‘five blue-collar renegades’ - namely Matt Schultz (vocals), his brother Brad (guitar) and their friends Daniel Titchenor (bass), Lincoln Parish (guitar) and Jared Champion (drums). Matt, Brad and Daniel grew up on an…

Belle & Sebastian revealed as ‘Best Scottish Band of All Time'

1 Jan 2005

After a three-month public vote, Belle & Sebastian were named as the ‘Best Scottish Band Of All Time' at an exclusive Announcement Party at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow. The prestigious accolade, sponsored by Orange, was announced in front of an…

Steve Strange and the Detroit Starrzz - Citrus Club, Edinburgh, Fri 3 Feb 2012

Disappointing gig from the New Romantic

8 Feb 2012

When 80s tribute band, and tonight's support act Party Fears Three dedicate their bombastically unsubtle cover of David Bowie's 'Ashes To Ashes' to Steve Strange,…

Raydale Dower - Cryptic Nights at CCA, Glasgow, Thu 2 Feb 2012

Experimental but playful sound installation

8 Feb 2012

The title of Raydale Dower's new 'spatial sound composition' speaks volumes about the former Uncle John & Whitelock bassist and current Tut Vu Vu clarinettist and sonic architect's methodology.…

Madonna announces Scottish date for 2012

The Queen of Pop will visit Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stadium on Sat 21 July

7 Feb 2012

Pop empress Madonna has just announced a world tour which will call in at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on Saturday 21 July. The 'Sticky & Sweet Tour' comes off the back of a busy period for Madge: she's just directed period/contemporary romance W.E.

School of Seven Bells - Ghostory

Third album from New York electro-phantoms, now a duo

24 Jan 2012

(Full Time Hobby) Ghostory – geddit? It’s the way in which our histories are colonised by ghosts. It’s the way in which persons come to haunt our tales of yore. It’s the third album from New York electro-phantoms SVIIB. At best, it is euphoric – all…

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…

Rustie - Glass Swords

A step into a future sounding uncannily like the past

19 Oct 2011

(Warp) The boundary-nudging boy producer from Glasgow signed to Warp Records who isn’t Hudson Mohawke, Russell Whyte shares the same obsessions as his fellow sometime Numbers alumnus. This record is a step into the future to find it sounds uncannily…

The Midnight Beast - Book At Us Now

Unfunny pop-parody book designed to cash in on upcoming TV fame

18 Oct 2011

(Coronet) ‘We mock the living hell out of stuff for a living,’ claim London pop parody trio The Midnight Beast. Even in this disposable age, simply poking fun at more talented people can only stretch so far before the game is up. Success rarely…

Where to find traditional music nights in Edinburgh

The venues full of traditional live Scottish music every night of the week

16 Feb 2011

Every night of the week, the walls of the Royal Oak bar reverberate to the sound of live music, most of it with a Scottish, folk and traditional flavour. Long a focal point for folk music in the city, this cosy little bar also attracts other acoustic…

Frances Ruffelle: Beneath the Dress

Cheeky, sexy and surprising cabaret-esque show

23 Aug 2010

Given Ruffelle’s showbiz background – she’s the daughter of London theatre school founder Sylvia Young and a Tony Award-winning star of West End and Broadway musicals such as Les Misérables and Chicago – it’s unsurprising that her cabaret-esque Fringe…

Noel Fielding interview

4 Nov 2009

First record you ever bought It was Motörhead and it was an album called Bomber. I was quite a weird kid. Last time you were chatted up Probably last night. Last lie you told Probably last night as well. I lie every day. First movie you ever…

Still Corners, Captain’s Rest, Sat 4 Feb

Dreamy shoegaze five-piece tour recent album

8 Feb 2012

Still Corners had one heck of a 2011, playing SXSW, touring Europe and the US and releasing their debut LP, Creatures of an Hour, and the little basement of the Captain’s is full of people wondering if they can be as lovely live as they are on record.

Interview: RM Hubbert in his own words

The revered Glasgow guitarist explains how music brought him therapy

3 Feb 2012

Solo work and how it began 'I decided when my dad got ill I needed something to take my mind off things. So I decided kind of arbitrarily to learn flamenco guitar. I’d never played acoustics but I thought, "that looks really fucking hard". I don’t…

Henry Rollins – Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, Fri 13 Jan

Prolific punk-rocker gets gut laughs on his three-hour rant

3 Feb 2012

Few people can make a decent living out of talking on stage for two hours. Henry Rollins, on the other hand, has it down to a fine art. An honorary punk rock graduate having earned his stripes fronting S.O.A. and Black Flag in the 80s, and later, his…

Bright Eyes - The People’s Key

Conor Oberst makes a (possibly) final return to his most famous project

26 Jan 2011

(Polydor) Following musical dalliances with the Mystic Valley Band and Monsters Of Folk, Conor Oberst returns to the Bright Eyes fold with a fresh new take on the big life questions, from ‘who am I?’ and ‘do I really love you?’ to, ‘umm, are those…

Hairy Maclary and Friends brings classic children's book to the stage

Musical doggy mayhem based on Lynley Dodd's book

29 Jul 2010

With their cast of colourful canines, Lynley Dodd’s Hairy Maclary books have garnered many fans the world over. Having secured the rights to perform them, Nonsenseroom Productions have been hard at work bringing the eponymous scruffy mutt and his…

Gary Lightbody Interview

First word

19 Nov 2009

First record you ever bought Michael Jackson – Thriller. On tape. Last time you were chatted up Ha. Doesn’t happen very often. Honestly don’t know. Actually, have I been? First movie you ever went on a date to Reservoir Dogs Last time…

Biffy Clyro - Only Revolution

And evolution too chaps?

16 Oct 2009

It’s all making sense now with Biffy Clyro, since Muse showed that you didn’t need to follow the entirely conventional path and attain rock band enormodome status. And it’s not like with the demise of Oasis there will be a flood of rock geeks filling up…

The Incompatible Otway & Barrett

Otway or any way possible

16 Aug 2009

One’s waited 30 odd years to see the John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett experience, therefore their arrival on stage 10 minutes late was easily forgotten. Like some adolescent kid accompanied by his grumpy grandad, jester John and Wild Willy playfully spar…

Jeffree Star

5 Mar 2009

Model, fashion designer, MySpace superstar and singer, Jeffree Star is one of the new breed of web celebrities and self-styled ‘Queen of the internet’. A subversive and sometimes controversial figure famed for his transgressive ‘gender-bending…

The View: Picture House, Edinburgh, 12th Feb 2009

13 Feb 2009

It's hard not to admire The View. They certainly have their flaws. Their records are, at best, ramshackle indie, spawned from a feigned belief that anyone could do 'Up the Bracket'. They also have a cockiness in completely opposing correlation to their…

Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny

The devil plays guitar

13 Nov 2006

Tearing modesty a new asshole, Tenacious D describe themselves as ‘the world’s greatest rock band’. The D’s two members, Jack Black (vocals and rhythm guitar) and Kyle Gass (lead guitar and backing vocals), name check among their inspirations Kiss, Dio…

Hazy Recollections – O2 ABC2, Glasgow, Sun 22 Jan

Electro-folk and French lullabies bring weepie and comedy moments

3 Feb 2012

Celtic Connections’ Hazy Recollections sessions are great for two main reasons. Firstly, they provide a gathering place for the legion of those with beards and plaid shirts. Secondly, you get to see just how far the festival’s remit of ‘folk, roots and…

Red Hot Chili Peppers 2011 UK tour dates

Dublin, London, Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham dates in November 2011

26 Jul 2011

Veteran California funk-rockers Red Hot Chili Peppers have announced their first tour of UK and Ireland since 2006. They’ll be playing at various venues around the country throughout November, stopping in at Glasgow’s SECC on Sat 12 Nov. This will be…

The Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon set for UK tour

The Wu-Tang Clan member comes to Scotland with new album

3 Mar 2011

Two years ago, when Wu-Tang Clan MC Raekwon announced the sequel to his acclaimed 1995 solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx …, you could’ve been forgiven for thinking it was merely some kind of clever ploy to stir up interest in a career that had…

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…

Field notes from Rock Ness 2010

Niki Boyle's reflections on Rock Ness

15 Jun 2010

So here’s some notes I took for my pen-and-paper analogue blog (anablog? No, probably not) from Saturday at Rock Ness. Ah, the memories. 9.57am: On the shuttle bus, drinking covert beers when a fellow bus patron is overheard saying, ‘Get the cello…

Bonobo - Black Sands

10 Mar 2010

(Ninja Tune) Brighton producer, Simon Green brings delicate oriental orchestral arrangements, and lovely big bass-heavy, jazz-tinged melodies, in the lush, Fly-Lo mould.

Red Light Company - Fine Fascination

19 Feb 2009

(Lavolta) ROCK Lead singer Richard Frenneaux may have relocated to London but for their debut platter RLC are clearly enrapt by north American indie feelgood rock vibes, most obviously Arcade Fire’s sizeable bluster and Dinosaur Jr’s shamble and…

Antony and the Johnsons - The Crying Light

22 Jan 2009

BAROQUE POP Mr Hegarty returns, with his mesmerising whine and theatrical warble grabbing the back of the neck like frosty fingers. The follow up to the Mercury prize-winning I am a Bird Now explores the spaces between male and female, shelter and…

Serj Tankian interview: full transcript

System of a Down vocalist talks to The List

20 Aug 2008

System of a Down were a singular prospect in metal, intelligent, intricate and utterly unique. Now vocalist Serj Tankian has released his first solo album, Elect the Dead, as you'd expect it's as distinctive as his former band. Classical pianos morph…

Alabama 3 - Hits And Exit Wounds

22 May 2008

COUNTRY ACID HOUSE (One Little Indian) Most people when thinking of Alabama 3 will come up with one song: ‘Woke Up This Morning’, the theme tune to The Sopranos. This thorough retrospective of their ensemble’s six-album career will hopefully put the…

Sigur Rós - Hvarf-Heim

13 Dec 2007

ROCK (EMI) Released to loosely accompany the Icelandic outfit’s superb recent film, Heima, this two-CD album is a revelation. The Hvarf half contains outtakes and rarities from 12 years of full-band studio sessions and is full of the sumptuous epic…

Newton Faulkner

Hand Built by Robots

16 Aug 2007

POP Until you’ve actually seen young Faulkner attack an acoustic guitar in a whirl of spider-like fingers and dreadlocks transforming it into a three-piece band in the process, it’s hard to properly appreciate this album. There’s loads of…

Lambchop - Mr M

Reassembled band present lovely low-key set recalling Sinatra, Bacharach and crooners

23 Jan 2012

(City Slang) Having taken a break from the long-lasting alt.country outfit (to collaborate with singer Cortney Tidwell on 2010’s KORT project), Lambchop founder and frontman Kurt Wagner has reassembled the Nashville-based band to make its 11th…

Music for Airports: An appreciation by John Foxx

The artist, electro pioneer and friend of Brian Eno the now classic work

19 Oct 2011

I first heard Music For Airports in [legendary krautrock producer] Conny Plank’s studio, as Brian was making it. Christa [Fast] and Inge [Zeininger] were assistants at the studio. Brian roped them in to sing. I thought it was a great idea. I thought…

Duran Duran's John Taylor on porridge, speeding and The Axis of Awesome

25 Apr 2011

The bassist with New Romantic heartbreakers Duran Duran is currently on a world tour, but stops to chat porridge, breaking the speed limit and … that time he had a crush on a relative.

Bwani Junction - King Tut’s, Glasgow, Fri 7 Jan

Fresh guitar-pop sound from Edinburgh's Bwani Junction

14 Jan 2011

A new year’s musical fad is generally to copy one of the last year’s successes, and Edinburgh’s Bwani Junction (perhaps named after George Cukor’s 1956 movie Bhowani Junction?) don’t entirely dodge that accusation. Four handsome and well-spoken young…

Jonsi's live multimedia extravaganza tours UK

Sigur Ros singer on UK tour

22 Aug 2010

The majestic, cinematic voice of Jonsi, lead singer of Sigur Ros, should make for a shivers-up-the-spine performance. Supported by Mountain Man, a misleadingly named trio of twentysomething female folk singers from Vermont. O2 Academy, Glasgow, Sun…

Mark Lanegan lines up Glasgow Oran Mor date

15 Apr 2010

Occupation Whisky-soaked, gravel-throated singer for hire, arch rock’n’roll collaborator and all-round vocal misery guts. Where’s he from, then? Lanegan first came into the public eye in the late 80s and early 90s fronting the Screaming Trees…

Ojos de Brujo

Preview

13 Nov 2009

Walking out the lift of an Edinburgh Hotel, Marina Abad is pushing her baby son in a buggy. Pivotal singer, composer and the only woman in Europe’s most popular world music band – the Barcelona collective Ojos de Brujo. Renowned for their…

Part Chimp - Thriller

3 Sep 2009

Imagine a supernova collapsing into a super-gravitational black hole, sucking in whole star systems, then eating pies and doughnuts for all eternity, and that still wouldn’t be as heavy as Part Chimp. This third album from the London…

Tommy Reilly

19 Feb 2009

It’s all happening fast for young Tommy. Having just won the Orange Unsigned Act award on Channel 4 to add to his long list of acclamations, bigger stages and more caviar filled riders must surely follow. Catch the Glaswegian singer-songwriter while you…

Scotland The Great - Nine Inch Will Please a Lady

22 Jan 2009

The Burnsian band I am in, with Malcolm Ross and my brother Russel, The Bum-Clocks, has a version of ‘Nine Inch’, a witty ditty in celebration of quantity. We usually locate it in our mash-up of the poetry of Burns and Iggy Pop which kicks off with ‘A…

The View - Witch Bitch?

22 Jan 2009

INDIE ROCK Packing indie festival anthems, bar room garage, cheeky backstage ditties, stadium rock and orchestral grandiosity The View’s follow-up to 2007’s Hats off to the Buskers has it all – all besides a coherent identity that is. As an album…

Isosceles

10 Apr 2008

After being spotted by Alex Kapranos, Isosceles scored a coveted support slot with Scottish indie pop royalty Franz Ferdinand. The band are about to launch the latest single, ‘Kitch Bitch/Watertight’, from their debut album Get Your Hands Off, which…

Five reasons to go see . . . The GZA

The Genius of Wu Tang approaches the Arches

1 Feb 2012

He’s a genius The Genius, to be precise. GZA, aka The Genius, (Gary Grice to his mum) is a founding member of Wu Tang Clan, along with his cousin, producer The RZA, and gravelly-voiced rap heathen Ol’ Dirty Bastard (RIP). The Clan emerged out of New…

Cry Parrot New Year Fest - Nice & Sleazy, Glasgow, Fri 13 Jan

Snapshot of Scotland’s restless underground featuring Sacred Paws

1 Feb 2012

Not so much a ‘hot tips for 2012’ shindig as a snapshot of Scotland’s restless underground, the second night of independent promoter Cry Parrot’s new bands residency is dominated by electronica, but there’s room for polyrhythmic guitar’n’drum jams too.

Howler - America Give Up

The kind of easily-digestible festival fodder that could hit the spot live, but is dull on record

27 Jan 2012

(Rough Trade) You think we would all have learned by now that it is frankly unproductive to call anything the ‘new this’, the ‘next that’, or, god forbid, ‘the hottest thing you’ll hear all year’. Sadly, whether they’re aware of it or not, young US…

Five picks from Celtic Connections 2012

Featuring Zoe Muth, Jack Bruce, King Creosote and Jon Hopkins and Vieux Farka Touré

6 Jan 2012

Zoe Muth & The Lost High Rollers The year in Americana 2011 belongs to Gillian Welch and the release of her album The Harrow & the Harvest, but amongst a promising field of young female country singers, Zoe Muth stands out. With her ear for an instant…

Chris Isaak - Beyond the Sun

Listenable but redundant take on some of Sun Records' finest

5 Jan 2012

(Vanguard Records/Rhino) During its 1950s heyday, Sun Records churned out standards by the bucketload from the likes of Elvis, Cash and Orbison. During the recording of Beyond the Sun, David Lynch’s favourite bequiffed rockabilly star was presumably…

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…

Adele - Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 24 Sep 2011

The London 'misery pop' singer overcomes illness to deliver outstanding show

21 Oct 2011

With dates cancelled before and after her Usher Hall date, due to ongoing health issues, the fact that Adele appeared at all is cause for celebration. Albums 19 and 21 have garnered the young Londoner a strong fan base, so when she asks us to ‘bear with…

Rich Hall’s Hoedown

Country and bluegrass gig from the gravel-voiced comedian

16 Aug 2011

There’s a reason Rich Hall has two shows at the Fringe – let’s get that out of the way first. His stand up show is his outlet for the majority of his jokes; his Hoedown set is an opportunity for him to flex his musical muscles, in the company of friends…

RockNess / T in the Park line-ups announced

Pulp, Arctic Monkeys, and Foo Fighters for T; Groove Armada, Kasabian and Chemical Bros for RockNess

3 Mar 2011

The great and good of the music world are set to arrive in style this summer with both T in the Park and RockNess dishing up the goodies for their June and July festivals. At TITP in Balado, the mighty Pulp join Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay and Foo Fighters…

Bright Eyes announce 2011 UK tour - HMV presale tickets

February dates in Glasgow, Nottingham and London first in UK for three years

11 Jan 2011

Bright Eyes will be returning to the UK for the first time in over three years with an intimate February tour to promote new album The People's Key (released Feb 14 2011) prior to a sold-out concert at the Royal Albert Hall on Jun 23.

Allan Brown - Nileism: The Strange Course of the Blue Nile

Biography of enigmatic Glaswegian soul-pop perfectionists leaves much unresolved

30 Nov 2010

(Polygon) The peculiar bubble which enigmatic Glaswegian soul-pop perfectionists the Blue Nile inhabited during their 26 years together burst circa 2004, leaving the three members bitterly estranged ever since. Even if the famously glacial pace they…

The Creole Choir Of Cuba - Tande-La

27 Oct 2010

(Real World) What an inspiring story: only weeks after the 2010 earthquake that devastated Haiti, The Creole Choir of Cuba were working with the Cuban medical mission singing the same exuberant songs to survivors living in makeshift tents that they…

Crystal Fighters - Star Of Love

1 Sep 2010

(Zirkulo Records) Think Gaga’s a tad eccentric? Then try Crystal Fighters for size. This East London quintet named themselves after an unfinished opera written by singer Laure’s grandfather during his descent into insanity, and now pride themselves…

Further Edinburgh International Festival highlights 2010

16 Jul 2010

Montezuma Carl Heinrich Graun’s opera about the Aztec leader who welcomed Spanish adventurers into his kingdom only for them to quickly get tore into the plundering and subjugation explores the clash of two very different worldviews. King’s Theatre…

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…

Gogol Bordello - Trans-Continental Hustle

14 Apr 2010

American Recordings/ Columbia What an apt album title. This latest effort from gypsy-punks Gogol Bordello, Trans-Continental Hustle, takes us on a meandering trip through Eastern Europe and back — via South America too. With lead-man and…

Meursault

Album launch, Cabaret Voltaire, Sat 10 Apr

13 Apr 2010

Tonight feels like a showcase of just how versatile Meursault are as a band. That and a big, fuzzy, congratulatory Edinburgh indie scene hug. After the hottest day in Edinburgh for a long time, as many people as the Cabaret Voltaire will hold have…

Depeche Mode

SECC, Glasgow, Saturday 12 Dec 2009

15 Dec 2009

Massive globally for decades, this arena date with an audience of around 10,000 is probably the smallest show Depeche Mode have played in ages, their first in Scotland for 22 years, and definitely worth the wait for a devotional fanbase who have been…

N-Dubz - Against All Odds

13 Nov 2009

(Universal) Despite musically approximating a holiday fling between Cascada and East 17, London’s cuddly rap anarchists N-Dubz have become the UK’s best-loved chart stars. Little wonder in light of Against All Odds: every chord progression and…

Music In The Digital Age

Technology's impact on the artform

2 Oct 2009

To paraphrase the Creme Egg adverts, when it comes to music, how do you hear yours? Streaming over the internet? Nicking stuff from torrents on the web? A bag full of goodies from Fopp? Crates of obscure vinyl from your local specialist…

Tori Amos

The definitive female voice returns

21 Aug 2009

The ultimate kooky female singer-songwriter (well, since Kate Bush at any rate), known for her quirky take on piano ballads and eccentric vocals. Here touring her tenth studio album Abnormally Attracted to Sin recorded at her home studio in…

AC/DC

9 Jul 2009

Crashing through the back of the stage on a full-size locomotive is one hell of a way to make an entrance, as the opening chords of ‘Rock’n’Roll Train’ blare out across a sweltering Hampden. The atmosphere is electric as AC/DC are greeted as all…