Claire Sawers

Scavengers - Joshua Sofaer interview

Edinburgh International Art Festival

22 Jul 2008

Anneka Rice may have popularised scavenging but performance artist Joshua Sofaer is taking it to a new level. Claire Sawers asks him why he wants to trash Edinburgh Joshua Sofaer was wandering around a London art gallery recently, minding his own…

Up close and personal - Niki King

Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival

22 Jul 2008

For Niki King, intimacy is something to be embraced rather than feared. Claire Sawers lends an ear as the local singer gently explains why she loves getting confessional on stage.

You've been mangoed - Mohammed Hanif

Edinburgh International Book Festival

22 Jul 2008

The mysterious death of Pakistan’s dictator General Zia is still the subject of fevered speculation today. Mohammed Hanif tells Claire Sawers about a debut novel he’s based on memories, rumours and jokes Mohammed Hanif has always been a daydreamer.

Camille O'Sullivan

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

Sliding onstage in a red corset and heels, sipping a glass of red wine, French-Irish chanteuse Camille O’Sullivan likes keeping her audience on their toes when she performs. She may launch into a tear-stained Edith Piaf cover or an angry Tom Waits…

Streets of glory - Edinburgh Rat Race

17 Jul 2008

Edinburgh will be reclaimed by hundreds of scurrying creatures this month. Claire Sawers meets the people behind the Rat Race

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.

Found

3 Jul 2008

ART/MUSIC INSTALLATION Dialogues of Wind and Bamboo, Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Sat 21 Jun It was the all-you-can-eat buffet of line-ups. There were robots playing bamboo instruments, dancing in the sculpture garden, tai chi and the chance to…

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…

Luna

3 Jul 2008

Russian dolls and stubbly Niko Bellic lookalikes filled out Club Ego a month or so ago, when the Picardy Place venue hosted Rockstar North’s fancy dress launch party for Grand Theft Auto IV. The walls were glowing with projections of soviet propaganda…

Jim Cartwright - Supermarket Supermodel

3 Jul 2008

‘I’ve got something to tell you,’ confides Jim Cartwright, in a rascally, Lancashire drawl. ‘I used to be called Maureen.’ But, as it turns out, that wasn’t where he drew the inspiration for his novel, Supermarket Supermodel. A chat with the Northern…

Sushi making

19 Jun 2008

Sushi is like a chocolate box selection for grown-ups, says Kumiko Hatori, a Japanese chef, and my teacher for the day. ‘It should be full of pretty shapes and bright colours that tempt you to dip in.’ We’re in the kitchen of Hatori’s home in Glasgow, a…

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…

Fred MacAulay

19 Jun 2008

STAND-UP Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 28 Jun They say a person’s character is formed by the time they’re seven. According to Fred MacAulay, his was pretty much good to go by age five. ‘Back then I was making up stories and telling lies to amuse…

Singles & Downloads

19 Jun 2008

It’s definitely a good fortnight for bizarre and beautiful sounds. For those who like their tunes a little out of leftfield, there are some ear-bending audio treats in store. For those who don’t, there’s always Nickelback ’s soft-rock mush on…

Alexander Terekhov - The Rat Killer

5 Jun 2008

ALLEGORICAL DRAMA (Alma Books) Alexander Terekhov wrote this political allegory when he was 27. Bad timing meant it failed to make waves outside Russia, as critics were busy unearthing older, established writers suppressed under the communist regime.

Exposure - Lykke Li

5 Jun 2008

Floating somewhere between Feist and Björk, 22-year-old Lykke Li’s breathy, sugary vocals got a bouncy, electronic makeover when Björn Yttling, of Peter, Björn and John produced her debut album. Since her catchy single ‘Little Bit’ came out in February…

Made in the Shade @ The Lighthouse

22 May 2008

She wears a frilly apron and teases her hair into a rock-hard bee-hive. She spends her days baking fresh cupcakes and her nights stitching patchwork quilts. According to Carrie Maclennan, she’s ‘the American 1950s housewife mother you never had’, and…

Susan Greenfield - ID: The Quest for Identity in the 21st Century

22 May 2008

SOCIAL ANALYSIS (Sceptre) Susan Greenfield, the Oxford-based professor, neuroscientist and broadcaster, is worried that modern living is pushing us towards a more dumbed-down society, where addictive, hedonistic, self-centred behaviour is winning out…

John Burnside - Glister

8 May 2008

SOCIAL DRAMA (Jonathan Cape) It’s safe to say this latest novel from Fifer John Burnside won’t be sparking a tourism boom on the east coast anytime soon. But his bleakly beautiful tale digs beneath the surface of the everyday to do what he does best…

Food For Thought

8 May 2008

Because of my job, I need to keep fit and flexible. If I ate too many crisps, I wouldn’t fit into my straitjacket anymore. Breakfast is Weetabix Minis and a cup of green tea. I never eat fruit; I’m allergic to bananas, melons and strawberries. If I eat…

Earthy Food Store

8 May 2008

Despite the very best and utterly wholesome intentions to stock up on organic cheeses at the weekly farmers’ market, or to take a drive to the country to buy veg with the soil still hanging off it, sometimes a long lie or a busy week gets in the way.

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…

Triptych - Annie Nightingale

10 Apr 2008

Annie Nightingale Last month, Annie Nightingale was giving a lift home to Slyde, two breakbeat DJs who she’d just showcased on her BBC Introducing Tour. She got a weird pang of pride when they started talking about their cover of ‘Sex and Drugs and…

Eagleowl

10 Apr 2008

INDIE Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Thu 20 Mar Not to be confused with the vicious bird world nasty they’re named after (who loves a bit of dog eating and deer biting), the Eagleowl live experience is a very gentle thing, like watching clouds dragged at a…

Food For Thought

10 Apr 2008

Breakfast is usually crunchy nut cornflakes and I must have a cup of tea. I’m horribly addicted. At weekends, health goes out the window and me and my boyfriend and business partner, Ali, opt for the classic fry-up on a roll – egg, bacon and tatty…