Henry Northmore

Interview: Friendly Fires plan to get the crowds dancing at RockNess 2012

Ed Macfarlane on festivals, pop music and dancing ‘like an idiot’

28 May 2012

Friendly Fires blur the lines between indie and dance music, so their brand of punk funk should fit in perfectly at RockNess. Hailing from St Albans in Hertfordshire they were nominated for the Mercury Music prize for their debut eponymous album, which…

Summer Festivals 2012: Biffy Clyro - interview

The band's James Johnston discusses their headline slot at RockNess

25 May 2012

Despite the unusual time signatures, the uncompromising riffs, the bizarro lyrics and the beards, somehow Biffy Clyro have become one of the biggest rock bands in the UK. Even their hits – ‘That Golden Rule’, ‘Mountains’ and ‘Many of Horror…

Summer Festivals 2012: Ones to watch

A selection of industry experts and List writers choose their musical highlights for this summer

25 May 2012

Lanterns on the Lake Chosen by Jonny Ensall, Editor, The List What does that name bring to mind? Boats on the water? A night to remember? An ethereal choir of knitting together a sense of the magical past and the optimistic future? You’re spot on with…

Men in Black 3

Silly, lightweight, completely unnecessary but surprisingly fun

25 May 2012

In these times of austerity Hollywood seems scared of originals ideas. Studios demand ‘brand recognition’ before they’ll stump up the multi-million dollar budgets blockbusters require. And they seem willing to latch onto almost any brand, from comics to…

Interview: Ash get ready for RockNess 2012

Northern Irish rockers Ash get ready for their only Scottish festival of the year

24 May 2012

Famous for the instantly catchy pop rock of tracks like ‘Kung Fu’, ‘Burn Baby Burn’ and ‘Girl From Mars’ Ash formed as teenagers in Northern Ireland back in 1992. Juggling homework with gigs and recording sessions they released the instant smash 1977 in…

Interview: Jakwob prepares for his live show at RockNess 2012

The dubstep producer talks remixes, Rocky and RockNess

23 May 2012

Young dubstep producer and DJ Jakwob (aka James Jacob) favours a jazzy take on bassy electronica. He first appeared on most people’s radar with his squelchy remix of Ellie Goulding’s ‘Under the Sheets’ and has since gone on to remix Lily Allen, MIA and…

Interview: The Sub Club at RockNess

Glasgow’s legendary club heads to RockNess 2012 as part of their 25th anniversary celebrations

23 May 2012

Glasgow institution the Sub Club celebrate their 25th anniversary this year and as part of their celebrations they are bringing the sounds of the Subbie to RockNess. We catch up with two of the club’s directors, Mike Grieve and Paul Crawford, to see…

Ride the RockNess Express - train details

The Express will pick up festival goers from London, Birmingham, Derby, York and Newcastle

8 May 2012

As part of the Year of Creative Scotland, RockNess are offering a unique (and environmentally friendly) way to the festival site on the banks of Loch Ness. Picking up passengers from London, Birmingham, Derby, York and Newcastle before dropping them off…

Health to provide Max Payne 3 soundtrack

The LA noise rockers follow the game-soundtracking example of Opeth, Trivium and others

24 Apr 2012

Ever since the very earliest days of home gaming and the release of the Atari 2600 (1977), videogame music has become a part of cultural life. The lack of processing power meant it was necessarily tinny, bleepy and repetitive. Despite this, 8- and…

Dan Slott & Humberto Ramos - Spider-Man: Spider Island

New Spidey adventure too frivolous to be genuinely engaging

24 Apr 2012

(Marvel) Spider-Man has always been one of the comics world’s more light-hearted superheroes. While there have been moments of introspection and heartache, he’s always more than ready with a corny quip as he swings into battle. Spider Island continues…

German house DJ Tensnake - interview

The DJ is set to play Musika, Heavy Gossip and Ultragroove's 12-hour bank holiday party

18 Apr 2012

Events like this usually happen in Glasgow. But Musika, in association with Heavy Gossip and Ultragroove, are giving something back to Edinburgh, presenting 12 hours of house and electro spread over three stages. Showcasing some of the best live…

Interview: Ben Sims gets ready for RockNess 2012

The techno DJ/producer among names added to festival bill

13 Apr 2012

DJ Ben Sims has been announced for 2012’s RockNess festival, where he joins Soma Records on the Arcadia UFO stage. With over 20 years of DJ experience, running his own Theory label (among others), he’s renowned for his DJ skills using vinyl, CD and…

Interview: Andrew Weatherall set for RockNess 2012

Esteemed DJ and producer on A Love From Outer Space and festivals

30 Mar 2012

Andrew Weatherall is just one of the new announcements for 2012’s RockNess line-up where he’ll be joining Soma Records who are taking control of the new Arcadia UFO. It’s a Scottish Festival exclusive as he’s joined by Sean Johnston as they present an…

Crate digging: Nick Curly of Kehakuma

The German house DJ shares his favourite tracks ahead of a set at Return to Mono

26 Mar 2012

I’ll start with ‘Easy’ Sante feat Daniel Wild (8Bit) for me it’s the best club record of the moment, people go crazy when I play it and there’s a great vibe on the vocal. I have two labels and sometimes you sign a track and you realise, ‘boom this is…

Trance act Above & Beyond to play set at Barrowland

Tony McGuinness sees trance music as a form of 'group therapy'

26 Mar 2012

Some dismiss trance as lowest common denominator dance music but for many it’s the epitome of club culture: the big build-ups, the huge breakdowns, glo-sticks, lasers and Gatecrasher kids. Whatever the critical reception, trance is wildly popular. Only…

Mark Millar & Leinil Francis Yu - Superior

The Kick-Ass creator's latest ponders what superpowers would mean to those who needed them most

16 Mar 2012

(Titan) Glasgow writer Mark Millar has really picked up the pace on his creator-owned series over the last few years, but what’s more remarkable is how high the quality has remained. Wanted, Kick-Ass and Nemesis were action blockbusters but Superior…

David Kushner - Jacked

An entertaining, if hyperbolic, 'unauthorised' history of Grand Theft Auto

16 Mar 2012

(Collins) After a similar book on Doom, journalist David Kushner returns to familiar ground with Jacked. This ‘unauthorised’ history of Grand Theft Auto traces the game’s development from its early beginnings in Dundee to become one of the highest…

Interview - US rockers 3 Doors Down head for the UK

Q&A with American rock group's bassist Todd Harrell

9 Mar 2012

Mississippi rockers 3 Doors Down are massive in the States, their debut single ‘Kryptonite’ reached number 3 in the Billboard Hot 100 and since then they’ve gone on to score multi-platinum albums. Now they are continuing to secure more fans across the…

Avengers Assemble in latest trailer

Trailer for superhero movie with Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye and Black Widow

1 Mar 2012

It’s the moment comic book and action movie fans have been waiting for as we get our first good look at all six members of the superhero team, The Avengers, in the latest trailer. The hype has been building for this massive blockbuster with Iron Man…

Edinburgh Rocks Music Awards

Awards ceremony celebrating the best in capital clubbing

28 Feb 2012

Edinburgh Rocks, in association with The List, are putting on an awards bash to highlight the club talent in this fine city as well as a top notch afterparty featuring Huggy, Yogi Haughton and a headliner still to be revealed at a mystery location (that…

GFF 2012 - Mark Millar interview

The comic book creator of Kick-Ass and Wanted tells us about his role at the Glasgow Film Festival

13 Feb 2012

Mark Millar has written some of the biggest comics of the last 20 years. He’s tackled the X-Men, Spider-Man, Superman and Fantastic Four alongside...

Sony PS Vita handheld console - playtest

We try out the new hardware with some of the PSV launch titles, including WipeOut and Uncharted

3 Feb 2012

Sony’s new PS Vita is a pretty impressive bit of kit. It’s the most powerful dedicated handheld gaming device on the market. In practical terms it’s pretty much a PS3 in your pocket. The full HD OLED screen really pops and, due to the processing power…

GFF 2012 - Frightfest highlights

A round up of the best films showing as part of the Glasgow Film Festival's horror strand

2 Feb 2012

FrightFest is back once again to terrorise the Glasgow Film Festival. Now taking over the GFT for two full days, this year (as with every year) it’s a vibrant snap shot of the state of horror cinema. It’s been so successful the organisers have launched…

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…

Tekken: Blood Vengeance

Fluid but uneven CGI movie based on the popular games franchise

1 Feb 2012

This is actually the third movie based on the immensely popular fighting games, but Tekken: Blood Vengeance (Manga Entertainment) is the first fully computer animated version and was originally available as part of the Tekken Hybrid package. It looks…

Courtney Taylor-Taylor & Jim Rugg - One Model Nation

Unsuccessful comic book crossover attempt from the Dandy Warhols frontman

27 Jan 2012

(Titan Books) It’s always interesting when someone turns their hand from one artform to another. However, One Model Nation is proof that the results aren’t always as interesting as the concept. The idea of a comic from Dandy Warhols’ frontman…

Oscars 2012 - predictions

Some of The List's film critics give their predictions on who'll win what at the Oscars

25 Jan 2012

Best Picture. The Artist; simplicity is the reason that is soars above the other Oscar bait. The Artist probably will win, as it has won pretty much everything else going. It deserves it - when was the last time a film came along that made everyone fall…

Preview of 2012 - Games

A look at the videogames that'll rule your world this year, including GTA V, Halo 4 and Max Payne 3

9 Jan 2012

First off the biggie: Grand Theft Auto V. We’ve seen the trailer and it looks like we’re back in Los Angeles, sorry Los Santos, for the latest instalment of the world conquering videogame developed by Edinburgh’s own Rockstar North. The shoot outs, car…

Preview of 2012 - Major Lazer

Tsunami of sound from Diplo and Switch's musical alter-ego

6 Jan 2012

Brace yourselves for some sub-heavy electro dancehall from Diplo and Switch as they unleash their collective alter ego Major Lazer: ‘A Jamaican commando who lost his arm in the secret Zombie War of 1984. The US military rescued him and repurposed…

Preview of 2012 - Django Unchained

Quentin Tarantino flexes his Western muscles with Jamie Foxx and Leonardo DiCaprio

6 Jan 2012

Quentin Tarantino has already given us his heist movie (Reservoir Dogs), his take on blaxploitation (Jackie Brown), his war film (Inglourious Basterds), horror (Death Proof), kung fu (Kill Bill 1 & 2) and of course his crime thriller (Pulp Fiction).

Shame

Steve McQueen's second directorial effort is an unflinching portrayal of sex addiction

5 Jan 2012

(18) 101min Sexual imagery oozes from every blockbuster and frat boy comedy, but serious discussion rather than cheap titillation is a rarity. Cinema actually finds it hard to confront sex, partly because the American censorship board takes such a…

Director Steve McQueen discusses latest film Shame

Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan star in story of sex addiction

5 Jan 2012

‘When I first heard of the notion of sex addicts I laughed,’ says Steve McQueen. ‘Then I did a bit of research. It’s very similar to an alcoholic that drinks a litre of whisky a day.’ The artist and director is talking about his new film Shame, an…

Top 5 secretive dance acts

In honour of notoriously interview-shy producer Fake Blood we name our favourite mysterious DJs

5 Jan 2012

Fake Blood For several years no one even knew who Fake Blood was. He was eventually outed as Theo Keating aka DJ Touché (one half of The Wiseguys), and while it’s now a fairly open secret he still refuses to do photo shoots and turns down nearly every…

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…

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…

The best family games this Christmas

Animal Croquet, Pointless, Angry Birds, Rory Story Cubes and Spyro the Dragon featured

13 Dec 2011

Animal Croquet One for the little ones or if you just fancy a very civilised mini game of croquet indoors. £24 (currently on special offer online at £16.50) from poshlittletots.com Pointless The much loved TV quiz show with Alexander Armstrong…

Korn – The Path of Totality

Blistering new dubstep direction from the nu metal overlords

25 Nov 2011

They’ll forever be known as ‘the godfathers of nu metal’, but on Path of Totality Korn have taken a massive side step. Sure the guitars are still heavy as hammers but they’ve gone dubstep. And we’re not talking the odd breakbeat this is a full on…

Charity club event Edinburgh Rocks to take place at Royal Botanic Gardens

DJs from Musika, Luvely, Ultragroove, Taste and more to take part

16 Nov 2011

It’s nice when the clubbing community bands together to give something back and there are many great nights across Scotland that help raise cash for charity. Now Edinburgh Rocks (in association with Leith FM) are planning something rather special. ‘We…

Opeth - HMV Picture House, Edinburgh, Thu 10 Nov

Mesmerising show from the Swedish prog metallers

16 Nov 2011

Prog metal (from Rush to Mastodon) is an acquired taste but Sweden’s Opeth are at the top of their game and it is in the live arena where you can really appreciate their musicianship. You can watch each musician and really piece together their input…

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…

The Awakening

Superior British period ghost story sets a tone of creepy unease

15 Nov 2011

There’s been a glut of cinematic ghost stories this year. The likes of Paranormal Activity 3 and Insidious often relied on jump scares and cheap parlour tricks, whereas The Awakening goes in the opposite direction letting the story unfold to reveal the…

Rick Remender & Tony Moore - Venom / Zeb Wells & Clayton Crain - Carnage

Spiderman villains comics deliver great action

15 Nov 2011

(Marvel UK) A double dose of villains this month, reintroducing two of Spider-Man’s arch enemies to the Marvel Universe. Venom and Carnage are both symbiotes, a parasitic species that bonds with a human host bestowing them with immense power at a…

Interview - Max Cooper

Respected electronica producer and DJ set for Kollektiv show

3 Nov 2011

Max Cooper first came to the attention of clubbers and electronic music fans with his ‘Serie’ trilogy on Traum Schallplatten in 2009, each track inspired by a different mathematical or scientific concept. Since then alongside his own productions he’s…

Alice Cooper - SECC: Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow, Mon 31 Oct

2 Nov 2011

Could there be a more perfect date for Alice Cooper to play Glasgow? And the Halloween freakshow starts early with protopunks New York Dolls still pouting after all these years. A muted response from the crowd in this vast arena lessens the impact but…

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Thu 27 Oct, 2011

New material and Oasis classics from Gallagher senior

28 Oct 2011

Some gigs feel more like football matches than concerts, there’s always a certain frisson in the air when it comes to anything Oasis related. And Gallagher senior has perhaps more weight of expectation on his shoulders than little bruv’s Beady Eye…

La Planete Sauvage, The Funhouse, Tenebrae and Pulp Fiction rereleased

Blu-ray releases round-up

21 Oct 2011

While inevitably the picture quality and audio track are vastly improved by the high definition offered by Blu-ray another bonus is the extra features you can cram on to the format. Trippy animated sci-fi allegory La Planete Sauvage (Eureka!) ●●●● is…

Interview - Manowar get ready for their first UK tour in 16 years

Q&A with the most awesome metal act in the world

21 Oct 2011

Manowar are the very embodiment of epic metal excess and they return to the UK for their first full tour in 16 years playing their debut album Battle Hymns in its entirety as well as other thunderous metal classics. We catch up with outspoken bassist…

Paranormal Activity 3

Surprisingly effective third instalment of found footage suburban ghost story

21 Oct 2011

(15) 84min Now Saw has relinquished it’s stranglehold on the multiplex each and every Halloween, Paranormal Activity has stepped up to fill the void. And it’s impressive that they’ve managed to mine this much back-story from the simplicity of the…

Interview - Royal Republic

The funky Swedish punk rockers on their debut album and 'The President’s Daughter'

19 Oct 2011

Touring in support of their debut album We Are the Royal, Sweden’s cheeky rock quartet Royal Republic are preparing to run riot across the UK. The List caught up with guitarist Hannes Irengård to find out more. How would you describe your music to…

Daniel Clowes - The Death-Ray

Amusing and poignant deconstruction of the super-hero genre

18 Oct 2011

(Jonathan Cape) More gorgeousness from writer/artist Daniel Clowes with this oversized hardback reprinting of 2004’s The Death-Ray. A slacker superhero story about 17-year-old orphan Andy discovering that smoking cigarettes charges him with…