Buzz - March 2019 Edition

WHAT’S ON MARCH 2019

Diffusion Sound + Vision International festival of photography

David Gray “The knives are always out”

Sleaford Mods On their new album and kebab spiders

ALI CAMPBELL | THE MIRROR CRACK’D | SHAUN RYDER | EARTH HOUR ART | CULTURE | MUSIC | FILM | FOOD+DRINK | S P O R T | L I F E S T Y L E | L I S T I N G S

‘MOTOWN THE MUSICAL WILL HAVE YOU DANCING IN THE STREET’ THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

MAWRTH 26 MARCH – EBRILL 6 APRIL 2019 Mae Motown™ yn nod fasnach UMG Recording, Inc. sy’n gofrestredig yn yr U.D. a gwledydd eraill, a chaiff ei defnyddio dan drwydded. Ffotograffiaeth Cast West End 2018.

Motown™ is a trademark of UMG Recordings, Inc. registered in the U.S. and other countries, and is used under license. Photography West End Cast 2018.

march 2019 42reviews

Reviews of the reviews: actually, playing the saw is good; wouldn’t have called them ‘prog’ in a thousand years but OK; if a “mind cleansing experience” sounds good come see ‘em in Cardiff on Tue 23 Apr!; Louise Wener still sings like she’d just ran all the way to the studio; you really need to see the full Sunwatchers album sleeve

buzz... publisher EMMA CLARK editor FEDOR TOT listings/music editor NOEL GARDNER advertising EMMA CLARK Buzz TV JAYDON MARTIN accounts TERESA CLARK design LEMONDOGCREATIVE.UK contributors KEIRON SELF (FILMS), CHRIS ANDREWS, RIMANTE BIVAINYTE, SEEMA BOSKH, ELERI CROSSLAND, DENIECE CUSACK, JOHN-PAUL DAVIES, SAM EASTERBROOK, CHLOE EDWARDS, JUSTIN EVANS, RHYS FISHER, BETHAN GOODWIN, DAVID GRIFFITHS, DAFYDD HAINE, CHRIS HAMILTON-PEACH, ELOUISE HOBBS, OLIVER R. MOORE HOWELLS, ALICE HUGHES, BETTI HUNTER, EMMA LEWIS, AMY LUDFORD, JASON MACHLAB, POPPY MANNING, CARL MARSH, GARETH MOULE, LYNDA NASH, DAVID NOBAKHT, ALEX PAYNE, CHARLIE PIERCEY, ALISON POWELL, CAMPBELL PROSSER, SAM PRYCE, RHONDA LEE REALI, KATRINA REES, FFION RIORDAN-JONES, OWEN SCOURFIELD, RUTH SEAVERS WILL STEEN, JON SUTTON, ALEX SWIFT, MEGAN THOMAS, MARK TIMLIN, STEVE TUCKER, CHRIS WILLIAMS, SOPHIE WILLIAMS, BEN WOOLHEAD phone number 029 2022 6767 general enquiries info@buzzmag.co.uk editorial editorial@buzzmag.co.uk listings listings@buzzmag.co.uk accounts accounts@buzzmag.co.uk BUZZ MAGAZINE 220C Cowbridge Road East, Canton, Cardiff CF5 1GY published EAC PUBLISHING contents WWF EARTH HOUR cover DIFFUSION FESTIVAL

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47lifestyle

The new section that everyone’s calling “like lots of smaller sections, but actually one big one” tells you about the likes of Cardiff In The Sky, where you eat your tea inside a glass pod dangling from a very big crane, and Earth Hour, where you eat your tea with the electricity switched off to help the environment. To my knowledge these two do not plan a crossover event

04roundup

“Never let it be said they don’t know how to rave in the Valleys”

10upfront

Biennial photography festival Diffusion is back this month! No, wait, next month. But all month, so we’re covering it now so you can definitely catch the start. It has the theme of ‘sound + vision’ and, in the sense that they make sounds and can be seen, so do this section’s other highlights including Sleaford Mods, Shaun Ryder, David Gray and the Laugharne Weekend

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As the phrase “in an age of Brexit and Trump” is to the art and stage pages, so is “amidst the #MeToo era” to Keiron Self’s film reviews section. Here he is using it in a review of What Men Want, a movie which poses the question: what if What Women Want (2000) but lady instead of leathery anti-Semite?

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61listings

You might notice that this section is a few pages shorter than normal, with the intention of this being the case from now on. I won’t insult your intelligence by saying it’s being “streamlined” or similar, we’ve just decided to use the space for other things in the magazine. Most of the extra stuff, notably the weekly events, will appear in the online listings still anyway

78competitions

Tickets come in pairs, because social convention has it that you can’t go to a play or whatever on your own without looking like a weirdo, but there’s only one of the book that we’re giving away. Although it might be quite fun to get a second copy and read it aloud with a friend, one sentence each. Maybe. Hmm

Including, in Stage, two versions of Macbeth: one relatively traditional, one using hand-drawn 2D puppets and titled Paper Macbeth. This is undoubtedly a conscious nod to the schism between Super Mario and Paper Mario, or “the Italian plumber” as superstitious gamers call him

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www.buzzmag.co.uk BUZZ 3

What’s on our radar this month THE RETURN

For three nights only, the Oakdale Workmen’s Institute at St Fagans Museum Of History will transform into a WWI Victory Ball, as military veterans and their families share their experiences of returning from war in a show that combines true stories with performances by professional actors. Organised by theatre company Re:Live, the show promises to be an emotional and fully immersive event for audiences whilst also providing support and purpose for the veterans taking part with the project.

National Museum Of History, St Fagans, Thurs 14-Sat 16 Mar Tickets: free (£5 deposit required to secure booking) Info: 029 2057 3500 / museum.wales/stfagans

BRILLIANT BOOKS

DREADZONE

Insole Court, Llandaff, Sat 2-Sun 10 Mar. Tickets: prices vary per event, some free.

Info: 029 2116 7520 / www.insolecourt.org/events/brilliantbooks

Pontardawe Arts Centre, Sat 6 Apr. Tickets: £19. Info: 01792 863722 / www.pontardaweartscentre.co.uk

The inaugural outing of new literature festival Brilliant Books will take place at Insole Court over 10 days this March, launching on Sat 2 with a reading from BBC news presenter and author Lucy Owen and Buzz’s own, Mab Jones. The festival boasts a wide variety of events and activities for all ages, from pop-up stores and readings to writing workshops and signings by renowned authors. A celebration of all things books, the event promises to engage and inspire through the love of words and illustrations.

THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE QUEEN

The group comprising Damon Albarn (Blur and Gorillaz), Paul Simonon (The Clash), Simon Tong (The Verve) and Fela Kuti’s drummer Tony Allen bring their collective prowess and notoriety to Cardiff University’s Great Hall in April. They’ll be touring to promote their second album Merrie Land, released last November after an epic gap of nearly 12 years since their debut. These guys may have been in the game for a while to say the least – we’re talking about 150 years of collective experience – but talent never fades.

Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union, Sat 13 Apr. Tickets: £30. Info: 029 2078 1458 / www.cardiffstudents.com

BUZZ 4

Dreadzone have enjoyed a solid career since bursting onto the scene in 1993 with their dub/reggae/electronica fusion, even opening the hallowed Glastonbury Pyramid Stage in 1995.

They’ve never stopped being a popular live draw across the UK, and latest album Dread Times was released in 2017 to positive reviews. Their current tour includes an early-April stopoff in Pontardawe, and never let it be said they don’t know how to rave in the Valleys.

DRIP DRIP DRIP IRIS – INVOLUNTARY ACTIVIST

March sees the premiere of the 10th Iris Prize Production in Cardiff. The winning director of the UK’s leading LGBT+ short film prize – in this case 2017’s winner Mikael Bundsen – gets a pot of money with which to construct their next film. His followup, the short film Involuntary Activist, looks at the life of a gay couple in Cardiff, and how, despite the protections now enshrined in law, LGBT+ people still face discrimination and dangers. After a premiere in Cardiff’s Cineworld, the film will screen the following day on BBC Two Wales.

Cineworld, Cardiff, Wed 13 Mar; screened on BBC Two Wales Thurs 14 Mar

Race issues are addressed in the provocative Drip Drip Drip when a disgraced academic, an alt-right provocateur, an anti-Islamist, an anti-immigrant, and a racist – a combustible collection of people are all thrown together with a backdrop of the troubled NHS. This latest production by Pipeline Theatre examines race relations and the idea of tribalism. “Brexit, Trump, walls, immigration, it all comes down to emotion, to tribes. But when we actually come face-to-face with the ‘other’, what happens when a human being is revealed?

Particularly when, as in a hospital, the stakes are so high.”

Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon, Sat 23 Mar. Tickets: £12/£10.

Info: 01874 611622 / www.brycheiniog.co.uk

CARDIFF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE FESTIVAL Now in its seventh year, the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival returns over the course of two weekends this spring. The city centre will be host to some 50 events spread across venues including City Hall, Cardiff Castle and the Central Library.

Amongst the festivities there will be writing workshops, book readings and craft activities and there’s always the chance of a character appearance too. So if you are an aspiring author, book lover or just looking for a fun family day out, then pop along to one of the events.

Various venues, Cardiff, Sat 30 Mar-Sun 7 Apr. info: www.cardiffkidslitfest.com

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY 2019

#BalanceforBetter is the theme for the 2019 International Women’s Day, with an agenda to build a gender-balanced world. Cardiff will be doing its part on the day itself, Fri 8 Mar, with the It’s About Time summit to be held at the Village Hotel, featuring keynote speakers from University Of Wales and Bizmums.

Welsh Women Walking have organised a five-mile walk from Theatr Brycheiniog to Pen-Y-Crug’s Iron Age fort on Sat 9 Mar, part of Theatr Brycheiniog’s wider celebrations, which includes a night with heroine rower Sian Sykes; or head to Aberystwyth University on Wed 6 to discover 100 Amazing Women who have worked for equality in Wales.

Info: www.internationalwomensday.com

BUZZ 5

GABY KOPPEL Cardiff-born Gaby Koppel has turned from TV production to fiction with her debut novel Reparation. Chris Andrews caught up with her for a chat.

Reparation is your first novel. What made you want to switch to fiction?

I’ve always wanted to write but, in the past, channelled it into journalism. I love the process of sitting by the keyboard, always have, but got into the habit of always writing about other people. Not myself. One of the things that pushed me to act was that I had breast cancer in 2003 and you suddenly realise that life won’t be forever; if you want to do something you’d better get on with it.

You were brought up in Cardiff after your parents came here as refugees following WWII. What are your earliest memories of Cardiff?

I was born in Cardiff – in Charlotte Square, Rhiwbina to be precise. It’s a street that is set around a huge square of grass with cherry blossom trees planted in fours. My earliest memories are of the great adventure of life out on the square.

Rhiwbina is a suburb of Cardiff but it really felt like living in a village, because everybody knew each other.

My parents and their circle of refugee friends and relatives recreated the atmosphere of the Mittel European café society, with foods that many of our neighbours probably never heard of. That sense of being different from the outside world did stay with me from my earliest years and ultimately made me want to write.

With the current backlash against refugees the world over, do you recall anything similar at that time?

You never forget that you are a refugee, and my parents spoke about it a great deal. There is a real sense of loss: my father, for example, felt profoundly German.

He was an engineer, a profession he felt was respected in his native country but not at all in the UK; he always used to say, “there, I would be Herr Doktor Ingineur”. But by the time he went back to Germany he was seen as British and so he felt he didn’t fit in anywhere. My mother said that being stateless after she escaped from communist Hungary was the most awful experience, as nobody would stand up for you.

BUZZ 6

Reparation deals with, amongst other things, the abduction of a child. Did your work with Crimewatch and other factual programmes you’ve produced give you an oversight of how the media, families and victims deal with this kind of thing?

It was a huge privilege to work on Crimewatch, and I did draw on my own personal experience to write the book in all sorts of ways. I now live in Hackney and have strong relationships with people in the Hassidic or orthodox Jewish community who live there. There’s a lot of misunderstanding about that community and I wanted to depict them in a realistic way as normal people, rather than as oddities.

In some ways, the figure of the little girl symbolises the lost childhood of my leading characters: both of them in some way have failed to grow up and they are at times childish and petulant, maybe because trauma has stunted their emotional growth.

Another theme that resonates throughout Reparation is motherhood and loss. Being a mother yourself, did you look inward for inspiration for Elizabeth’s character?

Elizabeth is a version of me, a kind of earlier version of me that is permanently stuck in adolescence. She doesn’t know her own mind, and underestimates the degree that she is deeply emotionally entwined with her mother. There’s a dysfunctional love between them. They like to bait each other. I’ve written the book from the perspective of a daughter rather than a mother, though, and even if my own mum had pretty obvious flaws – she drank too much and behaved in a pretty atrocious way at times – underneath it all, she was extremely wise and insightful.

They say everybody has one good book in them. Is this your one book or will there be more to follow?

It’s just the start! Watch this space.

Reparation by Gaby Koppel (Honno Press), out now and reviewed on page 46 Price: £8.99. Info: www.honno.co.uk

Welsh National Opera Orchestra 20.03.19

No Such Thing as a Fish In No Particular Order 13.03.19

Stairway to Heaven Led Zeppelin Masters 03.04.19

Sing-a-Long-a The Greatest Showman

2pm & 7pm 13.04.19

Rod Woodward I’m Not Being Funny, But...

02.03.19

Julian Clary Born to Mince 27.03.19

Brit Floyd Another Brick in the Wall 09.03.19

Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra A Night at the Proms 22.03.19

Welsh Singer Recital Angharad Lyddon 09.04.19

Dan Snow An Evening with The History Guy 26.03.19

Collabro Road the Royal Albert Hall 05.04.19

Ólafur Arnalds re:member 19.03.19

Pic: Claire Cox

BOOK NOW THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE QUEEN

SECRET SPACES: CARDIFF MUSIC AWARDS

Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union Sat 13 Apr Tickets: £30 Info: 029 2078 1458 www.cardiffstudents.com

THE BODYGUARD

The Cardiff Music Awards are now an annual celebration of the strength of the capital’s music scene. Rimanté Bivainyté chats to its director Ed Townend ahead of this year’s event.

It’s the fourth year of the Cardiff Music Awards. How are you finding it?

Great! I think the first two years were exciting, a new thing both times – 2015 the concept, 2017 the ceremony itself – and then last year was slightly tougher, trying to maintain that momentum. I think we’ve reached a point now where the awards are seen as a part of the music scene – and that was my goal from the beginning.

The beginning of 2019 was quite rough for Cardiff music venues, with Gwdihw and Buffalo closing down. How do you think it’s going to affect music culture in the city?

We were in a very similar situation in 2017. I feel the scene is stronger as a whole this year than back then. Music venues are always the underdogs: they’re not a sustainable business model and they’re almost always one threat away from collapse. The situation with Gwdihw was emblematic of the greed we see from those who wish to torch our culture and replace it with another pointless moneyspinning endeavour. Buffalo faced pressure from high rent and business rates. I think the scene has banded together to support what we have left, and whatever is to come.

What changes have occurred in Cardiff’s music industry since the Save Womanby Street movement?

I think more people are going to gigs.

Not enough people, but certainly more. What Save Womanby Street did more than anything else was to raise awareness of the music scene in Cardiff.

BUZZ 8

Cardiff Music Awards aims to support local artists and the local music scene – have you seen an increase of new artists over these four years?

I think the flow of new artists has stayed continuous. I’ve seen artists go from playing poorly attended all-ages shows at 14 to headlining sold-out shows in Clwb Ifor Bach a few years later. I don’t think we’ll ever stop seeing an influx of new acts, but I think it’ll always stay at the same rate.

What should we be expecting from CMAs this year?

More. We’ve beefed up the lineup to include a fourth live performance this year, rather than the three in previous years. We have Chroma, Madi, Mace and HANA2K performing plus DJ sets from DJ Jaffa. We’ve also added new categories, Best Music Photographer and Champion Of Underrated Music, to recognise demand for more inclusion and the progress of a growing scene.

If you could recommend one place in Wales to a first-time visitor that’s not on the tourist maps and off the beaten track, where would it be and why?

My dad took me and my daughter to Ystradfellte in Aberdare last summer. It was absolutely gorgeous. The beauty of the valleys overwhelms you and you can just ignore the rest of the world.

Cardiff Music Awards, Tramshed, Cardiff, Fri 29 Mar. Voting open until Fri 22 Mar. Tickets: £15. Info: www. cardiffmusicawards.co.uk

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay Tue 16-Sat 27 Apr Tickets: £19-£71.50 Info: 029 2063 6464 www.wmc.org.uk

STEFFLON DON

Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union Thurs 18 Apr Tickets: £16 Info: 029 2078 1458 www.cardiffstudents.com

NOEL GALLAGHER’S HIGH FLYING BIRDS Cardiff Castle Fri 24 May Tickets: £45 Info: 029 2087 8100 www.cardiffcastle.com

INSIDE OUT FESTIVAL Bute Park, Cardiff Fri 31 May + Sat 1 June Tickets: from £70 Info: www.insideoutcardiff.co.uk

PAUL WELLER + MILES KANE Cardiff Castle Sun 30 June Tickets: from £54 Info: 029 2087 8100 www.cardiffcastle.com

  THE TIMES

EVENING STANDARD

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

5 — 9 March • Mawrth

 BBC.CO.UK

 THE TIMES

12 — 16 March • Mawrth OH MY LOVE, MY DARLING...

I’VE HUNGERED FOR YOUR TOUCH BILL KENWRIGHT

T H E

presents

 EVENING TIMES

M U S I C A L

19 — 23 March • Mawrth

book and lyrics by

BRUCE JOEL RUBIN

DAVE STEWART & GLEN BALLARD BRUCE JOEL RUBIN

music and lyrics by

based on the paramount pictures film written by

newtheatrecardiff.co.uk 029 2087 8889

Mae’r New Theatre yn eiddo i ac, yn cael ei rheoli a’i harinannu Gyngor Caerdydd · The New Theatre is owned, managed and funded by Cardiff Council

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SOUND + VISION Ahead of the Diffusion Festival, Ffotogallery’s biennial photography festival, Fedor Tot looks at what to expect from the installations, pop-ups, interventions, screenings and surprise curated events.

Extra contributions by Bethan Goodwin, Sophie Williams, Ruth Seavers, and Chris Andrews.

It’s not the first time the Diffusion festival has been themed after the title of a David Bowie song. Its first edition – back in the halcyon days of 2013, before we had considered the need to stockpile in the event of no deal – posed the question, “where are we now?” in a sly reference to Bowie’s then-comeback single. This year, it’s the turn of Sound + Vision, where Diffusion now takes a turn towards investigating the links between the static image and music, whilst also chucking in film, experiential installations, and all manner of lofty ideas in between.

At times, looking at the programme, it seems as if it’s struggling to contain the amount of wild, experimental, surreal ideas contained within, but that’s all the more reason to investigate. Diffusion has always been a city-wide festival: this year it returns to regular haunts such as Chapter Arts Centre and Ffotogallery’s two spaces in Penarth and Castle St, but there are also new spaces such as Shift, a new multimedia space in the Capitol Shopping Centre.

As well as the exhibitions on show throughout April, there are a number of one-off events that Diffusion is putting together. At the Wales Millennium Centre on Thurs 4 Apr, there is the Woman’s Work symposium, where women in the creative fields talk about how they’ve succeeded in the industry despite numerous challenges.

The WMC will also host repeat performances of the album Juniper by Slowly Rolling Camera, from Wed 3 to Fri 5 Apr. However, these performances are pared with moving images by 4Pi; where traditionally we have music accompanying images, here we will have images accompanying music.

Keep an eye out for Buzz on the ground at Diffusion as well. We’ll be at the Makers’ Fayre in Shift on Sat 13 Apr, where numerous other creatives, craftspeople and artists will be about, showcasing our fresh artistic produce.

Additionally, there will also be a series of soundbooth installations at the WMC during the month – and we’re tasked with crafting one of them. Beyond that, we’ll be around and about. Read on for the highlights of Diffusion 2019.

Multiple venues across Cardiff and Penarth throughout April.

Info: www.diffusionfestival.org

BUZZ 10

M Winstone – TyBach

PHRAME: AS WE SEE IT The Gate, Cardiff, throughout April All-female collective PHRAME bring their inaugural exhibit to Diffusion. As We See It uses mixed media to create complex and layered work with richly varied themes. The variety of individuals, all talented artists and photographers, means the exhibition will be diverse in content. However there remain common strategies and approaches behind all of their works – they are all interested in documentary-based storytelling and the physicality and materiality of analogue photography. The collective is all-female, partly to address the imbalance that currently exists and the shortage of opportunities for women to showcase their work.

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5 1. Lisa Brunzell 2. Jonna Kina 3. Michal Iwanowski

6 4. Zara Mader 5. Ayesha Khan 6. X-Ray Audio

Alina Kisina – Children Of Vision

ALTERED EGO

STANZA: THE NEMESIS MACHINE

Insole Court, Cardiff, Sat 13-Sun 28 Apr Altered Ego is a multi-disciplinary art project from a collective of six disabled and non-disabled artists.

Their intention here is to examine ideas of who we think we really are and how we present ourselves to the outside world. Blurring the lines between reality and make-believe these artists have been given freedom to completely create new identities, from teen idol popstars and playboys to spies and aristocrats. As they unleash mayhem upon Insole Court, they’ll be using photography, video, sound, painting and drawing to document the lives of these altered egos in this creative and unique project.

Ffotogallery, Castle Street, Cardiff, throughout April Cities are always evolving and expanding, and so is this multi-layered art exhibition. The Nemesis Machine is a model city, but not the quaint kind you might find in a historical museum. Rather, it is built out of computer chips and processors, as if the innards of the internet were spilling out in front of you to create a new, digitised city. The city is alive too – with multiple sensors and hidden cameras within designed to respond to changes in the atmosphere (for example, the nearby presence of pollutive gases) – which then results in different behaviours in the city itself.

Ukrainian-born Alina Kisina wanted to create something profound by documenting her continuing work with visually impaired children at the Kiev Special School Of Art, reflecting their innermost thoughts rather than their physical disability. Children Of Vision probes the notion that when we are challenged in a particular area, we might have a skill or talent that compensates for that. “Ultimately, I believe that there is a deeper desire to look beyond our ideas of what visual impairments entail. I wasn’t trying to avoid the fact that there is a disability, but I wasn’t trying to accentuate it either.”

“There is a bigger, deeper sense of beauty and strength in all of us, and this is the idea that I invite the viewer to connect with. It’s the beauty of human experience and the transcendence of ourselves, having that wide-eyed determination to deal with whatever cards have been laid down for you. These children are so much more than their diagnosis.”

Shift, Cardiff, throughout April

BUZZ 11

Michal Iwanowski – Go Home, Polish

BRIAN DAVID STEVENS: NOTTING HILL SOUND SYSTEMS Shift Gallery, Cardiff, throughout April The Notting Hill Carnival has long been one of the biggest expressions of Afro-Caribbean culture in the UK, and Stevens’ photographic series pays tribute to one of its most enduring and crucial tools, the sound system. Waking up in the early morning, before the masses arrive, he takes photos of sound systems, many of them hand-built by their owners to get the exact right level of rumble for the party. Taken in the morning, without the colour we usually associate with the party, they look monolithic, imposing, obtuse, before the party kicks off in style.

JOHN REA: ATGYFODI Shift Gallery, Cardiff, throughout April A fixture of the Cardiff arts scene, Rea’s long-term ongoing project Atgyfodi delves deep into the archives to unearth the hidden sights and sounds of Wales’ cultural history and memory. Meaning ‘to resurrect’ in Welsh, the project uses music and archival images to tell the story of Welsh culture, with Rea adapting and elaborating on musical themes from folk music to develop new contemporary sounds. A unique meshing of past and present, this is a unique work that fits smartly into the Sound + Vision theme for this year’s festival.

BUZZ 12

RICHARD JONES: THE COAL FACE The Senedd, Cardiff Bay / Shift Gallery, Cardiff, throughout April Coal mining is one of, if not the defining historical force in south Wales over the last 200 or so years.

The industry has, both its overgrown past and its residual present, have provided artists with fertile starting points for years. Most former miners now are growing old, and this project represents of form of remembrance. A number of ex-miners sat as hi-tech cameras photographed every inch of their heads, resulting in high-resolution 3-D photographs of their faces. Our lives, in some way, shape the way we look – whether we stoop or stand tall, whether we’ve been battered by the elements or lived a life of luxury.

The Coal Face hopes to illuminate that. At Shift, the exhibition will also be accompanied by John Rea’s Atgyfodi.

SEBASTIAN BRUNO: SONGS FROM THE FAMILY – A MUSICAL BY GEORGE & MARTHA LOWMAN Senedd, Cardiff Bay, throughout April It’s an unlikely story, but a beguiling one. In 2015 Argentine photographer Sebastian Bruno moved to Abertillery. There, he met Martha Lowman, who many years ago had wrote a musical with her husband George, frustrated at the fact that so much industry had left the Valleys, decimating her community. The musical, titled The Family, was never staged for various reasons but intended to look at the mining communities as families of sorts. This installation charts the story of that never-heard musical and brings it to the present day.

In April 2018, photographer Michal Iwanowksi set off on what would become a 105-day long journey from Cardiff to Poland, on foot. Originally from Poland but having lived in Cardiff for over 20 years, Iwanowski was inspired to take the journey after the outcome of the EU referendum, and seeing the graffiti “GO HOME POLISH” scrawled on a wall in the Roath area. It caused him to question the idea of home as a physical place, so he started the long walk armed with his camera to find answers.

The results are a mix of philosophical words and striking images. Alongside his images will also be music from Gwenno, a calculated decision on his part. “Because the title of the project is super aggressive, people will make assumptions about it, but then they will see that prolific Welsh musicians are a part of it and they will second guess the nature of the project. I think the biggest surprise was I didn’t get much negativity or confrontation.

The whole walk itself was very positive.”

The very purpose of Iwanowksi’s walk was to find some answers regarding the nature of ‘home’ and what it means. “[What is home] is a complex answer, but I now know I don’t need anybody else to tell me whether I’m home or not. I feel it, and that means I am home. There are people who do religious and spiritual pilgrimages and usually find the answers within themselves. It sounds like a pile of hippy-ish bullshit but it works that way.”

In a time when the country is divided, Iwanowski’s project provides proof of hope, as shown by the encounters with the people he met along the way.

“People felt unified with me. Even those I met who were leavers, they were just nice. It was wonderful to bring myself and other people down to this one-on-one level, which you don’t get in the press because they’re all about umbrella terms which are easy to demonize. But when you meet a person and they have a name and a face and they smile at you it’s a totally different conversation.”

Turner House Gallery, Penarth, throughout April

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Image / Llun Š Alina Kisina

The Bureau Of Lost Culture – X-Ray Audio

KURT LAURENZ THEINERT: TIMESHIFTS / BEFORE THE CONTENT

JONNA KINA: FOLEY OBJECTS

Ffotogallery, Castle Street, Cardiff, throughout April Two pieces by this German photographer, musician and light artist are being combined with the live event Visual Piano on Fri 5 Apr, where a MIDI piano is played live to generate images. Timeshifts is an attempt to represent time within photography, showing only the changes within an image over time, with static imagery being reduced to grey. Time of course, is one thing still photography cannot intrinsically represent, so it will be interesting to see how this works out. Before The Content is described as “a series of photographs taken without a camera”: in this case, the brief moment on a website where the structure has loaded by the content has yet to appear. At least, that’s how this writer understands it.

Ffotogallery, Castle Street, Cardiff, throughout April Finnish artist Kina continues her work with sound, vision and language, presenting an exhibition of 30 photos of everyday objects with seemingly no relation to their accompanying caption. But further study will soon open up another realm of enjoyment and you will find yourself actually listening to photos.

The term Foley comes from the movie process of adding sound effects to films in post-production and Kina has taken that audiovisual concept and turned it on its head, creating a thoroughly engaging and thought-provoking experience.

Bootleggers in the Soviet Union of the 1950s, determined to hear the banned sounds of Western rock’n’roll, assembled record presses which used X-ray film in place of regular vinyl. Decades later, The Bureau Of Lost Culture bring the amazing story of this music back across the Iron Curtain. One member of the Bureau, Stephen Coates, says, “The purpose of the project is to recollect and tell lost countercultural stories. Particularly ones which deal with music and cultural resistance in some way.

“I have been going to Russia to perform for about 12 years now and I was fascinated anyway by Cold War culture, so going to Russia for me was fascinating. And I came across the story of X-Ray Audio by accident – I literally found a record in the flea market and that’s how that began. But I think there’s something fascinating about Cold War culture and it’s got a certain resonance now – there’s this idea of a new Cold War starting up.”

Shift, Cardiff, throughout April

Zara Mader – i-D

TIMOTHY GWYN JOHN: INTIMATE DISTANCE

LISA BRUNZELL: LET THE WORLD ADORE YOU

The Senedd, Cardiff Bay, throughout April Connectivity has been a theme throughout the career of Timothy Gwyn John. His work with wood and sound, spurred by a fascination with telephone poles scattered across landscapes versus the world’s obsession with social media, sees John studying the relationship between tradition and technology in his art. This exhibition examines connectivity and for Intimate Distance John is using beautifully crafted bird tables, crafted using different woodwork disciplines combined with the language of birdsong, to create an overpowering and indulgent escapade for the senses.

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, throughout April One of the largest pop acts ever, Abba have spawned a multitude of tribute acts over the years and they form the basis for Lisa Brunzell’s exhibition, Let The World Adore You. A Swede who grew up in the UK, Brunzell has seen an influx of these acts and now looks at the where the line is drawn between the actor and the person – the real deal and the pretender. Using photographs of Abba and their doppelgangers, Lisa investigates the people behind the tribute. Are they a person or are they an act? Is it possible that they are both at the same time?

BUZZ 14

Inspired by the iconic style of X-Ray Spex frontwoman Poly Styrene, Zara Mader hopes to detail the oft-ignored impact that women have had on the punk movement over the years. “For me Poly Styrene represented a side of punk that you rarely saw – a mixed-race punk who was the front woman of a successful band. She struck a chord with me; like her, I am half-British and half-Somali.

She made me realise that it wasn’t so weird that I liked punk and on top of that her lyrics are as current today as they were in the 1970s, dealing with themes like plastic waste, consumerism and the place of women in society.

“Given that it’s been just over 40 years since punk happened, the fact that Poly Styrene can still inspire a project is quite something. Punk, and the history of it, has a heavy male focus and concentrating on a female punk helps highlight women’s contribution to it.”

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, throughout April

Insole Court’s festival celebrating the brilliance of books, their words and illustrations.

Mae gŵyl Cwrt Insole yn dathlu disgleirdeb llyfrau, eu geiriau a’u darluniau.

Join us for a programme of events for children, adults and bookworms alike.

Saturday 2nd March – Sunday 10th March 2019 — Readings — Book Signings — Author Talks — Workshop — Pop-up Bookshop www.insolecourt.org for programme and booking information.

Insole Court, Fairwater Road, Llandaff, Cardiff CF5 2LN

Brilliant Books Buzz Ad.indd 1

Ymunwch â ni am raglen o ddigwyddiadau i blant, oedolion a llyfrbryfed fel ei gilydd.

Dydd Sadwrn 2ail o Fawrth – Dydd Sul 10fed o Fawrth 2019 — Darlleniadau — Arwyddiadau llyfrau — Sgyrsiau Awduron — Gweithdau — Siop Lyfrau dros dro www.insolecourt.org am y rhaglen a gwybodaeth archebu.

Cwrt Insole, Heol y Tyllgoedd, Llandaf, Caerdydd CF5 2LN

20/02/2019 09:44

‘I wanna get bigger, I don’t wanna get any smaller!’

Jason Williamson

SLEAFORD MODS Nottingham duo Sleaford Mods are back on the block with a new album, Eton Alive. Frontman Jason Williamson and Eleri Crossland discuss social media, street meats and spending quality time with the fans.

Your fifth album Eton Alive is definitely your most experimental so far – you even sort-of sing on some of the tracks! What influenced the overall sound of the album?

Time just develops your music really; you grow and your interests change. The music I was personally listening to changed, same with Andrew [Fearn, the other half of the group] as well. I got more into pop songs and r’n’b songs, so I wanted to try and bring across a more song-y element to it. So although the more upbeat songs don’t exactly sound like 80s r’n’b, they’ve definitely got flavours of it. You don’t want to repeat yourself and we don’t think we do. We don’t move on massively with each album, but we definitely do move on, so we wanted the more upbeat stuff to sound different and I think we’ve achieved that.

You say you’ve been listening to more pop and r’n’b – can you tell me what’s on your current playlist?

Well I listen to a lot of drill music, hip hop and, as I’ve said mid-80s soul and r’n‘b, like Luther Vandross and Chaka Khan. So quite varied, really. I’ve also been listening to a bit of Drake’s earlier stuff as well. I’ve been getting into a lot of that stuff and just seeing things I want to pocket, and thinking “I want a bit of that in it – why not?”

So this is the first Sleaford Mods album to be released on your own label, Extreme Eating. What made you part ways with Rough Trade?

Well I was told that we could do it independently and carry on the way we did before we went to Rough Trade, but what I didn’t realise was that we became bigger on Rough Trade, so we were gonna need that infrastructure in place if we were gonna carry this on. I wanna get bigger, you know, I don’t wanna get any smaller!

BUZZ 16

To be honest, it was a premature move and it’s been quite stressful getting an album campaign together. But we’ve got that in place now, so hopefully it won’t suffer too much. I think it might suffer commercially, because we got off to a bit of a slow start, so I don’t know how that’s gonna work, but who knows? I’m not saying we’ve learned a lot from that and, moving forward, we’ll think twice before rushing into an independent release without very much groundwork.

Talking about extreme eating, you’ve already released a single off the album titled Kebab Spider – is this a favourite teatime takeaway of yours?

I haven’t had a kebab for ages to be honest! We were talking about it the other day actually – it was a running joke on tour, the idea of finding a spider in your kebab, we thought it was quite funny. So I just put it in a song and fit a story around it about the commercial industry and being rejected by the commercial industry, because you wouldn’t agree to have your creativity processed in such a way. So the reality of that is obscurity, like the kebab spider crawling out of your cheap packet of street meat. It’s a bit of an absurd notion, a surrealist image, but it’s quite funny. Just the words ‘kebab spider’ were quite funny really.

I found the music video funny as well – did you just show up at a random club night and decide to film there?

Yeah, we found a club and just got a load of people from our fanclub to come down there, and they got to be in the video for a couple of pints each. I think we do have a good relationship with our fanbase. We always seem to keep in touch with people, so I like to think we’re not one of these distant, pretentious bands.

So you’re coming to Cardiff in April, where the local music scene has recently received bad news regarding the closure of small venues, notably

Black Monday: Sleaford Mods’ 5 Bleakest Lines In Quiet Streets (Key Markets, 2015) “We put our souls in nursery for the day / Pick ‘em up after work, take ‘em home / Try ‘n get ‘em in bed tucked up before 10 o’clock” In this sharp-tongued analysis of the mundanity of modern life, Jason launches an angry tirade against Tory austerity, 5.8% guest ales in Spoons, work colleagues’ disappointing birthday cakes and a “moose-faced bastard” called Ed Miliband. All jokes aside, anyone who’s ever worked a soulsapping job can agree that this line certainly deserves a place on this list.

Gwdihw and Buffalo. What’s your take on this?

I do think small venues are important, but it’s hard to keep them open in the current times, because a lot of people haven’t got enough money, so the social side of things has been stripped back. They’re important because they put bands on and they’re not biased, really – you find a lot of independent venues will just put anything on. That’s how we came up, through independent venues, because the major [Nottingham] venues like Rock City and Rescue Rooms just didn’t want to know.

Outside the band, you’re a published author [Williamson’s latest book Happy Days was released in October 2018] and also responsible for running a hilarious Twitter account (@fit_as_fuc). Would you say you’ve got a positive relationship with social media?

Yeah, I still use it. I guess I’m nearly 50 aren’t I, so I think people my age kind of think Twitter is still good, whereas young people are probably steering away from letting people know what they’re doing every five minutes. But it’s quite a good way to engage with people and you can build up a little community there.

Social media these days, a lot of it’s pretty dire. I spend six hours a day on my phone, which isn’t good and that does concern me to a certain degree. But, generally speaking, it’s always been a really good tool for the music.

In a tweet you made last month, you described Brexit as “bout as interesting as third division club finances” – how do you think the whole saga will end?

It’s not good, is it? I think it might be bad – no, I think it will be really bad. I’m not sure how it will affect me personally, but it’s gonna affect a lot of people job-wise.

Regardless of whatever political advantages are likened to the Leave vote, I think it was done prematurely and a lot of people got a lot of wrong information about it and it’s just a mess. Who knows? Nobody really knows, do they?

I voted Remain, so I’d prefer a second referendum. I think we should have one, based on the fact that the information given to people who voted Leave, in a lot of respects, was false. So, on that basis, I’d like one, but I’m aware that other people wouldn’t.

Sleaford Mods, Y Plas, Cardiff University Students Union, Fri 5 Apr. Tickets: £19.50.

Info: 029 2078 1458 / www.cardiffstudents.com

Fizzy (Austerity Dogs, 2013) “I work my dreams off for two bits of ravioli / And a warm bottle of Smirnoff / Under a manager that doesn’t have a f****n’ clue” Once again, the duo offers us an insight into the grim reality of working life under a cruel, uncaring manager, where one’s sanity and satisfaction is compromised for survival. Though the protagonist of Fizzy fights back against their bullying boss with classic SM savagery, this line strikes a particularly tragic chord.

T.C.R. (T.C.R., 2016) “I ain’t slouching, I’m not a beatnik / Although, this pub did call for that kind of angle / I hate going out, going out is for young people” Eager to escape the miserable cycle of his daytime routine, the protagonist’s much-anticipated night out ends in despair, when he winds up feeling equally unsatisfied in a s**t pub, likening the repetitive nature of his existence to moving toy cars on a Total Control Racing (T.C.R.) set.

Happy Days.

Drayton Manored (English Tapas, 2017) “Human beings are now adjacent lines / Like a tube map, or whatever / A mass of lines that occasionally cross each other / But never say anything / Ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever” Making his way home from a messy bender, fearful of being spotted by his neighbours in his soiled boxer shorts, a Drayton Manored Jason reflects on meaningful human connections in the modern age – or, rather, the lack of them.

Liveable S**t (Divide And Exit, 2014) “The Prime Minister’s face hanging in the clouds like Gary Oldman’s Dracula / As Keanu Reeves drove up to the fucking castle / Laughing really badly” Just when you think you’ve heard the worst of them all, the Mods deliver their most depressing line to date, conjuring up a nightmarish image of then-PM David Cameron’s face plastered across the British skyline à la Gary Oldman in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. No thanks mate!

BUZZ 17

Pic: Derrick Santini

D AV I D G R AY “The knives are always out!” David Gray emerges from a few years in the shadows to a sell-out tour and chats to Ruth Seavers.

Gold In A Brass Age is David Gray’s 11th record in his 26-year recording career. The album’s title is taken from a line from the “Kafka-esque” short story Blackbird Pie by Raymond Carver, which contains a startling moment where the wife takes her bag and walks out to a front garden entirely covered in fog and surrounded by horses. “It’s a very Raymond Carver kind of thing,” he says, “which shakes everything else away. And when the police take her away in the car, they tooted, they actually tooted, ‘words like that are gold in a brass age’,” Carver wrote.

Gray’s fourth album White Ladder was released in 1998 and was a slowburning success, taking until summer 2001 to top the UK charts. “But it’s important to try not to romanticise too much,” he says. “Unquestionably things have changed. I look at my kids, and they listen to a lot of grime or r’n’b. I can’t stand things with ‘bitch’ and ‘pussy’ and all this stuff. I just find it unlistenable, I’m afraid.

“But they don’t dress like The Specials did or like Paul Weller or the Sex Pistols. There’s no statement. And that tells you a lot about what’s happened with how we identify with music and what it was there for. Back then it was like you had to choose which team you were on all the time. It’s not like that anymore.”

Gray wanted to try something new and challenge the way he made songs. “I just love the tang on the unknown. I’ve come to really appreciate how important it is to not quite know what you’re doing.” Trying to do something he hasn’t done before has become his default position.

And thinking that better things are likely to happen outside of your normal artistic comfort zone is something that is constantly pressed upon young musicians.

“It’s all about catching yourself off-guard and getting something better than what your conscious mind can give you. Letting something happen that’s more from the gut, more instinctive, to find something further beyond than the way your brain might design it.

From the heart, really... that’s what you’re looking for.”

Did he always see music as a viable option? A lot of people and parents would think of it as a pipe dream. He starts laughing: “I was born with a natural innate selfconfidence and audacity and a need to ‘make things’. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing or how things were going to end up. And it’s the same game.

If you want to play the game your way, you’re going to have to put up with its ups and downs. You’ve got to do something you believe in and eventually, that carries some weight.”

So does that mean he’s nervous about what critics have to say? “Don’t get me wrong, it hurts like hell,” he says; “you put something that you treasure out into the world – it’s like you’re sending your kids to school on the first day. And the knives are always out, as Bruce Springsteen says. They have to back horses. This one’s a grand national, this one’s going to pick up a few medals.

“It’s to do with all the identifying that goes on within culture of choosing what’s important. But miracles do happen. Things can catch hold without the sanction of the gatekeepers. Things have their own force, but who knows when that El Niño effect is going to kick in.”

The greatest yardstick for this kind of “vibe” he talks about, is ticket sales. And his Gold In A Brass Age tour is already sold out, so it’s safe to say David Gray has been riding the El Niño effect for quite some time.

David Gray, St. David’s Hall, Cardiff, Fri 15 Mar. Tickets: from £32 (sold out – check box office for returns). Info: 029 2087 8444 / www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk

BUZZ 18

4 SUPERB COMEDIANS EVERY FRIDAY & SATURDAY NIGHT GREAT FOOD & DRINK DEALS

COMEDY TOURS TUE 05TH MAR

TOM STADE WED 06TH MAR HAL CRUTTENDEN SUN 10TH MAR LADIES OF LAUGHTER SUN 17TH MAR WORLD COMEDY CLASH WED 20TH MAR PAUL MCCAFFREY MON 25TH MAR LIMMY SUN 07TH APR SHAPPI KHORSANDI

SUN 14TH APR

LEE NELSON THU 18TH APR ANGELA BARNES SUN 28TH APR WAHALA COMEDY CLASH THU 02ND MAY GARY DELANEY SUN 05TH MAY MICKY P. KERR THU 09TH MAY IVO GRAHAM SUN 26TH MAY FAMILY COMEDY SHOW SUN 09TH JUN GARY MEIKLE

MERMAID QUAY • CARDIFF BAY • CF10 5BZ

SPECIAL EVENTS TUE 19TH MAR

MANILA LUZON SUN 31ST MAR SHARON NEEDLES WED 03RD APR ADORE DELANO SUN 19TH MAY THE GILDED MERKIN WED 22ND MAY ROSS EDGLEY TUE 28TH MAY SAARA AALTO SUN 02ND JUN LADY BUNNY

ALI CAMPBELL A long-running feud has split the camp of UB40 into two. As Ali Campbell and co gear up to play a series of arena dates with their faction, he tells Carl Marsh “We’re on a different level to them.”

Can you believe that it’s been 40 years and that you’re still doing this after all these years?

Of course not – but we were an arrogant bunch, and we knew that we’d finally break through. We had self-belief, but you don’t expect a 40-year career, nobody does. Four to five years is the length of a band, traditionally, and even now, if you sign to Simon Cowell, he’ll drop you after five years as well.

The thing is, when I left [the original UB40 lineup] a decade ago, that was after 28 years with the same lineup, and I can’t think of another group apart from U2 that has gone that long with the same original lineup. I reinvented myself – not intentionally, just because I left, basically. We ended up reinventing another UB40. [laughs] I think that’s probably why we’re here four years later and still selling out in London and places like that. Plus everybody wanted a reunion, and when Astro left and came to me, that was the reunion that the fans wanted, really, and voted with their feet.

When I’ve mentioned to people that I’m going to talk to you, they say, “Which UB40 is it? Is it the original?” I say, “It’s definitely the original – Ali, Astro, and Mickey.”

I’d have to agree with them. [laughter] With Astro and me, you’ve got the original vocalists and all of the hits that everyone can remember from the 80s and the 90s.

Really, anything else is going to sound a bit karaoke. Basically, I think that’s why we’re the best choice. Beware of the imitations!

It must have pissed you off, though, when all this thing went off about the name.

It still pisses me off. It’s a thorn in my side, it won’t go away. Of course, it’s their living, as well. They’ve got to carry on making a living. It’s just there’s still skullduggery, you know, it’s still putting up, like, with the recent American dates.

They put all their dates up and then, you press on a [link], and it’s me singing Kingston Town! And then, for their American dates, you press on another one, and it’s Rat In Mi Kitchen by Astro.

But there’s nothing we can do about it because everyone goes, “It’s just the secondary ticketing site, and we’ve got no control.”

Which I think is a load of bollocks myself. They seem to be carrying on doing that and really, I just hope that the longer I ignore them, then they’ll go away, eventually. They’re not really conflicting with what I’m doing because we’re on a different level to them. They’re playing House Of Blues and things like that, and we’re doing state fairs. We perform at the great shows here in LA and places like that. Our paths don’t cross.

To me, it’s embarrassing because from what I’ve seen of the other band’s gigs before, I don’t want anybody thinking that Duncan [Campbell] is me [chuckles] or that we had anything to do with them. That’s why we always put “featuring Ali and Astro”. It did say Mickey, but Mickey’s retired. It’s Astro and me and an eight-piece reggae band. I’d say they’re the hottest reggae band on the road.

BUZZ 20

I’d say you and Astro are the voice of UB40.

We’ve been together now for 10 years. Really, it was a band that we put together when I left, and I was just lucky with the people I chose when we bonded. It’s brilliant, and I’m really proud of them.

UB40 featuring Ali Campbell & Astro, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Fri 5 Apr. Tickets: from £39.50 (sold out – check box office for returns).

Info: 029 2022 4488 / www.motorpointarenacardiff.co.uk

SHAUN RYDER Shaun Ryder, the man once labelled by Tony Wilson as the greatest poet since W.B. Yeats, is touring with Black Grape this month.

He chats to Oliver Howells.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing troubling about spending the evening with your feet up and watching telly. Or being a fan of Ed Sheeran and taking your kids to the park. But who’s this imposter? ‘Cos it certainly doesn’t sound like Shaun Ryder!

Madchester figurehead, advocate for audaciousness, poet with aplomb: Ryder is, and has been, many things, but an Ed Sheeran fan! Really?

Back on the road with their latest album, Pop Voodoo, Black Grape – Shaun and his bandmate Paul ‘Kermit’ Leveridge – are embarking on a mini-tour, playing Cardiff’s Tramshed along the way. And according to Shaun, it’s better than ever.

“It’s great! We’re enjoying it more. We’re no longer on that treadmill.”

Twenty years since their last album, Stupid Stupid Stupid, Black Grape are back, though this time moving at a relaxed tempo. “It’s a lot more chilled. We take the pace 50-year-old blokes should be taking,” he says, telling Buzz he needs a hip replacement when he’s back from his gig in Australia. He pauses, laughing at his age-related fragility.

As for the wild living? “The sex and drugs have gone. It’s just the rock’n’roll! I can deal with myself, I’m right with myself. I appreciate it more. I decided it was time to grow up when I hit my 40s.”

Growing up was a good idea too since many in his shoes have met their maker early. Speaking of such, what would he say to God if he met him? “I’d say, ‘Thanks mate, nice one for looking after me!’” After all, when it comes to how his life’s turned out, he’s been fortunate. “My pals are doing 21 years in jail. I’ve been very, very lucky!”

Brought up as a Catholic in Salford in the 1970s, where many were from Irish decent, Ryder’s got a few things to say about religion too. “God is great, but religion just divides people. Catholics and Protestants. Sunnis and Shiites. Same values both in the home and culturally and yet [they’re] fighting each other. It’s ridiculous and has gone on for years. The mentality of it’s just insane!”

With the former troubles and divisions in Ireland, Shaun says he’d witnessed the repercussions first-hand. “Mums and dads would drop their kids off at school with black eyes and all sorts,” he says, appalled by it all.

BUZZ 22

Since the song Everything You Know Is Wrong on their Black Grape’s album addresses the politics of today, I can’t help but dig a little deeper about his political leanings. He’s Labour, he says, though only recently voted for the first time out of concern for his kids and the wealthy paying their fair share. “It’s right they pay more tax. We’re talking billionaires. Amazon pay absolutely nothing.”

Vouching for the underdog, he says it’s the ordinary people that inspire him.

“Firemen. Doctors. Nurses. People who work their f*****g dicks off!”

As for those who impress him musically, it’s surprising to hear him say Ed Sheeran.

“I think he’s brilliant. The stuff he’s written in a short space of time – incredibly brilliant pop songs. That’s phenomenal! Then there’s those American kids – Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus and Ariana Grande. They write all their own stuff as well as act. It’s the full Sammy Davis Jnr and Dean Martin trip all over again.”

At the end of our interview, it’s time for a curveball – what’s his favourite flavoured fudge?

“Fudge?” he asks, incredulously. “Well… errr… I’ve only had one flavoured fudge – normal fudge flavour. But if there’s any more flavours please send them to me!”

Suddenly Shaun’s on one. “I like anything that’s salted caramel. And there’s that chocolate bar that’s got all these jelly bits and toffees in it. What’s it called?”

Cadbury’s Marvellous Creations?

“Oh man! The ice cream version’s out of this world! I could easily sit and eat three to four tubs of that in once session. It’s the best!”

When you’ve lived the kind of life Shaun Ryder has, you’ve earned the right for ice cream with jelly bits in to be your hedonistic zenith.

Black Grape, Tramshed, Cardiff, Fri 15 Mar. Tickets: £29.

Info: 029 2023 5555 / www.tramshedcardiff.com

#

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Featuring new music for flute, percussion and strings by Helen Wilson.

Cerddoriaeth newydd i’r ffliwt, offerynnau taro a llinynnau gan Helen Wilson.

Sadwrn 30 mawrth, 8.30yh saturday 30 march, 8.30pm Tramshed Tech, CAERDYDD/Cardiff tickets/info: www.sinfoniacymru.co.uk

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GENTLE/RADICAL’S 15TH ANNIVERSARY Running a cinema is a hard game. Even more so running a community cinema, where the aim is not just to show the latest films but to find new experiences – films around which a discussion can start or a dialogue open. Gentle/Radical have been in the game now for 15 years, and this month they’ll be celebrating that birthday with a selection of screenings, plus the debut of a short film documenting some of their work.

“The idea is always to democratise access to space,” says Rabab Ghazoul, G/R’s director. “We work with access to cultural provisions – so our work if often very ground-up. A lot of the work exists through a focus on conversation and dialogue.”

The focus is often on engaging female ethnic and minority communities, but it’s just as much about being as inclusive and diverse as possible. It sounds easy enough – you might think, well, if you want to go to the cinema, you just go, but it’s not always that simple. Outreach co-ordinator Radha Patel chimes in: “[A cultural space] puts out a film from X or Y country and then whoever comes, comes. But people come because they have a natural fluency in coming into a space. If you’ve grown up going to certain cultural spaces, you know how to [move through them]. But if you don’t have that – for example, if your parents didn’t have the money for the cinema – then these places feel out of your comfort zone.”

Rabab tells me of a fiftysomething Pakistani woman who once visited a G/R event: “She had never been to the cinema before. And even just going to the box office, getting a ticket, finding a seat – those are all cultural literacy skills that some people grow up with and some don’t.”

Art doesn’t exist without an audience, and G/R has been sustained first and foremost by a willing audience. How has the film club managed that? “We really go that extra mile – not by Facebooking and putting it out on social media but actually going into communities and literally inviting them.” Sitting down, talking one-on-one, getting people interested and finding a dialogue with fellow humans.

For 15 years that’s served them well, unsurprisingly enough. FEDOR TOT Gentle/Radical 15th Anniversary Celebrations, Samaj Community Centre, Cardiff, Wed 27 Mar. Tickets: £5/£3.50/free for asylum seekers.

Info: facebook.com/gentleradical

WELSH CINEMA IN MARCH March is turning out to be quite a good month for Welsh cinema, with the release of two feature films into British screens that tell quite different stories, both of them supported by Ffilm Cymru and both by directors based in Wales. One is Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story, directed by Steve Sullivan: a documentary about the legendary papier-maché-headed comedian Frank Sidebottom, and the mind behind the mask, Chris Sievey. A side-angle view of his story, as written

by Jon Ronson, has already been turned into the film Frank, starring Michael Fassbender, but that film had little to do with the nuts and bolts of Sidebottom’s trajectory; this should satisfy fans looking for something along those lines.

The other film out this month is Ray & Liz, by Swansea-based photographerturned-director Richard Billingham. The film leads on from a series of photographs he made in the 1990s of the same title, which depicted his alcoholic father and chainsmoking mother. Growing up in poverty in 70s and 80s Birmingham, the film cuts back and forth in time as we see a lonely Ray in a high-rise bedsit, never leaving his room and spending his days just drinking and smoking, and an earlier time where, newly redundant, he seems to slip away into the margins on family life.

It’s all shot from lived experience for Billingham. “I wanted to make a British story but from a different perspective that feels real and authentic – not one of these things shot through the eyes of a child but something that feels as if it’s memory-based.” Ray & Liz is one of a long strain of British kitchen-sink dramas, but here the poverty feels lived-in and real – not melodramatically excruciating, but average at times.

Billingham remembers his childhood as “actually a happy one, with a lot of unstructured free time,” and although the film showcases scenes that aren’t pleasant to view, there is also light and gentleness and community. You can see echoes of Terence Davies’ monumental Distant Voices, Still Lives in its depiction of the texture, the colour, the smell of British working-class life. Both films are worth seeking out this March. FEDOR TOT Ray And Liz is released in cinemas on Fri 8 Mar. Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story is out in cinemas and VOD on Fri 29 Mar BUZZ 24

S I O E F L O DA U ’ R R H S / F L OW E R S H OW

C A E R DY D D / CARDIFF 12–14 Ebrill / April 2019

Plant am ddim / Kids go free*

Susie Blake Miss Marple

Simon Shepherd Chief Inspector Dermot Craddock

newtheatrecardiff.co.uk 029 2087 8889

Mawrth 26 March - Ebrill 6 April 2019 Cynhyrchiad Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru a Wiltshire Creative A Wales Millennium Centre and Wiltshire Creative production

Gerddi, planhigion a blodau Sgyrsiau a gweithdai gyda’r arbenigwyr Cyfle unigryw i siopa Bwyd a diod lleol

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Archebwch yn / Book at rhs.org.uk/cardiff Supported by

*Telerau ac Amodau’n berthnasol, ewch ar y wefan i gael manylion.

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Rhif Elusen Gofrestredig yr RHS 222879 / SC038262 RHS Registered Charity no. 222879 / SC038262

STORM.3: TOGETHER AND ALONE There’s a storm coming to Newport, though perhaps for a change, it’s not the meteorological kind. In the NEON this month, a former Odeon cinema and hive of entertainment attempting to fulfil its acronymic prophecy that Newport Entertains Our Nation, the latest incarnation of Mike Brookes’ Storm Cycle series takes to the stage.

Brookes, a National Theatre Wales Associate Artist, has been working on his Storm cycle for three years now, culminating creatively in 2020 with the creation of a new, large-scale production for National Theatre Wales’ 10th anniversary. Storm.3: Together And Alone draws on a raft of social and environmental concerns, fusing the works of feminist philosopher Simone de Beauvoir and her set of essays The Ethics of Ambiguity with more contemporary political soundbites.

Previous instalments of Storm looked at reimagining Ovid’s Metamorphoses and the Cardiff city centre riots of June 1919, so Brookes is no stranger to dealing with turbulent social situations. Of course, the production’s name seems fitting – and promises to contort familiar aspects of theatre into something new and unexpected – previous iteration Storm 2: Things Come Apart was described by Buzz’s reviewer as “terrifying” at times. Preceding works for National Theatre Wales saw Brookes work with long-time collaborator Mike Pearson, in a variety of projects from 2010’s The Persians to 2012’s Coriolan/Us, before Iliad four years ago.

Building on previous approaches Brookes has taken in his work, Storm.3 looks to a wealth of sources – cinematic, literary, contemporary and historical – and delves into figuring out the forms theatre can take in adapting to the consequences of today’s climate, both environmental and political, exploring themes of truth and testimony.

The production aims to investigate who we are as a nation amidst the current turbulent sociopolitical uncertainty, performed just days before the UK’s planned exit from the European Union. Together And Alone also looks back to the state of the country as it was just after the Second World War and the foundations of the Europe we now know. CHLOE EDWARDS

PERFORMANCES FOR THE CURIOUS Performances For The Curious is a seasonal programme for smaller and one-off productions coming to the Wales Millennium Centre. This season includes a highly inclusive and eclectic mix of headlines, such as Against The Grain, brought to you by Wales Arts Review’s Jafar Iqbal as he presents a double bill of artists who defy cultural norms: Dancing Queer and Holly Morgan, whose Madonna Or Whore explores Freud’s complex of that name – the inability to maintain sexual arousal in a long term committed relationship. This is pop culture cabaret with a point to make.

Other performances include Séyoncé - a self-proclaimed “dragtastic seance for those lonely souls in desperate need of the camp ecstasy of cabaret and character-comedy.”

Further along the drag-based offerings there’s Connie Orff – a Cardiff local who describes themselves as “an inclusive, asthmatic, bilingual gay dad in a dress.” And FooFooLaBelle and the soloists from Cardiff Cabaret Club join forces to give you Ffresh Burlesque [pictured]. What more could you want?

If you’re looking for things that are a little less smut and a little more sophisticated, poet Holly McNish is on her 2019 tour and will be reading and chatting for her night here. Her poem Mathematics has managed 1.9 million hits on YouTube and explores how we negotiate race, home and acceptance in Britain. Lucie Jones, Welsh X-Factor contestant whose credits include lead roles in Les Misérables and Legally Blonde, will be performing her personal West End numbers. There’s also Blah Blah Blah: Stand Up And Slam, where stand-up comedy squares up to slam poetry.

Who will win? The audience decides.

Elsewhere, The Nature Of Why explores physicist Richard Feynman’s search for meaning in the world around us through nine distinct and emotive movements and a Machynlleth Comedy Festival preview gives us a chance to see the best of this year’s festival. Then there’s the strangeness of User Not Found, a sort-of theatre play about our posthumous digital identities.

Audiences will receive a smartphone and a pair of headphones as they follow the story on its strange permutations – that one will definitely be a performance for the curious.

RUTH SEAVERS Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, Fri 15 Mar-Wed 15 May. Tickets: prices vary. Info: 029 2063 6464 / www.wmc.org.uk BUZZ 26

Pic: Lana Eve Photography

The Neon, Newport, Thurs 21-Sat 23 Mar. Tickets: £10/£7.50.

Info: www.nationaltheatrewales.org

Rigoletto Verdi Carmen Bizet The Cunning Little Vixen Janáček Les vêpres siciliennes Verdi The Marriage of Figaro Mozart Tymor 2019/2020 Season Ar werth 1 Mawrth | On sale 1 March Archebwch nawr ar yganolfan.org.uk Book now at wmc.org.uk 029 2063 6464 Mae croeso cynnes i chi gysylltu â mi yn Gymraeg

wno.org.uk/operas Rhif Elusen Gofrestredig | Registered Charity No 221538

THE LAUGHARNE WEEKEND The township of Laugharne is quite something. Once christened “the strangest town in Wales” by its most celebrated inhabitant, Dylan Thomas, the poet spent his final years building a rather close rapport with the Carmarthenshire spot.

It seems that plenty of other punters have followed suit and formed their own connections with the timeless town over the past decade, as the even stranger Laugharne Weekend festival has repeatedly pulled in the masses to a place that is not far from the middle of nowhere.

Enticing literary heavyweights, musical icons and general culture vultures to the locale, The Laugharne Weekend takes the tired, clichéd festival pullquote “something for everyone” and flips it on its backside. Forget your over-organised weekenders that pride themselves on meticulously planned schedules and burgers priced for the bourgeoise: Laugharne is staunchly non-conformist in its ways.

Untroubled by its rather remote location and proud of its chaotic but close-knit community, think of it as less seaside twee and more pub culture personified.

This year’s lineup sees a host of idiosyncratic characters. Everything But The Girl’s Tracey Thorn [pictured] will be discussing her latest memoir, Another Planet: A Teenager In Suburbia and BAFTA Cymru nominee Carys Eleri will be performing her critically lauded comedy show, Lovecraft (Not The Sex Shop In Cardiff), fresh off the back of a successful stint at last year’s Festival Of Voice.

Dr. John Cooper Clarke will be on hand to lend a few of his finest verses from his wildly successful, and what seems to be never-ending, career; and still able to confound with lyrics that emote multifariously, Gruff Rhys closes the weekend with a selection of songs from his latest solo effort Babelsberg.

Consciously small-scale, The Laugharne Weekend is concerned with keeping its fellow festival goers in close proximity. Rightly so: upscale the festival even further and the locals could have their very own small-town Fyre Festival in their hands.

Busy and boozy it may be, but that’s how they like it. It’s a Laugharne thing.

SOPHIE WILLIAMS Various venues, Laugharne, Fri 5-Sun 7 Apr. Tickets: £100 full weekend.

Info: www.thelaugharneweekend.com

DEEP BLUE SOMETHING Best known for Breakfast At Tiffany’s, a mid-90s smash single that reached No.1 here and No.5 in the US, Deep Blue Something gradually faded away in popularity over time, as so many bands like them have done so. But over the last few years they’ve been quietly touring again, reactivating their fanbase and enjoying themselves. Chatting to the band, Buzz asks if the mood is much different.

“It’s much lighter than it was when we had the angst and pressure of a band in their early 20s. We probably took things way too seriously and felt like hell all the time. These days it’s more about getting together, having a few drinks and playing some music.”

Unlike some, they’ve embraced their status as a one-hit wonder. Where some bands grow to hate the song that brings them fame, Deep Blue Something understand the part it plays in their lives. “At the beginning, it was just another song in the set. People liked the tune right away, but it wasn’t a major part of the show or anything like that. When it finally got to radio and took off as our first single, it was a dream come true for us and it gave us the opportunity to tour the world.

“Over the years, after the song kinda took a life of its own; there were definitely times it got a bit frustrating to constantly talk about Breakfast At Tiffany’s in every interview or appearance, but after all this time, we feel very lucky to be a part of something that strikes a chord with so many people and it’s still a blast to play it at every show. It’s always a massive singalong and there’s nothing better than that.”

Although the Texas group played a fair few gigs in the UK 20 years ago, there was never a full tour. “We played a few shows here and there but we never got to play Newcastle, Nottingham, Bristol or Swansea, so we’re really looking forward to all of it. Hopefully we’ll get to come back for a longer tour sooner than later.” FEDOR TOT Sin City, Swansea, Fri 15 Mar. Tickets: £18.

Info: 01792 468892 / www.sincityclub.co.uk

BUZZ 28

BBC National Orchestra of Wales Cerddorfa Genedlaethol Gymreig y BBC

Concerto Piano Rhif 2

Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 Thursday

Nos Iau 11/4/19, 7.30pm

Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 Concerto Piano Rhif 2 Schubert Symphony No. 9 Symffoni Rhif 9 – Alexander Vedernikov Conductor Arweinydd Boris Giltburg Piano For information and tickets Am wybodaeth a thocynnau

bbc.co.uk/now 0800 052 1812

Who will be on top of the world?

Pwy fydd ar ben y byd?

June 15 - 22 Mehefin 2019 St David’s Hall Neuadd Dewi Sant Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama Coleg Brenhinol Cerdd a Drama Cymru

Single tickets available from March Tocynnau sengl ar gael o fis Mawr th stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk 029 2087 8444

profile

THE MIRROR CRACK’D With a major new original production by the Wales Millennium Centre imminent in Cardiff, Chris Williams chats to Agatha Christie’s great-grandson James Prichard about the challenges of maintaining the Christie legacy.

Agatha Christie has been perennially popular, but according to James Prichard, her great-grandson and CEO of Agatha Christie Ltd, they are busier than ever. With the Kenneth Branagh Poirot films, the BBC’s Christmas versions and a stage version of The Mirror Crack’d, there seems to be more of an appetite than ever for Christie works.

“Poirot was a favourite on ITV for over 20 years, as well as Miss Marple. Her books have been made into films since the 1930s, but certainly the last few years there has been a massive resurgence in interest in Agatha Christie.

“Both here and in America and all around the world – we have been doing own-language versions on television in countries such as France, South Korea and Japan... and we’ve got various other stuff bubbling around. We’re probably as busy as we have ever been.”

When asked about the day-to-day workings of the company, James laughs: “The short answer is there isn’t a day-to-day.”

Unsurprisingly with the variety of ways Christie’s works are adapted, Agatha Christie Ltd is “such a varied company and varied job. We deal with the rights from TV and film through publishing stage plays, and everything else besides. I can have a day on a TV set, I can be meeting people to talk about publishing; today I’m meeting with team members to discuss things.”

BUZZ 30

Famously, Christie’s cumulative book sales are outstripped only by Shakespeare and The Bible, and her books have, in total, received more translations than any other individual author. With this in mind you could be forgiven for thinking that Agatha Christie Ltd are rejecting projects left right and centre, but that’s not how it is.

“We tend to be more proactive than reactive, we’re approaching people and trying to get things off the ground. We’re getting things of the ground more than we are sitting here waiting for people to come to us.”

The same proactive approach is taken with books: “We get the odd person who has written or wants to write something,” says Prichard, “but we’re doing new Poirot books with Sophie Hannah and there isn’t room to do more other than that, and at the moment we don’t really want to do anything else. No need or room to do more – we deal with relatively big projects.”

One of these is a stage production of a well-known Miss Marple novel, The Mirror Crack’d (From Side To Side). Along with a relatively quiet time regarding Christie on stage, Prichard cites the absence of Miss Marple from theatres as something interesting about the play.

“This is obviously very different [from other Christie theatre works]: there are very few, if any, Christie plays with Miss Marple in, so having a

Marple play in itself is interesting and extra.”

Prichard was also interested in the idea of creating a stage production based on a Christie novel “in a slightly more modern theatrical way”. Having now read the play and met with the director, he can’t wait to see exactly how Marple works on stage.

James Prichard’s grandfather was Hubert Prichard, a Welshman who married Christie’s only child, Rosalind; James’s father Matthew was brought up in the Vale Of Glamorgan. As such, The Mirror Crack’d’s status as a Wales Millennium Centre production pleases the playwright’s descendant: “It will be good for the Millennium Centre and all the people who are attached to it – and us as well.

“I’ve had a bit of a reappraisal of Marple,” says James when pressed for his favourite Agatha Christie work. “I grew up preferring Poirot. If I was going to pick a favourite today it might well be A Murder Is Announced, I read A Sleeping Murder the other day and found that remarkable. My favourite book is sometimes the one I’ve just read.”

The Mirror Crack’d, New Theatre, Cardiff, Tue 26 Mar-Sat 6 Apr. Tickets: £12-£33.

Info: 029 2087 8889 / www.newtheatrecardiff.co.uk

A CO-PRODUCTION WITH MERCURY THEATRE COLCHESTER AND A CO-COMMISSION WITH LONDON INTERNATIONAL MIME FESTIVAL

A B R AV E FA C E W O R D L E S S , F U L L M A S K T H E AT R E

Kamus Quartet Live at The Great Hall Sunday 24 March 2pm

“Kamus is a perfectly blended group, and the brilliance of each inidividual shines through.” Helsingin Sanomat One of the most prominent Nordic ensembles showcase the diverse and wonderful works of Sibelius, Mendelssohn and Shostakovich.

‘‘... A five-handed masterclass of this rare and beautiful art.’’

WHAT’S ON LIVE

Friday 15 March 7.30pm

taliesinartscentre.co.uk 01792 60 20 60

01792 60 49 00

www.greathallswansea.co.uk

by Keiron Self

CAPTAIN MARVEL ****

Dir: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck (12A, 122 mins) Marvel takes a long overdue foray into a standalone female superhero movie, following in the wake of DC Universe’s excellent Wonder Woman. Continuing their offbeat choices in directors, Marvel have enlisted indie darlings Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck to helm their next tentpole movie. The choice of Oscar winner Brie Larson as lead is also inspired, bringing some actorly gravitas to a laser-beam-shooting character. Set in the 1990s, Larson plays Carol Danvers, a US pilot whose DNA has been fused with the Kree, an alien race. She forgets her earthly origins, becoming a member of elite fighting group StarForce – alongside Jude Law, Gemma Chan, Djimon Hounsou and scientist Annette Bening, responsible for Larson’s Kree powers. Returning to Earth Larson finds the planet invaded by the Skrulls, a shape-shifting alien race under the rule of Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos. On Earth she encounters a digitally de-aged Samuel L. Jackson as a naïve Nick Fury, now a desk-bound SHIELD agent who does not believe in aliens. His meeting with Captain Marvel sets him on a path to the creation of the Avengers. As a prequel of sorts, Captain Marvel should be unencumbered by too many plot strands. With a jocular tone, an indie director’s attention to character and some CGI spectacle this should be Marvel-ous. Opens Mar 8

BORDER ****

Dir: Ali Abbasi (15, 110 mins) A film that defies categorization, Border is an adult fairytale blending romance, horror, family drama, comedy and a sex scene that will remain etched in your brain forever. Eva Melander plays Tina, a customs officer who can smell if anyone is carrying contraband. She is fabulous at her job but ostracised, putting up with the odd looks and the caginess of people around her because of her physical appearance. This all changes when she is unaccountably attracted to a strange man, Vore (Eero Milonoff) who shares her unconventional looks and mannerisms. Confidently handled by director Abbasi and anchored by a superb performance by Melander, Border takes in the joy of finding yourself alongside themes circling around family skeletons, child abduction and horror. Heralding from Sweden, with fantastic cinematography, this is unlike anything you will have seen before, but it subtly asks universal questions despite its ultimately fantastical answers. Opens Mar 8

CAPTIVE STATE ***

DUMBO ***

Dir: Tim Burton (PG, 130 mins) Another plundering of the Disney back catalogue to ‘re-imagine’ a classic. This has Tim Burton at the helm to help us believe an elephant can fly. The original 1941 2D animation is a fabulous story of mother love, animal exploitation and a little boy’s struggles. Expanding that film’s slight 64-minute running time, Burton and scriptwriter Ehren Kruger have created a human set of characters around the original core story. Dumbo is born into circus life under the kindly auspices of Danny DeVito’s ringmaster Max Medici and entrusted to the care of Colin Farrell’s Holt, a circus rider who has lost an arm during the war; Dumbo’s presence in his life gives him a purpose. He and his children Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) raise Dumbo until news of the pachyderm’s ear capabilities spread. The small circus is gobbled up by slimy entrepreneur VA Vandevere (Michael Keaton turning on the oily charm), who, along with trapeze artist Eva Green, plans to exploit the plucky elephant’s capabilities. Expect trademark Burton visuals of Gothic whimsy, a quirky score by Danny Elfman and another tale of an outsider bullied by those who don’t understand his freakishness. Burton is a strong choice to retell the story, but let’s hope the magic of the original isn’t lost amidst the CGI spectacle. Opens Mar 29

Dir: Rupert Wyatt (12A, 115 mins) An alien invasion film set a decade after the human race has been overrun by an insectoid menace, this Chicago-set thriller focuses on the battles between human resistance fighters and human collaborators.

Ashton Sanders, excellent in Moonlight, takes centre stage as freedom fighter Gabriel rebelling against the likes of John Goodman, who along with other pragmatists has accepted defeat in the face of overwhelming odds. Co-written with Erica Beeney, director Rupert Wyatt utilizes some of the CGI smarts learned in his previous blockbusters Rise of the Planet of the Apes using spectacle sparingly to create a believably occupied Earth. A homage to World War II resistance movies, Captive State is similar to Neill Blomkamp’s District 9 in its grimy detailed worldview.

The film smuggles in plenty of commentary on the state of the world, asking if humanity needs to be policed by another power before it destroys itself. Opens Mar 29

EVERYBODY KNOWS ***

Dir: Asgar Farhardi (15, 132 mins) Penelope Cruz returns home to her native Spain from Argentina, where she lives with her job-seeking husband Alejandro (Ricardo Darin), for a family wedding with children in tow. There she reconnects with old flame, rugged winemaker Paco (an excellent Javier Bardem). Cruz’s daughter Irene (Carla Campra) is rebellious, drinking too much and falling in with a local boy with whom she escapes to a bell tower during the wedding, before passing out and disappearing during the following festivities. The search for Irene reopens wounds from the past, as it becomes apparent that she has been kidnapped for nefarious ends. What follows is a more detailed study of Cruz and Bardem’s relationship and the tensions that exist within a smalltown community, along with some logic loopholes.

A solid drama with strong performances, if an at times suspect script, from the director of the Oscar-winning A Separation. Opens Mar 8

ALSO RELEASED MARCH 2019: FOXTROT (15) A troubled Israeli family have to deal with tragedy after something happens at their son’s military base. SAUVAGE (18) French male prostitute drama with an unlikely perspective on love. Screened at Iris Prize last year and its star Felix Maritaud won Best Performance, and rightly so. THE HOLE IN THE GROUND (15) An ominous sinkhole in a rural idyll causes problems for a mother and son in this paranoid Irish horror. WHAT THEY HAD (12A) Feelgood multi-generational drama starring Hilary Swank and Michael Shannon. THE KIDERGARTEN TEACHER (12A) Maggie Gylenhaal is superb as a teacher who believes she has a child prodigy on her hands. A gripping tale of obsession. ROSIE (12A) Gritty Irish drama from writer BUZZ 32

THE AFTERMATH ****

Dir: James Kent (15, 110 mins) A ravaged Germany in the days after the Second World War provides the background for this love story, adapted from Rhidian Brook’s of the same name.

Keira Knightley follows up the excellent Collette with another layered and nuanced role; she plays Rachel Morgan, reunited with her husband Lewis (Jason Clarke), a colonel stationed in war-torn Hamburg. Lewis’ task is to help rebuild the city and, as such, has decided to take over a stately German home with the original owners still living in it. Alexander Skarsgard plays the German widower sharing his house with along with his troubled daughter, Freda (Flora Thiemann). It’s a complicated house-share full of suspicion, enmity and awkwardness – eventually it turns to passion, as Rachel finds herself falling for the German whilst her husband grows distant, leading to an inevitable showdown. A period piece about the dehumanizing effects of war with Knightley and Skarsgard on good form – all simmering looks and intensity from the both of them – and Jason Clarke nailing the repressed, haunted soldier. An affecting romantic drama, well directed by James Kent, boasting snowy vistas whilst capturing an ugly side of the wreckage war leaves behind. Opens Mar 1

THE FIGHT ***

Dir: Jessica Hynes (15, 91 mins) Jessica Hynes, the superb comedy actress who has delighted in Spaced, There She Goes and W1A amongst many others, makes her writing and directing feature film debut in a tale of a woman overcoming issues of selfesteem and bullying. Shot on a tiny budget over 12 days in Folkestone, it follows Hynes’ Tina, a woman struggling through various issues: an overbearing mum (Anita Dobson), a loving if ineffectual husband (Shaun Parkes) and three kids, one of whom, Emma (an excellent Sennia Nanua), is being bullied at school by classmate Jordan, an equally good Liv Hill. Hynes has history with Jordan’s mum (an unlikely Rhona Mitra). Determined to face up to her demons, Tina decides to learn how to fight under the tutelage of trainer Cathy Tyson, but in the end violence can solve nothing. It’s a well-intentioned drama with some great cameos from Alice Lowe as a home schooler and Sally Phillips as a supportive teacher, but the main event never quite catches fire. Opens Mar 15

THE INFORMER ***

US ****

Dir: Jordan Peele (15, 120 mins) The writer/director of the excellent Get Out follows up with more sociopolitical horror.

After the existential psychological terrors of his debut, Jordan Peele has gone all out for scares in this high-concept frightener. The Wilson family, headed by Adelaide (Lupita Nyong’o) and Gabe (Winston Duke), head for a beach vacation in Santa Cruz with their two children, Zora (Shahadi Wright-Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex).

They go to spend time with their friends, the Tyler family, played by the ever-excellent Elisabeth Moss and Tim Heidecker (best known as one half of Tim & Eric. Adelaide is on edge, encountering strange coincidences that link somehow to a deeply hidden past trauma. Their son Jason wanders off on the beach, encountering a scarecrow-like creature and that night the family are visited in their holiday home by doppelgangers of themselves with murderous intentions. Taking the premise of our own worst enemy being ourselves to its limit, Peele’s film descends into scissor slashings, disturbing imagery and a supernatural concept called The Tethered. Peele places an endearing black American family at the heart of this Spielbergian horror, still a rarity in movies and then proceeds to relentlessly terrorise them. Nyong’o is excellent as the central maternal figure and the film delivers in its edge-of-the-seat scares. Opens Mar 22

Dir: Andrea Di Stefano (15, 113 mins) Undercover cop prison drama with a lot of familiar story beats but competently managed. An intense and moody Joel Kinnaman plays Pete Koslow (ex-special forces, naturally), who finds himself behind bars after a fight to protect his wife Ana De Armas. He’s given a chance to get early release by becoming an informant for the FBI, embodied by considerate Rosamund Pike and hardnosed Clive Owen. They want him to take down crime boss The General, to whom Kinnaman has got close, but when an operation goes pear-shaped and another undercover NYPD cop is killed he is left in prison fending off the FBI, the NYPD (embodied by rapper Common), and the organized crime syndicate. Violence ensues as Kinnaman tries to stay a step ahead of every side in a film that feels a little straight-to-bargain bin. Rosamund Pike is given little to do, Kinnaman takes his shirt off a lot and looks cross, and the story plods along with few surprises. Opens Mar 22

WHAT MEN WANT **

Dir: Adam Shankman (15, 110 mins) A remake of the 2000 Mel Gibson comedy What Women Want, where a chauvinist man gets access to the thoughts inside female minds after he hits his head.

This flips genders and has Taraji P. Henson hearing men’s innermost thoughts, using them to her advantage.

Henson plays a sports agent passed over for a promotion by other men in her firm. Frustrated, she goes for a night out, bangs her head and awakens with her new-found gift. Now she can hear what her board members really think about her, along with assistant Josh Brener, potential boyfriend Aldis Hodge and any number of random misogynists. This recalibration could, amidst the #MeToo era, have said a lot more; Henson gives her all but the script rehashes her Girl’s Night character, while Tracy Morgan manages to get some surreal zingers in amidst cameos from Richard Roundtree, Erykah Badu and Shaquille O’Neal. Foulmouthed and fitfully funny, but could have been much more. Opens Mar 15

Roddy Doyle about a family struggling to find somewhere to live. Great performances and deeply moving. FISHERMAN’S FRIENDS (15) A group of fishermen achieve global fame with some sea shanties in this amiable British comedy. THE PRODIGY (15) Taylor Schilling thinks her son is a genius, but he’s also nasty and may be possessed. Agh. What to do? THE WHITE CROW (15) Ralph Fiennes directs this true-life tale of dancer Rudolf Nuryev’s defection to the West. Ballet and espionage. MISS BALA (12A) Gina Rodriguez is the titular character in this actioner about a woman drawn into cross border crime. Not, as you might assume, a feelgood comedy about a rural Welsh village teaming up to save the beloved village hall by staging a beauty pageant.

BUZZ 33

art

ANGELA MADDOCK: SOMETIMES ALL YOU CAN DO IS WALK

Oriel Myrddin Gallery, Carmarthen Sat 30 Mar-Sat 11 May Angela Maddock is a freelance lecturer and artist with a passion for materials.

The maker in residence of the Florence Nightingale Faculty Of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care at King’s College London is fascinated by how our wellbeing and productivity can be affected by making and transforming materials, something which has often played a key part in her projects.

Her latest is centred around a remarkable trek which took place last year. Back in October, Angela embarked on a gruelling 300-plus-mile journey on foot from Oriel Myrddin to Middlesbrough, via her hometown in the Midlands. Sometimes All You Can Do Is Walk showcases the array of materials she collected along the way, which she subsequently transformed to tell her story.

During the 25-day solo expedition, which included challenging weather conditions, the artist collected over 10 kilos of material which was sent back to the gallery every few days. Judging from her Instagram documentation, this is set to be an intriguing collection, with the artist cleverly giving items a new lease of life and meaning.

Admission: free. Info: 01267 222775 / orielmyrddingallery.co.uk (KR) BUZZ 34

LINDA JANE JAMES: INDEFINITY

Aberystwyth Arts Centre Until Mon 6 May Former management consultant Linda Jane James’ new exhibition will feature day and night variations of its artwork. While daylight will highlight particular spots of compositions, during the dark LED lights will produce mysterious and mesmerizing visuals. Indefinity, produced over the last year, is all about a chaotic and joy-filled composition of colours and shapes. James is not only playing with bright, neon colours, but also combines various materials and ideas to embody the coexistence of valuables and worthlessness.

Her work distinguishes itself as a chaotic and colourful mess consisting of discarded and unvalued materials - whether that is written notes, paper fragments or plastic pieces. The artist treasures the state of ‘lying-aroundness’ – undervalued things that people discard – once saying, “I value things that people throw away; I think there is a potential in more things than people realize.” Hence, James is up for rescuing these abandoned bits and pieces to create something fulfilling and meaningful. Through this artwork, she transforms and gives meaning to these bits.

Indefinity is an opportunity to interpret imageries incorporated within the mixture of different colour shades and silhouettes. Compositions are rich with shapes and subtle lines as well as various subjects and patterns creating this harmonious whole. Often, art tends to generate various ideas and values for us to assign meaning to and create stories with heads but here, Linda breaks down this stereotype; she does not create characters or narrative ideas, yet gives value to every piece of material used in her artwork.

James utilizes skills acquired in accountancy and management to create her art pieces. She immerses herself into a chaotic environment and a complexity in order to collide juxtapositions, look for innovations, as well as explore simplicity and integrate it with more intricate and complex pieces. RIMANTE BIVAINYTE Admission: free. Info: 01970 621903 / www.aberystwythartscentre.co.uk

HAZEL CARDEW: OF LINE AND STRUCTURE

Elysium Gallery, Swansea Fri 8-Sat 23 Mar Hazel Cardew is a visual artist who sees the world differently, her drawings a representation of what she has viewed and experienced. Her artwork portrays her ideas on how we understand the spaces we inhabit through connectivity, communication and construction.

Cardew suggests the world is borne of line and structure, revealing black lines and white background. One of her primary inspirations for her creativity is Frank Stella’s The Marriage Of Reason And Squalor II (1959), with his white-on-black sharp lines. For Cardew, she uses primary minimal drawing to interpret her own vision.

Cardew is a Swansea-based artist who graduated with first class honours at the University Of Gloucestershire in 2012, and whose artwork has featured in exhibitions in the UK, Amsterdam and Tokyo. She has regularly been involved with Elysium Studios for three years, it being one of the first places where her drawings were first exhibited.

Although Cardew has also explored in photography and filming, her primary interests lie in her interpretative minimal black-on-white mark drawings, where viewers can allow their eyes to fill in the gaps.

Admission: free. Info: 07980 925449 / www.elysiumgallery.com (SB)

PHYTOPIA

Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea Until Sun 26 May Phytopia is a multimedia art exhibition comprising of film, photography, sculpture and painting, including works from 20 artists, some of which are being shown for the first time. The theme explores the concept of a ‘tree of life’ and how it is understood in its genealogical, cultural and political forms.

Notably, the exhibition will feature sculptural work from filmmaker and artist Derek Jarman – a high profile gay rights activist until his death in 1994, something reflected in works such as his feature film Carvaggio and 1993’s Blue, which explores his AIDS diagnosis through the medium of a single blue screen and voiceover. A number of Jarman’s sculptural pieces will be displayed for the first time as part of the exhibit.

The exhibition will also feature the work of black and white landscape photographer Fay Godwin. Later in life, however, Godwin herself rejected that term, insisting she was a ‘documentary photographer’. Nevertheless, her images remain sweeping portrayals of the English countryside, including intimate documentations of the abuses of the landscape. Phytopia promises to be a diverse and intriguing collection of work from renowned and celebrated artists.

Admission: free. Info: 01792 516900 / www.swansea.gov.uk/glynnvivian (BG)

STUFFED, PICKLED AND PINNED

Chepstow Museum, Monmouthshire Until July On the last stop of its Welsh tour, this colourfully-named exhibition brings together over 50 natural scientific artefacts selected from collections in museums across Wales. The exhibit will be offering up all manner of creatures and treasures: a fossil seashell found at the summit of Snowdon, a rare auroch’s bone from the Severn estuary and even a mummified cat.

This exhibit has been a long time in the making, staff, volunteers and experts working together for over three years.

The museum’s aim is to bring its educational display of plants, animals, minerals and insects to the public, all of which help scientists have a better understanding of the natural world and human impact upon it. Therefore the experience is both informative and entertaining, whilst also showing artefacts that have never been displayed in such a public setting before.

The exhibit has plenty of content aimed towards children, with attractions and activities for even the littlest ones too.

Running from now until July and open from 11am-4pm daily, there are plenty of opportunities to catch this exhibit on its last showing in Wales.

Admission: free. Info: 01291 625981 / www.monmouthshire.gov.uk/ chepstow-museum (BG)

OUT APRIL 2019

Buzz ad Leo.qxp_Layout 1 16/01/2019 12:34 Page 1

Amgueddfa Genedlaethol Caerdydd National Museum Cardiff

LEonarDO DA vin ci

Arddangosfa Newydd!

New Exhibition!

1.2.2019–6.5.2019 Parc Cathays, Caerdydd CF10 3NP amgueddfa.cymru/caerdydd

Cathays Park, Cardiff CF10 3NP museum.wales/cardiff

Ymddiriedolaeth y Casgliad Brenhinol / © Ei Mawrhydi y Frenhines Elisabeth II 2019 Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2019

Dyn y darluniau A life in drawing

5 SOLDIERS

Sherman Theatre, Cardiff Tue 2 Apr The body is the frontline, so says the tagline of Rosie Kay’s Dance Company’s unique dance interpretation of life at the very centre of combat.

Presented in association with the British Army, this production is touring Europe and the US this spring.

A look at how the human body is a crucial component in conflict, 5 Soldiers’ concept stemmed from choreographer Rosie Kay’s decision to join the 4th Battalion The Rifles in 2008, in order to watch and participate in full battle exercises. Her previous choreography work includes the Commonwealth Games Handover Ceremony last year, and MK Ultra, a collaboration with documentarian Adam Curtis. It’s therefore unsurprising that her trademark style of intense physical and athletic dance results in gripping visuals.

5 Soldiers offers no particular moral stance towards war itself, but instead offers an insight into what is asked of soldiers fighting today. Alongside Kay’s experience, the current cast includes a serving trooper of the Welsh Cavalry, also a professional dancer, adding to the questions raised by the production.

Tickets: £16/£14. Info: 029 2064 6900 / www.shermantheatre.co.uk (CE)

BUZZ 36

Pic: Brinkhoff Mogenburg

stage

MACBETH: PAPER CINEMA

Aberystwyth Arts Centre Wed 27 Mar The ‘other’ Macbeth on this month arrives courtesy of The Paper Cinema, and it looks to be a very faithful telling of Shakespeare’s Scottish tragedy; the difference in this production is, well, everything. The Paper Cinema creates a silent movie version, filmed live on stage and projected to the audience.

Using hand-drawn paper puppets, the actors manipulate shadowy black and white characters. Through the layering of puppets and landscapes, people and castles, the company seek to unlock the mysteries of the Thane and his wife’s insatiable ambition. Using the camera as the eye of the audience, The Paper Cinema zooms in on the frozen detail of the animated faces, bringing an immersive intensity to the production.

The accompanying score is performed live. Alongside the puppeteers, the musicians create a beguiling soundscape that is further complemented by live sound effects in the radio play/foley style.

So, what can you expect? Silent movie?

Live performance? Puppet show? Yes, all of the above. For some, Shakespeare isn’t Shakespeare without the text. But, with all this going on, who needs words?

Tickets: £12/£10. Info: 01970 623232 / www.aberystwythartscentre.co.uk (JPD)

MACBETH

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay Tues 19-Sat 23 Mar The genius of Shakespeare, of course, is that in the 400-odd years since his plays were written, whenever or wherever they are performed, they tell us more about the times in which we live than they ever do about Elizabethan England. Macbeth is a tale of greed, paranoia and over-vaulting ambition set in a country riven by division, confusion and doubt. Umm, sound familiar? Indeed, this touring National Theatre production is set in “a post-apocalyptic world of anarchy and uncertainty”, which sounds like a walk in the park compared to Brexit Britain frankly.

The fact the action takes place in the wake of a civil war could well give proceedings at the WMC the feeling of Newsnight rather than a piece of classic drama. Macbeth is a play that seems to embody many of the themes Shakespeare consistently found himself returning to throughout his work: human frailty, greed, the capacity for violence (in man and woman) and the comedy to be found even in the most desperate of situations. This production began life via a sold-out run on London’s South Bank under the direction of National Theatre artistic director, Rufus Norris, and is designed by Rae Smith, fresh from the NT’s blockbuster production of War Horse.

In London, Rory Kinnear and Anne-Marie Duff played the murderous Macbeths, but for this 18-venue tour of the UK and Ireland, which concludes in the Welsh capital, Scottish actor Michael Nardone, best known for playing Frisky in the BBC’s much-heralded The Night Manager, fleshes out the man who would be king whilst experienced stage actor, Kirsty Besterman, takes on the challenge of Lady Macbeth.

If reviews for the London production were mixed, this touring production has fared better critically. Audiences can expect a dark uncomfortable evening, but it could all come as a welcome break from the madness currently masquerading as ‘real’ life in these isles. Expect torrential rain, gallons of blood, plenty of tears and a guest appearance from Nigel Farage. Possibly. STEVE TUCKER Tickets: £10-£43. Info: 029 2063 6464 / www.wmc.org.uk

PEELING

Various venues across Wales Fri 8 Mar-Thurs 2 May Initially commissioned by the Graeae Theatre Company in 2003, peeling was a whole new coda to Kaite O’Reilly’s writing on how disabilities are both portrayed and observed within the theatre. The play delights in its subversion of the archetypal theatre experience by interweaving British Sign Language and audio captions into each subsequent show, in order to challenge both its audiences and the universal societal paradigms that may affect an innate understanding of the play.

Opening in Newport on International Women’s Day and continuing this month to Merthyr (Wed 13), Brecon (Thurs 14), Treorchy (Tue 19 and Wed 20), Aberystwyth (Tue 26), Milford Haven (Wed 27), Abergavenny (Thurs 28) and Blackwood (Fri 29), peeling is a postmodern take on ancient Greek tragedy The Trojan Women. For the uninformed, the narrative follows a triad of disabled women, Alpha, Beaty and Coral, who reside within the same strand of oppression. Their stories run parallel to those of the women of Troy who lost their children to conflict, but this chorus uncovers their truths through dialogue glutted with acerbic criticisms about the choices they have made.

Tickets: £8-£14.50. Info: www. takingflighttheatre.co.uk (SW)

Y BRAIN / KARGALAR

Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff Thurs 14-Sat 16 Mar The latest work from Cardiff’s Be Aware Productions is an examination of the inhibitions of oneself. The bilingual production of Y Brain/ Kargalar follows the story of Turkish writer Meltem Arikan on a journey of discovery in Wales, where her ying comes face to face with her yang. Tem is her impetuous, nature-loving alter ego who teaches Meltem the nature of belonging and identity.

Written by novelist and playwright Meltem Arikan,with the Welsh language dialogue handled by Sharon Morgan, Y Brain / Kargalar manages a unique look at self-discovery through the eyes of a person in the midst of a personal crisis, whilst at the same time showcasing the art of language.

Be Aware Productions formed in 2015 by Pinar Öğün. Alongside her compatriots, Arikan and director/actor Memet Ali Alabora, the three were all forced to leave Turkey due to a political smear campaign by the authoritarian government. Y Brain forms one of a number of bilingual productions from Be Aware, whose aim is to produce works of international appeal following 2017’s Enough Is Enough. Despite the Turkish and Welsh dialogue, it will be accessible to English speakers as well.

Tickets: £12-£15. Info: 029 2030 4400 / www.chapter.org (CA)

Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff Fri 22 Mar “When I needed a break, I walked the valleys and tried not to piss off too many farmers.” Brainy techno producer Max Cooper took time to be with his thoughts for his autumn 2018 release One Hundred Billion Sparks, staking out his sounds in a cottage on a hill atop absolutely nowhere, Powys.

“Beautiful views and not many people around. That’s what I needed,” he tells Buzz. “The whole project was about the mind and looking inward, free of as much external clatter as possible.”

Sparks is a “story of the mind”, a progression of the mental faculties as told through crisp, soaring ambient techno, made possible by a month of seclusion with only the sweeping Welsh hills and as much hardware as he could fit into his car. “It was a great chance to get to know my synths better. I switched off my phone and emails and tried to have zero human contact for the month, which was a weird experience, and not always enjoyable, but it gave me a clear focused mind to try and express the ideas I wanted to.” The album was accomplished with a restricted selection of analogue equipment, about the size of Cooper’s car’s boot, every inch of hardware owed in creating a huge scape of varying texture, sound, and percussion.

With a doctorate and a taste for the analytically intriguing, Cooper digs at new verges with the relish of both a scientist and an artist, obsessing “ideas which I find interesting in terms of the science involved, and which also lend themselves to beautiful visual format, to which I could score each piece of music.” These beautiful ideas are what provoke the Max Cooper audiovisual experience, such as the one set for Clwb Ifor Bach when Cooper returns to Wales in March.

“Every piece of music has a visual identity from the start, and I create the music and the visual story in parallel, like I’m scoring to a film which I’ll later direct.” As for Clwb’s story, expect a “spectacle with many unexpected turns”. JASON MACHLAB Tickets: £14. Info: 029 2023 2199 / www.clwb.net

Pic: Amy Farrer

Pic: Alex Kozobolis

clubs

MAX COOPER

LADIES OF RAGE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY SHOWCASE

The Moon, Cardiff Sat 9 Mar Ffion Wyn Morris set up Ladies Of Rag, a collective designed to showcase the talents of female, MCs and DJs in Cardiff, last August. Inspired by the events put on by London-based Girls Of Grime, who she showcased as part of the Cardiff Music Women exhibition in Womanby Street last year, she decided Cardiff could benefit in the same way.

“I wasn’t seeing many women being put on,” recalls Morris of her move to Cardiff from north Wales in 2013. “The only club nights I saw with a woman DJ was [Jessie Belters’] Doppler. I just wanted to help bring a bunch of women into people’s eyeline so that having more 50/50 lineups becomes less of an issue.”

Following the LOR launch event in December, the Ladies will be converging on The Moon for an International Women’s Day 2019 showcase. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“At this point in time we’re looking at twice-monthly cypher sessions, quarterly showcase events and then a host of tasty initiatives and projects in between.” With hip-hop to experimental electronica on the cards, names for the epic 4pm-4am session are still TBC right now but, says Morris, “they all pack a heavy punch onstage.”

Admission: free. Info: info@ themooncardiff.com (CA) BUZZ 38

PROBLEM CENTRAL

Dazed @ Sin City, swansea Sat 23 Mar Problem Central? More like prayers answered. A collective formed of Majistrate, Logan D, Eskman and Evil B, Problem Central are a drum’n’bass force who seem unstoppable. Their recent mixtape, which celebrates d’n’b across generations, is a work that has been carefully crafted by the group.

Singularly, all involved have gathered sizeable followings in their own right, where the combination of the two DJs with renowned MCs makes for a collective who are sure to tear up a rave.

The group posses the ideal balance of enthralling mixes whilst emphasising the level of skill in Eskman and Evil B’s MCing. It’s almost certain that cherished favourites such as Pressure and Hooligan will creep into the dance at some point, too.

Clique, Friends On Benefits and Ebbens will also be touching down in Sin City.

With more to be announced, this night is one to head to before Problem Central take on festival season. Bass collectives like this have been tried and tested, where the playing field can often seem to have groups which are unoriginal.

However, Problem Central have managed to strike the right chord in combining old school d’n’b with a fresh, innovative take.

Tickets: £10-£15. Info: 01792 468892 / www. sincityclub.co.uk (FRJ)

REISS

Breathe @ warehouse venue TBC, Cardiff Sat 30 Mar The (inverse) lustre of the secret warehouse venue still holds sway in techno, over 30 years since acid house blew up. Remember those deeply heinous ‘abandoned warehouse rave’ events that were advertised on Facebook in every city but were actually nonexistent scams to spam your profile?

Well, this all-day-and-some-of-the-night rager, located in what Breathe call “the industrial district” is nothing like that.

Their headliner Maurits Reiss – who, as a DJ or producer, goes simply by his last name – is a Dutchman who’s accrued a fair whack of popularity as part of the VBX collective in Amsterdam, and for his own lush post-minimal sets.

Reiss’ last 12 months have found him sharing bills with some of his clearest inspirations and forefathers, including Ricardo Villalobos, Voigtmann and minimal techno pioneer Zip. As such, he’s often employed in a warm-up role on these occasions, although by no means always, and has smashed multiple peaktime slots in a duo named Spokenn with his good pal Jasper Verrijzer, aka Ferro.

The remainder of the bill, spanning 2pm2am, includes Alex Taylor, Jack Darwin, Lauft, Shaun Edwards, Siah and Xono.

Tickets: £12-£16. Info: facebook.com/ breathemusiccardiff (NG)

SLAM

Con7rol @ The Attic, Swansea Sat 23 Mar “Slam radio... tune in!” blurts the overtly robotic voice introducing the Glaswegian duo to their weekly broadcast. Showcasing mixes from their most esteemed peers and rising talent, this is just one of the many ways Stuart McMillan and Orde Meikle contribute to techno culture. For decades the pair have trounced the scene, back-to-back, six decks and dressed in black. Now co-running Riverside Festival in Glasgow, hosting Maximum Pressure warehouse parties and managing their label Soma – even offering Soma School to those aspiring to techno greatness.

Revered for their ability to remain at the genre’s heartbeat worldwide. The pair deal on the darker side of the techno spectrum, providing ruminating vibrations, eclectic melodies and beguiling repetitions. They epitomise power in techno, doing nothing at half measures: Slam is six decks, bouncing Funktion Ones, echoing warehouses, entrancing light work and dark rooms filled with thousands of fist-pumpers.

This will be the ninth installment of Con7rol, promoters who’ve previously brought the likes of Dense & Pika, Latmun and Mark Reeve to Swansea’s Attic club.

Tickets: £15. Info: facebook.com/ theatticswansea (CP)

15th March

Deep Blue Something £18.00 Doors: 7pm

SIN CITY 9th March

Reef

25th March

The Slow Readers Club

10th May

Kyle Flaconer (The View)

£25.00 || Doors 7pm

£15.00 || Doors 7pm

£15.00 || Doors 7pm

1st March - 10pm 8th March - 10pm 9th March - 7pm 15th March - 7pm 15th March - 10pm 16th March - 7pm 23rd March - 10pm 25th March - 7pm 12th April - 10pm 4th May - 7pm 10th May - 7pm

Cure - Mall Grab Treatment - Hannah Wants Reef Deep Blue Something The Stray Pursuit Bassline - Wilkinson Dazed - Problem Central The Slow Readers Club Dazed - Hybrid Minds Bruce Springsteen Tribute Kyle Falconer (The View)

From £16.50 || 18+ SOLD OUT || 18+ £25.00 || 16+ £18.00 || 16+ £3.00 || 16+ SOLD OUT || 18+ From £6.00 || 18+ £15.00 || 16+ From £15.00 || 18+ £12.00 || 16+ £15.00 || 16+

*Terms & Conditions may apply

live

MEKONS

Le Public Space, Newport Tue 2 Apr The Mekons sit somewhere between cult and classic. Formed in Leeds in 1977, the band of seven misfits have continued to make genre-breaking records for over 40 years. Once upon a time they were supposed to be a punk band: art school students who needed to find more ways to express their urges.

Luckily, they haven’t stopped trying since then and this lineup, in place since the mid-1980s, shows no signs of settling down.

Deserted, released just in time for this tour, is the Mekons’ first in eight years. The time off has done nothing to dull the band’s fervour, nor did making an album in the area musically synonymous with U2’s 80s behemoth album, Joshua Tree in California.

Unlike the old Irish rockers, Mekons actually recorded the album in the bleak American National Park and you can hear their futile, but rewarding, attempts to fill the landscape on this new album.

Roots and Americana sounds sit easily alongside their punkier offerings and the band’s many singers and varied instruments get cooked-up in a campfire stew of story and sound. If you’re lucky enough to find a ticket – buy it, quick.

Tickets: £8 (sold out – check social media for returns). Info 01633 221477 / lepublicspace.co.uk (JPD) BUZZ 40

Pic: Peter Mellekas

KRISTIN HERSH

The Globe, Cardiff Tue 26 Mar Any self-respecting alternative rock fan will recognize the name Kristin Hersh, iconic frontwoman of Throwing Muses. Forming as teenagers in early 80s Massachusetts and now synonymous with the development of the artier end of the punk movement, the band’s legacy has permeated throughout the decades.

While having long attained the status of alt-rock icon, Hersh has managed to retain her integrity thanks in part to her almost uncomfortably vulnerable lyrics.

“The goal is to play an idiosyncratic take on the universal,” she says. “The bones we share should be the bones of the song and the musician’s particular eyes, the reason for their output.

“Long before the [music] business was crashing around us, I saw the obsession with dumbing down output and selling crap to the lowest common denominator.”

After suffering a fall when she was 16, Hersh became plagued by a myriad of suspected mental illnesses, dissociative disorders and misdiagnoses that would shape both her creative process, and her life at large. Whilst some musicians draw on personal experiences and music theory to craft their work, Hersh instead is guided by her alter ego, Rat Girl – a product of her trauma who handles the music writing process on her behalf, and synesthesia. Never resentful, Hersh embraces it. “Colour-coded chords are definitely easier to remember – I don’t know how other people memorize musical pieces without it.”

Bandmates Fred Abong (briefly the Muses’ bassist before joining their sibling band Belly) and Rob Ahlers (also of 50FootWave, another Hersh vehicle), will be able sidemen on this tour, which follows Hersh’s 10th solo album Possible Dust Clouds, released last autumn and which is a little more collaborative than her previous works. “Possible Dust Clouds is still mostly me playing, but the raucous effect was a template laid out by my friends,” Hersh says. “I think people like the impression of a party more than the impression of a woman alone at work, anyway...” ALEX SWIFT Tickets: £20. Info: 07590 471888 / globecardiffmusic.com

ÓLAFUR ARNALDS

St David’s Hall, Cardiff Tue 19 Mar This decade, like those before it, has seen particular styles of music thrive, and at this moment we are caught up in the realms of electronica and ambient music. Iceland-born Ólafur Arnalds’ sounds are a rich blend of poignant piano motifs, stunning string arrangements and spotless percussion rife with engrossing atmospheric tension. His music has been described as classical traversing into pop with an experimental focus but as a little research will unveil, any number of influences have informed his stylistic tendencies – before his solo career, he drummed in a hardcore band called Fighting Shit.

Since releasing his fourth studio album Re:member in August 2018, Arnalds has embarked upon his largest tour yet, with dates worldwide throughout the year.

He will be bringing with him a string ensemble, a drummer and a host of different keyboards; some of which even play themselves. The technology guiding this setup, named Stratus, allows for intelligent response and harmonic communication between himself and the two pianos connected to the software.

Clearly, what you will witness on this night is more than just music, it’s an experience.

Tickets: £32. Info: 029 2087 8444 / www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk (CPI)

RIZWAN-MUAZZAM QAWWALI

Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff Sat 16 Mar Rizwan and Muzzam Ali Khan, nephews and tutees of qawwali legend Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, bring their immersive show to the RWCMD this month with an performance that seeks to transcend cultural and religious barriers, arguably at a time when the country needs it most. Qawwali is a form of devotional music popular in south Asia, particularly in areas with a historically strong Muslim presence. Listeners, and indeed the artists themselves, are reputed to feel transported to a trancelike state of spiritual ecstasy in which they feel at one with God. Originally performed in shrines only, qawwali has found more international recognition thanks to performers such as Khan and the Sabri Brothers.

However, its spiritual hub remains the Punjab province of Pakistan, from where it gained entry into the Western mainstream. Audiences can expect to fall under the hypnotic spell of this melodic, encompassing music that will prove to be a sonic experience unlike anything they have heard before, no matter what their religion or culture.

The show, the only Welsh stop on Rizwan and Muzzam’s UK tour, includes half-price tickets for under-25s.

Tickets: £11-£22. Info: 029 2039 1391 / www.rwcmd.ac.uk (BG)

VULA VIEL

Flute & Tankard, Cardiff, Tue 26 Mar; The Welfare, Ystradgynlais, Wed 27 Mar This trio hail from London, but Vula Viel founding member Bex Burch’s musical inspiration is rooted in Ghanaian culture, with their music based around the gyil, a West African xylophone.

Accompanied by drums and bass from Jim Hart and Ruth Goller respectively, the band’s distinctive rhythms fashion sound which, along with their enchanting melodies, culminate in both spiritual songs and foot stomping tunes.

Second Vula Viel LP Do Not Be Afraid was released only a few weeks ago, to positive reviews, while the band have performed on lineups including Latitude and The London Jazz Festival.

With their Ghanaian-originated name translating as “good is good” (also the title of their 2015 debut album), the band easily live up to that, with none other than Iggy Pop saying of their music: “Dance to it, make love to it, stare at the clouds to it.”

Whilst I would recommend only doing one of these things at their gig, Vula Viel live promises to be a unique and immersive experience unlike anything you’ve seen before.

Tickets: £7/£5 NUS (Cardiff); £11/£9 (Ystradgynlais). Info: thefluteandtankard.com (Cardiff); 01639 843163 / thewelfare.co.uk (Ystradgynlais) (BG)

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reviews albums APPARAT * LP5 (Mute) “Oh no, someone is playing the saw,” was my wife’s reaction.

Apparat, one third of the excellent Moderat with Modeselektor, abandons the pure pop of that band for something entirely portentous and pretentious on his fifth solo album.

Sounding like a soundtrack for some little watched Scandi Noir deep down in the Walter Presents archive, it’s an utter dirge of an album. But hey, you might like it – give lead single Dawan a go. Mute is a quality label after all. SE

BENJAMIN FRANCIS LEFTWICH *** Gratitude (Dirty Hit) This York musician’s latest release is more of a personal journey than previous efforts, dealing with the loss of his father and a drugs’n’boozeprompted stint in rehab. Albums made on the back of such personal struggles can often feel self indulgent and preachy but while The Mess We Make, I Got You and the title track are ones for the skip button, as a whole the album feels honest, inviting and a well-rounded journey for Leftwich. DC

CHILDREN OF BODOM *** Hexed (Nuclear Blast) One part a melodically inspired prog act, another part crushing metal titans, Children Of Bodom continue to prove their unique qualities. Hexed is absolutely overflowing with hooks and melody. From This Road to Soon Departed, the liveliness persists. Admittedly, it is somewhat clichéd and slightly ridiculous to see incredibly aggressive vocals screamed over bright and glimmering keyboards; however, there is enough crunch in the guitars, and stomp in the rhythm, to maintain a ferocious presence throughout. AS

DAVID GRAY *** Gold In A Brass Age (IHT) More than 20 years after his breakout album White Ladder, Gray is back with his 11th, Gold In A Brass Age. A master of lyrics, Gray himself states he wanted “the rhythm to begin with the words” instead of looking for hooks in melodies. Poetic, masterful lead single – and album opener – The Sapling is hypnotic, with its layered vocals and brass section, while Gray’s distinguished vocals have only got finer with age. DC

BUZZ 42

DEAFKIDS *****

HOUSEWIVES ***

SELF ESTEEM ****

Metaprogramação (Neurot)

Twilight Splendour (Blank Editions)

Compliments Please (Fiction)

Hailing from the Brazilian underground, Deafkids release their third record on Neurot. Starting off with a DIY attitude, they embrace noise, percussion and sonic manipulation into a mesmerising journey. Originally conceived as a one-member d-beat project, Deafkids quickly mutated into something much more with a three-piece line up. Instruments and vocals are heavily synthesised and mangled beyond comprehension from their origins.

Metaprogramação takes you on a mind cleansing experience throughout the course of its 13 tracks. GM

“Rip it up and start again” being the post-punk mantra, Housewives have done just that, ditching their guitars for electronic gizmos. Their second LP is as disorienting and challenging as it is colourful and creative, but the deep bass hum and whipcrack drums of Beneath The Glass and Speak To Me soon insinuate themselves into the memory. Dormi, meanwhile, is a latter-day Radiohead track gatecrashed by an ominous synthesised choir, and SmttnKttns refracts James Blake through a hall of mirrors. BW

Following recent collaborative projects with Django Django under the Self Esteem moniker, erstwhile Slow Club member Rebecca Taylor continues to jettison her former band’s twee charm in favour of a more polished pop-inclined sensibility.

Confessional lyrics are underscored with subterranean bass and glossy gospel choirs, while dialled-down fare such as Steady I Stand and I’m Shy compensates for bombastic moments with a degree of simmering tension. A confident solo release that finds Taylor flitting between breeziness and gravitas with fidelity. CHP

JAMES YORKSTON ****

SLEEPER ***

The Route To The Harmonium (Domino)

The Modern Age (Gorsky)

This extremely personal, touchingly lovely work by the singer-songwriter is shaped by the ghosts of friends and lovers.

In tones that bring to mind Cohen, Al Stewart and Ray Davies, Yorkston reflects and regrets, noting the passage of time. Not entirely sad, he cherishes the here and now. Using instruments including the titular one, concertina, dulcimer, mandolin and nyckelharpa, the Scot does some spoken word on poetic yarns – atypical folk with jazz touches. Special note: the Nick Drakelike Oh Me, Oh My. RLR

With their first album in over 20 years, Sleeper (now joined by former Prodigy bassist Kieron Pepper) won‘t lose fans as singer Louise Wener still does her best Debbie Harry impression amid the guitar-powered tunes. Choice songs are the single Look At You Now, the motherhood-themed title track, More Than I Do – which references divorce – and The Sun Also Rises. Others, though, should have stayed in hibernation longer. They’re inoffensive and pickled in Britpop aspic that the group sleepwalk through. RLR

THE JAPANESE HOUSE ****

STEPHEN MALKMUS **

Good At Falling (Dirty Hit)

Groove Denied (Domino)

This poppy, 80s-infused debut follows a string of sadgirl EPs from multi-skilled songwriter Amber Bain, aka The Japanese House. At first listen, Good At Falling is all synths, summer and good times galore, but don’t assume this is just another alt-pop confection. Digging past Bain’s carefully created façade reveals a mind struggling with indecision, a slowly crumbling relationship and a fear of death. You Seemed So Happy, a danceable ode to a friend who passed away, is one of many bittersweet highlights. BH

Is it techno? EDM? Hiptronica? Could be all or none of these.

Malkmus’s first solo album is 10 tracks of computer-induced weirdness, but it’s bitty and flits about as if it’s not sure where it should be heading. There are some catchy snippets in here and ‘interesting’ lyrics on tracks such as Ocean Of Revenge – but the album lacks oomph. Call me old-school, but I prefer drums played with sticks and keyboards to have actual keys. LN

EX HEX **** It’s Real (Merge) Raised on the Washington DC punk scene and a college rock/riot grrrl icon in the 90s, Mary Timony might have been expected to keep her love of Cheap Trick and 70s FM radio rock quiet. But the glorious pedal-to-the-metal power pop of Ex Hex’s 2014 debut Rips shouted it from the rooftops. Follow-up It’s Real has a more expansive feel and some added production trickery, but the insanely catchy hooks and bubblegum melodies are still present and correct. No guilty pleasure here – just pleasure, pure and simple. BW

FOALS **** Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 1 (Warner Bros) Foals return with this self-produced album, their first since 2015’s What Went Down. Over the course of the last decade their sound has steadily evolved, and this album represents another step forward.

Guitars float in and out of the mix, but the dominant sound here is sequenced synths and samples layered over programmed beats.

In places Yannis Philippakis sounds like he’s channelling Thom Yorke, and Robert Smith’s presence hovers in the background of the album, but most of the album is distinctively theirs. DG

HOLDING ABSENCE **** Holding Absence (SharpTone) Holding Absence’s debut full-length is long overdue. The Cardiff-based outfit underwent a drastic lineup change during writing when their lead guitarist and songwriter jumped ship, but a stronger band emerged from the uncertainty, armed with a polished blend of atmospheric softness, experimentation and melancholic melodic hardcore. Vocalist Lucas Woodland shows off his impressive range and lyrical capabilities on Perish and emotional bruiser You Are Everything, while recent single Like A Shadow is proof that Holding Absence have hit their stride. BH

MAMMOTH WEED WIZARD BASTARD **** Yn Ol I Annwn (New Heavy Sounds) This Wrexham band have turned heads of late with a reading of doom metal that’s often epic (half-hour songs), ethereal (Jessica Ball’s 90s shoegaze vocals) and stoner-adjacent. So the addition of spacerock synths on this, their hour-plus third album, is a fairly logical step. Gratifyingly, MWWB haven’t sacrificed their commitment to riffs, as on Yob-ish 13-minute Katushya. NG

ORVILLE PECK ***** Pony (Sub Pop) With a vocal range reminiscent of Chris Isaak and early Roy Orbison, the leather-masked outlaw cowboy lends sensual mystique to a series of whipcrack-punctuated tales of queer love on the American frontier. Ballads rooted in nomadic Nevadan wanderings yearn with Peck’s sonorous baritone drawl, adding opulent lustre to standouts such as Big Sky and Queen Of The Rodeo. Fraught with emotional ennui, this is a debut that ricochets with brooding charisma, straddling liminal terrain; immersive and addictive in scope. CHP

SUNWATCHERS ***** Illegal Moves (Trouble In Mind) Barely a year since their blistering second album, Brooklyn psych crusaders/jazz odysseyers/filthy commies Sunwatchers are back and still killing. Seriously, if you fancy yourself a fan of (primarily) guitarbased psychedelia but aren’t attuned to this saz’n’sax-abetted meandering fierceness, you’ve a canyon-sized hole in yer canon. Illegal Moves includes six sick originals, a spirithonouring Alice Coltrane cover and sleeve art featuring the Kool-Aid Man beating Uncle Sam to death while Thatcher recoils aghast. NG

TEETH OF THE SEA **** Wraith (Rocket) Imagine if, rather than handing over composing responsibilities to Ennio Morricone for The Thing, John Carpenter had actually collaborated with the spaghetti western soundtracker.

The resulting score would be something like Wraith, the fifth record from shapeshifting ensemble Teeth Of The Sea, on which portentous dystopian electronica and mournful trumpet meet. VISITOR, the album’s centre point in every sense, combines swirling retrofuturist synths and shredding guitar solos, while closer Gladiators Ready finds Trent Reznor joining Fuck Buttons. A thrilling headfuck. BW

THESE NEW PURITANS ****

EMILY BREEZE ****

Inside The Rose (BMG)

Ego Death (self-released)

Look at them on the high-wire. First album for six years from Southend’s art rockersturned-cinematic minimalists, and, as the band have compacted to purely the founding two Barnett brothers, so Inside The Rose squeezes delirious life from its own reduced palette. Mostly drums, vocals, string sweeps and piano stabs, plus electronic interference, ITR locates dark and fractured torch songs somewhere between Scott Walker and Talk Talk, between Berlin and England.

It’s modernist, gleaming, slightly alien; a treat and a reward. WS

Emily Breeze’s song about travelling to a mundane job is something like an amalgamation of Patti Smith’s Piss Factory and Lou Reed’s How Do You Think It Feels, set on a soulless Bristol industrial estate. With a Barry Adamson remix to boot, Ego Death is dark, catchy and pure genius. DN

THREATMANTICS ***** Shadow On Your Heart (Ffatbyrg) Threatmantics remain unique and essential on their third album Shadow On Your Heart, hitting the floor running and never letting up.

The haunting viola on Who Is Afraid Of Patrick W is the perfect example of their sound, likewise Cold Warts’ lyric “running through the snow with your scissors open”. The style this Cardiff band exude, should you not be aware, is aggressive, whimsical, punky, unexplainable and, on Mother Folker From Hell whiskey bar wild frontier genius. JE

TIM BOWNESS **** Flowers At The Scene (InsideOutMusic) Tim Bowness wonderfully brings together serene synth textures with emotive guitar touches to create an experience which is equally melancholic and uplifting. Perhaps appropriately described as artpop, I Go Deeper and It’s The World experiment with new wave and psychedelia, while Rainmark and Killing To Survive are brought to life with subtlety. Always distinctly dark, lyrics discuss death and tragedy – difficult themes addressed with maturity by virtue of the careful approach to songwriting. AS

HOT 8 BRASS BAND ***** Take Cover EP (Tru Thoughts) The New Orleans hip-hop brass band bring their blistering horns to the party on an EP of cover versions. Some you might expect: George Benson, The Jacksons, two from Michael in solo mode. Yet, it’s the complete reworking of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart that steals the show. It’s big, it’s clever, and it’s damn funky. SE

MADISON WASHINGTON FEAT THE ABOLITIONISTS *** Plantation Earth (Def Pressé ) I’m nowhere near a rap expert, but I can only compare this to the proper 90s back-in-the-day stuff. If that’s your thing, then I’m sure this will be. Pretty traditional on the whole, if you compare to a lot of releases within the genre these days. OS

demos OPHELIA XERRI soundcloud.com/ophelia-xerri Ophelia lives in Swansea, teaches yoga and also sings about nature and stuff in some sort of folk-rock duo with a pal. Bearing all that in mind, her songs under her own name are much more up my avenue than might be expected: varyingly lush layers of soulful vocals cosied up among abstract and extremely heavy-lidded hip-hop beats. Tetrahex, a Cardiff producer whose quasi-footwork offerings I’ve taken note of in passing, is responsible for the latter, and he and Xerri make a crack pair. NG

RAINYDAY RAINBOW

singles THE BLOOD CHOIR *** Dartmoor (Village) The opening title track may be a cure for insomnia but this EP does begin to liven up after that. A cover of Nick Drake’s Black Eyed Dog adds some punch and Lay With Me A While brings a touch of romance. This might just be the thing for late nights in a dark room. LN

facebook.com/onlyrainydayrainbow Wonky slow jams of a different-but-also-kindanot nature from Ed Hancock, a Cardiffian soloist who crafts agreeable psychedelic bedroom pop as Rainyday Rainbow. Not hearing much of his professed glam rock influence, but its impulsive eccentricity sits kinda between Willia Earl Beal and H Hawkline, which I can envisage people liking. This debut EP was released via Bandcamp on Dec 25 and accordingly includes a download-only bonus, Welcome To Christmas Time, a clammy lo-fi gurgle impressively redolent of disappointing provincial grottos which get written about in the Metro. NG

THE MAMS

DANIEL MAUNICK ***

www.tregni.co.uk/the-mams

A Vicious Circle (Far Out)

Self-released digital album, the third proper by this Llanelli duo whose singer Jon Tregenna has roots in the proto-Britpop London indie scene. Locations has a foursquare pop-rock framework, albeit one with various deviations – guest spots from Cardiff rapper O Femi, PSBish electropop, even G-funk synths. Lyrically frivolous at times but musically adept, these 12 songs were produced by Charlie Francis and betray a wealth of musical experience. NG

You may know him as Dokta Venom, Difusion and Viper Squad, to name a few; however, Daniel Maunick is out on a limb under his own name this time around. A real old school, mysterious funk sound to this one, which will no doubt be spun across umpteen underground house clubs. OS

WE'VE BEEN WATCHING...

SEX EDUCATION (Netflix)

The Newport/Caerleon/Monmouth-filmed Sex Education does exactly what it says on the tin, as a cast of horny teenagers battle their way through their sexual and gendered hang-ups as they discover themselves. The representation that is so deeply ingrained in the production of the show is ever apparent; dealing with sexuality, race and privilege throughout. It’s refreshing to see teenagers chase sex like it’s the last thing on Earth and for this story to be told by them, not the adults around them. Rarely, they are given the sexual agency on screen that they do indeed have.

Plus Gillian Anderson is in it. ****RS

FYRE: THE GREATEST PARTY THAT NEVER HAPPENED (Netflix)

Although Hulu also released a rival documentary Fyre Fraud a mere four days before this one, Netflix’s account of this era-defining story has thus far been more critically acclaimed. The whole notion of selling perfection on screen, only to find the opposite when you put your screen down, was quite literally anthropomorphised in the spectacle that was Fyre Festival. The film is home to a couple of instant classic meme-able moments that have already made the rounds online – most notably Andy King, now known as ‘Evian Water Guy’. Brilliant car-crash filmmaking. *****RS

FLOWERS SEASONS 1+2 (All4)

With The Favourite making everyone go mad for Olivia Colman, now is the time to revisit this gem of a production where she plays stifled and struggling wife Deborah Flowers.

Married to Maurice, a children’s author who, when we meet him, is increasingly struggling to deal with clinical depression, the story’s landscape is rooted in the nuclear family that are the Flowers. Retreating into his writing shed, Maurice gets solace from the silence, solitude and sometimes company of his Japanese illustrator – Shun, played by Will Sharpe who also wrote the screenplay. This is a truly unique and lyrical exploration of the intricacies of family life in British society. *****RS

SOLVING PUZZLES: THE CINEMA OF HONG SANG-SOO (Mubi)

Mubi are currently running a selective retrospective of this South Korean auteur’s work. Highly prolific (he wrote and directed three films in 2017 alone), his work grows in interest the more you watch it. The films are often similar in style – most depict failed, awkward romances, with repeating scenes as they recur in character’s dreams, as if attempting to rectify the failure of human confidence in real-time, and are slyly humorous as they are revealing about the human condition. Films such as Nobody’s Daughter Haewon, The Day After and On the Beach At Night Alone are uniquely smart and touching. ****FT

VELVET BUZZSAW (Netflix)

Another parcel of frustratingly wasted potential. The director of Nightcrawler teams up again with Jake Gyllenhaal, with a cast that includes Toni Collette, John Malkovich and Rene Russo, as this art-world satire quickly takes a turn for the supernatural worst. It is both far too insane and not insane enough, as if they wanted to go all out but kept restraining themselves. To add to that, whilst the art world deserves a good kicking now and then, the satirical element are almost as smug as the art world it purports to ridicule – and no, critics cannot fix prices or decide success.

That’s something idiot artists tell themselves when they produce crap and refuse to face their failure. **FT

BUZZ 43

music news EXTRA

Cardiff music venue Clwb Ifor Bach has revealed its plans for redevelopment, having previously confirmed a longterm lease of currently derelict land beside its Womanby Street location. The intention is to expand the building onto that land, its first major step of this nature since opening in the early 1980s. Currently spread over three floors, the larger top floor room will likely remain much the same, holding about 250 people. The ground floor, currently about half that capacity, is to be remodelled into a space for some 500 punters, with the smaller middle floor becoming its mezzanine. Blueprints and impressions have been drawn up by architectural firm Nissen Richards, and there’s no concrete date, or even year, when the venue think this might come to fruition, but it looks like an ambitious yet achievable proposal

The 28 Welsh musical artists selected for the 2019 Launchpad Fund have been announced. Funded by the National Lottery and related to BBC Wales and Arts Council Wales’ annual Horizons mentorship project, Launchpad gives acts who successfully apply a share of a £35,000 purse with the intention of it being spent on a career leg-up: studio time, gear purchase, a PR campaign, that kind of thing. Among this year’s crop are Cardiff reggae queen Aleighcia Scott, Rhondda garage rockers Chroma, Sully neo-pop type Hana2K and I See Rivers from Tenby [pictured]

Estrons, a Cardiff indie band tipped for success at points since debuting in 2015, have announced their split with immediate effect. No reason was cited in the announcement, but their lengthy March/April UK tour has been cancelled as a result. The four-piece attracted a keen fanbase through an energetic gig schedule, spiky

alt-rock songcraft and vocalist Tali Källström’s selfassured feminism, encapsulated in 2018 album title You Say I’m Too Much, I Say You’re Not Enough.

“We will all be back soon with new projects that we’re excited about,” promises the statement; for now, Music News Extra recommends Estrons drummer Adam Thomas’ other band Bodyhacker

The Last Resort, an independent pub/club/music venue on Swansea’s High Street, closed in late January after roughly two years of trading. However, while its proprietors Something Creatives (also behind ventures like Street Food Cardiff) didn’t make it work, it’s been taken on by the team behind another bold indie in the city, Cinema & Co. Indications are that there’ll be a few changes before it reopens in earnest – starting with the name, branded overly negative by Cinema & Co’s clearly not Papa Roach-loving owner – but as both venues at least shared a commitment to eclectic and non-obvious entertainment, hopefully that’ll remain

Psychedelic conceptual indiepop eccentrics Quiet Marauder have previously been noted for releasing an album titled Men which spanned four CDs and 111 songs, and if the Welsh group’s latest effort is a comparatively slim 30 tracks, it’s likely to sate fans of their whimsical vision. The Crack And What It Meant is a sprawling concept album encompassing the personal, political and trivial, and features spoken word vocals throughout by Mathias Kom – a Canadian folk-rocker who, as The Burning Hell, specialises in a jaunty verbosity which makes his rapport with Quiet Marauder no surprise. The album is released in CD and download formats by Bubblewrap on Fri 26 Apr

ONES TO WATCH...

THE NIGHTMARES

The self-titled debut EP from The Nightmares sounds like the work of a band comfortable with the prospect of popularity, overground attention and all the trappings of that. The reality may not be quite that clearcut: it’s being released in April as a short-run cassette on bass player Benjamin Mainwaring’s DIY label, Pretty Hate. Until then, the video for Adore, one of five songs on the release, is online as an aperitif, and its low-lit black and white visage accurately reflects the glossy gothic pop it accompanies.

A four-piece, The Nightmares’ approximate base is in Newport, where they played their debut gig last April having formed just a few months previously. (They’ll be launching this EP there as well, in Le Public Space in Sun 14 Apr.) Vocalist Adam Parslow was previously in another erstwhile hot tip from the city, the shoegazey Vestals who released two singles circa 2013/14. Drummer James Mattock was in Sharks, a Midlands post-hardcore band who packed more than enough tours and releases into their half-decade active; Mainwaring is also in sterling gothic punk trio Disjoy. Only Eleanor Coburn is new to the whole band thing, and it’s her bombastic synth which opens Half Awake, a slow-burner infused with the spirit of that early 80s moment where postpunk met proper pop. From The Start combines a rushing bassline and Smiths-y introspection, while Dorothy marries lyrical melancholy to twinkling synthpop keys. The Nightmares have been low-key in their existence to date, but don’t bank on things remaining so. www.thenightmares666.com

BUZZ 44

one louder

AS deadlines loom, and the impossible task of doing one’s duty in a manner satisfactory to all your charges demands panic stations for fear of disaster through inaction, proposals that might have before seemed unpromising may begin to look attractive. For example, this month the Roundup section of Buzz still had much of its content to be decided at the point of our notional copy deadline, and our designer suggested we should include something about Brexit in it. Certainly, this would be of great benefit to people who read this magazine but don’t read any other publications, or watch any TV; but, ultimately, we accepted our place in the world and instead highlighted [insert names of events here], all of which I personally endorse.

I “get it”, though, the drive behind the idea. It’s the thing that, perhaps more profoundly so than anything else in most of our lifetimes, looms over everything we do. It may be running in the background, like an antivirus program, but engaging with it may just confirm the worst, like an antivirus program. When we talk about things other than Brexit, it is often because we are trying to avoid talking about Brexit. But, by God, Buzz has a long and glorious history of not commenting on political events. It didn’t comment on Black Wednesday, the IRA ceasefire, the Iraq war, the coalition government or the referendum that precipitated Brexit, and I’ll be damned if it’s going to start now!

This is of course me yukking it up to distract from the gloom: fiddling while Rome burns (or verges on doing so) inside a publication that does the same. What else can one do? Those perma-online affluent centrist types who proclaim to dedicate their entire lives to STOPPING BREXIT are mostly either useless or worse than that.

Magazines built from both paper and pixels are going to the wall left, right and centre right now, from somewhat Buzz-ish ones (London’s Shortlist) to quote-unquote political ones The Pool. What on earth would it be like in the event of a no deal-induced economic collapse? As a free publication, Buzz’s is supported by advertising, which is obviously going to be in short supply if everything/one goes bankrupt.

I haven’t often used this column to comment on the multiple music venues in this region which have, in recent times, either closed or been threatened with closing. This isn’t out of apathy – in some cases it’s directly relevant to my life – as much as the feeling that I have little useful to add. What would be valuable is someone who both has local experience in the field and can also crunch the numbers: rent increases, business rates, the actual tedious costs of running a venue and what’s available to make it viable, as well as just being Really Passionate About This Kind Of Thing. Music Venue Trust do great work in this department, but it’s a grim truism that during a time when their advocacy for small UK-wide venues is most necessary, their calls to give some financial relief to this put-upon sector are less likely to be heeded.

When the topic of funding the arts in Britain comes up, I’m put in mind of a quote by Winston Churchill.

He said, “I am strongly in favour of using poisoned gas against uncivilised tribes,” which has no relation to arts funding but does underline why quoting Churchill to back up any sort of point is a fool’s errand. See you back here for more tiny violin-fiddling next month!

Don’t smuggle cans into DABBLA (Cardiff Speaker Hire, Sat 2 Mar), AUDIOBOOKS (Clwb Ifor Bach, Sat 9), DAME AREA, BEAUTY PARLOUR and TROPHIC CASCADE (Tiny Rebel, Cardiff, Sun 10), SONANCE, THIS ENDS HERE and WARRIOR POPE (The Moon, Fri 15), THE SHIFTERS and THE COOL GREENHOUSE (Moon, Tue 19), DROVES, GAY PANIC DEFENCE, SHISHU and GLIB (Le Public Space, Newport, Tue 26) or SAUNA YOUTH, TRASH KIT and RATTLE (Clwb Ifor Bach, Sun 31). NOEL GARDNER

ENTS

P U O R G DANCE

\ PRES O N Y W L F Y M YN C

HusH ing and in a t r e HgH t n e orgeo ly classic

D N A L R E P P E P TIU CE CONSOR

DAN

S I R R O M RK

MA

“A te to the witty tribulbum” The Guardian Beatles a

NNIG: E B R A CYNNIG am bris 1* 2 docyn ER: F F O L SPECIA ickets* t y 2 for 1 yddiwch

Defn yddo \ cod hyrw e: omo cod Quote pr TLES BUZZBEA

Ebrill 12 & 13 April *Yn amodol ar argaeledd. Yn berthnasol i brisiau tocynnau yn unig; nid yw ar gael gydag unrhyw gynnig neu ostyngiad arall. Rhaid archebu erbyn 7 Ebrill 2019. \ Subject to availability.

Applies to full price tickets only, not available in conjunction with any other offer or concession.

Must book by 7 April 2019.

MARCH 2019 just fill out this form and post it, along with a cheque to:

Buzz Publishers Ltd, 220c Cowbridge Road East, Canton, Cardiff CF5 1GY

Tickets from: woodfiredsummit.com Follow us on: @WoodfiredS

books

BOOK OF THE MONTH

REPARATION Gaby Koppel (Honno Press)

Author Gaby Koppel, born and bred in Cardiff suburb Rhiwbina, has utilised her extensive knowledge of the city for her debut novel. Reparation takes us not only around Cardiff, but to London and Budapest along the way. Journalist Elizabeth finds herself investigating the disappearance of a girl from London’s Hasidic community. Privately, meanwhile, she is dealing with the fallout of her father’s death – including her mother’s coping habits, alcoholism, dementia and the stresses of juggling a job and a relationship.

With her mother also seeking answers about her childhood, Elizabeth eventually finds herself in Budapest, where all of her dilemmas are about to come face-to-face as she digs for clues to her mother’s past and answers about the little girl.

Koppel’s work on Crimewatch has clearly been a valuable tool for her, as the crime aspect of the book is very well thought-out, researched and presented – while her own recollection of being brought up in Cardiff by refugee parents provides the inspiration for Elizabeth’s story. Indeed, Elizabeth’s mother Mutti is directly influenced by Koppel’s own mother.

An outstanding debut novel that deals with love and loss, whilst providing a thorough examination of what it is to be a mother, all set against a backdrop of a contemporary crime novel. With just a drop of dark humour also thrown in, Reparation appeals on multiple levels.

CHRIS ANDREWS Price: £8.99. Info: www.honno.co.uk

BINDLESTIFF Wayne Holloway (Influx Press) Film director Wayne Holloway takes a cinematic approach to novel writing.

His debut, Bindlestiff, blends prose with screenplay in a tale set in both present-day Hollywood and a dystopian USA in the not-so-far-away future. A metafictional satire of the movie industry, race and identity in contemporary America, Holloway’s style mixes the drug-fuelled escapades of Hunter S. Thompson with the subversive flair of Colson Whitehead.

But despite being original and inventive, Bindlestiff is sometimes too ambitious for its own good. The manic mishmash of genres and self-referential flourishes is not executed as adeptly as it could be. Nevertheless, this is a fresh, riotous and innovative novel, published by a small press who clearly have an eye for exciting new ventures in contemporary fiction. SP Price: £9.99. Info: www.influxpress.com THE LOST MAN Jane Harper (Little, Brown) Australia’s new queen of crime is back with her third slice of life and death in the outback under burning skies. Nathan Bright and his brothers, Cameron and Bub, live with their families on three farms adjacent to each other, miles from civilisation. It’s Christmas and the temperature is 120 degrees in the shade, except there isn’t much of it: only that thrown by the headstone on the grave of an old stockman who died a century before. And that’s where the body of Cameron is found after he goes off the radar, burnt to a crisp by the sun. How and why did he get there all alone? So much for tidings of comfort and joy. This is a terrific book. Part crime novel, and part family saga (and what a family). There are more skeletons in the closets of this little lot than you could cheerfully shake a stick at.

Couldn’t put it down. MTi Price: £12.99. Info: www.littlebrown.co.uk BUZZ 46

HAPPENING Annie Ernaux, trans. Tanya Leslie (Fitzcarraldo) French writer Annie Ernaux was just 23 when, in 1963, she discovered she was pregnant and decided she could not keep the child. Living in France when abortion was illegal, she made a failed attempt to administer one herself with a knitting needle, before seeking out a backstreet abortionist in Paris – an experience that put her life at risk. Forty years later, Happening is a confessional memoir in which Ernaux reveals the story behind those traumatic months, in a style that is honest, meticulous and unflinching. Ernaux’s prose is unadorned with moral defence or literary decoration, and instead speaks the simple and shocking truth about a subject that many still hold taboo. This is a brave and important book that illustrates the potentially fatal consequences of criminalising and demonising abortion. SP Price: £8.99. Info: www.fitzcarraldoeditions.com THE TAKING OF ANNIE THORNE C.J. Tudor (Michael Joseph/Penguin) Crime meets psychological suspense meets out-and-out horror in The Taking Of Annie Thorne, C.J. Tudor’s follow-up to the best-selling The Chalk Man. Joe Thorne returns to the small town where, when he was a boy, his sister Annie vanished, then returned a few days later, never quite the person she was before.

Now, a mysterious email pops up in his inbox, hinting that the same thing could happen again.

Meanwhile, a single mother murders her son then shoots herself. Joe fears that a bogeyman is haunting the streets he grew up in, only to flee when he could no longer bear to be there or relive that time. From the stomachchurning first chapter to the grand guignol ending that is as shocking as it is surprising, Tudor racks up the nastiness, like thumbscrews being tightened until bones snap.

Another hit, I think. MTi Price: £12.99 Info: www.penguin.co.uk

THE RAIN WATCHER Tatiana de Rosnay (Thorndike Press) Franco-British author de Rosnay, best known for the smash-hit novel Sarah’s Key, is feted across the Channel for her readable melodramas, but has largely flown under the radar in the UK. In The Rain Watcher, a Paris in the grip of a natural disaster is the backdrop for a strained family reunion. Stranded in a city where it won’t stop raining, members of the Malegarde family are forced to confront secrets long hidden, which float to the surface with the rising tide of the Seine. While de Rosnay’s clean prose makes for an effortless read, readers may feel cheated by the abrupt ending, which leaves a little too much to the imagination. That aside, this is a compelling study of the complexities of family life and, ultimately, love. AH Price: £12.99 Info: www.gale.com

WAVES Eduard von Keyserling, trans.

Gary Miller (Dedalus) Originally published in 1911, and now rereleased over a century later, the world Eduard von Keyserling describes in {Waves}– of an aristocracy weighed down by generations of tradition and rigid moral codes – seems more distant than even 100 years ago.

Rippling with an undercurrent of melancholia, the book is set in an unspecified Baltic Sea fishing village during a summer in the pre-war years. We follow a group of upper-class Germans as they swim, squabble, and strive to interact beyond the boundaries of their strict upbringings. A distant era it may be, yet Keyserling imbues his characters with the mistakes we continue to make, and his vivid descriptions of the interplay between sunlight and sea are gorgeous – a simpler beauty, perhaps, in the midst of a coming storm. DH Price: £9.99. Info: www.dedalusbooks.com

THE RITE OF SPRING Spring is in the air and there’s lots going on this month. If you’re not into dressing up in daffodils or shamrocks, Buzz has come up with some environmentally considerate alternatives.

Pancakes

Pagan Myths

“I wish it could be Shrove Tuesday every day” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as the Wizzard song, but you have to admit it would be nice. Unless you’re a pro chef, nonstick is essential, but traditional materials are made from nasty chemicals and don’t last too long. These 100% toxin-free ceramic nonstick metal pans tick all your needs.

Green 20cm Frying Pan – £29.26 amazon.co.uk

‘Tis the season of many pagan mythologies, so why not take the weight off your legs and look back at your Celtic ancestry with this historical fantasy series (filmed in Wales).

Britannia Season 1 DVD – £14.85 amazon.co.uk

Mothers Day

Spring Clean

Yes, it’s the day when you get to spoil your mum for a change, but let’s not forget about mother nature either with this pamper box from Wild Sage & Co including Argan Beauty Balm, Rose Clay, Honey Face Mask and a white cotton face cloth.

Pamper Box – £40 wild-sage.co.uk

It is a month for cleansing your home as well as yourself and there’s nothing as convenient as wipes... most of which are laden in plastics and nasty chemicals. Not these, which are 100% biodegradable and made from plant-based materials.

Ecover Wipes – £2.49 (pack of 40) ethicalsuperstore.com

Spring equinox

Festival Of Holi

Wed 20 Mar is officially the end of winter and the beginning of growth. Encourage your kids to turn off their iPads and get their kicks muddy with this illustrated book

by Professor Wendy Pfeffer introducing them to what it’s all about.

A New Beginning – £6.95 amazon.co.uk

The Hindu Spring or colour festival, on Wed 20 and Thurs 21 Mar this year, celebrates the start of spring and sees participants throwing coloured paint and water over each other. Avoid polluting pigments with eco-friendly powdered paints that are kind to your skin as well as the environment.

24 bags of 11 Bright Colours – £29.99 amazon.co.uk

Brexit

Earth Hour

Come Fri 29 Mar, we could crash out of Europe and who knows what will happen. Invest in an emergency family ‘grab bag’, it may come in handy. Includes shelter, purification tablets, everything with which to run for the hills in confidence.

Family Grab Bag – £154.99 bushcraftlab.co.uk

Sat 30 Mar sees the annual global event where we all turn out our lights for an hour to show how much we care for our planet. This wind-up, solar-powered torch might come in handy when you’re trying to find the light switch after.

Wind-up & solar-powered torch – £8.88 re-wind.co.uk

BUZZ 47

ST FAGANS REAL FOOD MARKET

Pic: Michael Gwyther-Jones

St Fagans National Museum Of History serves up its regular real food market, as some of the finest creators of food locally round up for foodie treats. Pitching up tent just outside the main entrance, the variety on offer will be plentiful and it’s run by the same folks behind the Farmers’ Markets in Riverside, Roath and Rhiwbina, with the options amongst those being of great quality, so this will be no different.

National Museum Of History, St Fagans, Sat 16 Mar. Admission: free. Info: 029 2057 3500 / museum.wales/stfagans

HAIRY BIKERS AT ST DAVID’S HALL CARDIFF IN THE SKY Fancy tucking into lunch 100ft above Cardiff? Well, you can this April. Alison Powell straps on her seatbelt in search of fine views, food and cocktails.

Dinner In The Sky is coming to Wales for the first time, under the name of Cardiff In The Sky. People in 45 countries have already munched on magnificent food as their city bustles about their business below.

But if you’re imagining butties on the big wheel, challenge those thoughts. This is no fairground ride.

This is a canopy-covered table at one of Cardiff and the Vale’s finest independent eateries, hoisted into the air on a crane. You’re fastened in to float and feast for anywhere between 30 minutes and an hour.

Opening at 8.30am and with the last booking at 9.45pm daily, offering breakfasts, lunches, afternoon tea, dinners and cocktails, it’s a showcase of some of the best chefs, mixologists and what is foodie forward in the Welsh capital and surrounds.

The Greazy Vegan makes lunch on Saturday; their vebabs, chickun and hotdawgs are 100% moreish and animal product-free. The Potted Pig will dish up Welsh seasonal produce by the platefuls, Lab 22 will be using science to create truly artful cocktails, Chapel 1877 will transfer their elegance and style to the sky, Bara Menyn will give you Welsh hospitality and brilliant breakfasts and James Sommerin will amaze as much in the sky as he does at his seafront restaurant in Penarth.

BUZZ 48

The Clink will be treating cloud-based cake fans to afternoon tea, plus £15 from each of their bookings will be given to The Clink Charity, which aims to reduce reoffending through the training and rehabilitation of prisoners. Consistently in Tripadvisor’s top 10 of restaurants in Cardiff, their scones will taste that little bit more satisfying, knowing you’re supporting someone to build a career upon release.

If the idea of chomping whilst benefiting charity appeals, the whole event is partnered with Shelter Cymru and awareness of their work and funds will be raised during the five days.

If you are ready for your food to be taken to the next level, book up soon, you don’t want to be left on the ground gazing up at the foody stars.

Cardiff In The Sky, City Hall Lawns, Cardiff, Wed 10-Sun 14 Apr. Prices: £50-£150.

Info: www.cardiffinthesky.wales

To win 2 tickets for an afternoon tea flight go to page 78 to enter.

Cooking together for more than 20 years, the beloved culinary institution of duo Si (Simon) King and Dave Myers are touring stages in March. Their relatability and sense of humour has drawn Britons and people in all over the world. It’s like being taught to cook by a halfdecent pair of cool but ruddy uncles, but this pair’s endless pursuit of great food around the world has brought them a total of 13 cooking shows, 14 cookbooks – and, having dropped a total of seven stone between them, six diet books.

St David’s Hall, Cardiff, Thurs 7 Mar. Tickets: varies.

Info: www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk

Pic: Gordon Robertson

OF THE BEST PLACES TO EAT IN CHEPSTOW

CHOCOLATE CHIP AND CASHEW NUT COOKIES Words Alison Powell Chewy, chocolatey and crunchy – these cookies are super quick to make and super satisfying to eat.

This small historical town on the River Wye boasts a revived farmers market and new independent restaurants. Emma Gooding rounds up the best on offer.

INGREDIENTS

This family-run Italian restaurant is beautifully positioned on the River Wye for dinner with a view. A glass of prosecco alongside the tortellini carbonara is highly recommended for a taste that’s out of this world.

28 Bridge St, Chepstow.

Info: 01291 409568 / www.panevino-restaurantchepstow.com

• • • • • • • •

MYTHOS MEZE BAR

HOW TO

PANEVINO

Spend 10 minutes here and you’ll believe you’re in Greece. These guys have a passion for food and it shows in their fresh humous and divine moussaka, all set against its beautiful Greek interior. They also offer a terrific meat, fish or vegetarian meze.

Welsh St, Chepstow.

Info: 01291 627222 / www.themythos.co.uk

STONE ROCK PIZZA

Stone Rock Pizza pride themselves on producing real Neapolitan pizza, using traditional methods and a real clay oven; the result is a magnificent sourdough base with the most delicious toppings to match. All their cured meats and salamis are produced in Monmouthshire, along with the beer and even some of the wine.

9 Upper Church St, Chepstow.

Info: 01291 621616 / www.stonerockpizza.co.uk

RIVERSIDE WINE BAR

This eclectic restaurant has an idyllic setting on the river and offers a fantastic tapas selection, alongside freshly-made paella and some token Italian selections including a fine seafood linguine. Expect a chilled evening with a gorgeous glass of wine and generous small plates.

18a The Back, Chepstow.

Info: 01291 628300 / www.theriversidewinebar.co.uk

MINT AND MUSTARD

This is Indian contemporary fine dining at its best and scores highly on the Chepstow food scene for its super fresh ingredients and inventive tasting menu. Be sure to try the ridiculously tasty lamb sheesh kebab and chicken makhani next time you’re in.

They also offer some seriously good lunch platters for one.

Nelson St, Chepstow.

Info: 01291 623222 / www.mintandmustard.com

I make 10 large cookies, but you could make 12 or even 14 smaller

00g butter (soft, not straight from the fridge) 1 100g caster sugar 1 heaped tablespoon golden syrup 150g self-raising flour Pinch of salt 1 tablespoon of milk 100g chocolate chips 25g of cashew nuts

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160˚C / 180˚C fan / gas mark 4 and line three baking trays with greaseproof paper.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together – you can do this in a food processor, but I use a fork to beat it together.

3. Stir in the golden syrup (it’s useful to run the spoon under some warm water before you put the syrup on it, as this stops it sticking quite so much).

4. A dd the flour, pinch of salt and splash of milk and bring the dough together.

5. Crumble in the cashews and mix in the chocolate chips.

6. Divide the dough into balls – I get 10 large cookies out of this mix, but you may want 12 slightly smaller ones. Share them out across the baking trays, giving them plenty of room to spread.

7. B ake for 12-14 minutes, but check them at 12 minutes. Unless your oven distributes heat very evenly, they may cook at slightly different rates. You want them golden at the edges and pale gold in the middle.

8. Cool them before you move them. They will firm up slightly, but should still be bendy and chewy.

@ASPwriter

BUZZ 49

PENARTH WINTER CARNIVAL

MARCH FOODIE FOCUS Warrior women, supper clubs, yoga practitioners and Trappist monks. Nope, not a bizarre food fight, but Elouise Hobbs’ March foodie focus.

Supper Club: Cannelloni Rossini, Bridges And Drybridge House, Monmouth, Thurs 7 Mar Back by popular demand, chefs Franco Taruschio and Lindy Wildsmith will be hosting seasonal cooking days to help attendees learn more about seasonal produce, and how to create a dinner party menu from scratch.

Everyone who attends will learn how to make nibbles, an aperitif, and a three-course lunch, which will all be enjoyed with a glass of wine and biscuits to take home. This workshop is the perfect way to start the weekend and learn some new skills at the same time.

Tickets: £35. Info: www.bridgescentre.org.uk Sunday Yoga Brunch, Chai Street, Canton, Cardiff, Sun 10 Mar Enjoying food is the perfect way to relax; combining it with yoga to aid digestion and unwind, this event seems the perfect way to spend a Sunday morning. Beginning with a 75-minute yoga session led by Maddie Norris, participants will be able to recharge and detox from the week. Yoga mats will be provided and the event welcomes both beginners and those with more advanced skills. Following the session, participants will be able to refresh by enjoying a traditional kombucha (a fermented drink made from sweetened tea), golden milk or a masala chai latte. Once everyone is truly relaxed, head-chef Logan will present a bespoke menu designed specially for the brunch. The menu – inspired by home cooking, and the use of unique spices and textures – promises to be something delicious, interesting and new.

Tickets: £25. Info: chaistreet.com

BUZZ 50

Warrior Women Events Supper Club, Wild Thing, Cardiff, Thurs 14 Mar Founded by Lauren Saunders, Wild Thing is a new plant-based café which actively advocates for healthy, affordable and environmentally friendly living. The bright and colourful dishes that adorn the menu have featured in hundreds of Instagram posts as café begins to gain a cult following. This month, for the first time, the café is hosting a supper club consisting of three delicious vegan courses. Tickets also include a Wild Thing cordial made with sparkling water and edible flowers. So, whether you’re already living a vegan lifestyle, or just fancy trying something new, then this may be the evening for you.

Tickets: £25. Info: facebook.com/ warriorwomenevents An Evening with Chimay, The Cambrian Tap, Cardiff, Tue 19 Mar Chimay is one of Belgium’s oldest Trappist beers – seeped in history and rich in flavour.

For those not in the know, a Trappist beer is one brewed in a Trappist monastery by its community of monks. The event, hosted by Brains’ Cambrian Tap pub, will allow guests to sample three authentic Trappist beers – red, blue and white – and each will be paired with a special cheese; there will also be a talk on Chimay’s brewing tradition and history. This night is especially apt for everyone who’s tired of wine and cheese – the new combination of beer and cheese looks set to be a hit.

Tickets: £20. Info: twitter.com/thecambriantap

Starting back in 2018 when the people of Penarth were involved in creating the opening celebration for the National Eisteddfod – Carnifal Y Môr / Carnival Of The Sea – the community now wants to carry on the experience by creating their very own Winter Carnival. Local butchers and shops in the area will all be offering discounts and festivalthemed ideas for the four days - including a specially-brewed Penarth Pale Ale. With a few details still to come on the specifics, the organisers say “if they can organise a full international Brexit in eight weeks, we can create a town carnival in three weeks... let’s get on with it!” So keep checking the website…

Various locations, Penarth, Sat 2-Tue 5 Mar. Info: www.penarthwintercarnival.strikingly. com

MOTHER’S DAY AFTERNOON TEA

If you’re looking to treat your mum to something special this Mother’s Day, then you can’t go far wrong with treating her to some afternoon tea within the lush confines of the Exchange Hotel in Cardiff Bay. Beyond the obvious choices of a card and some chocolate, this is an opportunity to stretch out a little bit with some tea, cakes and pastries, with some live entertainment to boot.

The Exchange Hotel, Sun 31 Mar. Tickets: £30/£15 kids. Info: 029 2010 7050 / www. exchangehotelcardiff.co.uk

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CULLEY’S RESTAURANT

The Exchange Hotel, Mount Stuart Square, Cardiff Bay 029 2010 7050 / exchangehotelcardiff.co.uk/bar-restaurant Food ***** Atmosphere **** Culley’s is named after the charismatic Mr Richard Palethorpe Culley, a local philanthropist and entrepreneur who inspired the restaurant and bar after securing a catering contract with the hotel and transforming it into a lavish restaurant over 100 years ago. Images and stories of the man himself are evident around this new restaurant, housed inside the Exchange Hotel and open since December last year.

The bygone days of this era have been meticulously recreated today after months of remodelling, the huge bar and open cellar revealing an abundance of selected wines and spirits, delivered by resident sommelier Marius. When ordering, seek out his expertise.

Aperitif out the way, we set about ordering. The classic scotch egg was recommended so it was a given, as was salt and pepper calamari with aioli and lemon. Mains arrived in the form of baked salmon with a chorizo, chive and butterbean stew, boosted further by kohlrabi and gremolata sauce; my veggie dining partner had mozzarella, tomato and basil tortellini in pesto, bocconcini, rocket and chilli. Both were beautifully presented and memorable – without doubt one of the best meals we’ve had out for a long time.

Culley’s has certainly lifted the bar for Cardiff Bay dining on all levels: on this particular evening there was live music which remained in the ‘pleasantly background’ category. We were also treated to several sample wines which complimented each course, kept informed in this respect by Marius throughout.

Desserts came: respectively, a bara brith bread and butter pudding, and coffee with a selection of mini chocolate desserts. A fragrant Akasshi-Tai Shiraume dessert wine tied a ribbon on the whole package.

If I had more space, I would carry on waxing lyrical about Culley’s, but it is best in person, as the aim is to give Cardiff a dining experience in beautiful surroundings, in a building which has truly undergone a transformation and is now being used as it should be. ANTONIA LEVAY

BLANCHE BAKERY

16 Mackintosh Place, Cardiff. www.blanchebakery.co.uk Food **** Atmosphere **** Situated in Roath, Blanche Bakery was the first entirely vegan bakery and coffee shop to land in Cardiff and since opening in 2017, it’s gone from strength to strength. Described as an Instagrammers dream, the coffee shop is small but full of space to capture the perfect moment that you take a bit out of one of their delicious bakes.

Opening every day except Wednesdays to provide the people of Cardiff with doughnuts, cupcakes and speciality lunches, this writer went on a busy Saturday afternoon around 2pm and decided on a custard doughnut accompanied with a loose-leaf green tea. The doughnuts are large and very creatively presented on the counter – rarely has a snack looked more photogenic. The sophisticated experience comes at a cost: the bill for a doughnut and tea will come to just below £7, but before we’d even sat down, the price seems worth it.

After a few pictures, it was clear why people could not stop coming into the bakery: the doughnut was worth every penny. This writer had to keep asking herself how this could be completely vegan, with particular reference to the freshtasting custard. The few hours we spent sitting, chatting and eating saw Blanche completely sell out of their bakes, resulting in some disappointed customers. First come, first served is the obvious rule of thumb here, so arrive promptly to not be disappointed. POPPY MANNING

BUZZ 52

MCKENZIES CAFÉ BAR

185 High St, Blackwood. 01495 230449 / facebook.com/mckenzies-cafebar-120751381938725 Food **** Atmosphere *** It’s not often you might find yourself in Blackwood enjoying a high-quality meal.

There is the well-made food at The Rock pub, but that locale has a massive, obnoxious banner out front yelling “OUT MEANS OUT”, so the town is not exactly beset with gourmet fare. But for the sharp-eyed and intrepid, there are some excellent options, not least this cosy little café bar on the High Street, opposite the town’s cinema.

McKenzies is a surprisingly elegant joint, with smartly-dressed staff and tasteful, low-key décor. My friend, a Blackwood local for much of his life, quipped that “it’s almost too classy for the town,” but in truth its always great to see smaller places like this doing well and striving to bring imagination to places that are in need of regeneration.

The menu is simple and expensive at all – even the specials on the menu don’t reach much beyond £8, and although I had the misfortune of visiting in the late afternoon just as the main kitchen was closing, leaving only jacket potatoes and paninis available, neither were skimped on in terms of quality. The panini I chose used fresh, high-quality local ham, and for my friend, the chilli bean jacket potatoes were also filling and fresh. All this for a grand total of, to the best of my memory, about £12-15, including drinks and a lemon drizzle cake. Can’t go far wrong with that. FEDOR TOT

Pic: Ella Olsson Pexels

health

N E W - T R I T I O N PA R T 2 In the second part of Buzz Mag’s delve into diet, Jonathan Sutton looks at the movements which make up today’s modern thinking around nutrition and the broader thought processes behind the most successful food plans.

THE VEGETABLE MOVEMENT: Veganism is the consumption of only foodstuffs which are not derived in any way from an animal, whereas a vegetarian (see distinctions such as lacto-vegetarian) will avoid the actual meat of animals, but will consume and use some animal byproducts. This distinction perhaps suggests that veganism is less a diet and more an ethical lifestyle choice.

Neither veganism nor vegetarianism, however, will guarantee a healthy diet and both should be carried out with the right checks in place. After all, a bag of sugar and a pint of vegetable oil could be considered vegan friendly. But since there has been a huge lack of vegetables in our diets over the last 50 years, this may be the right way to go for people looking to feel healthier. The high vitamin content of vegetables helps millions of people to stay out of the doctor’s office and the lack of hard-to-digest meat can help to keep a healthy gut.

Vegan converts with high protein needs, however, may need to find a supplement in order to avoid a deficiency. Compared to whey protein (which is dairy), vegan protein (pea/hemp) can come at a considerable cost to the wallet, if not the body. But if you stop spending your salary on steaks, that wallet might soon become more full than you’d ever imagined.

THE MEAT MOVEMENT: Diets such as Atkins, and more recently Keto, rely on an increase of protein and fats over carbohydrates. Using healthy, naturally-occurring fats – meat fat, coconut oil, olive oil or butter, which don’t become toxic through the extraction process as vegetable oils can – as an energy source will teach the body to become a fat-burning machine, with all the benefits of weight loss and high-energy and none of the carb-crashes associated with more sugary foods. So the science goes.

Even seemingly healthy fruits are off limits to the serious Keto dieter, since they are now engineered to contain so much more sugar than fibre or vitamins – the average apricot now has seven times more sugar than it did 40 years ago.

Taking this a step further is the carnivore diet, which restricts the dieter’s intake to meat alone (Keto practitioners do consume nuts, greens and berries for their

anti-oxidising benefits). After a few uncomfortable weeks in ‘ketosis’, Keto-dieters claim massive health benefits alongside their energy levels.

Studies show that these diets can dramatically reduce risks of heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer and diabetes, but since other diets can claim similar results, it’s possible that the simple reduction of calories and a wider focus on healthy living, could be the common factor.

PALEO, ORGANIC, NATURAL ETC: The thought process behind Paleo is that we should eat the same diet as the people of the Paleolithic era, but it can be read to mean anything “preagriculture”. This is because post-agricultural products – dairy, bread etc – are so much tougher to digest than natural food that they can cause inflammation issues (whether you’re technically gluten/dairy intolerant or not) which may go on to trigger more serious disease. Followers of the wider organic movement believe the same about products and processes used to spray or bulk up their food.

The focus with both organic and paleo is on natural. Our paleo-predecessors were (it is presumed) hunter-gatherers that relied on meat, fish, nuts, leaves and berries since that was the food available and digestible by the body alone.

The natural/paleo movement can be combined with veganism, meat-only or any variation inbetween. Michael Pollan, author of In Defense Of Food, suggests that going natural is the only real path to perfect physical health, arguing that we eat far too many processed foods in the wider West. “Don’t eat anything incapable of rotting,” he argues. And that may well be the way to go.

(Before starting any diet, please consult your GP.)

BUZZ 53

BLUE PLANET II ON TOUR One of the BBC’s most-watched programmes of all time, Blue Planet 2 is now preparing to go live on an arena tour. Carl Marsh chats to Anita Rani, who has been selected to narrate the tour.

Anita Rani has many strings to her bow, including an appearance on Strictly Come Dancing in 2015, but her real talent lies in presenting current affairs and factual TV programmes, both past and present.

Now she finds herself on the live tour of Blue Planet 2 – the BBC’s groundbreaking TV show, initially narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Is Anita worried about filling such big shoes? “I’m not thinking about filling anyone’s shoes. David Attenborough, he’s an entity. He’s a god. We’ve actually called him God in our house. What I’m doing is something completely different. We’re taking the show on the road, and I’ve been asked to come in as a narrator and just to take the audience on this beautiful journey.

“It’s about those epic pictures they’ll be watching on a huge screen and the phenomenal score that Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea and David Fleming did.

That is what they’re coming to experience. I’m just going to be the glue that brings it all together.”

Surely though, by taking on this commitment, she’ll be rewatching Blue Planet 2 over and over again?

“I will watch it before, probably, because it’s one of those programs that you can watch over and over again anyway. Best hangover TV ever! [laughs] How will I prepare? Doing some deep-breathing exercises, getting in the zone. Standing up and hosting in front of thousands of people in an arena tour is going to be quite an experience. I’m just so excited about it.

“I think what I’m going to have to do is try and control my emotions every night because it’s going to be quite an overwhelming experience. The TV show was more than a TV show. It’s a moment in history, really.”

For those coming to see the show, it will certainly all be synonymous with the BUZZ 54

TV program, but how will the tour differ to just watching the DVD? “There’ll be different scenes from the program with the 80-piece orchestra performing the live music,” Anita says, “and I will be doing the bits where I will be coming out onto the stage, talking to the audience – introducing each scene, if you like, so that people know where they’re heading next.”

With a plethora of presenters that would kill for this job, how did Rani land it? “I just wrote a cheque to the right person, and I got the job!” she laughs. Jokes aside, was there an interview process, or anything of the sort?

“No, gone are the days when you get interviewed – oh my God, imagine getting interviewed as a presenter?

A long, long time ago, they used to do screen tests.

It’s such an honour and such a privilege. You take it on board that somebody powerful enough to make these decisions happened to think that you can do the job. It’s a big, old thing to be able to do. I hope to do it justice.”

One day David Attenborough will call it a day, so by proving herself on this tour will this put a big tick on Rani’s CV? “No, no, no. He’s not going anywhere, for starters. I’ve got my own trajectory, and I’m having a great time doing the sort of things that I’m doing. I’m really lucky, I’m getting some great programs, and I’m part of some amazing projects.

I’m just going to keep ploughing away, doing what I do.”

Blue Planet 2, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Thurs 14 Mar. Tickets: from £40. Info: 029 2022 4488 / www.motorpointarenacardiff.co.uk

DIFFODDWCH AM EICH BYD SWITCH OFF FOR YOUR WORLD Ymunwch â’r miliynau trwy ddiffodd y golau a byddwch yn rhan o’r genhedlaeth sy’n dewis brwydro am ein byd.

© Emmanuel Rondeau / WWF-UK

Join millions for the global lights out event and be part of the generation who are choosing to fight for our world.

8:30YH/PM 30 MAWRTH/MARCH www.org.uk/awrddaear wwf.org.uk/EarthHourWales

#AWRDDAEAR #EARTHHOURWALES

lifestyle

EARTH HOUR WWF’s Earth Hour takes place on Sat 30 Mar at 8.30pm. This now-global campaign encourages people to turn their lights off together to help protect the environment. If you want to join this year’s #Connect2Earth campaign, Poppy Manning has a few suggestions.

MAKE A PLEDGE

It might seem simple, but a personal pledge could go a long way. A million small things add up, so the more people that make them the better. A personal pledge that will echo across the world and stand alongside the symbolic and spectacular display of Earth Hour. You could pick a pledge with your friend, partner, class, office or family and #FightForYourWorld together or go it solo – you choose how you stand up for your planet.

SHARE YOUR STORY

Whether it’s your first time participating in Earth Hour or your 10th, tell WWF what it means to you. Are you a beach clean fanatic? Have you rewilded a patch of your garden? Are you the proud adoptive mother/father of a polar bear? Get on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and send WWF and us a video or an image and be part of the conversation about climate change. Help empower others to act by using #EarthHourWales and #AwrDdaear. When we come together for Earth Hour, we show the world that our eyes are open to the threats we face, and that our voices will be heard. The truth is, everything that’s happening to our planet, the good and the bad, it’s on us – all of us.

STARGAZING

Broadhaven South Beach in Pembrokeshire is home to the darkest of all Pembrokeshire’s Dark Sky Discovery Sites, which gets Milky Way-class designation. What a perfect destination to experience Earth Hour in its finest form: the skies will be clear from urban lights so finding the stars couldn’t be easier. Or, to really appreciate how urban lighting effects our skies, head to Cardiff to see which landmarks are making their stance. Whether that’s viewing it from the ground up or above, appreciating the switch off can be done around the city during the allotted time. The National Museum have already made their promise to be switching off their lights to support this global phenomenon.

BUZZ 56

TIDY CUPS

Ecoffee estimates that over two {trillion} disposable coffee cups have ended up in landfill in the last 30 years. Keep Wales Tidy have teamed up with Ecoffee Cup to produce a reusable takeaway cup created with the world’s fastest-growing, most sustainable crop – bamboo fibre. Hot drinks are a big part of our everyday lives and some shops even offer a discount on drinks if you bring your own cup. Not only does buying one of these cups result in one fewer plastic cups being used, the money goes straight back into the charity to help support Wales in keeping green.

Price: £9.50. Info: www.keepwalestidy.cymru/shop/coffee-cupblue

HOST A CANDLELIT DINNER PARTY

One way to enjoy Earth Hour in the warm is to invite your friends round for a candlelit dinner – creating a calm setting and saving electricity to boot. Make the meal as carbon-neutral as possible by focusing on organic vegetables and freerange proteins in your dinner, as well as using as little processed produce as you can. Reducing meat consumption and eating more plant-based foods could reduce your carbon and water footprint and help safeguard wildlife. These days, there are also plenty of eco-friendly candles as well.

ACCESSORIES – PLASTIC FREE

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) is a charity that says no to plastic. Their aim is to save our waters for the ocean creatures but also the surfers – the ocean is becoming unliveable and unsafe to surf in. By selling reusable metal straws, eco bamboo toothbrushes and reusable bamboo cutlery, its products are all free from plastic; they’re eco-friendly and all profits go back into the charity to pay for resources to carry on cleaning up beaches.

Info: www.sas.org.uk

DIFFODDWCH AM EICH BYD SWITCH OFF FOR YOUR WORLD Ymunwch â’r miliynau trwy ddiffodd y golau a byddwch yn rhan o’r genhedlaeth sy’n dewis brwydro am ein byd.

Join millions for the global lights out event and be part of the generation who are choosing to fight for our world.

www.org.uk/awrddaear wwf.org.uk/EarthHourWales

© Anup Shah / naturepl.com

8:30YH/PM 30 MAWRTH/MARCH #AWRDDAEAR #EARTHHOURWALES

experience

G O O D D AY S O U T Good Days Out offers the chance to befriend some animals and support Welsh animal charities whilst enjoying fresh air and beautiful views of the Brecon Beacons. Poppy Manning finds out more.

An idea that stemmed from a stressful night’s sleep, Good Days Out is a unique experience up in the Brecon Beacons that will result in anything but a restless bedtime. Julia Blazer, the organisation’s founder, tells us how she’s managed to make a living for herself and for locals in a rural area with limited employment opportunities. The central plan? Take some animals – piglets, small donkeys, sheep – and invite people to go for a walk with them on the hills. Along the way you can take picnics (or pig-nics), feed your newfound friends, or just generally take it easy.

What was a community-based venture led to what seems a crazy idea. Julia explains how creating Good Days Out has not always been plain sailing; it took time to grow and have people adopt the idea of paying to walk with animals across the countryside. “It’s been a leap of faith keeping this place going.” Around the local area there is little employment and Julia’s had to have two or three part-time jobs to help build the Good Days Out business. But this year already, it seems things are starting to embed and move forward a bit more. There’s been plentiful positive publicity already, including a feature on BBC’s Countryfile.

For Julia, a huge part of Good Days Out are the people she works with. According to her, everyone involved with this organisation has such passion about what they’re doing, and many have lifestyles tied to the land. “This is a way of helping them continue to either keep their animals or stay in the countryside and carry on with that.”

The experiences have had plenty of benefits for some participants – success stories are not uncommon for Julia to come across in the five years the business has been going. One particular event stands out. “We had a lady who bought along her daughter who was autistic and had selective mutism. At school she hadn’t spoken to her teacher for two years and was incredibly inwardly focused but, from the moment she set off with the donkeys, she did not stop talking. The power of connection is such a lovely thing.”

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Amenable to hosting parties for groups of any age, Good Day Out really is for everyone, as you can go at your own pace to make it the most enjoyable experience possible. Beyond that, each event is also tied into a good cause, which will benefit from the purchase of tickets. In the case of the Dinky Donkeys, a portion of each voucher will go towards the Brecon Mountain Rescue Team, whilst Pig-Nics will help out RetireMutt, which rehomes old service dogs.

As well as the obvious benefits to the local community and charities, Julia is looking to expand the Good Day Out opportunities to include a range of experiences, including a chance to drive a tractor; and, by working with local farmers, offer people an insight into the workings of a farm and the hard work involved. This side of the business is still being worked out, likewise the health and safety requirements around this, but hopefully by next summer you will be able to have a go on a tractor or try your hand at sheep shearing!

There are plenty of stunning locations around the UK in which these sorts of events are a rarity, and this factors into Julia’s long-term vision for Good Days Out. “I’m hoping that we will be able to expand around the UK, so I’ll be looking at other similar rural areas, such as national parks, and offering a similar way of people to be making an income in their area as well.

“As long as you love animals and you want to be out in the countryside, it’s got to be the best thing to come and do. It’s hard to express as much how beautiful it is, all the experiences have special views and we offer that time to get up-close with the animals and spend that time to learn about them, their welfare and the area we live in.”

Good Days Out, running throughout the year; locations on booking. Plus there are recommended hotels and B&B’s to stay nearby.Tickets: from £15.

Info: 01874 749092 / www.gooddayout.co.uk

tech

PROFESSOR PLASTICS Amy Ludford chats to Professor Duncan Wass, whose work at the Cardiff Catalysis institute is at the forefront of eco-friendly tech.

Catalysis is crucial to almost any mass-production industry. It’s a process in which an added substance, or catalyst, creates an alternative route for a chemical reaction, requiring less energy than if the reaction was left to occur naturally. Traditionally, its applications have focused on taking cheap reactants, namely fossil fuels and gases, and rapidly creating large volumes of product for consumers, like fuels, plastics, paints, and pharmaceuticals.

Lots of waste is created as a result of this, though, and it’s normally harmful. Most common is CO2, but also sulphur dioxide, a known cause of acid rain and various acids which, if not properly disposed of, may end up in our rivers and oceans.

It’s not all doom and gloom though, as this same technology is now being applied to turn the tide, finding uses for these waste products and making production processes more sustainable.

Now in its 10th year, the Cardiff Catalysis Institute (CCI) is headed by Professor Duncan Wass and are world leaders in catalysis research, working to understand catalysis, develop new processes, promoting its use as a sustainable technology for industries. They’ve recently been awarded £7 million in funding to research environmental applications of catalysis: some exciting stuff is coming out of their Cardiff University-based laboratory.

“We look at all of the relevant branches of catalysis, which is quite unique in the UK,” says Wass, referring to the three forms of catalyst used in industry: heterogeneous, homogeneous, and biological. Homogeneous catalysts are solids a gas is passed over; many industrial processes use these, particularly petrochemical industries. Homogenous catalysts are in the same state as the reactant, and are for making more elaborate products, like pharmaceuticals.

Finally, biological catalysts are the enzymes, nature’s catalysts, used to produce industrial biotechnology.

“They’re very different branches of science, and any one branch isn’t necessarily the best for a particular problem. The fact we bring them together and apply them all to an issue gives us an advantage.”

One of their biggest principles is creating a circular economy. Traditional catalytic

processes in industry are linear, with reactants only being used once and creating waste products at the end. A circular economy takes the same catalytic technology and applies it to breaking products down into something that you can then put back into the cycle. One such way to achieve this is recycling plastic.

“Many plastics are made using catalysts; if you have a catalyst that makes a polymer, you can find a catalyst that reduces it back to the raw material,” explains Wass. “Breaking polymers down into a reusable liquid and making something new is a really elegant and efficient way to solve recycling problems.”

There are some big developments on the horizon, but barriers need to be overcome first. Catalysts used today come from a century of development, but they’re made to work on dry fossil fuels. Current studies have focused on liquids and alcohols in research, such as converting waste beer into a biofuel by converting the ethanol in it (as well as in other alcoholic drinks) to butanol: a more stable alcohol with more energy in each molecule. “[Existing] catalysts don’t work well in liquid,” Wass notes – so they are designing something new. “Our equipment has us at the cusp of fundamentally understanding how catalysts work. That may not be headline news, but for the practical applications of catalysis, the more we understand about them the better the catalysts we can design.”

Other environmental applications focus on converting waste CO2 from steelworks and power stations to methanol or molecules with multiple carbons. This is a proposed new and renewable source for carbon as society moves away from fossil fuels. What would that mean for such companies, some of whom represent key pillars of industry in south Wales?

“This is an opportunity for those industries,” says Wass; “it’s a way to mitigate the emissions they create. A lot of CO2 is sequestered, buried underground to prevent it entering the atmosphere. If we convert that CO2 into a useful product, it’s still sequestered, but it’s utilised for our benefit.”

Info: www.cardiff.ac.uk/cardiff-catalysis-institute BUZZ 59

Pic: Simon Ayre

sport

SPORTS ROUNDUP Rhys Fisher rounds up the best of what’s on offer in March for sports fans in south Wales.

TIGER BAY BRAWLERS

Cardiff House Of Sport Those of you tired of the football/rugby monopoly on sport this March should head down to Butetown for the Tiger Bay Brawlers: the team introducing south Wales to the joys of roller derby.

If you haven’t seen Ellen Page and Drew Barrymore tear it up in Whip It, roller derby might seem like one of those American sporting enigmas that you’ve heard mentioned in high school rom-coms, but have no clue what it actually is – like pep rallies or softball. The sport involves two teams skating around a track, attempting to either block an opponent or assist a teammate in getting to the front of the pack. Picture a velodrome with rollerbladers rather than bikes, a hefty dollop of physicality, and way more fun.

After a highly successful season in 2018, where the Brawlers jumped an impressive 38 places in the rankings, the time seems ripe to get behind a team on the rise. Their next home game is against Mancunians Rainy City on Sat 16 Mar – but if you’re interested in learning how to play roller derby, the Brawlers will be running weekly training sessions from Thurs 14 Mar. Info: www.brawlers.co.uk

WALES V SLOVAKIA / WALES V TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

Cardiff City Stadium, Sun 24 Mar, The Racecourse, Wrexham, Wed 20 Mar March marks the beginning of Welsh football’s European qualification process after the mediocre Nations League campaign, with hopes of evoking ecstasyinducing memories of the 2016 tournament. Manager Ryan Giggs will be hoping to stop the current rot – four losses in the last five games – when they take on a Slovakian side whose recent record is only marginally better. Euro 2016 began for Wales with a group-stage win over Slovakia, so who knows.

Before that, there’s a friendly against Trinidad & Tobago in Wrexham. Whilst the small Caribbean nation can count Dwight Yorke and Kenwyne Jones as former players, the current team lacks players playing in major leagues. You’d back Wales to win.

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As for Wales women, manager Jayne Ludlow will be preparing for the Euro 2021 qualifiers with some friendlies – Ireland on Tue 5 Mar and a home game against the Czech Republic on Thurs 4 Apr. The draw for the Euro qualifiers has put Wales women in with Norway, Northern Ireland, Belarus and the Faroe Islands. The Scandi-nations have some of the best women’s football teams, and Norway is no exception, but as runners-up also have a chance of going to the finals, there’s still a very good chance for Wales here.

Info: www.faw.cymru

6 NATIONS

Wales v Ireland – Men’s Rugby Union Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Sat 16 Mar After following up the second-half heroics in Paris with a tame, stodgy affair against Italy that was anything but convincing, few Welsh fans could have predicted the behemoth of a performance against England that was responsible for a nationwide hangover that will live long in the memory. Standing between Gatland and a third Grand Slam is a daunting trip north to face a truculent Scottish side who won’t have forgotten last year’s mauling in Cardiff. This will be followed by a mouth-watering final day clash against Ireland – who, despite wobbling somewhat on their perch, will be heading to the Principality looking to cement their position as the premier side in the northern hemisphere.

Wales v Ireland – Women’s Rugby Union Arms Park, Cardiff, Sun 17 Mar After a European tour to forget, including a thrashing in Paris and a drab draw in Rome, Wales were welcomed back to Cardiff with another heavy defeat at the hands of a powerful English side who have their eye set on a Grand Slam of their own. Despite this poor start to the campaign, Wales will be targeting a strong finish against Scottish and Irish sides who have also struggled thus far.

Info: www.wru.co.uk

listings

Inclusion in Buzz listings is free. Send via email (listings@buzzmag.co.uk) or post (220c Cowbridge Road East, Canton, Cardiff CF5 1GY) by the 17th of the previous month. Buzz takes no responsibility for material sent or any errors made after this date.

recommended *–u – repeated

WALES ONE WORLD FILM FESTIVAL Various venues, Thurs 21 Mar-Sun 14 Apr. Admission: prices vary. Info: www.wowfilmfestival.com One of the longest running Welsh film festivals, Wales One World has prided itself on bringing a touring selection of some of the best films from around the world to this country’s many corners. Unusually this year, there won’t be a Cardiff leg of the festival, but otherwise, they’ll be in Aberystwyth Arts Centre (Thurs 21-Thurs 28 Mar), The Riverfront, Newport (Tue 26 Mar), Theatr Gwaun, Fishguard (Sat 30 Mar), Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan (Sun 7 Apr), Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea (Mon 8-Wed 10 Apr) and the Queens Hall, Narberth (Sun 14 Apr).

The lineup of films this year is as eclectic as ever. There are screenings of Lee Chang-Dong’s Burning [pictured], the South Korean auteur’s incredible mystery drama (reviewed online), and the latest film by dissident Iranian master Jafar Panahi, 3 Faces – which considering this is his fourth film to be made since he was banned from filmmaking is a impressive achievement – as well as major-hit anime Mirai. Elsewhere, there are cinematic offerings from Colombia (Birds Of Passage and Embrace Of The Serpent), Indonesia (Marina The Murderer In Four Acts) and Siberia (Ága). Whilst the festival normally takes a look towards the best of the future of international cinema – and when the lineup includes Alice Rohrwacher’s

Happy As Lazarro, one of the big critical hits at last year’s Cannes festival, that tradition is sure to continue – this year also sees WOW looking a bit further back, with screenings of Satyajit Ray’s incredible 1963 dissection of Indian class and gender divide in The Big City, and Bela Tarr’s The Turin Horse, one of the bleakest, most punishing cinematic trips ever, which begs to be seen on the big screen.

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art clubs events live stage BUZZ 61

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art

exhibition from The Royal Society Of Painter-Printmakers and Bankside Gallery. (Until Fri 3 May)

ABERYSTWYTH ARTS CENTRE University Of Wales, Aberystwyth. Free. Mon-Sat 10am-8pm. 01970 621903 / www.aber.ac.uk/artscentre Justine Allison ‘The Language Of Clay’ Ceramic work, part of a series of national touring exhibitions organised by Mission Gallery in collaboration with Ruthin Craft Centre. (Throughout March) Rivers Of Gold International exhibition and exchange curated by Judy Macklin and looking at the human and environmental cost associated with the prospecting, extraction and processing of gold. (Until Sun 7 Apr) Can I Gymru Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Welsh TV show of this name, featuring portraits of past winners and audio of their songs. (Until Sun 29 Apr) Linda Jane James ‘Indefinity’ A single work – not actually certain of its medium – created over one year and commenting on waste, accumulation and productivity. (Until Mon 6 May) In My Shoes Arts Council touring show examinng how British artists – notable names featured including Tracey Emin, Sarah Lucas and Rachel McLean – have presented their own image in their work.

(Until Sun 12 May)

ALBANY GALLERY 74b Albany Road, Cardiff.

Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 11am-4pm. Free. 029 2048 7158 / www.albanygallery. com Karl Davies, Peter Kettle FRSA RCA, Euan McGregor PAI New work by three popular gallery artists each with their own definitive styles. (Until Sat 9 Mar) Gwyn Roberts Dramatic Welsh mountains and landscapes created using Roberts’ recognisable bold impasto paintingknife technique in oil. (From Thurs 14 Mar until Sat 6 Apr)

ABERYSTWYTH UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF ART GALLERY Buarth Mawr, Aberystwyth.

Free. Mon-Fri 10am-5pm.

01970 622467 / www.aber. ac.uk Print Rebels: Haden, Palmer, Whistler & The Origins Of The RE Touring

ANDREW LAMONT GALLERY (THEATR BRYCHEINIOG) Canal Wharf, Brecon. Open Mon-Fri 10am-5pm. Free.

01874 611622 / enquiries@ brycheiniog.co.uk / www. brycheiniog.co.uk Rob Baldwin ‘Portrait Of A Farming Community’ Photography by Baldwin from his time as a vet in the Brecon area from 2004-10. (Until Sun 17 Mar) Celebrating Women In The Outdoors Art and photography celebrating the thing the title implies; part of Brecon Women’s Festival. (Until Sun 24 Mar) Tessa Waite ‘Wild Things’ large scale constructions, handmade books and installations of made and found objects; examining our relationship to wildness, in nature and within ourselves.

(From Thurs 21 Mar until Tue 23 Apr) ARCADECARDIFF / CAMPFA GALLERY Queens Arcade, off Queen Street, Cardiff. Usually open

Wed-Sat 12.30-5.30pm. arcadecardiffcic@gmail. com / www.arcadecardiff. co.uk Emma Edmondson Sculptural and wall-based practice from Essex artist who uses texture, pattern and form to question our relationship to society and each other.

(Until Sat 16 Mar) Jessica Akerman Artist and maker whose work is inspired by social histories; this show will be located in the Campfa gallery and will feature all-new work, responding to the shopping centre location. (From Thurs 22 Mar until Sun 7 Apr)

ATTIC GALLERY 37 Pocketts Wharf, Maritime Quarter, Swansea. Tue-Fri 10am-5.30pm, Sat 10am4.30pm. Free. 01792 653387 / www.atticgallery.co.uk Thomas Haskett, Sheridan Ward & Matthew Wood Mixed show by three Wales-based artists. (From Sat 9 until Sat 30 Mar) CAFFI LOLFA 4 Stepney Rd, Burry Port.

Free. 01554 834148 / facebook.com/caffilolfa Emily Unsworth-White ‘A Good Omen’ Still life paintings on the walls of this Carmarthenshire cafe.

(Throughout March) CARDIFF STORY The Old Library, The Hayes, Cardiff. Daily 10am-4pm.

Free. 029 2034 6214 / cardiffstory@cardiff.gov.uk Cardiff Universities Social Services: The Untold Story The history of CUSS, a radical charity set up 50 years ago by student volunteers to support people with learning disabilities. (Until Sun 3 Mar) Protest! Objects For Change Discover the stories

NEIL & YVONNE CARROLL: TROUVAILLE Cyfarthfa Castle Museum, Merthyr Tydfil, until Sun 24 Mar Admission: £2/£1 under-16s. Info: 01685 727371 / museum@merthyr.gov.uk His art is based very much in vibrant colour while hers is based in nature.

But the husband and wife team of Neil and Yvonne Carroll are very much kindred spirits in their love of nature, and are showcasing their two very different forms of expression in this exhibition, set in the beautiful surroundings of Cyfartha Castle Museum. Inspired by his Valleys upbringing Neil brings landscapes and nature to life using bold colours.

Yvonne meanwhile expresses her art through careful process of designing and drawing, but both have equal effect on the beholder, with life and energy exuding from each piece.

behind the protest objects in our new display, from badges and banners to T-shirts and embroidery. (Until Sun 30 Dec) The History Of Table Tennis In Cardiff You heard. This exhibition has been organised with the help of Cardiff Community Table Tennis Club and will also give you the chance to play said sport in the museum over the Easter holidays. (From Sat 9 Mar until Sun 28 Apr)

Free. 01792 463980 / dylanthomas.lit@swansea. gov.uk / www.dylanthomas. com Starlight Order: From Y Gododdin To In Parenthesis Exhibition taking medieval Welsh poem Y Gododdin as its starting point and, through written and illustrated manuscripts, noting how it influenced David Jones’ own epic, In Parenthesis.

(Throughout March)

and sex toys on show. Very risky for Usk and Wales!” (Until Sat 9 Mar)

CASTELL COCH Tongwynlais, nr Cardiff.

Mon-Sat 10am-4pm. 02920 810101 / castellcoch@gov. wales Laura Ford ‘Squatters’ A series of over 20 new sculptures in bronze, jesmonite and ceramic, and clothed in wool and felt; located inside this castle, created in partnership with Cadw and presented by Gallery/Ten. (From Sat 30 Mar until Mon 6 May)

FOUNTAIN FINE ART Rhosmaen Street, Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire. Mon-Sat 10.30am-5pm. Free. www. fountainfineart.com Winter Group Exhibition Changing show of new work from gallery artists.

(Throughout March)

GLYNN VIVIAN ART GALLERY Alexandra Rd, Swansea.

Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. Free.

01792 516900 / www. swansea.gov.uk/ glynnvivian Andreas Rüthi ‘Paper Plates & Poisoned Porcelain’ Paintings from a UK-based Swiss artist inspired

by Glynn Vivian’s collection of Welsh porcelain. (Throughout March) Then & Now: 80 Years Of CASW Since 1938, the Contemporary Art Society For Wales has acquired around 900 works by 500 artists, now held in public collections across Wales. This exhibition will include works including David Jones and Glenys Cour.

Curated by Dr Peter Wakelin.

(Until Sun 12 May) Phytopia film, photography, sculpture and painting based on the concept of the ‘tree of life’.

Includes pieces by Derek Jarman, Paul De Monchaux and Rasheed Araeen alongside 19th century nature orints (Until Sun 26 May)

CHAPTER GALLERY Chapter Arts Centre, Market Road, Canton, Cardiff. Tue, Wed, Sat + Sun 12-6pm; Thurs + Fri 12-8pm. Free. 029 2030 4400 / www.chapter.org Paul Eastwood ‘Dyfodiaith – Singing To An Unknown Future’ An audiovisual work by Wrexhambased Eastwood that interrogates the cultural context of the Welsh language in relation to minority languages spoken worldwide, as well as bilingualism and common tongues. (Until Sun 10 Mar) Cornelia Baltes Art In The Bar exhibition for a Germanborn, London-based artist whose brightly coloured paintings combine simplicity with humour and playfulness. (Until Sat 24 Mar) CHEPSTOW MUSEUM Gwy House, Bridge Street, Chepstow. Daily 11am-4pm.

Free. 01291 625981 / www. monmouthshire.gov.uk/ chepstow-museum Stuffed, Pickled & Pinned A delightful-sounding (assuming you can stick taxidermy and the like) collection of natural history objects compiled from other museums across Wales. (Until July) CRAFT IN THE BAY The Flourish, Lloyd George Avenue, Cardiff. Mon-Sun 10.30am-5.30pm. Free. 029 2048 4611 / www. makersguildinwales.org.uk Margaret & David Frith Ruthin Craft Centre touring exhibition, also a Makers In Focus show, featuring these two Guild members and world-renowed ceramicists.

(Throughout March) CYFARTHFA CASTLE MUSEUM Cyfarthfa Park, Brecon Rd, Merthyr Tydfil. 01685 727371 / museum@ merthyr.gov.uk Neil & Yvonne Carroll ‘Trouvaille’ Vivid landscape paintings from Neil; new prints from Yvonne. (Until Sun 24 Mar) DYLAN THOMAS CENTRE Somerset Place, Swansea.

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FUTURES GALLERY / ORIEL GALLERY Pierhead Building / Senedd, Cardiff Bay. Daily 10.30am4pm. Free. 0845 0105500 / www.pierhead.org The Valleys Legacy Exhibition: What Makes You Proud To Be Welsh?

Student work from the Foundation Degree in Photography at Coleg Gwent, Crosskeys, students having been asked to produce an archive of local documentary photography. (Until Thurs 21 Mar) G39 Oxford Street, Roath, Cardiff. Saturdays 11am5.30pm. Free. 029 2047 3633 / post@g39.org Survey Group exhibition presenting new works by 15 early-career artists from across Britain: Chris Alton, Simeon Barclay, Hazel Brill, Flo Brooks, Emma Cousin, Joe Fletcher Orr, Thomas Goddard, Ashley Holmes, Lindsey Mendick, Nicole Morris, Milly Peck, Anna Raczynski, Will Sheridan Jr, Rae-Yen Song and Frank Wasser. (Until Sat 30 Mar) Y GALERI, CAERFFILI Lower Ground Floor, The Visit Caerphilly Centre, The Twyn, Caerphilly. Tue-Sat 10am-5pm. Free. 029 2132 2570 / www.ygalericaerffili. co.uk Kevin String New and unseen work from an artist who learned to paint with his left hand following a major industrial injury. Also on display: artworks from regular gallery artists plus newcomers including architectural illustrator Katherine Jones. (Until Sat 16 Mar) Drawn From Life Drawings and paintings of the human form by Neil Burridge, Lesley Dearn, Emlyn Hole, Sandra Wintle and Maureen Carlson. (From Tue 26 Mar until Sat 27 Apr) GALLERY AT HOME Llancayo Court, Usk. 07725 830195 / facebook.com/ galleryathomeuk Megan Winstone ‘4th Wave’ Cardiff-based photographer with her debut survey exhibition, whose themes are described by the artist as both sexual and intimate; “a profound exhibition with prints

THE GATE Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff. Mon-Sat 10am9pm. Free. 029 2048 3344 / www.thegate.org.uk Roath Open Exhibition Exhibition that celebrates Roath as a creative and culturally thriving area. (Until Sat 23 Mar)

GS ARTISTS (FORMERLY GALERIE SIMPSON) 217 High Street, Swansea.

Wed-Sat 12-4pm. Free.

07714 327523 / galeriesimpsonswansea. com Tim Davies ‘Survival Is Not A Crime’ Latest in a series of ‘artist at work’ exhibitions/residencies; Davies, a Welsh conceptual artist, aims here to comment on the “gap between the haves and the have-nots, truth and untruths”. (Until Sat 9 Mar) INSOLE COURT Fairwater Road, Llandaff, Cardiff. Daily 10am-5pm.

Free. 029 2116 7920 / www. insolecourt.org Rhiannon Powell ‘Dinosaurs Definitely Don’t Dig Dancing’ Original illustrations created for the Primo Piano teaching course here, plus other artwork by Welsh artist Powell. (Until Sun 10 Mar) KING STREET GALLERY 33 King Street, Carmarthen. Free. 01267 220121 / gallery@ kingstreetgallery.co.uk Members New Year Exhibition Contemporary painting, printmaking, photography, ceramics, textiles, jewellery and sculpture. (Until Wed 6 Mar) The Art That Artists Collect Gallery members display their favourite piece of art from their personal collections and reflect on its influence on their work. (Until Wed 6 Mar)

LLANTARNAM GRANGE ARTS CENTRE St. David’s Rd, Cwmbran, Torfaen. Mon-Sat 10am5pm. Free. 01633 483321 / www.lgac.org.uk Venus Paintings, prints and bronze sculpture by William Brown, Roger Moss and Keith Bayliss – the latter two responding to Brown’s proposal for a mixed exhibition on the subject of Venus.

(Until Sat 15 Mar) Francesca Kay Craft showcase featuring poetry presented in various handmade ways such as seed packets, glass flasks and cardboard tunnels. (Until Sat 15 Mar) Laura Creer Jewellery showcase incorporating silver, porcelain and gold. (Until Sat 15 Mar) Living Landscapes A selection of paintings recently donated to the Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre permanent collection, by Margaret Genge, George Godsell, Janet Hamer and Lilian Rathmell.

(Until Sat 15 Mar) Ingrid Murphy ‘Seen And Unseen’ Sculptural/ceramic work in clay, as previously seen in Swansea’s Mission Gallery (and this magazine’s Art pages). (From Sun 30 Mar until Sat 11 May) M.A.D.E. GALLERY 41 Lochaber St, Cardiff.

Wed-Sat 10am-6pm. Free.

029 2047 3373.

Eleanor Whiteman ‘Draw West’ Prints and original new paintings exploring the pull to the west Wales landscape.

(Until Sun 10 Mar) MARTIN TINNEY GALLERY 18 St Andrew’s Crescent, Cardiff. Mon-Fri 10am6pm, Sat 10am-5pm. Free.

029 2064 1411 / mtg@ artwales.com Gallery Artists Changing exhibition with all work for sale at prices ranging from £50£50,000. (Throughout March) John Macfarlane ‘Swan Lake And Other Works’ Esteemed set designer for theatre and opera, who is also a painter of repute and indeed has exhibited here before.

(From Thurs 21 Mar until Thurs 11 Apr) MISSION GALLERY Gloucester Place, Swansea.

Tue-Sun 11am-5pm. Free.

01792 652016 / www. missiongallery.co.uk Ingrid Murphy ‘Seen And Unseen’ Ceramic sculptor presents works as part of the ongoing Language Of Clay exhibition here. (Until Sat 23 Mar) Alastair Duncan Maker In Focus/ [...] Space exhibition from an artist working with tapestry weaving and digital media, frequently touching on themes of conflict and communication. (From Sat 9 until Sat 30 Mar) NATIONAL MUSEUM CARDIFF Cathays Park, Cardiff. TueSun 10am-5pm. Free except where noted. 029 2057 3500 / museum.wales/cardiff Kyffin Williams: The Artist And Amgueddfa Cymru Arguably Wales’ most popular landscape painter of the 20th century, Williams

had a long history with Amgueddfa Cymru and was a member of its art committee for many years. This display explores that relationship through artwork and archival material. (Until Wed 1 May) Leonardo Da Vinci: A Life In Drawing £5/£4/free under16s. Twelve drawings from the Royal Collection’s... collection of Da Vinci works, also part of a year-long commemoration of 500 years since his death. See Art. (Until Mon 6 May) NATIONAL WATERFRONT MUSEUM Oystermouth Road, Maritime Quarter, Swansea. Daily 10am-5pm.

Free. 01792 638950 / museum.wales/swansea Richie Crossley ‘Warrior Face’ A Roots Foundation Wales exhibition featuring portraits of individuals who have been a part of the care system. (From Sat 9 Mar until Sun 28 Apr) NEWPORT MUSEUM & ART GALLERY John Frost Square, Newport.Tue-Fri 9.30am5.30pm, Sat 9.30am-4pm.

Free. 01633 656656 / museum@newport.gov.uk James Milne ‘II’ Project responding to Newport’s George Street Bridge and other infrastructure in South Wales with the same designation.

(Until Sun 13 Apr) NORWEGIAN CHURCH ARTS CENTRE Harbour Drive, Cardiff Bay. Daily 10.30am-4pm. Free.

029 2087 7959 / www. norwegianchurchcardiff. com The Gallery Gift Shop A collaboration of artists, artisans, crafters and photographers from around South Wales offering their products at this exhibition-cum-pop-up.

(Until Sun 10 Mar) Share A Life Collection of portraits designed to engage the community in breaking down barriers of homelessness in Cardiff. (From Mon 18 until Sun 31 Mar) ORIEL CRIC Beaufort Street, Crickhowell. Mon-Sat 10am5pm, Sun 10am-1pm. Free.

01873 813669.

New Year Show Work by three painters: Tim Rossiter, Louise Collis and Martin Truefitt-Baker. (Until Sat 9 Mar) Spring Exhibition Annual mixed exhibition showcasing the work of regional and visiting artists. (From Mon 11 Mar until Mon 20 May) ORIEL DAVIES The Park, Newtown, Powys.

Mon-Sat 10am-5.30pm.

Free. 01686 625041 / enquiries@orieldavies.org Cartographic Imaginaries: Interpreting The Literary Atlas Of Wales Commissioned artwork in response to 12 English-language novels set in Wales and forming part of the Literary Atlas Of Wales project. Participating artists: John Abell, Iwan Bala, Valerie Coffin Price, Liz Lake, Richard Monahan, George Sfougaras,

Joni Smith, Amy Sterly, Locus, Rhian Thomas and Seán Vicary. (Until Thurs 18 Mar) ORIEL MYRDDIN Church Lane, Carmarthen.

01267 222775 / www. orielmyrddingallery.co.uk The Building Project See Art for more on this exhibition, which is based around miniature houses which increase in number, akin to a real-life settrement. (Until Sat 23 Mar) Lee John Phillips Illustrator who got a bit of press a while back for his thousands-strong collection of sketches cataloguing a toolshed’s contents.

Features as part of the Back Wall series in this gallery shop.

(Until Sat 23 Mar) Angela Maddock: ‘Sometimes All You Can Do Is Walk’ The results of a challenge undertaken by Maddock, namely to walk to Middlesbrough from somewhere in the Midlands; she sent material seen or collected during her journey back to the gallery at regular intervals. Really hoping this isn’t some corny ‘Brexit psychogeography’ thing (opening date invites that possibility) but not going to try and find out. See Art. (From Sat 30 Mar until Sat 11 May)

landscape full of personal trials and tribulations – symbolised by a winged figure, which is both mischievous and cruel.

(Until Sat 30 Mar) SWANSEA COLLEGE OF ART / THE FORUM University Of Wales Trinity Saint David, Heol Ynys Kings Road, Swansea. Free. www.uwtsd.ac.uk/events/ swansea-college-of-art/ Sound And Weave Exhibition exploring the twin concepts of sound and woven tapestry, to comment or investigate subjects including voices in international conflict, inter-generational and internalised dialogues, and sound distortion. A related exhibition is showing at Volcano. (From Sat 9 until Sun 31 Mar) SWANSEA MUSEUM Victoria Road, Swansea.

Tue-Sun 10am-4.30pm.

Free. 01792 653763 / www. swanseamuseum.co.uk Cefn Coed Remembered Subtitled An Exhibition Exploring The Working Life And Patient Care At Cefn Coed Hospital From 1932 To Present Day, which should cover it for this listing’s purpose. (Until Sun 9 June)

ORIEL YR ARDD

Hop to it if you want to catch Megan Winstone’s 4th Wave exhibition at Usk’s Gallery At Home, running until Sat 9 Mar. Winstone is a Cardiff photographer with a predeliction for sexual topics.

National Botanic Garden Of Wales, Middleton Hall, Llanarthne, Carmarthenshire. Daily 10am-6pm. £10.50/£8.75 concessions/£4.95 under17s/free under-5s. 01558 667149 / botanicgarden. wales Mike Danford ‘Daffodils’ Photographs of the eponymous flower, commissioned by the National Botanic Garden to raise both interest in, and knowledge of, daffodil varieties. (Until Sun 7 Apr) QUEEN STREET GALLERY Queen Street, Neath. WedSat 10am-4pm. Free. 01639 631081/ www. queenstgallery.co.uk Open Art Competition Debut show of this nature at this gallery. (Until Sat 9 Mar) Vivian Rhule & Lynne Bebb ‘Retinentia’ Two contemporary artists showing a range of painting, mixed media and sculpture. (From Sat 8 until Sat 30 Mar) REDHOUSE Old Town Hall, High Street, Merthyr Tydfil. Free. 01685 384111 / info@ redhousecymru.com Keith Bayliss ‘Wandering Soul’ Drawings in ink on paper on the theme of an individual moving through a

TENBY MUSEUM & ART GALLERY Castle Hill, Tenby. Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, £4/£3/£2 kids.

01834 842809 / www. tenbymuseum.org.uk 100% Tenby Works from the collection of Tenby-born Jan Regemortel. (From Sat 9 Mar until Sun 7 Apr) THEATR HAFREN Llanidloes Road, Newtown, Powys. Mon-Sat 10am5.30pm. Free. 01686 625007 / thehafren.co.uk Sara Philpott Mid-Walesbased artist whose pieces use thin layers of translucent oil paint; this show also includes recent drawings and printmaking experiments. (Until Sat 30 Mar) TOWER GALLERY 49 High Street, Crickhowell.

Wed-Sat 10am-5pm. Free.

01873 812495 / www. towergallery.co.uk Julian Meredith & Helga Prosser Shared exhibition, further details TBC curtently.

Also showing work by all members of the Usk Valley Artists’ Co-operative. (Until Sat 16 Mar) Robert Macdonald Painter, printmaker and current president of the Royal Watercolour Society Of Wales.

Also showing work by all members of the Usk Valley Artists’

Co-operative. (From Wed 20 Mar until Sat 18 May) VICTORIA FEARN GALLERY 6B Heol y Deri, Rhiwbina, Cardiff. Mon-Sat 9.30am5.30pm, Sun 10am-3pm.

Free. 029 2052 0884.

Louise Collis Plein air oil paintings. (From Fri 8 until Sat 30 Mar) VOLCANO THEATRE 27-29 High Street, Swansea.

Mon-Fri 10am-4pm. Free.

01792 464790 / www. volcanotheatre.co.uk Axe Head To Everything II New work by 10 UWTSD Swansea College Of Art artists spanning painting, multimedia, sculpture, and installations.

The sequel to a similarly titled 2018 show. (From Fri 8 until Fri 15 Mar) Louise Martin ‘Whispered Words’ Installation exploring the concepts of sound and woven tapestry, related to the larger exhibition running concurrently at Swansea College Of Art. (From Sat 9 Mar until Mon 1 Apr) THE WELFARE Brecon Road, Ystradgynlais.

Free. 01639 843163 / thewelfare.co.uk Sarah Lees ‘A Light Sleeper’ Says Rees of her paintings: “The work in this show, produced over the last year, is the product of a light sleep; troubled by factors like too little freedom, too much, the pointless distraction of grief, the drive of deadlines, the necessity of making a living” (Until Thurs 14 Mar) WEST WHARF GALLERY Jacobs Market, Cardiff.

Thurs-Sat 10am-5pm. Free. westwharfgallery@gmail. com Concentric Eleven female artists, all based in South Wales, working in varying disciplines: Jacqueline Alkema, Adeola Dewis, Leona Jones, Temmah, Sheila Vyas, Pip Barrett, Charlotte Morgan, Mabli Jen Eustace, Patricia Ziad, Kay Keogh and Zoë Gingell. (From Fri 8 until Sat 23 Mar) 4 x 4 Drawings by four sculptors – Dilys Jackson, Sue Roberts, Gwyneth Price and Valerie Coffin Price – whose works explore the natural world through carving, casting and installation. The exhibition is, additionally, in celebration of International Women’s Day. (From Fri 8 Mar until Sat 6 Apr) Shirley Anne Owen Paintings showing in the side gallery, concurrently with the 4 x 4 exhibition.

(From Fri 8 Mar until Sat 6 Apr) THE WORKERS 99 Ynyshir Road, Ynyshir, nr Porth. 11am-4.30pm Thurs-Sat and by appointment. Free. 01443 682024 / wood4tt@gmail.com Gayle Rogers ‘Windswept’ Plein air drawings of wind energy sites, here as part of an artist residency programme.

(Until Sat 30 Mar) Artist Spring Showcase Featuring selected artists including Glyn Brimacombe, Chris WIlliams, Luz Erika Chick and Melanie Honebone. (Until Sat 30 Mar)

WYESIDE ARTS CENTRE Castle Street, Builth Wells.

Mon-Fri 9.30am-5pm. Free.

01982 552555.

Winter Medley Paintings by the local Knighton Painting & Sketching Group, which meets to paint on Mondays during autumn and spring. (Until Thurs 7 Mar)

clubs THE ANGEL INN 57- 59 Great Darkgate Street, Aberystwyth. 01970 617878 / facebook.com/ theangelinnaber Fri 8 eXperiMental 9pm3am. New trance/psytrance night, this being its launch party. Sat 16 Swing City Mad Hatters Tea Party 11pm-4am, £4/£3 in fancy dress. Electroswing, ghettofunk, disco, hip-hop, house, breaks and “ending on some Fun & Bass” (no). Prizes for best hats and various nonsense of that ilk.

THE ASTORIA 48 Charles Street, Milford Haven. 01646 663008 / facebook.com/ astoriamilfordhaven Fri 29 Tectonic – The New Era 10pm-5.30am, £10. Drum’n’bass from Ed Solo, questionably dubbed the king of jungle by promoters Tectonic, plus Rogue One, Mackay, Defects Of The Dock, Damage & Mr Pickles, Infamous Len, Audio Autopsy and Mystic & Turk, plus MCs Dubba Beatz, Teej and Conk.

THE ATTIC 5-6 Castle Bailey St, Swansea. facebook.com/ theatticswansea Sat 2 Rise 10pm-3am, £5/£3 adv. Drum’n’bass from local DJs. Mon 4 Concrete Junglists: Good Vibes Only 10pm-3am, £5/£3 adv. Cardiff drum’n’bass/jungle brand branch into Swansea for a monthly session highlighting fresh local DJs etc. *Sat 23 Con7rol 9pm-4am, £15 adv.

Glesga techno veterans Slam headline this, their first south Wales date in a fair few years.

Extensive lineup over two rooms: Nico Aprea, Sam Kitt, Lee Grey, PH Brothers, Zak Plaister, State Of Minds and Julez Wyl are the guests; Taz Meah, Jamie Morgan, Vedra, Dan Martin, Natasha Denby and Nicky Cursio are the residents.

BAMBU BEACH BAR 51 Wind Street, Swansea.

01792 651651 / www. bambu-bar.co.uk Fri 1 Intirave Swansea: International Reggaeton Party Carnival Edition 8pm-3am, £3/free before 10.

Reggaeton, electrolatino, salsa, dembow, bachata, commercial hits and r’n’b from DJ EL-J (Ritmo Latino Swansea) and Adam Cariad. Fri 8 Con7rol Rooftop 8pm-3am, £5. Local techno folks offers sets from guests (Smiley, Nico Aprea, Sam Balla and Sam Kitt) and residents (Taz Meah, Jamie Morgan, Vedra, Dan Martin and Nicky Cursio).

BUZZ 63

* – recommended BAR COCOA Broad Street, Barry. facebook.com/cocoabarry Fridays + Saturdays 10pm-3.30am, £3. With DJ Lou Ross (Glastonbarry) playing various chart/cheese/etc in room 1; James Bourne with dance and r’n’b in room 2.

BARRY ISLAND SPORTS & SOCIAL CLUB 11 Redbrink Crescent, Barry. 01446 735173 / www.barryislandssc.co.uk Sat 9 Northern Soul Island 1st Anniversary 7.30pm-12.30am, £4. DJs Ken Dunn, Paul Davies and Laurence Cullen with vinylonly sets of 60s oldies, 70s modern, crossover and 60s R&B. BEELZEBUB’S Church Street, Cardiff. www.craftydevilbrewing. co.uk Fri 15 Diff Jam Hip Hop Social 10pm-3am, free. Hiphop, funk and breaks, acting as an afterparty of sorts for the show in Clwb Ifor with Rodney P etc, courtesy of DJ Jaffa, Killer Tom, Junior Disprol, Specifik, Whirlwind D and The Waxnerds.

THE BIG TOP / 10 FEET TALL 11a + 12 Church Street, Cardiff. 029 2022 8883 / thisis10feettall@yahoo. co.uk Mondays Junction :: Liquid Mondays 9pm-1am, free. New weekly night of liquid drum’n’bass, the genre with a strange idea of how colons work. Thursdays Rock hits from DJ Andy Rhys Lewis.

Fridays + Saturdays Resident DJs playing soul and funk. Fri 5 Apr Paradox 10pm-4am, £8/£6 adv. New techno night which debuted in February and this time around has sets from Jason Edwards, Old As Dust, Mathew Hart and Ryan Ross. Saturdays Under A Groove 9pm-3am, £3 after 10. Funk and neo-soul.

BLIND TIGER 49 Cambrian Road, Newport. 01633 243500.

Wednesdays Wild Wednesdays Cocktails, drink deals and tunes as part of a cross-city midweek session.

Fridays Beekay & Friends 11pm, £3-£5. House, techno and bass music with guest DJs, breaking producers and residents from Wales’ freshest nights. Saturdays Re:work 11pm, £5. Underground and cutting edge club music promised. Sat 2 Fixate 10pm-5am, £5 adv. House and techno from Lisa Lashes, Adrianna, Undercover DJs, Madame Twisted, Dan Waite and J-Tech.

BOX BAR 11 The Strand, Swansea.

07876 505482 / box-bar. co.uk Sat 9 Groove 9pm-4am, £12.50 adv. Headlined by Sidney Charles, a UK house DJ with releases on Moon Harbour, Hot Creations etc.

BUZZ 64

BREATHE WAREHOUSE VENUE Location TBC, Cardiff. facebook.com/breathemusiccardiff *Sat 30 Breathe 2pm-2am, £12-£16. Techno with Dutch headliner Reiss plus Alex Taylor, Jack Darwin, Lauft, Shaun Edwards, Siah and Xono. See Clubs.

CARDIFF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS UNION Park Place, Cardiff. All listings apply to term time only. 029 2078 1458 / www. cardiffstudents.com Wednesdays YOLO 9pm2am, £4/£3 adv/free before 11.

Midweek club night promising both your favourite tunes and great offers. Good name, really on trend. Thurs 14 Shangri-La 10pm-4am, £20 adv. Featuring a threehour headline set by Patrick Topping plus short ones from Alex Virgo, Nic Saunders and Lucas Alexander. *Fri 1 Mall Grab 10pm-5am, £tbc adv.

Continuing this practise of cult-but-going-overground DJs arriving here on package tours, Australia’s Mall Grab follows up a sold-out Clwb Ifor Bach show a few months ago with a night also featuring Loods, the terrific Nite Fleit and Salary Boy. Fri 29 Bedlam present Cru Cast 10pm-5am, £18 adv. Bassline and the like from Skepsis, Darkzy, Bru-C, TS7, Mr Virgo, Lazcru and Window Kid. Saturdays Juice 10pm3am, £5/£4 NUS. Chart, dance and pop.

CLUB ICE Broadway, Pontypridd.

07771 920726 / www. clubiceponty.com Fridays Flashback 10pm3am. Retro hits from the 80s, 90s and 00s. Saturdays Gravity 10.30pm-3am, £7/£5 before 11. House, techno and dance every week on the club’s Void soundsystem.

CLUB OXYGEN 1 Northampton Lane, Swansea. 0844 8849171 / www.globaloxygen.co.uk Fridays Dance Anthems 11pm-6am, free. House and commercial music all night from Big Al, Nicky G, 3 Bird, Jordan Steins, LJ Isaac and Tom Chizzy. Saturdays 11.30pm-5am, £5/free before 1. Upstairs: deep house, commercial house and tech-house.

Downstairs: urban, chart, classics, r’n’b, hip-hop and UK garage.

CLWB IFOR BACH Womanby St, Cardiff. 029 2023 2199 / www.clwb.net Tue 5 Souljam: Keep On Dancing 11pm, £8. Soul, funk and disco. Thurs 7 Thank U, Next 11pm-3am, £3-£7. Modern pop music such as Ariana Grande, as you could probably guess for yourself. Fridays (bottom) Yum! 11pm-3am, £3-£5.

Indie and pop. New, or at least refocused, night. Fri 1 Dazed 11pm-4am, £10.

Drum’n’bass from Lanezman, Clique with MC XL, Beesman and Incursion Audio. Fri 8 Get Funky 10pm-4am, £7 adv. With groovy lo-fi houser

Frits Wentink, plus support from Viewpoints. Fri 5 Apr Dazed Disco: The Fiesta Funkdown 11pm-3am, £3-£7.

More or less monthly disco night. Saturdays Dirty Pop 10pm-4am, £5. Three floors of fun: Grltlk and Andrew Rhys Lewis’ top floor resident indie shindig; Dirty Pop; and Mr Potter’s proper disco.

COURTYARD 48 Cambrian Road, Newport. 01633 213161.

Wednesdays Wild Wednesdays Upfront dance anthems and “Urban Vibes”.

Fridays Spotlight Sessions / The Kickstart 5pm, £3/ free before 9. Urban and club anthems and drinks deals.

Part of the NPCLUBHOP price deal which also includes entry to Blind Tiger, Meze Lounge and Lambaba. Saturdays Mischief Beat-driven anthems is the ambiguous description for tonight’s music policy. Sundays Good Time Social Club 8pm, free. DJs til late and the weekend’s sports highlights.

CREATURE SOUND Ken Bu Kan, 1 Bethesda Street, Swansea. 01792 301178 / www. creaturesound.com

Street, Swansea. 01792 828777 / www.fictionclub. co.uk/swansea Mondays Quids In 10.45pm2.30am, £3.50/£2 before 11.

Chart, cheese, r’n’b, dance and house. Wednesdays Underground 11pm-3.30am, £3.50/£2 before 1. House, chart, r’n’b and cheese across two rooms. Fridays 11pm-3am, £5/£3 adv. Drinks offers and, uh, music I guess. Saturdays Agenda 10.30pm-3am, £3.50/£2 before 1. Fiction: house, r’n’b, EDM. Vinyl: pop and party.

FUEL 5 Womanby Street, Cardiff.

07970 063107 / facebook. com/fuelcardiff Thursdays FUBAR 10pm2am. Rock, metal and alternative clubnight. Fridays + Saturdays Rock and metal anthems each weekend, plus special guests when such types are in town.

THE GLOBE 125 Albany Road, Cardiff.

07590 471888 / www. globecardiffmusic.com Fri 22 Saved By The 90s 9pm-2am, £7/£5. Pop songs from the 90s. Fri 29 On The Sixth Day God Created

Stalwart spinners of enviable 45s, Penarth Soul Club, have their first bash of 2019 at their regular home of Penarth Ex-Servicemen’s Club on Sat 16 Mar. Thereafter, they’ll be back every other month this year plus New Year’s Eve. Fri 15 Crossfaded 7-11pm.

Drum’n’bass plus a little bit of hip-hop from 4K, Wonkcrafts & Friends, Matenj b2b Llew and Mackay.

THE DUKE Old Market Street, Neath.

01639 643892.

Sat 30 Hedone 8pm-2am.

House and techno, headlined

by Matt Kent and with more details TBC. EDDIES 4 Quay Street, Haverfordwest. 01437 779595 / www.eddies.co Sat 2 Black House 9pm5am, £14 adv. With Andy C & MC Tonn Piper, DJ Hazard, Harriet Jaxxon, Rogue One & Illustrate, a Useless Generation hip-hop showcase featuring Culture Vultures, Defects Of The Dock and more, One_Z, Boundary and a DJ competition winner, plus MCs Trafic, Y Dott and Twitchee. Sat 30 Example 10pm-5am, £12 adv. Pop-rap fella. It says he is playing “LIVE” but given that his tour this month seems to exclusively be in provincial nightclubs I suspect they are using that word in the sense of “physically present in the building“.

FICTION & VINYL The City Gates, Little Wind

Manchester 9pm-2am, £9-£14 adv. Featuring a DJ set by Bez from the Happy Mondays and a live PA from Rowetta sort of from the Happy Mondays. Other events under this name I’ve seen also feature Graeme Park, who unlike Bez is an actual DJ, but he isn’t listed here.

THE HANBURY ARMS 17 Clarence St. Pontypool.

01495 764519 / hanburyarms.co.uk Sat 9 PH Takeover 8pm1am. Hosted by local DJ duo the PH Brothers and also featuring Lam and Spctrm.

Tech-house, techno, trance, psy and hardstyle are on the musical menu.

HANGAR 18 50 Plymouth Street, Swansea. 07984 664008 / facebook.com/hangar18mv Sat 2 District 10pm-3am, £3.

Emo, pop-punk, metal, alterantive etc. Fri 8 Polymer 10pm-4am, £8. House and techno, headliner TBC as I write but already sold out. Sat 9 Resist-Stance 10pm-4am, £7. New acid techno/free party types with north Wales’ A.P. headlining over Fattman b2b Salted Slug, Jaime B, 4NR and the SUSS Twins. Fri 22 XL Invites Swansea Launch Party 10pm-3am, £5-£12.

Cardiff drum’n’bass MC XL

visits the auld enemy and brings Kasra, Ransom, Benji, Llew, Woz and Mogs with him.

Sat 23 Charity Bass Event 10pm-4am, £3-£8. Featuring a headline set by Ky with Madconcepts, Milott, M.i.i.A and more TBC; in support of Hollie Gazzard Trust and Rape Crisis.

THE HEFTY CHEST The Strand, Swansea. facebook.com/kingshandbar Sat 2 Dead Of Night 9pm3am, £3. Goth/alternative club night, on the first Saturday of every month. Relocated from The Last Resort which closed in January but is set to reopen with new owners and a different name. This place, meanwhile, is a pirate bar.

INKSPOT The Old Church, Newport Road, Cardiff. 029 2049 0254 / www. inkspotartsandcrafts.com Sat 6 Apr Cellar Door 10pm-4am, £10 adv. First April event for CD, who are in these listings elsewhere (Play, Abertillery) and in this venue for the first time.

JACOB’S MARKET West Canal Wharf, Cardiff.

029 2039 0939.

Fri 15 Teak 10pm-5am, from £13. Fifth birthday night for this Cardiff house/disco/ other party crew. Orpheu The Wizard, Rikki Humphrey and Seka feature.

JAC’S Bryngolwg House, Wind Street, Aberdare. 01685 882198 / info@ jacsaberdare.co.uk Sat 30 Northern Soul Night 7pm, £4. With DJs Matthew Morgan, Liam Curtin and Andrew Jones.

KARMA CLUB 75 St Mary Street, Cardiff.

07722 523192 / karmaclubcardiff.wix.com/ karma-club Sat 2 Freebass 10pm6am, £8. Welsh free party/ rave veterans with a night of house, techno, breaks and drum’n’bass from Duvet Vous, Das Butcher, Ned Kelly and Freebass residents. They also have a followup night here on Sat 6 Apr, further details currently TBC. LASER STATION Bridge Wharf, Carmarthen.

01267 235648 / www. laserstationwales.com Sat 9 Concur Series 3 9pm-3am, from £10. Techno and minimal from Spektre and Gary Burrows. Fri 29 Wonkcrafts 8.30pm-1am, £5. Drum’n’bass locals with an 18th birthday party for Pie-Fi, who is performing this evening alongside 4K, Arkade, Proffesorjo, Matenj, LRB, Aksrevenge, Syphr, Nu-East and MCM. LEVEL 2 @ KONGS 114-116 St Mary Street, Cardiff. info@kongsbars. com / www.kongsbars.com Fri 8 90s Rave 10pm-3am, £3 adv. One of those low-effort nostalgia nights aimed at students who were babbies or

u – repeated

sperm when it was actually happening. Lloyd Haines and guests play acid house, hard house, hard trance, house and trance. Fri 29 The Spin Doctors 10pm-3am, £12/£10. Drum’n’bass from Etherwood, Double A-Sides, Ark b2b Calamity, Mascot, JuicE, and host MC XL. Sat 6 Apr Stickylemons v Circle Eight Soundclash Sessions 10.30pm-3.30am.

Two local drum’n’bass promoters with a night whose premise is 90-minute soundclashes between two DJs, who will come from the Low Down Deep and Playaz stables.

LOCOS 7 Miskin Street, Cardiff.

029 2034 1767 / www. locoslatinbar.co.uk Fri 1 The Shutdown Show: St David’s Cypher 8pm2am, free. Local hip-hop and grime showcase featuring MCs Lucas J Rowe, Razkid, Ez-rah and and more TBC, plus DJs Prem and Dontheprod.

MARY’S 89 St Mary Street, Cardiff.

Mon-Thurs 4pm-2am, Fri 4pm-3am, Sat 12pm-3am, Sun 12pm-1am. 029 2066 8647 / www.maryscardiff. co.uk Wednesdays Wednesday Club 8pm-2am. Dance and chart toppers with DJ Chris.

Thursdays Mixxet 8pm2am. Fun, games, and cabaret with Amber Dextrous and Alphaa Heart. Fridays Non Stop Party 8pm-2am. DJ Lee plays tunes from the 90s onwards. Saturdays 8pm2am. Dance, pop and chart with DJ Billy Joe. Sundays Service 5pm-2am, free. Bingo with Aunty Ade and Aunty Betty from 5pm, with cash prizes; DJ Mary Golds until 9pm; guest cabaret at 9pm and DJ Billy Joe on the tapes (this is an odd turn of phrase but I like it) until 1am.

METRO’S Baker’s Row, Cardiff. 029 2039 9942 / www. metroscardiff.com Wednesdays Meltdown 10.30pm-4am, free before 11. Punk and rock anthems.

Fridays Havoc 10.30pm4am, free before 11.

Mismatched alternative tunes from Hywel. Saturdays Lose Yourself 10.30pm-4am, free before 11. Stereo Brain playing indie, beats, treats and pop-punk.

MINSKYS SHOW BAR Cathedral Walk, St David’s Centre, Cardiff. 029 2023 3128 / www.minskysshowbar.com Fridays & Saturdays 8pm1am. Dancing and cabaret with regular drag acts including Tina Sparkle, Miss Babs and Jolene Dover.

MOCKA LOUNGE Mill Lane, Cardiff. Mon-Sat 11am-late. 029 2022 1295 / www.mockalounge.com Thursdays Iqos Social Club / Intuition 7-9pm: Iqos Social Club; 9pm-late: Intuition with DJs Monique B and Dan Willow. Fridays Feeling Soul, funk, disco, rare groove and r’n’b with resident DJs

and happy hour from 5-8pm.

Saturdays House Of Play House and r’n’b from resident DJs. Sundays Secret Resident DJs play 90s music.

THE MOON Womanby Street, Cardiff.

029 2037 3022 / info@ themooncardiff.com Wed 27 Womanby’s Clubbing 5.30-8pm. Monthly clubbing events for adults with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and mental health conditions. Run in partnership with Student Volunteering.

Thursdays One More Time 10.30pm-3am, free.

Music from the 90s and 00s.

Fridays Gigantic Until 4am, free. Funk, punk, rock’n’roll, hip-hop, indie, reggae and soul after bands finish playing.

Saturdays Five Dollar Shake Until 4am, free. Bebop, funk, soul, Motown, hip-hop, reggae, ska and everything in between, after bands finish playing. *Sat 9 Ladies Of Rage International Women’s Day Showcase 4pm-4am, free. Spoken word, acoustic, hip-hop, grime, r’n’b, drum’n’bass, house and garage, variously in live and DJ form. See Clubs.

MUSIQUE BAR & LOUNGE Market Street, Newport.

01633 533666 / theneon. co.uk/neon-bar-lounge Fridays + Saturdays 9pm-2am, free. Soul, funk, old skool hip-hop, reggae, house, UK garage, lovers rock etc. Fri 1 Jungle:Code 10pm-5am, £5. Launch night with a tonna DJS/MCs over two rooms.

Main room (jungle/d’n’b): Frenzee, Riddim 68, Matt Kirke B2b Fr:zn, Bason b2b MLD, Ransom b2b Comfort, Quadey b2b Ini Jungle, Kevlar b2b Bootleg, DJ Illa B b2b DJ Natural, Shai Guy, Tention and hosts Fernquest and a guest.

Room 2: UK funky, deep house and garage from Shep, Lucas Alexander, Gaz Clue and host Bookie.

PENARTH EX-SERIVCEMEN’S CLUB 69 Windsor Road, Penarth.

029 2070 7530 / www. penarthexservicemensclub. co.uk Sat 16 Penarth Soul Club 7.30pm-12am, £3 adv. A night of classic soul, northern soul etc. Further 2019 dates are on Sat 18 May, Sat 13 July, Sat 14 Sept, Sat 16 Nov and NYE. THE PHILHARMONIC 76-77 St Mary Street, Cardiff. 029 2132 0740 / www.thephilharmoniccardiff. co.uk Fri 1 Spectrum 10pm-4am, £5/£4 before 11. Techno from London-based Welshman Wockney plus Iolo, J-Tech and JaMo. Relocated from its original setting of Buffalo.

PLATFORM 11 High Street, Pontypridd.

Fri-Sun 7.30pm-2am. www. platform11.co.uk Sat 9 023 7pm-4am, £5-£9.

Headlined by chunky house DJ Tristan Ingram.

PLAY 20 Market Street, Abertillery. 07973 777717.

Sat 2 Cellar Door Lite 9pm-2am, £10. House and techno in a 200-capacity club.

POPWORLD 96 St Mary Street, Cardiff.

Mon, Tue + Thurs 9pm3am; Wed 8pm-3am; Fri 5pm-3am; Sat 1pm-3am.

029 2023 5825.

Mondays Pop Rocks 9pm. A night of what they call alternative pop but their examples (Green Day, Blink, Linkin Park) seem to suggest will be pop-punk and nu-metal. Ah, it’s all just names at the end of the day. Thursdays Top Of The Pops 10pm-3am.

Discounted drinks, free entry and a chance to party the night away, all advertised using the logo from defunct TV show Top Of The Pops which, as a national brand of venues, I assume Popworld are using with the full permission of the BBC. Fridays Reflex 7pm-3am. Drinks deals until 11pm. Saturdays Popworld

Party 1pm-3am. Drinks deals from 3-6pm.

POPWORLD 2-5 Wind Street, Swansea.

Mon-Fri + Sun 8pm-3am; Sat 3pm-3am. 01792 470676.

Mondays Pop Is A Drag 9pm-3am. With Drag host Opal Fruits and DJ Chris Toole.

Wednesdays Quids In 8pm-3am. Student night where drinks are £1. Thursdays Neon Disco 9pm-3am. Dance r’n’b, pop, chart and punk.

Fridays #WTF 9pm-3am, £2-£4. Tunes, games etc.

Saturdays Pop Party 8pm3am, £2-£4.

PORTLAND HOUSE Bute Street, Cardiff Bay. 029 2048 7602 / www. portlandhousecardiff.com Fri 1 Dock Of The Bay Soul Night 7.30pm-12am, £5 adv. Hosted by Penarth Soul Club, DJs Liam Curtin, Shelley Barrett, Matthew Morgan and Wayne Sheppard play 60s and 70s soul and Motown off vinyl.

PRYZM Greyfriars Road, Cardiff.

029 2023 3854 / www. pryzm.co.uk/cardiff Mondays Quids In 10pm3am, £1 adv/£6 VIP. Student night featuring various special guests. Fridays Smack.

9pm-3am, £4 adv. Weekly student event described by one enthusiast as “lit Friday nights with chilled fam bams and regular bants”. Fri 15 features a live set from Example which is sold out. Saturdays Agenda 10pm-3am, £5. Three music arenas, VIP booths, other stuff. Sat 23 Smirnoff Big Night Out 10pm-3am, £5 adv. Featuring a headline set

by James Hype, a Scouse DJ with a terrible name that might actually also be his real one?

PULSE 3 Churchill Way, Cardiff.

029 2064 1010 / www. pulsecardiff.com. Gay venue.

Wednesdays Kapow!

10pm-4am. Student night with

HARRISON BDP Haws @ Undertone, Cardiff, Fri 22 Feb Tickets: £9/£7.50. Info: 029 2022 8883 / www.undertonecardiff.com By the time Buzz dubbed Cardiff’s Harrison BDP a One To Watch in late 2017, off the back of his enchanting, sideways-leaning dubby house productions and swelling calendar of DJ dates, he already looked like he was going places. The year or so hence has cemented that, with Harry Webber firing out a new 12” pretty much every few weeks while melting speakers throughout the UK and as far away as Toronto and Tbilisi. An upshot of which is that his home city is about the last place you can expect to see him play – until now. Chipper club promoters Haws, who included a Harrison BDP track (Dust) on their recently released compilation EP Haws Party Vol. 1, have now coaxed him into Undertone for a headline slot. Should be a roadblocker.

Jolene Dover and DJ Warren.

Fridays Full On 10pm-5am, £4/£3. DJ Craig downstairs, Opal upstairs. Saturdays The Sound Of Saturday 10pm-5am, £5/£4 b4 11. The very best chart remixes and classic hits all night long.

THE RAINBOW ROOMS 12 High Street, Gorseinon, Swansea. 07763 000382 / www.the-rainbowrooms. com Fridays 10pm-4am. With resident DJs Trixta, Jay P and Dip E every week. Saturdays 9pm-4am. With residents plus guest DJs each week: Sat 9 has Rob Rees, Sat 16 has John Hughes, Sat 23 has Jay P and Sat 30 has Judge Jules, Big Al, Johnny Griffiths, John Hughes and Rob Rees. Sat 2 Clubland Classix Swansea 9pm-4am, £10 adv. Return of this hit pop-rave night, this time featuring Flip N Fill, N-Trance and his extremely Tory tweets, MC Wotsee, Rob Rees, Jay P and Rob EJ. Sat 30 Logic 10pm-4am, £10 adv.

Featuring Judge Jules, Big Al, Jonny Griffiths, John Hughes and Rob Rees.

RUM & FIZZ Coffee Barker, Castle Arcade, Cardiff. 029 2022 4575 / facebook.com/ rumandfizz Fri 1 + Fri 5 Apr The Shakedown 8.30pm-12.30am, free. Funk, jazz, R&B, boogaloo etc from DJs Lee, Matt and Andy, newly in this venue on the first Friday of every month.

SIN CITY Dilwyn Street, Swansea.

01792 468892 / www. sincityclub.co.uk Fri 1 Mall Grab 10pm-4am, £15. Aussie house jock, playing in Cardiff Uni tonight as well. Local residents will also feature I daresay. Fri 8 What Hannah Wants 10pm-4am, from £15. Brummie bass music fave tours the so-called small venues of the UK, plays a three-hour set herself and has others (TBC) playing.

Sold out; in Cardiff tomorrow, which is sold out too. Fri 15 Wilkinson 10pm-4am, free. Drum’n’bass biggie on the Ram label, here with MC Ad-Apt and support DJ Benny L. Sold out. Tuesdays Hustle 10pm-3am, £3/£2 before 12. Motown, r’n’b and hip-hop. Thursdays Sin Savers 10pm-3am, £3. Student night. Fridays Monsters Of Rock 10pm3.30am, £4/£2 before 12.30.

Indie in room 1, metal in room 2. Saturdays Sink 10pm3am. Hip-hop, drum’n’bass, dubstep etc, with special guests plus resident DJs Dubman, Swiss Elf and South.

Sat 23 Dazed 10pm-4am, £10-£15. Drum’n’bass collective Problem Central (aka Majistrate, Logan, Eksman and Evil B) headline this’un.

Clique, Friends On Benefits and Ebbens also feature. See Clubs.

SODA St Mary Street, Cardiff. 029 2037 3363 / www. sodacardiff.com Wednesdays Replay 9pm4am, £4. Chart, cheese and

r’n’b for students. Fridays Guilty Sounds 10pm-4am, £4/£6 VIP. R’n’b and house from the 90s and 00s. Fri 8 features a guest DJ set from Charlie Sloth. Saturdays Soiree 9pm-4am. Three rooms including the Attic which is “the social playground for the high flyers and social elite, the only place to be seen.” Imagine catching your reflection in the mirror just after writing that.

Sundays Soda Sundays 9pm-3am, £4/£8 VIP. Three floors of music for students and industry workers.

TIGER TIGER Friary House, Greyfriars Rd, Cardiff. Open Mon-Fri 12pm-2am, Sat 12pm-3am, Sun 12pm-12.30am. 029 2039 1944 / www.tigertigercardiff.co.uk Every Day Lucky Voice Karaoke From £2.50 per session. The UK’s leading private karaoke experience each day of the week. Mondays Dolla Dolla 10pm-3am, £5/£2. Student night with special guests. Tuesdays Sync 10pm-3am, £3. R’n’b and hip-hop from DJ Sole and Alex Davies; disco, house and bass from Lewis Disson, Kyle Thom and Jordan Witts.

Wednesdays Shotgun Rules 10pm-3am, £5/£3.50.

Exclusive midweek student party. You don’t need NUS to get in though. Fridays Tic Toc 10pm-3am, £4. “Forget the DJs who play the stuff you’ve never heard of, ours will be playing your favourite tracks all night long.” Saturdays Kanaloa Polynesian style area with cocktails, VIP booths, dancers etc.

TITAN WAREHOUSE Splott Market, Titan Road, Cardiff. www. titanwarehouse.com Fri 8 Opening Weekend 4-11pm, £25 adv. First of two raves in this new, huge, daytime-and-evening-only-sorry venue which we previewed in Clubs last month. Today features Andy C, Jauz X Holy Goof, My Nu Leng & Dread MC, SASASAS and Sub Focus b2b Dimension. Probably all sold out by the time you read this. Sat 9 Opening Weekend 2-11pm, £25 adv.

Second of aforementioned two rave, featuring MK presents Area 10, Jax Jones, Weiss, Icarus, Eli Brown and KC Lights.

TRAMSHED Clare Road, Grangetown, Cardiff. 029 2023 5555 / www.tramshedcardiff.com Fri 15 Goodgreef 10pm4am, £20 adv/£25 VIP. Trance brand that blew up in the 00s but which I for one have not thought about for some time hits Cardiff with sets from Gareth Emery, Ashley Wallbridge, Standerwick, Hywel Matthews and Richie Knight. Sat 23 Mungo’s Hi Fi 11.30pm-3am, £12/£10. Dub reggae festival crew bring their big rig to thrill the venue’s punters and neighbours alike.

Gardna, Stagga & Magugu, Benny Bootleg and ShantiSquire also feature.

UNDERTONE (BASEMENT OF 10 FEET TALL) 11a + 12 Church Street, Cardiff. 029 2022 8883 / www.undertonecardiff.com Fri 1 Helium 10pm-4am, £5/£4 adv. House and techno, residents showcase. Sat 2 Flatline 10pm-4am.

Drum’n’bass. Tue 5 + Tue 19 Wile Out 10pm, £5/£3 adv. Bassline and drum’n’bass. Thurs 7 Nxtgen 10pm-3am, £3-£8.

Bassline and drum’n’bass.

Sat 9 Paranoize 10pm4am. Drum’n’bass, dub and bassline. Tue 12 Luna 10pm. House, techno and acid. Thurs 14 The Bass Warriors 10pm-3am, £3.

Bass music (mixed genres) with DJs Fiberwire, Delphine Radio, CJ Watson and DJ Hyde. Consistently astonished by how many new nights launch here all doing pretty much the same thing. Fri 15 Housewerk 10pm-4am, £5. House and tech-house from ADR, Locomote, Antwon&NTM, Scott Phillips, Callum Bergin and Lewis John. Sat 16 Junction 11pm. Drum’n’bass. Fri 22 Haws 10pm-4am, £5-£8. With a now-rare hometown headline set from lo-fi house-adjacent fave Harrison BDP. Wed 27 Pressure 10pm. Drum’n’bass.

Sat 30 10243 10pm-4am, £3 adv. Techno Berlin style. Fri 4 Apr Elevate 10pm-4am, £3.

Liquid drum’n’bass/jungle.

THE VAULTS / PORTLAND HOUSE The Old Natwest Bank, 113-116 Bute Street, Cardiff Bay. www.vaultspresents. com Sat 9 What Hannah Wants 10pm-4am, from £14. See Sin City listing for the basic deal. This is sold out, as is that one. Fri 5 Apr Canopy 10pm-5am, £12.50-£15.50.

Drun’n’bass from Kings Of The Rollers, who are on an album tour, plus Inja and more TBC. WAREHOUSE 54 54 Cambrian Road, Newport. 01633 213161.

Wednesdays Hump! 7pm.

Cocktails, drink deals and tunes over two floors. Fridays Sunset Havana 9pm, £2-£4.

Rock, indie, alt and pop from Aaron Lillie and Jaivinder.

Fri 15 is an “anti-Valentine” night titled Thank U, Next.

Saturdays Raise The Roof 10pm. Funk, disco, r’n’b and classics.

WOW BAR 4 Churchill Way, Cardiff.

Gay venue. Free all day Sun-Thurs; before 11pm Fri + Sat. 029 2066 6247 / www.wowbarcardiff.com Thursdays Throwback Free. DJ Lee soundtrack nonstop fun and games, hosted

by Gina Grigio. Fridays Kitty’s Ditties Free before 11. With WOW Showgirl Miss Kitty, plus special guests every week. Saturdays Devilishly Divine Free before 10. Pop and party upstairs, chart and dance downstairs. Sundays Fundays 12pm-1.30am, free.

DJ Krys and Chris Army play the tunes until late.

BUZZ 65

events EVERY MONDAY uNoFit State Circus Classes And Courses Four Elms Road, Adamsdown, Cardiff. £4-£12 per class. Info 029 2022 1330 / www. nofitstate.org. Classes for various age groups on every day; check the website for full details. uUp Side Down Circus Classes Cave Venture Workshops, Tremorfa Industrial Estate, Cardiff. Info 029 2048 8854 / info@ upsidedowncircus.co.uk.

Classes for various skill levels on every day; check the website for full details.

EVERY TUESDAY uAdult Give It A Go Climbing Session Boulders, St Catherine’s Park, Cardiff.

6.30-7.50pm, £15. Info 029 2048 4880. Every Tuesday to Thursday.

Beginners Ballet Dance House, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 6.157.30pm, £6. Info 029 2063 5614. Covering key ballet principles including developing core strength, improving posture, basic steps, flexibility and coordination. Hosted by National Dance Company Wales.

Beginners Contemporary Dance Dance House, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30-8.45pm, £6. Info 029 2063 5614. Exploring the basic principles of contemporary dance through a set of exercises. Hosted by National Dance Company Wales.

English Conversation Group For Beginners M.A.D.E. Gallery & Shop, Cardiff. 11am, free. Info 029 2047 3373. Led by a qualified English language teacher.

Mid Wales Dance Academy Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. Info 01874 623219.

With Lesley Walker. Also on Thursdays, Fridays aand Saturdays.

Open Mic Night Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@ porterscardiff.com.

EVERY THURSDAY Learn To Roller Skate Cardiff Central Youth Club, Cardiff. 6-7.30pm, £4/£40 for eight weeks at two sessions per week. Info www.brawlers. co.uk. With Cardiff roller derby team Tiger Bay Brawlers; fully coached and with veteran skater lead. Also on every Sunday.

Mid Wales Dance Academy Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. Info 01874 623219.

Singing For Lung Health Bridges Centre, Drybridge House, Monmouth. 11am12pm, £3. Info 03000 555555.

New singing group set up by the British Lung Foundation and open to anyone living with a lung condition.

EVERY FRIDAY Bingo Lingo The Depot, Cardiff. 6pm, £5. Info www. depotcardiff.co.uk. Features street food, a wheel of fortune and “rubbish prizes”.

English Conversation Group For Advanced Adult Learners M.A.D.E. Gallery & BUZZ 66

Shop, Cardiff. 11am, free. Info 029 2047 3373. Led by a qualified English language teacher.

Mid Wales Dance Academy Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. Info 01874 623219.

Rhiwbina Farmers Market The Butchers Arms, Rhiwbina.

10am-1pm, free. Info 029 2022 7982.

EVERY SATURDAY Mid Wales Dance Academy Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. Info 01874 623219.

Roath Real Food Market Mackintosh Sports Club Car Park, Roath, Cardiff. 9.30am1pm, free. Info 029 2022 7982.

EVERY SUNDAY Cooper’s Quiz Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm, £1 to play. Info info@porterscardiff.com.

Hosted by Ben Cooper.

Draw Somebody’s Sunday Body Little Man Coffee Co, Cardiff. 1.30-3.30pm, £7.50.

Info 07830 381930. Hosted by Cardiff Life Model.

Learn To Roller Skate Cardiff Central Youth Club, Cardiff. 12-1pm, £3/£40 for eight weeks at two sessions per week. Info www.brawlers. co.uk. Uncoached session hosted by Tiger Bay Brawlers.

Riverside Farmers’ Market Fitzhammon Embankment, Cardiff. 10am2pm, free. Info 029 2022 7982.

Always worth a trip.

Sunday Board Games Cardiff Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff. 3pm, free. Info 029 2030 4400. Weekly session featuring a mixture of competitive and co-operative games.

FRIDAY 1 MARCH uBingo Lingo The Depot, Cardiff. 6pm, £5. Info www. depotcardiff.co.uk. Features street food, a wheel of fortune and “rubbish prizes”. Also on Fri 8, Fri 15 and Fri 22 this month.

Cardiff Inter Varsity Club Meeting Park Plaza Hotel, Cardiff. 8.30pm, £5 (threemonth trial membership). Info 07526 141392 / www.cardiffivc. org.uk. Meeting here on the first Friday of each month. uCardiff Science Festival Various locations, Cardiff.

Most events free. Info www. cardiffsciencefestival.co.uk.

“Exciting science events, aiming to inspire and educate,” say the organisers. Started yesterday, but for the three days of March there are events in Techniquest, the Capitol Shopping Centre, Lush, AJs Coffee House, the Central Library, the Arcade Vaults, Bute Park Education Centre, Little Man Coffee, Firestorm Games and Big Moose Coffee. uCraft Fayre Norwegian Church Arts Centre, Cardiff Bay. 10.30am-4pm, free. Info 029 2087 7959. (Until Sun 3, then on Sat 30 + Sun 31) uDylan’s Animals Dylan Thomas Centre, Swansea.

10am-4pm, £3 (suggested donation). Info 01792 463980.

Family-friendly activities including creative writing, make a mini comic, puppets, games, reading corner, crafts and costumes. (Until Sun 3) Meet The Objects: St David’s Day National History Museum, St Fagans.

11.30am, 1pm + 2.30pm, free.

Info 029 2057 3500. Talk in English, Welsh and English, in

that order. uPiggy Walking With A ‘Pig-Nic’ Senni Valley, Brecon Beacons. £25/£10 under-16s.

Info 01874 749092. Take a pair of friendly Kune Kune pigs (from New Zealand, look a bit like Ewoks) for a walk, then return to the smallholding for refreshments. Also on Mon 11, Tue 12, Sun 17, Sun 24, Wed 27 and Sun 31 this month. uPirate Week Gower Heritage Centre, Swansea.

10am-5.30pm. Info 01792 371206. Pirate-themed events for kids including craft, stories, cartoons, gold panning etc. (Until Sun 3) Professor Brian Cox Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

6.30pm, from £35. Info 029 2022 4488. With a new show titled Universal. Sold out, but he is back here on Wed 18 Sept.

Scrappy Sheep Club: St David’s Day Rosettes National Wool Museum, Drefach Felindre. 12-3pm, free.

Info 029 2057 3600.

Self-Led Activities Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea.

11am-4pm, £5. Info 01792 516900. Drop-in family sessions.

Shield Decorating Cardiff Castle. 10.15am, 12.15pm + 2.30pm, £8. Info 029 2087 8100. Half term activities, price

brilliant-books. (Untul Sun 10) Charity Craft Fair Twyn Caerphilly. £15 to set up a stall.

Info smiley271283@ hotmail.com. In aid of muscular dystrophy charities.

Dewch i Ganu National Waterfront Museum, Swansea.

11am, free. Info 029 2057 3600.

Join musician Delyth Jenkins and learn Welsh through song. uDinky Donkey Walking Venue TBC, Brecon Beacons. £35/£25 under-16s. Info 01874 749092. Spend a couple of hours with a pair of Miniature Mediterranean Donkeys. Also on Sun 3, Fri 8 (a Brecon Women’s Festival special, suggested donation £2), Sun 10, Tue 12, Sat 16, Fri 22 and Sat 30 this month.

Enamelling Workshop Craft In The Bay, Cardiff Bay. 10.30am-1pm, £45. Info 029 2048 4611.

Enfys Craft Fair St. Francis Millennium Centre, Barry.

10am-4pm. Info 01446 792149.

Every first Saturday of the month.

Good Morning Family Yoga National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 10am, £4/£1.50 kids. Info 029 2057 3600.

Knit, Sew And Crochet National History Museum, St Fagans. 2-4pm, free. Info 029 2057 3500. Held in Gweithdy

The Spring Forward Festival comprises a wide range of arty happenings in Volcano, Swansea from Fri 22-Sat 30. The concept is that of cultural connections with mainland Europe, which is to say the dates were not selected at random. includes admission for an adult and a child.

St David’s Day National Museum Cardiff. 10am-5pm, free. Info 029 2039 7951. Take a walk through Welsh history in the gallery and explore Welsh art.

St David’s Day Mini Party National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 10.30am-12pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600. Kids’ activities.

Talk: Poor Taff National Museum Cardiff. 1pm, £3. Info 029 2039 7951. Peter Lord talks about this famous Welsh painting.

The Wearable Art Show Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1, 4 + 7.15pm, £11/£9. Info 029 2039 1391. Annual event described as an avant-garde catwalk show and featuring costumes created by the College’s theatre designers.

SATURDAY 2 MARCH uBrilliant Books Insole Court, Llandaff, Cardiff. Prices vary per event. Info 029 2116 7920. Debut of this nin-day literary festival, aimed at kids and adults alike. After a launch event at 2pm today with BBC Wales’ Lucy Owen, expect readings, workshops, talks, interactive sessions and a choir performance. Go here for a link to the full programme: www.insolecourt.org/events/

gallery on the first Saturday of each month until July.

Mini Mono Workshop The Printhaus, Canton, Cardiff.

1-5pm, £35. Info 029 2022 0349. One-day course on the first Saturday of every month this year.

Nick Sharratt’s Right Royal Drawalong The Riverfront, Newport. 2pm, £8.

Info 01633 656757. Kids’ writer and illustrator with an interactive afternoon of drawing. uPenarth Winter Carnival Various locations, Penarth.

Free (some activities may incur a charge). Info 07974 397771. Four days of family activities over the first bank holiday-related long weekend of 2019. (Until Tue 5) uSaturday Workshop Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 10.30am-1pm, free (suggested donation £3).

Info 01792 516900. Family workshop, every Saturday this month.

Taco And Tequila The Depot, Cardiff. 5-11pm, £8.

Info www.depotcardiff.co.uk.

A evening where you can eat the former and drink the latter while watching grapple action from Attack! Pro Wrestling.

Vintage Kilo Sale Cathays Community Centre, Cardiff.

10am-6pm, free. Info 029 2037 3144. Designer labels at £15 a kilo. uWalk A Tiny Pony Venue

TBC, Swansea Valley. £35/£25 under-16s. Info 01874 749092.

Take a small Shetland pony for a walk on a hill farm. May also feature a guest appearance from a goat called Carol. Also on Thurs 7, Sat 9, Sat 166, Sat 23 and Sat 30 this month. uYoung Writers Squad Dylan Thomas Centre, Swansea. 10am-2pm, free. Info 01792 463980. Workshop, also here on Sat 23.

SUNDAY 3 MARCH National Theatre Wales: Creative Conversation Portland House, Cardiff Bay. 11am, free. Info 029 2063 6464.

A chance to discuss the future of NTW, and Welsh theatre in general, with NTW itself. Not sure if you have to book in advance but you can do that.

MONDAY 4 MARCH uBasket Making Peak, The Old School, Crickhowell.

10am-2.30pm, £120 (four weeks). Info 01873 811579.

Course hosted by artisan basket maker and willow craftswoman Mary Zammit. Every Monday until 25 Mar. uDrums For All Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 12.301.30pm, £5/£4. Info 07875 090946. Dementia-friendly music making sessions. Every other Monday (also on Mon 18 in March). uHave Fun / Meet New People Grangetown Community Choir Cornwall Street Baptist Church Hall.

Grangetown, Cardiff. 7.309.30pm, £10 per session/£80 for 12 sessions. Info paulinedown7@gmail.com.

With Pauline Down, every Monday until 8 Apr. Journey Inside Outside Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

10am, free. Info 01874 611622. Workshops in writing, drawing and movement with Fi Latus and Sarah Hyde.

Book in advance please.

TUESDAY 5 MARCH Art Babas Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 10.3011.30am, free. Info 01792 516900. Relaxed sensory craft session for parents/ carers and children from six months to three years. Book in advance please.

Board Games The Gate, Cardiff. 6.30-11pm, £3.50.

Info 029 2048 3344. Hosted

by Rules Of Play on the first Tuesday of every month.

(Clothes) Swap, Don’t Shop! Cinema & Co, Swansea. 6-8pm, £5. Info 07982 624959. A clothes swapping evening, natch.

Price includes some bucks fizz and snacks. uCreating Sketchbooks Craft In The Bay, Cardiff Bay. 10am-1pm, £270 (six sessions). Info 029 2048 4611.

With Sasha Kingston. Every Tuesday until 9 Apr. uExplore Books National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 10.30am, free. Info 029 2057 3600. Book club, every Tuesday this month, with no obligation to have read the book(s) beforehand.

This month books with a travel-related theme will be discussed. uLife Writing Peak, The Old School, Crickhowell.

2-4pm, £55 (six weeks). Info 01873 811579. Course hosted

by Renée Stanton, teaching people how to write about their own experiences. Every Tuesday until 9 Apr. Nataly Churchill Workmen’s Hall, Caerphilly.

7pm, £10/£8 adv. Info 07512 237983. Psychic medium. uPaper-Based Screenprinting The Printhaus, Canton, Cardiff.

6-8pm, £120 (four sessions).

Info 029 2022 0349. With Nigel Bowles, every Tuesday this month. uUplift Singing Sessions Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

12.30-1.30pm, £5/£4. Info 01874 611622. With Tanya Walker. Every Tuesday this month.

WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH 100 Welsh Women Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.45pm, £6/£5. Info 01970 623232. Varied programme of readings, talks and live music recitals to commemorate International Women’s Day. uAdult Workshops Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea.

1-3pm, free. Info 01792 516900. A class for people of all abilities to create art in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Every Wednesday this month.

Blossoms And Buds Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea.

7pm, £12. Info 01792 473238.

Flower arranging demostrtation.

Drink & Draw The Gate, Cardiff. 8pm, £3.50. Info 029 2048 3344. Learn drawing skills with artist Rachel Rasmussen, every first Wednesday of the month.

Reminiscence Monthly Cardiff Story, The Hayes, Cardiff. 11am-1pm, free. Info 029 2034 6214. Come to the museum and share your memories of Cardiff, on the first Wednesday of every month. uScriveners Writers’ Group The Badminton Club, Ebbw Vale. 8pm. Info 01495 309863 / burningcanary@ aol.com. Also on Wed 20 this month.

Tim Marshall Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £9.50-£11.50. Info 01874 611622. A dalk about geopolitics etc titled Divided: Why We’re Living In An Age Of Walls.

Urban Growing Little Man Coffee Co, Cardiff. 6.30-9pm, £11. Info hannah@ greencityevents.co.uk. Hosted

by Green City but fully booked.

THURSDAY 7 MARCH An Evening with The Hairy Bikers St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £21.50-£101.

Info 029 2087 8444. Geordie pan-flingers. Top price is a meet’n’greet thing.

Bridgend Writers’ Circle Carnegie House, Bridgend.

7pm, free. Info 01656 815757.

Meeting here on the first Thursday of every month.

Broadcasting In Wales: The Future Faraday Lecture Theatre, Singleton Campus, Swansea University. 7pm, free. Info president@risw. org. Royal Institution Of South Wales lecture by Rhodri Talfan Davies, director of BBC Cymru Wales.

Canal Canoeing Session Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon (meeting point). 10am, free.

Info 01874 611622. Part of

Brecon Women’s Festival and also related to an exhibition at the gallery here. Book in advance please. uIntroduction To Geology National Museum Cardiff.

1-4pm, £90. Info 029 2039 7951. Five lectures, every Thursday until 4 Apr. Kemi’s Storytelling Suppers Kemi’s, Pontcanna, Cardiff. 7pm, £14. Info 029 2037 2055. Monthly gathering starting up again after summer, this edition featuring guest storyteller Angharad Wynne. Price includes food.

Laura Bates Great Hall, Bay Campus, Swansea University.

7.30pm, £8/£4 NUS or under21s. Info 01792 602060. Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism project among other things, talks about her debut Young Adult novel. uTuneless Choir Cardiff Aspire Fitness, Canton, Cardiff. 7.30-9.30pm, £10 first session/£7 drop-in/£40 for eight weeks. Info 07745 683723. Choir, led by Mei Gwynedd, for people who want to sing but can’t carry a tune.

Also on Thurs 21 this month.

Why Are You Here?

Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.45pm, £3-£5. Info 01970 623232. Multimedia presentation by one James Baker, attempting to tackle the question of what art is ‘for’.

FRIDAY 8 MARCH uCwlwm Celtaidd Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £24.50 adv. Info 01656 815995.

Annual weekender festival incorporating all the Celtic nations and regions within and outside Britain. There are three concerts this year: Frank Hennessey & Friends tonight, the Joy Dunlop band tomorrow and an afternoon of Welsh and Scotish music on Sun 10, tying in with the Six Nations game between said sides. sat 9 and Sun 10 also have dance and language workshops from 10am-1pm, arranged by TRAC Cymru. Sun 10 additionally features the Young Musician Of The Festival competition, aimed at ages 10-18. (Until Sun 10) Gardeners’ Talk Carnegie House, Bridgend. 7-9pm, £5. Info 01656 815757. With Richard Fishbourne.

International Women’s Day: Women Talking Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

7.30pm, £10. Info 01874 611622. Talks from paddleboarder Sian Sykes and mountain runner Ruth Pickvance.

Meet The Objects: International Women’s Day National History Museum, St Fagans. 11.30am, 1pm + 2.30pm, free. Info 029 2057 3500. Talk in English, Welsh and English, in that order. uPhilosophy In A Cafe Steen’s Cafe, Windsor Place, Cardiff. 2-4pm, pay by donation. Info 029 2023 1723. Every second and fourth Friday of the month. Today: ‘How do we find meaning in life?’; Fri 22: ‘Philosophy – is it evolving in its purpose, does it have a purpose?’ uYin Yoga Class Natural Health Service, Swansea. 7.309pm, £8/£4 for your first class.

Info facebook.com/ victoriauceleyoga. Yoga class designed to balance out the

stresses of the modern world.

Here every fortnight; also on Fri 22 this month.

Wystan, Seamus & George Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £20/£18. Info 01970 623232. Celebration of the wokr of poets WH Auden, Seamus Heaney and George Mackay Brown.

SATURDAY 9 MARCH uCardiff Film & Comic Con Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

9am-6pm, from £8. Info 029 2022 4488. Guests this year include people who played Doctor Who (OK you probably want to know who and it’s Colin Baker), Arthur Weasley and Freddy Krueger. On tomorrow also, from 9am-5pm.

Digital Planetarium Carnegie House, Bridgend.

10.30am-3.30pm, £3. Info 01656 815757. Five 45-minutes sessions inside a dome with Dark Sky Wales.

Four Seasons Market Clycach Community Hall.

10am-2pm, free. Info dawn@ abertawe.co.uk.

Nimble Fingers Craft Fayre Victoria Hall, Mumbles, Swansea. 10am-4pm, free. Info 07790 298913. On the second Saturday of every month.

Paper Sculpture Craft In The Bay, Cardiff Bay. 10.30am4.30pm, £80. Info 029 2048 4611. With Danielle Sullivan. uSheep Trekking Crai, Brecon Beacons National Park. £35/£25 under-16s. Info 01874 749092. Take a sheep for a walk on a lead in a 200-acre organic farm. A Good Day Out event. Also on Sun 10, Sat 16, Sun 17, Sun 24, Sat 30 and Sun 31 this month.

Spoken Word Saturday Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 3pm, £3. Info 0845 2263510.

St David’s Day Party National Wool Museum, Drefach Felindre. 10am-3pm, free.

Info 029 2057 3600.

Tribe Peak, The Old School, Crickhowell. 2-4.30pm, £3. Info 01873 811579. Monthly workshop for young artists (age 7-11) and their families.

Wasteless Family Fair The Old Library, Rumney, Cardiff.

10am-2pm, free. Info hannah@greencityevents. co.uk. Hosted by Green City and offering advice etc on how to reduce waste while saving money.

Welsh Women Talking: Walk To Pen Y Crug Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 9.15am, free. Info 01874 611622. Book in advance please.

Ynyswen Craft Show Ynyswen Welfare Hall, Treorchy. 9am-4.30pm, £5 to set up a table. Info 01443 520299.

Young Makers Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 2-4pm, free. Info 01792 516900. Turn your drawings into professional quality animation puppets and three-dimensional theatre sets. Book in advance please.

SUNDAY 10 MARCH Arts & Craft Market Maes Yr Haf Community Centre, Trealaw. 11am-5pm, £10 to set up a table. Info 01443 520299.

Brain Games National Museum Cardiff. 11am4pm, free. Info 029 2039 7951. Hosted by Cardiff Neuroscience Devision.

FLEat Small World Theatre, Cardigan. 10am-3pm, free. Info

01239 615952. Sunday market selling food, art, craft, vintage stuff etc.

Kidsmarkets Family Sale Cowbridge Comprehensive School. 11am-12.30pm, £1.50/ kids free. Info 07760 802088.

Featuring up to 35 stalls of great quality new and preloved baby and childrens items.

Leather Journals The Flower Lodge, Rhiwbina, Cardiff. 10am-12pm, £25. Info larkdesignmake@gmail.com.

Make a leather journal cover in this Lark Design Make workshop.

Marina Market National Waterfront Museum, Swansea.

10am-3pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600. Monthly event selling handcrafted goods and fresh food.

Super Science Sunday: British Science Week Special National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 11am3pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600.

Interactive family activities.

TUESDAY 12 MARCH uContemporary Conversations Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 1-3pm, free. Info 01792 516900.

Session to provide a supportive environment for people with an interest in creating art work and discussing contemporary issues. Book in advance please. Also on Tue 26 this month Re-Framing Fear Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 6.30pm, free. Info 01874 611622. Talk

by Ruth Pickvance, part of Brecon Women’s Festival. Book in advance please.

Science Cafe Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, free. Info 01970 623232.

The Chair – 2000 Years Of Sitting Down Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 2.30pm, £8. Info 01874 611622. Arts Society Brecknock lecture by Marc Allum.

WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH Banff Mountain Film Festival Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £13/£12.

Info 01874 611622. Showcase of adventure films, also in Porthcawl tomorrow, Llanelli on Fri 15 and Cardiff on Thurs 28.

Bridgend History Society Carnegie House, Bridgend.

7pm. Info 01656 815757.

Conservation Surgery Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 1-2pm, free (£3 suggested donation). Info 01792 516900. Meet the gallery’s conservator and ask questions about how to care for your own art. Book in advance please.

THURSDAY 14 MARCH Banff Mountain Film Festival Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £14/£12.

Info 01656 815995.

Booklaunch: Pamela Cartlidge Llanishen Library, Cardiff. 10am, free. Info 07554 995065. Launching Cartlidge’s novel Rhubarb Without Sugar, set in post-WWII Britain.

Crafty Beer Evening NosDa, Cardiff. 6.30pm, £15.

Info 029 2037 8866. Do crafts and drink some drinks, with your hosts Twin Made. Price includes one drink and crafting materials/equipment. uCraft Night: Mandala

LAURA BATES Great Hall, Bay Campus, Swansea University, Thurs 7 Mar Tickets: £8/£4 NUS or under-21s. Info 01792 602060 / www. taliesinartscentre.co.uk The Huffington Post has previously called her “the voice of her generation,” so as part of Swansea University Cultural Institute’s dual celebration of today’s World Book Day, and International Women’s Day on Fri 8, who better to invite along for a reading, Q&A and book signing than author and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project Laura Bates? Her hotly anticipated debut for the youth adult market, The Burning, is likely to be a must-read for young feminists and very much a book that resonates in these times. A unique opportunity to interact with one of the most important voices in modern feminist writing.

Sketching Little Man Coffee Co, Cardiff. 6-9pm, free. Info larkdesignmake@gmail. com. Drop-in event hosted by Lark Design Make. Also on Thurs 28.

Modern Poetry In Translation – Women Of Britain Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £8/£4. Info 01792 602060. Featuring Clare Pollard, Sabrina Mahfouz, Menna Elfyn and Liz Berry; introduced by Owen Sheers.

St David’s Day Coffee Morning Swansea Museum.

10.30am-12pm, £3. Info 01792 653763. Royal Institution Of South Wales event featuring a harp recital, cake stall, books and a raffle.

FRIDAY 15 MARCH Banff Mountain Film Festival Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli.

7pm, £13.50/£12. Info 0845 2263510.

Llandovery Folk Dancing Rhys Pritchard Hall, Llandovery. 7.30pm. Info www. llandoveryfolkdancing.co.uk.

With live band DiEnw and caller Rose Mathews. uWedding Showcase Norwegian Church Arts Centre, Cardiff Bay. 10.30am4pm, free. Info 029 2087 7959.

(Until Sun 17) SATURDAY 16 MARCH A Story Of Swansea Pilots National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 11am-3pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600. Talk by Simon Forster.

Brecon Craft Fair Market Hall, Brecon. 9am-4.30pm.

Info 01495 753782. Every third Saturday of the month. uNatural Dyes Masterclass Glynn Vivian Art

Gallery, Swansea. 11am-4pm, £80 (two days). Info 01792 516900. With Catherine Lewis.

On tomorrow also.

Progressive Landscapes: Architecture/Power/Place Newton House, Dinefwr Estate, Carmarthenshire. 9.30am4.30pm, £55/£35. Info 01558 824512. National Trust symposium aimed at people working in the fields of architecture, urban and rural planning, literature and the visual arts, environmentalism and other social movements. Hosted by Dr Russell Roberts and Meg Anthony.

Roller Derby: Tiger Bay Brawlers v Rainy City A House Of Sport, Cardiff. 5pm, from £5 adv. Info www.brawlers.co.uk. First home game of the season for the Brawlers.

The rainy city their opponents are referencing is Manchester.

Rugby Union: RBS Six Nations: Wales v Ireland Principality Stadium, Cardiff.

2.45pm, from £40. Info 08442 777888. Wales’ second and final home match of this year’s tournament. Sold out.

Sound And Weave Mission Gallery, Swansea. 10.30am3.30pm, £40. Info 01792 652016. Adult workshop led by Alastair Duncan (see Art listings) teaching tapestry techniques to beginners and more experienced weavers alike.

St Fagans Real Food Market National History Museum, St Fagans. 11am4pm, free. Info 029 2057 3500.

Upcycling And Interiors Carnegie House, Bridgend.

10am-4.30pm, £15. Info 01656 815757. With artist/designer Alison Moger.

Vintage Kilo Sale YMCA, Swansea. 10am-4pm, £3/£1.50

after 12. Info 01792 652032.

Designer labels at, again, £15 a kilo.

Viva! Vegan Festival Brangwyn Hall, Swansea.

10.30am-5pm, £2/£12 VIP/free under-16s. Info www.viva.org. uk. National vegan organisation, in Cardiff this time last month, with a fair featuring 70 stalls plus demos, talks etc.

VIP ticket gets you a goody bag and queue jumping privs.

SUNDAY 17 MARCH Ain’t Zine Nothin’ Yet The Andrew Buchan, Cardiff. 5pm, free (donations welcome). Info 029 2021 2509. Zine making workshop/session, also featuring live music from BoxCat, Voidcaller, Reuben Lovett and Aaron Hopkins.

Coptic Bookbinding Craft In The Bay, Cardiff Bay. 10.30am-4.30pm, £85. Info 029 2048 4611. With Carole King.

Leather Jewellery The Flower Lodge, Rhiwbina, Cardiff. 10am-12pm, £25.

Info larkdesignmake@gmail. com. Lark Design Make craft workshop.

NoFit State Circus: Flying Trapeze Taster Four Elms Road, Adamsdown, Cardiff.

11am-1pm. Info 029 2022 1330 / www.nofitstate.org.

MONDAY 18 MARCH Murderers, Mafia Hitmen And US PrisonThe Vaults, Portland House, Cardiff Bay. 7-9pm, £12 adv. Info 029 2048 7602. Funzing talk by Shaun Attwood.

TUESDAY 19 MARCH Book Club The Gate, Cardiff.

8pm, free. Info 029 2048 3344.

Third Tuesday of every month.

BUZZ 67

ROOTS UNEARTHED MARCH 2019 There are some musicians who are so breathtakingly talented and so highly regarded by their peers and by audiences that you know whenever they perform live that you’re not going to be disappointed. There are also musicians who give their all, whether performing on the stages of the world’s biggest concert halls or in front of a couple of hundred people in an intimate venue. Flamenco guitarist Juan Martín fits neatly into both categories. Regularly voted among the top guitarists in the world, he’s established as one of flamenco’s finest exponents who has performed and recorded with some of the greatest names in contemporary music including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Miles Davis, Rory Gallagher and Herbie Hancock.

Born in Andalucia, Martín started learning the guitar at the age of six. In his early twenties, he moved to Madrid to study with legendary Niño Ricardo and Paco De Lucia and began playing in the city’s clubs and those of Málaga, Seville and Granada – eventually moving to London where he developed most of his career, his highly distinctive compositional style and a sound that’s been honed from playing in some of the world’s greatest venues including the Wigmore and Carnegie Halls and London’s Barbican.

Martín has released over 20 albums that put a contemporary twist on the flamenco tradition.

One of his first recordings, Picasso Portraits, was based on music he played at the artist’s 90th birthday celebrations, each track inspired by one of Picasso’s paintings. In addition to performing and recording, Martín is also the author of several books on flamenco playing, including El Arte Flamenco De La Guitarra – considered to be the definitive guide to flamenco guitar and which has opened up the art of flamenco guitar everywhere from Russia to China and the USA. As a touring artist, Juan Martín often performs with an ensemble that includes singers and dancers but it’s at his solo gigs where his immense talent is best enjoyed – as can be experienced when he performs as part of the Roots Unearthed series at Cardiff’s St. David’s Hall on Tue 5 Mar. BUZZ ALSO RECOMMENDS: O’Hooley & Tidow. Folk music with a political edge. (Pontardawe Arts Centre, Thurs 14) Peter Knight & John Spiers. Inspired pairing of fiddler Knight (Steeleye Span) and melodeon player Spiers (Bellowhead). (Rhosygilwen Manor, Cilgerran, Pembrokeshire, Sat 16) Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman.

Contemporary and traditional folk from acclaimed duo. (Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon, Thurs 21) Please send your folk and roots listings to listings@buzzmag.co.uk or phone them in to 029 2022 6767

BUZZ 68

Jonzi D Hip Hop Theatre Class Park & Dare, Treorchy.

6pm, £5. Info 0300 0040444. uLife Drawing Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 2-4pm, £5. Info 01792 516900. Also on Sat 30.

RNIB Art Group Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea.

1-3pm, free. Info 01792 516900. Tutor-led class for people with visual impairments. Book in advance please.

The Guggenheims: A Dynasty Of Art Collectors Queens Hall, Narberth. 11am.

Info 01834 869323. Lecture by Andrew Hopkins with the West Wales Decorative & Fine Arts .Society WEDNESDAY 20 MARCH Beginners Carpentry Nu Life Furniture, Cardiff. 6.309pm, £11. Info hannah@ greencityevents.co.uk. Hosted

by Green City but fully booked.

LBT+ Speed Dating Night Beelzebubs, Cardiff. 7pm, £5 adv. Info events@ craftydevilbrewing.co.uk.

Charity night in aid of Cardiffbased LGBT+ domestic violence service Rainbow Bridge.

THURSDAY 21 MARCH An Audience with Mark ‘Billy’ Billingham Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £23 adv/£21 kids. Info 01792 475715. This guy is the latest in the seemingly endless procession of former SAS types to venture into the speaking circuit and, consequently, these listings pages. Bingham was also ‘bodyguard to the stars’ so has that angle to milk. In Cardiff tomorrow.

Open Space: Where I’m Coming From Central Library Hub, Cardiff. 5.45pm, free. Info 029 2038 2116. Guest event with spoken word open mic promoting BAME voices in Wales. Featured artists here include Radha Patel and Sadia Hameed. Book in advance please.

The Classical Music Road Maps St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 3pm, free. Info 029 2087 8444. An illsutrated and partly soundtracked guide to the symphony, with Jonathan James. uWOW Film Festival 2019 Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

Prices vary per event. Info 01970 623232. Annual film showcase, this year with a theme of Extraordinary Women. The programme is still TBC for the most part but on Sat 23 there’ll be a day of animations and workshops titled Abercon. (Until Wed 27) FRIDAY 22 MARCH An Audience with Mark ‘Billy’ Billingham Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £22 adv. Info 029 2064 6900. uCardiff Speakeasy: 1920s Gin, Bourbon & Cocktail Festival Portland House, Cardiff Bay. 6.30pm, £12.50 adv/£35 VIP. Info 029 2048 7602. Another one of these Prohibition-themed weekend events. Ticket price gets you a cocktails and a glass. On tomorrow also with two sessions: 12.30-5pm and 6.30-11pm.

Penned On The Bont Carnegie House, Bridgend.

7.30pm, £5. Info 01656 815757.

Irregular literature event with

guest John Freeman. uSpring Forward Festival Volcano, Swansea. Info www. volcanotheatre.co.uk. A judiciously-timed week of work – film, dance, music, spoken word and theatre – celebrating cultural connections with Europe. Much of the lineup is TBC right now, but confirmed so far is A Espai_F (performing on Fri 22 and Sat 23); NAWR, performing a musical response to Ode To Joy (Mon 25) and Jo Fong and Sonia Hughes’ Neither Here Nor There (Thurs 28, two shows).

(Until Sat 30) Superstars Of Welsh Wrestling The Welfare, Ystradgynlais. 6.30pm, £11/£9.

Info 01639 843163.

Writing History: The World Of Theophilus Jones, Our County Historian Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7pm, free. Info 01874 611622. Sir John Lloyd lecture by Prys Morgan. Book in advance please.

SATURDAY 23 MARCH African Music & World Poetry Charity Event Cardiff University School Of Music. 5.30pm, £12. Info easl@cardiff.ac.uk. Raising money for Educational Awards in Sierra Leone and featuring The Lanyi West African Ensemble, the Oasis World Choir & Band, Zé Kouyaté and poets Christina Thatcher, Clare Potter and Bryan Marshall.

An Evening with Jimmy Bullard Vale Sports Arena, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £27/£75 VIP. Info 029 2240 4901. Another of these Q&A/meet’n’greet/etc evenings with ex-footballers who are described as “one of the game’s great characters” due to their habit of being boorish and annoying. uBy Order Of... The Depot, Cardiff. 5-11pm, £22.50 adv.

Info www.depotcardiff.co.uk.

New night which jumbles together various 1920s cultural signifiers (Peaky Blinders, Prohibition, flapper girls) with little apparent interest in historical accuracy. You have to dress up appropriately and then pay extra on top of the ticket price for “traditional newspaper-wrapped fish and chips” etc. Every Saturday until 20 Apr, then on Sun 21 Apr also.

Exposure Wrestling Cosmo Club, Pontygwaith. 6pm, £8 adv/£5 kids. Info www.exposurewrestling.com. Featuring Lucky Bowden, Casey Wild and more.

Kidsmarkets Family Sale Howells School Sports Hall, Llandaff, Cardiff. 11am12.30pm, £1.50/kids free. Info 07760 802088. Featuring great quality new and pre-loved baby and childrens items.

Qapla’ Quiz Phase II: Star Trek Celebration Afternoon Waterstones, Swansea. 2pm, free. Info twitter.com/swanseastones.

Woad Workshop National Wool Museum, Dre-fach Felindre. 10am-4pm, £55. Info 029 2057 3600. With Susan Martin.

SUNDAY 24 MARCH Antiques And Collectors Fair Parc Bryn Bach, Tredegar. 10am-4pm, free. Info

01495 355920.

Cardiff Comics Carnival The Big Top, Cardiff. 11am5pm, free. Info 029 2022 8883.

Small press comics/zines/ illustration fair.

The Great British Dog Walk Margam Park, nr Port Talbot. 10am, free. Info 01639 881635. Charity event in aid of hearing dogs for deaf people.

Wag This Way Bute Park, Cardiff. 11am, £5 per person to take part. Info volunteer@cityhospice.org.uk. (Another) dog walk in aid of City Hospice.

TUESDAY 26 MARCH Dan Snow St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £27. Info 029 2087 8444. The History Guy, as he faux-modestly calls himself, who we interviewed last month.

Ekphrastic Writing Group The Gate, Cardiff. 7-459.30pm, free. Info 029 2048 3344. Readings and discussions. On the fourth Tuesday of every month.

Gillian Clarke Art Shop & Chapel, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info 01873 852960.

Talk by former Wales National Poet.

WEDNESDAY 27 MARCH Course: What To Do Now In The Garden – Spring National History Museum, St Fagans. 10am-1pm, £35/£26.

Info 029 2057 3500.

Oriel Science Cafe National Waterfront Museum, Swansea.

7.30pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600.

THURSDAY 28 MARCH An Evening with Howard ‘H’ Smith Hobo’s, Bridgend.

7pm, £8 adv. Info www. hobosmusicvenue.com. The singer from UK thrash metal band Acid Reign talks about his career, the scene etc.

Banff Mountain Film Festival St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7pm, £13.50/£10.50.

Info 029 2087 8444. Showcase of adventure films which comes here annually. uBirth Cafe Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 10am. Info 0845 2263510. Women are invited to share birth stories in a supportive, creative and gentle environment, with host Tracy Evans. Every Thursday until 25 Apr. Lyrical Miracles Spoken Word & Poetry Jam NosDa, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866.

Taith Iaith National Museum Cardiff. 12.30pm, free. Info 029 2039 7951. Welsh learners session.

FRIDAY 29 MARCH Cardiff Music Awards Tramshed, Cardiff. 6.30pm, £15 adv. Info 029 2023 5555.

See Roundup for an interview with Ed from these awards.

Charity Craft Fair Community Hall, Neath. 9am4.30pm. Info ariancrafts@ hotmail.co.uk. In aid of Neath Port Talbot Cancer Challenge.

On tomorrow also, not for charity.

Welsh Wrestling Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7pm, £12. Info 0300 3656677.

SATURDAY 30 MARCH Back To Basics Course The Printhaus, Canton, Cardiff. 10am-4pm, £60.

Info 029 2022 0349. One-day course, on the last Saturday of every month this year. uCardiff Children’s Literature Festival Various venues, Cardiff. 10am-4pm, £5 for most events (some free). Info 029 2087 2087.

Annual multi-venue, activitypacked celebration of words returns. It takes place in Cardiff Story, City Hall, Cardiff Central Library and the Old Library Gallery. Full listings are at www.cardiffkidslitfest. com, and include readings, workshops, interactive sessions, guest appearances from authors etc. The majority of events are on today and tomorrow, with one to three per day from Mon 1-Fri 5 Apr. (Until Fri 5 Apr) Craft Fair Community Hall, Neath. 10am-4pm, £22.50 to set up a table. Info ariancrafts@hotmail.co.uk. uGower Gin Festival 2019 Gower Heritage Centre, Swansea. 10am, £12 per day.

Info 01792 371206. Everyone else is cashing in before people realise how much of a racket boutique gins are, so why shouldn’t this venue? Price gets you a house G&T and a glass to keep. On tomorrow also.

Making Soap With Mum: Mother’s Day Special National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. 11am, 12.30pm + 2pm, £3.50. Info 029 2057 3600. Find out about the history and process of making soap, then try your hand at producing your own luxury bar.

Spring Open Day – Behind The Wall Bute Park, Cardiff.

10am-4pm, free. Info 029 2078 8402. Bute Park has been open to the public for 70 years, and will be toasted via events including talks, tours and classes.

Vintage Kilo Sale St Catherine’s Church Hall, Pontcanna, Cardiff. 10am5pm, free. Info 07923 142285.

Designer labels at £15 a kilo, on monthly here.

Vintage Kilo Sale Treforest Community Centre. 10am4pm, free. Info 07923 142285.

Selling vintage gear at £15 per kilo.

Weekend Adult Workshop: Collagraph Card Making Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea. 10am-1pm, £5. Info 01792 516900. A class for people of all abilities to create art in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

live FRIDAY 1 MARCH Addiction The Maltsters Arms, Pontypridd. Info 01443 485076. Reunited punk band from the late 70s.

Ammanford St David’s Day Concert Miners Theatre, Ammanford. 6.30pm, £12.50.

Info 0845 2263510. Featuring Cor Meibion Dyffryn Amman, Catrin Soons, Neve Summers, Osian Clarke and Joseph Cavalli-Price.

BBC NOW St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5-£41. Info 029 2087 8444. St David’s Day concert featuring music

by Arwel Hughes, Hoddinott, Mathias & Mansel Thomas.

Bloodstock Metal 2 The

Masses South Wales Heat 3 Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff.

7pm, £5. Info 07970 063107.

Featuring sets from Excursia, Grym, Beyond Sorrow, Ablated and Sounds Of Insane Music.

Heat 4 is on Fri 8; heat 5 on Fri 29.

Claire Taylor The Plough, Whitchurch, Cardiff. 9pm, free.

Info 029 2062 3017.

Cwmbach Male Choir Jac’s, Aberdare. 7pm. Info 01685 879491. St David’s Day concert.

Elliott Oakley Kiwis, Cardiff.

10pm, free. Info 029 2039 8965.

Funke & The Two Tone Baby The Lost Arc, Rhayader.

5-11pm, £15 adv/£7.50 kids.

Info 01743 860246. Ticket price also gets you a pizza and a dessert.

Godot St Fagans Village Hall.

7.30pm, £8/£6/£4 kids/free under-12s. Info 029 2023 2970.

Playing the Pentreffest Noz folk night.

Gould Piano Trio Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1.15pm, £8/£6.

Info 029 2039 1391. Performing works by Beethoven (ones apparently based on Welsh folk songs, as it’s St David’s Day) and Dvorak.

Grooveline Park Hotel, Barry.

9pm, free. Info 01446 735589.

Heavy Heart + Quentin Suavé + Live, Do Nothing + Werecats + 100% Rabbit The Moon, Cardiff.

7.30pm, free. Info info@ themooncardiff.com. Punk and indie bands presented by DIY Cardiff.

Incursion + Ironvolt + Lead By Lies The Green Rooms, Treforest. 7pm, £4.

Info 01443 841133.

Nigel Barker Crowleys Rock Bar, Swansea. 8pm, free. Info crowleysrockbar@hotmail. com. Blues-rock with a “band in a box” who appear on five video screens behind Barker.

Off The Record The Vivian Arms, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 516194.

Open Night Glais Rugby Football Club, nr Clydach, Swansea. 8pm, £3. Info 01792 425231. A Valley Folk Club night.

Paige Kenzie Ty Newydd, Barry. 9pm, free. Info 01446 407767.

Paul Ashton City Arms, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2064 1913.

Perpetua + ChuggaBoom + Voidcaller + Cry Of A Cynic + King Kraken Hobo’s, Bridgend. 7pm, £12/£10 adv. Info www. hobosmusicvenue.com. Celtic Mosh metal night.

Pizzatramp + 6foot7 + Bigg Cathays Commtempathunity Centre, Cardiff. 8pm, free (donations welcome). Info 029 2037 3144.

Punk and ska bands.

Rain Kings The Duke Of Wellington, Cowbridge. 9.30pm, free. Info 01446 773592.

Roy G Hemmings Town Hall, Maesteg. 8pm, £23.50.

Info 01656 815995. Classic soul revue from a founder member of The Drifters.

Science Bastard + Fader + World Vs World The Dragonffli, Pontypool. 7pm, £3.

Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com.

Rescheduled from February.

Steve Tilston The Angel, Llandeilo. 7.30pm. Info info@ llandeiloacoustic.com. A Llandeilo Acoustic Club night. uStudents Of Atlantic College St Donats Arts Centre, Vale Of Glamorgan.

3pm, £5. Info 01446 799100.

Afternoon cafe concert; price includes tea/coffee and cake.

On every Friday this month, plus Sun 31 as a Mother’s Day special (£12 including tea and cake).

The Blues Band Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 7.30pm, £23. Info 01600 772467.

The Fugitives Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4/£3. Info 029 2038 7026. Blues.

Tragedy The Neon, Newport.

7.30pm, £12 adv. Info 01633 533666. Perma-touring Bee Gees-in-a-metal-style tribute act.

SATURDAY 2 MARCH 2Rude + The Riff + Chordie Barry Island Saports & Social Club. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info 01446 735173. Mod and ska bands playing in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust.

Alden, Patterson & Dashwood Cellar Bar, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £8 adv. Info 07818 056599. Folk trio.

As It Is + Modern Error + Wilderness Hobo’s, Bridgend. 7pm, £14 adv. Info www.hobosmusicvenue.com.

Presented by Imperial Music.

Aubrey Parsons The Fox & Hounds, Whitchurch, Cardiff.

8.30pm, free. Info 029 2069 3377.

Bowie Starman Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £19.50. Info 01495 227206.

Tribute show.

Celynen Silver Band Memorial Hall, Newbridge.

6.30pm, £5. Info 01495 243252.

Children Of The Gravy + Black Angus Ebbw Vale Institute. 7pm, £11 adv. Info 01495 708022. Tributes to Black Sabbath and AC/DC. COTG are in Aberdare on Sat 16 and Abertillery on Sat 30.

Citrus Society + Jakey Boy Hughes The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £6 adv.

Info 01497 821762.

Coppercailie Nicholaston House, Penmaen, Gower, Swansea. 6pm. Info 01792 371317. Dinner and ceilidh for St David’s Day. Cor Godre’r Aran Rhos Y Gilwen, Pembrokeshire. 7pm, £12.50. Info 01239 841387.

St David’s Day concert from Welsh choir.

Côr Meibion Maesteg A’r Cylch Town Hall, Maesteg.

7pm, £10. Info 01656 815995.

Crystalline + The Roselles + Common People NosDa, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866.

Presented by Pi & Hash.

Dabbla Cardiff Speaker Hire, Cardiff. 8pm, £10 adv. Info 029 2009 5590. UK hip-hop guy, presented here by The Hold Up. Also featuring DJs Sumgii Beats, Alkemy and Auricom.

Deadwood Rhondda Hotel, Porth. 7pm, £5 adv. Info 01443 682388. Classic rock covers.

DS:UK Queens Hall, Narberth.

7.30pm, £21. Info 01834 869323. Dire Straits tribute.

Fatherson + Vistas Clwb

Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £8.

Info 029 2023 2199. Sold out.

Flash Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £17.50 adv. Info 029 2089 0862. Queen tribute band. Sold out.

Geraint Lovgreen + Dim Problem + IWCS Clwb Y Bont, Pontypridd. 7.30pm, £10.

Info 01443 491424.

Gwalia Singers St Mary’s Church, Swansea. 7pm, £10.

Info 01792 402080. St David’s Day concert, also featuring The Eclectics and the Mid Rhondda Brass Band.

Compère will be Paul Tabram.

John Parricelli & Huw Warren Duo Cardiff University Concert Hall. 7-9pm, £10/£8/free NUS. Info 029 2087 4816. Jazz. First of two appearances by Warren at this venue in February.

King Goon + Red Telephone + Salvador Sanchez + String Theory The Bunkhouse, Swansea. Info info@bunkhousebar.co.uk.

These bands are playing as part of a multi-venue festival of sorts, called Nightworks, but there seems to be scant info about it out there.

Lowri Evans Ty Tawe, Swansea. 8pm. Info 01792 456856.

No Parkin Blues Band Cwmbran RFC, Pontnewydd, Cwmbran. 7.30pm, £7. Info

Swansea. 2pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600. With twmpath band Tawerin The 501’s + Gluehorse + Fighting With Giants + We Used To See The Sky + Cheating Lights The Dragonffli, Pontypool. 7pm, £3.

Info gigs@thedragonffli.com.

Gluehorse are good.

The Band Of The Welsh Guards Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.45pm, £16. Info 01874 611622.

The Brotherhood The Pod, Newport. 9.30pm. Info 01633 535440.

The Counterfeit Stones The Met, Abertillery. 8pm, £22/£20 adv. Info 01495 355945. Rolling Stones tribute band.

The Manics-Phonics Experience Workmen’s Hall, Caerphilly. 7.30pm, £10/£8 adv.

Info 07512 237983. Twin Welsh rock tribute band.

U2baby The Globe, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £11.50 adv. Info 07590 471888. Tribute band.

Ultimate Floyd + Deep Hum Jac’s, Aberdare. 7pm, £7/£5 adv. Info 01685 879491.

Pink Floyd tribute band supported by a band who are good and not a tribute band.

Urban Dun Differently 2 The Moon, Cardiff. 6.30pm, free. Info info@ themooncardiff.com. Hip-hop

Cwlwm Celtaidd, the annual festival celebrating music, dance and culture of the Celtic regions, returns to Porthcawl’s Grand Pavilion from Fri 8, when Frank Hennessey headlines, until Sun 10.

01633 483238. Borough Blues Club gig.

Paige Kenzie Birchgrove, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2031 1319.

Punchline Hen Dderwen, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 203631.

Ragsy The Mariners, Laugharne. 8.30pm, free. Info 01994 427688. In sister venue Browns tomorrow.

Roath Folk Festival The Gate, Cardiff. 1-11.30pm, £24 adv. Info 029 2048 3344.

Featuring The Gentle Good, Nick Harper, The Backroom band, Three Cane Whale, Ivan Moult, VRi, James Bower and Colum Regan.

Sacrilege + Desolation Angels The Patriot, Crumlin.

8pm, £3. Info 01495 247178.

Sara Ashley The Red Dragon, Bridgend. 8.30pm, free. Info 01656 654753.

St David’s Celebration Concert Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli.

6.30pm, £18/£16. Info 0845 2263510. Featuring the Morriston Orpheus Choir, Côr Lleisiau’r Cwm, Nikkila Thomas and Osian Clarke.

St David’s Day Gig The Andrew Buchan, Cardiff.

8.30pm, free. Info 029 2021 2509. Bands TBC. St David’s Day Twmpath National Waterfront Museum,

evening featuring open mic, cypher and spoken word spots. Performers: Starvz, Levi Johnson, Fran B, B Written, Razkid, Luke RV, Stsanza, Tasha TT, Kaytee Mashup, Izzy Jay & Effrt, Acloud, Dubzta, Scoops & ReadyMC plus host EZ Rah. World Vs World Crowleys Rock Bar, Swansea. 7.30pm, free. Info crowleysrockbar@ hotmail.com.

Wrong Jovi The Dolls House, Abertillery. 7pm, £6. Info 01495 213300. Bon Jovi tribute.

SUNDAY 3 MARCH Alterego Vibe Creature Sound, Swansea. 7pm. Info 01792 301178. A soulful acid jazz band form London whose event page makes prominent mention of their being sponsorted by a chain of holiday parks. Sadly I don’t have space to mention which one here.

Barbara Dickson Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £27/£26. Info 01656 815995.

Multi-million selling recording artist, say the venue breathlessly. In Carmarthen on Fri 8.

Diversity Day St Andrew’s Church, Roath, Cardiff.

3.30-7pm, free (donations welcome). Info 07919 118209.

Featuring sets from, in running order, the Alaw Quartet, Alix

Edwards, Diaco Geravandi, Malgola, No (that’s one name with a comma in), Frances Smith, After Dark, Adrian Ó H-Éaluithe and Six Sided Men. Eleri Angharad National Waterfront Museum, Swansea.

2-3pm, free. Info 029 2057 3600. uFrankie Weeson Hen & Chickens, Abergavenny. 8pm, free. Info 01873 853613. Every Thursday and Sunday this month.

Glas Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 6pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

Jeremy Huw Williams Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 5pm, £14/£12.50. Info 029 2039 1391. Welsh baritone, accompanied by pianist Paula Fan. Miss Kill + Telgate + Obey Cobra The Moon, Cardiff. 7-10pm, pay by donation. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Fundraising gig for Women’s Aid. Music Club: Beethoven Sonatas The Old College, Aberystwyth. 3pm, £3-£12. Info 01970 623232.

Open Mic The Andrew Buchan, Cardiff. 8.30pm, free.

Info 029 2021 2509. With Dave Kenwrick.

Ragsy Browns, Laugharne.

3pm, free. Info 01994 427688.

Rash Decision + Pizzatramp + Hack Job + System Reset Chatterton Arms, Pencoed. 4-9pm, free.

Info 01656 860293. Punk and hardcore bands play late afternoon/early evening uRoyal Welsh College Of Music & Drama Students National Museum Cardiff.

1pm, free. Info 029 2039 7951.

Also on Sun 17.

Shakin’ Stevens St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £37. Info 029 2087 8444. The only socialist popstar that ever mattered. uSteve Tarner Jazz Hen & Chickens, Abergavenny. 2pm, free. Info 01873 853613. Every Sunday this month.

The Great Unknown The Windsor, Penarth. 9pm, free.

Info 029 2070 8675.

Vinna Bee + My Girlfriend’s A Zombie + Massa Circles + Little Eris Jac’s, Aberdare. 5.30pm, £3. Info 01685 879491.

MONDAY 4 MARCH Efa Supertramp + Geigerzähler Le Public Space, Newport. 7.30pm. Info sam@lepub.co.uk. Two folkpunk solo acts, in Cardigan tomorrow.

Elaina Hoss Quartet Noah’s Yard, Swansea. 8pm.

Info 01792 447360. Playing the jazz night on here every Monday.

Greg Russell & Ciaran Algar Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £3-£12.50.

Info 01239 621200. Folk duo.

Hayseed Dixie Pontardawe Arts Centre. 8pm, £18.50. Info 01792 863722. In Aberystwyth tomorrow; Narberth on Wed 6.

Let’s Swim, Get Swimming + Flour Babies Undertone, Cardiff. 7pm, £5/£4 adv. Info 029 2022 8883. In Newport on Fri 15.

Ward Thomas St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7pm, £20.50-

£29.50. Info 029 2087 8444.

Country-pop duo who we interviewed last month.

TUESDAY 5 MARCH Acoustic Tuesday South Riverside Community Development Centre, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £5. Info 029 2030 4400. Regular event led by pioneering local musicians and singers.

Blaenavon Male Voice Choir Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £8/£7.

Info 01873 850805. A St David’s Day concert performance. For some reason the venues in these listings seem to be celebrating St David’s Day pretty much whenever they choose this month.

Bryan Adams Motorpoint Arena Cardiff. 6.30pm, £51.75.

Info 029 2022 4488.

Daniel Lebhardt St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 1pm, £5-£7. Info 029 2087 8444. Piano recital.

Efa Supertramp + Geigerzähler Cellar Bar, Cardigan. 8pm. Info 07818 056599.

Hayseed Dixie Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £18.50. Info 01970 623232.

Juan Martin St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 8pm, £5-£18. Info 029 2087 8444. Flamenco guitarist, in Pembrokeshire tomorrow. uOpen Jam Session NosDa, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. Every Tuesday this month. uOpen Mic Night Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@ porterscardiff.com. Every Tuesday.

Peter Andre Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7pm, £29.50-£47.

Info 01792 475715.

Ron King’s Rhythm Aces Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4.50/£4 members/£2 NUS. Info 029 2038 7026.

Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama Students Flute & Tankard, Cardiff.

9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www.thefluteandtankard.com.

Two sets by jazz ensembles, first the Maria Fox Trio and the Peter Johnson Band after that.

Trapper Schoepp + Adam Peachfuzz + Iolo Edger Le Public Space, Newport.

7.30pm, £7 adv. Info sam@ lepub.co.uk. American altcountry guy headlines. He has an album out this month which we got for review but didn’t. Sorry Trapper.

WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH A Night Like This + Winchester + I Digress The Bunkhouse, Swansea.

7pm, £5/£4 adv. Info info@ bunkhousebar.co.uk. uBandaoke Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@ porterscardiff.com. “Sing with a fully rehearsed band and become the Popstar you always dreamed of being.” Also on Fri 15. uBella & Gareth Blues Duo Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm.

Info 029 2038 7026. Also on Wed 20.

CAVMS Youth Band & Torfaen Youth Band Rogerstone & Bassaleg Social Club, Bassaleg, Newport. 8pm, free. Info malc@dancebands. plus.com. A South Wales Big Band Society gig, on every

JUST ANNOUNCED FOR APRIL: THE HUNNA (Tramshed, Cardiff, Mon 1) COLLABRO (St David’s Hall, Cardiff, Fri 5) CUTE IS WHAT WE AIM FOR (The Bunkhouse, Swansea, Thurs 4) PINEGROVE (Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Mon 8) DMA’S (Cardiff University Students Union, Sun 14) UT (Le Public Space, Newport, Sat 20) SHOWHAWK BUZZ 69

* – recommended Wednesday.

Donnie Joe’s American Swing Ex-Servicemen’s Club, Penarth. 7.30pm, £5/£4.40 adv.

Info feelgoodmusicorg@gmail. com. Also featuring swing DJ The Medicine Man. Gruffydd Wyn Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £23/£22. Info 0845 2263510. Welsh vocalist, was on Britain’s Got Talent.

In Blackwood on Thurs 21; Maesteg on Fri 29..

Hayseed Dixie Queens Hall, Narberth. 7.30pm, £18.50. Info 01834 869323.

Juan Martin Rhos Y Gilwen, Pembrokeshire. 8-10pm, £15.

Info 01239 841387.

Lipstick On Your Collar Grand Theatre, Swansea.

7.30pm, £23.50/£18.50. Info 01792 475715. Retro musical revue.

Only The Poets Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 8pm, £7. Info 029 2023 2199.

Open Mic Night NosDa, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. With a different guest host every week this month; tonight’s is a Day Of The Dude special whatever that means.

Open Mic Night Redhouse, Merthyr Tydfil. 7pm, free.

Info 01685 384111. First Wednesday of every month.

Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5-£49.50.

Info 029 2087 8444.

Phil Donkin: Master Frown Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www.thefluteandtankard. com. Jazz.

Sea Girls + Apre Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £9. Info 029 2023 2199. New indie band of some sort.

Seamus Blake International Quartet The Garage, Swansea. 8.30pm, £12.50. Info 01792 475147. A Swansea Jazzland night.

Seren Winds The Riverfront, Newport. 2pm, £6. Info 01633 656757. Cardiff wind quintet, presented by Live Music Now. Skylab 3 Undertone, Cardiff.

7-10.30pm, £5. Info 029 2022 8883. Live electronica fella who lives in Cardiff and is signed to the Babygrande label.

Taylor Swift & The Divas Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan.

7pm, £5.50-£8.50. Info 01239 621200. Shockingly, not in fact an appearance in Cardigan from global superstar Taylor Swift, but rather someone pretending to be her alongside a backing ensemble who offer music by women from the last 50 years of pop.

THURSDAY 7 MARCH uHackensack Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, from £5. Info 029 2038 7026. Monthly showcase featuring two sets from musicians TBC. Jane’s Calamity Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@ porterscardiff.com. Monthly singalong around the piano.

Jeremiah Pip Smith The Pear Tree, Cardiff. 8pm, free.

Info 029 2025 2042.

Ocean Mic Ocean Arts Cardiff, Splott, Cardiff.

8-11.30pm, £5/£3. Info oceanartscardiff@gmx.co.uk.

Monthly open mic night with

a different host each month; March’s is James Bower.

Para Alta + Vanilla + Sssnakes + Lead Coloured River The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7/£6 adv. Info info@themooncardiff.com.

Presented by This Feeling.

Simply Singers Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 6pm, free.

Info 029 2089 0862. A capella vocal ensemble playing as part of Pizza Night here. The pizzas aren’t free.

Sinfonia Cymru & Sheku Kanneh-Mason Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5-£16. Info 029 2039 1391. Sold out gig with renowned UK cellist Kanneh-Mason as special guest.

Sophie Crabtree + Frankie Wesson + The Algal Bloom NosDa, Cardiff.

9-11pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. A Live By The River night presented by U&I Radio.

Sweet Caroline Princess Royal Theatre, Port Talbot.

7.30pm, £22 adv. Info 01639 763214. Neil Diamond tribute.

The Root Doctors Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 7pm, £8 adv. Info 029 2062 6015.

Wille & The Bandits + The Rainbreakers Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £12.50.

Info 029 2023 2199. Cornish blues/funk/rock band headline.

FRIDAY 8 MARCH 10cc St David’s Hall, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £39.50/£35.50. Info 029 2087 8444. AOR pop royalty. Sold out.

AJ Tracey Y Plas, Cardiff University Students Union.

7pm, £20 adv. Info 029 2078 1458. London grime MC. Barbara Dickson Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen. 7.30pm, £28/£26. Info 0845 2263510.

BBC NOW: International Women’s Day Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £5-£15. Info 029 2063 6464. Valentina Peleggi, conducts a programme of female composers including Clara Schumann and Augusta Holmès.

Bloodstock Metal 2 The Masses South Wales Heat 4 Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff.

7pm, £5. Info 07970 063107.

Featuring sets from Incursion, Rapture’s End, Lead By Lies, Anal Floss Is Boss and From The Depths.

Burnout + Parla + Parkview + Crystalline + Bear Island Cardiff Bus Transport Club. 7pm, £4 adv.

Info 029 2023 3658. Punk and alt-rock bands.

Chris Kelly The Duke Of Wellington, Cowbridge. 9.30pm, free. Info 01446 773592.

Claire Taylor Ty Newydd, Barry. 9pm, free. Info 01446 407767.

Doc & The Headshrinkers + Iron Gosling Creature Sound, Swansea. 8pm, £3. Info 01792 301178.

Fortunate Sons Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4/£3. Info 029 2038 7026.

Gilbert De Greeve Art Shop & Chapel, Abergavenny. 8pm, £12 adv. Info 01873 852960.

Recital by Belgian pianist.

Gunderson The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free. Info info@themooncardiff.com.

Islands In The Stream Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7.30pm, £25. Info 0300 3656677. Dolly Parton/Kenny Rogers tribute.

Jon Boden & The Remnant Strings Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £16. Info 01792 863722. New band of UK folk favourite, ex-Bellowhead.

Just Drive + Carolines + Kingson The Big Top, Cardiff.

7pm, £4. Info 029 2022 8883.

EP launch for headliners. *Laura Jurd Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7.50-£15.

Info 029 2039 1391. UK jazz trumpeter with 14-piece AngloNorwegian band. Previewed in last month’s Music section.

Luke Daniels & Nancy Kerr The Welfare, Ystradgynlais. 8pm, £10/£8.

Info 01639 843163. Folk duo.

Madeleine Mitchell Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1.15pm, £8/£6. Info 029 2039 1391.

Violinist with a performance celebrating 100 years of female composers.

Mica Jane The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £5. Info 01497 821762.

MR + Los Blancos + Y Sybs Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £8. Info 029 2023 2199. AKA Mark Roberts, ex of Catatonia. Sold out, though he’s also playing in

The Carpenters – Voice Of The Heart Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £20.50/£18.50. Info 01495 227206. Also a tribute show.

The Dime Notes Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 7.30pm, £15/£12.50. Info 01600 772467.

Swinging jazz 1920s style.

The Neighbourhoods + Guilty Rascals + Kasia Jac’s, Aberdare. 7.30pm, £7/£5 adv. Info 01685 879491. Blink 182 tribute band headline. uThe Pollen Count The Vivian Arms, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 516194. Also here on Fri 22.

The Royal + Dead Luke Juliet + Epsilon + Profiler Hobo’s, Bridgend.

7pm, £10/£8 adv. Info www. hobosmusicvenue.com.

Metalcore bands.

The Skiptones Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@ porterscardiff.com.

The Spectrums Rhondda Hotel, Porth. 7pm, £4 adv.

Info 01443 682388. Classic synthpop covers. In Merthyr on Fri 29.

Tyketto + Kane’d Coliseum Theatre, Aberdare. 7.30pm, £21. Info 0300 0040444.

American cock rockers who broke out in the early 90s headline. Originally booked in the Pontypridd Muni, which closed in a blaze of ineptitude

A two-day feast of music from the UK experimental scene is in Aberystwyth’s Ceredigion Museum on Fri 15 and Sun 15.

It’s called Listen To The Voice Of Fire and includes Sharron Kraus and Ashtray Navigations.

Aberystwyth on Fri 29.

News From Nowhere + X-Twenty-Two + White Riot The Duke, Neath. 8pm, free. Info 01639 643892.

Night Flight + Ralph Taylor + The Echo & The Always Tiny Rebel, Cardiff.

7pm, £6 adv. Info 029 2039 9557.

Rain Kings City Arms, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2064 1913.

Soundwire The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £4 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar.co.uk.

Swansea psych/shoegaze band whose album was reviewed in the last issue.

St David’s Concert Redhouse, Merthyr Tydfil.

7pm, £7/£3 under-12s. Info 01685 384111. Featuring the Sing With Us Merthyr Tydfil Choir, Coed-y-Dderwen Community Primary School Choir and soloists Iori Haugen and Nathan Coles.

That Which Ate The Moon Le Public Space, Newport.

7pm. Info sam@lepub.co.uk.

The Bryan Adams Experience The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info 07590 471888. Tribute act.

The Carpenters Experience Miners Theatre, Ammanford. 7pm, £18. Info 0845 2263510. Tribute show.

just before Christmas.

Windshake + Layman’s Terms + Finding Aurora The Dragonffli, Pontypool.

7pm. Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com.

Wooze Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7. Info 029 2023 2199.

SATURDAY 9 MARCH 2 Tickets 2 The Gunshow Kiwis, Cardiff. 10pm, free. Info 029 2039 8965. *Audiobooks Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7.50.

Info 029 2023 2199. Debut Welsh gig proper (they did a Spillers instore last year) for electropop curio duo featuring albino wildman David Wrench..

Bass 12 Porter’s, Cardiff.

8pm. Info info@porterscardiff. com.

Beth Prior Collective + Fat Cat Sound The Lost Arc, Rhayader. 8pm, £7.50 adv. Info 01743 860246.

Brit Floyd St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 8pm, £34.50/£104.50 VIP. Info 029 2087 8444. Pink Floyd tribute band.

Christopher Howe The Red Dragon, Bridgend. 8.30pm, free. Info 01656 654753.

Claire Taylor Birchgrove, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2031 1319.

Dirty Flamingos +

u – repeated

Pondlife The Andrew Buchan, Cardiff. 8.30pm, free.

Info 029 2021 2509.

Dirty Sound Magnet Undertone, Cardiff. 6-9pm, £5 adv. Info 029 2022 8883.

Psychedelic rock of some sort.

Frankie Weeson The Fox & Hounds, Whitchurch, Cardiff.

8.30pm, free. Info 029 2069 3377.

Geneveive The Waterfront, Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

1-3m, free. Info 01874 611622.

Solo jazz/folk artist.

Independent Women”s Day Half Dayer Le Public Space, Newport. 4pm, £7. Info sam@lepub.co.uk. Featuring sets from She’s Got Spies, Heartwork, Bodyhacker, Rosehip Teahouse, Mogan and Live, Do Nothing.

Joanna Macgregor Rhos Y Gilwen, Pembrokeshire.

8-9.45pm, £17. Info 01239 841387. Concert pianist performs works by Beethoven and Chopin among others.

Kamikazee Millionaires The Dolls House, Abertillery.

7pm. Info 01495 213300. Rock covers.

Kingson Cockett Inn, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 588748.

Mainly Madness Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £16 adv. Info 029 2089 0862.

Madness tribute band.

Mötley Crüde + Poizon The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £11 adv. Info 07590 471888.

Glam metal tribute bands.

Motörheadache Hobo’s, Bridgend. 7pm, £10/£8 adv.

Info www.hobosmusicvenue. com. Motörhead tribute band.

Oceans + Ghosts As Alibis + Urfe The Dragonffli, Pontypool. 7pm, £3. Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com.

Reef Sin City, Swansea. 7pm, £25 adv. Info 01792 468892.

Selena In The Chapel The Pod, Newport. 9.30pm. Info 01633 535440.

Sepulchre + Blind Divide + Raptures End + Garuda Crowleys Rock Bar, Swansea. 7.30pm, free. Info crowleysrockbar@hotmail. com.

Showhawk Duo The Arch, Neath. 8pm, £13 adv. Info 07791 923214. Dance hits played acoustically.

Sinfonia Cymru The Riverfront, Newport. 7pm, £6-£17. Info 01633 656757.

With cellist Sheku KannehMason.

Stanley Strong Fairwater Hotel, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2033 3049.

Stiff Little Fingers Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union. 7pm, £21 adv.

Info 029 2078 1458. Ulster punx of repute.

Swansea University Orchestra & Welsh Sinfonia Great Hall, Bay Campus, Swansea University.

6.30pm, £5-£10. Info 01792 602060.

The Boogiemen Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

The Carpenters Experience The Neon, Newport. 7.30pm, £15 adv. Info 01633 533666. Tribute band.

The Lips + Access All Areas Jac’s, Aberdare. Free.

Info 01685 879491. Playing after the rugby, which kicks off at 2.15pm.

The University Singers Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

8pm, £2-£12. Info 01970 623232. Performing Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana.

The Vibrators + The Lon Chaney 5 + Poetic Justice Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 7pm, £12 adv. Info 07970 063107.

Punk oldsters.

T. Rextasy Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry. 8pm, £23.50/£22.50. Info 01446 738622. T. Rex tribute band.

White Riot + Vanilla + String Theory + The Furns Creature Sound, Swansea. 7.30pm, £7. Info 01792 301178.

SUNDAY 10 MARCH Albino Frogs Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 6pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

Annual St David’s Day Concert Coliseum Theatre, Aberdare. 5pm, £12/£10.

Info 0300 0040444. With the Cwmbach Male Choir.

BBC Big Band Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £22.50-£32.50.

Info 029 2063 6464. *Dame Area + Beauty Parlour + Trophic Cascade Tiny Rebel, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £6. Info 029 2039 9557. No less than THREE synth/vox electronic duos, Dame Area hailing from Barcelona and the other two from Cardiff. uFolk Music & Song Session Arvon Ale House, Llandrindod Wells. 4pm. Info 07477 627267. Every second and fourth Sunday of the month (also on Sun 24 in March), with an extra acoustic session on the third Sunday (Sun 17) too.

Haunted By Ghosts + Finn + Simon Knight Jac’s, Aberdare. 5.30pm, £3.

Info 01685 879491.

Hot Club Swing Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm. Info 029 2038 7026. Regular gypsy jazz jam and performance club, led by Ben Crieghton Griffiths on harp this month.

Lee Gilbert & His Big Band Park & Dare, Treorchy.

7.30pm, £12.50. Info 0300 0040444.

Nikolai Demidenko Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 11am, £8-£20.

Info 029 2039 1391. Pre-lunch piano recital by esteemed Russian.

Padraig Lalor Browns, Laugharne. 5pm, free. Info 01994 427688.

Paul Carrack St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £41.50/£36.50. Info 029 2087 8444. Singer from Mike & The Mechanics, who play here on Thurs 21.

MONDAY 11 MARCH Cardiff County & Vale Of Glamorgan Junior Music Festival St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7pm, £8-£12. Info 029 2087 8444.

Dick Hamer Noah’s Yard, Swansea. 8pm. Info 01792 447360.

John Doughty Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry. 1.30pm, £5/£1 dementia friendly/free carers.

DUO (The Globe, Cardiff, Sun 21) ALABAMA 3 (The Globe, Thurs 25) THE UNTHANKS (Tramshed, Tue 30) JUST ANNOUNCED FOR MAY: STEALING SHEEP (Clwb Ifor Bach, Fri 3) HEATHER PEACE (The Globe, Thurs 9) THE KENNEDY SOUNDTRACK (The Globe, Fri 10) DEAN FRIEDMAN (The Hyst, Swansea, Thurs 16; Acapela, BUZZ 70

Info 01446 738622. Performing as part of the Concerts And Cakes series of lunchtime performances.

TUESDAY 12 MARCH Calva Louise + Kid Capichi Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £8. Info 029 2023 2199.

Cardiff County & Vale Of Glamorgan Spring Showcase St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7pm, £8-£12. Info 029 2087 8444.

Dave Cottle Trio The Muse, Brecon. 8pm, £12/£10 members. Info info@ breconjazzclub.org. Also featuring Victoria Klewin this month. A Brecon Jazz Club event.

Elio Pace Presents Elvis Presley Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £24.50/£22.50.

Info 01970 623232. Tribute act.

In Newport on Wed 20.

Grangetown Bumps Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4.50/£4 members/£2 NUS. Info 029 2038 7026.

Iain Ballamy Trio Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www. thefluteandtankard.com. Jazz.

Lucy Russell & Sezi Seskir Cardiff University Concert Hall. 7-9pm, £10/£8/free NUS. Info 029 2087 4816. Violin and fortepiano duo performing works by Beethoven.

UFO Tramshed, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £25.50 adv. Info 029 2023 5555. Not sure who is actually in this incarnation of the German hard rock veterans and as this gig is sold out I shall assume that everyone who bought a ticket has checked that out for themselves.

WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH Al Swinger Quartet The Garage, Swansea. 8.30pm, £12.50. Info 01792 475147. A Swansea Jazzland night with a band paying tribute to Chick Corea.

George Ezra + Sigrid Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

6.30pm, £35. Info 029 2022 4488. Sold out.

Judy Cook Pontyclun Institute Athletic Club. 7.30pm, £8/£5 members. Info 01443 226892. A Llantrisant Folk Club night.

No Violet + Charlie Says + Fioled The Moon, Cardiff.

7-10pm, £6/£5 adv. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Open Mic Night NosDa, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. With a different guest host every week this month; tonight’s is Ben DainSmith.

Royal Welsh College Brass Band Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £14/£12.

Info 029 2039 1391. Robert Childs conducts a programme of Russian, Bulgarian and Romanian composers.

RWCMD Chamber Winds Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1.15pm, £8/£6 adv. Info 029 2039 1391.

Sister George Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www. thefluteandtankard.com. Jazz.

Skyliners Big Band Rogerstone & Bassaleg Social

Club, Bassaleg, Newport. 8pm, £10. Info malc@dancebands. plus.com. A South Wales Big Band Society gig.

Smokepurrp + Jack Bruno + Don Krez + Richie Wess Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £18.50 adv.

Info 029 2023 5555. Miami rapper aligned to the Soundcloud rap movement, if you can call it that. uThe Bay Rum Hounds Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm. Info 029 2038 7026. Also on Wed 27.

Trep + With Eden In Progress + The 501s Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £4/£3 adv. Info 07970 063107.

Headliners are in Swansea on Sat 16.

THURSDAY 14 MARCH Blue Planet II Live In Concert Motorpoint Arena Cardiff. 6.30pm, from £40.

Info 029 2022 4488. The live version of the Attenboroughhelmed TV show. I’m not sure where best to put this but it’s an orechestra from Prague performing the music from the show in front of a huge screen of nautical footage.

Danielle Nicholls Band The Pear Tree, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2025 2042.

Godsticks Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 7pm, £8 adv. Info 07970 063107. Welsh progmetallers.

Ian Stoutzker Prize: SemiFinal Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 6pm, £12/£10. Info 029 2039 1391.

Mark Purnell + Darren Baker Crindau Constitutional Club, Newport. 8pm. Info 01633 858636. A Lyceum Folk Club night. *O’Hooley & Tidow Pontardawe Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £14. Info 01792 863722. Yorkshire folk duo.

Need to see a gig by them at some point!

Rebecca Hurn The Big Top, Cardiff. 7pm, £5/£4 adv. Info 029 2022 8883.

Red Rum Club + The Now + Caspiens The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7/£6 adv. Info info@themooncardiff.com. uSteve Edmunds The Lime Tree, Chepstow. 8pm, free. Info 01291 620959. Also here on Thurs 28 this month.

The Best Of Wham! Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £25 adv. Info 01792 475715.

Tribute show.

The Coral + Cut Glass Kings + Marvin Powell Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £21 adv. Info 029 2023 5555.

The Ragdolls Queens Hall, Narberth. 7.30pm, £15 adv.

Info 01834 869323. Frankie Valli tribute act who, it says here, have won the Best Frankie Valli Tribute Act award every year since 2014. Leading me to think that these guys should retire at the top, and all the other Frankie Valli tribute acts should also retire as they will never be as good as The Ragdolls.

The Sensational 60s Experience St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £30. Info 029 2087 8444. Featuring Mike Pender, Chris Farlowe, Herman’s Hermits, The Swinging Blue Jeans, New Amen Corner and The

Fourmost. In Swansea on Sat 16.

The Thom Voyce Quartet Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £6/£5.

Info 029 2038 7026.

Thunder And Rain Burnett’s Hill Chapel, Martletwy, Pembrokeshire.

7.30pm, £10. Info 01646 651725. Folk/jazz duo. In Llandeilo tomorrow.

FRIDAY 15 MARCH A4 Brass Quartet Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £15. Info 01873 850805.

Performing works by Rossini, Strauss, Debussy and more.

Acoustic Sinners Park Hotel, Barry. 9pm, free. Info 01446 735589.

Adwaith + Lewys + Eädyth Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £6. Info 029 2023 2199. Welsh language bands presented by Twrw.

BBC NOW: Elgar Enigma Variations Brangwyn Hall, Swansea. 7.30pm, £15-£22.

Info 01792 475715.

Black Grape Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £26 adv. Info 029 2023 5555. See Upfront for an interview with Shaun Ryder, juggling this band among his varied means of paying the bills.

Blak Twang + Ty + Rodney P Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £12. Info 029 2023 2199. Three big dogs of 90s/00s UK hip-hop on what they call the Kingdem Tour.

This will make a lot of old heads very happy and fair play to them!

Daisy Chapman Cellar Bar, Cardigan. 8pm, £10 adv. Info 07818 056599.

Dansette Café Jazz, Cardiff.

8pm, £4/£3. Info 029 2038 7026. Soul.

David Gray St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £32-£101.50.

Info 029 2087 8444. See Upfront for an interview. Gig is sold out though! Apart possible from the top price ticket, a VIP thing. You don’t even get to meet Dave for that either.

Deaf Havana Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union. 7pm, £18.50 adv.

Info 029 2078 1458. Norfolk rockers.

Deep Blue Something + The Riff Sin City, Swansea.

7.30pm, £18 adv. Info 01792 468892. You know how many recipe blogs are obliged, for some copyright-related reason, to preface their recipes with a really long rambling story that no-one cares about? The musical equivalent of that will be this band’s set before they play their hit single.

Harvey Jones + The Kelly Line + Rebecca Hern + Ellis Thomas The Dragonffli, Pontypool. 7pm. Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com.

Hells Bells The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £13.50 adv.

Info 07590 471888. AC/DC tribute band.

I Digress + These Five Years + Garuda + WelterWeight The Green Rooms, Treforest. 7pm, £4.

Info 01443 841133.

Jim Jones And The Righteous Mind + Heavy Flames + Nicotine Pretty Jac’s, Aberdare. 7.30pm, £12 adv. Info 01685 879491.

BLAK TWANG / TY / RODNEY P Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Fri 15 Mar Tickets: £12. Info: 029 2023 2199 / www.clwb.net Three of the most highly regarded UK hip-hop artists of their generation come together for what they’re calling the Kingdem tour. A legend in UKHH and widely considered to be the godfather of the genre’s development in these fair isles, Rodney P [pictured] has been doing his thing since the early 80s, while between them, Blak Twang and Ty have been nominated for just about every award hip-hop has to offer. Their individual influence on the scene can’t be underestimated, and now Cardiff get to see why as all three MCs hit the stage at Clwb Ifor Bach for what promises to be a night for the ages. Promoters Diff Jam have an afterparty in Beelzebubs until 3am, too.

Swampy garage rocker headlines.

Kenny Driscoll Kiwis, Cardiff. 10pm, free. Info 029 2039 8965.

Les Barker Glais Rugby Football Club, nr Clydach, Swansea. 8pm, £7. Info 01792 425231. A Valley Folk Club night. See Music for more on Solasta, who are also in Cwmafan on Mon 18 and Pontyclun on Wed 20.

Let’s Swim, Get Swimming + Exploder + Last Hyena + Flour Babies Le Public Space, Newport. 7.30pm, £4/£3 adv. Info sam@lepub.co.uk. *Listen To The Voice Of Fire Ceredigion Museum, Aberystwyth. 8pm, £10 adv per night. Info 01970 633088.

Really neat double evening of British underground experimental tackle by promoters also called Listen To The Voice Of Fire. Tonight features Laura Netz, Itdreamedtome, Sharron Kraus and Bell Lungs; tomorrow boasts Hawthonn, The Kitchen Cynics and Ashtray Navigations.

London Winds Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1.15pm, £8/£6 adv. Info 029 2039 1391. With painist Catherine Milledge.

News From Nowhere + Curious Orange + Hobgoblin + David Ian Roberts The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £3 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar.co.uk.

Paige Kenzie City Arms, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2064 1913.

Paul Ashton The Duke Of

Wellington, Cowbridge. 9.30pm, free. Info 01446 773592.

Rammlied Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 8pm, £6 adv. Info 07970 063107. Rammstein tribute band.

Ray ‘Taff Williams’ Stringfellows The Garage, Swansea. 8.30pm, £12.50. Info 01792 475147. A Swansea Jazzland night.

Rumney Folk Club St Augustine’s Church, Rumney, Cardiff. 7.45pm. Info derek@ rumneyfolkclub.co.uk. Monthly night, usually on the third Friday. *Sonance + This Ends Here + Warrior Pope The Moon, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info info@themooncardiff.com.

Cosmic Carnage and Lesson No.1 present three bands from Bristol, variously in the post-metal/crust/doom way of things and all for free.

Sore Teeth + Drunken Marksman + Positive Reaction + System Reset The Dolls House, Abertillery.

7pm, £4. Info 01495 213300.

Crust and hardcore bands, rescheduled from last month.

Spindle Ensemble The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £5. Info 01497 821762.

Not heard of these before but they’re from Bristol and claim Moondog, Eric Satie and Mulatu Astatke as influences, so not a bad start.

Stayin’ Alive UK Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £19 adv. Info 029 2089 0862. Bee Gees tribute band.

String Sisters Pencoed Library, nr Bridgend. 1pm, £6.

Info 01656 815995.

The Albion Quartet Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £15/£13 adv. Info 029 2039 1391. Performing works by Bach, Haydn and Schumann.

The Italics The Plough, Whitchurch, Cardiff. 9pm, free.

Info 029 2062 3017.

SATURDAY 16 MARCH Antarctic Monkeys The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £11 adv. Info 07590 471888. Tribute band.

Barry Steele & Friends: The Roy Orbison Story Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

7.30pm, £23. Info 01874 611622. Tribute show.

Ben Ja Min The Fox & Hounds, Whitchurch, Cardiff.

8.30pm, free. Info 029 2069 3377.

Bottlekids + Deathtraps The Dragonffli, Pontypool.

7pm, £5. Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com.

Children Of The Gravy Jac’s, Aberdare. 7.30pm, £5.

Info 01685 879491.

CJ The Red Dragon, Bridgend.

8.30pm, free. Info 01656 654753.

Darkside The Neon, Newport.

7.30pm, £15 adv. Info 01633 533666. Pink Floyd tribute.

Fire Fences + Pinups + Rhys Davis & The Liberators + The Roselles The Moon, Cardiff. 7.20pm, freee. Info info@ themooncardiff.com. Playing after the rugby, for which the venue opens at 11am.

Forever Sabbath Rhondda

Pentyrch, Fri 17) GONG (The Globe, Thurs 23) THE FUTUREHEADS (The Globe, Tue 28) JUST ANNOUNCED FOR JUNE: THE DRIFTERS (Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Sat 1) LET’S ROCK 80S: BILLY OCEAN, TONY HADLEY, GO WEST (Tredegar Park, Newport, Sat 1) HONEYBLOOD (Clwb Ifor Bach, Mon 10) MUMFORD & SONS (Motorpoint BUZZ 71

* – recommended Hotel, Porth. 7pm, £5 adv. Info 01443 682388. Black Sabbath tribute.

Glas Birchgrove, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2031 1319.

Guns 2 Roses + Saints Of Los Angeles Workmen’s Hall, Caerphilly. 7.30pm, £12.50/£10 adv. Info 07512 237983.

Tributes to Guns N’ Roses and Mötley Crüe.

Junior Conservatoire Foyer Concert Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 1.45pm, free. Info 029 2039 1391.

KT Tunstall + Laurel + Gorran Tramshed, Cardiff.

6.30-10pm, £28.50 adv/£100 VIP. Info 029 2023 5555. The VIP package grants you the privilege of watching KT Tunstall soundcheck, and if you think a ton sounds like a bargain for such an experience, you’re not alone as it’s sold out.

Mellt Letterston Memorial Hall, Pembrokeshire. 8pm, £5.

Info 01834 869323. Welsh language indie band, presented here by Span Arts.

Peter Knight & Jon Spiers Rhos Y Gilwen, Pembrokeshire.

8-10.30pm, £12.50. Info 01239 841387. Former members of Steeleye Span and Gigspanner.

In Pentyrch tomorrow.

Pipe Dream The Patriot, Crumlin. 8pm, free. Info 01495 247178. *Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £11-£22. Info 029 2039 1391. Two nephews of qawwali figurehead Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan perform this Sufi musical style on traditional instruments. See Music.

Rock And Roll Revolution Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £18.50. Info 01646

695267. Fifties musical tribute courtesy of a band called The Bluejays.

Shackleton Trio The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £5.

Info 01497 821762. Folk.

The Big What?! Band Porter’s, Cardiff. 8pm. Info info@porterscardiff.com.

The Erin Bardwell Collective Small World Theatre, Cardigan. 8pm, £10.

Info 01239 615952. Ska band supported by a DJ set from Mr A. The Jedis Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

The Sensational 60s Experience Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £28 adv. Info 01792 475715.

The Stoned Roses The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £5 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar. co.uk. Tribute band.

The Stray Pursuit + String Theory + Portraits + The Furns Sin City, Swansea. 7pm, £3 adv. Info 01792 468892.

The Zoots Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £15.50.

Info 01495 227206. Sixties cover band.

Token Women CMC Sports & Leisure Club, University Hospital Of Wales, Cardiff.

7pm, £10/£8 adv/£5 kids.

Info ruffceilidhs.org. A RUFF Ceilidhs night.

Tony Wright Priory Centre, St Mary’s, Abergavenny. 7pm, £12.50 adv. Info contact@ woodfiredsummit.com.

Terrorvision frontman does his solo thing. Presented by Woodfired Summit.

Trep + Eden In Progress + Epic Fail + Excursia Hangar 18, Swansea. 7.30pm, £4/£3 adv. Info enquiries@ hangar18musicvenue.co.uk.

White Riot + Finding Aurora + The Rivers Le Public Space, Newport.

7.30pm, £3. Info sam@lepub. co.uk.

SUNDAY 17 MARCH Acoustic Session Arvon Ale House, Llandrindod Wells.

4pm. Info 07477 627267. uAlfie Boe + Hattie Briggs St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £37-£177.

Info 029 2087 8444. Classical crossover bloke. Top price gets you a “very limited opportunity to meet Alfie” which could be read either of two ways. On tomorrow also.

Cactus Haus + Fly By Night + King Cerulean + Unbranded The Moon, Cardiff. 7pm, £4. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Jack Mac Quintet Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4. Info 029 2038 7026.

New Music From Ireland Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff.

3pm, £10. Info 029 2030 4400.

Featuring John Buckley, Frank Corcoran, Benjamin Dwyer, Jenn Kirby John McLachlan and Fergus Johnston.

Peter Knight & Jon Spiers Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff.

8pm, £15 adv. Info 029 2089 0862.

Red Hot Riot + The Strays + The Bug Club Le Public Space, Newport.

7.30pm. Info sam@lepub. co.uk.

Richard Henton Browns, Laugharne. 3pm, free. Info 01994 427688.

Southside Johnny & The Ashbury Dukes Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £28.50 adv.

Info 029 2023 5555.

The Fugitives Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 6pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

ZilpZalp + Probably Not + Fallow + Better Than Mending Cathays Community Centre, Cardiff.

8pm, £5. Info 029 2037 3144.

Emo/screamo of the original skool type, plus some more post-hardcore-y stuff.

MONDAY 18 MARCH Easy Street Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8.30pm. Info 029 2038 7026.

Gypsy Jazz Noah’s Yard, Swansea. 8pm. Info 01792 447360.

TUESDAY 19 MARCH Cardiff University Contemporary Music Group Cardiff University Concert Hall. 7-9pm, free. Info 029 2087 4816. With director Robert Fokkens.

Joanne Shaw Taylor Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £26 adv. Info 029 2023 5555.

Blues-rocker Martin Taylor & Ulf Wakenius Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £20.

Info 01792 863722. Duo of esteemed jazz guitarists. Ólafur Arnalds St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 8.30pm, £32.

Info 029 2087 8444. Modern classical pianist. See Music for more.

Ollendorff / Hitchcock / Downard / Michel Group Flute & Tankard, Cardiff.

9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www.thefluteandtankard. com. Jazz.

The Camelia Jazz Band Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4.50/£4 members/£2 NUS. Info 029 2038 7026. *The Shifters + My Name Is Ian + The Cool Greenhouse + Drunk Tourist The Moon, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £5. Info info@

u – repeated

themooncardiff.com.

Headliners are from Australia and do postpunk/indie; TCGH sounds like Mark E Smith meets John Shuttleworth.

WEDNESDAY 20 MARCH Capital City Jazz Orchestra with Chris Dean Rogerstone & Bassaleg Social Club, Bassaleg, Newport. 8pm, £10. Info malc@dancebands. plus.com. A South Wales Big Band Society gig.

Elio Pace Presents Elvis Presley The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £25.50/£23.50. Info 01633 656757.

Hollow Log Redhouse, Merthyr Tydfil. 7pm, £5. Info 01685 384111. Country blues.

John Illsley Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 8pm, £22. Info 01600 772467. One of Dire Straits’ non-Knopfler quotient.

Kevin North + Stuffed Queens Jac’s, Aberdare.

8.30pm. Info 01685 879491.

One Small Step Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 10.30am + 1.30pm, £2. Info 01686 614555.

John Barber and Sinfonia Cymru with a performance celebrating 50 years since the firtst moon landing.

Open Mic Night NosDa, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. With a different guest host every week this month; tonight’s is Christian Punter.

Pete Oxley / Nicholas Meier Quartet The Garage, Swansea. 8.30pm, £12.50. Info 01792 475147. A Swansea Jazzland night.

Reverend James & The Swingtown Cowboys Ex-Servicemen’s Club, Penarth. 7.30pm, £5/£4.40 adv.

Info feelgoodmusicorg@gmail. com. Also featuring swing DJ

The Medicine Man. Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama Students Flute & Tankard, Cardiff.

9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www.thefluteandtankard.com.

Two sets by jazz ensembles, first the Alex Lockheart Quartet and What The Helliwell after that.

Slim Chance Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £15. Info 029 2062 6015. Ronnie Lane’s band crack on posthumously, maybe with a Small Face-shaped hologram who knows.

The Jerseys Park & Dare, Treorchy. 7.30pm, £22/£19.50 kids. Info 0300 0040444.

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY FRANKIE VALLI & THE FOUR SEASONS TRIBUTE ACTS???

The Lounge Kittens + Grant Sharkey The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info 07590 471888. The first band at the Globe this month who aren’t a tribute band, although they are mainly noted for doing wacky covers. Love to live through a musical golden age.

WNO Orchestra St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5-£49.50. Info 029 2087 8444.

Tomáš Hanus conducts a programme of Strauss, Mozart and Brahms.

THURSDAY 21 MARCH 3 Daft Monkeys The Garage, Swansea. 7pm, £13 adv. Info 01792 475147. In Pentyrch tomorrow.

Andy Park The Pear Tree, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2025 2042.

Butterfly’s Wing Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £16/£14. Info 01792 602060.

Jazz quartet headed by vocalist Jacqui Dankworth.

Edgelarks Norwegian

live review

JOHN GRANT

St David’s Hall, Cardiff, Mon 11 Feb

It doesn’t seem like three years in between albums for John Grant but he’s back with a fourth solo effort, and tonight he returns to Cardiff at the end of his Love Is Magic tour.

As if to let the audience know what they’re in for – that Grant is a different type of singer songwriter to his support, Bella Union stablemate E.B The Younger – the interval music was some kind of industrial jazz. Then there’s the man himself: opening with Tempest from the new album, sounding like something from the soundtrack of a cyber-war sci-fi film and setting out his stall of epic, cinematic synth loudness that’s to come in the rest of the gig.

The synth assault on the senses takes a break for a few songs from TC And The Honeybear – Is He Strange the closest thing to a mainstream rock song, with postpunk percussive icon Budgie showing why he’s such a famous drummer. Then it was back with the blistering synth-rock, this time with a surprise appearance by Cate Le Bon, improving on the already beautiful sounding Glacier; and in between the high-decibel turns, the tender duet of 70s folk song Between Two Lovers felt like something special.

The audience was oddly (to me) middle-aged – an odd fit, perhaps, for someone with song titles such as Smug Cunt. I wonder how many of them are now drinking from a mug with those very words printed on it, and purchasable from the merch stall tonight.

Although it was presented by Clwb Ifor Bach, St David’s Hall seems a strange venue for Grant’s style of music: a sea of heads in front of me, politely nodding their heads to the thunderous electronic rock was just a bit unsatisfying.

Grant, though, is such a comfortable performer, and after four albums of vitriolic bile, humour and bitchiness, it’s clear that he doesn’t care what anyone thinks. He was clearly enjoying himself, even being generous enough to answer a question shouted from the audience and using a heckle in Welsh to talk about his love of language. A gig that didn’t at all feel like two hours: just like the man himself, majestic and loud! words CHRIS WILLIAMS photos EMMA LEWIS

BUZZ 72

Church Arts Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £14 adv. Info 029 2087 7959. Duo of Phillip Henry & Hannah Martin.

Fraccalvieri/Long Quintet Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £6/£5.

Info 029 2038 7026.

Gruffydd Wyn Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £22.50. Info 01495 227206.

Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £15/£13. Info 01874 611622.

UK folk duo.

Mike & The Mechanics St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £42/£37. Info 029 2087 8444.

MOR monsters.

Pete Oxley & Nicolas Meier Quartet Plas Hyfryd Hotel, Narberth. 8pm, £11/£10.

Info 01834 869323. Spanjazz night.

Pi & Hash Showcase The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free.

Info info@themooncardiff. com.

Steve Knightley Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £19. Info 01239 621200. UK folk perennial, frontman of Show Of Hands. In Builth Wells tomorrow; Pontardawe Sat 23.

The Christians The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £22.50 adv.

Info 07590 471888. Softpoppers from the 80s.

The Pitchforks Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £4.50. Info 029 2023 2199.

The Wailers Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £25.50 adv.

Info 029 2023 5555. As in ‘Bob Marley & The’. Sold out.

FRIDAY 22 MARCH 3 Daft Monkeys Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £14 adv. Info 029 2089 0862.

A Night At The Proms St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5.50-£24. Info 029 2087 8444.

With the Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra.

Battle Of The Bands The Hyst, Swansea. 6pm. Info 01792 654366. Presented by The Wave and StudentDigz.

Cardiff University Symphony Chorus & Chamber Orchestra Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff.

7-9pm, £5/free NUS and under-18s. Info 029 2056 4554.

Performing works by Haydn and Beethoven.

Chris Kelly City Arms, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2064 1913.

Desert Storm + Made Of Teeth + Kong Lives The Moon, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info info@themooncardiff.com.

Stoner and doom type bands DNA Pontardawe Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £15. Info 01792 863722. Welsh pop-vocal duo Eclectic Shed Experience Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl.

8pm, free. Info 01656 815995.

Acoustic Club gig. *Half Man Half Biscuit Tramshed, Cardiff. 7pm, £21 adv. Info 029 2023 5555. Still the GOAT. Higher-On Maiden Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 8pm, £8 adv. Info 07970 063107. Iron Maiden tribute band.

Maesteg Amateur Operatic Society Spring Concert Town Hall, Maesteg.

7.15pm, £6-£8. Info 01656 815995.

Max Cooper Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £14. Info 029 2023 2199. See Clubs for more on this, largely cos that’s what Max is most readily linked with; this however will be a live/AV electronic set.

Paige Kenzie The Duke Of Wellington, Cowbridge. 9.30pm, free. Info 01446 773592.

Steve Knightley Wyeside Arts Centre, Builth Wells.

7.30pm, £19. Info 01982 552555.

Sweet Ignitions + Awakening Savannah + Greenmailer + Lazarus Moon + Dark Valley The Green Rooms, Treforest. 7pm, £5. Info 01443 841133. A Meddwlfest gig.

The Bakestones + Anonymous Iconoclasts + Mojo Phono Jac’s, Aberdare.

7.30pm, £3. Info 01685 879491.

The Bella Collins Band Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4/£3.

Info 029 2038 7026. Soul.

The Daze Of Change + Oxbowlake The Dragonffli, Pontypool. 7pm, £5. Info gigs@thedragonffli.com.

The Electric Swing Circus + Timbali Players + Dapper Cadavers Laser Station, Carmarthen. 8pm, £12/£10 adv. Info 01267 235648. Live electroswing etc.

The People The Poet The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil. 9pm, £6.50/£4 adv. Info 01685 387925.

The Point Ty Newydd, Barry.

9pm, free. Info 01446 407767.

Toby Hay + David Ian Roberts The Gate, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £8/£6 adv. Info 029 2048 3344. Two leftfield folk guitartists. Toby is good, not au fait with David.

Wednesday’s Wolves + Velvet Circus The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £5.

Info 01497 821762.

XY&O Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £7. Info 029 2023 2199. Reclusive dance-pop locals.

SATURDAY 23 MARCH uAmy Wadge & Luke Jackson Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm. Info 029 2089 0862. On tomorrow also, both dates sold out.

Anonymous Iconoclasts + Wheniwas5 + Church & Puppets + Elliot Oakley NosDa, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866.

Beyond The Barricade Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen.

7pm, £24. Info 0845 2263510.

Songs from the musicals.

Blood Red Saints Rhondda Hotel, Porth. 7pm, £5 adv. Info 01443 682388.

Cellar Darling The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £14 adv. Info 07590 471888. Symphonic metal.

Chris John Birchgrove, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2031 1319.

Dead At 27 + Soviets + Handsome Ape Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff. 7pm, £5/£3 adv.

Info 07970 063107.

Dean Mack’s AwardWinning Elvis Tribute Workmen’s Hall, Caerphilly.

7.30pm, £12.50/£10 adv. Info 07512 237983.

From The Jam Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry. 8pm, £22.

Info 01446 738622. Bruce

Foxton and helpers mod on.

Huw Warren & Adriano Adewale Duo Cardiff University Concert Hall. 7-9pm, free. Info 029 2087 4816. Welsh jazzman meets Brazilian percussionist.

Ian Cal Ford & The Brakemen Cellar Bar, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £10. Info 07818 056599.

Ian McNabb Cardiff Bus Transport Club. 7.30pm, £13.50 adv. Info 029 2023 3658. Liverpudlian indie/pop veteran.

Jack Mac’s Funk Pack + Bass 12 Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £5. Info 029 2023 2199.

Jess Stevens The Red Dragon, Bridgend. 8.30pm, free. Info 01656 654753. uJon Crespo Quartet Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm. Info 029 2038 7026. Funk and Latin tunes, also here on Sat 30.

Matt Forde & The Foden’s Brass Band Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 7.30pm, £15. Info

Steve Knightley Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £18. Info 01792 863722.

The Boogiemen Jac’s, Aberdare. 9pm, £3. Info 01685 879491.

The Jokers The Patriot, Crumlin. 8pm, £3. Info 01495 247178.

The Masterplan Kiwis, Cardiff. 10pm, free. Info 029 2039 8965.

Walk Like A Man Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7.30pm, £21.50.

Info 0300 3656677. Frankie Valli tribute act.

Witch Tripper + White Raven Down + Black Tree Vultures + Left For Red + Fallen Temples + Who Knows Didley + The Phil Beddo Band The Dolls House, Abertillery. 4pm, £4.

Info 01495 213300. Charity gig in aid of Mencap.

Whitney: Queen Of The Night Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £26.50/£24.50. Info 01792 475715. Whitney Houston

Newbridge’s Memorial Hall hosts the 50th birthday bash of local ensemble Mynyddislwyn Male Choir on Sat 23. Notably, they’ve managed to rope in James Dean Bradfield out of the Manics to take part. Guessing he has a relative who sings in the choir or something.

01686 614555.

Mike Dennis + Paul John Bailey The Moon, Cardiff.

8pm, free. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Mr Tea & The Minions The Globe At Hay, Hay-On-Wye. 8pm, £5. Info 01497 821762. In Rhayader on Fri 29.

Mumbo Jumbo Llanbedr Village Hall, nr Crickhowell.

7pm, £8 adv. Info 01873 812385. Folk.

Mynyddislwyn Male Choir 50th Anniversary Concert Memorial Hall, Newbridge.

6pm, £15. Info 01495 243252.

Featuring guest showings from some youthful pop whippersnapper locals, Into The Ark and James Dean Bradfield out of the Manics!

Peter Jagger The Fox & Hounds, Whitchurch, Cardiff.

8.30pm, free. Info 029 2069 3377.

Philomusica: Music At The Movies Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £2-£12. Info 01970 623232.

Ross Gurney Three Horse Shoes, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2069 4630.

Showaddywaddy Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £25.50. Info 01495 227206.

Someone Like You: The Adele Songbook Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £20/£19. Info 01646 695267. Tribute show. In Cardiff on Sat 30.

Son Of Man The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil. 8pm, £10/£8 adv. Info 01685 387925.

Spinoff from Welsh proggers Man.

tribute show.

Who’s Next The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £10 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar.co.uk.

Who tribute band. The evening also features a DJ set from former Specials member/ Prince Buster sideman Drew Stansall.

SUNDAY 24 MARCH BBC NOW: Family Concert St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 3pm, £5-£20. Info 029 2087 8444.

Junior Hacksaw Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 6pm, free. Info 029 2062 6015.

Kamus String Quartet Great Hall, Bay Campus, Swansea University. 2pm, £5-£15. Info 01792 602060.

My Baby The Globe, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £14 adv. Info 07590 471888. A “Dutch-New Zealand band from Amsterdam” playing “a mix of blues, country and funk”. Band descriptions you can smell.

Night At The Musicals Gwyn Hall, Neath. 6pm, £10.

Info 0300 3656677. Featuring the Pelenna Male Voice Choir, The Sound Of Voices, Mini Voices and Serenata. In aid of the British Lung Foundation Singing For Lung Health Group.

Seven Stories High + Dead Restless The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £4 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar. co.uk.

Student Action For Refugees Fundraiser The Moon, Cardiff. 7pm, pay by donation. Info info@ themooncardiff.com. Presented

by the Live Music Society.

The Bay Rum Hounds Browns, Laugharne. 3pm, free.

Info 01994 427688.

MONDAY 25 MARCH Jango Haze Noah’s Yard, Swansea. 8pm. Info 01792 447360.

Panic! At The Disco Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

6.30pm, £47.50. Info 029 2022 4488. Sold out.

The Slow Readers Club Sin City, Swansea. 7pm, £15 adv.

Info 01792 468892.

TUESDAY 26 MARCH Blue Rose Code Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £15/£13. Info 01873 850805.

Soulful folk project from Scotland.

Busted Motorpoint Arena Cardiff. 6.30pm, £42.50. Info 029 2022 4488. They have a song on their new album in praise of Elon Musk, and why not? It isn’t like there’s any chance of it dating badly. *Droves + Gay Panic Defence + Shishu + Glib Le Public Space, Newport.

7.30pm, £5. Info sam@lepub. co.uk. Two cool Scottish grindcore/powerviolence type bands on tour.

Firewoodisland + Long For The Coast + In The Goodship The Big Top, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £8/£7 adv. Info 029 2022 8883.

Hot Strings Cafe Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4.50/£4 members/£2 NUS. Info 029 2038 7026.

Jazz Cafe The Gate, Cardiff.

8pm, free. Info 029 2048 3344.

Kikker + When It Mattered + Multitap The Moon, Cardiff. 7-10pm, £4. Info info@themooncardiff.com. *Kristin Hersh The Globe, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £20 adv. Info 07590 471888. See Music for an chat with this eternal legend.

The Fureys Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £21. Info 01239 621200. Irish folkies.

In Brecon tomorrow, Neath on Thurs 28 and Monmouth Fri 29. *Vula Viel Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www. thefluteandtankard.com. See Music for more on this neat group who mix Ghanaian percussion, techno and tinkly post-rock. In Ystradgynlais tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY 27 MARCH Concerts & Cakes Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen.

12.30pm, £5. Info 0845 2263510.

ConunDrum Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry. 1.30pm, £5/£1 dementia friendly/free carers.

Info 01446 738622. Performing as part of the Concerts And Cakes series of lunchtime performances.

Dave Jones Quartet Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 9-11.30pm, £7/£5 NUS. Info www. thefluteandtankard.com. Two sets by jazz ensembles, first the Maria Fox Trio and the Peter Johnson Band after that.

Ian Bateman with Dave Cottle Trio The Garage, Swansea. 8.30pm, £12.50. Info 01792 475147. A Swansea

Jazzland night.

Idles + Crows Tramshed, Cardiff. 7pm, £18.50 adv. Info 029 2023 5555. Spiky topical rockers from Bristol headline.

Gig sold out almost as soon as it went on sale.

Matt Cox & Lee Sigerson The Small Space, Barry. 8pm, £5. Info info@thesmallspace. co.uk. New bimonthly jazz night.

Moya Brennan Rhos Y Gilwen, Pembrokeshire.

8-10.30pm, £18. Info 01239 841387. Clannad vocalist. In Pentyrch on Sun 31.

Open Mic Night NosDa, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866. With a different guest host every week this month; tonight’s is The Freeway.

Phil Dando Big Band Rogerstone & Bassaleg Social Club, Bassaleg, Newport. 8pm, £10. Info malc@dancebands. plus.com. A South Wales Big Band Society gig.

Siobhan McCrudden + Laura Power + Patronus The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil. 9-11pm, £3. Info 01685 387925. A U&I Radio night.

The Brother Brothers RAFA Club, St Davids, Pembrokeshire. 7.30pm, £13 adv. Info 01437 729517.

Country/folk duo from Illinois.

On Abergavenny tomorrow.

The Fureys Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £21/£20. Info 01874 611622.

The Undercover Hippy The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £8 adv. Info info@bunkhousebar. co.uk.

Tom Russell Norwegian Church Arts Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £22 adv. Info 029 2087 7959. American countryrocker who started his career in the early 70s. Will be sold out by the time you read this, neat booking though.

Vula Viel The Welfare, Ystradgynlais. 8pm, £11/£9.

Info 01639 843163.

THURSDAY 28 MARCH BBC NOW Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £5-£20.

Info 01970 623232. Kensho Watanbe conducts a programme of Tchaikovsky and Joaquin Rodrigo, with guest guitarist Thibaut Garcia.

Bodega Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £6. Info 029 2023 2199.

Capital City Jazz Orchestra Porter’s, Cardiff.

8pm. Info info@porterscardiff. com.

Electric Eel Shock The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £8/£7 adv. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Gerry Cinnamon Tramshed, Cardiff. 7pm, £18.50 adv. Info 029 2023 5555. Glaswegian Britpop revivalist who has done that thing of being so fiercely popular in one place (Scotland) that eventually something has to give and he starts getting popular elsewhere. As such this is sold out.

Guns That Do Tricks Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £10. Info 029 2063 6464. Loose musical collective with Cardiff mainstays Kris Jankins and DJ Jaffa at the helm.

He Writes The Songs:

Arena, Mon 10) CONVERSATIONS WITH NICK CAVE (Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, Sat 15) WHITECHAPEL (Clwb Ifor Bach, Mon 17) STEREO MCS (Rodney Parade, Newport, Sat 22) MANIC STREET PREACHERS + SUNFLOWER BEAN (Cardiff Castle, Sat 29) PAUL WELLER + MILES KANE (Cardiff Castle, Sun 30) BUZZ 73

* – recommended The Manilow Songbook Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £22/£20. Info 0845 2263510.

Tribute show. In Porthcawl tomorrow.

Holding Absence The Globe, Cardiff. 7pm, £10 adv.

Info 07590 471888. Local post-hardcore emoters, album reviewed in this issue.

Ian Poole Quartet The Pear Tree, Cardiff. 8pm, free. Info 029 2025 2042.

John Nicholas The Big Top, Cardiff. 7pm, £7 adv. Info 029 2022 8883.

Modern Jazz Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £6/£5. Info 029 2038 7026.

NCI Porthcawl Choral Evening Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £8-£15.

Info 01656 815995.

Nick Dow Crindau Constitutional Club, Newport.

8pm. Info 01633 858636. A Lyceum Folk Club night.

Rachel Taylor-Beales + Dylan Fowler Bethesda Chapel, Narberth. 8pm, £10/£8.

Info 01834 869323. Two Welsh folk/roots artists.

Royal Welsh College Chamber Choir & Badinerie Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £16/£14. Info 029 2039 1391.

Featuring a performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers, conducted by Adrian Partington.

The Bay Rum Hounds Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff.

6pm, free. Info 029 2089 0862.

Playing as part of Pizza Night here.

The Brother Brothers Art Shop & Chapel, Abergavenny.

8pm, £13 adv. Info 01873 852960.

The Fureys Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7.30pm, £24.19. Info 0300 3656677.

Zoe Wren Newport Fugitives Athletic Club, Rogerstone, Newport. 8pm. Info 07837 288096. Newport Folk Club night.

FRIDAY 29 MARCH A Night At The Opera Canton Liberal Club, Cardiff. £5 adv. Info 029 2021 0741.

Queen tribute band. Their last ever gig apparently. I guess no-one is interested in Queen these days. uBig Mac’s Wholly SAoul Band Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 7pm, £15 adv.

Info 029 2062 6015. Sold out, but an extra date has been added tomorrow.

Bloodstock Metal 2 The Masses South Wales Heat 5 Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff.

7pm, £5. Info 07970 063107.

Featuring sets from Levitas, Infernal Diadem, Eulogy, Fallen Temples and Cadacus..

Calypso City Arms, Cardiff.

9pm, free. Info 029 2064 1913.

Christopher Howe The Plough, Whitchurch, Cardiff.

9pm, free. Info 029 2062 3017.

Daoirí Farrell The Angel, Llandeilo. 7.30pm. Info info@ llandeiloacoustic.com. A Llandeilo Acoustic Club night with Irish folkie Farrell, who is in Cardigan tomorrow and Builth Wells on Sun 31.

Elder Druid + Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters + Lacertilia The Moon, Cardiff. 7.30pm, free.

Info info@themooncardiff. com.

Gassed Up + Azazel Warehouse 54, Newport.

7.40pm, £8 adv. Info 01633 BUZZ 74

213161. Crush Hate Fest present a grime/metal crossover outfit and a beatdown hardcore band with a death metal style logo.

Glenn Tilbrook Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm. Info 029 2089 0862. Sold out.

Gruffydd Wyn Town Hall, Maesteg. 8pm, £20.50/£45.50 with meet and greet. Info 01656 815995.

Health + Bliss Signal Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £12. Info 029 2023 2199.

Polished noiserockers from the Bay Area headline. They have a new album just out.

He Writes The Songs: The Manilow Songbook Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £20.50. Info 01656 815995.

Kelly’s Heroes The Twelve Knights, Port Talbot. 9pm, free.

Info 01639 882381.

Lanyi Cardiff University Concert Hall. 3-4pm, free.

Info 029 2087 4816. Cardiff University’s West African drumming ensemble perform end-of-year concert.

Lee Calaway Beaufort Arms, Swansea. 8pm, free. Info 01792 234447.

Mal Pope Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £15. Info 029 2063 6464. Stories and music from Radio Wales presenter and singer-songwriter.

Mansant + Neil & Louise Thomas Glais Rugby Football Club, nr Clydach, Swansea.

8pm, £7. Info 01792 425231. A Valley Folk Club night.

Mark Morriss Priory Centre, St Mary’s, Abergavenny. 7pm, £11 adv. Info contact@ woodfiredsummit.com.

Bluetones frontman does his solo thing. Presented by Woodfired Summit.

MR Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £10-£14. Info 01970 623232.

Mr Tea & The Minions + Candy Mountain The Lost Arc, Rhayader. 8pm, £7.50 adv.

Info 01743 860246.

Organ Recital National Museum Cardiff. 1pm, free.

Info 029 2039 7951.

Palm Tree Antics The Duke Of Wellington, Cowbridge.

9.30pm, free. Info 01446 773592.

Raters Jazz Night & Dinner Celtic Manor, nr Newport. 7pm, £49. Info 01633 413000. Live jazz and a fourcourse meal with a cocktail.

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £5-£41/free under-16s/each additional child £5. Info 029 2087 8444.

Featuring works by Elgar and Beethoven.

Sister Bodhi + Harri Davies St John The Evangelist Church, Canton, Cardiff. 7-10pm, £15/£12 adv.

Info 07960 820645. EP launch gig for a duo of two Welsh solo musicians, Jodie Marie and Bella Collins.

The Brothers Blue Café Jazz, Cardiff. 8pm, £4/£3. Info 029 2038 7026. Blues Brothers tribute.

The Firm Kiwis, Cardiff.

10pm, free. Info 029 2039 8965.

The Fureys Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 7.30pm, £21. Info 01600 772467.

The Rubies The Vivian Arms, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 516194.

The Rumblestrutters Jack Murphys, Swansea. 1-4pm.

Info 01600 772467.

The Spectrums The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil.

9pm, £3. Info 01685 387925.

The Switch Ty Newydd, Barry. 9pm, free. Info 01446 407767.

The Worried Men Park Hotel, Barry. 9pm, free. Info 01446 735589.

Throwing Knives + The D Teez + Ill Fate + Blunt Trauma Jac’s, Aberdare.

7.30pm, £3. Info 01685 879491.

Punk bands.

Vanilla + The Government + Motel Thieves Creature Sound, Swansea. 7pm, £3. Info 01792 301178.

Waterloo Live The Met, Abertillery. 7.30pm, £15 adv.

Info 01495 355945. Abba tribute band.

Wolf Jaw + Static Fires The Bunkhouse, Swansea.

7pm, £10 adv. Info info@ bunkhousebar.co.uk.

SATURDAY 30 MARCH Ail Symudiad Cellar Bar, Cardigan. 8pm. Info 07818 056599.

Andrew Harley + Well

Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £25/£24. Info 01633 656757.

Eagles tribute band.

Jeff Hooper Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £15. Info 029 2063 6464. Swing classics.

Lindisfarne Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £24.50/£23.50. Info 01656 815995.

Llandaff Cathedral Choral Society Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £15/£7.50 NUS. Info 029 2056 4554. Performing Mozart’s Mass In C Minor and Ian Lawson’s One World Cantata.

Nikki Pope The Red Dragon, Bridgend. 8.30pm, free. Info 01656 654753.

Not The Sex Pistols + Deathtraps + Terminal Rage + Raptures End The Patriot, Crumlin. 7.30pm. Info 01495 247178. Tribute band headline.

Orchards Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff. 7pm, £7. Info 029 2023 2199.

Phil Murray & The Dogz The Dragonffli, Pontypool.

7pm, £10/£6 adv. Info gigs@ thedragonffli.com. Ziggy-era

New promoters Woodfired Summit have two gigs in Abergavenny’s Priory Centre this month. Both are on a ‘singer of 90s rock band going solo’ tip: Tony Wright of Terrorvision on Sat 16, then Mark Morriss of The Bluetones on Fri 29.

Seasoned The Welfare, Ystradgynlais. 6.30pm, £10.

Info 01639 843163. Vocalistcum-impersonator supported by a swing trio. Raising money for Ystradgynlais AFC Juniors and Penrhos Youth Centre.

Black Angus Rhondda Hotel, Porth. 7pm, £5 adv. Info 01443 682388. AC/DC tribute.

Bootleg Blondie Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £12.50.

Info 01792 863722.

Cantaloop Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £15. Info 029 2089 0862. UK funk band.

Children Of The Gravy The Dolls House, Abertillery. 7pm, £5. Info 01495 213300.

Daoirí Farrell Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £3-£14. Info 01239 621200.

DiElle The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £16/£13. Info 01633 656757. Folk-pop trio.

Excellent Skeleton + Penny Rich + Sophie Crabtree NosDa, Cardiff.

8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866.

Explosive Light Orchestra Town Hall, Maesteg. 7.30pm, £18.50/£18. Info 01656 815995.

ELO tribute band.

Fragment Cockett Inn, Swansea. 9pm, free. Info 01792 588748.

Gaz Brookfield + B-Sydes Snails Deli, Cardiff. 7pm, £22 adv. Info 029 2062 0415.

Singer-songwriter. Price includes a buffet.

Henry Marten’s Ghost The Fox & Hounds, Whitchurch, Cardiff. 8.30pm, free. Info 029 2069 3377.

Illegal Eagles The

Bowie tribute set. *Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs + Obey Cobra Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £10. Info 029 2023 2199. Geordie sludge rockers with a gig that sold out way in advance because they get played on 6 Music.

Rick Buckler The Bunkhouse, Swansea. 7pm, £12.50 adv. Info info@ bunkhousebar.co.uk.

Ex-member of the Jam. Sara Ashley Birchgrove, Cardiff. 9pm, free. Info 029 2031 1319.

Someone Like You Tramshed, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £17.50 adv. Info 029 2023 5555.

Supreme Queen Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £23. Info 01495 227206. Queen tribute band.

The Biggest Thing Since Powdered Milk + CVC + Rainbow Maniac Cardiff Bus Transport Club. 8pm, £6 adv. Info 029 2023 3658. EP launch gig for the headliners.

The Doors Alive The Globe, Cardiff. 7pm, £14 adv. Info 07590 471888. Tribute band.

The History Of Rock Queens Hall, Narberth. 7pm, £23.50/£20.50. Info 01834 869323. Classic rock covers.

The Hold Up: Inner City Cypher Oner Signs, Cardiff.

1-5pm, free. Info 029 2037 1231. Monthly hip-hop session inviting MCs, beatboxers, DJs etc down to jam.

The Side Effects The Seagull Inn, Porthcawl.

7.30pm, free. Info 01656

u – repeated

785420.

The UB40 Experience The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil. 9pm, £11/£9 adv. Info 01685 387925. Tribute band.

Winger Records Showcase The Garage, Swansea. 8pm3am, £5. Info 01792 475147.

Hip-hop from west Wales in the form of Culture Vultures, Zhubat, Boofy, Just Conrad, Applied Science, WheezeTeam, Cyanne, SA Collective, Dope Biscuits, Defects Of The Dock and Huntu.

SUNDAY 31 MARCH Aubrey Parsons The Mariners, Laugharne. 8.30pm, free. Info 01994 427688.

Cardiff University Symphony Orchestra St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 3pm, £8/£3. Info 029 2087 8444.

Performing Karl Jenkins’ Llareggub and Dvorák’s From The New World.

Chube Melville Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £10/£8/£3 NUS. Info 01873 853167. Black Mountain Jazz gig for Cardiff jazz fusion duo.

Daoirí Farrell Wyeside Arts Centre, Builth Wells. 7.30pm, £14/£13. Info 01982 552555 Galya Kolarova & Eva Steinaa Great Hall, Bay Campus, Swansea University.

2pm, £5-£12. Info 01792 602060. Pianist and oboist respectively.

Kaz Hawkins Hang Fire Southern Kitchen, Barry.

6.30pm, £12 adv. Info 07561 143114. Roots N All gig for an Ulster soul vocalist. Sold out.

Live Music Society Environmental Fundraiser The Moon, Cardiff. 5-11pm, pay by donation. Info info@ themooncardiff.com.

Moya Brennan Acapela, Pentyrch, Cardiff. 8pm, £27.50 adv. Info 029 2089 0862.

Owen Money & The Travelling Wrinklies The New Crown Inn, Merthyr Tydfil. 7.30pm, £5 adv. Info 01685 387925. “Owen started his career with pop group The Bystanders who had hits in the 60s on the Pye label – which was fortunate because if you didn’t like the music you could always eat the record!”

In awe at Owen thinking this is funny enough to be used in his official bio. *Sauna Youth + Trash Kit + Rattle + Robert Sotelo Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £10. Info 029 2023 2199. Belting lineup of acts from London label Upset The Rhythm, who are touring to celebrate 15 years in the game.

Whitchurch Jam Session #116 Earl Haig Memorial Club, Cardiff. 5.30pm, free.

Info 029 2062 6015.

stage FRIDAY 1 MARCH uA Chorus Line Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 7.30pm, £10-£15. Info 01656 815995.

Musical, presented by BYT. On tomorrow also, at 2.30pm and 7.30pm.

Awakening The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £14/£12. Info 01633 656757. National Dance Company Wales with three pieces: Afterimage, Revellers’ Mass and Tundra. In Newtown on Thurs 21. uBillionaire Boy The

Musical New Theatre, Cardiff. 2.30 + 7pm, £13.50£23. Info 029 2087 8889. Stage version of David Walliams’ kids’ novel about a boy abandoned by his newly wealthy father. On at 11am and 3pm tomorrow, tickets £14-£25.50. uCamp Rock The Musical Princess Royal Theatre, Port Talbot. 12.30 + 6.30pm, £11.50 adv. Info 01639 763214.

Presented by Stage 8 Theatre School. On tomorrow also. uChitty Chitty Bang Bang Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen.

7pm, £17/£14. Info 0845 2263510. Musical presented

by Carmarthen Youth Opera.

On tomorrow also, at 2pm and 7pm. uChris Forbes + Andrew Stanley + Phil Ellis + Janey Godley Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £16.50/£8.50 NUS/£24.95 with food and a drink. Info 0871 4720400. On tomorrow also (£19/£10 NUS).

Comedy Club Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7.30pm, £12. Info 0845 2263510. With comics TBC. Grav Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff.

7.45pm, £7.50-£15. Info 029 2039 1391. Welsh rugby star Ray Gravell is theatrically immortalised. In Aberystwyth on Tue 12; Ystradgynlais Wed 13; Newport Thurs 14.

Into The Light The Riverfront, Newport. 7.45pm, £13/£11. Info 01633 656757.

Hijinx and Teatro La Ribalta present a piece of intense physical theatre about the right to be seen and heard In Brecon tomorrow; Llanelli Mon 4; Blackwood Thurs 7; Aberystwyth Sat 9. uMax Boyce Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £30.50/£27.50. Info 01792 475715. On tomorrow also, when it will no longer be St David’s Day. Indeed, due to 2020 being a leap year it will be the furthest time possible until St David’s Day, and thus the saddest day on which to hold a Max Boyce concert. In Abergavenny on Fri 22 and Sat 23. uPeter Pan Congress Theatre, Cwmbran. 2pm, £16/£12. Info 01633 868239.

Panto, presented by Rainbow Valley. On at 2pm only on Sun 3 Mar; 2pm and 7pm on Sat 2 Mar. (Until Sun 3) uPeter Pan Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7pm, £10/£8. Info 01633 263670.

Panto, presented by Newport Pantomime Society. On tomorrow also, at 2.15pm. uResident Magicians The Small Space, Barry. 7.30pm, £20. Info info@thesmallspace. co.uk. Notably small (only 20 seats!) magic-centred Vale venue. On every Friday and Saturday this month (Fri 29 sold out).

Rob Auton Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff. 8pm, £10-£12.

Info 029 2030 4400. Comedy, theatre and spoken word combined in a show titled The Talk Show. uSnow White & The Seven Dwarfs Coliseum Theatre, Aberdare. 7pm, £9-£12. Info 0300 0040444. Panto, presented by Colstars. On tomorrow also, at 2pm and 7pm.

‘Stute Comedy Nights Miners Institute, Blackwood.

8pm, £12.50/£11.50 adv. Info 01495 227206.

The Giant Jam Sandwich

Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 12 + 3pm, £10. Info 029 2064 6900. Theatre based on a popular kids’ book, presented

by New Perspectives.

The Magic Flute Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.15pm, £12.50-£49.50.

Info 029 2063 6464. Welsh National Opera present Mozart’s opera.

The Ramshackles Brilliant Adventure Park & Dare, Treorchy. 2pm, free. Info 0300 0040444. Flossy and Boo and RCT Theatres present a work-in-progress (hence being free) kids’ show. uThe Taming Of The Shrew Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £9-£18. Info 029 2064 6900. An anti-patriarchal take on this Shakespeare work, by Jo Clifford. On at 7pm on Tue 5 (although it’s sold out); 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 14 and Sat 16. No performances on Sun 3 or Sun 10. (Until Sat 16) uThe Tiger Face Show The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info info@otherroomtheatre.com.

Comedy theatre by Justin Cliffe, a man who dresses in a tiger suit for whatever reason.

On tomorrow also, at 3pm and 7.30pm. uThree Knights And Two Welshmen Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01792 473238.

Play concerning the friendship between Dylan Thomas and Richard Burton. On tomorrow also. uTreasure Island Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 2.30 + 7pm, £5.50/£5. Info 01873 850805. Panto, presented by the Abergavenny Pantomime Company. On tomorrow also, at 1.30pm and 6pm. uYFC Entertainment Festival Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 7.30pm, £10. Info 01686 614555. Today features competitors from Tregynon, Llanfair Caereinion and Sarn; tomorrow from Aberhafesp & Dolfor, Llidiartywaen and Llanfyllin.

SATURDAY 2 MARCH Discover Dance The Riverfront, Newport. 1pm, £7.

Info 01633 656757. Familyfriendly introduction to dance shows.

Everybody’s Talking About... Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £12/£10.

Info 01792 602060. Drama, dance and song performed by West Glamorgan Youth Theatre students.

Into The Light Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01874 611622. uLloyd Griffith Exit 7, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

7pm, £10. Info 029 2022 4488.

Comedian and soccer AM presenter. On tomorrow also, with both dates sold out, but he is back here on Thurs 23 May. Phil Evans + John Archer Pontardawe Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £10. Info 01792 863722. Comedian and magician respectively Roberto Devereux Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £12.50-£49.50.

Info 029 2063 6464. Welsh National Opera present Donizetti’s opera.

Rod Woodward St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £22.50.

Info 029 2087 8444. Welsh

comedian who is young in years but old-skool in approach, and has rather bravely titled this show I’m Not Being Funny, But....

Shylock Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £15/£13. Info 029 2039 1391. One-man show based around Shakespeare’s Jewish moneylender character, and the devisive aspects of his legacy. In Blackwood on Tue 5.

Smile Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 2 + 3.30pm, £7/£5 kids. Info 029 2039 1391. Kids’ show about a sad tiger, based on a book and presented by MishMash.

Tosca Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £20/£18. Info 01970 623232. Puccini opera, presented by Mid Wales Opera.

In Brecon on Sat 9; Milford Haven on Wed 20; Newport on Wed 27.

SUNDAY 3 MARCH Brendan Cole Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £25-£42. Info 029 2063 6464. uLive Cabaret Market Street Club, Barry. 8.30pm.

Info 01446 733863. Every Sunday.

Ned And The Whale Town Hall, Maesteg. 2pm, £7.50. Info 01656 815995. Show aimed at kids age 5+.

MONDAY 4 MARCH Into The Light Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £14/£12. Info 0845 2263510. uMy Fair Lady Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £14/£12. Info 01646 695267. Musical, presented herre by MHAOS. £12 concession price is for today and tomorrow only. (Until Sat 9) Standup Comedy Open Mic Night NosDa, Cardiff.

8pm, free. Info 029 2037 8866.

TUESDAY 5 MARCH uAnweledig Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £10-£12.

Info 01970 623232. Welsh language production, inspired by real medical records from the old Denbigh mental health hospital in north Wales. On at 10am on Thurs 7. In Cardiff on Tue 12 and Wed 13; Llanelli on Mon 18. uBummer And Lazarus The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info info@otherroomtheatre. com. Slapstick, nonsense and existentialism are reputedly combined in the hands of Big Egg Theatre. On at 4pm and 7.30pm on Fri 8. (Until Fri 8) uEvita Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.15pm, £15. Info 01792 602060. Musical presented by the Cockett Amateur Operatic Society. On at 2.30pm and 7.15pm on Sat 9. (Until Sat 9) uRomeo & Juliet New Theatre, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £14-£30. Info 029 2087 8889.

From the Royal Shakespeare Company, no less. On at 1.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 7 (£13-£23 on this afternoon) and Sat 9. (Until Sat 9) Shylock Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £8-£14.50.

Info 01495 227206. uThe Cherry Orchard Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 029 2030 4400. Chekhov play, presented

by Everyman Theatre and covered in our 2019 theatre

roundup last month. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Sat 9.

(Until Sat 9) Tom Stade Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6.45pm, £17.50. Info 0871 4720400. Canadian standup.

WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH uBing Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 1 + 4pm, £17.50-£21.50. Info 029 2063 6464. Kids’ show. On tomorrow also, at 10am and 1pm.

Grav Princess Royal Theatre, Port Talbot. 7.30pm, £14 adv.

Info 01639 763214.

Hal Cruttenden Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6.45pm, £16. Info 0871 4720400. UK standup.

In Cardigan on Fri 22; Builth Wells Sat 23..

Nish Kumar Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £22.50. Info 01970 623232. “He’s the host of the Mash Report, which you might have seen on BBC2 or on a Facebook video posted by someone you went to school with but haven’t spoken to in a while.” If Nish, or indeed whoever wrote that, had more editorial control over the programme it would probably be a boon!

based on Cinderella and starring Owen Money. On tomorrow also; in Llanello on Fri 22 and Sat 23, Milford Haven on Fri 29 and Sat 30.

Peeling The Riverfront, Newport. 7.45pm, £13.25/£11.25. Info 01633 656757. New Welsh language production of this Kaite O’Reilly play by Taking Flight, with English captions and audio description. Based on Eripides’ The Trojan Women.

Title is written in all lower case by Taking Flight but we don’t do that in these listings I’m afraid. On tomorrow also.

In Merthyr on Wed 13; Brecon on Thurs 14; Treorchy on Thurs 21; Aberystwyth on Tue 26; Milford Haven on Wed 27; Blackwood on Fri 29.

Stephen Bailey Grand Theatre Arts Wing, Swansea.

7.45pm, £16. Info 01792 475715. Standup comedian. uSwansea In The Spotlight Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7pm, £8/£7. Info 01792 475715. Variety show.

On tomorrow also.

SATURDAY 9 MARCH

Scottish comedian and internet wind-up merchant Limmy has become a fairly regular visitor to Cardiff Bay’s Glee Club of late, and on Mon 25 he’ll be back promoting – and reading from – his new book Surprisingly Down To Earth, And Very Funny.

THURSDAY 7 MARCH uAgeless Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 7pm, £8. Info 029 2064 6900. New show written

by Benjamin Kuffuor and performed by Sherman Youth Theatre, concerning a miracle anti-ageing drug. (Until Sat 9) Grav Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen. 7pm, £14.50/£12.50. Info 0845 2263510.

Into The Light Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £8-£12.50. Info 01495 227206. uMy Fair Lady Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £12. Info 01873 850805.

Presented by Concept Players.

(Until Sat 9) uNathan Caton + Thanyia Moore + Matt Price + Rob Oldham Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £10/£17 with a pie/£6 NUS. Info 0871 4720400. Tonight is Pie Face Comedy and features both comedians and food offers. On tomorrow also, (£16.50/£8.50 NUS/£24.95 with food and a drink) and Sat 9 (£19/£10 NUS), with Oldham replaced by Stuart Mitchell on both dates. uWho’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7.15pm, £10. Info 01633 263670. Amateur versh of the play of the film. On tomorrow also.

FRIDAY 8 MARCH uButtons Undone Congress Theatre, Cwmbran. 6.30pm, £18.50. Info 01633 868239.

Panto, possibly adult in tone,

Hear We Stand Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7.15pm, £12.50. Info 01633 263670.

Variety showe presnted by The Sugar Free Theatre, in aid of The National Deaf Children’s Society.

Heroes And Villains Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea.

7.30pm, £10. Info 01792 473238. Musical theatre presented by Blue Bee. Into The Light Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £12/£10.

Info 01970 623232.

Milkshake! Live Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 12 + 3.30pm, £14.50. Info 01656 815995. Musical for kids with a monkey as its protagonist. In Aberystwyth tomorrow.

Rachel Parris Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 8pm, £14.

Info 01600 772467. Satirical comedian who does songs, stars on The Mash Report and is described here as a “viral sensation”. Confirming once again that the people of Monmouth think very differently to me, this is sold out weeks in advance.

Tosca Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £19/£17. Info 01874 611622. uYFC Entertainment Feast Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 12.30 + 6.30pm, £10. Info 01686 614555. Today features performances from Ceredigion, Montgomery and Meirionnydd (afternoon) and Pembrokeshire,Ynys Mon and Carmarthenshire (evening). Tomorrow features Montgomery, Radnor,

Brecknock (afternoon, from 12pm) and Gwent, Pembrokeshire and Glamorgan (evening, from 7pm).

SUNDAY 10 MARCH Milkshake! Live Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 12 + 3.30pm, £10-£16. Info 01970 623232.

Noreen Khan + Esther Manito + Shazia Mirza + Annette Fagon Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6pm, £15. Info 0871 4720400. A night titled LOL, or Ladies Of Laughter.

MONDAY 11 MARCH uDancing All Over The World Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7pm, £6.50. Info 01633 263670. Showcase by GLD Dancers. Tickets £7.50 on Wed 13 and Thurs 14; £8.50 on Fri 15 and Sat 16). (Until Sat 16) Pen-blwydd Poenus Pete Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.

1.30pm, £10/£8/£7 schools.

Info 01874 611622. Welsh language comedy for kids.

In Treorchy on Mon 11; Carmarthen on Thurs 14; Ystradgynlais on Fri 15. uThe Full Monty Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £10-£38.50. Info 029 2063 6464. Genital-centric musical which feels like it’s here every year but probably isn’t, quite. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 14 and Sat 16. £20.50-£42.50 on Fri 15 and Sat 16. (Until Sat 16) TUESDAY 12 MARCH uAnweledig Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 10am + 7pm, £10-£15. Info 029 2064 6900.

On tomorrow also, at 7pm only. uBest Of Be Festival Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.45pm, £10. Info 01970 623232. Theatrical circus with magic/illusion bits, comprising the highlights of an annual show titled Be Festival On tomorrow also.

Grav Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £10-£14. Info 01970 623232. uHorrible Histories: Terrible Tudors New Theatre, Cardiff. 7pm, £11£21. Info 029 2087 8889. Back again and running more or less concurrently with sibling show Awful Egyptians. On at 10.30am tomorrow and Fri 15; 1.30pm on Thurs 14. (Until Fri 15) Pen-blwydd Poenus Pete Park & Dare, Treorchy. 10am + 1pm, £6/free teachers. Info 0300 0040444.

Peter & The Wolf The Riverfront, Newport. 6.30pm, £13.25/£11.25. Info 01633 656757. Ballet, presented by Allegrodance. uRough As Comedy The White Swan, Swansea. 8pm, £8 adv. Info whiteswanswansea@ gmail.com. Hosted by Costas Lukaris and Tom Evans with more acts TBC. Also on Tue 19 this month.

WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH A Brave Face Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £14. Info 01873 850805.

War-themed mask theatre by Vamos, based on the real-life experiences of soldiers. In Milford Haven tomorrow; Swansea on Fri 15.

Grav The Welfare, Ystradgynlais. 7.30pm,

£13/£11. Info 01639 843163. uHorrible Histories: Awful Egyptians New Theatre, Cardiff. 1.30pm, £11£21. Info 029 2087 8889. On at 10.30am tomorrow, 7pm on Fri 15 and 2.30pm on Sat 16.

(Until Sat 16) uHow To Be Brave Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 029 2030 4400.

Dirty Protest play set in Newport with a mother named Katie its protagonist. On at 1.45pm and 7.30pm on Fri 15 and Sat 16. (Until Sat 16) Ian McKellen Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £11-£30. Info 01792 475715.

Thesp of renown on a tour where he acts out various parts and chats about his life, the theatre etc. Also in Aberystwyth on Fri 15 and Newtown on Sat 16. All of which are sold out!

Joe Longthorne Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7.30pm, £24. Info 0300 3656677.

No Such Thing As A Fish St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 8pm, £22. Info 029 2087 8444. Live version of a podcast featuring QI researchers.

Open Mic Comedy The Miners, Skewen, nr Neath.

8.30pm. Info 07976 932859.

Presented by Nickynackynoo.

Peeling Redhouse, Merthyr Tydfil. 7pm, £7. Info 01685 384111.

Time Shared Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl. 1pm, £6.50. Info 01656 815995. Lunchtime theatre by Fluellen.

THURSDAY 14 MARCH A Brave Face Torch Theatre, Milford Haven. 7.30pm, £10£13. Info 01646 695267. uBest Foot Forward 2019 Memorial Hall Theatre, Barry.

6.30pm. Info 01446 738622.

Annual local youth dance showcase. On tomorrow also.

Grav The Riverfront, Newport.

7.30pm, £13.25/£11.25. Info 01633 656757.

Jason Donovan & His Amazing Midlife Crisis Theatr Hafren, Newtown.

7.30pm, £27.50. Info 01686 614555. In Newport tomorrow; Maesteg on Sat 16.

Paul McCaffrey + SallyAnne Hayward + MC Dave Williams Narberth Rugby Club. 8pm, £12/£10.

Info 01834 869323. Comedy Club night hosted by Span Arts.

Peeling Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.45pm, £12/£10. Info 01874 611622.

Pen-blwydd Poenus Pete Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen.

9.30am, £5.50. Info 0845 2263510. uRobin Morgan + Josh Jones + John Moloney + Sarah Bridgeman Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £10/£17 with a pie/£6 NUS. Info 0871 4720400. Tonight is Pie Face Comedy and features both comedians and food offers. On tomorrow also (£16.50/£8.50 NUS/£24.95 with food and a drink) and Sat 16 (£19/£10 NUS), with Bridgeman replaced by Dana Alexander on both dates. uWeekend Beaks Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 7.30pm, £12. Info 01600 772467. John Godber plays presented by Off Centre Theatre. (Until Sat 16) uWhat’s In The Box? Beelzebub’s, Cardiff. 7pm, free.

Info events@ BUZZ 75

BAFTA CYMRU MARCH 2019 The Cymru Awards open for entries on Mon 4 Mar so check out the website for further details as by the April edition of Buzz the deadline will be almost upon you. We’re continuing to encourage individuals to self-nominate again this year as well as introducing a new free entry for our Breakthrough Award,

which recognises a genuinely new practitioner in any part of the production process – either a student or emerging professional working in the relevant field for the first time. Also new this year: nominees for the Breakthrough Award will automatically be considered for the BAFTA Breakthrough Brits mentoring initiative.

Continuing on the theme of supporting new talent, Sat 30 Mar sees the return of the Guru Live Cardiff one-day festival – our event that helps you find out more about the roles in film, games and TV from those in the know. Join us to expand your horizons!

The event, aimed at 16-25 year olds, will offer at least 17 amazing masterclasses and workshops. We’ll be joined by with the likes of Bargoed actor/writer/director Craig Roberts (The Fundamentals Of Caring, Just Jim); Andy Morgan, casting director of Luther; Doctor Who and Sherlock production designer Arwel Jones and his team; the cast and crew of new Netflix series Sex Education, shot here in Wales and confirmed for a second series – and much more. Tickets are on sale now for £6 each or two for £10, and some bursaries have been announced for those needing support with travel costs from further afield.

Don’t forget we’re also still accepting membership applications, and that you’re able to join now for 17 months at special rates. Have a look at all the benefits of membership, including free cinema, on our website.

Info: www.bafta.org/wales

BUZZ 76

craftydevilbrewing.co.uk. Newe improv comedy night which is scheduled to be on the second and last Thursday of each month (also Thurs 28 in March), and will feature threeminute slots on a topic chosen by the audience. uY Brain / Kargalar Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff.

8pm, £15/£12. Info 029 2030 4400. Be Aware Productions with a play in Welsh and Turkish (also Englishaccessible). (Until Sat 16) Y Dychweliad – The Return National History Museum, St Fagans. 7.30-9pm, free. Info 029 2057 3500.

Bilingual theatre performance held at the Oakdale Workmen’s Institute on site. It reimagines a ‘victory ball’ held post-WWI. FRIDAY 15 MARCH A Brave Face Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £9-£14. Info 01792 602060.

Anything Goes Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £10. Info 01646 695267. Variety show presented by Pembrokeshire WI. Cardiff Cabaret Club Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 9pm, £15.

Info 029 2063 6464. Burlesque from FooFooLaBelle, Markee de Saw, Brandy Montmartre and host Miss Cherry Bomb.

Four Go Wild In Wellies Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 1 + 5pm, £6-£8. Info 01970 623232.

Theatre set in the countryside for ages 3-5.

Ian McKellen Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £5-£20.

Info 01970 623232. Sold out.

Jason Donovan & His Amazing Midlife Crisis The Riverfront, Newport.

7.30pm, £27.50. Info 01633 656757.

Jethro Gwyn Hall, Neath.

3pm, £21.50. Info 0300 3656677. In Newport on Fri 29.

Mark Steel Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 8pm, £15. Info 01686 614555. Comedian of a leftist ilk.

Pen-blwydd Poenus Pete The Welfare, Ystradgynlais.

10am + 1pm, £6. Info 01639 843163.

Polar Berries Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £7/£5.

Info 01792 863722. Country/ folk band by the looks.

Russell Kane Grand Theatre, Swansea. 8pm, £22 adv. Info 01792 475715.

SATURDAY 16 MARCH Alfie Moore Grand Theatre Arts Wing, Swansea. 7.45pm, £14. Info 01792 475715.

Standup comedian... who used to be a copper? I can hear your dad’s ears pricking up from here.

And Still I Walk... + When Worlds Collide Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £5-£10. Info 029 2063 6464. Two dance pieces from Emergence, a new company.

Ed Gamble Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £15. Info 01970 623232. Comedian with a new show titled Blizzard.

Ian McKellen Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 7.30pm, £18-£28. Info 01686 614555.

Sold out.

Jason Donovan & His Amazing Midlife Crisis Town Hall, Maesteg. 7.30pm, £25.50. Info 01656 815995.

Kin Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £8-£14. Info 01970 623232. Circus show based around the idea of group dynamics. Although I suppose all circus shows are really.

Legacy, A Malaccan Story Retold St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £11/£9 under-16s. Info 029 2087 8444. Malaysian play about an arranged marriage.

Lucie Jones Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £20. Info 029 2063 6464. Songs and patter from West End musical theatre fave.

SUNDAY 17 MARCH World Comedy Clash 2019: Rep Your Island Edition Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6.30pm, £20. Info 0871 4720400. Featuring Aurie Styla, Jason Patterson, Special P, Mr Cee and Dizzle.

MONDAY 18 MARCH Anweledig Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £15/£12. Info 0845 2263510.

TUESDAY 19 MARCH Ballet Cymru 2: Made

on Thurs 21. (Until Thurs 21) Luke Jermay Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01495 227206.

Please note that no spirit mediumship will be presented in Intuition.

Macbeth Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £10-£39. Info 029 2063 6464.

See Stage for more on this time-honoured “what if Shakespeare but modern day” gambit. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 21 and Sat 23. £14-£43 on Fri 22 and Sat 23. (Until Sat 23) Manila Luzon Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £20/£35 VIP. Info 0871 4720400. Drag queen who was on season 3 of Drag Race.

Mur Mur Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £8/£6. Info 01970 623232. Bilingual dance-based theatre, inspired by Welsh dry stone walls (this is good) and here as part of the Opening Doors Festival (Agor Drysau in Welsh).

Pinnochio Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £10/£8. Info 01874 611622. La

Exit 7, aka the little side room in the Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, is stepping up its standup comedy schedule in March, including a gig for Welsh comic Paul James on Fri 29. It’s titled Designated Drinker, an ingenious pun on the term ‘designated driver’ if I’m not mistaken.

In Wales The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £11.25/£9.25.

Info 01633 656757. Showcase of newer dancers at this Welsh company. In Cardiff on Fri 22. uBetween Eternity And Time Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff.

6.30pm, £8/£6. Info 029 2039 1391. New play by Jacob Hodgkinson about a drug runner who moves to Bangor.

On at 1.30pm and 8.30pm on Thurs 21. (Until Thurs 21) uGhost New Theatre, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £18-£39. Info 029 2087 8889. Musical version of the 1990 movie. On at 2.30pm tomorrow, Thurs 21 and Sat 23. £14-£31 tomorrow and Thurs 21; £23-£44 on Fri 22 and Sat 23. (Until Sat 23) How To Be Brave Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £8.50/£7.50. Info 01646 695267. Siân Owen’s one-woman play, presented by Dirty Protest. uKasimir And Karoline Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 8.30pm, £8/£6. Info 029 2039 1391.

New play about a man whose loses his job and relationship in quick succession. On at 1.30pm and 8.30pm tomorrow; 6.30pm on Thurs 21. (Until Thurs 21) uLoam Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff.

6pm, £8/£6. Info 029 2039 1391. New play by Bea Roberts about a city whose inhabitants begin to expectorate soil for for no obvious reason. On at 1pm and 8pm tomorrow; 8pm only

Baldufa Theatre of Catalonia present a kids’ production.

In Cardigan tomorrow; Aberystwyth on Fri 22. uThe Addams Family Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £14. Info 01792 473238. Presented by Swansea Amateur Operatic Society. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Sat 23. (until Sat 23) uTurbines Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 8pm, £8/£6. Info 029 2039 1391. New play by Sarah McDonald Hughes about seven northern English students about to enter the wider world.

On at 6pm tomorrow; 1pm and 6pm on Thurs 21. (Until Thurs 21) WEDNESDAY 20 MARCH uCamp Be Yourself The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info info@otherroomtheatre.com.

The BOX. Theatre Company (upper case and full stop their affectation) presents a debut production set in an American summer camp. On at 3pm and 7.30pm on Fri 23. (Until Fri 23) uHot Mikado Congress Theatre, Cwmbran. 6.45pm, £10. Info 01633 868239.

Presented by Congress Youth Theatre. (Until Sat 23) Paul McCaffrey Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6.45pm, £12. Info 0871 4720400. Comedian with a show titled I Thought I’d Have Grown Out Of This

By Now.

Pinnochio Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 1pm, £8/£6. Info 01239 621200.

Studio Comedy Club Sherman Theatre, Cardiff.

7.30pm, £11/£9 adv. Info 029 2064 6900. With comedians TBC. The Chris Arnold Experience Clwb Y Bont, Pontypridd. 7.30pm, £5. Info 01443 491424. Standup comedian who employs Powerpoint in his sets. In Cardiff on Thurs 28.

Tosca Torch Theatre, Milford Haven. 7.30pm, £7.50-£19.50.

Info 01646 695267.

THURSDAY 21 MARCH Awakening Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 7.30pm, £9/£7. Info 01686 614555. uCharlie Baker + Allyson Smith + Josh Elton Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £10/£17 with a pie/£6 NUS. Info 0871 4720400.

Tonight is Pie Face Comedy and features both comedians and food offers. On tomorrow also (£16.50/£8.50 NUS/£24.95 with food and a drink) and Sat 23 (£19/£10 NUS), with no Elton on either date and more comics TBC for all nights. uChicago Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7.15pm, £11. Info 01633 263670. Famous musical. (Until Sat 23) Murder She Didn’t Write Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl.

7.30pm, £13. Info 01656 815995. Murder mystery meets comedy improv.

Peeling Park & Dare, Treorchy. 7.30pm, £10/£8. Info 0300 0040444.

Pizza Shop Heroes Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

7.30pm, £8/£6. Info 01970 623232. Theatre company featuring four refugees. Part of the Opening Doors Festival but already sold out.

Stand Up And Slam Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £12. Info 029 2063 6464. Blah Blah Blah with a night combining standup comedy and performance poetry. uStorm.3: Together And Alone The Neon, Newport.

7.30pm, £10/£7.50. Info 01633 533666. The latest National Theatre Wales play, part of its Storm Cycle and partly inspired by Pour Une Morale De L’ambiguïté by Simone de Beauvoir (“thumping good read!” – Jeremy Corbyn MP).

See Upfront. (Until Sat 23) uSummer Holiday Princess Royal Theatre, Port Talbot. 70pm, £14 adv. Info 01639 763214. Presented by Musicality Academy. (Until Sat 23) FRIDAY 22 MARCH Ballet Cymru 2: Made In Wales Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £12. Info 029 2063 6464. uBare Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli.

7.30pm, £12. Info 0845 2263510. Play based in a Catholic boarding school, and around ideas of sexuality. On tomorrow also, at 2.30pm and 7.30pm. uButtons Undone Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £18.50.

Info 0845 2263510. On tomorrow also.

Cabarela Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £15. Info 029 2063 6464. Welsh song-based

comedy.

Così Fan Tutte Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £20/£18. Info 01792 602060.

Opera, presented by Swansea City Opera.

Discover Dance Theatr Hafren, Newtown. 1pm, £2.50.

Info 01686 614555. With National Dance Company Wales.

Gary Delaney Savoy Theatre, Monmouth. 8pm, £17.

Info 01600 772467. Comedian who you might have seen on telly.

Hal Cruttenden Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 8pm, £17.

Info 01239 621200.

Jim Davidson Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £25.50 adv. Info 01792 475715.

“Are you fed up with this PC world we now find ourselves in? Well, come and see Jim’s brand-new and outrageous show.” Ironically, most of the attendees at this will have previously got lost in a branch of PC World. uMax Boyce Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £27.50. Info 01873 850805. On tomorrow also.

Merched Caerdydd + Nod Satwrn O Hyd Gartholwg Lifelong Learning Centre, Pontypridd. 7.30pm, £14.£12. Info 01443 570075.

Two new plays based in Cardiff, by Catrin Dafydd and Roger Williams respectively. In Abergavenny on Mon 25; Pontardawe on Tue 26; Cardigan on Thurs 28; Aberystwyth on Fri 29 and Sat 30.

Open Art Surgery Park & Dare, Treorchy. 7pm, £5. Info 0300 0040444. So-called hiphop theatre with Jonzi D, the results of a week-long class workshopping ideas etc.

Pinnochio Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £8/£6. Info 01970 623232. Part of the Opening Doors Festival but already sold out.

SATURDAY 23 MARCH uAndrew Bird Exit 7, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

7pm, £10. Info 029 2022 4488.

Comedian. Sold out tonight but on tomorrow also, which isn’t sold out at the minute.

Drip Drip Drip Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01874 611622.

Play set in a hospital where an Eritrean nurse and Muslim doctor are treating a racist patient. I remember a very old episode of Casualty with a similar premise.

Hal Cruttenden Wyeside Arts Centre, Builth Wells.

8pm, £17. Info 01982 552555.

Hansel & Gretel Miners Theatre, Ammanford. 2.30pm, £5/£3.50. Info 0845 2263510.

Kids” show, presented by Uchenna Dance and The Place Mary Bijou: Fakes It Ffresh, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 8pm, £15.

Info 029 2063 6464. Local cabaret faves.

Qui Pousse Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 2pm, £9/£7. Info 01239 621200. Kids’ theatre presented by Compagnie Lunatic of France.

Robert White Coluseum Theatre, Aberdare. 7.30pm, £19.50. Info 0300 0040444.

Comedian who has a fairly credible rep but was also on Britain’s Got Talent, meaning

the press bumph for this tour includes a quote of praise from Simon Cowell where he sounds like he’s addressing a puppy.

Seed Story Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 11am, £8/£6. Info 01970 623232. Family show combining theatre, storytelling and puppetry. Part of the Opening Doors Festival.

SUNDAY 24 MARCH Behind The Mask Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 2.30pm, free. Info 029 2063 6464. Song and opera afternoon looking at the impact of dementia in relationships Noel James The Hyst, Swansea. 7.30pm, £12/£10 adv.

Info 01792 654366. Raising funds for Goodman Primary School in the Gambia.

Pwy Sy’n Gwthio Wyeside Arts Centre, Builth Wells. 2pm, £10/£8. Info 01982 552555.

Family theatre by Compagnie Lunatic from France. Not sure if the show is actually in Welsh, in light of that, or just the title.

Seen: Home The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff. 6pm, £5 adv. Info info@ otherroomtheatre.com. New theatre productions showcase, content currently TBC. MONDAY 25 MARCH uActors’ Showcase Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £11/£9. Info 029 2039 1391.

Two-minute slots for up to 30 actors in each session. On tomorrow also, at 1pm.

Kab-er’esque Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01874 611622.

Awkwardly-titled combo of cabaret and burlesque, presented by Encore Dance Company. *Limmy Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 6.45pm, £18/£16. Info 0871 4720400. Launching/ reading from his new book, Surprisingly Down To Earth, And Very Funny. I should probably buy this. Maybe even at the show.

Merched Caerdydd + Nod Satwrn O Hyd Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £14. Info 01873 850805.

TUESDAY 26 MARCH uCompany Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 7.15pm, £6.50-£13. Info 029 2064 6900.

Sondheim musical, presented here by the Richard Burton Company. On at 2.15pm on Thurs 28 and Sat 30. (Until Sat 30) Crimes On The Nile Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £18/£16. Info 01646 695267. Comedy thriller presented by New Old Friends.

Encore Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £15/£13. Info 029 2063 6464.

The Encore Dance Company present a showcase of its third year Performing Arts students.

Peeling Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £10/£8. Info 01970 623232.

Merched Caerdydd + Nos Sadwrn O Hyd Pontardawe Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £12. Info 01792 863722. uMotown The Musical Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay. 7.30pm, £15-£64.

Info 029 2063 6464. West End hit with people playing Berry

Gordy, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross etc. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 28 and Sat 30 Mar plus Thurs 4 and Sat 6 Apr. £21-£77 on Fri 29 and Sat 30 Mar plus Fri 5 and Sat 6 Apr. (Until Sat 6 Apr) Peeling Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £10/£8. Info 01970 623232. uThe Mirror Crack’d New Theatre, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £13-£30. Info 029 2087 8889.

Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple vehicle, with Marpz played by Susie Blake. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Thurs 28 and Sat 30 Mar plus Thurs 4 and Sat 6 Apr. £12-£25 on Thurs 28; £14£33 on Fri 29 and Sat 30 Mar plus Fri 5 and Sat 6 Apr. See Upfront. (Until Sat 6 Apr) WEDNESDAY 27 MARCH uAlbert Herring Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff. 7pm, £18/£16.

Info 029 2039 1391. Britten’s comic opera about the strange disappearance of a village greengrocer. On at 2pm and 7pm on Fri 29. (Until Fri 29) uBottom The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £10 adv. Info info@ otherroomtheatre.com. Willy Hudson’s look at queer culture in the setting of an inadvertently locked bathroom during a date. No relation to the 90s BBC sitcom. On at 3pm and 7.30pm on Sat 30. (Until Sat 30) Comedy Club Grand Theatre Arts Wing, Swansea. 8pm, £11.50. Info 01792 475715.

Julian Clary St David’s Hall, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £27/£25. Info 029 2087 8444. A new show titled Born To Mince. uLes Miserables Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff. 8.30pm, £12/£10. Info 029 2030 4400.

An August 012 production, directed by Mathilde Lopez and choreographed by Matteo Marfoglia. On at 6.30pm and 8.30pm from Thurs 28-Sat 30.

(Until Sat 30) Macbeth Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 7.30pm, £8-£12. Info 01970 623232. The Beijing 707 N-Theatre Company and Edinburgh Fringe Showcase in China present Shakespeare, augmented by hand-drawn puppets and cinematic projection.

Peeling Torch Theatre, Milford Haven. 7.30pm, £12.50/£10.50. Info 01646 695267.

Stolen Park & Dare, Treorchy.

1pm, £7/£5. Info 0300 0040444.

Theatre, storytelling and music combine in the hands of The Devil’s Violin.

Tosca The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm, £17.50/£15.25. Info 01633 656757.

THURSDAY 28 MARCH A Celebration Of Community Dance Park & Dare, Treorchy. 7pm, £6-£8.

Info 0300 0040444. Local showcase presented by Afon Community Dance.

Brennan Reece Exit 7, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

7pm, £10. Info 029 2022 4488.

Comedian. uFootloose Dolman Theatre, Newport. 7.15pm, £12. Info 01633 263670. Musical presented by Young Venture Players. (Until Sat 30) Here Come The Girls The Riverfront, Newport. 7.30pm,

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, Tue 26 Mar-Sat 6 Apr Tickets: £15-£77. Info 029 2063 6464 / www.wmc.org.uk The enduring love for Motown – as Detroit record label, musical signifier and general cultural behemoth – shows no sign of waning. The story of Berry Gordy and Motown Records’ rise to prominence, with just an $800 loan no less, can now be seen in an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza simply titled Motown The Musical. The story of how Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and the like became household names will light up the stage at Wales Millennium Centre this spring, with classic hits like My Girl, Ain’t No Mountain High Enough and What’s Going On performed by a stellar cast of Broadway regulars.

Should have you dancing in the aisles.

£30/£29. Info 01633 656757.

Varied dance performances featuring Dianne Buswell and Amy Dowden, from Strictly, plus Chloe Hewitt. In Swansea tomorrow.

Jarred Christmas + Huge Davies + Abigoliah Schamaun Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 8pm, £12/£10. Info 01970 623232. Little Wander Comedy Club night. uKevin McCarthy + Calum Stewart Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £10/£17 with a pie/£6 NUS. Info 0871 4720400. Tonight is Pie Face Comedy and features both comedians and food offers. On tomorrow also (£16.50/£8.50 NUS/£24.95 with food and a drink) and Sat 30 (£19/£10 NUS), so far it’s only McCarthy confirmed for those however.

Merched Caerdydd + Nod Satwrn O Hyd Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01239 621200. uMy Mother Said I Never Should Grand Theatre, Swansea. 7.30pm, £12-£19.

Info 01792 475715. Play on a mother-daughter theme by London Classic Theatre. On at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on Sat 30.

(Until Sat 30) Nick Revell The Duke, Neath. 8pm, £7. Info 01639 643892. Comedian with radio and TV credits galore performs his show, Dreamcatcher, for The Clown’s Pocket comedy club.

Peeling Borough Theatre, Abergavenny. 7.30pm, £14. Info 01873 850805.

Swan Lake Town Hall, Maesteg. 7.30pm, £12.50£15.50. Info 01656 815995.

Ballet, presented by Ballet Theatre UK. The Chris Arnold Experience Flute & Tankard, Cardiff. 7.30pm, £7/£5 NUS.

Info www.thefluteandtankard. com.

Transporter The Riverfront, Newport. 1 + 7pm, £7.25£10.25. Info 01633 656757.

Theatr Iolo present a play written and performed by Catherine Dyson and concerning issues of identity and difference. uTwelfth Night Y Ffwrnes, Llanelli. 7pm, £10. Info 0845 2263510. Shakespeare, presented by Boom. (Until Sat 30) FRIDAY 29 MARCH Blues And Burlesque The Hyst, Swansea. 8pm, £10 adv.

Info 01792 654366. Songs and smalls courtesy of Bruise Violet, Lady Beau Peep and Pete Saunders, who used to play piano for Dexy’s.

Buttons Undone Torch Theatre, Milford Haven.

7.30pm, £8.50/£7.50. Info 01646 695267.

Comedy Shed The Riverfront, Newport. 7.45pm, £13. Info 01633 656757. With standups TBC. Cwmni Drama Llandadoch Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan. 7.30pm, £8/£7. Info 01239 621200. Two comedies from this Welsh language theatre company; more info TBC. Dawns Powys Dance Theatr Hafren, Newtown.

7.30pm, £7/£5. Info 01686 614555. Dance company showcase.

Here Come The Girls Brangwyn Hall, Swansea.

7.30pm, £30/£29. Info 01792 475715.

Jethro The Neon, Newport.

6pm, £20 adv. Info 01633 533666. uMax Boyce Congress Theatre, Cwmbran. 7.30pm.

Info 01633 868239. On tomorrow also, both performances

sold out. uMerched Caerdydd + Nos Sadwrn O Hyd Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

8pm, £10-£14. Info 01970 623232. On tomorrow also.

Paul James Exit 7, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.

7pm, £10. Info 029 2022 4488.

Welsh comedian with a show titled Designated Drinker.

Peeling Miners Institute, Blackwood. 7.30pm, £8-£14.50. Info 01495 227206.

Rich Hall Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon. 8pm, £17. Info 01874 611622.

SATURDAY 30 MARCH Cafficadabra Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff. 8-10pm, free.

Info 029 2030 4400. Magic from Tim Bromage in the bar.

Gair Yn Gnawd + Myfi Yw Theatr Hafren, Newtown.

7.30pm, £12/£10. Info 01686 614555. Two oratorios by Ysgol Theatr Maldwyn and Cwmni Theatr Maldwyn respectively..

Ignacio Lopez Cardiff Bus Transport Club. 7.30pm, £5.50 adv. Info 029 2023 3658. South Wales standup comic.

Rod Woodward Gwyn Hall, Neath. 7.30pm, £21.50. Info 0300 3656677.

SUNDAY 31 MARCH Sharon Needles Glee Club, Cardiff Bay. 7pm, £20/£45 VIP. Info 0871 4720400. Drag queen with a show titled Celebrity Morgue.

The Gingerbread Man Aberystwyth Arts Centre. 2pm, £8/£6. Info 01970 623232. Kids’ show presented by Stuff And Nonsense.

BUZZ 77

COMPETITIONS HOW TO WIN: Unless otherwise stated, our competitions are generally shared on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.

To enter a competition, keep an eye on our social media channels and click ‘like’ and ‘share’ when published. Alternatively, email competitions@buzzmag.co.uk with the name of the competition in the subject line and up to two sentences on why you think you should win the competition. The more original you are, the better your chances.

A COPY OF JUST HELP YOURSELF BY VERNON HOPKINS Vernon Hopkins’ new book gives a first-hand account of life in 1960s Pontypridd, including his discovery of a young Tom Jones – who Hopkins invited to join his band, The Senators, later to become The Squires. Whether it is music, ambition or the Welsh Valleys, this tale has something to say.

TWO TICKETS FOR DEEP BLUE SOMETHING AT SIN CITY, SWANSEA If you want to sing along to Breakfast At Tiffany’s and hear other tunes from this Texan rock foursome, head over to Swansea’s Sin City on Fri 15 Mar for the only date in Wales on their spring tour.

TWO TICKETS TO THE MIRROR CRACK’D AT THE NEW THEATRE, CARDIFF Suzie Blake, once of Coronation Street, and Simon Shepherd of Peak Practice and Casualty, star in a production of The Mirror Crack’d, running from Tue 26 Mar until Sat 6 Apr. The glamour of Hollywood comes to a quiet village and when murder is afoot, the inimitable Miss Marple has much unravelling to do and many secrets to expose.

MUM IN THE SKY – TWO TICKETS TO CARDIFF IN THE SKY Stuck for present ideas this Mother’s Day? Fancy giving your Mum a present like no-other? We’re giving away two tickets for afternoon tea overlooking the Cardiff skyline 100 feet in the air!

Entering this one will be slightly different to normal Buzz comps – so keep an eye out on our Facebook for updates! The winner will be announced on Mon 18 Mar and the event itself runs from Wed 10 to Sun 14 Apr. WWF – EARTH HOUR – HOODIE AND REUSABLE CUP On Sat 30 Mar at 8.30pm, everybody is encouraged to turn all their lights off for an hour and make a pledge to help save the planet from climate change. To commemorate this, Buzz has teamed up with the good folk at WWF to give away a WWF hoodie and a reusable cup – one will keep you warm, and the other will keep your hands warm, especially when you don’t want to take another plastic disposable cup with you on your way to work.

T&Cs: WE DO NOT GIVE PERMISSION FOR T H E S E C O M P E T I T I O N S T O B E R E P L I C AT E D ANYWHERE ELSE

BUZZ 78

The most expensive digital camera in the world is the Hasselblad H4D 200MS, which will set you back a whopping $45,000 (£34,947).

In 2016 Google reported that 24 billion selfies were uploaded to the Google Photo App. The first person who invented negative was Fox Talbot.

This event occurred in 1839. In the same year Hippolyte Bayard (actual name) presented the first positive print to the world.

The nickname ‘Taffy’ for a Welshman links back to St David as the original and ultimate Welshman – the term dates back to the 17th century and derives from ‘Dafydd’, the Welsh for David.

Leeks were prized by the Ancient Greeks and Romans and were especially revered for their beneficial effect upon the throat. The Greek philosopher Aristotle credited the clear voice of the partridge to a diet of leeks, while the Roman emperor Nero supposedly ate leeks everyday to make his voice stronger.

If you present someone with a single daffodil, legend has it bad luck may be on the horizon. Instead, deliver a whole bunch of them: a gift of several daffodils is believed to ensure happiness to the recipient.

In what was formerly Yugoslavia, children would tie up their mother on Mother’s Day. The only way she could get free would be to pay her children with treats.

There are 12 Hasselblad cameras left on the surface of the moon today. These cameras shot iconic images of the Moon’s surface and were left behind to allow for the 25kg of lunar rock samples to be carried back instead.

According to a 2011 article in The Telegraph, Britons were drunk in 75% of the photos they uploaded to Facebook.

If you forget to buy your mother a present on Mother’s Day, said mother has no obligations to buy birthday presents for that child for at least the following five years.

A female oyster over her lifetime may produce over 100 million young.

(Disclaimer: some of these may not in fact be true)

Are you the friend everyone wants on their pub quiz team? If you’re a general knowledge general and want to be in with a chance of winning a book, film, or CD, then tweet us (@Buzz_Magazine) with your fact and #DidYouKnow.

If your tweet is used in the magazine you win a prize!

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