The Word on the Streets 3 (arts) by Gerry Cassidy

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on the streets

Ayrshire’s arts music & culture magazine

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Issue 3 Summer/Autumn 2015

F PLEAKEE T N O

Big hugs

Scotland! Joanna Lumley exposes her tartan roots

JAMES OSWALD • IRENE WALKER • MADHUMATI MANDA

An Exhibition of work from David McRae, Bobby Johnstone and Nick Walker 12 June – 20 July

From the Floorboards Up:

Beyond the Centre:

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1 June – 29 June Featuring the most recent work from the HAC’s very own Monday and Tuesday Adult Art Classes.

Poetry from members of Ayr Writers’ Club

Driven to Abstraction:

An Exhibition of work from the HAC’s Wednesday and Thursday Art Classes 1 July – 31 July Featuring landscapes from around the Harbourside

An Exhibition of work by Chick McGeehan 21 August – 9 October Featuring work inspired by Irvine Harbourside where Chick lives and works

Faces and Places: An Exhibition of work by Ken O’Hara 7 August – 28 September

Harbour Arts Centre, Irvine Exhibition Programme June - October For further information please call the Harbour Arts Centre on 01294 274059

www.north-ayrshire.gov.uk

sic

Monday/Tuesday Art Class

Douglas Skelton’s new novel reviewed

production

Madhumati Manda sees art as therapy

the

raspberryhorse

P6-7: Neon Waltz: the interview

16-17 18-19

word is a

No Guts, No Glory launch their new EP

12-13

Author/farmer James Oswald

10-11

OSA’s Irene Walker has a well-earned rest

The Fall of Eve are making big noises

the

P7: Chris Taylor at Glagow Pavilion

8-9

Big in Ayrshire: great gigs of recent years

8-9

Sarah Green Stumpy Hanvey Craig McAllister Ryan McDougall Carolyn O’Hara Holllie Scullion

Live@Troon: headliners tickets going fast

Advertising: 01292 268671 Contributors:

Michael Redmond on top comic form

Design and Production: Raspberry Horse Limited 97 Crofthead Road, Ayr KA7 3NE 01292 268671

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Editor: Gerry Cassidy M: 0798 543 9752 E: gerry@ thewordonthe streets.co.uk

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Ayr writers dominate in national competition

n Keir Hardie addresses an anti-war demonstration in Trafalgar Square, London, in 1914

Keir Hardie rises again THE Baird Institute in Cumnock is to host an exhibition to honour the life and times of the man whose bronze bust stands proudly in front of the nearby town hall. Keir Hardie, founder of the Labour Party, MP, journalist and campaigner for women’s rights and home rule for Scotland, spent the last 25 years of his life at Lochnorris, his family home in Cumnock. The centenary of his death occurs in September this year and this major exhibition pays tribute to a

man who rose from the humblest of beginnings to become one of the most prominent politicians of his time. Many of his personal belonings are incuded in the exhibition alongside posters used in his own political campaigns. They deminstrate that many of the issues he fought for a century ago are still at the forefront of politics today, including a living wage, fair rents, work for the unemployed, democratic rights and women’s issues. A committed pacifist, Keir

Hardie died in Glasgow in 1915 and is buried in a family lair at Glaisnock Street cemetery in Cumnock. Later this year, from September until December, a new exhibition will run alongside the current display. The Words of Keir Hardie is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and will add a new dimension to the exhibition. The Baird is open Thursday to Saturday from 11am5pm. Access is free the exhibition continues until Saturday December 19.

SUMMER OF CULTURE AT HAC DRIVEN To Abstraction is a compelling exhibition by Chick McGeechan, inspired by Irvine harbourside where he lives and works. Chick intends to display a body of work which will show a departure from his usual approach to this subject. He says: “The work will feature a distinct change from the popular realism of my paintings of boats and harbour views, focussing more on close observation of surfaces and textures leading to an exploration of abstract possibilities. “I have wanted to do this for some time. There is beauty in

decay and corrosion, in old timbers, in rusty metal, in stone and old ropes.” The show opens at the Harbour Arts Centre on August 21 and runs until October 9. Beyond the Centre is an exhibition of work from the HAC’s Tuesday and Thursday art classes, led by artist David Reid. The show runs until June

29 in the HAC Studio Gallery, where access is not always available. Call in advance for info on when best to attend. Ken O’Hara launches his latest show, Faces and Places on August 6 in the main gallery. Running until September 28, it will feature landscapes and portraits. Ken says: The influences for my landscapes are the impressionists and their use of light and texture. For my portraiture, I look to Lucian Freud and Stuart Pearson Wright with their use of colour and shadow. I also admire greatly the masters of

AYR Writers' Club dominated this year’sl Scottish Association of Writers competition with firsts in six categories and 24 mentions overall. The haul is two better than last year’s superb effort. Pat Young acquired a literary agent when her novel Till The Dust Settle won two competitions. Dorothy Gallagher had two novels among the prizes in different categories, the Way of It winning a first and Ice Child a second prize. Dorothy, whose children’s book Scarecrows Dream has just been completed, was recognised for

n Scarecrow’s Dream is an allegorical written to appeal to children and adults the quality of her writing in five different competitions. Ann Burnett won first prize for the best short story and Maggie Bolton topped the children's novel section. Maggie and Greta Yorke have just published Witch Hitch, a children's story about a bunch of disorganised witches and their journey to retrieve their lost items. President Rhona Anderson commented: “I know the club oozes with talented writers but for so many AWC members to have their writing celebrated is fantastic.” For information about the club, books for sale or to invite the AWC to speak at your organisation follow Ayr Writers' Club on Facebook ot visit www.ayrwritersclub.co.uk

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START HERE GO ANYWHERE

Campaigner, writer, actress, one-time model and all-round good egg Joanna Lumley shows beauty is more than skin deep at Boswell Festival “YOU might not guess it from these plummy tones, but I am Scottish,” Joanna Lumley purrs to a delighted audience as one of the main events of this year’s Boswell Book Festival gets under way in the magnificent setting of Dumfries House. “On both sides of my family, as far back as you can go, It’s Scotland, Scotland, Scotland,” she declares. “So I am very happy to say I am mostly Scottish, a little bit Danish and a tiny bit

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Beyo English,” as if this national treasure needed to do anything to endear herself to this section of her adoring public. In conversation with festival chairman James Knox, the actress and campaigner spoke about her early days and the values she inherited from her Scottish mother, Beatrice Weir, born in India but with an undying passion for Scotland, where her ancestral roots lay. “I love Scotland and I love to spend as much time as I can up here,” she says. Several years ago, Lumley and her husband, conductor Stephen Barlow, bought a tumble-down cottage in the wilds of rural Dumfriesshire and restored it as a peaceful haven where they spend time with their extended family. “I adore spending time there,” she adds. “If we hadn’t rescued that house when we did it would have completely fallen into ruin.” Another Scottish ruin she is committed to rescuing is Moat Brae, the Dumfries

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nd fabulous house where Pete Pan author JM Barrie played as a child and which campaigners now wish to restore for use as a centre for children’s literature. “We want to create a new Neverland there,” she tells her audience as she shows them her own two-feet-high bronze sculpture of Peter Pan, perfect replicas of which are to be sold to help finance the restoration campaign. She comes across as a humble, selfeffacing character who loves life and people as she flits through a series of hilarious episodes from her jam-packed life which has seen a succession of highs and lows. She talks about being “completely without artistic discernment” adding: “Everything to me is just perfectly lovely. I have no judgement.” She looks back on a past that has its roots in colonial India, with her parents’ voyages through Singapore, Nepal and Burma, the family’s return to the UK and

her early years at school and as a wouldbe actress – all told with a natural wit that has the audience rocking with laughter. She mentions her high-profile campaigning for the rights of Gurkhas to settle in Britain which ended with victory and a change in government policy. Her talk ends far too soon, after which she spends time signing books for several dozen fans, chatting with them and posing for the inevitable selfies. Joanna Lumley’s session was just one highlight in a fantastic weekend festival which opened with classical English actor John Standing bounding onstage on the Friday evening and declaring: “I’m 81 this year! Isn’t that wonderful?” His tales of a childhood growing up in the company of greats such as Sir Lawrence Olivier and Noel Coward are hilarious and bawdy, with the odd swearyword thrown in with his terribly clipped English accent, making the story even funnier still.

Scottish thriller writer Ian Rankin was another huge name on the festival schedule with Ayrshire author Andrew O’Hagan also among the glitterati. Following the three-day event in early May, the organisers declared themselves “bowled over by the wonderful audiences who flocked in huge numbers”. Director Caroline Knox said: “It has been an outstanding weekend on so many levels. Working with Louis McCallum and his team at Dumfries House was a joy from start to finish. It has elevated the Festival into another league and we are delighted to have had the opportunity to host this, the fifth, in these exceptionally beautiful and accommodating surroundings. Judging by initial audience reaction, this has been an incredibly popular move all round.” The Boswell Book Festival will be returning to Dumfries House next year on May 6, 7 and 8 and promises to be another absolutely fabulous event.

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East A Ayr yrshire Exhibitions Maximum Meaniing, Minimum Means

e are delighted to feature the work of Abram Games, one of the pivotal grap phic designers of

the 20th century. His bold, colourful annd stylised graphic designs were seen throughout Britain an a d beyond, due to his work with well-established clients, including the Financial Times, Penguin Books, Guinness, British Airways and London Transport to name a fe few. The exhibition also features some of Games’s inventions, including the Cona Coff ffeee maker and portable paper copier. Abram Games: Maximum Meaning Minimum Means was oriiginally organised b byy tth he Design Museum, London and the Estate of Abram Games. This exhibition has been made possible b byy a grant ffrrom T Th he Wellcome Trust. T Th he Exhibition T To our has been organised b byy th the Estate of Abram Games ((w www.abrramgames.com m)

TREASURED COLLLECTIO ONS

n opportunity to see some of East Ayrshire’s most im mportant and internationally admired painntings.

Including some of the very earliest masterpieces through to 20th century works. Over the years, paintings from the collection have been borrowed ffo or display by galleries around the world with requests coming from as far afield as Japan and Mexico.

1 6 M AY - 5 S E P 20 1 5 D I C K I N S T I T U T E M AI N G A L L E RY & M U S E U M E L M BA N K AV E N U E K I L M A R N O C K K A1 3 B U Tue -S a t : 1 1 a m - 5 pm ( 1 p m c l o s e o n S a t 1 1 & S a t 1 8 J u l y) T: 0 1 5 6 3 5 5 43 43 F R E E E N T RY

Image: Audience witth Agrippa, Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836 – 19122), Oil on wooden panel, 1876

for more informa o tion visit:

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Scots hero of Waterloo honoured WHO knew that an Ayrshireman played a major role in the battle of Waterloo? Ensign Charles Ewart, born near Kilmarnock, was not only there, but his actions in capturing one of the French Emperor’s regimental battle flags brought shame on Napoleon’s troops. A replica of the standard created by a group of volunteers is a central part of a

major exhibition currently running at Dean Castle which tells the story of the epic battle. One of three replica flags the team created will be gifted to Edinburgh Castle where Ensign Ewart is buried on the esplanade, the only person to receive this accolade. The exhibition features original documents, as well as musical instruments and uniforms. Entry is free.

Sectarianism takes a hit as friendly rivals stumble on a serious message behind the laughs REVIEW

BILLY, TIM & THE WEE GLESGA GHOST PAVILION THEATRE, GLASGOW CHRIS TAYLOR’S first major stage role was a triumph. As a lead character in the new Des Dillon play, Billy and Tim and the Wee Glesga Ghost, the Ayr actor was hilarious, compelling and seemed absolutley right at home as a Celtic fan indoctrinated by his tribal commitment to his club – just as his opposite number, David Alexander, was as the staunch Rangers fan. The play is set in a hospital casualty unit in the aftermath of a Cetic-Rangers tie. As buddies thrown together in the earlier play – I’m No a Billy, He’s a Tim – they have challenged each other to last the full 90 minutes among the crowd of their opposing teams at the next derby. And we can see all has not gone well as the boys wait to be checked out by a doctor to assess the injuries each has sustained at the hands of opposition fans. Tended by feisty Polish nurse Agnieska, played by Joanna Kaczynska, the pals take full advantage of the humour potential and the gags flow thick and fast. Inevitably, there’s no shortage of sectarian ribbing, tit for tat oneupmanship with razor-sharp banter between the boys, aimed at each other and also at the hapless nurse. It threatens to settle into the mindless and potentially offensive bickering with under-current of threatened violence most of us in the West of Scotland have witnessed between these two sides. And as if to underline the gritty reality of the sectarian point-scoring there was

n Billy McWilliams (David Alexander), left, the Wee Glesga Ghost (Neil Bratchpiece), centre and Ayr actor Chris Taylor as Celtic fan Tim Timmins

a fair bit of cheering and whooping from certain sections of the audience when one of the actors is seen to get the better of the other in their vicious repartee. But the mood gradually changes with the arrival onstage of a new character, the ghost we have seen only intermittently in fleeting glimpses since the start of the play. At first it’s business as usual as the Wee Glesga Ghost warms up to the action with some hysterically funny interjections. Neil Bratchpiece, a master face-puller, is a natural comic who can raise a laugh without saying a word and soon has everybody in the palm of his hand. As the storyline develops, though, the

actors – and, hooray, the audience – are forced to question their convictions and reassess their priorities as the play draws to a dramatic climax. There could hardly be a better town for the world debut of this superb play than Glasgow, and the Pavilion Theatre audience lapped it up. Behind the surface humour and rivalry there’s a powerful antisectarian message which could hardly fail to bring a lump to the throat of even the most entrenched audience member. Great stuff and a superb cast brought the issues hilariously to life while delivering that welcome reality check. We’re all Jock Tamson’s bairns, a message which cannot be delivered too often in some parts of Ayrshire, too.

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After three triumphant years at the helm of Open Studios Ayrshire, artist Irene Walker is ready to step back and let others take the strain of organising Ayrshire’s largest visual arts event, she tells GERRY CASSIDY IRENE WALKER is in her element in the spacious and airy and full of character home she share with husband Archie in the centre of Ayr. Beautifully framed (by Archie) examples of her work line the walls of the living room, hallway and stairs and at the top of the house there’s a gallery with its own central cupola, flooding the room with light through its glass dome. It’s heaven on earth for an artist. No wonder she wants to step back from the pressures of organising what has become one of the biggest art events in Ayrshire and enjoy life at a more leisurely pace. For the past three years, Irene has been the driving force behind Open Studios Ayrshire during which, for one weekend a year, artists invite the public into their homes or studios for a glimpse of what life is like for a working artist. Irene recalls that it all began as she chatted with a friend over a cup of coffee. “For a couple of years I had opened up our gallery at the top of the house to a few other artists to share in a few exhibitions. I realised that there were an awful lot of artists, myself included, who couldn’t get their work shown in Ayr. There is the Maclaurin, of course, but that was about it.” So Irene and her artist friend Alison McKenzie decided to organise an art trail of the local area. They called on a few friends, who got in touch with their friends and before they knew it, there were 28 artists agreeing to the idea of inviting the public in to see their work. “We just fund-raised to pay for it, but as the date drew near I realised that we would need about £2,000 to produce brochures, money we didn’t have, so I got in touch with Councillor Bill Grant and he and South Ayrshire Council helped us out. But we knew we needed proper funding if we wanted to continue, so we applied to the Lottery Fund and they gave us a grant of £10,000 for two years. South Ayrshire Council gave us match funding and from that point on the whole thing started to grow really quickly.” The University of the West of Scotland stepped in to help organise workshops to help meet the spoke to the membership and told them that we would have to form a committee to conditions of the loan and offered to host a launch event. More artists signed up to the share the burden if we wanted to take this idea and by year two, there were 48 into a third year. “And people came forward. It was great. exhibiting artists. It was a tremendous success, says Irene, but the sheer volume Now we have a committee full of really nice of work involved in organising the event people who are prepared to work hard and and liaising with funding bodies and artists who have a passion for art.” took its toll. Open Studios Ayrshire 2015 was more successful than ever, with three trail buses “I thought OSA was going to have to fold after year two,” she says. “I was completely taking visitors from studio to studio over two days in April to view the work of no exhausted. It was very hard going and some negative comments from one or two fewer than 71 artists from Dunlop to Irvine, people were really dragging me down. the Doon Valley and Cumnock and dozens of studios across the length and breadth of Eventually, my husband said enough was enough. It just couldn’t go on like this. So I South Ayrshire. But although it has been a

The artist

labour of love for Irene, she feels it’s time to let someone else take the strain. “I have loved doing this, but now my three-year tenure is coming to an end and I am looking forward to handing it on to someone else,” she says. And she has advice for whoever becomes the new chairman: “To be prudent and to go forward, growing it slowly but steadily,” she advises. “It’s easy to get carried away with all the great things we could do and become, but it is important that it is sustainable. I have seen it happening in other places where they run out of funding and then end up having to charge the artists a fortune. I

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in residence really would not like to see that happen with OSA. I think art is for everyone. “OSA is a support network as well as an exhibiting event. A few of the members are former students of mine who have become disillusioned but now they have come back and are excited at the prospect of having something to aim for. “One wee lassie came up to me and gave me a big hug and said: ‘Thankyou very much for this opportunity.’ And that is what this is all about for me. It has been at the bottom of everything I have ever done – it is about helping and supporting.” Irene has been in a helping and supporting role for all of her career. She

trained as a silversmith and weaver, but observes: “There were no jobs in the creative arts in those days, so we all went into teaching.” In her 37-year career, Irene taught art at all levels – primary, secondary, to children with profound disabilities and to students at college. She also taught in a school catering for what in those days were described as “maladjusted children” where she was verbally abused virtually day, but her caring nature has stood her in good stead. She has a theory about the relationship between art and having a fulfilled life. She says: “Sometimes you carry people along with you and

sometimes you don’t. I think art is one of those things where you reach out to people and once you have connected in that way the bond is there forever, as though it is set in stone. “I look at people like Helen Turner, who does OSA and she is in her 80s and I think ‘Why not?’ Artists can go on for a long, long time and I think it is because they have an interest in life and look at the world in a particular way. If you have that ‘joie de vivre’ and look at life around you then you can’t help but be impressed by the world because there is so much beauty about and that just keeps you going. It keeps you young.”

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Nature and the SARAH GREEN meets farmer and occult author James Oswald

ier to take on the family farm in Fife earl land High has the now at He ald ted. Osw than anticipa I first met James to, t cattle and Romney sheep to attend Carnegie Library in Ayr, at an even tractor this 410 by n d Ario igue s Intr Claa s. new one a erst with Wat g by alon hosted ace rences and a house that is being built to repl farmer crime writer and the refe y entl curr y he h entl equ whic the static caravan in to the supernatural, I subs the into y fora first resides. settled down to my that and fellow writer Stuart Macbride ean, Asked why he writes, Oswald replies: he world of Detective Inspector McL And ing. writ e channelled him into crim e. ctiv dete h “It’s kind of a compulsion. I do like Edinburg has not looked back. old the by ed rtain ente tely edia imm by problem solving, like tinkering with n was I ite originally being turned dow Desp them ing spun putt y and atel rt ve that cars, taking them apa dry wit, clean prose and delic Penguin because they did not belie a with ts lt. star occu He the in.” and nre of back together aga web of crime, intrigue readers would take to the cross-ge he l unti it es at y Jam awa met I ks e, wor mor and small idea Wanting to know crime and the occult, Oswald selfis ess proc in ee His coff ds. for wor of day s ,000 y 125 dred sunn his a gets Oswald on published on Amazon where hun plans, . organic, as he has found that if he Glasgow. sands of copies were downloaded thou r othe but er, into writ book he just goes off script and Oswald has always been a Now, not yet two years since his first to get s tend He ics, ns. t com ctio of characters and dire started off in the world appeared in paperback, he has eigh ous copi with , h first ion. nint ten inat the writ fasc l with y on the whole nove following a schoolbo books published and is s goe in ld then wor and cult ges diffi a chan this any ing for notes However, find and tenth. ess, back and revises. It was the tragic death of both his which to get published (his only succ g and ember ed Oswald Dec forc in that AD h 0 cras 200 in car d a in lishe nts Oswald strikes me as hard-workin pub y pare stor a d frien his by n 1993), it was a suggestio

KEIR HARDI D E - A HUNDRED YEARS ON The political pioneer Keir Hardie died a hundred years ago this September but his legend endures. From the humblest beginnings in poverty, he became one of the best known public figures of his time. Hardie achieved success as a Member of Parliam ment, founder of the Labour Party and an advocate of votes ffo or women annd other causes. Using many of his personal belongings and related material, this exhibition looks at the man, his political philosophy, his family life and his legacy.

28 M AY - 1 9 D EC 20 1 5 BAIRD INSTITUTE 3 L U G A R S T C U M N O C K K A1 8 1 A D O p e n T hu -S a t : 1 1 a m - 5 pm T: 01290 427084

F R E E E N TRY

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supernatural

Writing is a kind of compulsion - like taking old cars apart and putting them together again

tenacious, not giving up on his dream of becoming a writer, de spite his sixteen year wait. How he ma nages to sit down and write or proofrea d in the evenings after a day spent on the farm or managing his new bu ild, beats me. His workload leaves little down time, but he feels that he has to ma ke the most of his current successes. The unusual occult ele ment to Oswald’s crime fiction goes ba ck to his love of comics, fantasy fictio n and writers such as Terry Pratchett an d Neil Gaiman. In his first novel “Natural Ca uses”, Oswald played with the idea that the killers of a young woman during though have particula a satanic ritual r mannerisms or were not psychopath ph ysical qualities and the s, but actually did se form part of summon a demon. He McLean’s observations says “Tony McLean . has been raised an ath At both his book launc eist. He doesn’t see h in Ayr, and the point of belief in during our conversati anything.” Yet on in the café, I was McLean has to deal wi struck by Oswald’s ch th the demon and attiness and willingness to talk ab the consequences of out himself. Oswald no logical claims though: “In so conclusion to his case. cial situations, at parties, I was a wallfl Interestingly, althoug ower. My h we as readers nervousness goes ba learn about DI McLea ck to an inherent n’s views and shyness.” opinions, (you work ou t what he is Having spent over tw thinking by what he o years at one says and what he point living by himsel does), there is never f in his static any description of caravan when he firs what he looks like ph t took over the farm ysically. Oswald says and talking mostly to he has purposefully lef his dogs, he now t this open and takes the opportunit since the stories are y to chat whenever told from McLean’s he can. It helps, he sa point of view, there is ys, that when he is little opportunity to at a book launch, the describe his features. people there want Other characters to listen to him; they have come because

they want to learn ab out him and his stories. Inevitably perhaps, the setting of his novels in Edinburgh ha s drawn Rankin comparisons. I asked Oswald if Rankin comparisons are odiou s or do they sell books? “Probably both. What Ian Rankin has done for Scottish crime fiction cannot be underestimated. Ha ving ‘The new Ian Rankin’ on my books makes people notice.” However, thi s is perhaps an easy label for journalists an d publishers to use; Oswald’s novels have quite a different thrust to them from Rankin’s. On a final note, in the novels DI McLean is the proud owner of a Linn Sondek record player. Althoug h Oswald’s own 30year old record playe r is in storage, he has fond memories of his vinyl. I asked him for his thr ee favourite albums and after some deliberation he came up with: The Aff ectionate Punch by the Associates, the qu irky-edged Olé! Tarantula by Robyn Hit chcock (who went to the same boarding school as Oswald), and Thomas Dolby’s Astronauts and Heretics. Not one for the mainstream then… l James Oswald’s lat est Detective Inspector McLean no vel “Prayer for the Dead” came out in ha rdback earlier this year. Oswald also ha s a series of fantasy books following The Ballad of Sir Benfro, the last remaining ma le dragon.

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Light and

shade

Madhumati Manda on her passion for painting and how art has helped her clear a path through the darkness of depression IT’S a tough life, trying to make a living from art. But if you think it’s hard-going in Scotland, be grateful you’re not a female artist in India. Maduhmati Manda, who was born in Calcutta but has lived in Ayr for the past two years with surgeon husband Vijay and daughter Ishani, laughs as she describes the Scottish art world as “much more benign” than India’s. “Here, artists are much more generous about each other’s work. We talk and share ideas and encourage each other, but in India it is cut-throat competition. “It is also very sexist. Art has always been domnated by men and although recently women have become more prominent, they tend to be looked down upon. “A housewife creating art, especially one with an earning husband would get a lot of flak. It’s a cultural thing.” Although Madhumati was very academic as a child, and grew up in what she describes as “a science-based family” there was little doubt that art would play a large part in her life. She says: “I started drawing at two-anda-half. It was instinctive, right away, from the beginning. I decided from an early age that I wanted to be an artist. “My grandfather was a surgeon, but my mother was a very good writer and an interest in art was encouraged.” Despite excellent results in mathematics, history and economics, Madhumati shunned her teachers’ advice to choose an academic career and went to West Bengal to study art, emerging five years later with a first class degree in fine art. Meanwhile, her studies on piano were

progressing equally well and a job as a music teacher at the international school she herself attended provided a handy income. “That was my basic job so that I could paint and exhibit and do my art.” She held her first solo exhibition at the age of 23, a year after graduating, which went well, with very favourable reviews. Over the years, Madhumat’s has developed a very distinctive and personal style. She says: “I tend to use very bright colours with an expressive, impressionistic technique, a lot of texture, a lot of contrast of light and shade. But sometimes my

colours become paler, I don’t always use reds and greens and oranges. “There is always light and shade. I always try to create a source of light in my paintings. There will be a contrast of light and a contrast of colour.” And sometimes Madhumati’s work is more personal than anyone might realise. She says: “I have just been through a recent tragedy. I lost my mum at the same time as I was moving to Scotland so I think whenever I paint I am looking for something to lighten my dark moods. “It hasn’t been easy. I have been

depressed and it has been a struggle – it’s still a struggle. In my painting I have tried to incorporate a lot of colour and light. They are very hopeful paintings. “Ideally, I would like to be in a studio 24/7 and be a mad artist, but I can’t do that because I am a mother and a wife.” When we met, Madhumati was looking forward to a happy event – the birth of her second daughter in June. Until then, her busy life – painting, exhibiting and looking after the family continues apace, as does yet another of her interests, teaching. Madhumati is one of a staff of around eight teachers at The Litte Art School in Alloway Place, a project which began 18 months ago in the now closed Greenheart Gallery in Ayr but has since grown into quite an operation with classes in Alloway Place, Ayr, and also in Troon and Girvan. There, she helps children of all ages and adults develop their skills and explore new approaches to creating art. And she has a keen young pupil at home, six-year-old Ishani who is a very promising young artist. Ishani has taken up art with enthusiasm as she joins mum around the easel. “We don’t have a studio as such,” says Madhumati, “in fact we sometimes paint right at the kitchen sink, which is great, especially when I am doing watercolours. Very handy.” She adds: “Ishani says to me, ‘Mummy, I paint all the time. Why are my paintings not like yours?’ I laugh and tell her I have been doing this for 25 years.” And if Ishani decides on an art career, she could hardly have a better teacher.

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f o s t o L -Aunt Abi A short story by Carolyn O’Hara

Great Aunt Abigail’s house was packed to the point of explosion with weird and wonderful things and, following her death, it was Suzie’s task to clear it. Her mum had promised that any money she raised would be hers to keep, and with her student loan dwindling, she was enthusiastic. She checked her phone: the auctioneer was late. Tracing the threadbare path in the faded carpet, she wandered around as she’d done in Abigail’s presence years before, recalling every object her childhood self had coveted: the caged bird that chirruped, the china doll, Lily, whose left eye squinted spookily, and the sparkly bracelet in the little, carved, wooden box which had always been her favourite. She remembered prising open the stiffly hinged lid, gazing at its contents, before slipping the bracelet over her petite five year old hand. First she

found the caged bird - mildewed and chirrup-less. Next she spotted Lily, squinting from a display cabinet, but no sign of the wooden box anywhere. She stopped in front of an oriental vase: large, ugly, lacquered with vivid colours; it seemed to her the item that would secure her future. She picked it up, feeling its heft, sensing its history. The doorbell jangled. Peering critically at her distressed t-shirt, multiple piercings and electric blue finger nails through thick-lensed, tortoiseshell glasses, was the auctioneer. ‘Eh, Mrs Taylor? I’m Mr Arnold.’ ‘No, that would be my mum. I’m Suzie.’ She was aware of him re-establishing his professional equilibrium, his sharp eyes darting like silver fish. Few items interested him. ‘And finally there’s this!’ She almost said, ‘Tar rah!’ as she pointed to the vase, like a magician revealing his best trick.

Silence scorched as he examined it, raising and balancing his glasses precariously on his shiny bald head. ‘No, it’s nothing of any great value.’ Forms were completed; items packed; receipts signed. And that was that; she turned to pack up the rest of the gloomy little bungalow. ******** Suzie stood outside the auction hall, feeling a surge of exhilaration and nervousness before she pushed open the door. Stifling heat hit her. She had no intention of bidding: this was to be a spectator sport but maybe she’d leave with money for drinks. Ignoring the critical glances, perhaps engendered by her hair with its indigo and violet hues, she checked ‘her’ items on display, and settled down in a corner close to the podium, to observe. Mr Arnold, revelling in the limelight, had

McCall’s back, as dark REVIEW DEVIL’S KNOCK by Douglas Skelton (Luath Press) IT’S an odd realisation, but inevitable, that in Douglas Skelton’s first foray into crime fiction he is already creating what is surely to become a classic series. Fans of the still developing Davie McCall series, myself included, having

bolted down the first two books – Blood City and Crow Bait – have been avidly awaiting the arrival of Devil’s Knock. And I’m thrilled to say they won’t be disappointed with this, the second-last in the series. Like its predecessors, Devil’s Knock has a cast of thousands, yet every character seems fully-rounded and perfectly believable, from the callously vicious thug to the hapless victim. The story picks up 10 years after Crow

Bait’s imprisonment of McCall, with a graphically brutal murder which impinges on the newly-released central character’s patch. One slaughter begs another in retaliation and so on until the blood bath beckons. The likeable Frank Donovan is back, laden with personal problems and although now a DS, his former sidekick Jimmy Knight, the corrupt cop with a truncheon in every pie, has left Donovan

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ol ve, selected a particularly fetching blue and yellow bowtie for the occasion and donned his public persona as he mounted the podium, gavel in hand, to greet his adoring public. The first hour passed quickly enough but most of Abigail’s pieces failed to reach their reserves, and the novelty of people-watching lost its appeal. Suzie became restless and disheartened, wishing she could fast forward, in the best tradition of Cash In the Attic, to find out how much she’d made, minus commission, of course. The final item was the oriental vase; Suzie was no longer holding her breath. As it was passed to the auctioneer’s assistant to be held aloft for all to see, his toe caught on the corner of the podium. Time slid into slow motion. There was a collective gasp as the vase slithered from his dirty, finger-nailed hands and impacted deafeningly on the wooden

floor. It was impossible to know exactly what happened first. Horrified onlookers with gapping mouths articulated shock and embarrassment. Then a hush fell. The mortified assistant bent low gathering the shattered pieces, as Mr Arnold left the podium and moved closer to the dismal scene. Suzie was transfixed. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately ITEM NO. 52 will no longer be for sale and...’ He paused and bent lower. ‘...but what have we here? My goodness, the best piece of the day! ’ He straightened up, holding between his thumb and forefinger, great Aunt Abigail’s long lost bracelet, delicate and beautiful, its finely cut diamonds luminous in the bright lights of the hall, and from it dangled a label on which was written, in her fine, spidery handwriting:

For Suzie

and compelling as ever in his wake in his progress to Detective Sergeant. Their conflicts are as interesting as the gripping narrative which brings McCall screaming back into the crime scene you get the feeling he would much rather leave behind. Just as fans have come to expect, there’s sex, drugs and rock’n’roll and even a bit of Hollywood glamour thrown into the mix as old ghosts from the past haunt McCall. Friends and enemies meet

their end in equal numbers as Skelton’s slick style whips the story along at a fair pace. There’s tension, dread and passion on virtually every page, lightened from time to time with the odd flash of humour. There’s very little honour among these rogues, criminals and cops alike but despite the dark nature of the McCall books – or maybe because of it, who knows? – they are compulsive reading, earthy, believable and realistic as they

are. Book four in the series is well under way, we hear, and like Skelton’s growing gang of fans, I’ll be counting the days until I can get my hands on the next absorbing episode. Former newspaper editor Skelton now finds his life consumed by book tours, crime writers conventions and signings. He’s on the periphery now, but he looks destined to find himself among the most respected of Scotland’s dark writers.

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James Rose

NIGHT OWL

Ghostly shape on silent wing, A pale – faced killer on nightly patrol, Bringing death and destruction to some small creature To assuage the pangs of hunger. Eerie sounds sing out of the darkness, A high-pitched screech across a valley floor, Piercing flesh with bloody talons, This serene raptor goes about his nightly business.

We acknowledge his wings of stealth, Picked out in looming headlights, Witnesses to this winged assassin on graceful flight, Fly - past by an angel of death. Piercing black eyes reflect the starry sky, Alighting anew on roadside post, He garners strength to repeat the search As we travel safely on our homeward journey.

Our Owl continues his foray in moonlit fields Swooping to ensure a hope of survival, Seeking sustenance, he sets an ambush in a grassy bank To live or die he never knows. Threatened barn-owl of our travels, Reminder of those nocturnal creatures, Bringing death and destruction, we quickly pass, Our lives touched by this wondrous sight. Yvonne Jack

HIGHER CREATIVITY

I hear your voice echoing back to me, When I put down the words upon the page. I surrender my talents, I give my all to you. You are the one who made the blind see. They are some who don’t really understand But I accept what you have planned. You’ll be my defender and my shield I will keep my eyes fixed on you. The ink from my pen will flow like the ocean Rushing in the almighty power and Grace That your majesty can give, You can set us free. You are my joy and forever will be.

From members of Ayr Writers’ Club

'Cowdenbeath - 1. Raith Rovers - 2.' The rising inflection spells the home team's doom. The pencil scratches on the form, 'Queen of the South - 1 . . . ' Poises in anxious anticipation, 'Hibernian …' The voice is flat. The pencil yearns, ' - 1.' And makes its mark. A score draw. A score draw. 'Kilmarnock - nil. Hamilton Academicals - nil. Rangers nil. Celtic nil.' Children 2. Fun nil. The kitchen light marks a pitch on the outside world .

K.A.Wyllie

A PHOENICIAN GLASS BOWL

POETRY

SATURDAY AFTERNOON, WINTER 1952

This small bowl, So smooth and comforting, Encapsulates the universe entire: Within its smooth convexity, Particles primordial, matter's wisps and strings, The swirling galaxies - cream in coffee, Pale blue smoke, russet streams, Meconium yellow, bilious greens; Dark material lies deep in its black concavity, Shards and shrapnel of the birth. The peoples of the sea, Dragged boats up on the sand. New fires on old fires, Glowing red, searing white, vitrifying To opaque and lumpy cow pats, Translucence of the morning mist, Transparence like the river ripples, Reflective as the window pane, That fools the fatal sparrow and the thrush. The minuscule, the distant, the fast receding past, Enlarged, brought near, contemporized by glass. But no-one ground for them a chronoscopic lens To glimpse medieval wonders Chartres and York, Murano's fires Duchamp's Large Glass, Art Deco lamps, The broad bean sandwiched against the jar, Tropic to the earth and sky. Gliding above the encased patterns My finger maps a path Throughout infinity. I am Hubble. Here be Hadrons. James Rose

TOMORROW WILL COME The grass looks greener in this morning light. The sky a deeper blue. The trill of birds which, just a day ago, played false upon my ears, now fills my soul with joy. The terror but a shadow to amuse a child. No need to count the hours; to see the sands run out through broken glass. The future once more reaches to infinity. Unfocused eyes look down. Faint letters dance across the page, a mimic of the heart. All Clear. Catherine Lang

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THE CHARITY SHOP

A DAY BESIDE

BYGONE SUMMERS

Behind this door lies yesterday, And things we once held dear, Our ‘must have’ dreams, and crazy schemes, That fashion fuelled idea. A guitar, never mastered, And board games we thought fun, The LPs and the cds, No longer No.1 A home at last for hated gifts, Or gadgets bought in haste, And well stocked stacks of paperbacks, To cater every taste. But memories still linger here, In every simple sale, Within the rows of crinkled clothes, Each garment tells a tale. A wedding dress once cherished, And medals worn with pride, Gran's handmade knit, that didn't fit, Now hanging side by side. For here lie the remnants of our lives, A sundry collection, A cemetery of used to be Awaiting resurrection.

Salt dogs and hot seas Shingle in the sands Pink clouds and candyfloss Small sticky hands Dour donkeys at pier ends Chairs decking the strand Lewdly striped rock-like Strains from the band Chips and fish, plenty salt Hot ladies, bathing thighs Ice cream and milky tea Some cute bingo prize Hanky heads with red necks Bucket, spade, sand-castles Packing up, catch the bus Back to all life’s hassles

Long hazy ankle-socked days when new sandals meant skinned knees and salt sea magic healed them, my floppy hat the only sunscreen over a freckling face.

Fiona Atchison

Untwist a wee blue salt sack and sprinkle for a crispy chitterin’ bite then off to explore rock pools.

Helena Sheridan BETWEEN THE LINES The final chapter, almost done, the deadline looming close. No chance to change a single word, just scan the lines. Some stained with tears of sorrow and of loss; More, wrinkled with the laughter lines of joy; A score at least, tight packed with wishes, hopes and dreams, not all fulfilled. The rest quite plain. Mundane. The bulk in fact. But still a story worth the telling, well ended. No qualms, as the last dot marks the page. by Catherine Lang

SISTER Heavy-wombed, I watched her pace the kitchen floor. That space where all that mattered came to pass with daily grace. Her face, more tired even than before, her smile, harder still to draw. And yet, she sang a private song and gently stroked the cradle of her frame, a tuneful comfort to the child within. We waited, all those years ago, through winter’s darkest days, although for what, I did not know, until, at last, she placed the child amongst us, and I slipped my finger in your tiny grasp, and knew, without a flicker of a doubt, that I would love you, to the last. Dorothy Gallagher

DEBT

Pendants descend, mercurial circles of silver shivering the placid surface. Bubbles bounce and buddy up but one escapes making off, bravely solo, surviving briefly, the world reflected in its glossy stare. Splash, tinkle, drip: harmonies dances on the breeze, tickling the ear and warming the soul.

More valuable than gold, my time, you’ve spent, on the bric-a-brac of life. My life, cluttered by your whims. Your gold card, stiff within its pouch, flashed at would be vendors. I stagger, beneath the weight of hours lavished on your swagger. My eyes upon the balance on the clock, your debt to me; my time.

Carolyn O’Hara

Dorothy Gallagher

FOUNTAIN

Rubber bucket and spade in hand impatience tiptoes over shingle to sumptuous sand which oozes through wriggly toes. Now mould castles embellish with shells, seaglass sapphires, emeralds and amber while squawking scavengers snap seaweed. No swimsuit, no matter. Tuck skirt into pants for deeper paddling or jumping steamers’ gigantic waves.

Ease big stones, wait, sandy stour settles, hope to spy a camouflaged crab before it scuttles sideways for shelter. Search now for wafer stones to skim on the water, maybe count twenty this time. Too soon the trudge home and a pokey hat treat just before a cheeky gull splatters Gran’s good hat. Greta Yorke

"WAR HEROES" Busy bees, bugs and butterflies Look how high my home-made kite above sea level lies, Brown paper, evening news, string and canes Over fields, rivers and country lanes. Left swoop right, held between my feet Double loop, trouble free, birds sing sweet, The battle of Britain was a breeze With my Spitfire kite thrashing trees. Now polished medals hang over crippled toes Can't walk, but knows where and when the wind blows, Bees, bugs and butterflies still haunt the sky Someday soon so will I. John Conning

l Our thanks to the creative members of Ayr Writers’ Club for sharing their work. Apologies to those we could not accommodate in this issue.

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WORD on the streets

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Ayrshire’s arts music & culture magazine

Issue 3 Summer/Autumn 2015

the cling film kid Soldier On aim high with a new rock opera page 10

FALL OF EVE • NEON WALTZ • NO GUTS NO GLORY

Michael Redmond on top comic form

art

Live@Troon: headliners tickets going fast

art

Big in Ayrshire: great gigs of recent years

the

raspberryhorse

The Fall of Eve are making big noises

P7: Chris Taylor at Glagow Pavilion

word is a

8-9

No Guts, No Glory launch their new EP

OSA’s Irene Walker has a well-earned rest

the

P6-7: Neon Waltz: the interview

8-9

Sarah Green Stumpy Hanvey Craig McAllister Ryan McDougall Carolyn O’Hara Holllie Scullion

Author/farmer James Oswald

Contributors:

10-11

Madhumati Manda sees art as therapy

Advertising: 01292 268671 0798 543 9752

12-13

Douglas Skelton’s new novel reviewed

u em

Poetry from members of Ayr Writers’ Club

Design and Production: Raspberry Horse Limited 97 Crofthead Road, Ayr KA7 3NE 01292 268671

oo b c i

16-17 18-19

Editor: Gerry Cassidy M: 0798 543 9752 E: gerry@ thewordonthe streets.co.uk

to th Ayrshire this summer for e range of activities designed to keep e kids busy over the holidays. Heritage Centre, Saltcoats Get yourself down to the Heritage Centre for a fun filled arts and craft sessions based around the Battle of Waterloo; or for the mini palaeontologists out there, why not come along to our ‘Dinosaur Island’ craft session. Harbour Arts Centre, Irvine Look out for arts and crafts sessions themed around the Jungle, Under the Sea, ‘Up’ and Robin Hood. A range of drama activities will keep your young actors busy with Paddington Bear, the Hunger Games and Austin & Ally or our ‘Production Week’ classes will teach you to be the brains of backstage. North Ayrshire Libraries There is lots going on for children in our libraries this summer including: The Tiger Who Came to ,G How Much I Love You, Summer Bu d e , ft, Paddington, Horrid nr e P a e ide Fuunn.

Come our frealong to ef fun da amily ys…

Wed 1 July Wed 15 July Wed 22 July Weed 29 July W Weed 5 August Weed 5 August Weed 12 August

12.30pm – 2.30pm 12.30pm – 2.30pm 12.30pm – 2.30pm 12.30pm – 2.30pm 12noon – 3pm 2pm – 4pm 12.30pm – 2.30pm

Anderson Memorial Park, Largs Kilbirnie Park Maree Field, Castlepark Hayocks Community Centre, Stevenston Eglinton Park, Kilwinning Heritage Centre, Saltcoats Brodick Community Centre, Arran

Blues on the menu SINGER singer/songwriter and blues afficionado Jane Beacher kicked off the Ayr Blues Club with a performance at the Twa Dugs in June. Musician John Duffy, who is in the process of setting up the club, describes her as “a wonderful jazz/blues style singer songwriter and a cracking guitarist to boot”. Duffy is trying to establish how much demand there would be for a regular jazz/blues open mic event. If you want to show your support or discuss ideas, contact John Duffy on Facebook. Meanwhile, Duffy renews an old friendship when he joins sometime partner Jon Gibbons in the Duffy Gibbons Band with a special performance at Acoustic Bliss - The Late Show in the Twa Dugs on July 8. As ever, the open mic session will feature some fine local musicians. A night not to be missed.

Prestfest awaits KEEP the weekend of Friday July 31 to Sunday August 1 free if you don’t want to miss out on another sensational Prestfest. Organisers are awaiting funding confirmation before final arrangements can be made, but if recent years are anything to go by, the three-day event will be another highlight on Ayrshire’s growing festival calendar.

CAST FOR THOUSANDS WHAT’S not to like about huge names and small venues? Anthemic heroes Cast bring their UK tour of smaller arenas to Ayr Town Hall in October. Formed from the remnants of The La’s and Shack, Cast scored ten Top 10 singles and a string of awardwinning albums in the late 90s/early 2000s. Vocalist John Power has recorded three solo albums and Cast reunited for their 15th anniversary album All

Change in 2010, followed by Troubled Times in 2012. Now the original line-up is back together again with a soon-to-be-released sixth album of classic, anthemic sounds. Tickets for the Ayr gig on Friday October 16 are already going like hotcakes, so get in soon if you want to be there. See http://www.seetickets.com/ tour/cast-tour/ or call Tickets Scotland on 0141 204 5151.

James Grant to play HAC FRECKFEST’S track record of bringing classic acts to Irvine continues with the appearance of James Grant on November 6. One of Scotland’s finest singer/songwriters, Grant was the driving force behind

Love and Money, who achieved cult status and silver-selling albums. Other golden greats to grace the HAC this year were Howard Jones, JJ Gilmour and the magnificent Skinner, front man with Hipsway.

Every Thursday 10pm-1am Open mic @

The Twa Dugs

4 Killoch Place Ayr KA7 2EA

Acousic Bliss - The Late Show streamed live around the world on: https://livestream.com/baileyguitars Proudly sponsored by

www.baileyguitars.co.uk/

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picture: Hellbound Photography

Gloriously gutsy NO GUTS, NO GLORY celebrated the launch of their debut EP, Flatline, by tearing up Mesi Studios in Kilmarnock. Supported by Parallel Spec, The Beard of Zu, Place of Rest and Barons, the night shaped up to be a compilation of various genres, though most of which were on the heavier side. Upon entering, I was met with swarms of fellow angst-filled youngsters, expressing this in the form of a pit, which I dared not enter for fear of my life, and more importantly, my can of lager. Having seen NGNG before and having thoroughly enjoyed them; I eagerly awaited their set, which much to my surprise was introduced with a highly misleading Snoop Dog cover. Initially thinking to myself: “I’m pretty sure they’ve changed their genre”, the guys quickly proved me wrong by delving into some of their highly anticipated, and much grittier sounding new tracks which are set to be on Flatline, as well as

EP LAUNCH No Guts, No Glory Mesi Studios, Kilmarnock some of their older, better known numbers. They even played a Deathcore cover of a Desolated tune, which went down a treat with the guys in the pit. These guys may be young, but make no mistake – they are not rookies when it comes to putting on a killer show. With some of the most powerful vocals from a young lad I’ve ever heard, complimented by equally excellent instrumentals, a strong stage performance and some great interaction with the crowd, this gig proved to myself that they are shaping up to be one of Killie’s next big ones. Frontman Kieran Gilroy, confident that the night was an overall success, said: Monday night was insanely good, every band came with their own unique sound

and killed it. For us in No Guts, No Glory, that was the most violent and intense show we have ever played. So many people came to support the local music scene and people came to let loose for the night. For me that is the best venue to play in and the best crowd to play to.” Organiser and venue owner Emily Mesi is also confident that No Guts, No Glory have a bright future. She said: “NGNG are going from strength to strength and I see a lot more happening for them if they keep at it. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.”This may well have been NGNG’s most important gig to date, which was delivered with nothing but sheer excellence. With a few more things in the pipelines over the next few months, their biggest show to date kicks off on July 8, where they support Death Metal legends in Acrania.

RYAN McDOUGALL

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LIVE REVIEW Mickey 9s, Shaken Mimes, New Girls Live@the Moon, Ayr

Take another little piece of Twin Hearts, now baby KILMARNOCK’S Twin Heart have plenty lined up over the next few months for Alternative and Emo fans to have a swatch at. With a brand new single to be released in August as well as a tour, the trio haven’t slowed down a notch since founding in December last year. Drummer Murray Baxter said: “We’re pretty excited for the next few months, with a few shows over summer as well as this tour and new single in August, we’re hoping to get some new recognition!” From the ashes of Mechanical Smile, who were undoubtedly one of Ayrshire’s biggest groups at the time, Twin Heart

has risen. With an already fastpaced schedule, having already released a single, three B-sides, toured Scotland and Germany in April, as well as performed a variety of closely compacted showed in May, it is clear that the band harness the conviction and drive necessary to make it in the music industry, and have refused to allow the end of Mechanical Smile hinder them as musicians. If you can’t wait until August, you can catch them on June 27 at the Alba West Bike Show in Ardeer or on July 16 at Stereo in Glasgow or HAC on August 7.

RYAN McDOUGALL

Check out the video to Twin Heart’s debut single, Failure of Another

http://tinyurl.com/ncakkeb

THE DOORS opened at half seven, and what was a scatterings of people turned into mostly large groups of teens and young people, into the dimly lit West of the Moon. First on stage was the four piece group New Girls, an Ayrshire based band who have only been together three months but deliver surprisingly well despite their infancy. During their set they suffered from a few faults, one of which being their guitar going out of tune, but that was easily forgiven by the receptive crowd. The most memorable song of their set was their cover of The White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army, their rendition being a funkstyled country mix-up of the alternative rock anthem, a song which they took and truly made their own. Up next were the Shaken Mimes; for whom a massive crowd had gathered around the stage, and it was hard to see through the people. Their image and merchandise stand was ubiquitous throughout the night, with the boys donning striped shirts and black face paint. On stage they announced they were welcoming back bassist Oscar Wilson, much to the delight of the crowd. After a quick break, I got back in just as the Mickey 9s were setting up, their enigmatic frontman wearing his trademark gold mask, a yellow t-shirt and tracksuit bottoms. Their set was full of energy, playing their politically charged song Ammunition, but also not taking themselves too seriously with their humorous tune Shark in the Water. It’s not hard to understand why they received the SAMA award for Best Live Act, their performance rounded up the night but also brought it all together. The Glaswegian four-piece’s performance was frenetic and unique, you couldn’t help but smile at lead singer and guitarist Dougie’s funky dance moves and it brought the crowd to their feet, toes tapping.

HOLLIE SCULLION

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The last Monday in May found the hotly-tipped Neon Waltz bringing their spring tour to a close in the intimate settings of Irvine’s Harbour Arts Centre, the best wee venue on the west coast. The audience, surrounding the band on three sides, was treated to a terrific, punchy set from one of the most talkedabout bands around. No-one at the gig was more excited than The Word On The Street’s own CRAIG McALLISTER I’VE been following Neon Waltz closely over the past year since first hearing them via the more hip, finger-on-thepulse blogs. They’ve released a self-financed, extremely limited 7” (the military twostep marching Bare Wood Aisles), signed to Noel Gallagher’s management company (fans of Oasis might find their tunes pleasantly melodic, and Neon Waltz are fond of a cagoule and a duffel jacket, but they sound nothing like the mono-browed Mancunians) and they’ve recently released a six-track collection of demos (First Light) after inking a deal

with recording giant Atlantic Records, home to Led Zeppelin, Aretha Franklin and most of the greats you can think of. In short, Neon Waltz are going places. It’s unlikely the band had these sorts of giddy expectations when they began rehearsing a year ago in an old, cold abandoned croft on the outskirts of Caithness. I put this to vocalist Jordan Shearer, owner of the finest bowl-cut fringe in music since Bobby Gillespie in 1990, as we do a quick catch-up over the phone on his day off in Oxford, sandwiched in-between gigs in Amsterdam and Birmingham. “Coming from where we do,

we have to think about things differently to everybody else. We knew we were a good band, but no-one from around our way ever expects to become famous or make it. “We were just happy playing music for ourselves… I know how cheesy that sounds, but it’s true. When we found out there were record labels interested in signing us we couldn’t quite believe it.” That they come from the far north of Scotland, in musical terms the middle of nowhere, has helped Neon Waltz forge a sound that is more than the equal of its influences. Victims to neither fads nor fashions, they’ve quietly gone about

honing their own version of the sounds that turn them on. As a six-piece they bring many elements to their music. “We all love The Band’s The Last Waltz. I think we actually saw the film before we’d heard the LP, but as a group we really loved their rootsy, organic take on things. There’s a definite Band influence, maybe not in our sound, but certainly in how we approach making our music.” “King Harvest (Has Surely Come) is one track we all love. The playing on it is superb. Loose and funky. They were proper musicians, The Band. “We’re all big music fans. Spotify has been a great tool for us in discovering

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never got the attention they maybe deserved. “The Magical World… is his first solo LP. We all love the songwriting and the arrangements. He’s a true one-off. If I was to recommend any of his songs it would be Something Like You. “Another obsession is Mac DeMarco. My latest infatuation is a song of his called Ode To Viceroy. It’s slacker rock, basically, full of beachy surf guitars. Viceroy is an American cigarette brand and this song is a very funny ode to the joys of smoking. Our tour manager Big John from Liverpool turned us on to Captain Beefheart. Mad shit! It’s out there, man! We played the Safe As Milk LP regularly on our first tour. It’s great stuff! “Other than The Band, the one band we are all absolutely mad on is The Coral. They are brilliant! Simple pop songs, but brilliantly played. “They are very clever in how they arrange their songs. Skeleton Key from their first album captures everything that’s good about the band – out there, uncompromising but still pop music.” Zoom right in to the finer details of Neon Waltz and you’ll spot all these influences and no doubt many more. Take a track like Veiled Clock. When the instrumentation drops and the vocals soar, you’ll be able to pick out lovely three-part harmonies informed by Crosby, Stills & Nash. Zoom in closer and you’ll spot the Fleet Foxes arrangements. Listen for pleasure though, without

new bands. We all write and contribute to the band. Usually, someone has the bare parts done on an acoustic guitar, basic open chords, then we play it with the band. “We all add our own parts, with a bit of tweaking here and there until we’re satisfied with the sound of it. We’ll often go on long, extended jams. Bare Wood Aisles came out of a 20 minute jam.” Neon Waltz take their influences and spin them into terrific, slightly psychedelic little symphonies. The guitars, sometimes chiming, sometimes fizzing, always to the fore and battling for attention with a drummer

fighting a serious Keith Moon infatuation bring to mind all of what’s good in premier league indie rock. Pushed for other top tunes the band like to listen to, Jordan adds: “I’ll have to pick a track by The Walkmen. They’re one of our favourites. D’you know them? I could pick anything by them…. Let’s go for The Rat. There’s so much energy in it. “We all like vastly different records and bands, but there are lots of things we all agree on. “One of them is The Magical World of The Strands. What a genius songwriter Mick Head is. He was in Shack and The Pale Fountains, two bands that

over-analysis or a need to compare the new with the old and you’ll hear melodydrenched, hazy, soft-focus tunes that wouldn’t sound out of place playing loudly as the sun sets behind a sea of flags in front of the Pyramid Stage at this year’s Glastonbury. It’s sure to happen for Neon Waltz sometime. Maybe not this year. Or even next. But it’s only a matter of time. If you were one of the lucky ones in Irvine that night in May, you may well be bragging about it in years to come. I know I will. l Read Craig’s music blog Plain or Pan online at http://wp.me/p2LOK-1SC

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All about Eve LOCAL bands. It’s always the same story, isn’t it? Four folk get together over a shared love of similar artists and similar haircuts, bash out a few cover versions and rip off the more obscure elements of their favourite bands’ catalogues and pass them off as their own songs. They get a set together, maybe half an hour long and, after sacking the drummer then re-hiring him once they realise there’s no-one else that understands where they’re coming from (man), they blag a gig in their local music-friendly venue where they bash out faithful 100miles an hour versions of their hits-inwaiting to a few friends and family and the odd misplaced Sunday drinker. Not for The Fall Of Eve. A band really only in name, they’re the brainchild of guitarist Michael Moffat and top-hatted vocalist Evangeline. They’ve been quietly (or not so quietly) fine-tuning their material in the darkest corners of the more technologicallyadvanced studios for the past three-and-a-half years. They’ve only just played their first gig and what they played on stage was the result of all that tweaking. No free-form bass runs from an out of control bass player. No unexpected, turned-up-to-11 guitar riffs where they shouldn’t be. No windmilling Keith Moon clatters and tumbles at inopportune moments. Every note, every vocal harmony, every orchestral keyboard part jigsawed together exactly as Evangeline and Michael had planned it in the preceding months and years. “We’ve spent a lot of time working on our songs to get them sounding just right,” said Evangeline. “There are no compromises. Every detail of every song has been worked out and perfected in advance.” Unless you’re The Grateful Dead, this isn’t that unusual in bands. Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mumford & Sons, Blur...you name them, they might sound spontaneous and free-form, but you can bet that every nuance has been carefully worked. The Fall Of Eve have taken this to the nth degree. They make a big sound, and big sounds require big instrumentation. Live, they have a full 100-piece orchestra and 100-piece choir ‘on stage’ with them, with the pre-recorded durm und strang triggered at the appropriate moment by their sessioneering drummer. It’s a dramatic and mighty noise; imagine Guy

CRAIG McALLISTER hears how Fall of Eve achieve the stunning sound of their live stage set Fawkes throwing a party for Led Zeppelin, soundtracked by Beethoven’s Fifth and sponsored by Duracell and you’re half way there. Where does this big sound come from? It’s borne out of a love of diverse music – genres and artists as disparate as Evanescence, AC/DC, Epica, classical music, ambient chill-out soundscapes, bhangra beat and the string-swept music of Bollywood are all put into the Fall Of Eve melting pot and given a good stir. The first fruits of this, your starter if you like, can be heard on 2013’s self-funded Calls From The Horizon EP. The EP garnered all sorts of positive reaction from metal-loving fans across the UK and in places as far-flung as Scandinavia as Europe. “It’s brilliant being able to see where your music is popular. Every penny we make from recording and gigging goes straight back into the band. A video on You Tube enables us to reach out directly to those people.” The main course, the debut album, should be along any day now (perhaps even by the time you read this). Again

self-funded (via Kickstarter) and bypassing the antiquated notions of a ‘label’ and ‘management’, Eternal Embrace takes the best bits of the EP, reworks some of them into muscle-bound superior upgrades and goes for the jugular. The band, understandably, can’t wait for you to hear it. “Everything we’ve ever worked for has led up to this moment. Eternal Embrace sounds exactly as we want it to sound. It’s the sound of our live set. It’s really important for us that as many people get to hear it as possible.” Once the album is out, the band will be carefully selecting their tour dates. At their recent show at Wolverhampton’s Dames Of Darkness Festival, they played to rave reviews. On stage, Evangeline dresses up. She’s all legs ‘n leather, top hat ‘n’ cane. It’s theatrical, that’s for sure, but it works. “The stage wear? It’s comfortable, it doesn’t get in the way and people seem to like it. It got such a great response, I had to keep it on all day!” The Fall Of Eve have clear ideas and vision on how they should sound and look. Everything is well thought-out and carefully considered. They aren’t any old new act who are happy to grow up in public, developing from raggle-taggle 3 chord bashers to super-slick stadium-fillers before your very eyes. The Fall Of Eve have come out the traps at super-slick stadium level already. Just try and keep up with them.

Every detail of every song is perfected in advance

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Pictures: Rainer Kerber Photographie

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Congratulations on completing the demo for your rock opera The Cling Film Kid. can you tell us how long you have been working on it and how you came up with the idea for it and what your motivation was? It's taken about a year to complete. Between creating the concepts, writing the music and lyrics and then finally recording the music. It's important to remember that this is a concept ep, it's not just three songs thrown together and put on a disk. It tells the story of a young teenager who finds himself continually trapped within three specific states of mind. Each state of mind affects the way in which he sees life and how he wants to live it. Essentially, each state of mind allows him to see the world differently, depending on how he is feeling. Can you give us a brief outline of what the storyline is? The first song represents his discontent for life itself, and he begins to feel like he doesn't belong in the real world. The second song displays his desire to become a social recluse, where no one can judge him and he can be exactly who he wants to be. And finally, the third song is

Action s Picture: Árpád Horváth

With their second EP only months old Soldier On are now experimenting with a new concept, a rock opera. Jordan Bastock talks about The Cling Film Kid

Live dates: 05/06 Golf Tavern, Edinburgh, w/ Kyle Falconer • 03/07 Hac, Irvine, w/ Seaside Sons • 31/07/ Whiski KRAFT, Glasgow • essentially his renaissance- he rediscovers himself as an energetic and confident person. It sounds very different from the material we are used to hearing from Soldier On. How do the rest of the band feel about this change in direction, which I presume is probably temporary? Have they been involved in heping to shape it

or has this been more of a solo project? You presumed correctly. It is only temporary. This isn't going to be the new 'Soldier On Sound'. It's just a break from the usual stuff we've been doing. To be honest, it has been myself that has done the writing for this ep. It's a personal thing, y'know? It wasn't as if I said; "Here, you, Stevie, stop sniffing about my songs and

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stations

Do you have plans to devlop the idea further, for instance as a stage act or a play? Yeah, definitely. We've got all the plans ready to write a short film. I'm not into the theatre side if I'm honest, I couldn't run the risk of some crackpot director getting his hands on the project and introducing someone like Jason Donovan to play the lead role. But yeah, a film definitely. I'm really looking to capture the same themes and ideas as Tommy/Quadrophenia. When can we expect to see some further developments? It's really hard to say, if I'm honest. We'd like to do another small tour again before the end of the year, maybe a few Scottish dates, but we're still skint from the last ep. But if things go well and Ben studies hard at the roulette machines then we could hopefully have the film released by this time next year. Are you considering doing more work like this or is this a one-off?

22/08 Camden Market, London â&#x20AC;˘ 27/09 Clitheroe Mod Weekender â&#x20AC;˘ 08/10 Motherwell Concert Hall, w/ From The Jam trying to change those riffs about." If the boys had something they wanted to contribute then I had no problems with them suggesting anything. But as I've said, this is only a demo that we've done, that doesn't mean that it won't change when we take it into the studio and jam it out a bit. How do you think it will go down with

your fans? It will definitely catch them off guard. I would be incredibly surprised if 100% of them all still liked it. We're used to playing fast up-tempo sweaty beat tracks that last two-and-a-half minutes, not trippy fiveminute stoner tunes. But like I said, this isn't forever, just a project. We like to test ourselves.

For the time being it seems like it will be a one off. But if the fans dig it, then I suppose we could extend it and make an album out of it. That's the predicament we're in just now, we've got a few options in front of us: we can go down this 'trippy(ish) ' route, stick to the initial Eggs For Breakfast Mod sound, or go for the new T-Rex 70s rock sound that we've achieved on our new Ep Between The Bricks. But we'll just need to wait and see. We work naturally. Finally, I see Soldier On have some dates coming up over the next few months any plans to go into the recording studios? There are no plans to currently go into the studio. Once we've got these gigs out the way and we've got some more new material to choose from then we'll definitely go for it.

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You saw them here first

From the top: Biffy Clyro, The Clash, The View and Oasis; a few of the many huge acts to have played to fans in Ayrshire over the years

WOULD you ever consider Ayrshire to be one of Scotlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s musical hotbeds? We have all heard the stories from days gone by when The Who graced Cumnock Town Hall, or when The Clash rocked The Magnum Leisure Centre. The list is actually really impressive, everyone has passed through Ayrshire at one point or another from ACDC to Oasis, from Primal Scream to Bjork. Even the King of rock and Roll himself made his only UK appearance at Prestwick Airport. But those days are gone, right? Well no, not exactly. In recent years big names like Kasabian, The View, Enter Shikari, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Alabama 3, The Stranglers, and even the Rocketman have all included Ayrshire dates on their tour schedule. It is bulging at the seams with musical events from boutique style festivals to multi venue events. Ayrshire is the home of Kelburn Garden Party, Live at Troon, Darvel Music Festival, Freckfest, Burns and Aâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; That, Dirty Weekender and many more similar events,

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DAVID HANVEY takes a look at Ayrshire’s habit of attracting – and producing – some of the most notable names in the music business all of which are gaining international recognition amongst artists. It seems that we are not just attracting big acts but producing some of the most innovative, diverse and dynamic music in Scotland. While it can’t be argued that there is a cohesive Ayrshire sound like that of the Mersey Beat or Madchester, there is certainly a creative stream flowing through the area. Aside from producing one of the biggest acts on the planet in Biffy Clyro we have Fatherson, who produce some of the most infectious melodic indie rock around. This year they took SXSW by storm and have a host of summer festivals lined up after their debut album received rave reviews and a nomination for Scottish Album of The Year. Eddi Reader is an established international performer and Vukovi’s nihilistic alternative rock music have captured the attention of massive audiences all over the country and music industry types alike. There’s BrownBear who, after a few tours with The Libertines and The View, are

currently putting the finishing touches to their debut album, which is set to be huge. It is not just those, the list is almost endless: there’s the electro indie fusion of Crash Club, the psychedelic rock of Echo Valley, Sonic Templars, Huxtable, Common Ground, Bella and The Bear, Little Fire, Matt Scott, Twin Heart, Culann... I could literally go on all day. With UWS in Ayr producing a conveyor belt of music professionals in areas like promotion, booking, marketing, distribution, sound production and PR we are blessed with a wealth of talent in all areas within the music industry. It is possible that we live in one of the most creative places in the country. So the next time you walk past a bar and hear a guitar being tuned up, or see a poster with some acts that you don’t quite recognise drop into the show. You never know you might be stumbling into a show that has the next Iron Madien or Frank Turner on the bill and let’s face it we all like to be able to say “I was there”.

You won’t get a finer September weekend SCOTTISH rockers Gun are back with a bang, a brand new album, fresh inspiration and a revival drive that has seen them re-establish themselves with fans old and new. They are Saturday night headliners at this year’s Live@Troon, a power gig that will set them up for a UK wide tour which takes them the length and breadth of the country before they nip across the channel for dates in Sweden and Spain. Sharing the bill that night in Troon Concert Hall are the Amorettes and the up-and-coming Huxtables, one of a number of Ayrshire bands who will be taking part at various venues around the town this year. The festival kicks off on Friday September 4 with a Celtic night of quality musicianship with former Runrig frontman Donnie Munro taking the stage. The fabulous Skerryvore bring their Tiree island energy to the stage on the same bill, with West Lothian singer/songwriter Amy Baillie, whose latest single, Wish – with David Cicero – is now available on iTunes. Comedy has become an essential part of Live@Troon over the years and this year’s stand-up nights will take place at various venues, including Marr Rugby Club and Troon Juniors. Live@Troon Sessions in the South Beach Hotel take the place of the beach tents this year, with a great line-up of acts including a Blues Rock Celebration with Sinnerboy and Tom Morton Homecoming sessions with JJ Gilmour, the Alan Frew Band and many more. See the website for full details and ticket availability.

Live@Troon: September 4-6 2015 www.liveattroon.com

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THE NIGHT SKY: Late June - end of September

planet then disappears from view and will reappear in the morning sky at the end of August, passed by the thin waning Moon on September 10.. Mars also reappears in August, rising at 4am, and it too will be passed by the Moon on September 10. As it moves from Cancer into Leo it will pass close to Regulus on the 25th, and the difference in colour between the star and the planet will be particularly noticeable. After its close encounter with Venus on June 30, Jupiter disappears for the month of August, and reappears in September rising at 4.30am. Saturn in Libra sets about 1.30am in July, 11.30pm in August, and 9.45pm in September. The Moon appears near Saturn on July 25, August 22 and September 18. Uranus in Pisces rises about midnight in July, 10pm in August and 9pm in September. Neptune in Aquarius rises at 11pm in July, is visible all night in August, and sets around 3am in September. The Perseid meteor shower will reach its peak over the nights of August 12to 14, and should be worth watching this year because there will be no Moon to spoil it. Astronomers of the Future Club lectures will continue on the last Thursdays of the month at 7pm in the RSAS Barassie Works Club on Shore Road, off Portland Street in Troon, and on July 30 the topic will be Pluto, for obvious reasons. In August the speaker will be Dr. Alan Cayless from Stirling Observatory, giving the talk on The Sun which was cancelled last September for reasons beyond our control. The topic for September has still to be decided. Website for AOTF Club is: www.actascio.org/aotfclub.asp l Duncan Lunan’s recent books “Children from the Sky”, “The Stones and the Stars” and “Incoming Asteroid! What Could We Do About It?” are available on Amazon or through booksellers; more details are on Duncan’s website, www.duncanlunan.com.

Laugh comic COMEDY Michael Redmond, Chris Dinwoody, Harry Garrison D’Vinity, Newmarket St, Ayr

with DUNCAN LUNAN

After sunset on the summer solstice, June 21, there will be a dramatic pairing of Venus and Jupiter in the western sky. The two bright planets are rapidly drawing closer together and on June 30 they will pass at a distance of just 20 minutes of arc, two-thirds the diameter of the Full Moon, which will be six days earlier on June 24. On the morning of September 5 the Moon will pass through the Hyades star cluster and occult the bright star Aldebaran, which will disappear, seen from the UK, at times between 5.40 and 5.55, depending on location. The Moon is Full again on July 2 and 31 - a ‘blue Moon’ according to the modern definition – and again on August 29 and September 28. It’s New on July 16, appearing as a thin crescent below Venus and Jupiter on the 18, very low in the sky. After that it will be New again on August 14 and September 13. The Full Moon on September 27/28 will be a ‘supermoon’, when the Moon is closest to us in its orbit and will appear somewhat larger – not an uncommon event, but they have attracted a lot of attention in recent years. At 2.07am that night a lunar eclipse will begin, reaching totality at 3.11am. In September and October the Moon will be at its Minor Standstill, at the intermediate points between the extreme positions of its 18.61 year cycle. At the stone circle which I built in Sighthill Park in Glasgow, the first astronomical one in the UK for over 3000 years, a year either side of the standstill would be accurate enough for photographic purposes, but there has still been only one success in trying to catch the Moon at its furthest north and south each month. Around September the circle is scheduled to be removed for the area to be redeveloped, and although the City Council has promised that efforts will be made to remove the stones intact and reposition them elsewhere, it may be that the other three minor standstill events will remain the only ones not to be photographed at the original site. The planet Mercury is not visible from the UK at any time during this quarter. Venus passes Jupiter on June 30, the two planets setting together at 11 pm. The Moon is near Venus on 18July, but the

MICHAEL REDMOND, arguably Ireland’s funniest man – and they have so many to choose from – was the hilarious billtopper when Sidesplitters Comedy Club made a rare journey to Ayr as part of the Burns ‘n’ A’ That Festival. With his deadpan delivery and seemingly stream-of-consciousness chatter the actor, writer and comic delivered his laugh-a-minute act to an eager audience in D’Vinity in Newmarket Street, the first but not the last comedy night at this emerging venue, we are promised. Everything was fair game as he took the stage, including a couple of hecklers and strays who were packed off with casual expertise as the comic some may remember from an appearance in Father Ted got into his swing. He touched on religion. Slight intake of breath. “I was born a Catholic,” he revealed to his slightly nervous, uncertain audience, then continued: “Which came as a great surprise to my parents, who were both Protestants. But we learned to accommodate each other and tolerate each others’ ways – they let me put a statue of the Virgin Mary in the back garden and I let them put a sash on her.” There was plenty more in this vein as he rattled off hilarious story after hilarious story via a fair bit of improvising on the way, it appeared. Sharing the bill was magician Chris Dinwoodie, whose spectacular tricks were mesmerising and performed to a very funny background of comic asides. Songwriter Harry Garrison at first appeared to be an odd inclusion as he ambled onstage with his acoustic guitar, but his hilarious songs quickly dismissed any doubts that he was worthy of a place on the bill. The evening was handled

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a minute at genius gags regular for comedy nights. Watch this space. In the meantime, Sidesplitters have a few summer events lined up including the excellent Gary Little at the Harbour Arts Centre on Saturday June 27 when tickets are just £6. Sidesplitters ventures into Stewarton for a night of comedy hosted by Billy Kirkwood with Chris ‘The Ram’ Broomfield, comic magician Chris Dinwoodie and another yet-to-be-confirmed act. Tickets, £9 each, for the event in the town social club are available at Dunlop Post Office, Annick Art in Stewarton or via the Sidesplitters Facebook page. Veteran of the Scottish comedy circuit Stu Who? joins a fine bill of acts including John Gavin, Craig Johnston and Steve McCulloch with Billy Kirkwood as host at Michael Redmond, above, effortlessly funny the Ship Inn, Irvine, on Saturday July 11. Tickets (£10) are available at 01292 at D’Vinity. Below: Billy Kirkwood will realise a dream with a show at the Magnum 279722 ext 1 or from the bar. That hard-working man, Billy Kirkwood was about to head out to a comedy fest in Ireland as we went to press, where he will appear alongside Ardal O’Hanlon, yet another superb Irish comic well known on the international comedy circuit as well as for his performances as Father Dougal McGuire in Father Ted. As Billy looks forward to a life-long ambition which will be realised later this year – to perform his act at the Magnum theatre in Irvine – he observed: “Funnily enough, it was at the Magnum that I first saw Ardal O’Hanlon. “He still remembers the theatre as ‘a lovely little venue’ and said to me the last time we spoke that he expected it would still be going strong. “Sadly, as we all know that is not the case. It is said to be 10 years since comedy was last performed in the Magnum and my night on November 20 skilfully by Perth comic Bruce Fummey, a will be the very last before it closes. I am late stand-in for Billy Kirkwood who was really thrilled at getting the opportunty to forced to pull out due to personal appear there and am really looking circumstances. forward to it.” Fummey had the patter and the skills of Billy is aiming to turn the night into a the true professional that he is as he wise- benefit gig for local foodbanks, since it cracked his way through the evening. takes place not long before Christmas. Both Sidesplitters and D’Vinity owner Everybody attending the gig is asked to Manfred Laub – who is a top international bring along a bag of groceries which will chef – want to see the venue develop as a be distributed among local foodbanks.

Take your laughing gear to the Palace CATCH some of the best of the Edinburgh Fringe without leaving Ayrshire. The Palace Theatre in Kilmarnock are giving some red-got acts a chance to perfect their act with a few Sneaky Peek shows on July 23-27. The wickedly funny Craig Hill is doing two nights at the Palace which are sure to be a riot – and not for the narrow-minded. Scottish Comedian of the Year award winner Mark Nelson will be showcasing his dark sense of humour while Kai Humphries from Newcastle previews his high-octane act. For ticket details see eastayrshireleisure.com

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