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ISSUE 55 • APRIL 2010 •
MUSIC|FILM|CLUBS|PERFORMANCE|DIGITAL|READING|COMEDY|ART|FASHION|LISTINGS
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ROBYN HITCHCOCK
AN EVENING WITH
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THURS 8TH APR
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An Evening With
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HOPEFULLY, by the time you read this, spring will have sprung in the explosive style predicted by at least one scientist and the worst winter of most of our lives will finally be over. Perhaps this month it’ll be warm and light enough to enjoy your Skinny outdoors? Just an idea. Regardless of where you choose to read our fair magazine, you will find within it hundreds, nay thousands of ideas of exciting ways to spend your new daylight hours. If you’re into art, then April is the month for you. New Contemporaries will be showing off Scotland’s brightest graduate talent in the RSA, Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art will be taking over with hundreds of events and exhibitions, and The Skinny is even putting on an exhibition with Euan Taylor in the ROXY Art House. We’re also set to collaborate with Radius and Atypical Root to produce a special publication to record events happening on the fringes of Gi. Keep your eyes peeled. As always, Music is jammed full of content exclusive to any Scottish publication. Accordingly, we share interviews with Jónsi, Caribou, Broken Bells and Cypress Hill, as well as a finely crafted guide to local favourites Meursault’s new album. Former cover star Why? also develops a worthy affection for Adam Stafford and The Twilight
This Month's Cover Artist: Jamie Fitzpatrick Our April cover image was supplied by artist Jamie Fitzpatrick, who is showing in the RSA this month. He uses preserved animal remains to explore the moral and physical ambiguities of genetic modification, splicing together bits of different animals, sometimes including casts of human limbs to create monsters of possibility and question the ethics of continuing down the path of genetic experimentation. The font
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4 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
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Publisher
Sophie Kyle
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Production Production Manager Designer Chief Subeditor
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IF YOU’RE INTO ART, THEN APRIL IS THE MONTH FOR YOU
THE SKINNY April 2010
E: sales@theskinny.co.uk
GLASGOW SECC
Sad as we sit down with Yoni Wolf to review the month’s singles. Over in Clubs, Chris Duncan mourns the end of Optimo, which finishes this month after 12 years of weekly Sabbath excess. Get yourselves along or regret it forever. The message in April is: time to come out of hibernation. rosamund@theskinny.co.uk
Contents
DF CONCERTS PRESENTS…DF CONCERTS PRESENTS…DF CONCERTS PRESENTS… PRESENTED BY DF CONCERTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH
FEATURE
Caribou
Doctor of mathematics Dan Snaith, a.k.a. Caribou, talks to The Skinny about trying to make 'dance music out of water'. Good luck to him.
» 32
PLUS GUEST
ALEX GARDNER
6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 24 27 28 30 48 52
EDINBURGH HMV PICTURE HOUSE MONDAY 3RD MAY
O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW
Heads Up
MONDAY 31ST MAY
Terence Trent D'Arby in the Last Drop? Sold!
GLASGOW O2 ACADEMY TUESDAY 4TH MAY
DOORS 5.30PM
WWW.SLAMDUNKMUSIC.CO.UK
Food and Drink
We try to work out the best place to eat cake.
New Single ‘This Ain’t a Love Song’ out now. New Album ‘Everybody Wants to be on TV’ released 12th April www.scoutingforgirls.co.uk
Fashion
ASH
Beautiful clothes in a community centre, courtesy of The Moon And Mars online store.
Deviance
The trials and tribulations of conception for one lesbian couple.
O2 ABC GLASGOW
+ SICK OF IT ALL + DEAR & DEPARTED THURSDAY 8TH APRIL
Showcase Lauren Gault gets her sculptures out. And some videos.
O2 ABC GLASGOW TUESDAY 27TH APRIL
+ THE SHOWER SCENE
GLASGOW GARAGE
Digital
WWW.ASHOFFICIAL.COM
FRIDAY 16TH APRIL
ITunes exclusive release of Elliot Minor’s “Solaris” single available now
The Cybraphon is back and it's had a baby.
+
Reading
O2 ABC GLASGOW
Guid Crack at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
Film
FRIDAY 16TH APRIL
Director Todd Solondz tells us about revisiting Happiness.
www.onerepublic.net
+ MOUTHWASH + MORAL DILEMMA + THE MEOW MEOWS
Performance
Welcome to Performance. It's Theatre, but a little more evolved
GLASGOW GARAGE
+ I BLAME COCO + JAMIE WOON
THURSDAY 15TH APRIL
Comedy
The Stand Glasgow turns ten so we have a chat to a founder.
Art
+
Taxidermy and junk shops in the RSA, and a sculpture made entirely through hugging.
O 2 academy Glasgow
Music
Sunday 2nd may
Mr Wolf tackles the Dirty Dozen while we pay tribute to Mark Linkous and gas with Jónsi, Caribou, Meursault and some hip-hop legends known to spark the odd owl.
Debut Album Out Now
www.laroux.co.uk
Clubs
We fight back the tears as Optimo bows out with a box full of semtex.
O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW
Listings Literally thousands of better things to be doing than watching What Katie Did Next.
FRIDAY 9TH APRIL
O 2 ABC2 GLASGOW MONDAY 19TH APRIL
TICKETS 24HRS 08444 999 990 • www.ticketmaster.co.uk • www.gigsinscotland.com
IN PERSON GLASGOW Tickets Scotland, EDINBURGH Tickets Scotland, Ripping, DUNDEE Grouchos & all Ticketmaster Ticket Centres.
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 5
UP MONTH AHEAD SPRING IS SPRUNG WITH the first week of sunny Spring under our new-season belts, and the joyous realisation that it's actually still light when we finish work now, it’s fair to say that we'll be starting April in a rather jolly mood. Having said that, being Scottish (and therefore having a level of acceptance that it’s probably going to start bucketing with rain any minute), it’s damn lucky that splendid events for the coming month are popping up in our diaries faster than the snowdrops. High points for April include Hinterland, back for another round of as many musical treats as your ears can stand over one evening, and on a more somber note, heads are bowed in mourning for the last ever Optimo at The Arches. But hey, if those Easter Sunday School classes taught us anything, it’s that the dead can rise victoriously again. We wait with eager anticipation…
FRI, 9 APR
SUPER ADVENTURE CLUB, described on these very pages as "Scotland's radgest new band", return with new material and a brand new album to entertain the screaming hordes. Wee Red Bar, Edinburgh, 7-10pm, £5
TUE, 30 MAR
WED, 31 MAR
CEILDH CLUB: HEELIEGOLEERIE. With the name sounding much like the rubbish that falls out of your mouth after too many pints, this already promises to be a good 'un. Add in some energetic ceilidh dancing from award winning bands and it's a no brainer. Part of Ceilidh Culture. The Lot, Edinburgh, 8pm, £6.
Playing as part of Taiwan Cinefest, HOW ARE YOU DAD? is a collection of ten short films, a gift from director Chang Tso-Chi to his father. Aw, shucks. GFT, Glasgow, 12.45pm / 6.30pm, £6.50
MON, 5 APR
TUE, 6 APR
With dozens of events going on throughout the day, why not take advantage of the Bank Holiday and spend some time learning at the EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE FESTIVAL? Today you can find out about biodiverse art, pond dipping, super volcanoes and the secrets of the universe, amongst other things. www.sciencefestival.co.uk
SAT, 10 APR
Reekie's resident electro-folk trailblazers MEURSAULT launch their second LP, All Creatures Will Make Merry. Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh. 7pm, £7
FREE!
MATT MIGNANELLI trades in New York for Glasgow in his solo exhibition THE PARADIGM at the small-yet-perfectlyformed Recoat Gallery in Glasgow. 12-6pm Tues-Mon. Until 2 May.
SUN, 11 APR
Stopping in amidst a tour of venues across the country, the GILDED BALLOON'S COMEDY CIRCUIT presents a smattering of up and coming funnies, including Jarred Christmas (picture). Voodoo Rooms, 8pm, £14/12
THU, 1 APR
FRE E!
Silky-voiced crooner TERENCE TRENT D'ARBY drops in for a rare speed metal set. The Last Drop, Edinburgh. 7pm,
PHOTO: JACK WADDINGTON
Jenny Wallace
PHOTO: MARKUS THORSEN
LIFESTYLE
HEADS YOUR
WED, 7 APR
The filmic version of The Arches popular Scratch Night, CAFE FLICKER invites aspiring Tarantinos to screen and discuss a 10 minute piece of their own work, whilst networking with likeminded kinfolk. Trongate 103, Glasgow, 7pm, free with film submission.
MON, 12 APR
An evening of classical and jazz favourites from lots of very talented youngsters at the NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF SCOTLAND SPRING CONCERT. Glasgow Royal Concert Halls, 7.30pm, £10-14
PHOTO: MARTIN SENYSZAK
SUN, MAR & THU,28 15 APR MON, MAR The BBC1catch on to
You should have hit the first joyous
FRE E!
wonders of robofolk THE PHANTOM BAND – Scotland's finest export since Macsween's. haggis, Part of BBC United Nations. King Tut's, Glasgow. 7pm
payday of 2010 by now, so take your pennies and enjoy a hearty knees up at the last Saturday night of the CELTIC CONNECTIONS festival club. With surprise guests, tasty jam sessions and late night shenanigans a plenty, this is the perfect way to round off a month most of us like to forget. The Art School, 10.30pm
WED, 21 APR
Chicago poet warrior GIL SCOTT-HERON continues his blindsiding comeback with a UK tour. Also playing Aberdeen Warehouse the following night. The Picture House, Edinburgh, 7pm, SOLD OUT.
6 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
FRI, 16 APR
MICRO FESTIVAL presents a delightful little pick 'n' mix of theatrical experiences, over two days, from the folk at Forest Fringe. £10/£5 for a day pass, from 7pm
SAT, 17 APR
It's RECORD STORE DAY, so get along to your local indie retailer for the odd instore gig and a chance of nabbing some rare wax by rock royalty like Muse, Wilco and the recently reunited Soundgarden. Full details of participating shops and artists at recordstoreday.com.
Debbie Pe arson THU, 22 APR
Championing the more experimental filmaker, NEGATIVNIGHTS offers an eclectic mix of as yet unseen films and documentaries. Edinburgh Printmakers, 7pm, price TBC
FRI, 23 APR
Bringing together a performance artist, a fashion designer and a musician to produce a 13 hour work, LINDER - THE DARKTOWN CAKEWALK: CELEBRATED FROM THE HOUSE OF FAME was always going to be interesting. Part of Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art. The Arches, Glasgow, 11am-midnight, £6
S M
Yo
pa pe th C su la pe us ev
LIFESTYLE
PHOTO: JACK WADDINGTON
FRI, 2 APR
Kilsyth quartet THE TWILIGHT SAD return in quadraphonic sound, with support from The Unwinding Hours and Take a Worm For a Walk Week. ABC, Glasgow 7pm, £10
SAT, Silve r C olumns! 3 APR HINTERLAND 2010. With talent like British Sea Power, Jeffrey Lewis, Pulled Apart By Horses and Silver Columns (pictured) on the bill, this all-in-one ticket gives access to a Glasgow shaped black hole of varied musical treats. 5pm-3am, various venues, Glasgow. Tickets from www.hinterlandfestival. com
SUN, 4 APR
The best of last year's art graduates show off new work at the RSA NEW CONTEMPORARIES exhibition. Always a winner. Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, til 21 Apr, £2 (£1)
PHOTO: DEREK M CHAPMAN
THU, 8 APR
FRE E!
The Skinny presents a new exhibition by RSA New Contemporaries 2009 Skinny Award winner, EUAN TAYLOR. Last year we gave him a prize, so this year you get to see a show. The Roxy Art House, Edinburgh. 12 8pm until Tuesday 13 Apr. After party from 9pm downstairs.
TUE, 13 APR
nt i FREuE!
SUN, 2818 MAR & SUN, APR FROM1DUNDEE MON, MAR TO ABBEY
l
ROAD – THE PHOTOGRAPHS OF You should have hit the first joyous
payday of 2010 by now, so takeis your IAIN MCMILLAN a retrospective pennies and enjoy a hearty knees up at celebrating the work of the last Saturday night of the CELTICthe man behind the iconic Abbey Road CONNECTIONS festival club. cover, With and include his surprise guests, tasty jamwith sessions andLennon and collaborations John late night shenanigans a plenty, this is the Yoko Ono. Discovery Point, Dundee, perfect way to round off a month most of until 3 June. us like10am-5pm to forget. The daily, Art School, 10.30pm every Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the
SAT, 24 APR
UNIQUE BEATS is a day-long festival dedicated to promoting all forms of electronic music-making with an emphasis on live performance. ROXY Art House, Edinburgh, £7
Pe rforming: Tokyo K ni fe A
ttack
SUN, 28 MAR & 25 APR MON, 1 MAR THE LAST EVER
You should have hit the first joyous
Precocious youngsters are generally irritating; but not LAURA MARLING. Mainly because she's hugely talented. Part of Ceilidh Culture. The Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, 7pm, £15
MON, 19 APR
TUE, 20 APR
Marking her debut solo show, talented photographer KIRSTY NICHOL challenges the public perception on appearance with her thought provoking exhibition HUMAN MARKS. The Arches, Glasgow, Daily 9am-8pm, free
OPTIMO ESPACIO! No really, the last one ever. You'll be kicking yourself for years if you miss it. 11pm - 3am, £8, Sub Club
payday of 2010 by now, so take your pennies and enjoy a hearty knees up at the last Saturday night of the CELTIC CONNECTIONS festival club. With surprise guests, tasty jam sessions and late night shenanigans a plenty, this is the perfect way to round off a month most of us like to forget. The Art School, 10.30pm
WED, 14 APR
We'd say ROLO TOMASSI need to chill the hell out if we didn't enjoy their intense blend of unpredictable spazz-core quite so much. Stereo, Glasgow, 7pm, £10
HEALTH: nu-gaze or noise rock? Who gives a shit, just watch the LA quartet knock it clean out the park. Captain's Rest, Glasgow, 8pm, £10
FRE MON, 26 APR E! GANGHUT, that merry group of
collaborative artists whose projects have included forming a band (GANGBAND), raising then eating a couple of pigs and bringing back the Lumsden Gala Day, have a show in the Southside Studios as part of Gi. Open 11am - 7pm, until 3 May
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 7
Lifestyle
FoodPOSH NOSH AND CHEAP EATS
& Drink
Fresh Brews A rash of design-conscious cafes with innovative menus have been springing up around Glasgow and Edinburgh neighbourhoods – think chrome and macchiato rather than formica and macaroon. The Skinny’s coffee and cake hounds visit three young pretenders to find out if they deserve becoming your new regular haunt Text Lizzie Cass-Maran, Susan Riddell & Allan Gillespie
Moo Cafeteria 9 Brandon Terrace, Edinburgh EH3 5EA Tel: 0131 557 3226
Cookie 72 Nithsdale Road, Glasgow G41 2AN Tel: 0141 423 1411
A cool mish-mash of deli, café, restaurant, cookery school for grown-ups and kids and off-licence, late opening Cookie is an attempt to bring a slice of Med culture to the Shawlands area. I take in the eccentric surroundings – obscure artwork, scattered kitchen paraphernalia and the unexplained table hanging from the ceiling – order a cuppa Joe, fresh roasted and ground on the premises, and enjoy the smell of home-made bread wafting over from the open-plan kitchen. I decide to try the antipasti. It has the usual staples – thin wisps of salty, chewy dry-cured meats and juicy olives, both delicious and both sourced from small scale producers in the owner’s Italian hometown, Amelia. There are also the welcome additions of marinated artichokes, meaty, pickled anchovies and a cold puffy rice salad. Along with this, I order the Cookie rice balls – golden crisp on the outside and filled with lovely, gooey risotto. Cookie’s mission statement proclaims, ‘Food is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Binding us to each other and where we live, our environment, traditions & changing seasons,’ and it certainly does everything to live up to it. www.cookiescotland.com
Sitting happily in the row of cafés by the Canonmills roundabout, Moo Cafeteria is certainly the most attractive of the lot. A miniature farm sits at the back of a brightly decorated open room, with menus on the back of artistic, flowery postcards. It’s very much a family joint – when I swither over my dessert choice the wee girl on the next table informs me that the chocolate and orange cake is delicious. It’s a genuine pity, then, that the food doesn’t really live up to the wholesome and filling expectations. Mushroom stroganoff with rice is uninspired – a single variety of mushrooms entirely unsupplemented leaves me hungry by mid-afternoon. The roast pepper and onion pie also lacks something in the filling and the pastry is unfortunately overcooked and hard. The aforementioned chocolate and orange cake was certainly an improvement and the blueberry gateau was moist and lovely, leading to the conclusion that Moo is more a coffee and cake sort of place than a gastro venue. They also have an impressive all day breakfast array including porridge served with local jam or spiced nuts and honey. Pop in for a morning coffee (soy milk available), bacon roll and a friendly start to your day, but don’t expect fireworks at lunchtime. www.moocafeteria.co.uk
Miau Espresso Bar 302 Duke Street, Glasgow, G31 1RZ Tel: 0141 237 4249
There is a charming simplicity in Miau, with the selection of coffees, well-made sandwiches and brekkie staples offering flavour and variety. The ingredients are sourced mainly from local producers, and the quality is evident. We ordered hot sandwiches, made on delicious bread from a Shettleston bakery and emptied our plates in minutes, save a few stray salad leaves. There are only a few tables, spaced so that there is no need to squeeze past other customers, and a high bench with stools looks like an inviting place for some impromptu Facebooking. Small it may be, but it is run with no little imagination – the menu is accompanied by language exchange evenings, links to arts groups, cinema nights and free wi-fi. The ambition is to create a venue with a community spirit and, at the weekend, it was the embodiment of relaxation: newspapers spread out, cake stands heavily loaded, chilled out music in the background, people popping in for a blether with the owners. The atmosphere on Duke Street these days suggests that Dennistoun is an up-and-coming district, and that there exists a real diversity among the people. Miau Espresso Bar is a welcome expression of this.
Moo Cafeteria
Miau Espresso Bar
Cookie
www.miauonline.com
restaurant reviews Lucky 7 Canteen
The Basement Bar & Restaurant
166 Bath St, Glasgow, G2 4tb 0141 331 6227
Launched under the proud banner of ‘no frills, no fuss’, one might expect Lucky 7 Canteen to be an in-and-out, wipe-clean kind of a joint; the mellow lighting, cheery welcome and private wooden booths are all a pleasant surprise, with an overall mood that encourages lingering rather than bolting. The brief, parchment sheet menu has a reassuringly limited range of starters, mains and puds, none of which tip over £7 (£4 for starters and sweet things) – pretty impressive considering its city centre location and policy of sourcing from local farms. To start, Inverloch goat’s cheese salad was a perfect, crusty-oozy disc of dairy whilst chicken liver parfait arrived on dainty melba triangles. Vegetable linguine didn’t skimp on ingredients, with chunks of courgettes, peppers et al in a fresh, garlic-laced ragu. Rump steak arrives rare as requested and sizzling in a skillet, alongside a wee jug of hollandaise, like a peppery custard. Sides are necessary (in this case sweet chunks of roasted celeriac, parsnip and carrots) and will set you back
8 THE SKINNY April 2010
all of a quid, meaning you can load up those extras and still never break the tenner mark. Stuffed but unable to resist a steamed lemon pudding when we see one, we went down the never-a-good-idea ‘one pudding, two spoons’ route. Even the inevitable cutlery sparring over the last, tart crumb couldn’t sour the mellow mood of this place. Although the intimate booths make it couples-friendly, Lucky 7 also has its eyes on parties and the private room at the back with large communal table, pour-your-own Heineken tap with electronic ticker (you can’t trick the machine) and Spotify jukebox is custom-made for a memorable knees-up. With honest, feelgood food to set you up for the night (including its Friday & Saturday Supper Club with a limited menu served until 3am), Lucky 7 is the latest venture to give Bath St a much-needed shot of soul. [Ruth Marsh] Dinner for two around £28 (exc drinks) www.lucky7canteen.co.uk
10A - 12A Broughton Street, Edinburgh, EH1 3RJ, 0131 557 0097
Edinburgh stalwart venue The Basement is under new management, but the ethos is much the same. The crazy Hawaiian shirts are still there, along with their speciality cocktails, furniture made of reclaimed machinery, Mexican dishes and really, really good steak.The menu is incredibly varied, but there’s little of great excitement on offer for – starters comprising a choice between nachos, bruschetta and hummous. There is an impressive array of seafood dishes, though, and I plump for the Mexican fishcakes. Although rather too filled with sweetcorn, these are satisfying comfort food, much in the same vein as my main course of the vegetable burrito. Although one of only two veggie alternatives, this is brimming with a variety of chunky mushrooms, peppers and aubergines. Teamed with their delicious but deadly Breakfast Margherita (tequila, grapefruit and marmalade), it’s a great option for a group of friends to hang out and comes in at just under £12. However, my guest seems to be eating at a completely different restaurant. A starter of pancetta wrapped
monkfish lacks something in its accompaniment – the rocket being too overpowering a contrast – but otherwise provides a stunning combination of flavours and textures. A main course of sirloin steak with pepper sauce is still talked about to this day. Cooked to perfection and served with deliciously addictive sauteed potatoes, this does inevitably send the price up a fair whack and turns the whole experience from casual to classy. Desserts include today’s special of chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, which is like a child’s culinary experiment gone right. The contrast between the menu items and further dissociation with decor and dress make it hard to place the best event for a Basement experience. Individual elements are superb, but they seem to be unsure of what they’re trying to do with the overall effect, rendering it a somewhat schizophrenic, though nonetheless enjoyable, evening.[Lizzie Cass-Maran] Dinner for 2 around £35 (three courses excluding drinks) www.the basementbar.org.uk
LIFESTYLE
bar / live music / club / private karaoke rooms every WedneSday froM 7pM (£3 goeS direct to bandS) 07.04 14.04 21.04 28.04 05.05 12.05
The Crookes NighT Noise Team, aCryliC iqoN imperial raCiNg Club, The huNdred meTer Club exlibras TigerFesT CuraTes w/ blueFliNT, emily sCoTT TigerFesT CuraTes w/ Jesus h Foxx There Will be FireWorks
one off Live eventS - 7pm doors SAT 03: SAT 17: THU 22:
aCousTiC ladylaNd WhiTe heaTh NoT advised, sideloCk aTlas (over16s) Joe CarNall + The book Club pose viCTorious, The sTagger raTs, The NaTure boys, pedaNTiCs, The harriNgToNs
SUN 25: MON 26:
Weekend Clubs FridAYS 5pm doors
10pm – midnight liVE BANdAOKE onstage with THE BEArdEd lAdiES midnight – 3am CArrY ON dJS
SATUrdAY 03 11pm doors with dAqUiri dUSK and VENdETTA VAiN 10.30pm doors £5 b4 11pm/£6 after burlesque / arT perFormaNCe / reTro souNds
SUNdAY 04 10.30pm doors
Tackno’s holy grail! easter sunday. TrENdY WENdY plays kitsch classics and pop nuggets.
a day overdue, alburN and No drive home Three Trapped Tigers, TaloNs
MAY 2010 08.05: rose eliNor dougall, modus 17.05: Chiddy baNg Chiddy aNg Chiddy b g 24.05: siaN aliCe group li liCe group 29.05: dead meadoW meadoW W
SATUrdAY 10 11pm doors eclectic, surefire, amazing music.
SATUrdAY 17 11pm doors with SONS & dAUgHTErS Cult pop to punk, blues trash to country rebel rock
SATUrdAY 24 11pm doors
His & Hers The baron & The regent serve up the very best in indie & alternative, from punk to present date.
THUrSdAY 08 10pm doors
WidE dAYS aftershow party with Found, Woodenbox & very special guests tba + dj sets from some of the seminar speakers!
theelectriccircus.biz 36-39 Market Street edinburgh 0131 226 4224
THUrSdAY 29 9pm doors
BliTz
From swing, lindyhop and all that jazz through to early 50s rock n roll with live show, dancers and djs.
08444 77 1000 : ticketweb.co.uk ripping records : tickets Scotland open: tue/wed/sat 7-late, thu/fri 5-late
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 9
FASHION
Out of this World
From edgy wedges to sweet skirts, eboutique The Moon And Mars is carefully curated by Kate Barrett and stocks a selection of international independent brands to be proud of Interview Alexandra Fiddes WITH a weakness for the glory days of the space age of the 60s, and a passion for beautiful clothes, Kate Barrett began The Moon And Mars in late 2009. Stocking more than 20 designers, the eboutique includes garments from Samantha Pleet, IVANAHelsinki, Surface To Air, Stine Goya and Isobel and Cleo, as well as a collection of jewellery by the likes of Daydream Nation, Dirty Librarian Chains and Bliss Lau. There is even a small selection of magazines and books. We spoke with Kate about her motivation and what she plans to do next. Where did the inspiration for the name come from? Although I wasn’t even born I am strangely nostalgic about the 60s era of space travel. I hang out on the NASA webpage a fair bit, looking at the cosmos, and one of the drop down menus is Missions: The Moon and Mars. It has a nice ring to it! Where do you live and work at the moment? Is there support for independent businesses? I just moved to Edinburgh a year ago and immediately gravitated to Analogue Books in Grassmarket. As small business owners (and friendly Scots) Julie and Russell were so helpful introducing me to talent like local artist Lizzy Stewart, who does the illustration on the website and The Lindstrom Effect, who are now doing my photography. What training did you have? Is it business or design based? Neither, I have a background in science. However, I have done a lot of project management so I think I have the head for it. I’ve been collecting fashion magazines since the age of 7 so I have the love for it too. What was the motivation for your business start up? A lot of the classic reasons apply, I wanted to start to reap the benefits of my own personal work ethic. Also I really miss the accessibility of North American brands and I thought it would be exciting to support them in the UK. Along the way I’ve fallen in love with a lot of European designers such as Stine Goya too.
STYLING - ALEXANDRA FIDDES, FRANCES SPENCER PHOTOGRAPHER - DARRAN BARTON WWW.DARRANBARTON.COM HAIR AND MAKE UP - KATIE ANGUS ANGUS_KATIE@HOTMAIL.COM ASSISTANT - EMMA SEGAL MODEL - ROMANE AT SUPERIOR MODEL MANAGEMENT GARMENTS FROM THE MOON AND MARS EBOUTIQUE WWW.THEMOONANDMARS.CO.UK LOCATION - JACK KANE COMMUNITY CENTRE
Why did you decide to start an online boutique rather than open a bricks and mortar shop? I originally planned to open up in London when I lived there, but I moved up to Edinburgh for my partner’s work. It meant that I was starting in a city I was not familiar with. A street shop is on the cards, and I’d like to do a pop-up event sometime soon in Edinburgh. In three words describe your boutique and the designs that it stocks? Way. Too. Hard! What makes you choose specific designers, what is it about their work that appeals to you? I love luxurious fabrics and unfussy clothes, like easy daywear pieces in velvet or heavy silk. As far as local talent goes, The Moon And Mars is going to be working more with the Glasgow-based line Isobel and Cleo in the fall; the designer is incredibly talented. Do you have a favourite design brand? It’s hard to choose but I would say I’m particularly proud to be the first UK boutique to stock Samantha Pleet. Do you have any tips for the coming season that you can share with us? Be brave and wear anything you love. Also, I have to support anything that channels the 90s. What are your plans for the future – is there anything exciting in the pipeline? More shoes. I’m a big fan of quality footwear and we’ll be bringing in the amazing Rachel Comey line over the summer, it’s so dreamy. What is your biggest success so far? I’m not saving the world, but frankly every day is better when you’ve got something nice to wear, it is a public service!
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO GET SHOPPING PLEASE GO TO WWW.THEMOONANDMARS.CO.UK
1. PARASOL SKIRT £256 AND RUFFLE TOP £174 BOTH STINE GOYA. 2. PROMENADE BLAZER £339 AND RAY COLOUR TROUSERS £213 BOTH STINE GOYA. VEST £20 TOPSHOP. 3. CARLA DRESS WITH SKYPRINT £248 STINE GOYA. NECKPIECE £160 BLISS LAU. 4. ANTHIAS DRESS £222 STINE GOYA. 5. SWING TANGERINE JUMPSUIT £213 STINE GOYA. CUFF £230 BLISS LAU. ALL BLISS LAU AND STINE GOYA PIECES AVAILABLE FROM THE MOON AND MARS.
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FASHION
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5 April 2010
THE SKINNY 11
LIFESTYLE
DEVIANCE
SEX, TRUTH AND POLITICS
Lesbian Husbandry Introducing the first column in a series recounting one lesbian couple's mission to get pregnant Text Aurelia Paterson Illustration sambrewster.com
going from a state of stress and embarrassment to ecstasy and ejaculation, preferably within half an hour. Since we’re worried about taking too long and the sperm getting cold, or, God forbid, coming home early and walking in on him, we ask him to call us or text us as soon as he’s finished. He looks especially stricken at this. We trudge out over the snow, pity for him heavy in our hearts. In Sainsbury’s, just after squabbling over the definition of organic versus dodgy cheap off-cut horror meat, we run into a couple of friends. “How are you?” they politely enquire. “Nothing! I mean, great!” we yell. “We’re just buying dinner, we’re very hungry and have to run home and cook it, bye!” Then, to make up for being a bit manic and suspicious, we hang about chatting inconsequentially for a further three minutes. No quick getaways for the polite British. We receive a single-ring call from Tom and rush home to find him sitting calmly on the sofa. He looks fine, very controlled, until he hands over the jar. We spend a moment marvelling at its consistency, and at the amount, and then he shoots out the door, looking wild eyed, almost guilty, like a cat that has just done a poo in a cupboard. We all agreed that this would be the comedy run, that this time we probably won’t get a baby out of it but it will mean that we’ve done it, given it a go, laughed all the embarrassment and emotional intensity away. This will be the worst it can be. But I’m not so sure. I think we’re going to be a little bit mortified every time.
WHAT the fuck are we doing? The following items are currently on our living room carpet: two plastic syringes, sterile; two plastic sample jars, sterile; two pregnancy tests, two ovulation tests, one packet of instructions. The instructions are ridiculous, describing the plight of het couples who, failing to conceive the normal way, might find it a better course of action to squirt it up there with what is essentially a very tiny water pistol. There is nothing in them about single women who are trying to conceive on their own, or lesbians. Our good friend Tom reasonably points out that some men only have one-inch penises, so of course they might feel moved to use a syringe instead. We pause briefly to pity the man with the one-inch cock. We are verging on hysteria; after all, this is disturbing, and very, very gross. Today Tom is going to masturbate into one of the tiny containers and then I’m going to dip a syringe into it and push the contents into my partner in attempt to get at least some of it to land on her cervix. A few months ago, my civil partner, Bec, and I sat Tom down and asked him if he would consider fathering our children for us. We were terrified that he’d say no right away, so we had made a sensible plan: we would ask him, but tell him that he wasn’t allowed to respond to us for six whole months. Six months of thinking and discussing it, if he wanted to, with close friends, but essentially keeping it quiet. So we did, but instead of looking terrified he looked quite pleased, especially when we said that the reason we’d asked him was that we loved him quite a lot. We eye the sterile plastic goods nervously and concoct a plan. Bec and I will go to the shops for dinner while Tom, er – “There’s no need to finish that sentence,” says Tom quickly – whereupon we will return, for a brief ‘handover’. Tom will then run home for a couple of hours while I cook dinner and inseminate my partner. He tells us to call him back for dinner when ‘the bun is in the oven’. Our eyes bug out of our heads with nervousness and we can’t stop laughing. More unfortunate jokes are made, such as “You’ll be the flatmate who left a deposit.” Oh yes, it’s that bad. It’s horrible to be so out of control of our own expressions. My face hurts, the muscles being repeatedly squeezed by horror, then hysteria. I look at myself in the mirror and to my dismay see that it looks like I’m smirking. Is this the origin of the smirk? Is humour just evolved horror? Bec and I put on our coats and head out, leaving a dismayed-looking Tom to deal with the terrible task of
KEEP AN EYE ON WWW.THESKINNY.CO.UK FOR UPDATES FROM AURELIA
THE PLAN: TOM WILL RUN HOME FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS WHILE I COOK DINNER AND INSEMINATE MY PARTNER REVIEW
Nine
BEST-LAID PLANS YOU know those mornings when you wake up and try to piece together the previous night and your head throbs and you gradually realise you were a drunken train wreck and you’d rather not face people ever again and it would probably be best to just leave the country? Well, friends, I’m living the dream. By the time you read this I’ll be resident in Berlin. My best friend remarks that I’m going to the “land of decadence”, and indeed Berlin has a reputation for being all
radical, exciting and having a fantastic queer scene and so forth. Certainly, on my first visit there, I negotiated entry to a swingers’ club so I could have sex with my girlfriend’s girlfriend, before we decided to skip the exhibitionism and just do it in a park instead. But I’ll let you in on something: overall, I’m not really that adventurous. I went to a sex club in London a couple of years ago – by mistake – and just sort of stood around awkwardly while my friend’s girlfriend licked someone’s
12 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
boots. I’m not really seeking to test my limits – that’s why Phoebe Henderson wrote a sex column for us and I didn’t. And somehow, my relocation to the coolest city in Europe has coincided with a craving for solitude and sensible activities. This time round in Berlin, my most exciting plans involve performing my Cop Shoot Cop tribute at Monster Ronson’s Queer Karaoke. But I’ll keep you posted – that is, if I can piece it together.
SEX LIFE IN L.A. DIRECTOR: JOCHEN HICK STARRING: KEVIN KRAMER, COLE TUCKER, RON ATHEY RELEASED: 19 APR CERTIFICATE: 18
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Made in 1997 and 2004, this excellent two-part documentary exposes a world far removed from the big money cosmeticism of mainstream hetero skin flicks or the radical, alternative material covered in these pages in the past. Hick’s films explode preconceptions and stereotypes of the gay porn industry, but it’s a nonjudgemental and compassionate investigation into the lives of performers, filmmakers and sex workers cruising Sunset Boulevard. Hick’s subjects range from has-been trade dolls (Tony Ward) to underwear-modelling hustlers, sexual performance artists to renowned photographer Rick Castro. There are no bimbos on show here: espousing their philosophies and rhyming off anecdotes both happy
and sad, these guys are sensible, self-assured and fully aware that the city of angels can easily discard them like soiled Kleenex – and sometimes has. It’s also a fascinating time capsule: as well as addressing AIDS and the growing popularity of the web, Hick is also privy to the first rumblings of the crystal meth craze, something that will have a devastating effect on his project. At one point we catch a glimpse of Bruce LaBruce, and we’re reminded that his and Castro’s art are worlds away from the experiences of the guys on the ground. [Michael Gillespie] VISIT WWW.THESKINNY.CO.UK FOR AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR JOCHEN HICK
April 2010
THE SKINNY 13
Lifestyle
SHOWCASE
THIS MONTH: Lauren gault
Lacks, video still 3, The Duchy Gallery, 2010
They Had Four Years, Generator Projects 2009. Photo: Ross Fraser Mclean
Lauren Gault is (currently) a Dundee based artist, who graduated from Duncan of Jordanstone in 2008. Since then Lauren has been very busy, completing residencies at Scottish Sculpture Workshop and Glasgow Studio Warehouse, and appearing in group shows all over Scotland. She is currently Chair of Generator Projects, an artist-run gallery in Dundee. Gault's practice – mainly sculptural installation and video – is governed by an interest in the realm beyond instinct. Readings of Lacan and Girard are utilised as a tool in decoding phenomena such as mimesis and unexplained behaviours that do not seem to correspond to any logical or natural order. Gault broadens and thickens these new chains of metaphorical imagery with Biblical analogy, literature, to create a succinct, instinctive language for an expansive field of inquiry. She aims to meld and form layers of imagery and referencing into sculptural object and video, making symbolic containments for the void. Objects are used as tools and props, relating to each other in sculptural parable. The subject deemed to be indefinable by object or symbol is irreverently addressed in playful delineations of research-based practice. They Had Four Years, Generator Projects 2009. Photo: Ross Fraser Mclean
14 THE SKINNY April 2010
www.laurengault.co.uk
Lifestyle
Lacks, install shot, The Duchy Gallery, 2010. Photo: Stuart McAdam
April 2010
THE SKINNY 15
DIGITAL
NEW MEDIA SCOTLAND
Inspace Invades
online community and talk about their new project for the 2010 Edinburgh Art Festival entitled Life. Turns. Andy Law & Mil Stricevic from Open Square will simply cut to the chase and air their Rude Bits and discuss how they would like to reinterpret ‘corrupt’ digital media. These guys specialise in the creation of context-specific experiences at the point of convergence between information, entertainment and technology no less. Let’s see what they can get away with at the Apple Store. As Glasgow marks the 20th anniversary of being European Capital of Culture in 1990, the Gi Festival has taken the idea of ‘past, present and future’ as its theme. If you are a foursquare fanatic then follow ‘GIfestival‘ for the lowdown on things to do and things to come.
New Media Scotland's Director Mark Daniels on the convergence of technology and art THE boy is back in town, and he’s with child. Yes, Cybraphon, that lovable moody diva is mounting a comeback at this year’s Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art from 16 April to 3 May at SWG3 on Eastvale Place. Our autonomous, emotional, robotic band-in-a-box has been curiously quiet since late last year. However, I’ll let you into a little secret; Cybraphon’s emotion meter will once again swing with increasingly random regularity, as it’s about to become a proud parent. Cybraphon One will be born in the autumn to proud progenitors Ziggy Campbell, Simon Kirby and Tommy Perman from the FOUND collective. An research and development award from New Media Scotland’s Alt-w fund has made it so. During the Gi Festival we’ll give you a heads up on what to expect at two free events at the Apple Store on Buchanan Street. First up is the FOUND collective and Ellie Harrison on 22 April at 6pm. Glasgow-based artist Ellie is sometimes accused of being ‘particular’ and we love her for it. For Alt-w she is producing a new web-based work called Trajectories, a candid declaration of ruthless ambition. Trajectories will keep you in check and let you know how you’re doing. In my case Cary Grant was starring as Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace right about now. On 27 April at 6pm Joe Tree, founder of the daily photo journal site Blipfoto.com, will reveal his own personal insight into the creativity of their remarkable
WWW.GLASGOWINTERNATIONAL.ORG
PROUD PARENT: melodious automaton Cybraphon
CYBRAPHON’S EMOTION METER WILL ONCE AGAIN SWING WITH INCREASINGLY RANDOM REGULARITY, AS IT'S ABOUT TO BECOME A PROUD PARENT
DOWNLOAD
Weird Science
The Edinburgh International Science Festival raises the city's IQ for two weeks of nerd awesomeness
Personally, I’m not a huge fan of the ‘double-blind study, control group, waita-decade-for-test-results' kind of science. Give me proper madcap machines activated by lightning, smoking test tubes and killer robots who just want to be loved. While the upcoming Edinburgh International Science Festival, running from 3-17 April, won’t have all of that, the programs they already have on tap look set to put geek awesomeness back where it belongs. Now in its 21st year, it’s the rare kind of Festival that can run a Science Single’s Night, a mummy dissection and a robot race in the same program. This year’s theme is Biodiversity, highlighted by a slew of events at Edinburgh
Zoo as well as the Botanic Garderns. If I’m honest, though, it’s the big stuff that gets my nerd joy going. Sonic Dreams is the big showpiece in St Andrew Square, featuring a massive sound lab that uses a 360-degree sound system to replicate being in the middle of a foreign city or out in the wild. A joint project with the Glasgow School of Art, the exhibit will pump all the aural power of the new iXDLab sound system, the kind of name that looks awesome all by itself. There’s also a two-day workshop in video games through the Dare to be Digital, looking behind the scenes of how video games like Grand Theft Auto are made. Attendees will take home a gaming segment they make themselves, which is the kind of craft we all wish we could take home from art class. Speakers include Richard Dawkins, the cast of Bang Goes The Theory, Brian Cox, and more boffins than is strictly healthy. Prices vary by event and some are ticketed, so get in early to guarantee a place. The Festival takes place from one end of the city to the other, so there’s sure to be a Lego building session or Science of Cocktail demonstration close at hand. [Alex Cole] FOR MORE INFORMATION ON EVENTS, DATES AND TIMES SEE WWW.SCIENCEFESTIVAL.CO.UK
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16 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
BUILDING A WORLD BUILDING A WORLD WITHOUT BARRIERS WITHOUT BARRIERS
IVS GB for volunteering peace and social justice IVS GB volunteering peace andfor social justice
IVS GBfor volunteering for peace and social justice IVS GB volunteering peace and social justice
Volunteer Volunteer with us with us
promotes peaceunderstanding and intercultural understanding whilst IVS promotes peaceIVSand intercultural whilst supporting the sustainable supporting the sustainable development of UKdevelopment and global of UK and global communities through volunteering. communities through volunteering. in Britain and in some 70 different countries. Volunteer in BritainVolunteer and abroad in some 70abroad different countries.
220 events 35 venues... 1 fantastic festival We offer
We offer
Low cost
Low cost
projects (2-4 weeks) Short-term projectsShort-term (2-4 weeks) projects (2-12 months) Long-term projectsLong-term (2-12 months) Work includes social, environment & conservation, Work includes social, environment & conservation, & culture, peace & social justice. arts & culture, andarts peace & socialand justice.
Volunteer Volunteer with us with us
peace and intercultural IVS promotes peaceIVS andpromotes intercultural understanding whilstunderstanding whilst supporting the sustainable development supporting the sustainable development of UK and global of UK and global communities through volunteering. communities through volunteering. in Britain some 70 different countries. Volunteer in BritainVolunteer and abroad in someand 70 abroad differentincountries.
We offer
We offer
Low cost
Low cost
Short-term projectsShort-term (2-4 weeks)projects (2-4 weeks) projects (2-12 months) Long-term projects Long-term (2-12 months) Work includes social, environment & conservation, Work includes social, environment & conservation, & culture, peace & social justice. arts & culture, and arts peace & socialand justice.
projects abroad cost £150 (students & unwaged) Short-term projectsShort-term abroad cost £150 (students & unwaged) £195 (waged) (short-term in Food Britainand costs less). Food and £195 (waged) (short-term in Britain costs less). included. Youtravel. pay for your own travel. accommodation is accommodation included. You payisfor your own
2745 E: info@ivsgb.org W: www.ivsgb.org T: 0131243 2745T:E:0131243 info@ivsgb.org W: www.ivsgb.org
abroad cost £150 (students & unwaged) Short-term projectsShort-term abroad costprojects £150 (students & unwaged) £195 (waged) Britain £195 (waged) (short-term in Britain(short-term costs less).inFood andcosts less). Food and accommodation pay for your own travel. accommodation is included. You pay isforincluded. your ownYou travel.
2745 E:W: info@ivsgb.org W: www.ivsgb.org T: 0131243 2745T:E:0131243 info@ivsgb.org www.ivsgb.org
OPTION 1 OPTION 1
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Edinburgh International Science Festival isn’t just for kids! From screenings and comedy to debate and discussion there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
DISCOVER MORE: www.sciencefestival.co.uk
3-17 APRIL 2010
Online booking: www.sciencefestival.co.uk Booking hotline: 0131 553 0322 Skinny ad.indd 1
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April 2010
THE SKINNY 17
Digital
Building Building a worlda world Barriers withoutwithout Barriers
READING
Tell Me a Story... Stories and tales, poems and ceilidhs, music and dancing and opera for babies! There's a lot going on at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.... Text David Agnew ONCE upon a time, somebody had the brilliant idea of opening a centre in Scotland where the noble art of raconteurism would be allowed to flourish. Situated on Edinburgh’s High Street, the Scottish Storytelling Centre occupies an appropriately central position in the nation’s capital, as if symbolising how highly storytelling is valued in Scottish culture. There are many events at the SSC every month, some for the old, some for the young, some with music, some with audience participation, and all offering great entertainment. The staff are particularly proud to be launching some new children’s books in April – though in truth they can rightly be proud of the work they do every day anyway. But let’s get to the book launch: this event, taking place from 11am on 24 April, is cheerily titled Cats, Bagpipes and Bottoms and is to present three new children’s picture books, by authors Lari Don (who is one of the centre’s directory storytellers), Margaret Forrester and Angus Corby. They’ll be on hand to read from their work to children – the event is aimed at 3-6 year olds – and illustrator Sandra Klaasen will be on hand too to demonstrate how to draw the sort of characters that these books will feature – like Mac the Cat. Does this sound like something a kid you know will enjoy? If so, you should also know that (maybe because 3-6 year olds don’t carry much cash?) the event is completely free. Obviously that event won’t be for everyone, so what else is on in April? Well, the Centre has a range of events for all ages. Adults should keep an eye out for the Storytelling Café events that run at different times throughout the month, and provide a typically Scottish evening of stories, music and singing, with the opportunity to tell a story of your own if the mood takes you. A quick warning though – these events can turn into ceilidhs! If you’re looking for pure narration, you could try the Hear and Tell Storytelling Club, meeting monthly (24 April is the next one) in the Braid Hills Hotel, or there’s the regular Guid Crack events, with this month’s on the 30th at the Waverley Bar, and featuring poet Tom Pow alongside regular host David Campbell for an evening of tales and poems. If you’re still looking for something to take kids to though, there are
puppet animation events running every day from 1-7 April, for a variety of age groups. For an even younger audience, the Centre has teamed up with Scottish Opera to produce the fascinating sounding BabyO events from the 21 April onward, for children aged 6-18 months, where babies and their carers can wander a ‘secret garden’ with opera singers on hand to provide musical accompaniment. That’s not exactly something you see every day. All of these, and many other, events will take place this month. The Centre doesn’t just offer entertainment though. They regularly run courses for anyone wanting to learn, or just to improve, their storytelling skills at a variety of levels depending on experience. They also do plenty of work with professional and community storytellers across Scotland, helping them take their work to as many people as possible, irrespective of faith, culture or disability. It’s a generally benevolent organisation, basically, and going to any of their events will benefit their work further. So what are you waiting for – don’t you want to know how to live happily ever after? DETAILS OF ALL EVENTS MENTIONED, AND MORE BESIDES, CAN BE FOUND AT WWW.SCOTTISHSTORYTELLINGCENTRE.CO.UK
A QUICK WARNING THOUGH – THESE EVENTS CAN TURN INTO CEILIDHS!
Audience participation at the SSC
REVIEWS THE PREGNANT WIDOW
J.D. SALINGER: A LIFE RAISED HIGH
THE NIGGER FACTORY
BY MARTIN AMIS
BY KENNETH SLAWENSKI
BY GIL SCOTT-HERON
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The Pregnant Widow, Martin Amis’s best book since his memoir Experience (2000), presents itself as a disquisition on the victories and defeats of the 1960s sexual revolution. In languorous, effortlessly vivid prose, it follows callow Keith Nearing’s attempts to seduce the beautiful Scheherazade during a long Italian summer holiday, with all the satirical reverses that would be expected. But there has been a profound shift in Amis’s sensibilities over the last decade, and he is no longer interested in just skewering his characters on the page for maximum (and considerable) comic effect. Threaded throughout the narrative is Keith’s festering concern about the effect the new sexual politics is having on his young and unstable sister, and the last section, a powerful, compressed fast-forward to the borders of Keith’s old age, lays bare the psychic scars of that summer forty years before; not with sadistic glee, but with tenderness and compassion – concepts not normally associated with his fiction. Less about a societal revolution, this book is really concerned with the vast country of the past, growing in scale and form the closer we get to death. The Pregnant Widow inaugurates late-period Amis, and it promises even greater things to come. [Richard Strachan]
When J.D. Salinger died earlier this year, a glut of rushed, cash-in biographies could have been expected. However, A Life Raised High is much better than could have been expected. It’s written by Kenneth Slawenski, a long-time admirer of Salinger who maintains a fan website called Dead Caulfields, and he admits that he’d been working on this biography for a long time before Salinger’s death. His research seems well spent, because this book provides a good summary of all known information on the author of Catcher in the Rye. Nonetheless, he remains an odd subject, with a career that effectively ended when he turned 32 and little concrete information to build many chapters around afterwards. In some sense, this book is like a sports biography, with its subject accomplishing so much at a young age, and then apparently retiring suddenly. However, the difference is that nobody ever accused Joe DiMaggio of hitting home runs in secret. Salinger’s creative energies are widely supposed to have kept flowing after his withdrawal from the world, part of the continuing fascination with him. But Slawenski wisely sticks to the facts, which leads to a curiously weighted but responsible biography that does the man justice. [Keir Hind]
OUT NOW. PUBLISHED BY JONATHAN CAPE. COVER PRICE £18.99 HARDBACK
OUT NOW. PUBLISHED BY POMONA BOOKS. COVER PRICE £20.00 HARDBACK
18 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
rrrr It’s an incendiary title, but that’s just because it’s making an angry political point about the state of education for black Americans at the time the book was written – it was first published in 1972. This is helpfully summed up in a foreword, which begins “Black colleges and universities have been both a blessing and a curse on black people”, and continues in this vein, making sure that the complexity of the situation is described straight from the start. The plot revolves around a group of students at Sutton University who are agitating for change. What’s interesting is that the divisions amongst the students are often more prominent than their differences with the faculty. The story of student politics with escalating consequences works very well as a period piece, but the dialect used for speech can be jarring in 2010. The students’ slang consistently appears odd, with phrases like “Keep drivin’ an’ talkin’” or “Can you dig that?” having been parodied so much that they can seem very awkward. If you can get past that, you’ll find this a well-paced book which keeps you reading, and gets you thinking. [Johnny Chess] OUT NOW. PUBLISHED BY CANONGATE. COVER PRICE £7.99. GIL SCOTT-HERON WILL BE APPEARING IN CONCERT ON WED 21 APR AT THE PICTURE HOUSE IN EDINBURGH, AND THU 22 APR AT THE WAREHOUSE IN ABERDEEN
THE LILAC THIEF BY YOUNG DAWKINS
rrrr The Lilac Thief is a collection of Young Dawkins’ spoken word beat poetry. Normally that description would indicate two strikes against – there is plenty of awful beat poetry, and spoken word poetry rarely works as well on the page as the stage. But this collection overcomes those problems admirably. Dawkins’ poems are simply written – which doesn’t necessarily mean they’re simple in meaning – and this means he avoids going anywhere near the over-wordy stereotype that typifies bad beat poems. Instead, his poetry showcases how good beat can be. His command of rhythm powers these poems, and it’s strong enough to make them leap off the page, perhaps conveying their spoken word roots, but doing so in a way that makes them come alive. These are poems that are too well-crafted to die in print. Some highlights are the title poem, a clever fable of floral kleptomania, and – perhaps most appropriate to local readers – The Emperor of Scotland, a sweeping saga of Scots’ future happiness with, of course, a twist. It’s a short collection, running to under 50 pages, and these short poems leave room for lots more. But that’s a small criticism of a very evocative collection of clever poetry. [Nat Smith] OUT NOW. PUBLISHED BY SARGENT PRESS. COVER PRICE £6.15
REading
Located in Dundee’s cultural quarter, DCA is home to: a worldclass EXHIBITION SPACE where entry is always FREE; the city centre’s only CINEMA – showing new releases, classic movies, independent filmmakers, opera, world cinema and films chosen by you!; a state-of-the-art PRINT STUDIO with a great range of workshops; cutting-edge design, jewellery and gifts in our SHOP; limited edition prints and publications in our PRINT SPACE; great food in our RESTAURANT and a lively buzz in our CAFÉ BAR. Get involved at www.dca.org.uk or find us on Twitter and Facebook. Pick up your RED card today & start saving points to spend at DCA cinema!
April 2010
THE SKINNY 19
Film
Beyond Happiness Todd Solondz’s Life During Wartime returns to the same characters made famous in his caustic social satire Happiness. He talks to The Skinny about balancing humour with poignancy and why his latest film is not quite a sequel Interview Gail Tolley I first watched Todd Solondz’ Happiness (1998) as a teenager under the recommendation from a friend that it was one of the funniest films she had ever seen. I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting but it certainly wasn’t what I got. The film tells the interconnecting stories of three sisters and the men in their lives, which includes a paedophile and a man addicted to making lewd phone calls. All told in such a deadpan manner that you really aren’t sure which side of the tragedy/comedy line to stand. Solondz captures both the painful struggles of humanity and the hilarity of those same scenarios. Some viewers were repulsed, others were in stitches. Some critics lauded Solondz’s acute social observations, whilst others challenged the moral subtext. The same friend who recommended the film admits to showing it to her sister, who, once it had finished, got up and went to bed without a word and refused to speak of the film again. Life During Wartime, released 12 years later, returns to the same characters. Solondz calls it a “quasi-sequel”, well aware that audiences are “not getting more of the same, so to speak”. To start, he’s completely changed the cast. Not that this is a new tactic for the director; his film Palindromes (2004) had eight different actors, who didn’t look remotely alike, all playing the main character. “You know, I like to have fun,” Solondz says. “I like to play and it’s more interesting to see what new actors can give me. I’m unbound by any constraints. I’ll just change the story a little or the character. If you watch a TV show and midway through an actor quits or dies, they just replace them and nobody really comments on that, you know? They just pretend it didn’t happen. For me it made it much more interesting and intriguing – what can I do if I change these elements? It gives more freedom to play.” The new cast sees Scottish-born actress Shirley Henderson taking on the role of Joy, a choice that the director was particularly pleased with. “I just loved her!” he enthuses. “I’d seen her before in Intermission, I think, that’s when I first fell in love – I loved her moustache and she kind of had me there!” Other inspired casting comes in the form of Allison Janney who plays Trish and Charlotte Rampling as newcomer Jacqueline, whom he describes as a “hardy character”. The location of the film is also different; most of it is based in Florida, what Solondz calls the “land of generica” where Trish moves to in an attempt to start a new life. The new setting also lends the film a different visual style – full of vivid blues, pinks and ochres. But perhaps the most significant difference between the two films is the tone. “Life During Wartime is a very sorrowful film, a much more sorrowful film than Happiness, which was more caustic, more acidic.” Solondz isn’t quite sure where this change originates from. “I’m ten years older so I’m a different person to an extent but I think that’s what’s a little deceptive about calling it a sequel; yes the arcs of the story are being extended yet at the same time the spirit is different.” Keeping the title in mind it’s tempting to also attribute this new spirit to the political changes
Above: Shirley Henderson in a still from Life During Wartime. Below: The man himself.
Gail Tolley
pondering Wonderland As I write this Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is sitting at the top of the box office. In the US the film has been so successful it’s attributed to a 10% increase in cinema ticket sales compared to the same period last year. By coincidence, I recently watched a very different film also inspired by the spirit of Lewis Carroll – Jacques Rivette’s Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974). I found it utterly charming although not a film you can imagine having the
commercial success that Burton is currently enjoying. For a start it’s over 3 hours long and has an undeniably meandering quality to it. The plot loosely follows two women in Paris who discover an abandoned house where a domestic story from a past era is being played out. There are numerous scenes in the film which seem to serve no purpose at all but are endlessly inventive nonetheless. One sequence involves the two, dressed in black
and roller skating through Montmartre to retrieve a book of spells from the local library, and another sees Julie pretend to be Celine and perform a disastrous cabaret act in front of two businessmen who want to take her on tour. It’s strange, completely unpredictable and very enjoyable. It’s also a world away from the economic storytelling of Hollywood. If you’re looking for an alternative to Burton’s latest film it might just be what you’re after.
that have taken place in America since Happiness was made. “The movie is very much infused with the spirit of the times,” agrees Solondz. “That we live in a time of war but a time without sacrifice, with a great deal of insulation from the reality of what that means.” Whilst Solondz’ latest effort doubtless feels like a gentler film than its predecessor it still displays the director's distinct ability to marry humour with a sense of pathos. “The comedy is not comedy with a ‘k’, you may or may not even laugh,” he says, “But there’s a sort of irony at work here which is all tied in to the sorrowfulness, the poignancy and the emotional lives of these characters and how much they’re struggling with their own particular issues.” What might come as a surprise is the great respect that Solondz holds for his characters, despite the humour that is taken from them. “I don’t approach them as dysfunctional; I see them as functioning in a different way. I take them to heart and I take them seriously.” This last statement hints at the underlying morality in Solondz’s work. The playing out of scenes which are at once hilarious and painful to watch isn’t just a twisted form of entertainment; it’s also a big two finger salute to the comfortable and reassuring media that dominates our culture. Some of it you might not want to watch, but Solondz is going to show you anyway. Life During Wartime is released 23 Apr
20 THE SKINNY April 2010
Film
Parent Lines
We talk to Ian Hart, one of Britain’s most prolific character actors, about his latest film A Boy Called Dad
Interview Gail Tolley Ian Hart is one of those actors you think really ought to be more famous than they are, especially when their credentials read like a list of the best of British film. He’s played John Lennon twice (once in The Hours and Times and again in Backbeat), worked with heavyweight British directors such as Ken Loach (Land and Freedom) and Neil Jordan (Michael Collins, The Butcher Boy and The End of the Affair) and even starred in the first Harry Potter film as Professor Quirinus Quirrell. Yet his frequent casting in supporting roles and his preference for smaller productions has meant that he’s yet to become a household name. Hart’s latest film, A Boy Called Dad is a prime example of the smaller projects the actor appears to seek out. In it he plays Joe, an absent father to 14 year old Robbie (played by newcomer Kyle Ward). When Robbie himself becomes a father he hopes to rekindle his relationship with his own Dad but instead a series of events sees the teenager on the run with his young son in tow. Where do you start with creating a character like Joe? The script was very straightforward, I don’t think I needed to do a great deal of pondering on this one to be honest. Sometimes you have to do a lot of research – sometimes it’s much more of a journey. This time around Julie (Rutterford – the writer) and Brian (Percival – the director) were very clear about what their objectives were and what they wanted. The exercise was to make me and Robbie see if we could have a relationship. That was what we spent the effort and energy on, making that seem real. You’ve worked with Ken Loach in the past. Do you see A Boy Called Dad as being similar to those kind of gritty, human dramas?
I think that Brian wanted to do the film in a way that wasn’t like that. Whilst the subject matter might ordinarily be dealt with from a very realist perspective, he wanted to tell the story in a visually interesting way. When filming social realism, everything is handheld using the ‘lens of truth’ as Ken would have it, whereby you get the replication through the lens of what the human eye sees – that’s one of the techniques involved, you choose a lens that gives audiences a sense of getting a first hand perspective. Brian didn’t do that, Brian tried to tell it visually – cinematically. So in some ways it’s a departure. What’s quite unique about the film is that it shows the perspective of a teenage father, whereas often we’re presented just with the mother’s point of view. Did you feel that this was quite an important topic to explore? Well, you read the newspapers or watch the news and it becomes a statistical exercise. Britain has the largest number of teenage pregnancies in Europe and we’re constantly debating it. I think what Julie was trying to do was imagine what it was like from a male perspective – that’s the bit of the story we never get. The personal ramifications are never really dealt with in the media. The director has also said there’s a lot of hope to be found in the film – where do you see this in the story? In the fact that Robbie tries to do the right thing – his intentions are honourable – and the experience he gains from that. There’s a scene where he is at his grandfather’s grave and there are three generations of lost souls who’ve not had a role model. He has no idea how to become a father but in a short amount of time makes that massive journey. A Boy Called Dad is released on 30 Apr
April 2010
THE SKINNY 21
Film
april Events
Coming to a cinema near you
FILM Reviews Kick-Ass
After the success of Crazy Heart, American country, folk and blues is celebrating a film revival. In Edinburgh, the Cameo is showing The Roots and Branches of American Music (13 April, 8.45pm). Presented by legendary finger-style guitarist Duck Baker, who has collaborated with the likes of Davey Graham and John Renbourn, this documentary charts the history of modern American folk music, with the bonus of added anecdotes and stories from Baker. In Dundee, the DCA is pleased to announce a partnership with Sheffield Doc/Fest with special screenings of five films from the international documentary festival. The programme includes the winner of the Doc/Fest Sheffield Green Award, The Blood of the Rose (24 April 3.15pm), part biopic, part whodunnit about the death of Joan Root, a woman who spent her years trying to save Lake Naivasha in Kenya. Also showing is Videocracy (25 April 7pm) by controversial Italian documentary maker Erik Gandini whose film delves into the culture of sex, greed and fame in Berlusconi’s Italy. Budding film directors, writers and actors should head to the CCA for Write, Camera, Action (19 April 6pm) – part of a series of monthly workshops to encourage collaboration and networking for anyone looking to work in film. Those wanting to attend should register their interest first. More details are available on the CCA website. As part of the GFT’s Late Night Classics David Lynch’s celebrated work Blue Velvet will make a return to the big screen for one night only (9 April 10.45pm). Also showing is American Psycho (23 April 10.45pm) to commemorate the film’s tenth anniversary. The chilling adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ novel stars Christian Bale as the psychopathic investment banker Patrick Bateman. And don’t forget – your ticket also gives you free entry to Nice ‘N’ Sleazy’s after the film.[Becky Bartlett]
www.thestand.co.uk
Director: Matthew Vaughn Starring: Aaron Johnson, Mark Strong, Nicolas Cage, Chloe Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse Released: 31 Mar Certificate: 15
rrrr Do you really need superpowers to be a superhero? Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) doesn’t think so. This geeky teen relies on nothing more than his own determination and a makeshift costume when he decides to reinvent himself as Kick-Ass, but he quickly discovers that reality is a lot tougher on masked avengers than the comic books suggest. The gleefully entertaining Kick-Ass doesn’t hold back when it comes to bloody action, but the film’s success is primarily down to its witty, cleverly constructed screenplay, and Matthew Vaughn’s energetic direction, which is particularly impressive in the skilfully staged set-pieces. Perhaps the only letdown is the central character, who is far too passive a protagonist for an audience to really care about, but the supporting cast offers ample compensation. Mark Strong and Nicolas Cage (channelling Adam West) both turn in fine performances, while young Chloe Moretz delivers a sensational, star-making turn as the unforgettable Hit-Girl. The film may be titled Kick-Ass, but this is Hit-Girl’s movie all the way. [Philip Concannon] www.kickass-themovie.com/
Double Take Director: Johan Grimonprez Starring: Alfred Hitchcock, Richard Nixon, Nikita Krushchev Released: 2 Apr Certificate: TBC
rrrr In the unclassifiable tradition of Chris Marker and Guy Maddin, Johan Grimonprez’s enigmatic feature is a puzzling flurry of ideas: Alfred Hitchcock meets a doppelganger from the future, Krushchev and Nixon tussle on television for hearts and minds, while generations of America’s housewives look to Vogler’s Coffee to satisfy their husbands’ caffeine needs. A dizzying mosaic of historical footage, vintage advertisements, contemporary interviews and a fiction strand adapted from Jorge Luis Borges combine and proffer multiple delights. The sharp intelligence of these editorial juxtapositions offer intellectual stimulation, while the sight of Fidel Castro and Nikita Krushchev larking around in the Moscow snow offers less cerebral pleasure. Attempts to untangle this plethora into anything so prosaic as a plot would no doubt prove frustrating, its essaying instead exploring a series of uncanny twins, from the fictional (Hitchcock’s time bending self-confrontation) to the scarily actual (the twin superpower standoff of the age of Mutual Assured Destruction). Double Take is a humorous and thought-provoking concoction. [Chris Buckle]
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BITCH SLAP
THE CRY OF THE OWL
RAGING PHOENIX
DIRECTOR: RICK JACOBSON STARRING: JULIA VOTH, ERIN CUMMINGS, AMERICA OLIVO RELEASED: 19 APR CERTIFICATE: 18
DIRECTOR: JAMIE THRAVES STARRING: PADDY CONSIDINE, JULIA STILES, KARL PRUNER RELEASED: 19 APR CERTIFICATE: 15
DIRECTOR: RASHANE LIMTRAKUL STARRING: JIJA YANIN, KAZU PATRICK TANG, DAVID BUENO RELEASED: 12 APR CERTIFICATE: 15
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Boobs, bullets and blood burst out of the screen in Xena alumnus Rick Jacobson’s patchy tribute to the Russ Meyer exploitation movies of yesteryear. Three ‘dames’ with dark pasts and dirty secrets join forces to find the hidden loot of a mysterious crime boss and everything quickly derails into a confusing and occasionally frustrating mess, albeit one in shiny technicolour with some directorial flair behind it. Touting itself as a new Sin City, it ignores the fact that Rodriguez was working with some strong stories to support the effects. Too many times the attention wanders, partly down to all three leads being thoroughly unlikable and the main plot often serving as a cheap excuse for girl-on-girl ‘titillation’. By far the best elements are the regular flashbacks, which showcase the, crazy comic book vibe at its best and have some truly spectacular Charlies Angels-style moments. Worth seeing for these alone, it’s ultimately harmless but not nearly as fun as it thinks it is. [Scotty McKellar]
CLANDESTINOS
DIRECTOR: ANTONIO HENS STARRING: ISRAEL RODRÍGUEZ, HUGO CATALÁN, MEHROZ ARIF RELEASED: 19 APR CERTIFICATE: 15
rrr One of very few films released on these shores addressing the Basque conflict, Clandestinos is an engaging if slight drama. Xabi (Rodríguez) pulls off a prison break and leads Mexican Joel (Catalán) and Moroccan Driss (Arif) to Madrid. He boasts of his terrorist credentials and his stories hold water, what with his access to weapons and an apartment to build bombs in. But, as is always the case in the movies, nothing is as it seems, and police detectives he hustled and some high-ranking ETA members are soon closing in. Shot for next to nothing and technically unpolished, this is nonetheless a fiery and vividly performed movie, albeit one which could have done with a few script redrafts and a more reasonable budget. As the tagline (and Bruce LaBruce’s The Raspberry Reich) informs us, “you don’t have to be straight to be a terrorist”, and, there are some genuinely subversive ideas in the film’s politics. If only they had been developed more. [Michael Gillespie]
This low-key adaptation of one of Patricia Highsmith’s lesser-known stories finds a troubled divorcee (Considine) becoming obsessed with a pretty young woman who lives in an isolated farmhouse nearby. Discovering him watching her in her garden one evening, the tables are turned when instead of calling the police she invites him in and they begin a curious friendship. But when her jealous and unstable boyfriend gets involved, it sets off a chain of events that threatens to destroy them both. Highsmith has always defined her female characters in shorthand and on film Julia Stiles’ Jenny suffers somewhat as we’re never really sure what’s driving her. She’s a romantic and somewhat melancholy, but other than that we don’t learn anything about her and it’s the weakest link in an otherwise satisfying adaptation. It’s very faithful to the original material but it’s just not the strongest of Highsmith’s stories and the lack of excitement may be too offputting for some. [Scotty McKellar]
Thailand continues its dominance of the martial arts genre with this latest effort from the producers of Ong-Bak. Deu (Chocolate star Yanin) is a rock drummer, who avoids kidnap by what we can only assume to be human traffickers with the aid of two break-dancing drunken masters. This being a youth-centred Muay Thai fest, traffickers leap around on bouncing stilts with ruddy big knives attached, the main villain wears a bikini and lounges around in a cave, and there’s some stuff about revenge and pheromone perfume. It should be a riot, but sadly, it’s never as much fun as it could be. The increasingly mad plot is messily drawn and a second act lull sucks all the energy out of the piece, while a lack of crunch and obvious wirework hinder the all-important fisticuffs. That said, the novelty of break dance beatings is worthwhile, and the multiple rope bridge finale kicks no small amount of the proverbial ass. [Michael Gillespie]
THE GREATEST
ROSALIE GOES SHOPPING
DIRECTOR: SHANA FESTE STARRING: PIERCE BROSNAN, SUSAN SARANDON, CAREY MULLIGAN RELEASED: 12 APR CERTIFICATE: 15
DIRECTOR: PERCY ADLON STARRING: MARIANNE SÄGEBRECHT, BRAD DAVIS, JUDGE REINHOLD RELEASED: 12 APR CERTIFICATE: 15
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When titular champ Bennett Brewer (Aaron Johnson) dies in a car accident, his family – including the high-school sweetheart carrying his unborn child – struggle to reconcile their sorrow. With a legacy-bearing baby in the mix, a dash-tothe-maternity-ward climax is inevitable: unfortunately, the journey leading there feels similarly routine. Susan Sarandon and Pierce Brosnan impress as the grieving parents – the former distraught, the latter attempting stoicism while he falls apart inside – but their roles are familiar, Sarandon in particular echoing Midnight Mile. Each gets a scene of showy catharsis (tears, anguish, shouting), as does Johnny Simmons as the underachiever kid brother and Carey Mulligan as the expectant mother. The latter proves to be the film’s trump card: while Sarandon and Brosnan get top-billing, the film is likely to benefit more from interest in the young Brit, whose charming performance overcomes the character’s clichés and in the process affirms her burgeoning talent. [Chris Buckle]
A quirky, kooky, colourful American indie about a family of endearing eccentrics? That’ll be about half of all US films released in the last decade then. But it also describes Rosalie Goes Shopping, Bagdad Café director Adlon’s 1989 satire of 80s consumerism, and a film which predates Wes Anderson and his ilk, but manages to be just as annoying. Bavarian housewife Rosalie (Sägebrecht) lives the American dream: she has a perfect husband (Davis), a gorgeous family, and a collection of credit cards and “rubbery” cheques so large she can feed her kids like kings and buy any of the goodies she sees in the endless commercials she devours. There are plenty of interesting ideas and visual flourishes, but this is heavy going stuff. No amount of gimmicks can disguise just how painfully contrived and ultimately boring the film is, with a flabby narrative and no characters to empathise with on any level. Stick to Joel Schumacher’s The Incredible Shrinking Woman. [Michael Gillespie]
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APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 23
FILM
DVD REVIEWS
Performance
Welcome to Performance There is a spectre haunting the theatres of Scotand, and it is called Performance Gareth K Vile
Renamed Even with a funding body that encourages artists to fit fixed categories, and a culture that identifies the script as the basis of theatre, companies and artists are pulling themselves out of shape and becoming more experimental. Whether it is Modo using clowning to explore the experience of hospitalisation, Vox Motus rocking puppetry or the National Theatre of Scotland handing the keys over to Live Art graduates, the old idea of theatre is dissolving. Of course, there are still many versions of Hamlet running around, but even Scottish Opera, through their 5:15 programme, are seeking alternatives. The new section name responds to this shift. Our long-standing commitment to cabaret, our tentative look at storytelling, our interest in seeking out events that fall into no category, like Kill Your Timid Notion, only reflects the trends in theatre. When even Glasgow’s conservatoire has a Contemporary Performance Practice degree, we can’t even claim to be catching an underground spirit. Fortunately, this month is filled with events that prove the point. Kabarett, the alternative variety night, stars both Mister Joe Black and The Creative Matyrs. Black has been shocking burlesque crowds with his irreverent routines and Victorian villainy, and The Martyrs span Berlin decadence and a contemporary, dark, political satire. They might both fit easily into the neo-burlesque revival, except that their shared sense of absurdity and willingness to cross genre boundaries connects to a theatrical heritage including Brecht and the Grand Guignol. Theatre has been difficult enough to define for the past century: easy classifications into high and low art have been blurred, and it is tough to identify the link between The Lyceum’s Cherry Orchard and the musical Bad Boy Johnny and The Prophets of Doom, except that they happen in the same sort of building. The increasing emphasis on community participation is shared by the Movers and Shakers show at The Panopticon and The NTS’ Transform Aberdeen project, and the monologues of A Play, A Pie and A Pint have much in common with the Edinburgh Storytelling Centre’s Electric Tales, which collaborates with stand-up comedians. Of course, there are some works that are clearly “theatre”: well established genres, frequently based on the script, or opera, ballet and contemporary dance. These events remain at the heart of the section. But since they are increasingly being fed by marginal performance, it is vital that The Skinny identifies the new, supports the emerging and enters the various domains with an authoritative voice. Over the coming months, the website will see a collection of essays exploring personal responses to genres, gradually mapping out the Scottish and national scenes. If performance is not static, criticism must keep pace. As boundaries dissolve, the role of the critic become more protean, chasing the style that accurately reflects the emotional impact of an event and answering the call of the artist for a vivid, intelligent and personal response. My own experience at the theatre has been life-changing, terrifying, ecstatic. In some small way, the Performance section hopes to imitate this excitement.
24 THE SKINNY April 2010
Illustration: Nick Cocozza
Top four april Theatre Events The Goat Traverse Edinburgh, 21 Apr - 8 May 7.30pm From £13 Tony Award winning play sees a successful man hiding an explosive secret. Raspberry Tron Glasgow, 31 Mar- 10 Apr 7.30pm From £10.50 The life of Ian Dury through progressive performance, song and movement.
The Glass Menagerie Citizens Glasgow, 27 Apr- 1 May 7.30pm From £9.50 Sultry Southern repression and romance, from the American master of thwarted desire. Electric Tales Scottish Storytelling Centre Edinburgh, 1 Apr 7.30pm £6 Stand up meets storytelling for a Fool’s Day of leisurely punchlines. [Gareth K Vile]
preview Microfestival The Arches, 16-17 Apr
The Forest Fringe won the 2009 Empty Space Award, and in mere months they’ve put the money and prestige to good work and set up Microfestivals around the country. Fellow nominee The Arches will now host the Glasgow incarnation which festival director Andy Field describes as “part gallery, part scratch night, part festival”, and will showcase Tim Etchells, Little Bulb Theatre and Action Hero amongst others. The Forest Fringe emerged out of The Forest, an entirely volunteer run collaborative project in Edinburgh which comprises a vegan cafe, a hairdressers, a record label, and a performance space. Works in progress and experiments are encouraged and, despite consisting of over sixty events in five locations over two weeks, all events are free. I spent the last two summers in The Bedlam Theatre just opposite The Forest and after some unique experiences I’m delighted to hear it’s now coming to Glasgow. The Micro Festivals are all intensely site-specific. As Field points out, “Spaces are never empty. They are always already full. Full of conventions and prohibitions. Choked with history. Noisy with politics.” I asked co-director Deborah Pearson (pictured, below) how they approached the Arches as a venue. “The Arches is going to be a particularly exciting Microfestival,” she replies. "We’re setting up a very open, nearly gallery-like approach to exploring the building, which should encourage audiences to happen upon unusual encounters, while also seeing works-in-progress.” Field then lists the kind of material we can expect to stumble across – “video installations, one-on-one encounters, interactive shows, hidden treasure hunts. We want to play with the epic maze the Arches is – with huge candle-lit installations alongside a lot of tiny hidden things that people will have to do a bit of exploring to discover.”
Both Pearson and Field are keen to reach a wider audience with intimate personal experiences which are often limited by necessity to smaller numbers. “We want to offer these encounters to people beyond the, in the know’ elite by making this effort to take our work to them,” says Field, who admits [looking to] music festivals, local church halls, warehouses and galleries for future projects. At the Fringe these fragments function as a collaborative workshop between audience and artist. However, the Microfestivals are ticketed events. You could argue that, by normalising low-budget fragmentary work as exportable theatre, the festivals undermine more established companies trying to make high-end theatre and sustain Equity rates of pay. But despite stating recently that “we should demolish the National Theatre,” Field assures me “the Forest Fringe isn’t trying to replace or supersede anything. Without the kind of rich and fertile community that we are building around Forest you wouldn’t be able to sustain a healthy and diverse mainstream.” Of course it needs to be good. To quote Brook “A bad happening must be seen to be believed. It can be no more than a series of mild shocks followed by let-downs which progressively combine to neutralize the further shocks before they arrive.” However, given my experience of The Forest Fringe – a family reunion, a western saloon, dancing to old VHS tapes in some guy’s bedroom – I’m expecting great things from Microfestival.[Colin Chaloner] A MICRO-FESTIVAL by Forest Fringe The Arches, 16 -17 Apr, 7pm Day pass: £10/£5 conc www.thearches.co.uk/A-MICROFESTIVAL-by-Forest-Fringe.htm
Performance
venue of the month
Playwrights' Studio
"Playwrights' Studio Scotland is here to help playwrights complete their work and help theatre organisations get the best plays possible onstage." So says Creative Director, Julie Ellen
By Anton Chekhov
A new version by John Byrne Directed by Tony Cownie
16 April – 8 May 2010 CURTAIN RAISER EVENT
Tuesday 20 April 2010 In conversation with John Byrne.
www.lyceum.org.uk/cherry BOX OFFICE 0131 248 4848 GROUPS 8+ 0131 248 4949 TEXT RELAY 18001 0131 248 4848 Company No. SCO62065 Scottish Charity Registered No. SCO10509
Julie Ellen, Creative Director Playwrights' Studio
The story behind the Playwrights' Studio begins with the radical poet and playwright Tom McGrath. “Tom was someone who made things happen,” says Julie Ellen, Creative Director of the initiative. “He had the idea of a place where writers could come and hang out and get support without a producing context.” After receiving much support through committees and the Scottish Arts Council, the project finally got a green light, but only after McGrath had suffered a stroke. Looking for a new leader, a steering organisation chose Ellen. “It was curious. They appointed me to a job that didn’t exist, and I didn’t realise this until I was sitting up in bed on the first day and thinking ‘Hum, Playwrights' Studio. What do I need? Oh yes, register a company, open a bank account, find an office. Oh, this is actually very complicated.’ But it was really good fun.” That was back in 2004, and since then the organisation has not only grown but has become a well-regarded component within Scotland’s theatre community. “We are not in competition because we do not produce. That’s the bedrock principal of the organisation: we will not produce. And that gives a different engagement with the playwrights and myself and the rest of the Studio’s team because, if you’re a playwright, you want your plays ON! If you are sitting before a person who can put your play on, that’s a different engagement than the one with me where we can talk about the writing and the piece and we can start to free up the thinking from that. We have this fantastic artistic independence.” Ellen has seen firsthand the trials of writing for the stage. “One of the hardest things for an emerging playwright is to have written three plays that you’re satisfied with yet there is no glimmer of interest from anyone. You have to keep writing. If you invest too
much in your plays getting produced, you can get tied in a big knot and lose the will to write drama.” And in her six years at the Playwrights' Studio, what has she learned about the lot of the writer? “Just how painful of a process it really is. What a lonely, agonising place being the writer can be. And I re-learn that all the time. And what a delicate process it is, and how you have to flirt on the edge of madness to allow an imagined world to completely occupy your head in order to be able to then shape that into a really strong piece of dramatic writing. I have such admiration for writers, such respect.” She adds, “We don’t know who or where the next playwright is, but we do know we want to make it easy for them if they come in.”
"If you invest too much in your plays getting produced, you can get tied in a big knot and lose the will to write drama"
LOOKING FOR A REWARDING CAREER IN THE ARTS? OUR POSTGRADUATE CULTURAL MANAGEMENT COULD BE THE ANSWER…
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Interview Michael Cox
• MA ARTS AND CULTURAL MANAGEMENT – Stimulate your understanding and develop your knowledge of contemporary issues affecting the development of arts and cultural management and their relevance to daily practice. • MA FESTIVAL MANAGEMENT – expand your knowledge of the current issues in the production of festivals. Studying full or part-time, you can opt to study for a full MSc, complete 8 modules to attain a PgDip or 4 to attain a PgCert. You can also study single modules. You will be qualified to work in a management or research role within the arts and cultural sector. Previous students work in galleries & museums; theatres, festivals & performing arts organisations; and local councils, arts councils and related cultural agencies across the world. For more information, visit www.qmu.ac.uk/advert/cultmgt.htm or contact Admissions on 0131 474 0000/ admissions@qmu.ac.uk. You can also find out about the course and our PG Open Evening on 28th April. Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/QueenMargaretUniversity Scottish Charity No. SC002750
April 2010
THE SKINNY 25
26 THE SKINNY April 2010
The Stand in Glasgow is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Co-founder Tommy Sheppard talks fair play and comedic integrity
TOP FIVE APRIL FOOLS ELECTRIC TALES: APRIL FOOLS’ DAY Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh, 1 Apr 7.30pm, £6(£4) The Stand team up again with the Scottish Storytelling for a brilliant collision of stand up and storytelling. DANCE, MONKEY BOY, DANCE Stand, Glasgow 5 and 19 Apr, 8.30pm, £4 Improv and sketches from Raymond Mearns and co. GILDED BALLOON COMEDY CIRCUIT Various venues (see listings) 8-15 Apr, £14(£12) Doc Brown, Ali Cook and Stuart Goldsmith take off in their comedy balloon to venues Scotland-wide.
Interview Lizzie Cass-Maran TO many of us, The Stand comedy clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow are so enshrined in Scottish culture that it’s hard to believe that they’ve only been fully established for little over a decade, with the Glasgow club celebrating its tenth anniversary on the 14th of this month. So what drove Tommy Sheppard, who co-founded the club along with Jane Mackay (now retired) to set up what is now one of the most respected comedy institutions in the UK? “First and foremost I was a comedy fan,” Sheppard tells us. “When I was living in London in the eighties I used to go to the first generation of comedy clubs there. Then when I came up to Scotland in 1993 Jane Mackay started performing with the – then rather small – bunch of people who were the Scottish comedy fraternity and they didn’t have anywhere to play. So we decided to set up a gig. We found a wee room in the basement of Christie’s in the
Grassmarket – quite literally now the toilets of the pub of the Grassmarket Bar! We set up there in Edinburgh in 1995, then established in York Place in 1998. As soon as we’d done that we realised that it just made all sorts of sense to set up a club in Glasgow.” So what sets the Stand apart? “The most important thing is that it’s all focused on the stage. The reason people go is for the comedy, so that’s got to be done right, and everything else has to yeild to the demands of the performance. We also insist that we are first and foremost a comedy club. We don’t sell ourselves on having big gangs of people in getting pissed. We try to be a club for people who like comedy and that’s the reason why they come. “We’ve got an underlying fairness to the organisation – Jane and I were old lefties and some of that rubbed off. We pay acts what we can, for example – around 60% of the box office generally goes on acts, which is probably a higher
percentage than in most other commercial comedy clubs. We try and treat people fairly as performers and also try to treat audiences fairly by keeping prices down and not ripping people off.” From the back room at Christie’s only 15 years ago, the wider Stand company now includes two full time clubs, the Magners Glasgow International Comedy Festival and the StandOut Comedy Agency. Sheppard and his team keep their eyes open for new opportunities, and at the moment he sees the priority being to work with other people doing touring work and one-off gigs around Scotland. With the Culture Minister’s recent announcement at the launch of this year’s Comedy Festival that the comedy industry will be taking its place at the heart of the new Creative Scotland, don’t expect to see a slow down any time soon.
FIT O’ THE GIGGLES: MASTERCLASS SHOWCASE Beehive Inn, Edinburgh 11 Apr, 8pm, £3(£2) Comedy wannabes have been gleaning pearls of information from comedy masters such as Stu Who? Head down to see what they’ve learned. KEVIN BRIDGES: SPRING TOUR Rothes Hall 3-4 Apr, Perth 15 Apr; DG One, Dumfries 22 Apr. All 8pm, £15 Recently nominated for the Breakthrough Act at the Chortle Awards, Bridges tours all over the UK in April and May. [Lizzie Cass-Maran]
READ THE FULL VERSION OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH TOMMY SHEPPARD ONLINE AT WWW. THESKINNY.CO.UK/ARTICLES/COMEDY
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OUR GANG? VACANCY: ART EDITOR
Are you passionate about visual art, and clued up about all that's going on across Scotland today? Are you able to write knowledgeably but entertainingly, and communicate your enthusiasm to others?
AS THE SKINNY ART EDITOR YOU WOULD: - Work to tight deadlines to ensure content and listings are completed on time - Manage writers and liaise with The Skinny core staff, photographers and galleries - Represent The Skinny at events Does this sound like something you could be great at? If so we want to hear from you! Send a CV, two samples of your writing, and a cover letter telling us where you would like to take the Art section to jobs@theskinny.co.uk DEADLINE: 24 April 2010 SALARY: This is a voluntary position COMMITMENT: Approximately three days per month/ issue.
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THE SKINNY 27
COMEDY
Ten Years of the Glasgow Stand
The RSA selection panel has travelled the length and breadth of the land to scope out the degree shows and bring together the cream of the crop to make and present new work for the stately surrounds of the gallery on the Mound. We've put together a short guide to some names to look out for this year Text Rosamund West IT is perhaps a mark of how many opportunities there actually are for emergent artists these days that several of the names on display in this year’s selection are already familiar. Omar Zingaro Bhatia, Rachel MacLean (does a month go by that we don’t mention Rachel? No, we’ve decided that it doesn’t) and this month's cover artis Jamie Fitzpatrick are just some of the recent graduates who have already been exhibiting across the country, wisely capitalising on that degree show buzz and keeping on making and pushing hard to get their names out there. We can’t predict who’s going to have made what for this year’s show, but we can present a small selection of ones to watch. Jessiaca Ramm was our pick of the Dundee degree show all the way back in June, with delicate drawings, Tinguely-influenced kinetic sculptures and lightbulbs with angel wings inside. She’s been working away ever since so expect new work with a poetic sensibility.
ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY, EDINBURGH, FROM 3-21 APR, £2 (£1) WWW.ROYALSCOTTISHACADEMY.ORG
Harriet Lowther’s Big Thank You project was one of the highlights of Glasgow’s degree show. In a tongue-in-cheek tribute to the gods of the consumer world, the artist displayed row upon row of framed thank you letters sent to brands from Clarins moisturiser to Seven Seas Cod Liver Oil, alongside the surprisingly warm responses received from the giant corporations grateful for a moment of humanity in their presumably soulless days. It’s a rare work of depth, warmth and humour, so we’re looking forward to her NC contribution.
PHOTO - MARKUS THORSEN
ART
RSA New Contemporaries 2010
Catriona Gilbert’s work explores myth and shamanic ritual, and includes photography, drawing, costume and skulls made out of sugar. She made a giant feather cloak for the degree show, entitled Freya and Daedalus, and took photos of someone crawling in the undergrowth wearing it.
EUAN TAYLOR ROXY ART HOUSE
Jamie Fitzpatrick recently cause controversy exhibiting his taxidermy-based work in veggie haven the Forest Cafe. His work was vandalised by outraged visitors who hadn’t taken the time to digest his greater point on the dangers of genetic modification. This is not entirely surprising. Let’s hope the sculptures escape a similar fate in the RSA.
Rachel MacLean will be a name familiar to regular Skinny Art readers. She’s exhibited so widely and so prolifically that it’s sometimes hard to remember that she graduated less than a year ago. With recent works including musings on the colonial implications of bananas, who knows what warped technicolour will appear in New Contemporaries.
28 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
Omar Zingaro Bhatia’s Spuriosity Shop was a hit at the Dundee degree show. The installation, a cluttered room part junkshop, part archive, part gallery of drawings and paintings, alluded to themes of cultural identity while simultaneously mocking such narrow definitions of character. Those fortunate enough to have encountered the artist in situ were treated to a presentation from a somewhat eccentric individual in keeping with the proprietor of a junkshop of personal memorabilia. His unique brand of madness is expected to be brought to bear in the RSA in truly entertaining style.
Last year The Skinny selected our favourite artist from the New Contemporaries exhibition and gave him a prize. It was a tough selection in a strong field, but we finally, after much deliberation, chose Euan Taylor. We were particularly struck by his Cloud Muncher (giant orange crane displaying the warning “Inefficient Solutions and the Royal Scottish Academy do not accept any responsibility of damage to persons as a result of playing on, climbing, admiring or walking past this artwork.”), which made us smile, especially when it terrified the visitors as its sirens went off. The prize included a Showcase spread in the magazine, which happened way back in October and looked very nice. Part two of the prize is an exhibition, organised by our good selves, which coincides rather nicely with the second instalment of New Contemporaries. Taking place in the ROXY Art House’s theatre space, it forms a mini retrospective of Euan’s work including the Cloud Muncher, some work he made with art collaboration enthusiasts GANGHUT and new work in the form of small-scale models. It opens on Thursday 8 April with a big party, starting at 9 in the ROXY bar. It’ll be open 8-13 Apr, 12-8pm, and of course the entry is free.[Rosamund West] PRIVATE VIEW THURSDAY 8 APR, 7-9PM FOLLOWED BY A LAUNCH PARTY IN THE ROXY BAR RSVP TO HELLO@THESKINNY. CO.UK BY 6 APR TO ATTEND
Glasgow International Festival of Art
There are dozens of exciting shows happening in Glasgow during Gi. Here at The Skinny we're most excited about Sandy Smith offsite for SWG3 SANDY SMITH: BETTER WORLD
WWW.SANDYSMITH.CO.UK
"I'm trying to work out how to form a sculpture by hugging – squeezing it like a balloon, and also using that method to colour it," Smith says of work in progress.
VARIOUS, GLASGOW, 16 APR - 3 MAY
Christoph Büchel @ Tramway 2 Büchel makes complex, hyperreal installations of interiors. Built in a series of shipping container interiors, this work looks to explore collective memory and should be pretty edgy. Claire Barclay @ Glasgow Print Studios Barclay’s been making some prints at GPS and will be exploring the relationship between her 2D and better known 3D work. Expect to see pristine, shiny work that you’ll want to touch. But don’t.
AND FILM AND FILM
AND FILM AND FILM
"This"This is Mikey, he keeps pigeons is Mikey, he keeps pigeons in his closet in his at in inbedroom his bedroom closet inflhis flat in Muirhouse. This This is hisisbiggest female, Muirhouse. his biggest female, the one he’she’s most proud of. He the one most proud of.treated He treated the wing feathers withwith blond hairhair dye.dye. the wing feathers blond I’m American andand my knowledge I’m American my knowledge of Edinburgh waswas Trainspotting andand of Edinburgh Trainspotting Irvine Welsh. I’ve I’ve been photographing Irvine Welsh. been photographing andand filming in Muirhouse since I came filming in Muirhouse since I came to Edinburgh to study in 2006. to Edinburgh to study in 2006. Mikey sayssays keeping pigeons keeps Mikey keeping pigeons keeps himhim out of He competes his his outtrouble. of trouble. He competes females against his neighbour’s male females against his neighbour’s male pigeons, trying to lure them down to to pigeons, trying to lure them down his dovecot withwith a promise of pigeon his dovecot a promise of pigeon sex.sex.
Yoshi Kametani is a fiisnal BA BA Yoshi Kametani a fiyear nal year (Hons) Photography andand FilmFilm student (Hons) Photography student at Edinburgh Napier University. His His at Edinburgh Napier University. photography andand documentary film film photography documentary Plastic Spoon cancan be seen during Plastic Spoon be seen during the Edinburgh Napier Degree Show the Edinburgh Napier Degree Show 13 - 23 13 May. - 23 May.
Gi HIGHLIGHTS Jimmie Durham @ Glasgow Sculpture Studios Concluding a three month residency at GSS, American artist Jimmie Durham will be showing new work. Little known in our Scottish waters, Durham likes to crush cars and small planes with big boulders. Nice.
PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY
It’s illegal to keep pigeons in a in council It’s illegal to keep pigeons a council flat and his neighbours called the the flat and his neighbours called cops, so he them down the pub. cops, sosold he sold them down the pub. There’s a whole community of guys There’s a whole community of guys whowho auction theirtheir pigeons in a in pub auction pigeons a pub in town. Things wentwent a bitadownhill for for in town. Things bit downhill himhim afterafter that.that. AndAnd that’s partpart of what that’s of what my fimy lm fiislm about…" is about…"
SWG3, 10 APR - 3 MAY
Like all good artists Sandy Smith is neither cool nor pretentious. He is more or less the sole inhabitant of a garishly bedecked corner of the Glasgow art scene. Not that he is in any way lonely – he is in fact notorious for his gregarious boozing. He is optimism incarnate and has a matter-of-fact approach to creating art. It’s about making stuff and showing it to people. Simple as. Colourful, bright and materially eclectic, his practice encompasses sculpture, painting, text, glass, mirror and old VHS copies of the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, Junior, of which he now owns over 40. He swears it is a cinema classic. Of late he’s been doing some finger painting, building asteroids out of black mirrors and thinking about the nature of desire. What this will come to is anyone’s guess. It will be brash, lack subtlety and be offensively uncool. It will be a breath of fresh air. To find out for yourself you’ll need to take a peek at his upcoming show as part of Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art. An offsite project in association with SWG3, Sandy sets his aspirations at an all time high, titling the show Better World. As the recent recipient of a Fulbright scholarship this might be one of the last times we get to see Sandy’s work before he goes back into pupation. In the meantime he promises to pummel our sense organs with a barrage of chromatic betterment. [Andrew Cattanach]
ART
PREVIEWS
SWG3 Simultaneously the heart of the festival and on the fringe, this prepubescent institution will be showing, amongst others, three of the most exciting young sculptors currently based in Glasgow: Sandy Smith, Sam Kennedy and Dan Miller. Enjoy.
RSA:NC RSA NEW CONTEMPORARIES
3-21 APRIL 2010 www.royalscottishacademy.org The Mound, Edinburgh
Douglas Gordon @ Tramway 1 Not much is seen of this Glaswegian artist in Glasgow but we’re always pleased to have him. He revisits Hitchcock’s film, Psycho, and although it seems he’s covering old ground, Gordon’s work is sure to be a lesson in how to make a bloody good video installation.[Andrew Cattanach] WWW.GLASGOWINTERNATIONAL.ORG
Media Partner
Douglas Gordon, 24 Hour Psycho Back and Forth and To and Fro (2008), Tramway
Image: Selena S Kuzman
royal scottish academy
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 29
MUSIC
Bobo in the Corner
We put Cypress Hill percussionist Eric "Bobo" Correa on the spot for a few hard and fast facts on Latin beats, vampire crimes and living the 'high' life Interview Johnny Langlands Photo James Minchin
weren’t around each other; this has always been a family.
My first job... was at this place called Music Plus where you were able to buy CDs, albums and cassettes. I’d sweep the parking lot [laughs] and get half hour lunch breaks, but I didn’t care because I was surrounded by music all day long, so I was fine. That was my first and basically the only job I’ve ever had, besides playing.
The main task with [new album]... Rise Up is to show people that we’re still together, we’re still a unit and we can still make bangin’-ass music. I’d say we all feel refreshed with this album, new label [Snoop Dogg recently signed the band to Priority Records], it’s a new energy and a more aggressive approach.
The first time I picked up a drumstick... I was 4 years old. Then I had my first professional gig with my dad [legendary Latin jazz drummer Willie Bobo] when I was five. I’ve been playing for as long as I can remember. The last book I read... was Bram Stoker’s Dracula, which I enjoyed very much. With all the vampire stuff that’s been going on with the Twilight movies and whatnot, I thought, well, let me take it back to the original, to the heart and soul of it, rather than something so far away from the source. The last gig I went to as a punter... was Alice in Chains in LA, not too long before they started their world tour. I’ve always been a fan, plus they’re really cool friends. I’m glad they’re keeping it going and still have that sound and power. Just being out there in the audience watching the show without the backstage madness, you have to do that every now and then.
Three big influences on Cypress Hill [besides the philosopher’s blend] are... Public Enemy, Black Sabbath and Santana. Cypress is like Public Enemy in reverse; you have B with his high pitched vocal as lead rather than what they do with Flav as the hype man, but their fire and way of rhyme-play is inspirational. Then you have a group like Black Sabbath who, sonically speaking, were unafraid of using different sounds to create the standard for rock guitars, rhythms and samples. The imagery was also important; when Cypress came out, no one in hip-hop was really giving out that murky rock vibe with the skulls and all that, Sabbath’s influence added a lot to the look of Cypress. Finally, you have the blues and the Latin element, where you get people like Santana who had a rich vocabulary of styles and bridged the gaps musically. I think we’ve been able to do that too, if you listen to Cypress Hill songs you’ll hear blues, rock, reggae, hip-hop and a lot more besides. RISE UP IS RELEASED VIA PRIORITY/EMI ON 19 APRIL WWW.CYPRESSHILL.COM
The biggest guilty pleasure in my record collection... has to be a CD of As Nasty As They Wanna Be by 2 Live Crew that I bump every now and then. It’s either that or the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. One of my proudest moments in the studio... was working on Ill Communication with the Beastie Boys, or with Cypress when we were doing Cypress Hill IV – a great experience; that was really the first album where I put a lot into the camp as a fulltime member. And then, working with a group like the Black Crowes [on Amorica] – that southern rock style – I take a little bit from each artist I’ve worked with and just cherish the time. Cypress Hill had six years off between albums because... we needed to take a little time on our solo projects: B-Real had Smoke N Mirrors, I had Meeting of the Minds, Sen Dog had Diary of a Mad Dog and Muggs had various things cooking, so we took a creative break and tried different things. At the same time we were still doing shows as Cypress, so it wasn’t like we
"WE’RE STILL TOGETHER, WE’RE STILL A UNIT AND WE CAN STILL MAKE BANGIN'-ASS MUSIC" BOBO
Dave Kerr
NO MORE HEROES A long conversation with Buck 65 (Rich Terfry to his barber) has planted a seed in my mind, a fear about social networking’s long-term viability as a practical way for a band to sustain any meaningful relationship with its fan base. Of course, any self-respecting music journalist should be happy about how easy it’s been to pan for gold in the last decade, but – as unread Facebook event invites and digital links to the temporary ‘hottest new sound’ stack up – the old idea of finding talent with substance that can
transcend cult status seems increasingly insurmountable. Buck supposed that the further we charge (or drift) into the information deluge of the 21st century, the less plausible the emergence of the next true cultural icon ultimately seems. Articulating the issue better than my jibba-jabba, he asked: “If the next genius comes along, or the next Elvis, the next great writer, poet or thinker… what are they going to do, set up a MySpace page along with a billion other people and keep their fingers crossed that they won’t
just evaporate into the ether along with everybody else?” They say the music world is all kinds of cyclical, as though you should either take comfort from the promise that the next Emerson, Lake and Palmer might be around the next corner (Battles?), or a caution that Kajagoogoo might happen all over again (Empire of the Sun?). That’s all dandy, but if Lady Gaga is 2010’s proposed equivalent to Presley, Patti, or Pac, our Wyld Stallyns must be a long way off. HIGH PRIEST: Bobo and a completely legitimate cigar
30 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
JÓnsi, the voice of Sigur Rós talks to The Skinny about his solo album, baby booms and tiny wardrobes Interview Paul Mitchell “I’M absolutely sublime, thank you for asking.” Jónsi is in chipper mood when The Skinny catches him for a chat, despite an arduous day of press calls and photo shoots. When it’s noted that he and his Sigur Rós bandmates have a reputation for a certain amount of reclusivity, and that his willingness to chat appears out of character, he responds with a nonchalant “Maybe I’m just getting older and losing my principles somewhat!” Mr Jón “Jónsi” Thór Birgisson is in the UK in advance of the release of his first solo album, Go, although his primary concern at this point in time is his distinct lack of sartorial options for the aforementioned shoots. “I have a tiny wardrobe. One sweater, one pants and I just wear them all the time. I’m not bothered about it, but maybe I could do with a nice shirt or something.” In the aftermath of rumours which circulated last year that Sigur Rós were putting the finishing touches to a new album, Jónsi is keen to set the record straight. “I’ve been hearing that rumour a lot myself. We started a few months ago putting some songs together, but I think people have been getting the wrong end of the stick, because we decided to start from scratch again at some point. We got rid of the rehearsal space in our studio because we felt it was time to change, move on and experience a new working environment, do something different.” Whilst refusing to divulge what precisely ‘something different’ entails, he is insistent that his decision to fly solo is not an indication of the demise of Sigur Rós. “I wanted to do my own album for many years and now turned out to be a good time to do it because there’s a baby boom going on in the band, so it’s perfect scheduling for me.” So, is this an opportunity to attempt a new approach at music outwith the confines of the band? Apparently not. “There’s nothing as such I think I can’t do in the band. Mainly, for me, it was an opportunity to clean out the attic a little because I have so many songs that I haven’t finished and I wanted to do just that. These are just my songs, not Sigur Rós songs, because, in the band everybody works together. There’s nobody who brings a song to Sigur Rós and says ‘Play that’. So, in that 16 year period that we’ve been together – wow, what a long time – I have a shitload of songs I wrote myself at home.” Happily conceding a workaholic penchant, he admits however, that this is not likely to be his last solo offering. “I’ve enjoyed the process, and I like trying new things and keeping busy, so yes, I’d love to make another album by myself.” Of course, Jónsi is quick to recognise that such an undertaking can’t entirely be accomplished alone, and is quick to acknowledge his collaboration with classical virtuoso Nico Muhly (who has worked with a disparate group of musicians such as Philip Glass and Björk). Providing the arrangement throughout, Jónsi, without formal music training himself, is keen to give Muhly’s learnedness a great deal of credit. He is not, however, convinced of the merits of a formal education. “The less training there is, the better I think it can be. I have strong views on schools... basically I hate them. I’m really into it when people aren’t moulded in some ways. I work with a lot of people who are trained of course and it has helped me to get my vision across. For example, Nico is a super genius and very highly trained, so it was very insightful for me to work with someone like that. I wanted the string arrangement to be a little different from Sigur Rós, be more crazy, playful and vibrant and as I can’t write a single note it was perfect for me just to say to Nico ‘OK, I want this here, can we have this part here, can we have more flying around, more
colours?’ It was scary but liberating, creative and spontaneous. Really quite exciting!” This is not the first instance that Jónsi has produced a volume of work outwith his band. Last year, he produced the well-received instrumental album Riceboy Sleeps in collaboration with boyfriend Alex Somers. Openness about his sexuality has never been a problem throughout his musical career, though he does admit that it might have been even easier to have come out earlier. “I came out quite slowly, when I was 21 or so. Of course it’s a big relief to tell your family and friends whom you’ve been keeping a secret from, and maybe even yourself also. But I didn’t change at all, I was the same character I had always been. Thankfully, in today’s society, it probably is a little easier to come out. Younger kids are more open these days and it’s not such
"I HAVE STRONG VIEWS ON SCHOOLS... BASICALLY I HATE THEM." a big deal. Society in general is definitely more open than it used to be, but it would be nice to think it would be easier for everyone all the time.” Warming to his task as an observer of contemporary society, he notes the rapid changes that have affected the music industry in particular with the advent of digital downloading. “People have to be inventive and think differently now than before. There are probably a lot of bands around now trying to establish themselves and hoping to live off their music, but it seems to be harder for them now than it might have been ten years ago. But my approach is quite simple, really; I just want to make a shitload of good music and be able to move people in that way and then I’ll feel I’ve done something good with my life.” GO IS RELEASED VIA PARLOPHONE ON 5 APR WWW.JONSI.COM
MUSIC
Keeping up with Jónsi
Music
Selling Live W
Interview Ally Brown Photo Ross Trevail “I thought everybody was going to hate this album,” Dan Snaith states coyly. “I’ve never been one to play it safe or want to not rock the boat, but this is a big left-turn, there’s much more dance influence, there’s much less in the way of poppy songs.” OK, so you follow up an award-winning breakthrough album with something very different, and you risk alienating fans. But no-one’s going to hate Caribou’s magnificent new album Swim. Snaith is a very open and articulate talker. After half an hour’s chat, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that his mind responds to music in a mathematical way. Partly that’s because his back-story involves a history of maths and it’s hard to resist a good narrative, but partly it’s because of the way he talks about music: like a song is a set of problems that can be solved, expressed in sound instead of numbers.
32 THE SKINNY April 2010
Dan Snaith’s back-story The Snaith family could hardly be described as diverse. “My dad was a maths professor, my mom was a maths teacher, my sister’s a maths professor, my grandfather was a maths teacher, my brother-in-law is a maths professor.” His sister Nina works in random matrix theory and quantum chaos; just so you know. Dan himself has a Ph.D. in maths from Imperial College, London, where he now lives. The very talented Snaith family were based in a little Canadian town called Dundas, in Ontario, population 25,000. Without a music scene, Dan’s musical education lacked the constraints of received wisdom. “When I was in high school I was listening to Plastikman and Yes. Maybe if I’d grown up in New York or London or somewhere there’d have been a sense of context to the music, like ‘oh yeah people are part of a scene here’. For me it was just like: this sounds exciting, I don’t care if it was made fifty years ago or yesterday, I don’t care where in the world it comes
from. I didn’t have any context for anything I listened to, because there was nothing musically going on in the little shit-hole town where I grew up.” About ten years ago Snaith began releasing glitchy, Warp-like electronic music using cut-up and re-worked samples, under the name Manitoba. But he had to change the name after a legal threat from the lead singer of The Dictators, Handsome Dick Manitoba. “Manitoba is a Canadian province, so it was irksome being told by an American asshole that nobody could use the name of a Canadian province apart from him! So Caribou is the North American name for reindeer and as a word it evokes the same kind of things and places as Manitoba does, to me.” It has nothing to do with the Pixies song? “No, I was into Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer, and really horrible, terribly unfashionable progressive rock when I was a teenager!” Manitoba’s second album Up In Flames (2003) was the first to catch a prevailing wind, because it contained more accessible melodies smudged by
reverb and echo, exactly as the bright, blurry cover art suggested. Having approximated his aesthetic, The Milk Of Human Kindness (2005, as Caribou) improved on it, and Andorra (2007) was better again, winning the 2008 Polaris Prize, the Canadian equivalent of the Mercury. Continuing the pattern, Swim is even better again, though it’s far more based on rhythms than melodies. As he said. The way Dan Snaith talks about music Stuff like this: “I’m influenced by hearing someone else’s music and thinking ‘How the fuck do they do that, technically?’, and trying to do my own take on it.” And this: “I’d already settled on what I wanted to do for Andorra, I wanted to figure out how to write pop music, how to compose and arrange it,” as if pop music is a quantifiable thing, a science that can be learned, with right and wrong answers at the end. And this, about lyrics: “Rather than, as on Andorra, just sketching some hypothetical scene of two people falling in
love, say, just this kind of format for lyrics to mirror what was going on musically in the song, this time it just felt kinda natural that the lyrics had more to do with things going on in my life.” And this all begs the question: is that how more of us, or all of us, respond to music, even if we don’t realise it? Some people hear a power ballad and recognise the melody as being dramatic and emotional, and then feel the emotion and feel the drama; others hear the same melody and recognise the same formula, but refuse to be led to the same conclusion. What causes these opposite reactions? In an interview last year with Eye Weekly.com, Snaith said “Once I feel like I can do something, it becomes less interesting to do it again.” Now there’s a telling quote. Telling quotes Swim isn’t about maths, at all. According to the press sheet, he wanted to make “dance music that
sounds like it’s made out of water rather than made out of metallic stuff like most dance music does. The last track on Andorra [Niobe] is essentially an attempt to rip off James Holden’s music,” says Snaith, “to figure out how it works, music where elements seem to breathe and grow and then fall apart. It’s a very non-machine-like process and I couldn’t figure out how he did it, but I loved the idea. “On a song like Kaili, all the synthesisers are constantly washing around, nothing sits still, everything’s moving, appearing and disappearing. So there’s this back and forth idea of musical fluidity.” So that’s why this record is called Swim? “And also just for the totally naive reason that I became obsessed with swimming over the last year, which probably had an influence on me wanting to make the music sound liquid.” So is the clanging percussion on Bowls really made with... bowls? “They’re Tibetan singing bowls,” he says. “You know you can run a stick
"All the synthesisers are constantly washing around, nothing sits still, everything's moving, appearing and disappearing. So there's this back and forth idea of musical fluidity."
Music
Water
Doctor of mathematics Dan Snaith, a.k.a. Caribou, tells The Skinny about trying to make 'dance music out of water'. And a 1, and a 2, and a 1,2,3,4...
around a glass with water? I picked up these bowls while I was in Asia ‘cos I’d always liked the sound of them. I did this kind of thing a lot with this album: I sampled the sound of these two bowls individually and then played them on a keyboard as if they were the starting point for a synthesiser, changed the filter, changed the envelope. So it’s kind of a hybrid between a bowl being hit and it being a synthesiser.” “I grew up playing piano and guitar, I played in crappy bands and the recordings always sounded like shit,” reflects Snaith. “I didn’t see the attraction to it until I got to university and then it totally changed, it became this very creative, abstract, more imaginative thing.” A couple of listens to Swim is proof positive that Dan Snaith’s sonic journey is taking us all somewhere new. Swim is released via City Slang on 19 Apr www.caribou.fm
April 2010
THE SKINNY 33
Music
subculture_ weekly saturdays 11–3am guest nights_ £9 b4 12 // £12 after resident nights_ £6 b4 12 // £10 after advance tickets_ subclub.co.uk tickets-scotland.com
34 THE SKINNY April 2010
pre-sub sessions at brel, ashton lane and macsorleys, jamaica st electronic funk for freaks www.subclub.co.uk
Having kept their collaboration under wraps for two years, The Shins' James Mercer explains why he and über-producer Danger Mouse didn't want Broken Bells to jump the gun Interview Paul Mitchell “WHEN you get down to it, the point of experimentation is to create something so new that often you lose the beautiful quality that music, I think, should have.” James Mercer is attempting to come to terms with the notion of ‘experimental music’. The main man behind Portland-based The Shins ponders reviews of his Broken Bells collaboration with artist-producer Danger Mouse (Brian Burton) which have described their efforts as such, giving Mercer food for thought. “We definitely spent a bit of time trying to find the right sounds,” says Mercer. “There was experimenting involved in trying to do that, but we didn’t do things that were counterintuitive on purpose. We certainly tried new things. I played with my voice a little more. There seems to be a place where I leave behind the more static – or less dynamic – style of singing. It may be just a consequence of working with Brian. We’ll see what happens when I do my own stuff again.” Having met in 2004, just before Burton’s work as half of collaborative duo Gnarls Barkley went supernova, the pair have been working in secret since 2008. Mercer elaborates: “I wasn’t able to reveal the fact that I was working with Brian. We decided that it would be better if we didn’t have rising expectations and anticipation, keep the pressure of having to deal with labels trying to court us away.” Despite the subterfuge, the pair have developed a close working relationship, and plan to continue to work together in the future. “Brian had a pretty conspicuous catalogue of stuff that he had worked on. I knew what he did and I was a fan of a lot of the records he put out, so for me it was an easy decision. He really liked The Shins’ stuff and liked my voice so I think he also, like me, wanted to collaborate with someone writing-wise. So, it was kinda perfect timing for both of us. I had the idea that I could learn something new. It just seemed like it would be exciting, new and different, and something I needed at the time.” All of this has naturally led to speculation that The Shins are no more; something Mercer is quick to refute, with some caveats. “I think I’m just making it up as I go along. I had a few interviews early last year during a Shins tour. I was saying at the time that maybe by the end of the year I would have a record done. The whole time though, I wasn’t able to reveal the fact that I was working with Brian. I’m not sure exactly what it is I’ll be doing next, whether to worry about doing a Shins record or keep with the Broken Bells stuff. Right now we’re trying to work out how much touring we’re going to do with this and what that touring is going to look like. I think it’s going to be pretty extensive, so it might be just that we keep full steam ahead with Broken Bells. We’ve got a couple of songs together already for a second record.” If this sounds as if Mercer is lacking decisiveness, it transpires that in reality he is proceeding with extreme caution. Having also collaborated with Burton and the late Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse (on Dark Night of the Soul, featuring visuals from David Lynch), there’s a certain wariness when it comes to contracts and record labels. The release of that album has been delayed owing to contract difficulties with EMI, but is slated for an appearance later this summer.
SAD & BEAUTIFUL WORLD
James Mercer has contributed to another Burton project, written with Mark Linkous – Sparklehorse's talented and troubled creative hub who died this March. Here Mercer pays tribute as we offer a potted history of Linkous' most memorable work.
Text Paul Mitchell DARK Night of the Soul was originally given a limited self-funded run of 5000 copies as a book. Its commercial release this summer has added poignance since the news of Linkous’ recent suicide. “I did get to know him a little,” says Mercer. “A very reserved person I would say; it’s very sad to comprehend that sort of misery.” Here’s a brief guide to the plangent, lo-fi highlights of a tragic life. Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot (1995) The debut, which eerily combined dead of night floorboard creaking and angry guitar thrashing, was framed by Linkous’ melodious yet bitter acknowledgement of his own brittleness. Not a commercial success, it was critically well-received, prompting Radiohead to invite him on their next tour. Listen to: Someday I Will Treat You Good Good Morning Spider (1998) While on tour with Yorke and co in 1996, Linkous a took a cocktail of alcohol, valium and antidepressants which caused a heart attack that left him tecnically dead for some minutes and wheelchair bound for six months thereafter. This second album is a reaction to this episode, flitting between dreamlike states of innocent otherworldiness, and resolute defiance in the face of the darkness. Sonically diverse, with a distinct flavour of ambient electronica. Listen to: Ghost Of His Smile
"WE’RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WELL THE RECORD IS GOING TO DO, GET A HANDLE OF HOW BIG OUR AUDIENCE IS GOING TO BE BEFORE DECIDING FOR DEFINITE WHAT TO DO NEXT" JAMES MERCER
“Instead of immediately signing a new contract, in this environment, it’s probably best to give these things some consideration. The internet has changed everything. I’m not a fan of something like Pirate Bay but at the same time I’ve seen independent record sales climb over the last twenty years now, largely because of the internet. You might remember a time where if you wanted to buy a record from the likes of Kill Rock Stars or K Records, you’d have to put three dollars in an envelope and send it to an office where eventually someone might open it and six weeks later you might get a catalogue where you circle some things, send the money and probably find out they were sold out.” Despite Mercer’s stated intention of playing the album extensively, Broken Bells’ official touring schedule is currently quite sparse, with very few actual confirmed dates. It’s another example of the duo’s restrained prudence: “We’re trying to figure out how well the record is going to do, get a handle of how big our audience is going to be before deciding for definite what to do next. The logistics of a tour are quite difficult; it’s so expensive to fund the whole thing right off the bat. We’re travelling at the moment doing promo gigs. So far, thankfully, those seem to be working out really well.”
Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (2006) Fourth album, first Danger Mouse collaboration, and Tom Waits follows up his cameo on 2001’s It’s a Wonderful Life with a rousing reprisal. Possibly not as progressive as his early career trajectory suggested; it is, on the whole, a very serene work, suggesting a certain (although perhaps temporary) peace of mind. Listen to: Knives Of Summertime Dark Night of the Soul (2009/2010) A hugely ambitious multimedia art project, this collaboration with Danger Mouse, David Lynch, Vic Chestnutt (RIP), Julian Casablancas, Iggy Pop and many more was shelved as a consequence of a record label dispute. Danger Mouse wryly announced that when it did hit the shops, it would be in the form of a blank CDR, for burning the leaked versions onto. Listen to (when it’s released, naturally): Daddy’s Gone DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL IS BOUND FOR A COMMERCIAL RELEASE THROUGH EMI THIS JUNE WWW.DNOTS.COM
BROKEN BELLS IS OUT NOW VIA COLUMBIA WWW.BROKENBELLS.COM
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 35
MUSIC
Chancing the Night Away
MUSIC
Closer to the Flame After an age of bubbling under, elusive sextet The Moth and The Mirror feel they're finally ready to make waves
Interview Lauren Mayberry Photo Darren Hendry PRECISELY double the figure that De La Soul recommended, six is not the magic number – something The Moth and The Mirror found out the hard way. “It’s a constant head-fug trying to get all of us together,“ explains vocalist Stacey Sievwright of the sextet – who hail from literally all corners of Scotland – and their rehearsal dramas.“Oftentimes it’ll be a group of three or four, and we meld it together when we get the chance.” With multiple musical commitments on the side (Sievwright is a past member of Arab Strap and The Reindeer Section, whilst bassist Kevin McCarvel plays in Smoke Jaguar, guitarist Louis Abbott is responsible for Brother Louis Collective and former Make Model guitarist Gordon Skene is also a semi-new addition to Frightened Rabbit), the cockle-warming project has been a slow-build, begun in late 2006. Yet, the half dozen band-fellows, fleshed out by the percussion of Iain Sandilands and Pete Murch, are tough enough not to allow these hair-pull-worthy scheduling conflicts to leave them acquiescent of defeat. “We usually gather round at Mothy headquarters – i.e. Stacey’s flat – and have lots of tea, stupid chat, and then throw some ideas about, “says McCarvel. “At the end of the day there’s a long, spiralling iPhone recording of our living room ideas, which we work on in the practice room over the next few weeks.” Such diligence has been rewarded, with their measurably dramatic folky-pop – described by Skene as “a mouldy storm in a teacup” – making its way onto
36 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
bills with Maria Taylor and Tilly and the Wall, as well as T in the Park, Connect, various BBC dalliances and a music video for Gaelic television. That’s not to say that the band hasn’t played the same pub-toilet gig circuit which signifies a rite of passage for any unsigned act worth their sand. But would they have us believe the fact that having certain members of Snow Patrol and Malcolm Middleton in their little black book makes no difference? “Maybe initially it might help to prick up an ear if people have heard of something you’ve been involved with, but in the long term, each thing you do needs to
be able to stand on its own merit,” Skene argues. “The most important thing you get from having a little past experience is just that – knowing what not to do.” Having played a sold-out single launch at Glasgow’s Stereo at the end of February, the band – poetically named after an old Ladybird children’s story collection – are looking to release their newly mastered album. “It’s something that’s been a long time coming and we’re proud of it; we just want to get it out to sea somehow,” says Sievwright. Given the strength of their live shows – not to mention recording sessions with Tony Doogan, he
of shoulders oft-rubbed by Belle and Sebastian and Mogwai – their debut could be the stuff of beauty. Of course, when Conor Oberst’s Team Love label in New York picks you up as a featured artist, that can’t be a bad sign either. “Things are getting a little more upbeat, more adventurous,” says McCarvel. Adventurous enough to play a sniggersome game of ‘how many members of The Moth and The Mirror can you fit in the back of a Mini’? We shall see.[Lauren Mayberry] DOWNLOAD THE MOTH AND THE MIRROR’S MUSIC FOR FREE FROM TEAM-LOVE.COM. WWW.MYSPACE.COM/THEMOTHANDTHEMIRROR
MUSIC
The Great Escape Conquering Animal Sound are a duo with an innovative take on lo-fi folk. Before their attentions turn to a UK tour, they tell us the merits of toy instruments, mixtapes and dressing up as an imprisoned Steve McQueen Interview Gordon Bruce Photo Heidi Kuisma EVER taken a trip to the heathery moors of the Highlands to gaze at the long grass, feel the quiet wind on your face and squint at the blurry skyline beyond the hills? Me neither, but if you’re looking for a cheaper way to a relaxing getaway, Conquering Animal Sound are the band equipped to transport you to a better place. A duo that teamed up only last year, CAS have kindled interest with their unique take on folk music. Unusual song structures find vocalist Anneke Kampman dusting off beautiful melodic mantras with a carefree finesse whilst Jamie Scott (also known in his sometime solo guise as The Japanese War Effort) provides battered electronic loops of toy instruments and haunting unidentifiable percussive nuances. Where did it all begin? “We first met at university,” says Jamie. “On our ice breaker session we were paired into a band, covering Stevie Wonder. The fact that we both clearly hated the experience was our first positive exchange.” Since identifying this shared disdain, CAS have played extensively around the central belt, receiving curious compliments throughout. “At one gig a chap came up to me and said "'keep at it, that’s how Enya started out'," Jamie elaborates. “I don’t think Enya ever used a loop pedal but apparently if she did she would sound like us!” Imposing limitations is often a way to spark creativity and CAS know this all too well. Recording without taking “the easy route of a laptop,” they assert their creativity the
CocoRosie way, with “cheap keyboards, toy percussion and lots of effects pedals,” suggests Jamie. “Whatever happened to be at hand when we started playing.” This nth degree of DIY is communicated especially well in the live setting, as Anneke keenly points out. “From the get-go it was always our idea to create ‘live’ electronic music,” she says. “I don’t mean to sound overly critical, but If I wanted to listen to someone press space bar then I would stay at home. The key is live, live, LIVE!” CAS’s first release is a twenty-five minute one-track
"ON OUR ICE BREAKER SESSION WE WERE PAIRED INTO A BAND, COVERING STEVIE WONDER. THE FACT THAT WE BOTH CLEARLY HATED THE EXPERIENCE WAS OUR FIRST POSITIVE EXCHANGE.” JAMIE SCOTT
mixtape, downloadable via their profile page on last.fm. Why choose this method of putting the music out there? “I think it was hearing Micachu’s Filthy Friends and downloading LuckyMe mixes that got me thinking on the mixtape format,” elaborates Jamie. “At the expense of sounding nostalgic, I still enjoy albums as a whole piece of work.” The mixtape features a host of ideas, some full songs, some minute snippets of quirky soundscapes. How did they collate the range of material? “For me, inspiration is a matter of keeping a notebook,” muses Anneke. “We collect together sounds from as many sources as possible and then try to structure them together to create something we like.” In Conquering Animal Sound, disagreements only arise over style, with Anneke taking a stand on the “matching luminous orange ponchos” Jamie wants for the next photoshoot. “He can think again. Our next photoshoot will involve ‘Papillon-esque prisoner stuck on an island’ chic,” she jokes (we think!?). Besides this internal war of fashion photography, the near future yields bigger battles for the twosome which will hopefully open them up to a wider range of possibilities. “We are currently recording our debut album,” Jamie offers. “It’s due for release in late summer. Before that, we’ll be embarking on a UK tour. Very exciting!” If the LP and tour turn out to be half as fun as the music on show so far, there’ll be a bright season on the horizon for these two. CONQUERING ANIMAL SOUND PLAY SNAFU, ABERDEEN ON 1 APR AND CABARET VOLTAIRE, EDINBURGH WITH MEURSAULT AND OLYMPIC SWIMMERS ON 10 APR WWW.MYSPACE.COM/CONQUERINGANIMALSOUND
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 37
Music
Escape from Auld Reekie In a flourishing music scene, Meursault are one of Edinburgh's brightest hopes in recent years – it's high time everyone else caught on
Interview Ally Brown Photo Markus Thorsen In the 16th century, after defeat at the Battle of Flodden, Edinburgh built a wall around its limits to protect itself from an expected invasion by the English. They never came, but the Flodden Wall proved useful to the city’s rulers as a means of penning citizens in, making criminals easier to catch and traders easier to tax. The wall is mostly gone, but some mysterious force still seems to pen the capital’s musical citizens in. Every August, Edinburgh becomes the cultural capital of the western world, yet its own contemporary music rarely travels far. For two years, the chatter around these parts has been dominated by Meursault, and if you’ve been to a small-scale gig here recently, you’ve probably seen them. Meursault have performed live hundreds of times now and won new fans every time. Our readers poll saw their debut album, Pissing On Bonfires/ Kissing With Tongues, qualify as one of the best Scottish albums of the last ten years. But despite their obvious talent, the hype has remained dispiritingly local. It’s time they burst through the wall. For the uninitiated, Meursault are a six-piece (formerly four-piece) led by singer-songwriter Neil Pennycook, a big bald guy with a great boom of a voice. Other members combine autoharp-strumming with Ableton-programming, korg-playing and banjo-picking: they play modern forms of indie-rock and electronica, but with strong roots in Scottish folk. Pennycook has a versatile voice. And when he sings, jaws drop. We caught up with Neil to hear more about Meursault’s upcoming second album, All Creatures Will Make Merry.
Track-By-Track:
Meursault’s All Creatures Will Make Merry Meursault's Neil Pennycook gives us the lowdown on his band's highly anticipated second album
How did you want your second album to be different from the first? The main difference would be that I’m a lot more certain of what it is that I’m trying to say with these songs compared with those on the first record. If I’ve learned anything, it’s to trust my own opinion and to work at my own pace. Also, playing with a full live band has helped shape this record considerably. Do you mean expanding to a six-piece? Yeah. The two new members, Pete [Harvey] on cello and Phil [Quirie] on guitar, have opened up a huge range of possibilities with these songs. As well as other less obvious benefits such as Phil also acting as our booking agent which brings a whole new level of organisation to things. With Pete joining it gave me the opportunity to work closely with someone who understands music from a completely different perspective than myself, what with his being classically trained and his ability to understand every facet of a song as he hears it. What would you say your influences have been for this record? I’ve been listening to a lot of The Microphones, Mount Eerie. And I guess that’s influenced my production style a fair bit. How do you expect people will react? I hope people get what I was trying to achieve with the production and arrangements as well. It’s this idea that just because a song has a grander arrangement, or is more than just guitar, bass and drums, that shouldn’t necessarily entail that it needs slick production, which always seems to be the case and has been for as long as people have been making records.
Payday This is a very literal song and therefore a natural choice for the opener as it’s fairly representative of a lot of the album’s lyrical content. With the majority of these songs I wanted to find the clearest, most direct way to communicate the themes I was interested in. Crank Resolutions This one has been played live more than any of the rest. It was the first thing I had written that gave me a clear idea of what I wanted to do with this record. These songs have a lot more of the band on them than those on the last record and with the addition of Pete [Harvey, cello] and Phil [Quirie, guitar], they have a sense of urgency that’s hard to achieve when you’re recording by yourself. All Creatures Will Make Merry... Under Pain Of Death I’d say the main theme of the record is one of contentment – what people are willing to do to obtain it, hold on to it, and what we stand to lose or gain if we try. Weather This is the first of the more stripped back recordings. It starts as a sort of pledge to a loved one, a promise. The second half is about what happens when these promises don’t come good and where the blame lies.
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One Day This’ll All Be Fields A ghost story; the dearly departed return to take back what they left us. What You Don’t Have This is probably one of the most upbeat songs I can ever remember writing. It’s a love song. It’s fairly self-explanatory. Another This song was intended to be included on the Nothing Broke EP but for some reason just didn’t seem to fit, maybe because the subject matter was a little too hopeful for what was a relatively gloomy disc. New Ruin Another song that’s evolved fairly rapidly as a result of being played a lot live. It’s the bleakest song on the record by far but was one of the most satisfying to record. It’s fairly brutal towards the end. Sleet This was done pretty much live with just Pete, Chris [Bryant, guitar] and myself, which was a new challenge in terms of how I would normally choose to record. The idea of working so closely with other musicians has been a difficult one for me as I had grown so comfortable working on my own, but I think it was worth the effort.
Song For Martin Kippenberger We wrote a version of this song as part of a soundtrack last year. It’s been trimmed down by about ten minutes since but it captures the overall feel of the album quite well. I like the idea of music being able to be really dense and orchestral and at the same time staying honest and believable. It can be a hard balance to find. A Fair Exchange I wrote the lyrics for this song when I was about 18, maybe younger, and I still feel it’s one of the strongest things I’ve written. It comes from a story I once read about a monk who lived in a beautiful temple. He lived there alone and loved it dearly. Over time the temple began to age and became structurally unsound. The monk realized that he would rather live with the temple as a memory than watch it rot and decay, so he burned it to the ground. All Creatures Will Make Merry will be available on limited release on the album launch nights at Captain’s Rest, Glasgow on 7 Apr and Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh on 10 Apr The album will receive a general release via Song By Toad Records on 24 May www.myspace.com/meursaulta701
Music
Efter
the Parade Efterklang's Casper Clausen explains why Denmark's foremost orchestral indie artists have been finding it difficult to limit the scope of their ambitions Interview Paul Mitchell Photo Nikolaj Holm Moller The Skinny catches up with Casper Clausen as he and his Efterklang entourage are negotiating the hills of North Dakota. “All we’ve been doing for the past few days is constant driving,” he seems to grumble. “Talking to you guys is a break from the routine.” So he doesn’t mind the press haranguing then? “It’s nice somehow, even vaguely amusing, but generally cool to see that people are taking an interest in what you’re doing, and maybe get to explain yourself a little. It feels like a natural part of making an album; you go through a period of time where you are focussing on the music and then get to step back a little bit from that. Sometimes it’s not nice looking at yourself in the mirror all the time, explaining everything you’ve done, but that can be interesting from a personal perspective.” The album in question is the Danish outfit’s third studio LP Magic Chairs, which they are in the U.S. to promote. However, their schedule has hit a slight snag: “We were supposed to have seven band members on tour [Efterklang are comprised of a core group of four which is expanded – often considerably – when playing live], but our violin player Peter Broderick had a problem with his knee, so he had to stay at home, so we’re having to make it work as a six-piece.” Fortunately, this setback doesn’t appear to be fazing the remainder of the outfit, and the glass is most definitely half-full when Clausen reveals it almost as an opportunity. “A lot of the pieces have been composed with the violin, and when that element is removed, it takes a while to work out if we actually need to substitute for it or if there’s something else going on that’s nice to listen to instead. There are so many elements in our music; it’s sometimes hard to tell where the core of the song is. Sometimes there’s another sound coming out which you haven’t noticed before.” Having been released to very favourable reviews, Magic Chairs is generally considered a more accessible, song-based album by comparison to their previous effort, the sprawling epic that was 2007’s Parades. Such was the layered complexity of the piece (a “Frankenstein’s Monster” according to Clausen) that it was only technically possible to play the album live using a full orchestra, a project which Efterklang pulled off with some aplomb last summer, performing with, among others, the Danish National Chamber Orchestra (and documented on the Performing Parades LP/DVD, released last October). “Parades was a big playground where we could explore all the opportunities we could think of. If we needed a tuba player we’d grab the phone and find one; there were no limits to what we could do in the studio. That, strangely, made it a tough project as it can be difficult to know when to stop playing with the sound. It was quite a strain for us, staying in the studio for a year and a half, not playing a single concert. After that, we had to really think about which direction we were going in. It didn’t feel natural for us to make it ‘bigger’ than Parades because that was gigantic and the practical details of organising an orchestra are insane.” For Magic Chairs, Clausen admits, there was a natural tendency to downplay their previous grandiosity. “This time around it was more about limiting ourselves a bit more, and trying to make it easier
to transfer to a live setting. The songs were recorded with the four or five of us playing together at the same time, which is a little different for us.” Previous Efterklang releases appeared courtesy of the small but beautifully-formed Yorkshire-based The Leaf Label (who have released work by Caribou, Four Tet and many more notables). This time round, the comparatively big hitters (yet no less independently minded) of 4AD are overseeing the release. Clausen explains the switch: “We’ve grown as a band and it’s now the perfect time for us to move to something bigger – a label that will still understand Efterklang and what we’re doing but at the same time be able to push it to more listeners. This was perfect as we’ve been fans of 4AD for a while and when we did contact them they were very keen to release this new album. What was really important was the fact that they gave us the freedom to do whatever we were doing and that they understood that we are a band that works in different ways – on our own – and they just wanted to amplify that a little more than we’ve been used to. So our mutual perspectives are perfect really.” So does this mean that the darlings of the underground chamber orchestra scene are shilling for the mainstream plaudits? Clausen laughs wryly. “It might sound like that but actually the 4AD deal came about after we’d made most of the songs already. To us it’s more apt to imagine it as an experiment for us. We’ve never made an album like this before and were curious to see what Efterklang would sound like if we made an album in a more accessible, focused or simple way. It’s not really made with the purpose of reaching more listeners, but if that happens, it will be nice.” Efterklang play Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, 23 Apr Magic Chairs is out now on 4AD efterklang.net
"We've grown as a band and it's now the perfect time for us to move to something bigger – a label that will understand what we're doing but at the same time be able to push it to more listeners." Casper Clausen April 2010
THE SKINNY 39
RECORDS
THE DIRTY DOZEN Armed with the April singles and a ghetto blaster from 1991, Dave Kerr finds WHY? frontman Yoni Wolf "pimpin" in a Glasgow hotel room decked out like Pat Butcher's knocking shop. "I don’t like much stuff," Mr Wolf cautions, "but it’s going to take something pretty serious to make me give a song a thumbs down" Interview Dave Kerr Photo Wes Kingston Admiral Fallow – Squealing Pigs (Lo-Five, 5 April) [Listens intently] Yoni: I liked this better when it was the guitar picking and it sounded like a solo act. The band is cool but it’s more typical. It became a little dramatic, a little too college screamy. [Song builds to its climax] Yeah, that’s too much for me; it’s cacophonous and I like mellow shit. It seems sincere and the lyrics are good. I’m not really into that big band trend – I don’t know if his live band is like 12 people on stage with freakin’ horns – that’s a little too much for me; just keep it simple.
Sweet Sweet Lies – Overrated Girlfriend/The Day I Change (Dumb Angel, 19 April) [Barely lasts a bar] Yoni: [Chokes on his food] Get it out! Take it away! Oh god, let’s just leave it at that! Dave: Is that your first ‘thumbs down’? Yoni: [Laughs] Yeah. I’m sure they’ve very nice guys, but that made me feel very uncomfortable. When you feel uncomfortable like that it’s something within yourself where you know you have a part of whatever you hate about them. So it’s in me, it’s on me. Mother Mother – Hay Loft (Last Gang, 19 April) Yoni: Sounds pretty typical so far. [Vocals kick in, reminiscent of a Japanese schoolgirl on crack] Nevermind! I thought this was about to be something else until those vocals kicked in. I don’t know what Last Gang Records is, but I don’t think this is going to do what they might want it to... maybe it will. Not my cup of tea, but kinda cool sounding.
Sparrow and the Workshop – I Will Break You (Distiller, 5 April) Yoni: Sounds like Cat Power, her voice. I like the sound, it’s real basement and the drums are right up front, I like that. I like the little switch up in the time signature too. Her lyrics aren’t quite as compelling as I would like, they’re a little easy, perhaps not from her soul soul but more about what she thought she should say. But the structure of the song is really nice, it’s a thumbs up altogether.
Andrea Triana – Lost Where I Belong (Ninja Tune, 5 April) Yoni: That’s a little too smooth for my taste, doesn’t sound rough around the edges. Her voice is a little too good. The production’s a little stiff, it sounds looped...it’s a bit too rigid. I’d enjoy this while I was sippin’ a latte or something, but I wouldn’t listen to it at my house.
Efterklang – I Was Playing Drums (4AD, 19 April) Yoni: They’re famous already, they don’t need my help. [Bass kicks in] I do love bass guitar, man, more than anything. But what am I going to say about this? I mean it’s really good, high-end production, thought-out songwriting. I can’t say it’s putting hooks in me right now but I like the little triplet thing they keep doing with the rhythm. It’s the sound of a really established band that knows what it’s doing – that may not necessarily be a good thing though. Malachai – Snowflake (Double Six, 12 April) Yoni: Wow, is it overdriven like this or is that your speakers? It has a White Stripes kick to it, a little bit of Kinks. It almost sounds like footballer rock. It’s approaching that, but it’s dirtier. [Checks the press release] It’s on Double Six, the Domino subsidiary. It sounds like Domino’s new thing. It’s good, though, I can’t hate. It’s not something I’d put on, but it’s considered pop. Silver Columns – Cavalier (Moshi Moshi, 19 April) Dave: Do you know of Adem, or The Pictish Trail? This is their new collaboration. Yoni: A-D-E-M? I’ve seen that, never heard him though. This is too upbeat for my taste, too dancey. Sounds a bit like Ben Gibbard from Death Cab for Cutie on vocals. It’s in seven though, you rarely hear that in dance music, so that’s kinda cool. They’ve got good voices and the track’s not like an overload; it all sits together in the right way. I’m all for people trying some different shit, especially if they’re more known for being singer-songwriters. Over the Wall – Settle Down (Motive Sounds, 5 April) Yoni: It’s like Wolf Parade – those vocals – like Spencer [Krug]. [Pays close attention to the lyrics] There’s some real emo sentiments in there, some Bright Eyes kinda shit. I don’t really like Bright Eyes that much; some of it’s a little too dramatic for me. This sounds sincere, though, they’re coming from the heart and I like that.
40 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
Mariachi El Bronx – Holy (Wichita, 26 April) Yoni: I’m always gay for mariachi. [Checks the press release] I’m not seeing any south of the border Latin names in the roster and I’m a little weird about a bunch of white dudes playing mariachi shit. It’s like, y’know, stay true to your roots. It reminds me of – what’s that group called – those guys from Arizona. Dave: Calexico? Yoni: Yes, it’s the same thing there. There’s something false about it, like it’s a shtick. This sounds contrived to me. Obviously they’re good musicians, you can’t take that away from them, but I’d just rather listen to real mariachi in Spanish. What’s their label? Dave: Wichita. Yoni: I like Wichita, now I feel like a hater. And I’m hating on Bright Eyes too. Oh man, what am I doing?
SINGLES OF THE MONTH: Adam Stafford - Shot Down You Summer Wannabes / Frederick Wiseman (Wiseblood, Out Now) Yoni: Where’s he from? Dave: Falkirk originally, but he lives in Glasgow. Yoni: Oh great, I’m going to say something bad about him, then he’s going to be [at Stereo for the Why? gig] tonight and kick my ass. [Song starts with a looped, echoing vocal] That’s more my style. It reminds me of that TV on the Radio song – Ambulance – on the first full-length when he does that. This is only coming out of one speaker, though. Dave: It’s coming from a speaker on the floor too. Yoni: I thought that was just some wild panting from another room. [Keeps listening] This is my favourite thing yet, I’d listen to this all the time. I’d be afraid with a guy like this, though, that he’d
start to get a bit of attention, he’d hire a band and his shit would sound totally average. Dave: He had a band – Y’all Is Fantasy Island – who just split up recently. There was nothing average about them, though. Yoni: If it’s a single voice I’ll enjoy watching someone perform a capella if they do it right. That’s definitely good shit, that’s great. The Twilight Sad – The Room (Fat Cat, 5 April) Yoni: Sounds like The National a little bit, which I like a lot. Dave: Peter Katis mixed their first album, but he didn’t have anything to do with this... Yoni: Ha, and it’s the one that sounds the most like the National? I’d say somehow it manages to marry both crushing noise and sparse elegance. I like how it progresses into that noise too... nice, and very live sounding. This is probably the only other thing that I would listen to on my own, out of everything you’ve played. That and Adam Stafford, it’s more up my alley.
BURNT ISLAND
SON LUX
WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS
MUSIC AND MATHS
WEAPONS EP
OUT NOW, CHAFFINCH
26 APR, ANTICON
THE LAST PLACE YOU’LL LOOK EP
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12 APR, FAT CAT
To Music and Maths, add a double period of English, for Burnt Island’s debut is a decidedly literary affair. Led by author Rodge Glass and partly inspired by David Foster Wallace, you’d expect great lyrics at the very least, and Glass doesn’t disappoint, with the slight A New Start the bittersweet peak. Musically, his band match the high standard: the title track’s soulful swells and the flute and viola-soaked opening croon A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again are the highlights, but in truth there isn’t a misplaced note to be found. Amber Comerford’s harmonising tones on the likes of Man On Fire add a welcome additional texture, and the overall effect is one of modest splendour. [Chris Buckle]
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/BURNTISLAND
Building six tracks from one takes some doing, but that’s the gauntlet Son Lux’s Ryan Lott throws down on the Weapons EP. As the standout cut from 2008’s fascinating At War With Walls & Mazes, the original seems a sound jump-off point, yet Lott’s solo efforts on Weapons II and Weapons V rinse out like origami-shaped outtakes. Reinterpretations from fellow Anticon stable mates and a peer from a similar classical background to the prodigious maestro are more transfixing: Polyphonic’s pinball percussion canonises Weapons III, while Alias weaves a rewarding break beat over the original vocal before dropping a rare verse of his own, leaving Nico Muhly to soak Weapons IV in gnarly viola. It’s an uncomfortable listen at first, but one with various payoffs. [Billy Hamilton]
The Last Place You’ll Look reprises two standout tracks from We Were Promised Jetpacks’ underrated debut LP These Four Walls – Short Bursts and This Is My House – in slower, more restrained versions. Despite Adam Thompson’s primal wail being one of the band’s strengths, it actually works quite well, highlighting the dark inspiration for those vocal dramatics. By now Jetpacks have the slow-build-to-ecstatic-release thing down pat, exemplified on With The Benefit of Hindsight, which accelerates from nothing into a magisterial finale. Opening track A Far Cry is even better, gathering steam with bump-and-rolling drum fills and brief flashes of big guitars, before somehow managing to keep its climax going for a full minute-and-a-half. Jetpacks know what they’re good at, and they’re very good at it. [Ally Brown] WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS PLAY STAG & DAGGER FESTIVAL, GLASGOW ON 22 MAY WWW.MYSPACE.COM/WEWEREPROMISEDJETPACKS
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SONLUX
ROBIN GUTHRIE
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BENNI HEMM HEMM
DAM MANTLE
SUNFLOWER STORIES
RETALIATE
GREY EP
5 APR, ROCKET GIRL
26 APR, KIMI
5 APR, HALLELUWAH HITS
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It feels a strange observation to make, but former Cocteau Twin Robin Guthrie appears to have mellowed over the years. Somehow the Grangemouth multi-instrumentalist has stretched his former outfit’s dream pop yarn further yet with new EP Sunflower Stories. Rich in atmosphere, each track is a haze of cushioning guitar and brittle arrangement. Petals drifts out as an escalating blur of lonesome shoegaze, while Slightly Out Of Focus’ echoic veneer is subtly laced with tear-stained melancholy. Sadly, inattentive listeners will hear these luscious cuts as little more than a soothing dinner party soundtrack, but rest assured Guthrie’s cinematic tales warrant further attention from lugholes and a higher rank in your record collection. [Billy Hamilton] WWW.ROBINGUTHRIE.COM
Having stitched himself into Scotland’s alt-folk fabric (working with Withered Hand, Eagleowl and Alasdair Roberts amongst others), Retaliate is an inauguration of sorts for Icelander Benni Hemm Hemm. It if sounds like the work of a more seasoned songwriter, that’s because it is: with three albums and two EPs already under his belt, Benni’s Englishlanguage debut bristles with confidence. From the rich, soulful burn of Blood Of My Blood to the measured crescendo of Blood On Lady Lawson (lyrically, he seems to have a thing for haemoglobin Retaliate stirs and pacifies in balance. But it’s the quivering beauty of Church Loft that’s most likely to trigger shivers, and in doing so stoke his already strong reputation further still. [Chris Buckle]
There’s definitely something in the water in Glasgow; from the city that’s only just given us Rustie and the squelchy aural bliss that is ‘aquacrunk’ emerges an artist who has barely anything in common with the aforementioned, sonically speaking; however Dan Mantle is equally exciting. A Statue That Is Perpetually Unveiled finds a string section unravelling over and over, like a strategically starched vinyl copy of Stravinsky’s Petrushka, its cross-rhythms implying some impossible spatiotemporal territory between modern Cuba and early 20th century Russia. On Yoghurt, oriental lutes ring modulated beyond recognition, toyed with like a child playing with a Speak ‘n’ Spell, implying that this compelling debut was as much fun to make as it is to hear. [Joe Barton]
BENNI HEMM HEMM PLAYS BLOC, GLASGOW ON 30 MAR
DAM MANTLE PLAY STEREO WITH GOLD PANDA ON 14 APR
WWW.BENNIHEMMHEMM.COM
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/PORCELAINPOEMS
MORE BASS! MORE HORN! MORE COWBELL!
SATURDAY 24TH APRIL
LISTINGS APRIL 2010 ROXY ROOM, Roxburgh Place Edinburgh Thursday April 1 DEAD ON THE LIVE WIRE Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Friday April 2 GERRY LOVES RECORDS LAUNCH feat. Conquering Animal Sound and Debutant. Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Saturday April 3 THE POLICE BOX PRESENTS DAVE? and GOODBYE LENIN Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Thursday April 8 ISTAA PRESENTS: CULTURESHOCK Cluedin AfroCarribbean Music Night including bands, MCs, Dancers and DJ sets in the Room and Bar Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Friday April 9 PATRIOTHALL GALLERY DIALOGUES’ OPENING AFTERPARTY GIG Local indie talent plus visuals from Rachel Maclean, with banging beats in the bar. Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 (halfprice for attendees of the opening) Saturday April 10 SNAKE HIPS’ TEENAGE CANCER TRUST FUNDRAISER The Futuristic Retro Champions, Indian Red Lopez, Ain’t No Woman Gonna Make a George Jones Outta Me and The Chans. Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Friday April 16 ASTHMATIC ASTRONAUT ALBUM LAUNCH Support tbc. Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Saturday April 17 HOUSE OF LA and guests Doors 7pm Tickets: £5
Sunday April 18 THE GENTLE INVASION presents Natalie Stern, with support from Inspector Tapehead and The Japanese War Effort. Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Wednesday April 21 DAN ARBORISE, YUSUF AZAK Doors 7pm Tickets: £5 Friday April 23 BRAW GIGS PRESENTS: STEFFEN BASHJUNGHANS, BEN REYNOLDS AND HANNA TUULIKKI. Doors 7pm Tickets: £6 (advance) Saturday April 24 (Whole Building) THE UNIQUE BEATS FESTIVAL OF ELECTRONICA (VERSION 2.0). Bob Hillary & The Masive Mellow, Frogpocket, Asthmatic Astronaut, Melvitronica, The Amazing Rolo, noi!input, Lectorid, Cracked World Foundation, Ibitron, Deaf Professor, Alex Tronic, Chief of Belize plus Laptop Lounge artists. More electronica than you can shake a stick at. Doors 12pm Tickets: £10 (advance tickets £7 available from Red Dog Music, Grassmarket) Friday April 30 EAGLEOWL E.P. LAUNCH Somewhat of an institution here in Edinburgh, Eagleowl are here to promote the launch of their new E.P. Be sure to get here early, sure to be a busy one. Lo-fi post-folk. Doors 7pm Tickets £5
W Ex orld Tripclusive le Bi ll!
Edinburgh’s clubbing institution presents a world-class night of exotic riddims and Afro-centric vibrations: ANCIENT TO FUTURE
Bass ClefLondon / Live Set Hypnotic Brass Ensemble Chicago / Live Set Mixing the traditions of dancehall, dubstep and African Juju in an unforgettable live show that utilises trombone, theramin, cowbell, whistles and myriad analogue electronics.
As seen on the world’s biggest festival stages, these eight siblings make powerful music that incorporates the urgency of hip-hop, the snap of James Brown and the passion of Fela Kuti. They can be heard collaborating with Mos Def on the new Gorillaz LP.
Souljazz OrchestraToronto / Live Set Canada’s answer to Antibalas, SJO hit the mark with a fusion of afro-funk, jazz, dub and soul that hooks and shakes you. If Lagos and New York got hitched, SJO would be playing at the wedding.
+ DJs Astroboy, Jiminez & Mr Zimbabwe
Buy your Ten Tracks tickets at... Bass Clef
THE NOT JUST FOR PROFIT TICKETING SERVICE www.BrownPaperTickets.co.uk www.tentracks.co.uk
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble
Souljazz Orchestra
At The Caves Edinburgh / Doors: 9pm
Tickets: £11 adv from Ripping, Tickets Scotland, Underground & Ticketweb. Credit Card hotline: 08444 771 000 (24 hours). £15 on the door on a first come first served basis. Venue: The Caves, Niddry Street South, Edinburgh (off The Cowgate). Doors: 9pm - 3am (First band on 10pm). More info, pix + video: www.departurelounge.me.uk and at our Facebook Group.
Next Dates: 21st May (See Over) & 23rd July (7th Birthday)
In association with
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 41
RECORDS
EP REVIEWS
RECORDS
ALBUM OF THE MONTH: CARIBOU
SWIM
19 APR, CITY SLANG
rrrr The North American wilds have inspired many an indie act, from Grizzly Bears to Mountain Goats to Bands of Horses. But let’s not forget another member of this veritable animal collective: Canadian maestro Caribou. The human mind behind this musical creature belongs to Dan Snaith, who for the past decade has been plotting his own migration from glitchy electronica to lounge pop and everywhere in between. Swim, his latest longplayer, is yet another departure, this time to a kind of all-encompassing, sophisticated dance-pop. Album opener Odessa is like a thawed-out Röyksopp track – a punchy, off-kilter bass giving rise to myriad
sonic wonders. It’s Snaith’s mastery of such a vast landscape of sounds and styles that sets him apart. From the harp and chimes of Bowls to the grungy synth of Kaili, there is a defiant disregard for genre or convention. It almost seems as if his aim on this record is to create a percussive flow, channeling all his multi-instrumental skills into rhythm and syncopation. Although the album occasionally trails off slightly, there are more than enough moments of sun-kissed beauty and sonic originality to set Swim apart as an early summer soundtrack – further proof that, unlike his reindeer namesake, Caribou isn’t one to follow the crowd. [Nick Mitchell] WWW.CARIBOU.FM
ALBUM REVIEWS SUPER ADVENTURE CLUB
CYPRESS HILL
SAM AMIDON
AVOID ZOMBIES
RISE UP
I SEE THE SIGN
5 APR, ARMELLODIE RECORDS
19 APR, PRIORITY/EMI
19 APR, BEDROOM COMMUNITY
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Some bands don’t seem to realise that making music is supposed to be fun; Super Adventure Club know it, and they show it. The Glasgow trio’s second album is equally as good as their first, Chalk Horror, great news for lovers of multi-part songs, ever-shifting rhythms, long piercing guitar solos and laugh-out-loud lyrics. New listeners might find Avoid Zombies self-indulgent, but Super Adventure Club are too busy having a good time to worry about upsetting tender sensibilities. It’s this unselfconsciousness that allows their personalities to shine: in the first five seconds they declare their presence with a heart-attack-inducing intro, and in album centrepiece Nosferatu they tease the song to almost total silence halfway through. Why? Because it’s funny. The final track, Pointless Self-Indulgence, is ironically their least indulgent and most pointless song: it’s like a new best friend apologising for one corny joke. Apparently it is possible to hear a band smiling. [Ally Brown]
“In 1991, an artist in Compton picked up Cypress Hill’s debut album. What he heard blew him away; the futuristic funk with a diehard dedication to a certain herb...” Dragging us once again into their halcyon days of glocks and ganja, it’s a shame the Latino legends’ rate of production has slowed to the point they offer a crash course in their own history with every release. Less playful than its predecessor (2004’s Clash-sampling Till Death Do Us Part) – but surprisingly more focussed, given Muggs’ notable absence from the producer’s chair – Rise Up finds B-Real and co. roll calling their stoned celebrity compatriots (K.U.S.H) and threatening to get all “up in yo’ home with the internet technology” (Get it Anyway) as they source inspired collaborations with Pete Rock, Jim Jonsin and Marc Anthony to reinforce their timeless agenda. Rise Up? They just might, but will The Hill ever levitate away from Black Sunday’s towering shadow? [Emil Muzz]
SUPER ADVENTURE CLUB PLAY WEE RED BAR, EDINBURGH ON 9 APR. SEE THESKINNY.CO.UK FOR THE BAND’S TRACK-BY-TRACK GUIDE TO THE ALBUM
WWW.CYPRESSHILL.COM
SLARAFFENLAND
WE’RE ON YOUR SIDE
SAM AMIDON PLAYS THE CAPTAIN’S REST, GLASGOW ON 21 MAY
WOODENBOX WITH A FISTFUL OF FIVERS
12 APR, HOMETAPES
HOME AND THE WILDHUNT
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5 APR, ELECTRIC HONEY
What Sigur Rós are to Iceland, Efterklang have become to Denmark; the critical darlings through whose prism outsider eyes are prone to viewing – and often judging – everything else that ventures forth from the country. With Slaraffenland the connection is a natural one, the two Danish troupes having fused in the past to produce a mashed-up behemoth by the name of Slaraffenklang. Decoupled from their kooky brethren, Slaraffenland remain enchanting: a quintet of sonic explorers who pack their compositions with multiple complementary refrains that crackle with quiet energy. But it lacks the spark needed to fully ignite these ideas, to kick up the pleasantries into enlivened flames. This is only their second release to feature vocals, and We’re On Your Side might have benefited from continued muteness, their chants often distracting rather than adding to the atmosphere. But this nonetheless remains an impressive reminder that there’s more to Denmark than Parades. [Chris Buckle] SLARAFFENLAND SUPPORT EFTERKLANG AT CABARET VOLTAIRE, EDINBURGH ON 23 APR
JAGUAR LOVE
If you give any credence to the media pastime of trend-spotting, then you’d probably file Sam Amidon under the latest ‘folk revival’ along with the likes of Crooked Still, Espers and Joanna Newsom. Not that the 28-year-old Vermont native had much choice in the matter: his parents were dyed-in-the-wool folkies who performed ‘sacred harp’ religious songs and taught the young Amidon the fiddle from the age of three. While tracks like How Come That Blood benefit from a more contemporary sound – and there is even a reworking of the R Kelly song Relief – this is far from the cutting edge. That’s not to say that Amidon is a resolute traditionalist; rather, it’s the overrich, chamber-orchestral arrangements by Nico Muhly which sometimes give this a slovenly feel. Serial collaborator Beth Orton lends her vocals to several songs, and while Amidon does add something new to the folk canon, perhaps it isn’t quite enough. [Nick Mitchell]
rrrr It seems lazy to automatically align any act with prominent brass and a Celtic swing with Dexy’s Midnight Runners, but sometimes knee-jerk comparisons are revealing. Ali Downey, a.k.a. Woodenbox, is the band’s Kevin Rowlands figure; guiding Home and the Wildhunt through its wind-swept prairie/barn dance blues aesthetic though only time will tell if he shares Rowland’s craving for reinvention. Along with a motley bunch of young soul rebels named the Fistful of Fivers – their moniker’s Morricone homage echoed in Nothing To Nobody’s plaintive harmonica and Hang the Noose’s mariachi parping – they project a laddish swagger on hoedowns like Besides The Point, but rein it in on their full band debut’s more sensitive numbers. It’s no insult to conclude their retro passions pale slightly next to Dexy’s best work, but there’s plenty to savour in the likes of Draw A Line’s whistling coda or the upbeat bounce of the closing My Mule. [Chris Buckle] WOODENBOX WITH A FISTFUL OF FIVERS PLAY MONO, GLASGOW ON 4 APR WWW.MYSPACE.COM/AWOODENBOX
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH
WWW.SAMAMIDON.COM
THE FALL
YOUR FUTURE, OUR CLUTTER 26 APR, DOMINO
rrr If, for the sake of your own musical sanity, you’ve been cherry-picking the finest of The Fall’s twenty-eight album output so far, then Your Future, Our Clutter is unlikely to ride high on your wish list. Not that it’s a bad record by any standards, that would be very un-Fall like behaviour, but nor is it a recurrent high-watermark à la The Infotainment Scan or The Marshall Suite (though Fall history dictates such a return is due). Instead, Mark E. Smith’s amorphous bunch mine their seemingly endless resource of dirty garage bass riffs, finding that groove and locking on before burning the mother out. There are a couple of moments when something on a higher plane is reached (Mexico Wax Solvent, Slippy Floor) and for Fall completionists, that will more than suffice. For the rest of us, it’s just another Fall album and – yeah – it’s pretty decent. [Darren Carle] THE FALL PLAYING STUDIO 24, EDINBURGH ON 24 APR AND THE WAREHOUSE, ABERDEEN ON 25 APR
BLACK FRANCIS
HOLOGRAM JAMS
THE WILD HUNT
NONSTOPEROTIK
26 APR, FAT POSSUM
12 APR, DEAD OCEANS
5 APR, COOKING VINYL
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Oozing with brash stabs of dirty synth and riddled with some truly ear-piercing, almost glam rock vocal screeches, Hologram Jams – the second album from Portland electro duo and ex-Blood Brothers, Jaguar Love – is a difficult experience by any measure. Caked in noise, these 11 songs bark at you like a drunken flatmate in the early morning hour, with an unquenchable thirst for blind destruction. Mainly centred on some frankly haggard beats, the sounds used here reek of laptop-orientated overindulgence and offer nothing to hold onto that hasn’t already worn you down. Cherry Soda, with its obnoxious glitches just seems thrown together, as does the tired party sentiment of Up All Night, whereas the seemingly soul-influenced A Prostitute, An Angel is the only track that really offers any kind of considered melody or accessible sonic palette, before it succumbs to overpowering, clunky guitar work. Despite their proclamations to the contrary, everything here is not awesome. [Ryan Drever]
When even your press release foregrounds a similarity to early Bob Dylan, you know there’s no escaping Zimmerman’s substantial shadow. In the case of The Tallest Man on Earth (a.k.a. Swede Kristian Mattson), it seems less an admission of mimicry than a form of damage control: no one wants the dreaded mantle of ‘the new Dylan’ and all the reductive pressure that accompanies its poisoned chalice, so best acknowledge the association and move on. But such avoidance is unnecessary as, remarkably, Mattson’s second album is strong enough to weather the comparison. His passionate voice – all gruff consonants and affected vowels – has a similar roughness, though Dylan was never so robustly tuneful. And the songs themselves are often revelatory: Burden of Tomorrow’s plaintive chorus hooks and holds; King of Spain gallops in formation with Devendra Banhart’s kookfolk; while Love Is All is as heartfelt as its title implies. [Chris Buckle]
Having reverted to his Pixies-era moniker of Black Francis in 2007 – in a move that fooled precisely no one – Nonstoperotik finds flaccid Frank struggling to reassert his musical potency with a collection of songs inspired by his love of the female anatomy. As if that concept alone didn’t reek of impending mid-life crisis, the actual music is even more shagged-out; an unfocused hotchpotch that recalls the bar-band bluster of his work with The Catholics – the crucial point being that The Catholics were the best damn bar-band you could ever hope to hear and Black has sounded lost since they disbanded some seven years ago. Only albumcloser Cinema Star manages to revisit the melodic, oddball glories of Black’s solo heyday: it’s a bona-fide gem but it doesn’t allow us to un-hear preceding travesties such as When I Go Down On You – a track even more queasily inane than its title suggests. [Mark Shukla]
WWW.TAKEBACKTHERADWORLD.COM
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/THETALLESTMANONEARTH
WWW.FRANKBLACK.NET
42 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
MALACHAI
SPARROW AND THE WORKSHOP
UGLY SIDE OF LOVE 19 APR, DOUBLE SIX
CRYSTALS FALL
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12 APR, DISTILLER
This Bristol-based duo would appear, on the face of it, to be suffering from an identity crisis. Formerly Malakai, this first full-length release ventures down so many erratic avenues that at times it feels the point might be lost. But there’s a suspicion that there is no defining ‘point’ to Ugly Side of Love, other than playfulness as the order of the day. This is highlighted in the opening track Warriors: a disjointed, Beefheartesque romp taking in samples from the 1979 movie of the same name. The album then whooshes off to pay lip service to countrified rock on Shitkicker, Latin brass on Lay Down Stay Down and trip hop (of sorts) courtesy of a collaboration with Portishead’s Geoff Barrow. The end result is often discordant, yet rarely dull; one of the few lowlights is first single Snowflake, a well-crafted earworm which jars simply because it’s comparatively ‘conventional’ in the face of its warped pop brethren. [Paul Mitchell] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MALACHAIBRISTOL
rrrr It’s understandable that Sparrow and the Workshop want their best songs to adorn what is absolutely, definitely their debut album this time around. Therefore Crystals Fall comes largely pieced together from the transatlantic trio’s previous two EPs. That it’s all been given a new sheen is neither for better nor worse; all round favourite Devil Song loses its ghostly vocal reverb, but allows its Morricone riff to punch through more satisfyingly. Bolstered by three new songs, cut from the same rugged cloth, ardent fans may find this just enough to warrant reinvestment, whilst more casual listeners may feel shortchanged. For newcomers, and the Sparrow deserves a few, it’s all a moot point as Crystals Fall is a splendid document of timeless alt-country with bite that never once flails or flags. When singer Jill O’Sullivan admits she’s “lost in country” – whatever your vantage point – you’ll be right there beside her. [Darren Carle] SPARROW AND THE WORKSHOP PLAY KING TUT’S, GLASGOW ON 3 APRIL. SEE THESKINNY.CO.UK FOR THE BAND’S TRACK-BY-TRACK GUIDE TO THE ALBUM
SWEET APPLE
WOODPIGEON
WHITE BELT YELLOW TAG
METHODS 5 APR, DISTILLER
rr White Belt Yellow Tag’s martial art-themed name connotes an experience level one step above novice, and as such the three-piece fit the billing perfectly. Their debut is uninspired, but played and produced with enough polish to disguise some of its shortfalls. Methods comes stuffed to the gills with melodies that beg for adjectives like ‘soaring’ and ‘epic’ but land on ‘leaden’. Doves are the influence they’d admit, Coldplay the influence they’d (probably) deny, and unfortunately it’s the latter’s worst tendencies that are most frequently apparent. It’s A Long Way, Don’t You Fall Behind in particular would have fitted nicely onto X&Y, with singer Justin Lockey metastasising into a Chris Martin clone – fine if you’re Chris Martin, but in this context it reeks of piggybacking. Before you give up, the more progressive likes of News suggest they could progress to full yellow-belt status yet. Who said acquiring ninja abilities was easy? [Chris Buckle] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/WHITEBELTYELLOWTAG
VARIOUS
LOVE AND DESPERATION
DIE STADT MUZIKANTEN
19 APR, TEE PEE
19 APR, END OF THE ROAD
OUT NOW, GGI
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Whilst nothing can fully erase the pain of losing a loved one, getting asked to join a band with J. Mascis is probably a pretty good distraction by anyone’s standards – and that’s precisely what happened to Cobra Verde frontman John Petkovic after his friends (Mascis included) saw him spiralling towards self-destruction following the death of his mother. This record is the result of Petkovic’s musical rehabilitation: a levels-in-the-red collection of power-pop, classic rock and overdriven blues that belies the trauma of its genesis. With Mascis behind the skins, Petkovic et al. conjure up some serious muscle on tracks such as the riotous Hold Me, I’m Dying but too many songs are hobbled by a reliance on second-hand blues/ grunge riffs and embarrassing stadium rock middle 8s. The atypically ethereal Dead Moon is by far the strongest track here but it’s a distinct anomaly on this otherwise frustratingly uneven album. [Mark Shukla] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SWEETAPPLESONGS
Written in Berlin, contemplating the lives of his Austrian/German grandparents with one eye on his former home of Edinburgh, Canadian songwriter Mark Hamilton draws intercontinental inspiration on Die Stadt Muzikanten, a “look back at the things I left unresolved in all the cities I’ve found myself”. It’s an eclectic and wide-ranging endeavour that sprawls over sixteen tracks but successfully keeps the hits outweighing the misses. A low-key saloon piano intro melts into a crackling Mercury Rev-style coda; a collaboration with Edinburgh’s own Eagleowl hints musically and lyrically at Tom Petty; while Empty-Hall Sing-Along has a chorus you’ll think you’ve heard a dozen times before yet can’t wait to hear again. And that’s only the first three tracks; rummaging fans of Elliot Smith and Teenage Fanclub will uncover plenty more delights with every listen. It’s a tad too uneven to guarantee widespread adoration, but it would be well-deserved should it arrive. [Chris Buckle] WOODPIGEON PLAY WITH LAURA GIBSON AND WOUNDED KNEE AT CABARET VOLTAIRE ON 2 MAY
NICE NICE
JOSIAH WOLF
SHANK OST
The producers of the dystopian Brit-flick Shank obviously buy into the argument of grime as a handy expression of urban decay, as its official soundtrack brap-braps its way through a roster of East London’s finest producers and MCs. The lead single When The Sky Falls, featuring Shank star Bashy, is aggressive house with a fairly decent hook, but the real gems are to be found elsewhere. Skream’s remix of Donae’o’s Riot Music is surprisingly up-tempo, whilst RoxXan’s Heavyweight features a sly sampling of MIA’s Paper Planes. The standout, however, is Adam Deacon’s anti-violence tract, Madness. Not only rallying against the image that probably led to grime being the genre of choice for this very film, Deacon briefly samples BBK’s testosterone fuelled Too Many Man for brilliant satirical effect. A must listen for those who feel that Dizzie and Wiley’s sojourns into the spotlight have left grime in disarray. [Joe Barton] WWW.SHANKTHEFILM.COM
AUDIO BULLYS
EXTRA WOW
JET LAG
HIGHER THAN THE EIFFEL
5 APR, WARP
OUT NOW, ANTICON
OUT NOW, COOKING VINYL
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Jason Buehler and Mark Shirazi, a.k.a. Nice Nice, make their Warp debut with a collection of sound so rich and triumphant that it absolutely deserves its title, Extra Wow. Scooping out generous handfuls of eccentric noises, rhythms and ethereal melodies from a musical grab-bag encompassing everything from acid rock and tribal percussion to convincingly futuristic electronica, Nice Nice smash these and countless other influences together in a tantalising swirl of manipulated loops, airy reverb and often remarkably sharp grooves. Consequently, it would seem their kaleidoscopic opus is intended to be enjoyed as a single long form piece of art, in keeping with its creators’ free-flowing, improvisational nature. There are similarities to the work of Warp buddies, Battles – See Waves is one such striking example of their forward thinking wonk pop mastery – but overall Extra Wow is its own unique entity, one that’ll surely have your head bobbing if your jaw’s not already on the floor. [Ryan Drever]
Those who unfairly balked at Eskimo Snow’s perceived middle-age spread would do well to skip Why? drummer Josiah Wolf’s first solo effort. Why?’s softening was rewarding, proffering new textures as their sound settled and rested; Jet Lag, by comparison sounds like the same process taken several steps too far. As a refinement of the day-job, this goes beyond spit and polish; Wolf has weathered and eroded Why?’s ornate facets into undistinguished stone. The result is an inconsistent record that meanders anonymously. It doesn’t help that it’s unrelentingly miserable either, Josiah’s lyrics lacking his brother Yoni’s wit (though contemplating the nature of the musky funk conjured in The Apart Meant – “and my apartment smells like divorce” – might raise a smile in the giggle-prone). While there are moments that make its occasional company worthwhile – not least Ohioho’s mellifluousness – its patchiness destines it to be an Anticon footnote. [Chris Buckle]
Purveyors of laddish dance music and grammatically incorrect pluralisation, Audio Bullys are back, and despite the mainstream success of dubstep in their absence, still carry themselves with the swagger that we’ve come to expect. Generally, Higher Than The Eiffel sticks to the format of testosterone fuelled house, as in the incessant stomp of first single Only Man. Gentle tweaking of this blueprint is, for the most part, a successful enterprise; the wheezy Middle Eastern-tinged London Dreamer and baseline house of The Future Belongs To Us being notable examples. In addition, there’s the occasional moment of inspired experimentation, particularly the entirely unexpected plainchant coda to Daisy Chains. A lyrical reference to Led Zeppelin on the guitar-led Kiss The Sky might imply that the group are gunning to fill a certain Oasis-shaped hole in the market, and this album proves that if they iron out the creases they’ve as good a chance as anyone. [Joe Barton]
WWW.NICENICE.NET
JOSIAH WOLF SUPPORTS WHY? AT STEREO, GLASGOW ON 18 MAR
WWW.AUDIOBULLYS.COM
DOSH
JÓNSI
TOMMY
GO
12 APR, ANTICON
5 APR, PARLOPHONE
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For a man turning out his fifth album, Dosh sounds remarkably fresh. New longplayer Tommy makes good on the Minnesotan instrumentalist’s ear for arrangement, while engraining a looser feel through his naturally complex soundscapes. Opening number Subtractions typifies this new direction of sorts, loftily swooping from tribal pulse into a crisp chant-fed clatter of hi-hat, snare and synth. From here the mood gets airy; Town Mouse’s flouncy jazz is aided by a vibrating fuzz of percussion while jaywalking piano and countrified beats signature Andrew Bird’s appearance on Number 41 and closing number Gare De Lyon mutates from earthy lament into a thrilling explosion of bass-splattered drums. Amidst this breeziness Country Road X and Call The Kettle seem almost impenetrable, but their dense sprawls are quickly allayed by the album’s hookdriven highpoint, Airlift. Fidelity-wise, Dosh will always be an audiologist’s dream. In terms of tune, Tommy finds him in another dimension. [Billy Hamilton]
It’s difficult to distinguish Jónsi’s debut solo album from anything he could possibly have produced in conjunction with his Sigur Rós bandmates, such is the ever-sosubtly changing dynamic of their output over the years, and the fact that Jónsi’s affecting, ghost-child vocal delivery is inextricably associated with that work. His decision to sing in English doesn’t clarify matters; Boy Lilikoi (the track being used to promote the album in advance of release) sees him eccentrically wish he were a passion fruit person, making as much sense as if he were crooning in his made-up vowel-heavy ‘language’ Hopelandic. That track, however, is an ethereal delight; an ornately orchestral ode to a happier dimension. Classical composer Nico Muhly’s imaginative arrangements throughout ensure that the vast array of instruments on display – heavy percussion on Go Do, Animal Arithmetic and foot stomping Around Us; plaintive strings on the downcast Hengilas – complement, rather than compete on this heady work. [Wilbur Kane]
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/DOSHANTICON
WWW.JONSI.COM
TOP FIVE ALBUMS
1) CARIBOU SWIM 2) JÓNSI GO 3) WOODENBOX WITH A FISTFUL OF FIVER HOME AND THE WILDHUNT 4) DOSH TOMMY 5) SUPER ADVENTURE CLUB AVOID ZOMBIES
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 43
RECORDS CLUBS
ALBUM REVIEWS
THE UNWINDING HOURS STEREO, 5 MAR
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PHOTO: SONIA MALLAN
Push the stylus down during your favourite Fucking Champs number and you’ll damn near hear Holy Mountain. Drummer Pete Flett’s limbs flail faster than the camera can catch while the two-headed beast’s guitarist stands – foot clamped to the stage monitor – clad in headband and wife beater garb, both hell-bent on inducing tinnitus with a slew of doomy stoner rock freakouts. A parting nod to Indiscretion #243 leads us neatly into unfinished business... When your first headlining gig’s a sell-out, it can only bode well for the future. But when your last band was one of the more underappreciated Scottish acts to emerge in recent times, it’s an overdue acknowledgment of hard graft. The conjoined proverbial phoenix in the room – Craig B and Iain Cook – rise from the smouldering embers of Aereogramme as The Unwinding Hours; they claim a hush over Stereo, only broken by the sound of a barman shuffling ice into a plastic tumbler. Borrowing Olympic Swimmers’ rhythm section to flesh out the live incarnation, what unfurls is a detailed approximation of the duo’s accomplished self-titled debut under the moniker. Whereas the more schizophrenic nature of B and Cook’s former band sometimes threatened to derail it live, The Unwinding Hours appear more determined to keep a crowd transfixed in its reverie. Shimmering and slow-burning, songs like Peaceful Liquid Shell and Tightrope ebb further toward the orchestral euphoria that My Heart Has a Wish... set course for. The unassuming frontman validates a parting reprisal of an old b-side (The Art of Belief) by playfully joking about (ex-Aereogramme drummer) Martin Scott’s reluctance to play it. What a joy to see this new band find a way. [Dave Kerr] THE UNWINDING HOURS SUPPORT THE TWILIGHT SAD AT ABC, GLASGOW ON 2 APRIL AND PLAY SNEAKY PETE’S, EDINBURGH ON 1 MAY. HOLY MOUNTAIN ARE GENERALLY BADASS WWW.MYSPACE.COM/THEUNWINDINGHOURS
WHY?
AUTECHRE
STEREO, 18 MAR
SUB CLUB, 16 MAR
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“We’re from here,” chuckles Yoni Wolf as he climbs up on the pulpit of Stereo’s dank basement. The WHY? frontman belies his shy, nerdy recording persona with a conveyor belt of risqué puns and a more confident stage command than those familiar with the part Doom/part Dylan maverick might presume of him. Equally celebratory and melancholic, the opening salvoes of These Few Presidents and Rubber Traits sound huge with the instalment of Fog’s Andrew Broder and Mark Erickson to the trio. Free of instruments – beyond the odd maraca – Wolf jabs and slices the smoke in the air with a flat fist and adroitly nods to his past as an underground MC when the verses to A Sky For Shoeing Horses Under demand the touch of a rugged flow.
Sean Booth and Rob Brown aren’t ones to bask in limelight. As they are frequently wont to do, tonight they perform in darkness, turning the Sub Club into a serrated cocoon; a jagged womb that shudders and trembles with bass and beats. They’re the anti-Daft Punk, Autechre’s light-show the sole low glow of LED ‘on’ switches. Deprived of visual stimulus and intoxicated by the jarring, erratic rhythms, patrons try to find a bodily equivalent and settle on a mix of mismatched convulsions (predominantly from those with a ‘lost in the moment’ glaze to the eyes) and thoughtful head-nodding (from those more into the ‘I’ than the ‘D’ of IDM). Autechre satisfy cerebrally and viscerally, the mind sated by the intricate motifs and the body by the pounding palpitations. Their intense set is an exhausting eye-opener, even if your widened peepers see nowt but the sweat on the dancer beside you. [Chris Buckle] PHOTOS: ASHLEY GOOD
WW.AUTECHRE.WS
EARL GREY AND THE LOOSE LEAVES WEE RED BAR, EDINBURGH, 13 MAR
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MUSIC
LIVE REVIEWS
A crowd-elected encore sees a few impromptu bars of Hey Jude shoehorned in between Elephant Eyelash’s dizzying opener Crushed Bones and a speed-rapped rendition of 21st Century Pop Song that leaves everybody in a packed house breathless with wide smiles. “Are there any Belle and Sebastian fans here tonight?” Wolf asks. ”We’ve a side-project called Bell-head and Sebastian, a covers band done in a dickish manner.” I guess you’d need to have been there. [Johnny Langlands] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/WHYANTICON
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Openers Fitzroy Soul jumpstart the evening with some high-gain blues and melodic hooks before throwing a soulful curveball that teeters on the brink of dub in places. The songwriting is focused and the band are on point and while the hyperactive bass player may look like Sherlock Holmes in skater clothes it’s the music that captures the crowd’s imagination. Headliners and fellow Edinburgers Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves take it to another level though, their massivelybearded frontman wailing on his harmonica with enough power to suck an alien through an airlock before unleashing his beastly bluesman’s voice on the unsuspecting audience. It’s a staggeringly high-energy affair from the get-go with intricate, locked-down bass grooves and nuanced songwriting making it clear that Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves have a lot more on their mind than mere Delta blues atavism. A classy showcase of local talent all round. [Mark Shukla] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/EARLGREYANDTHELOOSELEAVES
THEE SILVER MT ZION MEMORIAL ORCHESTRA GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, 19 MAR
rrr With his left hand flowing over the fretboard while the right rattles his acoustic’s wooden body and glances over strings, RM Hubbert is one hell of a guitarist. On record, that’s all he is – solo instrumentals only vary so much – but the aura of his live show feels measured and less repetitive. Hubbert’s affability is too low-key to command the room – chatter relegates sections of his performance to background music – but it’s an enjoyable scene-setter nonetheless. While it’s cliché to parrot the indie-poser mantra (“thou must favour the early stuff“), Thee Silver Mt Zion’s changing sound seems to prompt such declarations with every release – if not necessarily towards
their finding-their-feet salad days, then for the skewed orchestrations of their Rusted Satellites/Horses in the Sky period. The opening I Built Myself A Metal Bird – from this year’s Kollaps Tradixionales – suggests the contrast isn’t in quality (its ferocious rock squall is invigorating), but in uniqueness as they ebb closer towards a more well-worn post-rock template. The older God Bless Our Dead Marines proves the highlight, the restraint of its gently crumpled canon climax more stirring than blustery crescendos. Efrim Menuck’s troupe is still fantastic, just no longer in a league so far removed from its peers. [Chris Buckle] WWW.TRA-LA-LA-BAND.COM
MUSIC
ROKIA TRAORE
+ Sweet Billy Pilgrim
Tuesday 4 May 7.30pm £20/£17.50 Voted Best Artist at the Songlines Music Awards in 2009, Malian born singer songwriter brings her unique and inspiring harmonies to Edinburgh. Book now: 0131 228 1155
www.usherhall.co.uk TripleG April 256x155 Skinny Ad PRINT.pdf
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APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 45
MUSIC
Live Music
Highlights by Mark Shukla
HARDWORKING female-fronted Welsh trio The Joy Formidable knuckle down to a slew of dates in Scotland this month. Expect atmospheric indie rock, heavy on melody but with plenty of driving, sinewy riffs. Glasgow King Tut’s on 3 April, Inverness Madhatters on 4 April, Aberdeen Snafu on 5 April and Dundee Fat Sam’s on 6 April – sounds like a solid bet to us. This side of Howard Moon, there are few folk that have done more to raise the profile of fusion than Acoustic Ladyland. Jazz and rock might be natural enemies in most people’s minds – and if that’s true then this is the soundtrack to the most intense hatef**k you could possibly dream of. The energy and invention of their live shows is legendary – see it all kick off at the Aberdeen Tunnels on 2 April and Edinburgh’s Electric Circus on 3 April. This Is Music presents a tasty triple-bill at Edinburgh Sneaky Pete’s on 9 April. Three Blind Wolves deliver vigorous, elbow-pumping folk oddities; French Wives do the spunky indie-pop thing and The John Knox Sex Club deliver poetic, noisy, off-kilter rock thrills. West coasters can catch the same bill at Glasgow Stereo on 10 April. These New Puritans can lay claim to one of this month’s hottest tickets – they play the ever dependable Cabaret Voltaire in Auld Reekie on 16 April. Their new LP Hidden is a glowering, rhythmical beast and by all accounts their live show is as transformed as their songwriting. This can only be good news. Recent Chemikal Underground signees Zoey Van Goey swing by Limbo at Edinburgh Voodoo Rooms on 17 April to quilt us in their stirring, impeccably crafted lush pop goodness. Support comes from local kitsch-disco maverick X-Lion Tamer and Aberfeldy guitarist turned retro troubadour Chris Bradley. US Psych veterans Wooden Shjips show us how it’s done at Glasgow Stereo on 17 April with a display of heady, kraut-influenced noise jams. Only a sucker would expect pop from this posse, so squeegee your third eye and enjoy the trip. With their gyrating, ecstatic rhythms and wee metal boxes that make “SCHHHWWAAARGHHH” noises, HEALTH are something of a pint-cradler’s nightmare. But that’s of no consequence to the brightly-coloured t-shirt-wearing youth that will flock to their gig at Glasgow Captain’s Rest on 20
POET, PROVOCATEUR AND BONA FIDE CULTURAL ICON GIL SCOTTHERON PLAYS ABERDEEN'S WAREHOUSE ON 21 APRIL April. Noise, beats and rivers of sweat this way cometh. Poet, provocateur and bona fide cultural icon Gil Scott-Heron plays Edinburgh’s HMV Picture House on 21 April and The Warehouse in Aberdeen on 22 April. He may be touring off the back of his tremendous comeback album I’m New Here but this cat has enough classic material to play all night long. Don’t sleep. He’s the archetypal loner who also happens to have collaborated with more alt-rock luminaries than you can shake a stick wrapped in flannel at; and on 26 April the enigma known as Mark Lanegan will roll into Glasgow’s Òran Mór to revisit some classics from his staggering solo catalogue. From gloomy, midnight-black ballads to sinister, madcap-blues, Lanegan likes to lay it on thick – but when this dude is in the zone there ain’t no one can touch him. Crystal Antlers’ underrated 2009 debut Tentacles may have fallen off the radar pretty quickly but we’re keeping the faith in this heavy-hitting Long Beach troupe. Their more recent material (available for free download via www.crystalantlers.com) is riding a gorgeous, psychedelic pop vibe and should provide a nice counterpoint to their more aggressive back-catalogue. Well worth catching at Glasgow Nice N Sleazy’s on 30 April, y’hear?
Gil Scot Heron, Edinburgh's HMV Picture House , 21 April; Aberdeen's The Warehouse, 22 April
PREVIEWS HINTERLAND 2010
RUFUS WAINWRIGHT
VARIOUS VENUES (GLASGOW), 3 APR
GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 15 APR
It may only be heading in to its sophomore year, however Glasgow’s one-day, multi-venue Hinterland festival has already made its mark on Scotland’s musical map with an ambitious opening year. Taking in landmark venues such as The Arches and the Sub Club, as well as lesser known nooks such as the cavernous Pivo Pivo and old-school boozer The Admiral, this urban festival is shot through with ever-changing character. Staying true to its original manifesto, a significant slice of the bands on show for 2010 hail from Scottish shores, with Fife’s new, great, folk hope, Panda Su and psychedelic spectres
Ambulances providing two undoubted highlights. Further up the food chain, we find NYC’s anti-folk hero Jeffrey Lewis, multi-layered indie-rockers British Sea Power and DJ sets from British indie-dance poster-bands Hot Chip and Friendly Fires. With further acts confirmed, including Mystery Jets and Johnny Foreigner, not to mention the fact these all-day tickets are on sale for a recession-friendly £15, there can surely be no better way to spend your day come the third.[Paul Neeson] WWW.THEHINTERLANDFESTIVAL.COM/BLOG/
This time last year, a production called Sonette by avantgarde stage director Robert Wilson and the Berliner Ensemble was premiered, based on twenty four of Shakespeare’s sonnets. The performance consisted of cross-dressing actors, outrageous costumes and ‘puppet-like’ dancing. In other words, it sounds just like the enigmatic Rufus Wainwright (composer of the musical accompaniment to a bulk of the sonnets) had a hand in the choreography too. A Wainwright live exhibition is never short on grandeur, candour or indeed lipstick and the carousel rolls into town to promote the release of his sixth studio album All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu this month. Music from three of the sonnets make it on to the recording, the majority of which was conceived of whilst Wainwright’s mother, folk singer Kate McGarrigle, battled in vain against cancer. But don’t expect the tone to be downcast; Wainwright is more likely to celebrate a life than wallow in grief. After recent homages to Judy Garland and the composition of his own opera, Wainwright is very much an ouevre unto himself. Classical composition meeting pop instinct and consummate attention to detail means his live shows are never less than ‘lavish’ or mesmerising. [Wilbur Kane] 8PM, FROM £20
British Sea Power
46 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
ALSO PLAYING USHER HALL, EDINBURGH ON 16 APR
Music
by Eric Ledford for a memorable night at Ivory Blacks (5 Apr). Japanese serial killer experts Church Of Misery and riff decelerators The In April of 1999, a handful of bands gathered for a showcase gig that grew from an online music zine. Known simply Gates Of Slumber open for the legendary Cathedral at King Tut’s (30 Apr) on what could go down as one of the as Roadburn, this annual event takes place in the Dutch college town of Tilburg and now boasts an outstanding line- heaviest bills in the history of doom. Both gigs are compulsory, by the way. Not to be outdone, instrumental stoner up that continually reads like a who’s who of doom, heavy trio Karma To Burn blow the doors off the Cathouse (20 psych, stoner, black and experimental metal. This year’s Apr) and, in the process, prove that vocals are sometimes event apparently sold out in less than 30 minutes, but there unnecessary. are still benefits to be reaped, even if we won’t be travelling On the regional front, bong-burners Low Sonic Drift to the Netherlands this month. Luckily, several of the bands are joined by Electric Mud Generator and Year Of The from overseas take the opportunity to tour the UK on their Man at Captain’s Rest (9 Apr), followed by an evening of way to or from the festival, which essentially means April is deathgasmic mutilation courtesy of Welsh organ grinders packed with an abundance of awesome. Desecration at the GRV (10 Apr) with slaughterous Ruptured heart theorists Eyehategod are gutter support from Neuroma and Cancerous Womb. On royalty, NOLA sludge-outlaws of the lowest order. With the same night, Russian Circles – those post-whatever several narcotics felonies under their collective belt, they Cathouse April 256x155 Skinny Ad PRINT.pdf 23/3/10 16:57:51 soundsculptors of substantial power – and fully righteous will somehow manage to sneak themselves up to Glasgow
Russian Circles, Glasgow, 10 Apr
dudes Earthless commandeer Captain’s Rest (10 Apr) for what’s sure to contend as one of the month’s highlights. Returning to Auld Reekie, black metal is profusely defiled by folk ritual and ambient strangeness when Wondensthrone, A Forest Of Stars and Winterfylleth invoke the pagan godhead at Bannerman’s (25 Apr). Back in Glasgow, our beloved Take A Worm For A Walk Week divulge some newly-scorched anti-anthems at Stereo (23 Apr). Just to set the record straight: Slayer has been postponed (again) until late next month. Repeat: their April appearance at the Barrowlands is now re-rescheduled, so keep your tickets on standby. Get well soon, Tom Araya. Still, the heroic return of melodic Swedish death metal monarchs Arch Enemy offers a consolation of sorts when they obliterate the O2 Academy (28 Apr) with reinforcement provided by progressive shapeshifters
Opeth and old skool thrashgoats Sabbat. It’s doubtful anyone can save Ivory Blacks from inevitable desecration at the hands of demonologists Ragnarok and Transylvanian impalers Negura Bunget (26 Apr), while German exports Common Grave and Belfast fugitives Existing Threat look to run riot throughout the land as they hit up Dexters Bar in Dundee (28 Apr), Ivory Blacks in Glasgow (29 Apr) and The Corina in Perth (30 Apr). For those of us proud to own overwhelmingly 70s-centric record collections, rock warhorses UFO beam their bones into HMV Picture House (24 Apr) and the Ironworks in Inverness (25 Apr), succeeded by double lead guitar innovators Wishbone Ash who promise to flatten the dinner crowd at The Ferry in Glasgow (29 Apr). Remember: multiple shots of bourbon always count as a full meal.
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THE SKINNY 47
CLUBS
The Secret Garden Double Whammy headlines electronic summer in idyllic Croatian setting
THE GARDEN FESTIVAL PETRCANE, CROATIA, 2-11 JUL
DREAMING about an article on the eve of one’s deadline could be interpreted in probably just the two slants. And given that it’s a damp squib of a morning I’ll err on the positive and conclude that this July’s double whammy at The Garden Festival has been singled out by my subconscious as the blazing light at the end of the dark, wintry tunnel. As The Skinny noted last year there are bespoke, electronic festival wonders in abundance on the Croatian coast throughout the summer, and specifically from July 2-11 as the headline event at the Petrcane site shines a wondrous assault upon sea, sun and seasonal sound-tracking. The two thousand capacity event, hugging its own tree-shadowed nook on the fringes of the historic fishing town, presents its fifth edition with a definitive who’s who of house and disco. Essentially two long weekends of entertainment are conjoined giving the opportunity to explore the many sites of local interest during the less-hectic days in between. Fresh from the organisers is the news of
a new purpose built stage while “the quest for perfect sound will continue and we are putting more lighting up in the pine trees to make everything that bit twinklier.” A further addition this year will be a midweek outdoor cinema (the site is still accessible outwith the main weekends) and further platforms constructed upon on the ocean that double as dancing or sunbathing posts depending on the mood. The line-up sees debut appearances from sulky Detroit anti-hero Moodymann (aka Kenny Dixon Jr.) and the Sub Club’s Saturday Subculture team, who decamp en masse for the first weekend. Harri and Domenic will present a daytime Sub-marine boat party as well as locking down at the Über-kitsch Barbarellas club on nocturnal duties alongside their Glaswegian deputies Junior and Telford. The performance of Killer Whale (The Arthur Russell Project) will undoubtedly be the focal point of the second weekend. Russell, who died in 1992 and counted Allen Ginsberg, David Byrne and Larry Levan as collaborators, is cited as a key exponent of house music’s early evolution with iconic releases such as Is It All Over My Face (as Loose Joints) and Go Bang (Dinosaur L).
MOURNING OPTIMO unbelievable news this section can handle this month. After the tears, tantrums and pointless Facebook groups aimed at saving the night, it’s time to accept the inevitable. By the time this issue prints there will be four left, ensure you’re at all of them. After that, all complaints in writing to 22 Jamaica Street please. Elsewhere however, other nights are celebrating their first milestone. Confusion is Sex marks its first birthday on 16 April at The Bongo Club
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more of a family experience and not just a hedonistic overload. The music is carefully chosen and not based on big name acts, which again makes it more personal as artists tend to make a holiday of the event rather than just come to play and then leave immediately. Whilst we love playing the large festivals and love the hugeness and variations in audiences, it’s great hanging out with like-minded people and a slightly ‘more experienced’ crowd, shall we say. The Garden is also guaranteed (fingers crossed) sunshine – a relatively 50/50 gamble in the UK.” As mentioned the dates are arranged so there’s ample time to explore nearby Croatian delights. Garden HQ suggests the island of Dugi Otok. “It’s just an hour away by ferry, it is sublime. Azure blue coves, inland lakes and breathtaking views of Kornati. There is only one road on the island and the locals are ridiculously welcoming. It’s perfect for a midweek visit, another level of blissfulness. The spectacular waterfalls of Krka are a must too.” Something tells me missing this festival would be a nightmare. [Jaco Justice] WWW.THEGARDENFESTIVAL.EU
DJ CHART BRIAN D'SOUZA
Chris Duncan
ORIGINALLY there was a plan to slip an April Fool’s preview into this section, an empty promise that on 1 April Daniele Baldelli would play the Bongo Club or Plastikman would appear at the opening night of Big Wooden Box in Le Cheetah on the 23rd. However, with the news the Optimo Espacio will finish on 25 April after twelve and a half years of ground-breaking music and wasted Mondays, it’s fair to say that this is all the
Most worthy contemporaries Faze Action and Yam Who? team up to perform tracks by the infamous New Yorker while both these artists will be performing under their own monikers too. Other Skinny recommends include Henrik Schwarz, Floating Points, Horse Meat Disco and the artists formerly known as Crazy Penis. Festival ‘vets’ Crazy P, who appear in all manner of forms over the two weeks, are also best placed to give us an insight into how the Garden has grown. Currently they are promoting the event through Croatia, Serbia and Bulgaria. Lead singer Danielle Moore explains: ”It’s to encourage a broader mix of cultures rather than aiming mainly at the UK market, which I think is very important. Tonight we are playing at a 1920s film set where they are serving a five-course meal followed by burlesque entertainment and then we step onto the decks... hopefully everyone will have digested their food by then!” This is an invaluable insight into how this event manages to capture the punters’ imagination and strive for quality. “The intimacy is very important and quite a unique feature these days for most festivals,” she explains. “It certainly makes the Garden festival
(Slabs of the Tabernacle, Volume!)
with sets from residents The Glitch and Dolby Anol along with a guest appearance from Platzblanche. Tictactoe have announced their plans to bring Seth Troxler to the Renfrew Ferry on 8 May for a four hour set after a BBQ on the banks of the Clyde, with support coming in the form of resident Andrew Doran and Affi Koman from Sunday Circus.
Tevo Howard – Crystal Republic (Hour House is Your Rush) We’re lucky to have Tevo playing his UK debut at Slabs’ 2nd Birthday next month. Actress – Paint, Straw and Bubbles (Honest Jon’s) Actress follows up the unreal Hazyville with his uniquely claustrophobic and unclassifiable new album Splazsh. Diegors – O Sea, Hello! (Comeme) This is my favourite Comeme release, Fela-style afrobeat with stealth subbass! Alex Smoke – Lux+ (Hum + Haw) It’s been a long time coming but Alex finally delivers with his third album out on Hum + Haw imprint. The single Lux+ is a beast but check out unCERN too!
Mark Du Mosch – Cold Sweat EP (Cyberdance) 5 tracks: from jackin’ house to raw analogue dutch electro. Pangaea – Why (Hessle) Nods to broken beat and garage, total crossover material and one for the Volume! crew. Amadou et Mariam – Bara (Joaquins’s Sacred Rhythm Dance) (Polygram) Possibly my favourite tune of last year. guaranteed to have folk asking what it is everytime I play it out... Collage – Halb Sirp (Wool Records) Estonia has a fantastic musical heritage, having defeated the Soviet occupation with song (check out the Singing Revolution documentary) . This limited 10” is well worth seeking out.
Denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Regardless of what stage of the grieving process you're at prepare yourself for the best wake you'll ever attend, as Optimo Espacio gears up for one last dance
Interview Chris Duncan It’s not often the five stages of grief get a mention within this section. But when Optimo Espacio founders Jonnie Wilkes and Keith McIvor announced last month that their famous weekly Sabbath party would finish on 25 April, it suddenly seemed appropriate. Within hours of breaking the news via their website, the reaction of shock and disbelief from their fanbase across the world spoke volumes about the kind of influence Optimo Espacio has had since it began in the Sub Club back in 1997. The kneejerk reaction of a pointless ‘Save Optimo’ Facebook group appeared quickly as some took the news worse than others. The Skinny spoke to Optimo shortly before their plans to wrap up the night were made public. Staying safely outwith vengeful striking distance and taking time out of their extensive Austrailian tour, Keith and Jonnie explained their reasoning behind ending the night. “It was a big, big, decision that involved many sleepless nights. We love doing the club but after 12 years of doing it weekly, it felt like the time was right to stop it and get our lives back a bit as well as having the extra time to devote to all the other things we want to do. Doing and promoting a club eats up an enormous part of our lives.” says Keith. “I really don’t know what the reaction will be. I’m sure that the very last night will be very emotional." Keith continues "I hope people will understand why we felt the time was right to move forward.” The reality of the response was somewhat varied, with the posters on the Echatio forum, naturally, expressing their best wishes and sharing fond
memories of various landmarks of nights gone past. Meanwhile fans further afield simply expressed their sheer disbelief at the news. But perhaps the blow has been softened to an extent, with the news that Twitch and Wilkes are still remaining fully creative, with a Fabric mix forthcoming and a new weekly night that will replace Optimo Espacio. “To be perfectly honest, at this point we’re not 100% sure what the new night will turn out to be like." admits Keith "We don’t even have a name for it yet. When we started Optimo Espacio there weren’t very many DJs we were into, especially in Glasgow. Now there are loads of fantastic DJs in Glasgow and we would like to involve them in the new night – although nobody has been asked yet. We will also bring DJs we like from around the world to play, as well as bringing live acts who may have the opportunity to play extended sets. Jonnie and I will of course still play from time to time, I think the format of the new night will reveal itself as it develops over time. But the original spirit and idea that it is a Sunday night out designed to be great fun, covering any type of music that we think deserves to be heard will no doubt prevail. It will be weekly, starting in May, who knows what will happen? Maybe it will be a nail in the coffin for Sunday night clubbing or maybe it will inject a fresh energy. That rests in the hands of the people who go out”. “We finished [the Fabric mix] just before we left for Australia. It is maybe the “straightest” dance mix we’ve ever done but it’s still not that straight – it features tracks from Rheingold, Xex, Thomas
Brinkmann, Crazy Cousinz, Basic Channel and Cumbia Moderna de Soledad, amongst others.” So what have been some of the defining moments, records and live guests over the years that managed to make Sunday night clubbing not only acceptable, but essential and create the sound associated with Optimo? “Too many to mention. I think the defining moment was realising that we did something that seemed to mean something to some people and the ensuing friendships and relationships that developed from that and that are still ongoing to this day. It defined a large part of our lives and that of a lot of the people closest to us, many of whom we would never have known were it not for the club. Defining records, again, too many to mention, I worked out in a bout of insomnia that over 25,000 records have been played at the club since it started. As for live acts, Liquid Liquid of course, Sons and Daughters, ESG, LCD Soundsystem, The Fire Engines, Isolee, the first time The Rapture played, Divorce, Whitehouse, Bush Tetras, Peaches (at Planet Peach, one of the venues that the night moved to when the Sub Club burned down), Grace Jones, Alter Ego, Opel Bastards...” Of course, this isn’t the first time that Keith has drawn the line under one of his creations. As the founder of Pure in Edinburgh he has seen two of his projects go on to be hugely influential, even if Pure is not as well documented as Optimo Espacio has been. “[Pure] was a little bit more straight ahead and emerged alongside the development of house and techno so that in the early days of it the music was literally developing from week to week. It had a very
die-hard fan base. Crazily so! It was born at exactly the right point in time to ride the first wave of people in Scotland going out to hear and dance to loud electronic music in an intense environment for the first time in their lives.” “The end of Pure was the absolute end and after that we all stopped working together. When Optimo the club ends, it won’t be the end of Optimo. Jonnie and I will continue to operate under that name, tour under that name and promote under that name. The label and remixes and all the music will continue. It’s just that Optimo as a weekly night where we both play in Glasgow will cease to be. We definitely intend to go out with a very large bang. Jonnie has a load of semtex stashed away especially.” The countdown to what is simply being referred to as The End will be well underway by the time this issue prints, with only four more outings remaining before the much anticipated climax. In the Optimo press releases and on their website the same line crops up again and again: “It’s not over until the fat lady sings”, a clue as to what’s in store. It’s open to interpretation, a Divine impersonator being the most common guess but one with little or no basis in fact. Regardless of what the secret plans are for the final party, it’s certain to be one of those rare moments where a club actually manages to achieve the grand promises of an unforgettable evening that are so often splashed across flyers and posters by lesser nights. Optimo Espacio, Sub Club, Sun 25 Apr Times and price TBC www.optimo.co.uk
April 2010
THE SKINNY 49
Clubs
Say Yes To One Last Excess
Clubs
By The Power
Of Zygadlo Recent addition to the Planet Mu family Rudi Zygadlo is bringing his dense sound to a whole new audience
previews Daniel Labeij
Big Red Door Fundraiser
Bigfoot’s Tea Party, courtyard 3 Apr
The Caves, 23 Apr
Some Dutch imports arrive at Glasgow Airport in fairly inauspicious circumstances; it can’t be much fun being shrink-wrapped and shoved up the bum of some stag party goon answering to the name of ‘Big Deek’ for 90-odd minutes. Bigfoot’s Tea Party have wisely opted for a less ignominious welcome for the Lowland’s finest by hosting the inaugural episode of Dutch Appreciation this month. Daniel Labeij, he of the well regarded Amsterdam 661 collective and neo-minimal label Remote Area, will headline a veneration of Netherlands techno alongside regular BTP residents Marmalade Man and Faux Pas, with Redux on hand to lay on the visuals. Meanwhile, Simon Stokes of Minibus and Rekluse fame shares the remaining guest slots with Daniel Henley of Hotbox and Dave Scott. Burgers are also on hand throughout the day should your personal homage to the Dutch become excessive. Not that we’re implying anything [Ray Philp] 3pm-11pm, £8/£10 www.myspace.com/bigfootsteaparty
Bass Clef The Caves, 24 Apr
Ralph Cumbers likes to blow his own trumpet. Not in a self-aggrandising way, you understand. The figurative interpretation, in this instance, does Bass Clef a disservice. His spontaneous fits of freeform jazz are merely a signature trait of his effervescent live shows; a beguiling fusion of dubstep and dancehall, with the merest touch of spacious DFAesque rhythms to lift Cumbers’ eclectic soundscapes above the oppressive, subterranean dank more typical of his London contemporaries. Moreover, Bass Clef’s wandering hands extend not only to his beloved brass. As the multitude of YouTube footage attests, he’s not averse to accompanying his beats with the blow of a whistle or the slap of a cowbell either. Catch him at Stereo in Glasgow on 23 April, The Caves in Edinburgh on 24 April and volunteer your skull should you feel the urge to bequeath yourself to his percussive impulses. [Ray Philp]
It’s odd to hear a cliché from someone so creative: “Signing to Planet Mu was a dream come true.” Still, Rudi Zygaldo is in shock, having recently landed on his feet after sending out “a few tunes to about two labels” and getting a smugly casual one-liner back, from a label he hadn’t even contacted. “Do you want a release on Planet Mu?” Yes, please. I read about him on some rather adoring blogs, check out his mix on the Mary Anne Hobbes show. I note his personal Myspace message – nice. I hear he’s been given the official LuckyMe pat-on-the-back. I see him headline a gig with The Blessings and Eclair Fifi. It’s rare that good things come to those who are, well, good, without the soul-destroying process of selling themselves. But, the ‘scene’, the back-slaps, the hype... it just isn’t him. He’s far more comfortable talking about setting the Latin mass to electronic music. “All throughout classical music history composers have been commissioned by the church. It would be interesting to do a contemporary version to banging dubstep.” The album is like a few things you’ve heard, but would never expect to hear together. We’re not talking ‘mash-up’. Layers of live, Zappa-esque guitar and arpeggic synths fit snugly with distorted vocal allusions to the Requiem Mass, supported by the expert, rhythmic precision of the most danceable dubstep and hip-hop. It’s complex stuff, but also so melodic, repeatedly falling back upon the classic pop structure, that it remains graspable, fascinating.
50 THE SKINNY April 2010
Rudi Zygadlo’s ‘Resealable Friendship’ is released on vinyl and digital on 29 Mar
Tevo Howard @ Slabs of the Tabernacle 2nd Birthday La Cheetah, 3 Apr
Confusion Is Sex Bongo Club, 16 Apr
11pm-3am, £10
www.myspace.com/bassclefbass
Claiming the lyrics are “mostly inane rubbish”, he then launches into the narrative behind one of the tracks, Layman’s Requiem. “This guy’s trying to read the weathercock on top of a spire, so he climbs up, then falls through the spire and down on to a Mass. It’s the idea of an unordained man dying in front of the minister, the churchgoers saying ‘Ostracise this man’, and him saying ‘Sing my requiem’” He trails off. This isn’t an isolated incident. Throughout the conversation, hints of a problematic, more epic project creep in. Sitting in his bedroom-cum-livingroom, you can sense this ungraspable new idea, floating ghostlike around the empty Grouse bottle he uses as an ashtray, past the abstract paintings on the wall, lingering over the unmade bed. Within half an hour we’ve gone from new kid on the scenester block, to romanticised isolated artist. Now it’s me veering into clichés. I try to ground the conversation. Growing up in Dumfriesshire, how does he feel about the Glasgow scene? “I actually stopped making tunes when I came up. If you’re not confident, and everyone’s imposing their creative things... the only way I could do it was sitting in my room. That’s what the subject of the operetta is: a creative who doesn’t have an outlet because he doesn’t want to be part of the rat race, so then...” Zygaldo’s done it again. He zones back in. “I’ll send you the synopsis, if you like?” Maybe he can’t be grounded. Maybe that’s a very good thing.
10pm-3am, £10/£12
This 35-year old producer first came to prominence with his third production, Without Me. Originally released in 2008, but re-released last year it’s become something of an underground classic, with support from the likes of the Innervisions and Clone Records crews. Responsible for running his own Beautiful Granville label, named after Chicago’s three-block, Granville area, Howard’s first introduction to dance music came when he inherited his brother’s turntables and record collection after he’d grown bored of them, though he also played piano and drums as a child and later studied the contrabass.Originally inspired by his musical/DJ mentor, Lionel Melgar (who first showed him what a midi file was, only five years ago), Tevo fuses oldskool Chicago house drum patterns with sublime, beguiling melodies to create a mature, soulful sound that belies his relatively short recording career.[Colin Chapman]
11pm-3am, £5/£7
Interview Rosie Davies
Arts charity te POOKa have a knack for spotting creative, yet enterprising talent. This month they take that talent to Edinburgh’s subterranean stronghold, The Caves, for a night in aid of The Big Red Door theatre. With a teeming roster scheduled the event should whet most appetites. I mean, when was the last time you saw underworld creatures, faerie folk and magicians mingle among a club crowd? Up for a drink, dance then shiatsu massage in the chill-out space? It’s just that kind of night. Initial performers vary in levels of mashup ska; the Banana Sessions, Horn Dogs, Pig Fat Panda and the enigmatic Diddley Squat open up the multi-platform soiree. An array of acoustic timbres can be found on the second stage, next door in the Rowan Tree, as the venue is expanded for the evening. However, if you must have beats to feel like you’ve been to a club, DJ Anonymi with Convalent will satisfy that aural craving. Edinburgh’s arts community is coming together to keep the theatre, and its hodgepodge of artists, continuing. Support local talent by getting sloshed in a novel way? Any day. [Nicol J. Craig]
Confusion is Sex began a year ago, with Gamma Ray Dali’s vision of a club where the oddball is the norm. Hosted by The Freaky Brides, featuring tough electronic sounds from Europe and the heady sensuality of pole-dancing Kamikaze Girls, CiS plunges the glamour of neo-burlesque into the sweaty intensity of Berlin techno. Converting the Bongo Club into something between an art installation and an underground rave, Gamma Ray’s creation is unique, sexy and immersive. To celebrate its first birthday, CiS has discovered a new absurdist dance duo – The Muffs – who take the stage alongside Wild Card Kitty and The Brides. Add in Dolby Anol and Berlin’s Platzblanche, the upstairs room of rockabilly and old school punk with decor by The Lynch Mob and Confusion’s hectic mix heads for the next level. Gamma Ray’s concept has encouraged the crowds to compete with The Freaky Brides, to dress up, with vintage outfits jostling alongside fancy dress, and outrageous costumes. Even after a year, there is nothing quite like Confusion is Sex anywhere else in Scotland. [Gareth K. Vile]
Melting Pot Easter Weekender The Admiral, 3 & 4 Apr
In a recent interview Slovenian DJ Umek claimed that “I still remember the illegal rave party we’ve organized in the countryside outside Ljubljana. It attracted a surprisingly big mass of people and one of the main national newspapers reported on the incident, since we were dispersed by the police. And there was the local politician, real smart guy that made us all laugh, he stated that the cows in the nearby village stopped lactating because of the stress induced by the loud techno music.”Well, emerging talent Niche and former Subcity Radio techno stalwart Kill The Kid have taken this achievement from Umek up as something of a challenge. For their first event they’ll be delivering their own sets of tight, minimal sounds that are sure to loosen the roof tiles of many a Queen Street establishment. Big Wooden Box returns in June with an exclusive set from Hans Bouffmyhre.[Chris Duncan]
First up at the Melting Pot Weekender disco aficionados Dance Dance Dance! join the residents to help pay tribute to one of the most influential clubs and DJs on the disco and early house scene, The Paradise Garage, and its resident, Larry Levan with tracks from DJ History‘s Paradise Garage Top 100 as well as Levan’s own productions set to be aired. Drawing legions of fans during its 1977-87 existence; Levan held the power to single-handedly break new records, his marathon sets proving inspirational to many other DJs. They’d often include his productions, which he’d tweak from week-to-week to ensure maximum dancefloor impact. The following night, one of New York’s longest serving and much-loved DJs, Danny Krivit makes a welcome return. A DJ for nearly forty years, he’s played at such legendary night spots as The Loft, Danceteria, The Roxy and The Paradise Garage. Starting out at his father’s Ninth Circle venue, he developed a career throughout the 70s, immersing himself in the scene while establishing close friendships with the likes of Larry Levan and François Kevorkian, eventually becoming resident at The Roxy, famous for breaking the then nascent hip-hop scene. In the 80s he gained a reputation for his edits, reworking artists such as James Brown and Gloria Gaynor, and producing what’s become the quintessential version of MFSB’s Love Is The Message. However, the real defining moment in his career came in 1996 with his establishing of Body and Soul alongside Joe Claussell and François Kervorkian, the weekly Sunday party. Running for seven years, it became an international institution, with clubbers making the pilgrimage from all over the world. Still a busy man with dates across the globe, including occasional international Body and Soul events and New York residency at his own 718 Sessions, this is a rare opportunity to catch him on Scottish shores.[Colin Chapman]
11pm-3am, £5
11pm-3am, £8/£12
11pm-3am, £12
Big Wooden Box La Cheetah, 23 Apr
Fenech Foreign Legion
Scotland's visionary collective LuckyMe are taking over one of the night-time stages at Sonar in Barcelona this year. Dominic Flannigan tells how!
The first lady of youthful noise Annie Mac returns to Death Disco as part of her tour, and brings Fenech Soler into her traveling circus
NOT A HAIR IN THE WORLD: Mike Slott
Interview Chris Duncan
Text Chris Duncan Photo Ben Thomas The more vigilant amongst you may remember January’s Death Disco column, which highlighted a variety of emerging artists that the night had tipped for great things this year. Included within said list were Gold Panda, Two Door Cinema Club and Northamptonshire’s electro darlings Fenech Soler. The latter are still forging a warm synth and bass guitar sound that manages to sound very tight and well-produced in spite of the fact that the group remain in their infancy. However, two important factors have changed since our previous mention of the Kings Cliffe outfit at the beginning of the year. Firstly, they've evolved from their original threepiece project (consisting of brothers Ben and Ross Duffy, with childhood friend Dan Soler) and have now combined with drummer and studio partner Andrew Lindsay to become a regular four-piece. Secondly, after being cited as being one of the best unsigned bands in the country following their appearance at the In The City festival in
Manchester back in October 2009, the group now have a release, called Stop and Stare, on Moda Music inbound for 12 April. This will be their second release after they were first spotted by French dance don Alan Braxe, who released the band’s debut single The Cult Of Romance on his Vulture label last summer. Introduced to London via Vulture, the track picked up plays from Pete Tong, Kissy Sell Out, Eddie Temple Morris and Annie Mac, who included the Alan Braxe mix on her 2009 compilation. In the autumn, the follow-up single Lies, released and championed by Jaymo and George’s label, quickly gained the support of Zane Lowe. On top of the Moda Music deal the group recently collaborated on Groove Armada’s Paper Romance and have remixed the latest Marina & The Diamonds single Hollywood into a bonafide dancefloor hit. Stop And Stare displays the band’s knack for Radio One-friendly hooks and peak time floor filling. Death Disco takes place on 17 Apr with an Annie Mac Presents... special. Annie Mac will be joined by Ed Banger rap brat Uffie, Jaymo and Andy George, Boy 8Bit, Doorly and a live set by Fenech Soler. 10.30pm-3am, £18/£9
The Arches, 253 Argyle Street, Glasgow 0141 565 1000 www.deathdisco.info
Back in 2002 the LuckyMe collective had, in their own words, “the common desire to create hip-hop in a city where, at the time, there was no hip-hop culture”. Eight years down the line it’s fair to say that their plans have been realised on a much larger scale than anyone, including LuckyMe’s creative director Dominic Flannigan, could ever have imagined. So how did their Scottish-based activities result in them curating a stage at Sonar by night this year? “For the last few years we have been involved with some guerrilla events around the festival, one for the guys at Dazed and Confused magazine and one last year with some Spanish promoters for our friends at Numbers. Both those shows were sold out events and so this year we thought the only way was up, to graduate to a stage. “I should add that two years ago Erol Alkan missed a flight and so all the stages got kinda messed up at the last minute, and so HudMo, Rustie and Flying Lotus played back to back on the stage that we are getting this year. The whole crew sat up on the stage that night – drunk and bugging out as the sun rose behind the audience as we played. Unbelievable. So it feels very natural for us to get an event [at Sonar] this year.” Appearing on the stage in June are The Blessings, Mike Slott, Machinedrum, LuckyMe’s first band signing American Men, along with Éclair Fifi and John Computer. With an ever growing roster of musicians in their family, how were the artists appearing on LuckyMe’s stage selected? “Our process for picking the acts was really simple – these are the artists we are putting out this year. We trust every single artist we work with. Anyone
on the label could have stepped to this show but the people we are putting on at Sonar have forthcoming projects that we are releasing soon. “Mike Slott’s background is in jazz and hip-hop but his palette of sounds come from electronic equipment. Shimmering synths and cracking drums. It’s beat music, simply. Eclair Fifi is our favourite DJ because she gets juxtaposition better than anyone. It’s not contrived with her. She’s not ticking boxes by playing such eclectic and weird music – techno into disco into juke house into rap – it’s that she sums up the ethos of the crew so well by just seeing a sensibility that runs through all genres. She parties hard too so she guarantees that people will want to dance.” After the phenomenal success of Hudson Mohawke’s debut album Butter, LuckyMe received even more international attention, a trend that is sure to continue after their evening at Sonar. So how do artists join this exclusive collective? “A lot of our label are Scottish, or we’ve had a personal relationship with them before the label. Nepotism, if you will. But we’re always playing shows and meeting cool people across the world that we want to work with. Like Lunice or Hovatron for instance, these are guys we know from touring and we just related so well in music and in hanging out that we naturally wanted to work with them. Other guys like Machinedrum are artists we’ve respected since before we formed the label. If you like what we do you can be involved – just say hello at a show.”
Sonar 2010, 17-19 Jun, Barcelona Visit www.sonar.es for more details www.thisisluckyme.com
April 2010
THE SKINNY 51
Clubs
LuckyThem
Thanking our clients across Scotland Snafu Otto Bar Kohl Che Camille Wannaburger Bongo Club Max’s Kansas City Stockbridge Restaurant Blythswood Square Hotel Earl of Marchmont Wedgwood Bacchus Neighbourhood Neighbou Bar MC Renroc Cyan Open Ear Music: 24-hours a day, tailored playlists using the finest new music for bars, cafes, restaurants and shops Sign up for a free trial today at www.openearmusic.com Garage Skinny Ad_April_PRINT.pdf
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52 THE SKINNY APRIL 2010
23/3/10
16:16:41
GLASGOW MUSIC TUE 30 MAR ARCA FELIX, THE DARIEN VENTURE, FATALISTS
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £TBC
Trio of new bands.
THOMAS TANTRUM
CAPTAIN’S REST, 19:30–22:30, £5
Indie-pop.
MAGIC CARPET CABARET TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
Singer/songwriters and bands.
THE MOLOTOVS
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £6
Punchy pop.
RECORD LABEL COMPETITION
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £5
A new batch of bands.
GLASGOW SLOW CLUB (BENNI HEMM HEMM) BLOC, 20:00–00:00, FREE
Punters bring their own playlist.
TUESDAY MUSIC CLUB
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 20:30– 12:00, FREE
Open mic night.
ADELAIDE’S CAPE, ENGRAVED IN WAVES, MARTIN WRIGHT 13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
Acoustic folk and electro-pop.
WED 31 MAR FORTUNATE SONS
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £7
Single launch.
RACE HORSES
CAPTAIN’S REST, 19:30–22:30, £5
Experimental pop.
TRAPPED IN KANSAS, KELLY AND KELLY, CURSIVE HEARTS
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £TBC
Indie, rock and poppy-punk.
LIVE JAZZ
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
Jazz classics and modern standards.
FUSION MUIC SHOWCASE MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
Indie bands from Scotland.
MONO JAZZ
MONO, 20:00–23:00, FREE
Weekly jazz residency.
CRYPTIC NIGHTS: KITTY THE LION
CONQUERING ANIMAL SOUND (DEBUTANT)
Folk-pop.
Punk noise.
CCA, 20:00–22:30, £5
TOO MANY VICES, THE CAIROS, TRAVELS
MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
Energetic rock and pop-punk.
TREACHEROUS ORCHESTRA
RENFREW FERRY, 20:00–22:30, £15 (£12.50)
Contemporary folk enesemble.
CODES (JOHNNY AND THE GIROS)
BARROWLANDS, 19:00–23:00, £6
New bands showcase.
X FACTOR LIVE
SECC, 19:30–22:30, £28.50
The current crop of ‘stars’.
Live acoustic acts.
RIOT IN THE ROCK SHOP MAGGIE MAY’S, 23:00–03:00, £5
Easter Sunday club special.
MON 05 APR THE BROADCAST (2 THIRDS OF YOUTH) ABC, 19:00–22:00, £6
TEENGIRL FANTASY
Alternative four-piece.
House and dub duo.
IVORY BLACKS, 19:00–22:30, £12
CRAIG DAVIDSON, SIMON PATCHETT
MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
MICHAEL SIMONS
THE DIRTY CUTS
Folk and blues fingerstyle guitar.
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £7.50
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £7
EYEHATEGOD (TOTIMOSHI)
STEVEI AND THE MOON
Bluesy punk-rock.
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
EP launch.
MISTAKE FACE
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
Acoustic psych and punk-rock. BLOC, 20:00–23:00, FREE
Alternative rock. Bish, bash, bosh.
WHAT’S THE NOISE? (EIGHTBALL, CIRCA 88, THE GREAT UNDERGROUND EMPIRE, THE FONETICS)
New wave dirty punk-pop.
AND SO I WATCH YOU FROM AFAR
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
YOUNG REBEL SET (THE BANTER THIEFS, BAD BAD MEN) KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £5
STEREO, 20:00–23:00, £TBC
Folkish indie-rock.
Battle of the bands style gig.
THE JOY FORMIDABLE (BADDIES, BLEECH)
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, FREE
SAN JOSE, ZYFA, REVERIE
Alternative pop. Rather lovely.
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £5
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
Experimental new bands showcase.
FRI 02 APR THE PADDINGTONS ABC, 19:00–22:00, £6
Indie-punk types. In ABC 2.
Punchy rhythms.
Metal, punk-rock and metal.
Indie-rock farewell gig.
ABC, 22:30–03:00, £12
German electro-dance duo.
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £16
Rock with a capital ‘R’.
SAT 10 APR
ROBYN HITCHCOCK ABC, 19:00–22:00, £13.50
Alternative rock. In ABC 2.
MARTYAZ QUARTET
SILKRUSH, CARRIE MAC
Young jazz talent.
BREL, 15:00–17:30, FREE
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £TBC
Socks Off night goes pop!
BLACK HAND GANG
ADMIRAL FALLOW (BEAR BONES)
Alternative blues.
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £TBC
THERE FOR TOMORROW, THE FRIDAY NIGHT BOYS
ÒRAN MÓR, 19:30–23:00, £5
Album launch.
ALWAYS READ THE LABEL, TEMPERCALM (CATCHER, MIDNIGHT THURSDAY)
IVORY BLACKS, 19:00–22:30, £9
Alternative rock and pop-punk.
PANDA SU (THE BOY WHO TRAPPED THE SUN)
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £2 (£1)
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £5
Bluesy rock.
INITIAL ITCH
JILL LEIGHTON, AL SHIELDS
Live music, poetry, scratch and stand-up.
Folk, blues and country.
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £15
As part of Hinterland 2010.
THE FERRY, 20:00–00:00, £13.50
BACK TO THE FUTURE (THE PROPHET, EVIL ACTIVITIES, ART OF FIGHTERS, MAX ENFORCER)
TUE 06 APR AIRBOURNE (BLACK SPIDERS, TAKING DAWN) O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £15.50
Rabble-rousing Aussie rockers.
SORRY AND THE SINATRAS (THE FAKE EXTERIOR)
New bands night.
Weekly jazz residency.
MODE SELEKTOR
AFI (DEAR & DEPARTED)
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
BUTTERFLY FRIDAYS
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £5
Indie, rock and electro acts.
THU 08 APR
New bands showcase.
SEDITIONARIES
David Bowie tribute.
SOUNDHAUS, 21:00–03:00, £5
Beautiful and bizarre songwriting.
Celtic folk ensemble.
ÒRAN MÓR, 19:30–22:00, £10
BREAKDOWN BANDS
Open mic with Gerry Lyons.
THE CINNAMONS, PENNY BLACK, THE GENERAL
TIGERS ON VASELINE
Jimi Hendrix tribute.
Hip-hop, funk and R’n’B.
THE RAYBANDOS
Garage and indie-punk.
Resident bands and DJs.
THE FERRY, 20:00–00:00, £10.50
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 21:00– 12:00, FREE
EMMA GILLESPIE
Part two of this beat-led night.
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 19:00– 03:00, FREE
VINYL NIGHT
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–01:00, FREE
IVORY BLACKS, 19:00–22:30, £8
BARROWLANDS, 19:00–23:00, £18
A night of ska.
Alternative rock.
O2 ACADEMY, 20:00–03:00, £19
CHARLIE & THE BHOYS
ARE YOU EXPERIENCED
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £8
ACOUSTIC JAM SESSION
Elvis impersonator.
IVORY BLACKS, 19:00–22:30, £TBC
Special compilation CD launch.
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £4
Eclectic rock.
Punchy indie rock. We like.
AMPERSAND, HIROSHIMA BLACKOUT, SYTH, SPEARBRAVE
GLASGOW SKA TRAIN (TRUEBEAT, BIG FAT PANDA)
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £7
THE TWILIGHT SAD ABC, 19:00–22:00, £10
COMMUNICATOR, 19 FOLDS, PISHY TISSUE
THE CELLOPHANES, SCRAGFIGHT, THE CEMETARY GIRLS
THE RELEVANTS, LOST FOR WORDS, AIDEZ MOI, LANDSLIDE
ROB KINGSLEY: A VISION OF ELVIS
ORKO
NOT THE RAGE
MIDNIGHT HARLOTS, THE WEATHER KINGS, THE ANGIES, INNER CITY MAGICIANS, VERTIS
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 21:00– 12:00, FREE
Rockin’ powerpop. In ABC 2.
MONO JAZZ
MONO, 20:00–23:00, FREE
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £6
BUTTERFLY STRATEGY
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
SUN 04 APR THE CARRICK (108 IOTTA, RALLY, THE REPLAY) ABC, 19:00–22:00, £6
Garage and indie-punk. In ABC 2.
JEM
THEORY OF A DEADMAN (HEAVENS BASEMENT, HALESTORM)
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £6
Trio of live bands.
BARROWLANDS, 19:00–23:00, £6
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
BREL, 20:00–22:30, FREE
MATHS, OCEAN FRACTURE CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
Experimental rock.
COLETTE NEILL (ADAM DAY HOWARD) ABC, 19:30–22:00, £5
Soulful indie. In ABC 2.
BATTLE OF THE BANDS
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £5
Bands go head-to-head.
RUCK IN THE DUCK (CUDDLY SHARK, KILL THE CAPTAINS, CALACAS, SHE’S HIT)
THE KING HATS, THE MINIATURE DINOSAURS, THE CLYDE
MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
THE FLYING DUCK, 19:30–23:00, £5
Post-punk, indie and hip-hop.
New bands showcase night.
ALT TRACK, SOUNDS OF SWAMI
CAPSTIN POLE
MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
BLOC, 20:00–23:00, FREE
Alterntaive punk, rock and bass.
RAZORBLADE SMILE, THE SNIPES, PRAIRIE DOGS, DOGS ABUSE
Experimental indie-electro.
RUSSIAN CIRCLES, EARTHLESS
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
Experimental indie and psych-rock.
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, FREE
Punk. Pure punk.
THE MORRA, KID FIRE
All You Can Eat showcase.
FIRST STEP TO FAILURE, LANDON, BURNOUT 27
Alternative rock.
ERYN STRACHAN
Pop-punk, hard and rhythmic.
ALL YOU CAN EAT
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £5
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
New Zealand born singer.
WE HAVE BAND
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
THREE BLIND WOLVES, FRENCH WIVES, JOHN KNOW SEX CLUB
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
STEREO, 20:00–23:00, £TBC
FRI 09 APR
Trio of loveliness.
JOHN BUTLER TRIO
TIPP PRESENT
AERIALS UP
Experimental acoustic folk.
Indie rockin’ showcase.
Glasgow orchestral ensemble.
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £10
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £11
Electro pop-rock.
Indian and Scottish music.
Alternative rock.
THE MEATMEN, THE RUDIMENTS, SCOTT CHARLES
RICKY WARWICK
THINK FLOYD
HONKYTONK
BE A SIMILAR, TINY LITTLE ROBOTS, FAREWELL SINGAPORE
STEREO, 20:00–23:00, £TBC
Acoustic Celtic rock.
Tribute band.
Weekly acoustic night.
Experimental types.
Easter Sunday charity gig.
THE CROOKES
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £5
OPENMIKING
Weekly open mic.
INSPIRAL CARPETS (MOCKER, SATELLITE UNDERGROUND, PHIL CAMPBELL)
COLLECTIVE GETS ECLECTIC (ADMIRAL FALLOW, AARON WRIGHT)
DEPARTURES
Alternative indie-rock.
THE FLYING DUCK, 20:00–00:00, £4 (£2)
Glasgow’s unseen artists and designers, plus live music.
TRADER JOE’S, 20:30–00:00, FREE
THE HALT BAR, 20:30–00:00, FREE
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
Hardcore rock.
VINYL NIGHT
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 21:00– 12:00, FREE
Hip-hop, funk and R’n’B.
THU 01 APR LOCAL TOWN HEROES
IVORY BLACKS, 18:30–22:30, £TBC
Hardcore punk-rock.
A NEW HOPE (BRIGHT YOUNG NIGHTS, JACK THE WOLF, ECLUSION)
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £6
WALTER SCHREIFELS, NIC DAWSON KELLY (MICHEAL MACLENNAN)
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £5
Alternative pop.
TREACHEROUS ORCHESTRA
WRONGNOTE, NEON ALTAR, MELLIFLUOUS
The current crop of ‘stars’.
Relaxed night with guest bands.
MOUNT EERIE, NO KIDS
TUESDAY MUSIC CLUB
Alternative punk and rock.
Alternative bands.
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 20:30– 12:00, FREE
THE SET-UP, COMA-TOAST, RETROSTAR, CRAIG WHITE
MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY
Acoustic, easy-listening loveliness. BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
THE MISS’S (AERIEL DJS) 13TH NOTE, 20:30–23:30, £2
Acoustic and soulful pop.
SAT 03 APR BREL, 15:00–17:30, FREE
THE GATHERING
IVORY BLACKS, 18:00–22:30, £TBC
Alternative rock.
MYSTERY JETS, BRITISH SEA POWER, JEFFREY LEWIS (FRIENDLY FIRES DJ, HOT CHIP DJ)
THE ARCHES, 18:00–03:00, £10 ADVANCE
Harmonic pop.
SECC, 19:30–22:30, £28.50
NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–23:00, £7
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
Mixed showcase, from jazz to country.
Indie-rock types.
WED 07 APR Skinny faves album launch.
THE CHANCERS, DISORDER, REFUSE ALL, Z.A.T., SOCIAL PARASITE
FRANKIE & THE HEARTSTRINGS (LES COX)
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £TBC
Hardcore, punk and ska.
MARSHALL CHIPPED, SUGAR CRISIS, THE PARAFFINS
DAVE DOMINEY
Funked-up bass loops.
Single launch. In ABC 2.
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £TBC
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
Album launch.
MONO, 20:00–23:00, FREE
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £3
TCHAI-OVNA, 20:00–22:00, £2
Open mic and live acts.
MEURSAULT
MODELS FOR THE RADIO (THE DEAD GENERALS)
13-piece Celtic supergroup.
BLOC, 20:00–00:00, FREE
WOODENBOX WITH A FISTFUL OF FIVERS (NEIL MCSWEENEY)
As part of Hinterland 2010.
THE FERRY, 19:30–00:00, £15
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £TBC
X FACTOR LIVE
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £7
MADINA LAKE
GENTLEMEN OF THE WEST, SIMON DOHERTY
ATTIC LIGHTS
GLASGOW SLOW CLUB (PARTICIA PANTHER)
Groovy, nu-jazz.
Alternative electro-rock.
Eclectic live music.
CHARITY FUNDRAISER (SOUNDTRACK TO A BLOCKBUSTER, WHATEVER THEY SAY) Live bands charity showcase.
LIQUID JAZZ
THE GARAGE, 19:00–22:30, £12.50
BLOC, 19:00–23:00, FREE
Indie-pop.
ÒRAN MÓR, 19:30–22:00, £5
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £TBC
Hardcore thrash. In ABC 2.
MAGGIE MAY’S, 19:00–22:30, £5
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £5
O2 ACADEMY, 19:00–22:30, £16.50
THE FERRY, 20:00–00:00, £13.50
MISS THE OCCUPIER, A.K.M., SCRAGFIGHT
DEADWOOD, MIDAS IS KING, THE PART TIME MARTYRS, FALSE PRETENDERS, THE TENANTS
13TH NOTE, 21:00–23:30, £TBC
Alternative punk fest.
BARROWLANDS, 19:00–23:00, £6
COSMIC PARTY (CRAIG MOOG)
New bands showcase.
BUTTERFLY FRIDAYS
BRUNSWICK HOTEL, 21:00–00:00, FREE
THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, 19:00– 03:00, FREE
Electro-funk disco.
Resident bands and DJs.
CHARITY CEILIDH
PEARCE INSTITUTE, 19:30–00:00, £12 (£5 KIDS)
Dancing and tunes from The Tatties.
LOW SONIC DRIFT, ELECTRIC MUD GENERATOR
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
Progressive, psych-rock.
THE ZIPS, DANGEROUS CANDI, THE BORROWERS MAGGIE MAY’S, 20:00–22:30, £5
Pop-punk and electronic indie.
SUN 11 APR BROKENCYDE, JEFFREE STAR ABC, 19:00–22:00, £9
Crunk kid teams up with Jeffree Star.
IAIN MORRISON BREL, 19:00–22:30, £7
Alternative folk-rock LP launch.
TWO THIRDS OF YOUTH, SACRED BETRAYAL, MAKE SPARKS
CLASSIC GRAND, 19:00–22:30, £TBC
GRANDFATHER BIRDS, TRANSFER AUDIO
Pop-punk, rock and emo.
WHITNEY HOUSTON
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
SECC, 19:30–22:30, £75-£100
Hypnotic alterntaive tuneage.
ISA AND THE FILTHY TONGUES (INNER SIGHT)
Pop diva.
MONO JAZZ
Album launch for the Edinburgh outfit.
Experimental acoustic.
Weekly jazz residency.
THE CAVE PRESENT
CHA CHA HEELS (WHO’S EDNA)
Live bands showcase.
Electro-rockin’ powerpop.
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £6
Alternative five piece.
MONO, 20:00–23:00, FREE
BALMORHEA
STEREO, 20:00–23:00, £7
CAPTAIN’S REST, 20:00–22:30, £TBC
BOX, 20:00–23:00, FREE
THE FLYING DUCK, 20:00–23:00, £TBC
BLOC+JAM
SHIMMER, THE BLIND WATCHMAKER, KRIS TENNANT, KENZIE MACK
THE RAY SUMMERS
DETACHMENTS (VCHEKA)
Open mic night.
Band showcase from Feevents.
Soulful psych-pop.
Minimalist new-wave.
Indie and electro-pop.
BLOC, 21:00–01:00, FREE
PIVO PIVO, 20:00–23:45, £TBC
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £6
KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £5
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 53
Glasgow music Wed 14 Apr
The Sexual Objects, Peter Parker (Noisy Lovers)
A Band Called Quinn
Split 7-inch launch party.
Electro indie fare.
Exposure Scotland (Esperi, Headlights, We Break Mirrors)
SG: In The Company Of Wolves
Mono, 20:00–23:00, £2
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £tbc
Exposure Scotland take over as part of their citywide, month long festival.
Beach Fuzz, Brittle Hammer Trio 13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Experimental and psych jammin’.
Bloc+Jam
Bloc, 21:00–01:00, Free
Open mic night.
Butterfly Strategy
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00– 12:00, Free
Live acoustic acts.
Mon 12 Apr Dropkick Murphys
Barrowlands, 19:00–23:00, £15
Acoustic folk-rock.
Yaman
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Indian classical music on sitar.
FestZest Present (Tiny Little Robots, Modern Faces, Callum McDonald)
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Live bands showcase.
Hunx and His Punx, Water Wolves
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Experimental pop.
Sidetracked
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Hardcore punk thrash.
Exposure Scotland (Julia and the Doogans, Aspen Tide, Dougie Greig) Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £tbc
Exposure Scotland take over as part of their citywide, month long festival.
Acoustic Jam Session
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 20:00–01:00, Free
Open mic with Gerry Lyons.
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £6
Sub Club, 19:30–22:30, £10
Multi-media fashion, music, film and art event,
TFTV Music Show (Sonny Marvello, Louise Against The Elements, Penny Black)
San Jose, Reverie
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Diaz Quartet
Bands and live filming.
The Energize, The Human Zoo, Syndri
Glasgow four-piece on guitar and cello.
South African rhythms.
Butterfly Fridays
Rock and electro.
Get Loose Showcase
The Ace Tones
Four live acts showcase.
Ivory Blacks, 19:00–22:30, £7
The Butterfly & The Pig, 19:00– 03:00, Free
Resident bands and DJs.
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Garage punk with pop overtones.
Alternative folk-pop fun.
Jericho Hill
Live Jazz
Johnny Cash tribute.
Soothing, acoustic acts.
Galleries, Young States
The Dreamers
Bloc+Jam
Big beat pop.
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Jazz classics and modern standards.
Exposure Scotland Part 2
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Four live acts showcase.
Vakunoht, Holy Mountain
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Rhythmic garage rock.
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £3
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Bloc, 21:00–01:00, Free
Indie-pop.
Open mic night.
Alan McKim
Butterfly Strategy
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Self-styled, acoustic singer/songwriter.
The Coonics
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00– 12:00, Free
Live acoustic acts.
Mon 19 Apr
Rock and punk thrash.
Alternative indie.
Fighterplanes
Dressed to Kill
Experimental rockers.
Kiss tribute.
Gold Panda, Dam Mantle
Jackie Treehorn
Michael Simons
Progressive rock.
Folk and blues fingerstyle guitar.
Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £6
Experimental and electro.
Mono Jazz
Mono, 20:00–23:00, Free
Weekly jazz residency.
The Union
King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £10
Indie-rock duo on guitar and vocals.
Single Skin Present Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £5
Indie-rock line-up.
The Bomb, The Snipes, The Stay Gones 13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Punk-pop and ska-rock.
Vinyl Night
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00– 12:00, Free
Hip-hop, funk and R’n’B.
Thu 15 Apr
The Ferry, 20:00–00:00, £12.50
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Sat 17 Apr Declan Forde, Matthew Herd Quartet Brel, 15:00–17:30, Free
Piano and sax quartet.
Shy Child
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £7.50
New York duo. In ABC 2. Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Alesana, A Skylit Drive, Bury Tomorrow King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £9
Hardcore rock showcase.
BoyGirlAnimalColour Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Powerpop show-offs.
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £6
Experimental acoustic.
Metalica UK (Amok, Necropolis)
Ivory Blacks, 19:00–22:30, £10
Metallica tribute.
Simon Thomas, The Partiots, Eh!, The War Club, The Black Rats
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
New bands night.
Tue 20 Apr James Lindsay
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Punk-folk-reggae fusion.
New wave pop-punk.
Glasgow Slow Club (Make Sparks)
Ducksoup
Relaxed night with guest bands.
Mouthy hip-hop and a’cappella.
The Retrofrets, Mungrels, Vcheka (Creative Martyrs, The Fatalists) Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £5
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £7
Industrial experimentalists.
Cake Free Bakesale Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Live music and fun.
New bands showcase.
Mr Protector
San Fran and the Siskos
Alternative types.
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Singers and bands night.
Exposure Scotland Part 1
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Four live acts showcase.
Glasgow Slow Club (Ultan Conlon) Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Relaxed night with guest bands.
Rolo Tomassi, Trash Talk, Throats Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Progressive hardcore thrash.
Stornoway (Dead Sea Souls)
King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £8
Acoustic and soulful indie.
Point Zero, Manic Romance, Dirty Boots, Francis Thompson Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £3
Pop-punk, powerpop and blues.
Tuesday Music Club
The Butterfly & The Pig, 20:30– 12:00, Free
Open mic and live acts.
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Pail McDaniel, Ryan Bisland
Brel, 20:00–22:30, Free
Experimental acoustic melodies.
The Alt, Columbia, Liam Ferns
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Alternative acoustic showcase.
Stone Sound Promotions
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £tbc
Live acts and band karaoke.
King Japan
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £3
New wave folk rockin’.
Fri 16 Apr OneRepublic
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £19.50
Poppy rock.
The Celestians (Silent In Action, Scarlet Shift, Zener Diode) ABC, 19:00–22:00, £6
Four-piece pop-rock. In ABC 2.
Elliot Minor
The Garage, 19:00–22:30, £10
Maggie May’s, 19:30–22:30, £5 (£4)
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £6
The Flying Duck, 19:30–23:00, £4
Subscene Records present new bands.
James Toseland
The Ferry, 19:30–00:00, £18.50
Plus band.
Jim Jones Revue
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Big beat.
The Patriots, Eh!, Sideway, The War Club, Si James Thomas
Experimental rock.
Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Performing second album start to finish.
Angus & Julia Stone
Quirky and melodic noisemakers.
Less Than Sober
O2 Academy, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
4dayweekend (Casino Brag, The Girobabies, Midnight Thursday)
Alternative country.
A Grave With No Name Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £7
United Noise
Any Colour Black
Collective of DJs and artists.
Electro-rockin’.
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £tbc
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
John Renbourn, Robin Williamson
Salon Society
Acoustic duo.
Penetration
The Ferry, 20:00–00:00, £12.50
Dead Boy Robotics, Miaoux Miaoux
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Experimental electro and new wave.
The Flying Duck, 21:00–03:00, £5
Fri 23 Apr Soundtrack To A Blockbuster, Hiroshima Blackout
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Alternative rock.
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Metallic punk and new wave.
Flowers in the Dustbin Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £5
DIY label showcase.
Candi Staton
The Ferry, 20:00–00:00, £20
American soul and gospel queen.
The Murderburgers, The Accelerators, The Priceduifkes 13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Pop-influenced punk.
Sun 25 Apr
Punk-rock with flourishes of pop.
Flood of Red (Whisky Works, Trapped In Kansas, The Void)
Alphabeat
Pre-Rockness gig.
Ivory Blacks, 18:30–22:30, £tbc
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £12
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £5
Guilty pleasure retro pop.
Casino City
Chew Lips
Single launch night.
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £9
Danceable indie-electro.
Semper Fe, Epitaph, Fear Of Silence, Nemecyst
Barrowlands, 19:00–23:00, £6
The Butterfly & The Pig, 19:00– 03:00, Free
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £20
Fuck Buttons
The Arches, 19:00–22:30, £10 advance
Alternative indie-pop.
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Open mic and live acts.
The Wonder Stuff
LP launch with top support.
Acoustic rock.
Tuesday Music Club
Wed 21 Apr
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £6
The Flying Duck, 19:15–23:00, £5
New bands showcase.
The Butterfly & The Pig, 20:30– 12:00, Free
Bless From Within
Butterfly Fridays Resident bands and DJs.
Mackenzie
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £3
Hip-hop meets jazz, acoustic style.
Bear In Heaven, Nevada Base
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £5
Brigade, Telegraphs (Anavaris) King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £7
Melodic rock.
Bloc+Jam
Bloc, 21:00–01:00, Free
Open mic night.
Butterfly Strategy
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00– 12:00, Free
Live acoustic acts.
Mon 26 Apr Yaman
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Indian classical music on sitar.
Minimal pop and electro.
Stereo Decade Presents
Indie-folk.
The Leads
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Chain and The Gang
Live bands showcase.
Acoustic folk niceness.
Funky indie rockers.
Paul Mill’s Mind Excursion
Experimental US outfit.
Alburn, Aviation For Kids, Yeah Detroit
King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £10
Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Funk and soul fusion.
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Mono Jazz
Mono, 20:00–23:00, Free
Revelry Thieves
Weekly jazz residency.
Glasgow five-piece.
Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Wooden Shjips
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Garage-influenced psych-trance.
Lou Vargo, Evan Crichton, Celan Hay 13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Acoustic folk and indie-pop.
Sun 18 Apr
Part Wind Part Wolf Alternative beats.
The Features (Augusta Fireball, Acrylic Iqon)
Alternative guitar rock.
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
Soulful rock and indie-pop.
Sweet Sweet Lies (The Viragoes)
King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £5
Acoustic harmonies, plus trumpet.
Take a Worm for a Walk Week
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Alternative pop and rock.
NME Radar Tour (Hurts, Everything Everything) King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £9.50
Bands from the NME shocase tour.
Stereo Bach
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, Free
Album launch.
Blues outfit with Maggie Bell on vocals.
Bluesbunny Present (Sugar Crisis, The Paraffins)
Vinyl Night
Poppish punk-rock.
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
British Blues Quartet
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, Free
Talented singer/songwriter.
Grunge punk and crunk-pop.
Bullet VI, Escort Knights
Susanna McDonald
Alternative punk-rock.
We Used To Call This Summer
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Solo violin, accompanied by artwork by Magdalena Weglinska.
Psych-rock.
Adriana
Brel, 19:00–22:30, £6
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
Stereo, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
King Tut’s, 20:00–23:00, £6
Yeah Detroit, Hiroshima Blackout
Jody Has A Hitlist (Not Advised)
54 THE SKINNY April 2010
Captain’s Rest, 20:00–22:30, £tbc
New bands showcase.
Classical pop-rock.
O2 Academy, 19:00–22:30, £6
Health
Joe Carnell & The Book Club
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
Ice Sea Dead People, Ex-Wives, Blood Of The Bull 13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Monthly jazz session.
In ABC 2.
The Primitives (Lucky Soul)
Holly Oglivie (Kristina Cox, Alex Wayt)
Here Today Present
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £6
Trio of new music.
Box, 20:00–23:00, Free
Live music, DJs and record stalls.
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 20:00–01:00, Free
Storm Society
Upbeat and melodic indie-rock.
Open mic with Gerry Lyons.
Alternative electro. In ABC 2.
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £3
Brel, 15:00–17:30, Free
Machar Granite, The Gazettas, Feelfree Conspiracy
Acoustic Jam Session
Shakespears Sister (Nadine Shah)
Bluesbunny Present (MagicBox Mistress)
Dirty Cuts
Xeno and Oaklander
Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £10
Back after six years.
The King Blues
The Garage, 19:00–22:30, £9.50
Acoustic loveliness.
New live acts.
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £19.50
Selection of indie-rock acts.
ABC, 19:00–22:00, £5
Brel, 20:00–22:30, Free
Cry Parrot 3rd Birthday (Ultimate Thrush, Eternal Fags, Moon Unit, Cheer, Two Minute Noodles)
Reef
Alternative punk-rock. In ABC 2.
Classic Grand, 19:00–22:30, £12.50
Quickbeam, Graham McGeoch
Communicator, Barry Moore, Simon Patchett, Martin O’Neill
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £7
Experimental bands showcase.
Plan B
Maggie May’s, 20:00–22:30, £5
The Strange Boys
Father Murphy, Citizens, Ug!
Tue 13 Apr
Tchai-Ovna, 20:00–22:00, £2
Washington Irving, Ultan Conlan (Seventeenth Century)
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 19:30–23:00, £5
Sat 24 Apr
The Broken Boat
No Fxd Abode (Goosedubbs, Betatone Distraction)
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Thu 22 Apr
Experimental types.
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00– 12:00, Free
Hip-hop, funk and R’n’B.
Progressive experimental rock. The Ferry, 20:00–00:00, £15
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £3
Electro-pop and punk.
Whitemare, Corpses, Jackie Onassis
Acoustic Jam Session
Garage and psych punk-rock.
Exposure
The Young Aviators, The Rupture Dogs
Electro dance spectacular.
Grungy disco and alternative rock.
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Soundhaus, 22:30–03:00, £12
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 20:00–01:00, Free
Open mic with Gerry Lyons.
13th Note, 21:00–23:30, £tbc
Edinburgh music Tue 30 Mar Race Horses
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:00, £5
Pop racket.
Leith Folk Club (Annlaug Borsheim) The Village, 19:30–22:45, £6
Unique fiddle compositions.
Wed 31 Mar White Noise (The Electric Ghosts)
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, £3
New music showcase night.
Jerry Dammers
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £18-£20
19-piece jazz orchestra.
Edinburgh Folk Club (Woody Pines)
The Pleasance, 20:00–22:30, £8 (£7) or £5 members
Folk sessions in the Cabaret Bar.
Jacob Fred
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £6 (£5)
This Is Music (Tallah Disco, Bargain Harold)
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Edinburgh Folk Club (Alan Reid, Rob van Sante)
The Pleasance, 20:00–22:30, £8 (£7) or £5 members
Year Of The Man, Electric Mud Generator, Hicther, Mr Dirty, Otranto
Macbeth
The Renegades
Queen Margaret University perform Shakespeare’s classic, Macbeth. Sword fighting guaranteed.
Catchy guitar rock. Plus free EP.
Leith Folk Club (Rebecca Wright, Darren Eedens, Lurach)
Folk sessions in the Cabaret Bar.
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 19:30–03:00, £5
Prog, punk and post-metal.
JAM HOUSE EXPERIENCE
Sorry and the Sinatras (The Begrudgers, Billy Liar)
WORLD PREMIERE QUINTET
Live music, all night long.
Straight-up street punk.
Hand-picked five-piece.
Acoustic Ladyland (White Heath)
Unpeeled
The Jazz Bar, 20:15–23:00, £3
Synthlab 2010
New bands monthly showcase.
Anologue synthesizers.
London-based jazz/funk outfit.
Volume Dealer
Indie/electro clubbing special.
Sat 03 Apr The Jam House, 18:00–03:00, £6
Electric Circus, 19:00–22:00, £7.50
The No.9s (Midas Is King, Backlash)
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £4
Local band showcase.
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £6
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, Free
Heavy rock and metal.
Thu 08 Apr
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Carter’s Bar, 21:00–23:30, Free
New music showcase.
Orchestral piano session.
Fiddlers’ Bid
Roxy Arthouse, 19:30–22:00, £4 (£1)
Indie three-piece. Fae Dundee.
No frills, gritty singer/songwriter.
Youth orchestra spring concert.
Macbeth
The Bevvy Sisters
Istaa Presents
Queen’s Hall, 20:00–22:30, £15 (£12)
Queen Margaret University perform Shakespeare’s classic, Macbeth. Sword fighting guaranteed.
Alternative countryesque ensemble.
Voodoo Rooms, 19:00–01:00, £tbc
Marty Waugh
Five-piece Edinburgh band.
SCO: Spring Serenade
Jazz vocals and Rat Pack vibes.
Edinburgh Folk Club (Pipedown)
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
The Stone Roses Experience
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Monthly reggae night.
Paper Beats Rock, Mares
Voodoo Rooms, 19:00–01:00, £8
Tribute act.
Voodoo Rooms, 19:00–01:00, £7
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Open mic racket.
Carter’s Bar, 21:00–23:30, Free
Acoustic music night.
Camerata Scotland
Sun 04 Apr
Young orchestral musicians.
Admiral Fallow
Landon, Face the Sun (Shatterhand)
New guise for Brother Louis Collective.
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Punk rock showcase.
The Strangers Almanac, The Crush Waves
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–23:45, £4
Folky pop.
Fri 02 Apr Shakedown
Studio 24, 18:00–22:00, £7
Battle of the bands. Downstairs.
JAM HOUSE EXPERIENCE
The Jam House, 18:00–03:00, £5.50
Live music, all night long.
Fireside Aliens, Plain Breed, Hosemox
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5 (£4)
The Mine showcase.
Imperial Racing Club, Midnight Wonderhouse, The Koves, The Lost Weekend
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £5
Big gig in aid of St Columbus Hospice.
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £5
And So I Watch You From Afar (Lafaro, Slow Motion Replay)
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–23:45, £5 (£4)
Hardcore noise.
Roxymoron
Roxy Arthouse, 20:00–01:00, Free
Open mic racket.
Mon 05 Apr James
Corn Exchange, 19:00–22:30, £29.50
Acoustic indie-pop.
Maya 29, One Way Chemistry (Ex-Spectators) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Tue 06 Apr
Dark cabaret; murky and lovely.
Solid Silver 60s Show
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, £6
Singer/songwriter from Tennessee.
Mr McFall’s Chamber (The Bevvy Sisters)
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £19-£24
Lucy Kerr Quartet
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Glasgow-based alto sax.
Mauro Picotto
The Caves, 22:00–03:00, £17.50
Italian techno master.
The Dangerfields (Shock & Awe, Sad Society)
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Punk rockers anniversary tour.
Alternative rock and psych-pop.
Three Blind Wolves (French Wives, John Know Sex Club)
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
Melodic, bluesy indie-rock.
60s hits a-go-go.
Leith Folk Club (North Sea Gas)
The Village, 19:30–22:45, £6
Classic Scottish folk.
Anonymous Tip, The Edelweiss Pirates, Daddy No! Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–23:45, £5
Punk rock showcase.
Wed 07 Apr We Have Band
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £6
DIY electro-pop-rock trio.
Mon 12 Apr While She Sleeps (The Ocean Between Us) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Metalcore tour.
Tue 13 Apr My Tiny Robots
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
Experimental electro fae Leith.
The Marrs Effect
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, £5
Jammin’ at Voodoo
Voodoo Rooms, 21:00–01:00, £5
Monthly live jam session..
Marco Cafolla Quartet The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £4 (£3)
Jazz and funk grooves.
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Metalica UK (Drive By Audio, Arcane Corps)
Satoko Fujii, Natsuki Tamura Ensemble
Studio 24, 07:00–22:00, £12
Tribute gig with after party. Downstairs.
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £6 (£5)
Creative pairing from Japan.
Fri 16 Apr
Volume Dealer
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, Free
Metalica UK (Drive By Audio, Arcane Corps)
Heavy rock and metal.
Studio 24, 07:00–22:00, £12
Thu 15 Apr
Tribute gig with after party. Downstairs.
Dolly Mixtures
Electric Circus, 17:00–00:00, Free before 8:30
Music, cocktails and vintage stalls.
These New Puritans
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £14
Electro-pop types.
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
The Caves, 19:15–22:00, £13.50
Kris Drever (Anna Massie)
The Bongo Club, 19:30–22:00, £12
Lovely Scottish folk songs.
Vantage Point, Maya 29, Inertia Avenue
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 19:30–23:00, £5 (£4)
Unadulterated heavy metal.
Soul Foundation
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, Free
Lovely soul.
Quattro Formaggi
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Jazz fusion from Prague.
The New Edinburgh Dolls (Izzy and the Stooges)
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Tribute band special.
This Is Music
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3
Indie/electro clubbing special.
Sat 10 Apr 4dayweekend, Kashmir Red
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5 (£4)
Alternative rock. Live and loud.
The Bluetones
The Bongo Club, 19:00–22:00, £13
Uplifting guitar pop.
Teenage Cancer Trust Fundraiser (Snake Hips, The Futuristic Retro Champions, Indian Red Lopez) Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Top fundraiser line-up.
Edinburgh Youth Orchestra
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £12-£15
White Noise (The Crookes)
Spring concert.
New music showcase.
Rockabilly punk.
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, £3
Roxy Arthouse, 20:00–01:00, Free
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, £tbc
Patriothall Gallery Afterparty
Tribute band play three-hour epic.
Thought Explode, The Party Program
Kabarett
Hardcore punk.
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5
Classy singers night.
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £6
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £5
Kill The Captains, Super Adventure Club
THINK FLOYD
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Lauren Pritchard
Assert, Refuse/All (Happy Spastics)
Fri 09 Apr
Louise Dodds
Launch of new joint 7-inch.
Tango, jazz and rock ensemble.
Piano and sax, plus drums.
Sculpture Workshop exhibit after party.
Inspired instrumental rock.
Progressive, melodic rock.
Queen’s Hall, 20:00–22:30, £10 (£8)
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £5 (£4)
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £7
Gerry Loves Records Launch (Conquering Animal Sound, Debutant) Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Local indie-rock types.
Roxymoron
Tim Richards, Rob Hall Quartet
Dead On The Live Wire
Queen’s Hall, 19:30–22:30, £2-£10
Alternative rock.
Fingertip, The Darien Venture
Sleazy glam-rock.
Folk fae Fife
Folk sessions in the Cabaret Bar.
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–23:45, £4
Stinking Lizaveta, Vakunoht, Lords Of Bastard, Jackie Treehorn Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–03:00, £6 (£5)
The Pleasance, 20:00–22:30, £8 (£7) or £5 members
Falling Red, The Amorettes (Komodo) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Doom-jazz trio from Philadelphia.
Alternative electro-punk duo.
Bold melodies and orchestral folk.
Always Read The Label, Tempercalm
Twisted alternative rock.
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £tbc
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Melodius folk, now with bolder edge.
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £12.50-£26
Psychedelic experimentalists.
Alternative, bouncy rock.
Roxy Arthouse, 19:30–22:00, £4 (£1)
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, £3
Queen’s Hall, 19:30–22:30, £8.50-£26
Jakil
Macbeth
Laura Marling
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £10-£14
Music from new and established acts.
Thu 01 Apr
Irish singer/songwriter.
Wed 14 Apr
NYOS
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £10
Nostril Flashback
Metal and rock.
Queen’s Hall, 19:00–22:30, £23
Ricky Warwick
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Studio 24, 22:00–03:00, Free
Paul Brady
New talent special. Lovely stuff.
The Police Box Present: Dave? (Goodbye Lenin)
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Volume Dealer
Acoustic rock and soul.
The Village, 19:30–22:45, £6
SCO: Zacharia and Schubert
Sun 11 Apr
New bands go head-to-head.
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–23:45, £4
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5 (£4)
White Noise (Night Noise Team, Acrylic Iqon)
Eclectic mix of sure-fire hits.
We Luv Musik
Pure rock ‘n’ roll.
The Revenue, LA Brown, Linzi Wilson
Queen Margaret University perform Shakespeare’s classic, Macbeth. Sword fighting guaranteed.
Electric Circus, 23:00–03:00, £5
High energy, traditional music.
Supercharger
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £18.50
Queen’s Hall, 19:00–22:30, £15
Bang Bang Club
Battle of The Bands
US modern jazz four-piece.
Roxy Arthouse, 19:30–22:00, £4 (£1)
Goldblade
Citrus Club, 19:30–22:30, £10
April 2010
THE SKINNY 55
Edinburgh music PRESENTS
Euan Taylor The Skinny Award winner from the RSA New Contemporaries Exhibition 2009
Trampoline Presents
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5 / £3
Jim Jones Revue
Her Royal Highness
Big beat guitar rock.
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
Experimental pop.
Asthmatic Astronaut Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Electro LP launch.
Macbeth
Roxy Arthouse, 19:30–22:00, £4 (£1)
Queen Margaret University perform Shakespeare’s classic, Macbeth. Sword fighting guaranteed.
Rufus Wainwright
Usher Hall, 20:00–22:30, £20-£45
Probably our favourite Wainwright.
Public Information
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Driving, modern jazz quartet.
The Richt Hoat Chilli’s
Slide guitarist.
Charity Fundraiser The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £5
Bands, prizes and fundraiser fun.
Wed 21 Apr Gil Scott-Heron
HMV Picture House, 19:00–22:30, £18.50
Poetic Hip-hop God.
Dan Arboise (Yusuf Azak)
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
The Underground Jam (Carbona Not Glue) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Tribute band night.
Emelle
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 20:00–03:00, £4
Folk-pop EP launch.
The Cathode Ray, Thank You So Nice, The Scottish Enlightenment Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4)
Alternative indie, pop and punk.
This Is Music
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Indie/electro clubbing special.
White Noise (Imperial Racing Club, The Hundred Meter Club)
House, breaks and jungle.
New music showcase.
Unique Beats (Anchorsong, Asthmatic Astronaut, Melvitronica, The Amazing Rolo)
Edinburgh Folk Club (Bruce Molsky)
Electro fest, with bands and workshops.
Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £3
Sat 17 Apr NYCOS Choir
Greyfriars Kirk, 15:00–17:00, £tbc
Choir songs and lovely surroundings.
Not Advised, Sidelock, Atlas
Electric Circus, 19:00–22:00, £tbc
Trio of new live bands.
The Gillyflowers, Hammonds Folly
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, Free
Alternative indie-pop.
The Smiths Indeed
The Bongo Club, 19:00–22:00, £12
Tribute band.
Futuristic Retro Champions
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £4
Our fave sunny electro-poppers.
House of La
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Live music.
Macbeth
Roxy Arthouse, 19:30–22:00, £4 (£1)
Queen Margaret University perform Shakespeare’s classic, Macbeth. Sword fighting guaranteed.
Social Schism, Spat (Critikill, Conflagration) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £5
No-nonsense punk. Yeah.
WORLD PREMIERE QUINTET The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Hand-picked five-piece.
Limbo (Zoey Van Goey, Chris Bradley, X-Lion Tamer)
Voodoo Rooms, 20:00–01:00, £8 (£7)
Top bands at our fave Voodoo night.
The Last Battle
Carter’s Bar, 21:00–23:30, Free
Nu-folk pop six-piece.
Sun 18 Apr Angus & Julia Stone (Alan Pownall)
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £10
Cinematic folk loveliness.
Mission For Gadd
Corn Exchange, 19:00–22:30, £15
Legendary drummer Steve Gadd.
Three Long Words Studio 24, 19:00–22:30, £7
Teenage five-piece.
Natalie Stern
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
One-woman Scandinavian choir.
Kate Rusby
Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £19.50
Sweet-voiced folkie.
Inner Logic, Drunktank
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, £3
The Pleasance, 20:00–22:30, £8 (£7) or £5 members
Folk sessions in the Cabaret Bar.
Contact Lost, State Freed (Glassface)
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Up-and-coming rockers.
Euan Burton Quartet
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £5 (£4)
Double-bass, backed by full band.
Volume Dealer
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, Free
Heavy rock and metal.
Thu 22 Apr Alphabeat
HMV Picture House, 19:00–22:30, £12
Guilty pleasure Dutch pop.
Ray Summers
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £tbc
Sat 24 Apr
Roxy Arthouse, 12:00–01:00, £10
Fuzzy Logic Presents Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5 (£4)
Trio of live bands.
The Fall
Studio 24, 19:00–22:00, £22.50
Live alternative gig.
The Starlets, Tada Tata Henry’s Cellar Bar, 19:00–22:00, £tbc
Alternative pop beats.
Bear In Heaven
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £6
Brooklyn-based synth-pop.
UFO
HMV Picture House, 19:00–22:30, £18
Hardcore four-piece.
Bob Hillary and the Massive Mellow
Soulful psych-pop.
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
John Carnall and The Book Club
Acoustica, roots and reggae.
The Valkarys
Guitar rock, plus support.
Alternative indie-psych.
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, £6
Adriana
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, £6
Chilled-out alternative.
Voodoo Rooms, 19:00–01:00, £5
SCO: Pastoral Symphony Queen’s Hall, 19:30–22:30, £8.50-£26
Innovative composer piece.
Battlefields, Manatees (Hitcher, Jackie Treehorn)
Sworn To Oath, Town Called Hell
Technical and textured soundscapes.
Heavy metal and hard rock.
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £5
Napier Guitar Quartet The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Napier University showcase.
Fri 23 Apr Efterklang
Cabaret Voltaire, 19:00–22:00, £10
Off-kilter Danish pop.
Candi Staton (Lorna Brookes)
HMV Picture House, 19:00–22:30, £17.50
Soulful R’n’B diva.
John Smith
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £10
Inventive folk guitarist.
Steffen Basho-Junghans (Ben Reynolds, Hanna Tuulikki)
Roxy Arthouse, 19:00–23:00, £5
Steel string guitarist.
10:04s, Two Stripe, Populist
Voodoo Rooms, 19:00–01:00, £8
Trio of new bands.
RSNO Naked Classics Usher Hall, 19:30–22:30, £10
Stripped-back orchestral session.
We Luv Musik
Voodoo Rooms, 19:30–01:00, £5
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
WORLD PREMIERE QUINTET The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Hand-picked five-piece.
UFO Aftershow Party (Fullmetalracket)
Henry’s Cellar Bar, 23:00–03:00, £5
Metal party.
Sun 25 Apr A Day Overdue (Alburn, No Drive Home)
Electric Circus, 19:00–22:30, £6
Pop-punk.
Is This Poetry?
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Performance poetry gig.
Wodensthrone, Winterfylleth (Forest of Stars, Haar) Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £6
Black metal and folk.
Roxymoron
Roxy Arthouse, 20:00–01:00, Free
Open mic racket.
Mon 26 Apr Three Trapped Tigers (Talons)
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
Live music from new and established acts.
Victoria Bennett
Scottish Ensemble: Eight Seasons
Edinburgh vocalist, backed by jazz trio.
Ensemble orchestral piece.
Iconic, ambient piece.
Roxymoron
Ceilidh Collective
FBS, The Irrelevants
Open mic racket.
Good old traditional ceilidh-ing.
No messin’ punk-rock.
Hardcore from the west.
56 THE SKINNY April 2010
The Village, 19:30–22:45, £8
Top vocalist, backed by sax quartet.
The Good, The Bad, The Dirty (Laconic, Futura, Buppahoop)
Indie/electro clubbing special.
2 Roxburgh Place Edinburgh EH8 9SU
Leith Folk Club (Johnny Dickinson)
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Tribute band.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
FREE
Sneaky Pete’s, 19:00–22:30, £8
Freddie King
Intimidatingly talented singer/songwriter.
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £4
This Is Music
8 - 13 April 2010 Open daily 12 - 8pm
Tue 20 Apr
Trio of live bands.
The Jazz Bar, 20:00–23:00, £4 (£3)
Roxy Arthouse, 20:00–01:00, Free
Queen’s Hall, 19:45–22:30, £14.50 (£12.50)
Roxy Arthouse, 20:00–23:00, £10 (£6)
Electric Circus, 19:00–22:30, £7
Twinkling electro tinkerings.
Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet
Queen’s Hall, 19:45–22:30, £10 (£7)
Bannerman’s, 20:00–23:00, £tbc
Glasgow Clubs Tue 30 Mar Byblos Tuesday
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free before midnight, £3 after
Chart and R’n’B.
Tetris
Bamboo, 22:30–03:00, Free before 11pm, £5 (£3) after
Hip-hop, pop and funk.
Killer Kitsch
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£3)
Electro, 80s and trashy disco.
Wed 31 Mar TONGUE IN CHEEK
Bamboo, 22:00–03:00, £2 before 11pm, £5 (£4) after
Indie and electro-pop.
Twisted
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free before midnight, £3 after
Indie, chart, R’n’B... and facepainting!
Watchamacallit
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Punk and funk.
Thu 01 Apr Bazodee
The Halt Bar, 20:00–02:00, Free
Reggae and dancehall.
Way Of The Womb
Monox (Marcell Dettman)
Shedkandi
Underground and fresh techno.
House and R’n’B.
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £10
Old Skool
Sin City
Funk, soul and disco.
Soul, disco, house.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Riot Radio
Maggie May’s, 23:00–03:00, £5
Indie rock’n’roll.
Damaged Goods (David Barbarossa)
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £3
Punk, noise, pop and disco.
Sat 03 Apr Voodoo Easter
Cathouse, 16:00–21:00, £6 (£3 members)
Rock and metal, plus live wrestling. Under 18s.
La Roche Rumba (Young Fathers)
Pollok Ex-Servicemens Club, 20:30–01:00, £6
Funk, disco and freak.
Elements of Soul (Neil Pierce)
Brunswick Hotel, 21:00–02:00, £8
Deep and soulful house.
Butterfly Saturdays
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00–03:00, Free
House band, plus DJs.
The Flying Duck, 21:00–03:00, £3
Pandemic (Noj, Mark)
Colours: Steve Angello
They will play The Fall.
Dedicated to female-fronted bands. The Arches, 22:30–03:00, £15
House/techno special guest.
Satisfation
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, £3
Dirty chart and R’n’B.
Baller Social Club
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Eclectic club spectacular.
IDJ
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
Punter iPod playlists.
Misbehavin’ (Dolly Daydream, Drucifer) Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
Electro, alternative and dirty pop.
Monster Munch Vs. Space Raiders
The Garage, 23:00–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 11.30)
Crisps will fall from the sky. No, really.
Rubbermensch
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 21:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 11:30)
Shed Saturday
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£6 (£4) after 11)
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Mon 05 Apr Burn
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)
Disco, electro and house.
Tue 06 Apr I Am
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Eclectic new club night.
Killer Kitsch
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£3)
Electro, 80s and trashy disco.
Wed 07 Apr Muso
The Buff Club, 20:30–03:00, £4 (£3)
Band and club crossover.
Octopussy
The Arches, 22:30–03:00, £7 (£5)
Student fun night.
The Mumble Club (Mumble DJs)
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £2
Alternative hip-hop.
Thu 08 Apr Stardust and Wild Present The Flying Duck, 20:00–00:00, £5
DJs, burlesque and mischief.
Pop classics and hip-hop.
Bazodee
Absolution
Reggae and dancehall.
Classic Grand, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
The Halt Bar, 20:00–02:00, Free
Pop, punk, metal and rock.
Satisfation
Cathouse Saturdays
Dirty chart and R’n’B.
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£5)
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, £3
Classic rock and punk. Regular DJs.
Counterfiet (Mups, Mythic)
Leigh-Lines Fundraiser
90s nu-metal. Nice.
Soundhaus, 22:30–03:00, £5
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
Club night in aid of Cancer Care.
IDJ
Sabado
Punter iPod playlists.
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free (£8 after 11)
House, trance and funk.
Love Music
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £7
Indie dancing club.
Melting Pot
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
Rubbermensch ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4
Indie and electro.
Skint/Vengeance (Billy, Colin, Q-ball) Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
The Admiral, 23:00–03:00, £8
Emo, pop-punk and metal.
Skint/Vengeance
Nu Skool
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Emo, punk and metal. Resident DJs.
Funky-disco and soul.
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4
Indie and electro.
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
Disco and early house.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Soul Glo
Orderly Disorder
Funk and northern soul.
Eclectic dirty electro beats.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£5)
Cheap & Nasty (Matthewonemoretune)
Slabs Of Tabernacle 2nd Birthday (Tevo Howard)
Funk, techno and hip-hop.
Guest DJ from Chicago.
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £2
Fri 02 Apr Beatitude (Domm)
Brunswick Hotel, 21:00–02:00, £5 (£4)
House and techno.
Crash
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Pop, dance and hippity-hop.
Elevator
Byblos, 22:00–03:00, £6 (£3)
La Cheetah, 23:00–03:00, £10
Subculture (Derrick Carter)
Soul Glo
Funk and northern soul.
Teenage Lust
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £2
Mutant disco fun.
Fri 09 Apr Sound in Town (Marco Biagini, Rory Johnstone) Brunswick Hotel, 21:00–02:00, £3
House, electro and techno.
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £12
Breakdown Bands
The Rock Shop
Indie, rock and electro acts.
Dubbed-out electro.
Maggie May’s, 23:30–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 12)
Rock, indie and metal classics.
Sun 04 Apr Scarlet Fever
Soundhaus, 21:00–03:00, £5
Crash
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Pop, dance and hippity-hop.
Elevator
Byblos, 22:00–03:00, £6 (£3)
Urban hip-hop, grime and reggae.
Urban hip-hop, grime and reggae.
Ivory Blacks, 19:00–00:00, £10
So: Closing Party (Sven Vath, Sensu)
Burlesque launch night.
Ballbreaker/Vice
Colours: Carl Cox
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Rock, metal and indie. Resident DJs.
Extra special guest.
Common People
The Arches, 22:00–03:00, £18
Closing event.
Ballbreaker/Vice
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Rock, metal and indie. Resident DJs.
Blink (Mofo, Nino) Club 69, 23:00–03:00, £6
Blink residents spectacular.
Depth Charge (Hiro)
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£7 after 12)
Deep house.
The Arches, 20:00–03:00, £20
Cathouse Sundays (Mythic) Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 after 12)
Anything goes requests night.
90s mega hits. In the Kitchen bar.
Cosmic Microwave (Jay Shepheard, Brian D’Souza)
Old Skool
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Danceable DJ beats.
Riot Radio
The Universal, 23:00–03:00, £7
Funk, soul and disco.
Easter Special: The Rematch! (Mythic)
Maggie May’s, 23:00–03:00, £5
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
Easter fun, with live wrestling.
Electrolick
Mad Hatters Rave
Electro and synth-pop experiment.
Proper neon glowsticks rave-up.
Indie rock’n’roll.
The Cave Vs. The Roller Girls
The Garage, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4)
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 after 12)
Festival
Optimo
Velvet (Malente)
Electro-rock and the like.
Eclectic house, techno and party.
Electro-rave, disco and house.
Soundhaus, 23:00–03:00, £5
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)
Garage punk, rock and sleaze. O’Couture, 23:00–03:00, £8 (£6)
April 2010
THE SKINNY 57
Edinburgh clubs
Glasgow Clubs Kino Fist (Charlotte)
Satisfation
Nu Skool
Krautrock, new wave and freak.
Dirty chart and R’n’B.
Funky-disco and soul.
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £3
Sat 10 Apr Voodoo
Cathouse, 16:00–21:00, £6 (£3 members)
Rock, metal and emo. Under 18s.
Butterfly Saturdays
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00–03:00, Free
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, £3
IDJ
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
Punter iPod playlists.
Rubbermensch ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4
Indie and electro.
Skint/Vengeance
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
Emo, punk and metal. Resident DJs.
House band, plus DJs.
Soul Glo
Shed Saturday
Funk and northern soul.
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£6 (£4) after 11)
Pop classics and hip-hop.
Absolution
Classic Grand, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Pop, punk, metal and rock.
Cathouse Saturdays Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£5)
Classic rock and punk. Regular DJs.
Drum Clinic (Roland The Bastard)
Soundhaus, 22:30–03:00, £10 (£7 members)
Techno party collective.
Sabado
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free (£8 after 11)
House, trance and funk.
Solar Disco
Brunswick Hotel, 23:00–02:00, £tbc
Spaced-out disco beats.
Half My Heart Beats
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £4
Funk, techno and hip-hop.
Fri 16 Apr Pirate Bands (Majestic Dandelion, Strange Touch) Soundhaus, 19:30–23:30, £6 (£5 members)
Live bands night.
Crash
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Pop, dance and hippity-hop.
Elevator
Byblos, 22:00–03:00, £6 (£3)
Urban hip-hop, grime and reggae.
On/Off
Brunswick Hotel, 22:30–02:00, £3 (£4 after 12)
House, techno and eclectic.
Rock, metal and indie. Resident DJs.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Funky-disco and soul.
Subculture
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Dubbed-out electro.
The Rock Shop
Maggie May’s, 23:30–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 12)
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Supernova (Stephan Bodzin)
The Arches, 22:30–03:00, £12 advance
Electro-techno guest.
Derailed
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £5
Techno and house.
Festival
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5
Electro-rock and the like.
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5
Lock Up Your Daughters
Pop quiz and musical bingo.
Skunk Funk
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4)
Subculture
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Dubbed-out electro.
Funk, soul and disco.
Bottle Rocket
Riot Radio
Alternative anthems.
Indie dancing club.
Indie rock’n’roll.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Sun 18 Apr Cathouse Sundays (Mythic) Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
Anything goes requests night.
Optimo
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)
Eclectic house, techno and party.
Shedkandi
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
House and R’n’B.
Sin City
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Soul, disco, house.
Mon 19 Apr
Maggie May’s, 23:00–03:00, £5
Sat 24 Apr Voodoo
Cathouse, 16:00–21:00, £6 (£3 members)
Rock, metal and emo. Under 18s.
Butterfly Saturdays
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00–03:00, Free
House band, plus DJs.
Shed Saturday
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£6 (£4) after 11)
Pop classics and hip-hop.
Absolution
Classic Grand, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£5)
Sub Club, 20:00–03:00, £8
Electro-pop fun.
I Am
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Eclectic new club night.
Killer Kitsch
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£3)
Electro, 80s and trashy disco.
Wed 21 Apr
Cathouse Saturdays Classic rock and punk. Regular DJs.
Sabado
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free (£8 after 11)
House, trance and funk.
Love Music
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £7
Indie dancing club.
Modern Lovers
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 after 12)
Retro fest of soul, ska and punk.
Nu Skool
Funk, soul and disco.
Muso
Riot Radio
Band and club crossover.
Subculture
Indie rock’n’roll.
Octopussy
Dubbed-out electro.
Sensu
Student fun night.
Sun 11 Apr Three Card Trick Bloc, 20:00–23:00, Free
Rock three-piece.
Cathouse Sundays (Mythic) Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
Anything goes requests night.
Optimo
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)
Eclectic house, techno and party.
Shedkandi
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
Maggie May’s, 23:00–03:00, £5
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Cutting-edge electronic.
Upside Down
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £3
Eclectic mix of good tunes.
Sat 17 Apr Voodoo (Millionaires)
Cathouse, 16:00–21:00, £6 (£3 members)
Rock, metal and emo. Under 18s.
The Buff Club, 20:30–03:00, £4 (£3)
The Arches, 22:30–03:00, £7 (£5)
Thu 22 Apr Bazodee
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Funky-disco and soul.
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:00–03:00, £3
Psych, punk and rock’n’roll.
Reggae and dancehall.
Satisfation
Exciting electronic line-up.
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
The Admiral, 23:00–03:00, £10
Punter iPod playlists.
Shiny, deep house.
Rubbermensch
Specialitee
Maggie May’s, 23:30–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 12)
Disco, electro and house.
Tue 13 Apr I Am
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Eclectic new club night.
Killer Kitsch
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£3)
Electro, 80s and trashy disco.
Wed 14 Apr Muso
The Buff Club, 20:30–03:00, £4 (£3)
Band and club crossover.
Octopussy
The Arches, 22:30–03:00, £7 (£5)
Student fun night.
Thu 15 Apr Bazodee
The Halt Bar, 20:00–02:00, Free
Reggae and dancehall.
Death Disco (Annie Mac, Uffie, Boy 8-Bit, Surkin) The Arches, 22:00–03:00, £16
Dirty electro and disco-rock.
Shed Saturday
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£6 (£4) after 11)
Pop classics and hip-hop.
Absolution
Classic Grand, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Pop, punk, metal and rock.
Cathouse Saturdays Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£5)
Classic rock and punk. Regular DJs.
Rectify
Soundhaus, 22:30–03:00, £10 (£8 members)
Techno and dance beats.
Sabado
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, Free (£8 after 11)
House, trance and funk.
Love Music
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £7
Indie dancing club.
58 THE SKINNY April 2010
We Is Eclectic @ Speakeasy
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free before midnight, £2 after
Sister club to We Are Electric.
Soul Society
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Funk and blues.
Thu 01 Apr
ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4
Indie and electro.
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2
Soul Glo
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Funk and northern soul.
The Pump Club (Thomson, Thomson, Thompson) Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £2
Dubstep, jungle and reggae.
Fri 23 Apr Black Tent (Errors, Pauly) Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 21:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 11:30)
Music to make you dance.
Crash
The Shed, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Pop, dance and hippity-hop.
Elevator
Soundhaus, 23:00–03:30, £8 (£5 members)
The Rock Shop
Rock, indie and metal classics.
Sun 25 Apr
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £10
Techno, laptops and drum machines!
The Bongo Club, 19:00–22:00, £15 (£12.50)
Turbo-charged Scottish 13-piece.
Audio Pawn (Graeme Mclean, Davey Dutton) City Café, 20:00–01:00, Free
House classics and unforgettable anthems.
Bubblegum
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Chart and retro disco.
Tease Age
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£6 after 11)
Indie, rock and soul.
The Go-Go’s 10th Birthday (Them Beatles, Tall Paul, Big Guss) Studio 24, 22:30–03:00, £7 (£5)
Garage and psych, plus Them Beatles live.
Va Va Voom
Electric Circus, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£6 after 11)
Burlesque and retro tunes.
Beep Beep Yeah! (Be-Bopa-Tallah, Kate and the Gang, Jumpin’ Jack)
Wonka-themed Sick Kids fundraiser.
Rockin’ 50s, groove and disco. In Speakeasy.
Voodoo Rooms, 20:00–01:00, £tbc
Carry On DJs
Electric Circus, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 10.30)
Karaoke and party tunes.
Frisky
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Chart, indie and 90s smashes.
Dapper Dans (DFault, Picassio)
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Funk and hip-hop grooves.
Citrus Club, 23:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 12)
Full On (Steve Flemington, Richard Banks, Paul McGurk, Jacob Steele)
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
HMV Picture House, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Chart, indie and electro.
Sick Note
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and electro.
Fri 02 Apr Gumbofunk (Jiminez, Astroboy)
Voodoo Rooms, 21:00–01:00, Free
Funk, afro and latin grooves.
Misfits
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £3
Fuel
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Rock and metal. Upstairs club.
Mumbo Jumbo
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£7 (£6) after 12)
Funk, soul, house and disco.
The Egg
Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £1 (£3 after 11.30)
Wee Red club favourite.
Ultragroove (Gareth Sommerville, Yogi Haughton, Stewart Wilson)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£8 after midnight)
Top Ultragroove line-up.
Volume!
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Bass-heavy dubstep crew.
Saturday Nite Fish Fry (The Freaky Family, Astroboy)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
The finest funk and soul.
Sun 04 Apr Sections
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Alternative metal, rock and punk.
Tackno’s Holy Grail
Electric Circus, 22:30–03:00, £7 (£8)
Kitsch and golden pop nuggets.
Coalition
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
Killer Kitsch
Anything goes requests night.
Planet Earth
Optimo: LAST EVER!
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Indie-electro-dance-hybrid thing.
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)
Last ever Optimo.
Shedkandi
The Shed, 23:00–03:00, £2
House and R’n’B.
Retro from 1970 to 1999.
Dirt (Morphamish, Special Ed, Daojja)
The GRV, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£4 after 12)
Breaks, dubstep and drum ‘n’ bass. Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Mon 05 Apr Mixed Up
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Hip-hop, chart and R’n’B.
Sin City
Special club night.
Nu Fire
Soul, disco, house.
Distracted 1st Birthday Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £5
Hip-hop, dubstep and breaks.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Cult classic spanning the decades.
Animal Farm (Sandwell District, Regis & Function)
The Treacherous Orchestra
Twisted disco.
Ballbreaker/Vice
Rock, metal and indie. Resident DJs.
Sat 03 Apr
Cathouse Sundays (Mythic)
Slide It In (Nicola Walker)
Cathouse, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4)
Funk night, with live bands and DJs.
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Byblos, 22:00–03:00, £6 (£3)
Urban hip-hop, grime and reggae.
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
The Ultimate Wonka Party
IDJ
Emo, punk and metal. Resident DJs.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)
Funky electro. Resident DJs and friends.
Tronicsole 1st Birthday (Jimpster)
Dirty chart and R’n’B.
Butterfly Saturdays House band, plus DJs.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free before midnight, £2 after
Octopussy
Byblos, 22:30–03:00, £3
Special guest Monox.
Burn
We Are Electric
Techno, house and breaks Sick Kids fundraiser.
Skint/Vengeance
The Butterfly & The Pig, 21:00–03:00, Free
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Stereo, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£8)
Shouty garage rock.
Mon 12 Apr
Wed 31 Mar
Drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep.
Soul, disco, house.
Pivo Pivo, 20:00–23:45, £5
Swirling guitars and beats.
The Hot Club (Rafla and Nobodaddy)
Sin City
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Dub Kaoss
Eruption (Vinnie and the Cuffs, The Bucky Rage, Tragic City Thieves)
House and R’n’B.
Tuesday Heartbreak
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Tronic (Luke Abbott, Araya, Modifyer, Leigh Myles)
The Halt Bar, 20:00–02:00, Free
Indie and post-punk.
Rocking club beats.
Disco, electro and house.
How’s Your Party? (Zinc, Starkey, A La Fu)
Indie Tuesday
Electro, techno and dub.
Pop, punk, metal and rock.
Tue 20 Apr
The Hive, 23:00–03:00, Free
Axis
Brunswick Hotel, 21:00–02:00, £tbc
Burn
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)
Antics
Supermaxx
Wrong Island (Teamy, Dirty Larry)
Techno, beats and electronica.
Cabaret Voltaire, 22:30–03:00, Free
Sub Club, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Old Skool
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £3
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, Free
Bass and breaks. Rotating DJs.
Maggie May’s, 23:30–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 12)
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Electro-rock and the like.
Old Skool
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £3
Xplicit
Drum and bass.
Rock, indie and metal classics.
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Tue 30 Mar Circus Arcade Split
Rock, indie and metal classics.
Nice ‘n’ Sleazy, 23:30–03:00, £2
Festival
Straight-friendly gay night.
Only 7-inch singles, all night.
Cheap & Nasty (Matthewonemoretune)
Love Music Nu Skool
The Flying Duck, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 after 12)
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £3
Ballbreaker/Vice
Indie dancing club.
Singles Night
The Rock Shop
Current and classic indie-pop. ABC, 23:00–03:00, £7
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £6
Cathouse, 23:00–03:00, £2 (£1)
Mon 26 Apr Burn
The Buff Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)
Disco, electro and house.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Funky electro and hard house.
Trade Union
Musika Aftershow (Derek Martin)
Eclectic, anything goes, policy.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £5
Aftershow party. In Speakeasy.
Tokyoblu (John, Iain)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £8 (£5)
Electro, disco and house.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Tue 06 Apr Circus Arcade
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, Free
Pop quiz and musical bingo.
Antics
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Alternative anthems.
Indie Tuesday
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and post-punk.
Split
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Bass and breaks. Rotating DJs.
Tuesday Heartbreak
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Swirling guitars and beats.
Wed 07 Apr Bangers and Mash
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 11)
Electro, rock and cheese.
Axis
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
We Are Electric
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 12)
Special Friday edition.
Skunk Funk (The Ordindary All-Stars)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
Hip-hop and funk, plus MCs.
Sat 10 Apr Soul Spectrum
Voodoo Rooms, 21:00–01:00, Free
Funky-edged soul.
Bubblegum
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
We Are Electric
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Funky electro. Resident DJs and friends.
We Is Eclectic
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Funky sister club. In Speakeasy.
Thu 08 Apr Carry On DJs
Electric Circus, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 10.30)
Karaoke and party tunes.
Frisky
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Chart, indie and 90s smashes.
Wide Days Closing Party Electric Circus, 22:00–03:00, £tbc
Born To Be Wide event closer, with guest speakers taking to the decks.
Animal Hospital
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Special techno night.
Dub Kaoss
Citrus Club, 23:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 12)
Drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep.
Octopussy
HMV Picture House, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Chart, indie and electro.
Sick Note
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and electro.
Fri 09 Apr Disgraceland
Voodoo Rooms, 20:00–01:00, £3
Rock’n’roll for dirty dancin’.
Misfits
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Ascension
Goth, EBM and industrial. Upstairs.
Bang Bang Club
Electric Circus, 23:00–03:00, £5
Eclectic mix of sure-fire hits.
Big ‘N’ Bashy
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £5
Jungle and dubstep, residents special.
Join The Dots (Samoyed, Isaac Martin, Default, Kidbell, Mike Riddell) Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£5 after midnight)
Future cosmic disco. In Speakeasy.
Stepback (Wofjazz, Keyte)
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Baltimore, techno, ghettotech.
The Egg
Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £1 (£3 after 11.30)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
Reggae-rock and funky dub.
Sun 11 Apr Sections
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Alternative metal, rock and punk.
Coalition
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Breaks, dubstep and drum ‘n’ bass. Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Mon 12 Apr
Cosmic
Mixed Up
Psy-trance and techno. Downstairs.
Hip-hop, chart and R’n’B.
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 after 12)
Funk, jazz and hippity-hop.
Furburger 5th Birthday GHQ, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
R’n’B, hip-hop and indie-rock.
Furburger 5th Birthday Party (Funki Diva, Dejaybird, Boytoy) GHQ, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Cheeky lesbian club night.
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Nu Fire
One Drop (Riddim Tuffa Sound, Robigan, C-Biscuit)
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Reggae, dancehall and dub. Upstairs.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Funky sister club. In Speakeasy.
Soul Society
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Funk and blues.
Thu 15 Apr Carry On DJs
Electric Circus, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 10.30)
Karaoke and party tunes.
Frisky
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Chart, indie and 90s smashes.
Dub Kaoss
Citrus Club, 23:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 12)
Drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep.
Octopussy
HMV Picture House, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Chart, indie and electro.
Sick Note
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and electro.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Fri 16 Apr The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Twisted disco.
Lane Nightclub, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£4)
Trance, house and techno.
Planet Earth
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Retro from 1970 to 1999.
The Green Door (BipBop-A-Lula, Hoodoo the Voodoo, Sad Excuse) Studio 24, 22:30–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Eclectic, anything goes, policy.
Tue 13 Apr Circus Arcade
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, Free
Antics
Alternative anthems.
Indie Tuesday
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and post-punk.
Split
Birthday extravaganza, with music from Berlin’s Platzblanche, plus the usual debauchery.
Riddim Tuffa Sound (Congo Natty)
Indie and electro.
Sub Club resident Harri guests.
Wasabi Disco (Matt Waites)
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Disco-house special guest.
Wire (Sons & Daughters DJs)
Electric Circus, 23:00–03:00, £6
Cult pop, punk and rebel rock.
Saturday Nite Fish Fry (Astroboy)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
Funk, with live bands and DJs.
Sun 18 Apr Sections
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Alternative metal, rock and punk.
Coalition
Indie-electro-dance-hybrid thing.
Mon 19 Apr Mixed Up
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Hip-hop, chart and R’n’B.
Nu Fire
Skunk Funk (The Privates)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
Funk, soul and pop.
Sat 17 Apr Bubblegum
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Chart and retro disco.
Tease Age
Tuesday Heartbreak
Fuel
Swirling guitars and beats.
Rock and metal.
Indie, rock and soul.
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Breaks, dubstep and drum ‘n’ bass.
Tue 20 Apr Circus Arcade
Electric Circus, 19:00–00:00, Free
Pop quiz and musical bingo.
Antics
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Alternative anthems.
Indie Tuesday
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie and post-punk.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Tuesday Heartbreak
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Swirling guitars and beats.
Wed 21 Apr The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 11)
Axis
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Mon 26 Apr
Garage, punk and junk-shop.
Chicken Wire Blues Bar (Jed Potts and the Hillman Hunters, DJs Muddy Garters and Big Guss)
Mixed Up
Live blues club.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Big Red Door (Didley Squat, Pig Fat Panda, Horn Dogs,DJ Anonymi)
Trade Union
Studio 24, 20:00–12:00, £3
The Caves, 22:00–03:00, £12
The Big Red Door crowd venture out.
Washington duo Nadastrom guest.
Volume! Is 3 (Caspa)
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £10
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
LP launch, plus DJs and dancing.
Sat 24 Apr Unique Beats (Anchorsong, Asthmatic Astronaut, Melvitronica, The Amazing Rolo) Roxy Arthouse, 12:00–01:00, £10
Electro fest, with bands and workshops.
Joshua Radin (Lissie)
The Bongo Club, 19:00–22:00, £10
Acoustic indie-folk.
Departure Lounge Special (Bass Clef, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Souljazz Orchestra ) The Caves, 21:00–03:00, £11
Afro-centric Caves favourite.
Bubblegum
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Chart and retro disco.
Tease Age
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£6 after 11)
Indie, rock and soul.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £5
His ‘N’ Hers
Indie and alternative fantasticness.
Soul Society
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Funk and blues.
Thu 22 Apr Carry On DJs
Electric Circus, 22:00–03:00, Free (£5 after 10.30)
Karaoke and party tunes.
Eclectic, anything goes, policy.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £8 (£7)
We Are Electric
Funky sister club. In Speakeasy.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Axis
Electronic dance in all its glory.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Hip-hop, dubstep and breaks.
Retro from 1970 to 1999.
Dub, dubstep and jungle.
We Is Eclectic
Nu Fire
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
JungleDub
Funky electro. Resident DJs and friends.
Hip-hop, chart and R’n’B.
Twisted disco.
Dare! (Jon Pleased Wimmin)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Misfits
Electro, techno, dubstep and bassline.
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, Free
Indie-electro-dance-hybrid thing.
Wee Red Bar, 19:00–22:00, £5
Skunk Funk (Satyroi)
Eclectic, anything goes, policy.
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Vintage Violence
Trade Union
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Killer Kitsch
Fri 23 Apr
Dubstep and jungle Birthday special.
Electro, rock and cheese.
Chicago house legend Gene Farris guests.
Coalition
Hip-hop, dubstep and breaks.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Hip-hop, soul and indie clash.
Planet Earth
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Sections
Alternative metal, rock and punk.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Killer Kitsch
Breaks, dubstep and drum ‘n’ bass.
Sun 25 Apr
Sneaky Beats
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 11)
Souloco
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Bangers and Mash
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£4 after 12)
Chart, indie and electro.
Ultragroove
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£8 after midnight)
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £5 (£3)
HMV Picture House, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Wee Red club favourite.
The GRV, 23:00–03:00, £8
Ragga-jungle beats.
Citrus Club, 23:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 12)
Sick Note
Bass and breaks. Rotating DJs.
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £12
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free
The Jazz Bar, 23:30–03:00, £2 (£1)
Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £1 (£3 after 11.30)
Confusion Is Sex 1st Birthday
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£6 after 11)
Bass and breaks. Rotating DJs.
The Egg
Split
Telefunken
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, Free (£2 after midnight)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £5
Rock, blues and doo-wop. Upstairs.
Trade Union
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
Soundclash of electro, techno and house.
We Are Electric
Hip-hop, dubstep and breaks.
House, disco and idle beats. The Caves, 23:00–03:00, £10 (£8)
Dub, dubstep and jungle.
Deep and tech-house. Resident DJs.
Pop quiz and musical bingo.
Jackhammer (Frequency 7)
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, Free
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Heavy Gossip (Telford) Medina, 23:00–03:00, £5
JungleDub
Bassix Spring Party
Indie-electro-dance-hybrid thing.
Four Corners
Pseudo-jazz ensemble guest.
19th Brithday celebration for Rhumba.
Planet Earth
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Octopussy
Misfits
Killer Kitsch
Retro from 1970 to 1999.
Funky house launch. Big DJ line-up.
The Rhumba Club (Dave Seaman, Alan Dobson, Derek Martin, Fisher & Price)
Twisted disco.
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£5 after 11)
Electro, techno, dubstep and bassline.
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, Free
Hip-hop, soul and indie clash.
Saturday Nite Fish Fry (Massive Fellow, DJ D’Viking)
Punk rockin’. Upstairs.
Saturday Nite Fish Fry (Le Salon De Jazz Refuse, DJ D’Viking)
The Mission
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £10
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Chart, indie and 90s smashes.
Drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep.
Sneaky Beats
Rock and metal. Downstairs.
The Underground (Wullie Buchan, Dave Martin)
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free
It’s All Good (Tommy Kay, Claudio, Tonykeo)
Wee Red club favourite.
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Frisky
Axis
Tease Age
JungleDub
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£7 after 12)
Four-deck mix of beats.
Electro, rock and cheese.
We Is Eclectic
Citrus Club, 22:30–03:00, Free (£6 after 11)
Headspin (Rebecca Vasmant)
Dub Kaoss
Chart and retro disco.
Indie, rock and soul.
Dub, dubstep and jungle.
The Hive, 22:00–03:00, Free (£3 after 11)
Funky electro. Resident DJs and friends.
Electro, techno, dubstep and bassline.
The Bongo Club, 23:00–03:00, Free
Wed 14 Apr Bangers and Mash
Electric Circus, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Karnival (Ryan Ellis, Mike Pinkerton, Matt Edwards)
Cabaret Voltaire, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£5)
The Pulse team play a guest set.
Playdate
courses, drop-in classes and workshops for everyone dancebase.co.uk
Sneaky Pete’s, 23:00–03:00, £3 (free members)
Wild house. Aargh woo.
The Egg
Wee Red Bar, 23:00–03:00, £1 (£3 after 11.30)
Wee Red club favourite.
Scottish Charity No. SC025512
The Mission
Studio 24, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£4)
Rock and metal. Downstairs.
April 2010
THE SKINNY 59
aberdeen music Wed31Mar
Fri09Apr
dundee music Sat17Apr
Chris Rea
Friday Live
Saturday Live
Legendary 80s singer/songwriter.
Weekly folk and blues session.
Traditional live session.
Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £tbc
Thu01Apr The Twilight Sad
The Warehouse, 19:00–22:30, £8
Epic Scottish indie-rock.
Nicola Benedetti
Music Hall, 19:30–22:00, £15-£75
Acclaimed violinist.
Fri02Apr Friday Live
The Lemon Tree, 13:00–15:00, Free
Weekly folk and blues session.
The Lemon Tree, 13:00–15:00, Free
A Little Knight
Fundraiser. Cast of the Capitol play live.
Robyn Hitchcock
Sucioperro
Weekly folk and blues session.
Singer/songwriter and guitarist.
Melodic rock riffage.
The Lemon Tree, 19:30–22:30, £12
Café Drummonds, 19:00–22:00, £6
Rob Tognoni
Zacharias and Shubert
Australian rock guitarist.
Scottish Chamber Orchestra performance.
The Blue Lamp, 20:00–22:30, £10
Sat10Apr Saturday Live
The Lemon Tree, 12:30–15:00, Free
Traditional live session.
Shetland fiddle band.
Local rock showcase.
Sat03Apr Saturday Live
The Lemon Tree, 12:30–15:00, Free
Traditional live session.
Sun04Apr Belhaven Sunday Jazz
The Lemon Tree, 12:00–14:00, Free
Jazz, obviously.
Fri23Apr
RSNO cello presentation.
Album launch.
The Lemon Tree, 20:00–23:00, £6
Lovely singer/songwriter.
Friday Live
Fiddlers Bid
Fivefifteen, Chris Helme, Vesuvian, Rebel Roulette
Gig For Gambia
The Blue Lamp, 20:00–22:00, £12 (£10)
The Warehouse, 18:30–22:30, £6
Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £8.50-£19
JJ Bull & The Dinosaurs Café Drummonds, 19:00–23:00, £4
The Lemon Tree, 12:30–15:00, Free
Clare Teal
Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £15
Sun11Apr Belhaven Sunday Jazz
The Lemon Tree, 12:00–14:00, Free
Jazz, obviously.
Bluetones
The Warehouse, 19:00–22:30, £13
Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £8.50-£19
The Aristocats
The Lemon Tree, 21:00–23:00, £6
Big band ensemble.
Sun18Apr
Traditional live session.
Chew Lips (Party Horse)
Café Drummonds, 19:00–22:00, £8.50
Electro indie-pop.
Classic Clapton
Aberdeen Arts Centre, 19:30–22:00, £12 (£10)
The Lemon Tree, 19:30–22:30, £16
Mon19Apr Scottish Ensemble
Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £14.50
Vivaldi’s Eight Seasons recital.
Tue20Apr Rock with a capital ‘R’.
Friday Live
The Lemon Tree, 12:30–15:00, Free
Jazz, obviously.
The Lemon Tree, 12:00–14:00, Free
Stornoway (Rachel Sermanni)
Fri16Apr
Saturday Live
Belhaven Sunday Jazz
The Black Spiders
Soulful indie.
Sat24Apr
Tribute act.
Acoustic indie.
Snafu, 19:30–22:30, £6
The Lemon Tree, 13:00–15:00, Free
The Tunnels, 19:00–22:30, £7
Wed21Apr
British Blues Quartet Rock’n’roll soundscape.
Scottish Fiddle Orchestra Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £14-£16
Classic and modern pieces.
Sun25Apr Belhaven Sunday Jazz
The Lemon Tree, 12:00–14:00, Free
Fri 02 Apr Scocha
Fat Sam’s, 19:30–22:00, £10
Scottish folk-rock.
Under The Influence The Doghouse, 20:00–01:00, £6
Ska night with live bands.
Sat 03 Apr Afternoon Blues
The Doghouse, 15:00–17:00, Free
Chilled-out lunchtime blues.
Eh!
The Doghouse, 20:00–01:00, £5
EP launch.
Sun 04 Apr New York Tourists, Kings and Cowards
Dexter’s Lounge Bar, 20:00–00:00, £tbc
Alternative indie types.
Tue 06 Apr The Joy Formidable Fat Sam’s, 19:30–22:00, £6
Alternative pop loveliness.
Wed 07 Apr
Jazz, obviously.
Admiral Fallow
Aberdeen Strathspey & Reel Society
Brooding, open-hearted folk.
The Lemon Tree, 18:30–22:00, £8
Senior and junior orchestras.
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £6
Thu 08 Apr
Candi Staton
The Fall
Open Mic
Soulful diva.
Epic alternative.
Musical free-for-all.
The Warehouse, 19:00–22:30, £15
The Warehouse, 19:00–22:30, £22.50
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, Free
Transmission Kage, 23:00–03:00, £4
Indie, hardcore and electro-pop.
Sat 10 Apr Legend
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £12
Bob Marley tribute.
Heathen
Dexter’s Lounge Bar, 20:00–00:00, £tbc
Metal thrash.
Sun 11 Apr Ricky Warwick
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £10
Acoustic Celtic rock.
Mon 12 Apr The Bluetones
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £13
Acoustic indie.
Fri 16 Apr The Smiths Indeed
The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £8
Tribute act.
3 Times Over (Lions,Chase. Tigers, The Boy Orchestra, Farewell Singapore) Dexter’s Lounge Bar, 20:00–00:00, £tbc
EP launch night.
Wed 21 Apr
Solid Silver 60s
Kate Rusby
Gil Scott-Heron
Glen Capbell
Cha Cha Heels, The Boycotts
The Foxes (Deadlight Red, The New Times, Vladimir and The Mods)
Sixties special.
Lovely English folk.
Hip-hop master.
Country music legend.
Powerpop and electro-rock.
Rockin’ indie-pop.
Wed07Apr Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £20-£22
The Lemon Tree, 13:00–15:00, Free
Weekly folk and blues session. Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £19
Thu22Apr The Warehouse, 19:00–22:30, £17.50
Mon26Apr Music Hall, 19:30–22:30, £30.50
Aberdeen clubs Wed31Mar
Tue06Apr
Suck It Up
Kazsm Dubcat
Chart, R’n’B and loveable pop.
Liquid drum and bass.
Korova, 22:00–02:00, Free
Electrique Boutique Snafu, 23:00–02:00, £3
Electro and house. Rotating DJs.
Origin, 23:00–03:00, £3
Wed07Apr
Modulate
Suck It Up
Dubstep, electro and bass.
Chart, R’n’B and loveable pop.
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Thu01Apr DIRTY HEARTS CLUB (Debutant, Conquering Animal Sound) Snafu, 22:00–02:00, £3
Indie-electro rockin’ disco.
Blow Up
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Electro beats and bleeps.
Fri02Apr Submission
Korova, 22:00–03:00, Free
Techno, dubstep and electro.
Polar Bear Club (Ross Calder, JJ Bull) The Tunnels, 23:00–02:00, £3
Indie, electro and retro.
Metropolis (Optimo) Origin, 23:00–03:00, £12
House and techno.
MIXTAPE (Hot Chip DJ) Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £12
Bassline and electronica heavy.
Sat03Apr Jungle Nation Origin, 22:00–03:00, £5
Jungle beats.
Korova, 22:00–02:00, Free
Electrique Boutique Snafu, 23:00–02:00, £3
Electro and house. Rotating DJs.
Modulate
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Dubstep, electro and bass.
Thu08Apr DIRTY HEARTS CLUB (The Little Kicks, In Atlanta) Snafu, 22:00–02:00, £3
Indie-electro rockin’ disco.
Blow Up
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Electro beats and bleeps.
Fri09Apr Submission
Korova, 22:00–03:00, Free
Techno, dubstep and electro.
Dubstep Special Origin, 23:00–03:00, £5
Er, dubstep.
MIXTAPE (DJ Lunik, Greg Gibb) Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£6 after 12)
Bassline and electronica heavy.
Sat10Apr
THE DEEP END
Everything Else Sucks
Dark house and party tunes.
Electro line-up.
Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£6 after 12)
Mon05Apr Black Tooth
Snafu, 23:00–02:00, Free
Alternative rock and pop.
Origin, 23:00–03:00, £6
THE DEEP END
Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £7
Dark house and party tunes.
Mon12Apr
Fri 09 Apr The Doghouse, 20:00–23:00, £5
dundee clubs Funky Milk
Funky Milk
Electro special.
Electro special.
Origin, 23:00–02:00, £3
Tue13Apr
Origin, 23:00–02:00, £3
Tue20Apr
Thu 01 Apr
Asylum
Funky soul, Latin and hip-hop.
Metal, punk and indie.
Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £3.50
Sugar Ape (Gusgus)
Booya (Dubkat, Gusgus)
Choctopussy
Beats and breaks.
Breaks, dubstep and bass.
Student fun with a chocolate fountain.
Origin, 23:00–03:00, £3
Wed14Apr
Origin, 23:00–02:00, £3
Wed21Apr
Suck It Up
Suck It Up
Chart, R’n’B and loveable pop.
Chart, R’n’B and loveable pop.
Electrique Boutique
Electrique Boutique
Electro and house. Rotating DJs.
Electro and house. Rotating DJs.
Modulate
Modulate
Korova, 22:00–02:00, Free
Snafu, 23:00–02:00, £3
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Korova, 22:00–02:00, Free
Snafu, 23:00–02:00, £3
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Dubstep, electro and bass.
Dubstep, electro and bass.
Thu15Apr
Thu22Apr
DIRTY HEARTS CLUB (Jack Butler)
DIRTY HEARTS CLUB (Kill ‘Em All, Filthy Dukes)
Indie-electro rockin’ disco.
Indie-electro rockin’ disco.
Snafu, 22:00–02:00, £3
Snafu, 22:00–02:00, £6
Blow Up
Blow Up
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Origin, 23:00–02:00, Free
Electro beats and bleeps.
Electro beats and bleeps.
Fri16Apr
Fri23Apr
Submission
Rude
Techno, dubstep and electro.
Funky house and dance.
Korova, 22:00–03:00, Free
The Rig, 22:00–02:00, £tbc
Bass Storm
Jungle Nation
Bassline, grime and funk.
Jungle beats.
Origin, 23:00–03:00, £5
MIXTAPE
Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £7
Bassline and electronica heavy.
Sat17Apr THE DEEP END
Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £8
Dark house and party tunes.
Mon19Apr
Origin, 22:00–03:00, £12
Submission
Korova, 22:00–03:00, Free
Techno, dubstep and electro.
MIXTAPE (Bobmo) Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £8
Bassline and electronica heavy.
Sat24Apr R&R
The Rig, 21:00–03:00, Free (£5 (£3) after 11.30)
Chart, house and 90s.
Fat Sam’s, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Fri 02 Apr Renegades
Kage, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Hip-hop, metal and electro.
Sat 03 Apr Slam (Soma)
Reading Rooms, 22:30–03:30, £10
Four-hour underground techno set.
Asylum
Kage, 23:00–03:00, £5
Metal, punk and indie.
Sun 04 Apr Tried ‘N’ Tested (Charley Mendez, Jack Leotsakou) Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £tbc
Classics and twsited anthems.
Mon 05 Apr Manic Mondays
Fat Sam’s, 22:30–02:30, £tbc
Chart, hip-hop and dancehall.
Thu 08 Apr PLASTIC SOUL
Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £3.50
Funky soul, Latin and hip-hop.
Octopussy
Fat Sam’s, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Student fun.
Fri 09 Apr
Black Tooth
Black Tooth
THE DEEP END
Check The Rabbit
Electro special.
Alternative rock and pop.
Alternative rock and pop.
Dark house and party tunes.
Dubstep special.
Snafu, 23:00–02:00, Free
60 THE SKINNY April 2010
Snafu, 23:00–02:00, Free
Snafu, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£6 after 12)
Sat 10 Apr
PLASTIC SOUL
Funky Milk
Origin, 23:00–02:00, £3
Dexter’s Lounge Bar, 20:00–00:00, £4
Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £tbc
Kage, 23:00–03:00, £5
Mon 12 Apr Manic Mondays
Fat Sam’s, 22:30–02:30, £tbc
Chart, hip-hop and dancehall.
Thu 15 Apr PLASTIC SOUL
Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £3.50
Funky soul, Latin and hip-hop.
Octopussy
Fat Sam’s, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Student fun.
Fri 16 Apr Entropy
Kage, 23:00–03:00, £4
All types of punk.
Sat 17 Apr Asylum
Kage, 23:00–03:00, £5
Metal, punk and indie.
Mon 19 Apr Manic Mondays
Fat Sam’s, 22:30–02:30, £tbc
Chart, hip-hop and dancehall.
Thu 22 Apr PLASTIC SOUL
Reading Rooms, 22:30–02:30, £3.50
Funky soul, Latin and hip-hop.
Octopussy
Fat Sam’s, 23:00–03:00, £tbc
Student fun.
Fri 23 Apr The Beartrap Kage, 23:00–03:00, £4
Rock and punk, plus bands.
Glasgow Comedy Tue 30 Mar Red Raw (With JoJo Sutherland and Paul Currie.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:31, £2 (£1)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Wed 31 Mar Best of Irish Comedy (With Karl Spain, Robbie Bonham and Gearold Farrelly)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:14, £7 (£6/£4)
Thu 01 Apr The Thursday Show (Gearold Farrelly)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 02 Apr The Friday Show (Gearold Farrelly)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 03 Apr The Saturday Show (Karl Spain, John Ross, and Gearold Farrelly. Hosted by Susan Morrison.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 04 Apr Glasgow Kids Comedy Club
The Stand, Glasgow, 15:00–16:30, £4
Fun for the kiddies. Recommended for ages 8-12, no under 5s.
Bank Holiday Special (Karl Spain, John Ross, and Gearold Farrelly. Hosted by Michael Redmond.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:30, £10(£9/£5)
Mon 05 Apr Dance Monkey Boy Dance
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:14, £4
Monthly show featuring a mix of topical stand-up, filmed sketches and improvised games and songs.
Tue 06 Apr Red Raw (Hosted by Scott Agnew)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:05, £2(£2)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Wed 07 Apr Wicked Wenches (Jo Enright, AL Kennedy, Caroline Robertson and Karen Bayley. Hosted by Susan Calman.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:30, £6(£5/£3)
Thu 08 Apr The Thursday Show (Sean Kent and Gus Lymburn)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 09 Apr The Friday Show (Sean Kent and Gus Lymburn)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 10 Apr The Saturday Show (Sean Kent, Jo Enright, Billy Kirkwood and Gus Lymburn. Hosted by Susan Calman.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 11 Apr Glasgow Kids Comedy Club
The Stand, Glasgow, 15:00–16:30, £4
Fun for the kiddies. Recommended for ages 8-12, no under 5s.
Mon 12 Apr Improv Wars
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:30, £4(£2)
Brand new fast paced improv show featuring the nation’s top comics.
Tue 13 Apr Red Raw (Hosted by Stu Murphy)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:05, £2(£2)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Wed 14 Apr How Do I Get Up There?
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:29, £5(£4)
Fast paced sketch show.
Thu 15 Apr Gilded Balloon Comedy Circuit
Òran Mór, 20:00–22:05, £14 (£12)
Doc Brown, Ali Cook & Stuart Goldsmith
The Thursday Show
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 16 Apr The Friday Show
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 17 Apr The Saturday Show ( Alex Boardman, Steven Dick and Matt Hollins. Hosted by Raymond Mearns.)
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 18 Apr Glasgow Kids Comedy Club
The Stand, Glasgow, 15:00–16:30, £4
Fun for the kiddies. Recommended for ages 8-12, no under 5s.
edinburgh Comedy Mon 19 Apr Dance Monkey Boy Dance (With John Ross and Allen Chalmers. Hosted by Raymond Mearns.) The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:16,
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:33, £4 (£2)
£4
Monthly show featuring a mix of topical stand-up, filmed sketches and improvised games and songs.
Tue 20 Apr Red Raw (With Gerry McDade.) The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:05, £2(£2)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Wed 21 Apr Benefit in Aid of Vision Aid Overseas (Steven Dick, Billy Kirkwood and Steve Shanyaski) The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:37, £10(£8)
www.vao.org.uk
Thu 22 Apr The Thursday Show The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 23 Apr The Friday Show The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 24 Apr
Wed 31 Mar Best of Scottish Comedy (With Bruce Morton, Teddy and Bruce Fummey. Hosted by Raymond Mearns)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:35, £6 (£5/£3)
Thu 01 Apr Electric Tales (April Fool’s Day)
Scottish Storytelling Centre, 19:30–21:47, £6(£4)
Part of the Magners Glasgow International Comedy Festival.
The Thursday Show (with Sean Kent)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 02 Apr The Friday Show (with Sean Kent)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 03 Apr The Saturday Show (Sean Kent, Robbie Bonham, Derek Johnston and Rebecca Donohue. Hosted by Sandy Nelson.) The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 04 Apr
The Saturday Show (Dominic Woodward, Charlie Ross and Ed Patrick. Hosted by Joe Heenan.)
Whose Lunch Is It Anyway?
The Stand, Glasgow, 21:00–23:00,
Bank Holiday Special (Sean Kent, Robbie Bonham, Derek Johnston and Rebecca Donohue. Hosted by Sandy Nelson.)
£13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 25 Apr Glasgow Kids Comedy Club The Stand, Glasgow, 15:00–16:30, £4
Fun for the kiddies. Recommended for ages 8-12, no under 5s.
Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service (Dominic Woodward, Charlie Ross and Lucy Oldham. Hosted by Michael Redmond.) The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:32, £5(£4/£1)
Sunday night comedy hosted by Michael Redmond.
Mon 26 Apr Improv Wars (Garry Dobson, Stuart Murphy, The Improv Dogs, Chris Forbes )
Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service (Matt Hollins, Michael Adams, Graham Mackie and Davey See. Hosted by Michael Redmond.)
£4(£2)
Sunday night comedy hosted by Michael Redmond.
Brand new fast paced improv show featuring the nation’s top comics.
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:32, £5(£4/£1)
Tue 30 Mar Midweek Comedy Cabaret (With Rebecca Donohue, Garry Dobson and Jeff O’Boyle. Hosted by Stuart Murphy)
The Stand, Glasgow, 20:30–22:30,
The Stand, Edinburgh, 12:30–15:00, Free
Improvised comedy led by audience suggestions, with Stu and Garry.
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:22, £10(£9/£5)
Mon 05 Apr Absolute Beginners
Beehive Inn, 20:00–22:37, £2 (£1)
Lineup of new comic talent.
Red Raw (Joe Heenan and compere Billy Kirkwood.)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £2(£1)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Tue 06 Apr Wicked Wenches (Jo Enright, AL Kennedy, Caroline Robertson and Karen Bayley. Hosted by Susan Calman.) The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:06, £6(£5/£3)
Wed 07 Apr Scott Capurro Goes MUCH Deeper
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:43, £10(£8)
Thu 08 Apr
Sun 18 Apr
The Thursday Show (The Boy With the Tape On His Face, and John Gavin)
Whose Lunch Is It Anyway?
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Improvised comedy led by audience suggestions, with Stu and Garry.
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Fri 09 Apr The Friday Show (The Boy With the Tape On His Face, and John Gavin. ) The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 10 Apr
The Stand, Edinburgh, 12:30–15:00, Free
The Sunday Night LaughIn (Danny Buckler, Barry McDonald, < A>Derek Miller, Mark Davies and Caroline Robertson.) The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £5(£4/£1)
Round off your weekend with a night of laughs.
Mon 19 Apr
The Saturday Show (Roger Monkhouse, The Boy With the Tape On His Face, Karen Bayley and John Gavin. Hosted by Bruce Devlin.)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Red Raw (Hosted by Jeff O’Boyle)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £2(£1)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Tue 20 Apr Comedy Pow Wow
Sun 11 Apr
The Illicit Still, 20:30–22:30, Free
Sketches, stand-up and comedy songs.
Whose Lunch Is It Anyway?
The Stand, Edinburgh, 12:30–15:00, Free
Improvised comedy led by audience suggestions, with Stu and Garry.
Gilded Balloon Comedy Circuit
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Scottish Parliament The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:56, £6(£5)
Voodoo Rooms, 20:00–22:00, £14 (£12)
Doc Brown, Ali Cook & Stuart Goldsmith
Wed 21 Apr
The Sunday Night LaughIn (The Boy With the Tape on His Face, Gerry McDade, Alan Sharp and Jason Arnstein. Hosted by Sian Bevan)
Lucy Porter: Fool’s Gold
Round off your weekend with a night of laughs.
The Thursday Show
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £5(£4/£1)
Mon 12 Apr
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:57, £10(£9)
Thu 22 Apr The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Absolute Beginners
Beehive Inn, 20:00–22:37, £2 (£1)
Fri 23 Apr
Lineup of new comic talent.
Red Raw (Hosted by Bruce Fummey.)
The Friday Show
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £2(£1)
Tue 13 Apr
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Sat 24 Apr
Benefit in Aid of Link Community Development The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:46, £7(£5)
Link Community Development Scotland works to improve the lives of children by improving access to and the quality of education in rural Ethopia, Ghana, Malawi. South Africa and Uganda
The Saturday Show (Sean Percival, Teddy and Steve Shanyaski. Hosted by Susan Morrison) The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
Sun 25 Apr
Thu 15 Apr
Whose Lunch Is It Anyway?
The Thursday Show (with Michael Adams)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £8 (£7/£4)
Doors open 7:30. Hot food available.
Fri 16 Apr The Friday Show
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £10 (£9/£5)
Friday night special with a changing rota of performers.
Sat 17 Apr The Saturday Show ( Danny Buckler, Elaine Malcolmson and Katie Mulgrew. Hosted by Susan Morrison)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 21:00–23:00, £13
Saturday special with varying top line-up.
The Stand, Edinburgh, 12:30–15:00, Free
Improvised comedy led by audience suggestions, with Stu and Garry.
The Sunday Night LaughIn (Steve Shanyaski, Jeff O’Boyle, Robert Parker and Ben Verth. Hosted by Billy Kirkwood.) The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £5(£4/£1)
Round off your weekend with a night of laughs.
Mon 26 Apr Red Raw (Hosted by Scott Agnew)
The Stand, Edinburgh, 20:30–22:30, £2(£1)
New acts, new material from old acts; a classic lucky dip of comedy.
April 2010
THE SKINNY 61
art listings aberdeen
Aberdeen Art
Frances Walker - Place Observed in Solitude
Various times, 30 Mar—10 Apr, not 5th, FREE
Maritime Museum ajb strachan
10:00AM, til 03 april, free
Provost Skene’s in the pink
10:00AM, 01 Apr—03 Apr, free
dundee DCA The Connoisseurs
Various times, 30 Mar—25 Apr, not 5th, 12th, 19th, Free
Disparate series of artworks from Alex Frost, with his multiple approaches to contemporary art.
Edinburgh Bourne Fine Art
Sculpture from painting 10:00AM, 30 Mar—01 Apr, Free
Multi award-winning Scottish painter John McLean exhibits at the gallery for the fourth time.
Corn Exchange Elsewhere
11:00AM, Multiple dates, Free
Richard Moat and Arthur Steward present work including light installation and text paintings highlighting the disorienting patterns of light found at the South Pole
Dean Gallery Diane Arbus
10:00AM, 30 Mar—25 Apr, Free
Seventy black and white photographs by Arbus from the ARTIST ROOMS collection, including the rare and important portfolio of ten vintage prints: A Box of Ten (1971).
‘Painter’ and The Studio 10:00AM, 01 Apr—02 Apr, free
With a traditional background in painting, McCarthy made his name with performance art, lashing out against traditional artistic ideas. His famous and irreverent video Painter (1995) satirises the formula of the artist as lonely genius in his studio.
Running Time : Artist Films in Scotland: 1960 to Now 10:00AM, 11 Apr, free
A unique selection of film and video works made in Scotland over the past fifty years. The first ever exhibition dedicated exclusively to artist films in Scotland, it includes more than 100 films by over 60 artists.
Sculpture W'shop Shona Macnaughton: The Good Room 10:30AM, 01 Apr—04 Apr, Free
New work produced during a three month ESW / ECA graduate bursary.
Ingleby Gallery The Thrill Of It All
10:00AM, 30 Mar—10 Apr, not 4th, Free
Solo exhibition from Peter Liversidge looking at the notion of creativity; how it starts and where it takes you.
Sean Scully: Iona
10:00AM, 17 Apr—24 Apr, not 18th, Free
Iona is a giant triptych, painted in Scully’s studio in New York between 2004 and 2006.
InverleithHouse Victoria Morton
10:00AM, 30 Mar—25 Apr, not 5th, 12th, 19th, Free
New paintings by the Glasgow artist, alongside new short films by Anne-Marie Copestake downstairs.
ModernArt Strange Encounters 10:00AM, 30 Mar—25 Apr, Free
This display brings together four works by John Davies, Douglas Gordon, Martin Boyce and Robert Colquhoun.
NationalGalleries The Printmaker’s Art 10:00AM, 30 Mar—25 Apr, Free
A selection of prints by a variety of European masters from the past 500 years.
Patriothall Dialogues 2010: Karen Lyons and Rachel Maclean 12:00PM, 10 Apr—20 Apr, Free
Contemporary takes on Hieronymous Bosch in technicolour sculpture and video installations.
RSA New Contemporaries 2010 Various times, 03 Apr—21 Apr, £2 (£1)
An annual exhibition of new work by a selection of last year’s art graduates, specially selected from all of Scotland’s art colleges.
SierraMetro Of The Remainder
12:00PM, 03 Apr—11 Apr, not 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, Free
New work from Bethan Maddocks and Anna Robbins
TalbotRice Gallery
theatre listings Kelvingrove Art Pioneering Painters: The Glasgow Boys 1880–1900
Various times, 09 Apr—25 Apr, £5 (£3)
The biggest Glasgow Boys exhibition in more than 40 years.
Project Ability Grounded
10:00AM, 30 Mar—10 Apr, not 4th, 5th, Free
Landscape exhibition by Project Ability artists.
Recoat Gallery Matt Mignanelli: The Paradigm
12:00PM, 03 Apr—25 Apr, not 5th, 12th, 19th, Free
Painter, designer, mural artist and lecturer Matt Mignanelli is travelling over from New York to exhibit a collection of his paintings and to create a mural on the walls of Recoat.
Sorcha Dallas Linder: King’s Ransom (Hybrid Tea)
aberdeen
Aberdeen Arts Bad Girls
07:30PM, 01 Apr—03 Apr, £11
The musical of the TV show.
All Our Yesterdays 2
You cannot have Watson without Moriarty.
His Majesty’s The Sound of Music
07:30PM, 30 Mar—17 Apr, not 4th, 11th, from £15
Ten til Ten
Hot Flush
The Lemon Tree A Murder Between Acts 07:30PM, 15 Apr—16 Apr, £5
New Writing Festival Two days of workshops and shows for new work
Guards Guards
07:30PM, 20 Apr—21 Apr, £10
Terry Pratchett gets adapted.
dundee
Dundee Rep The Elves and the Shoemakers
Various times, 30 Mar—02 Apr, £5
Children’s show
In her first solo show in Scotland, Talbot Rice Gallery at the University of Edinburgh will show a small-scale monograph exhibition.
Works by Nuala Herron and Sam Luntley. In an exhibition of new and existing works both artists draw attention to the everyday, enticing the viewer to look more closely.
TheJazzBar
This show of photographic work examines the ambiguities that surround bruising, and aims to challenge the public perception of appearances.
The Flying Duck All The Young Nudes
Dr Sketchy
08:00PM, Tue 30th, Tue 6th, Tue 13th, Tue 20th, £4
Glam burlesque drawing class. GO!
Drawing class with a backdrop of DJ beats and a bar to the side.
03:00PM, 04 Apr, £7 (£6)
TotalKunst Brian Cheeswright
10:00AM, 19 Apr—25 Apr, Free
Reflections of the anxieties, frustrations and general bewildering absurdities of life in this exhibition of recent expressionist & figurative paintings in oil and acrylic.
art’scomplex Giorgos Bouras: Oscillations
11:30AM, 10 Apr—16 Apr, Free
Three sound installations which use sine waves to investigate the concept of space.
Glasgow GSA
Air Ten
11:00AM, 21 Apr—25 Apr, Free
An exhibition of cutting edge jewellery from six designers currently in residence at GSA.
62 THE SKINNY April 2010
Tramway Douglas Gordon: 24 Hour Psycho Back And Forth And To And Fro 11:00AM, 16 Apr—25 Apr, Free
Gordon’s first exhibition in Glasgow in over a decade, revisiting his 1993 work in which he stretched the Hitchcock classic over 24 hours.
Tron Theatre FiST
10:00AM, 07 Apr—25 Apr, Free
Hot Flush
Various times, 15 Apr—22 Apr, £19–£20
Women on the verge of HRT
Whitehall Disney’s Beauty and the Beast
Various times, 23 Apr—25 Apr, from £11
Classic fairytale, given Walt’s Treatment
Edinburgh Brunton Theatre Journey’s End
07:30PM, 16 Apr—17 Apr, £10.50
WWI drama
EFT The Adventures of Mr Broucek
07:15PM, 08 Apr—16 Apr, not 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, from £10
After a few drinks, man visits moon before upsetting revolutionaries
La Boheme
Various times, 19 Apr—24 Apr, not 21st, 23rd, from £10
Ravishing romanticism.
Welcome Home Sketchbook
Various times, 17 Apr—25 Apr, not 19th, Free
Glasgow PodcART presents an interactive exhibition of sketches, scribbles and inspiration from the fingers and minds of artists, writers and musicians.
Ancient Grimm’s tale of the folly of greed.
Small Worlds Various times, 14 Apr, £2.50
Six interweaving stories, fusing animation with miniature landscapes and puppetry.
ME (Mobile/Evolution) Tour Double bill of humourous stories; about doctors and dancing, bikes and ballet.
The Life of Ian Dury
10:00AM, 03 Apr—09 Apr, not 4th, 5th, FREE
Various times, 06 Apr, £2.50
A genuine, honest and often very funny one-woman account of a singer’s life.
Scott Fullerton has produced a new site specific work exploring the associations, potential and physicality of materials in the constructed form.
At a glance
The Fisherman
07:30PM, 22 Apr, £8 (£4.50/£3.50)
07:30PM, 13 Apr—14 Apr, £14
Various times, 30 Mar—21 Apr, Free
Platform
Women on the verge of HRT
Raspberry
Kirsty Nichol: Human Marks
Battles in the classroom and staffroom
1950s rock’n’roll musical
07:30PM, 09 Apr—10 Apr, £12 – £22
11:00AM, 10 Apr—25 Apr, Free
The Arches
07:30PM, 06 Apr—10 Apr, from £16
07:30PM, 30 Mar—03 Apr, from £11
Just For Joe
Carla Scott Fullerton
Henderson Gallery
And without both of them, there is no Holmes.
King’s Theatre Dreamboats and Petticoats
Various times, 15 Apr—22 Apr, not 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st, £19–£20
Jenny Holzer
10:00AM, 30 Mar—24 Apr, not 4th, 5th, 11th, 12th, 18th, 19th, Free
You cannot have Moriarty without Watson.
The History Boys
Music Hall
Featuring new collages and objects inspired by motifs and themes used in her new performnace, The Darktown Cakewalk: Celebrated from the House of FAME, to be previewed at Glasgow International at the Arches on 23 Apr
GANGHUT is developing a site specific structure(s) that will inhabit/take over the South Side Studios location. GANGHUT’s musical leg, GANGBAND, will also develop a musical performance for the South Side Studios during GI.
The Secret of Sherlock Holmes
Nostalgia fest
12:00AM, from £5
11:00AM, 16 Apr—25 Apr, Free
Rock’n’roll era musical
07:30PM, 30 Mar—03 Apr, from £16
An offstage murder at a talent show.
GANGHUT
07:30PM, 30 Mar—03 Apr, from £11
07:30PM, 10 Apr, £13
11:00AM, 15 Apr—24 Apr, not 18th, 19th, Free
Southside
King’s Theatre Dreamboats and Petticoats
Playhouse
Royal Lyceum The Cherry Orchard
07:45PM, 16 Apr—24 Apr, not 18th, 19th, from £9
A new version by John Byrne
Informatics, Edin Uni Huxley’s Lab
Various times, 01 Apr—08 Apr, not 4th, £15
A site specific show performed at the Informatics Forum, University of Edinburgh, 10 Crichton Street, EH8 9AB
Traverse NQR* & The Life and times of Girl A
07:30PM, 01 Apr—03 Apr, from £13
Dancing contemporary anxiety
Raspberry
Various times, 31 Mar—10 Apr, not 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, from £13–£10.50
Inspired by the life and songs of Ian Dury
Raspberry
SECC Diversity 07:00PM, 30 Mar, £18.50
Britain’s Got Talent winners.
The Arches Forest Fringe 07:00PM, 16 Apr—17 Apr, £10
Intimate encounters, installations, works-in-progress, secret adventures and interactive experiences by exciting UK artists.
LINDER: The Darktown Cakewalk 11:00AM, 23 Apr, £6 day pass
A new 13 hour performance work
Theatre Royal The Adventures of Mr Broucek 07:15PM, 08 Apr—16 Apr, not 9th, from £10
After a few drinks, man visits moon before upsetting revolutionaries
08:00PM, 08 Apr—10 Apr, from £8
Romeo and Juliet
The Life of Ian Dury
07:30PM, 17 Apr—24 Apr, not 18th, 19th, from £8.80
The Goat- or Who Is Sylvia? 07:30PM, 17 Apr—24 Apr, not 18th, 19th, from £8
Contemporary version by Pastor
Martin has a secret that threatens to blow apart his happy married life. By Edward Albee
07:30PM, 23 Apr—24 Apr, from £10
glasgow
Peter Pan Greig and Tiffany revisit the classic story
Tramway 11 and 12
Citizens Theatre Plasticine
07:30PM, 31 Mar—03 Apr, £8
A teenage outcast retreats into a private universe that he moulds from plasticine, and out of which springs a final act of reckless courage.
The Ministry of Fear
07:30PM, 20 Apr—24 Apr, from £7
Grahame Green’s taut thriller
Gilmorehill G12 Camelot
07:30PM, 14 Apr—17 Apr, from £12
Musical around the round table
07:30PM, 30 Mar—03 Apr, £20
How can a number cause war? Peter Brook investigates through the life of a Sufi sage
Tron Theatre Raspberry Various times, 31 Mar—10 Apr, from £13–£10.50
Inspired by the life and songs of Ian Dury
Sick 07:45PM, 31 Mar—03 Apr, £8.50
All about being ill
Òran Mór
Laughing in the Rain
Camelot
07:30PM, 12 Apr—17 Apr, from £16.75
07:30PM, 14 Apr—17 Apr, from £12
The Neil Sedaka Story
Swords, chivalry and love triangles
Tonight David Ireland Will Lecture, Box and Dance
Les Miserables
Romeo and Juliet
12:30PM, 05 Apr—10 Apr, £8
07:30PM, 20 Apr—24 Apr, from £21
07:30PM, 20 Apr—24 Apr, from £10
French revolutionaries burst into song
Shakespeare. Drama.
Part of a Play, A Pie and A Pint. A man seeks his lost uncle.
PRIZES!
COMPETITIONS WEALTH BEYOND MEASURE
WIN A 60GB PACEMAKER! FOR the sake of clarity, the Pacemaker in question doesn’t keep your heart ticking. The one that we’re offering, thanks to the ingenious folks at Tonium, is of the heart-stopping variety, such is its sheer awesomeness. We’re giving away the 60GB version that retails at £299.99 to one lucky reader, and frankly, we think you’ll love it. The Pacemaker is, as Tonium puts it, ‘a pocket sized DJ system’. You can match beats, mix tracks, use filters, FX and loops; everything a pro DJ can do, but it fits in your pocket, so you can start the party anytime, anywhere. What’s more, you can share your mixes with the thriving Pacemaker community at www.letsmix.com. For full technical specs and detailed video tutorials, visit www.pacemaker.net. If you’re not lucky enough to win, you can get hold of one at www. hmv.com. TO ENTER JUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION :
Which DJ and producer proclaimed The Pacemaker to be “to dance music what guitars were to rock & roll?” VISIT THESKINNY.CO.UK/COMPETITIONS BEFORE 30 APRIL FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!
Terms and Conditions: Visit theskinny.co.uk/terms for details.
A PAIR OF 3 DAY
PASSES TO SONAR 2010
SONAR 2010 will be the 17th edition of one of Europe’s premier music and multimedia festivals. Held over three days and three nights (17, 18 & 19 June) between Sonar by Day in Barcelona city centre (CCCB and MACBA) and Sonar by Night (Fira Gran Via M2 L’Hospitalet), Sonar is a heady blend of cutting edge multimedia exhibition and avant-garde electronic music. Sonar are offering Skinny readers a very special pair of 3-day passes for Sonar 2010 this June that will grant you full access to almost all events at Sonar by Day and Sonar by Night. Headliners for this year roll off the tongue: Roxy Music, LCD Soundsystem, Plastikman, Chemical Brothers, Hudson Mohawke, Laurent Garnier, Fuck Buttons and 2manydjs are just a few of the acts due to alight onstage at Barcelona. For more information on tickets and the festival programme, visit www.sonar.es.
TO ENTER JUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION :
£60 FOPP VOUCHERS! FOPP and The Skinny have formed like Voltron to offer three Skinny readers an eye-popping £60 spree in any Fopp store. Before you cast a pair of demented, googly eyes towards the Oasis back catalogue, we suggest you give some of this month’s choicest releases a look-in first. Eclectic electronic producer Caribou’s latest longplayer, Swim (City Slang), features some of Daniel Snaith’s finest work, and is due for a release on 19 April. This month will also see the release of Glasgow folk ensemble Woodenbox With A Fistful of Fivers’ latest album, while singer-songwriter omnitalent Rufus Wainwright launches his sixth studio album, All Days & Nights: Songs For Lulu, on 5 April. All of these releases and much more will be available to buy at Fopp. To find your nearest Fopp store, go to www. foppreturns.com.
TO ENTER JUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION :
The theme of Sonar 2010 is ‘Finisterrae’, a story that follows two ghosts and their journey from Barcelona to Galicia on horseback. Why is Galicia significant to Sonar 2010?
Fopp was named after a song by which Ohio ensemble?
VISIT THESKINNY.CO.UK/COMPETITIONS BEFORE 28 APRIL FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!
VISIT THESKINNY.CO.UK/COMPETITIONS BEFORE 30 APRIL FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!
Terms and Conditions: Visit theskinny.co.uk/terms for details. Please note that the 3-day pass will not grant you access to all Sonar events, such as concerts at L’Auditori. Entrants must be aged 16 or older.
Terms and Conditions: Visit theskinny.co.uk/terms for details.
APRIL 2010
THE SKINNY 63