The Skinny Scotland February 2016

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CULT U R A L

February 2016 Scotland Issue 125

J O U R N A L I S M TRAVEL SPECIAL International Events Calendar 2016 Living Abroad: A Guide Tuff Love in Iceland FILM Glasgow Film Festival 2016: Aidan Moffat Ben Wheatley ART British Art Show 8 Visual Arts Scotland THEATRE NTS 10th Birthday Andy Arnold

MUSIC Savages Steve Mason So Pitted Hinds BOOKS Ali Eskandarian Women & Horror FASHION Rosie Sugden GSA Fashion Show COMEDY Tony Law Isy Suttie A Guide to Seduction

PATTON! DRUCKER! ADEBIMPE!

NEVERMEN THE FIRST INTERVIEW

MUSIC | FILM | CLUBS | THEATRE | TECH | ART | BOOKS | COMEDY | FASHION | TRAVEL | FOOD | DEVIANCE | LISTINGS

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Lifestyle

THE SKINNY

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P.30 International Events Travel Calendar

P.32 GSA Fashion

February 2016 I N DEPEN DENT

CULTU R AL

JOU R NALI S M

Issue 125, February 2016 Š Radge Media Ltd. Get in touch: E: hello@theskinny.co.uk T: 0131 467 4630 P: The Skinny, 1.9 1st Floor Tower, Techcube, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall Pl, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL The Skinny is Scotland's largest independent entertainment & listings magazine, and offers a wide range of advertising packages and affordable ways to promote your business.

Get in touch to find out more.

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Printed by Mortons Print Limited, Horncastle ABC verified Jan – Dec 2014: 32,191

printed on 100% recycled paper

Editorial Editor-in-Chief Music & Deputy Editor Editorial Assistant Art Editor Books Editor Clubs Editor Comedy Editor Deviance Editor Events Editor Fashion Editor Film & DVD Editor Food Editor Games Editor Tech Editor Theatre Editor Travel Editor

Rosamund West Dave Kerr Will Fitzpatrick Adam Benmakhlouf Alan Bett Ronan Martin Ben Venables Kate Pasola Anna Docherty Kate Pasola Alexandra Fiddes Jamie Dunn Peter Simpson Darren Carle John Donaghy Emma Ainley-Walker Paul Mitchell

Production Production Manager Lead Designer

Sarah Donley Sigrid Schmeisser

Sales Commercial Director Sales Executives

General Manager Chief Operating Officer Publisher

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Contents

Nicola Taylor Claire Collins Nicky Carter George Sully Kyla Hall Lara Moloney Sophie Kyle

THE SKINNY

Credit: John Graham

P.21 HINDS

Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic

P.14 GFF: Aidan Moffat

Contents Chat & Opinion: Welcome to the maga06 zine; What Are You Having For Lunch?

Shot of the Month and more freakily accurate foresight from Crystal Baws.

Heads Up: So, now that the month of 08 staying at home and eating beans from a can is over, you’ll be dying to take in some culture. Step forward, our guide to the month’s best happenings.

FEATURES

10 Comprising TV On The Radio’s Tunde

Adebimpe, Anticon founder Doseone and veteran polymath Mike Patton, cover stars Nevermen chat about driving a mega Godzilla, like you do.

12 As post-punkers Savages return with

rabble-rousing second LP Adore Life, drummer Fay Milton fills us in on their radically positive crusade.

14 A idan Moffat explains how a tour diary morphed into new film Where You’re Meant to Be, which has its world premiere at Glasgow Film Festival.

15 Ben Wheatley’s take on JG Ballard’s

High-Rise is his biggest film yet – but don’t expect him to move into Marvel territory any time soon. He talks to us ahead of his trip to Glasgow Film Festival.

17 The quinquennial British Art Show 8

arrives in Edinburgh with a stellar selection of contemporary artists.

Visual Arts Scotland takes over the galleries of the RSA with an exhibition of fine art and design.

18 National Theatre Scotland turn 10

this year. We speak to artistic director Laurie Sansom about a year of celebratory programming and the return of the James Plays.

21 Spanish slacker-rock four-piece HINDS prove as lively in interview as they do on stage.

22 Oscar Van Gelderen, editor of Ali

Eskandarian's Golden Years, tells of the tragedy behind the posthumous publication of the murdered writer, singer and songwriter's debut work.

of the release of her book, and 25 Ahead an appearance at Glasgow International Comedy Festival, Isy Suttie chats about moving back to Matlock and refusing to grow up.

TRAVEL SPECIAL moving abroad? In the first of our 27 Fancy new series of ex-pat guides (catch ’em all online) our man in Bogotá reports back.

28 We join Glasgow fuzz pop duo Tuff Love on the road in Iceland.

Plan your cultural adventures for 2016 30 with our International Events Calendar.

LIFESTYLE

26 Deviance: Our Deviance editor traded

her usual Tinder profile for that of a Disney princess – the results were depressing. Plus, in this momentous period for LGBT rights, one writer reminds us to not forget the past.

30 Fashion: Looking forward to Glasgow

School of Art’s 2016 runway show (this year geometry-themed). Plus, Knitwear designer Rosie Sugden tells us how her cashmere creations went global.

35 Food and Drink: One hospitality worker

lifts the lid on the awfulness of customers, while we offer a guide to winning at Valentine’s Day. Our Phagomania column returns alongside news of the latest culinary developments in Glasgow and Edinburgh (soz Dundee).

REVIEW

39 Music: Steve Mason breaks down new

album Meet the Humans, track-by-track; So Pitted are our New Blood; plus our verdict on forthcoming records from Animal Collective, DIIV and Beacon and recent gigs from Dilly Dally, Laura Cannell and much more.

47 Clubs: Here’re yer higlights for late

nights in sweaty rooms in February.

Plus, a DJ Chart from Offbeat’s Chris McFarlane aka Big Miz.

49 Art: Reviews of Another Minimalism and Merlin James, plus looking ahead to the exhibition highlights of February.

50 Film: Kurt Russell stars in brutal western Bone Tomahawk and Tilda Swinton and Ralph Fiennes make waves in A Bigger Splash.

51 DVD: We check out how 3D extravaganza The Walk works on the small screen and get reacquainted with The Friends of Eddie Coyle.

52 Books: With February being the

7th annual Women in Horror Month, US author Lauren A. Forry looks into the attraction of the genre. Our poetry columnist highlights for the coming month (plus tips on becoming a spoken word pro) alongside the latest releases.

54 Theatre: Andy Arnold introduces his long-

awaited production of Cock. And our allnew theatrical problem page with a reality check for an OP hell bent on seducing a lady with tickets for a play.

55 Listings: Thank heavens it’s a leap year – you’re going to need that extra day to fit in all this lot.

62 Competitions: WIN! WIN! WIN! 62 Comedy: Tony Law speaks candidly about his experiences with mental health and on Fringe.

63 The Last Word: Fred Fletch tests the writings of two pick-up artists so you don’t have to. No really, you don’t.

February 2016

Contents

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Editorial

H

ello from the midst of Hurricane Fannybaws, aka Scotland in the terrible nine months of winter. The wind is howling around the building, torrential rain battering the windows and yet the sun is, oddly, shining. It is at moments like this that we all think – is there another way? A place where it’s better, warmer, brighter? Must we live like this, year in, year out?

In a bid to answer this question, our Travel section has put together its annual special. This year we’re focussing on How to Live Abroad, launching a new series of articles written by members of our team who’ve fled to warmer climes and have kindly consented to share with you how you could, too. We’re launching the project in print with a piece on life in Bogota (less dangerous and more endlessly fascinating than you might think).

Head to theskinny.co.uk/travel to find out how to start a life in Madrid, Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Amsterdam or Dubai, including such details as visa procurement, finding an apartment and dealing with life in a culturally bereft desert state light on female rights (drink lots).

If it’s a holiday rather than a major life change you’re after (each to their own, after all), our Travel special has that, too. Flip to the centre of the magazine to see 2016’s cultural highlights the world over, as compiled by our resident team of experts.

On our cover this month sits a singular image

by Turner Prize winner Keith Tyson, depicting the long-gestating supergroup Nevermen. Our Music editor has snagged a super-exclusive interview with all three members of the new collaborative project, they being TV on the Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe, Faith No More vocalist Mike Patton and equally prolific Anticon founder Doseone.

Turn to p10 to find out how they circumvented the challenges of forging a democratic creative process with three frontmen at the helm.

Elsewhere in Music, Savages’ drummer Fay Milton drops by to share thoughts on their sophomore album Adore Life, offering added detail on the band’s rigorous tour regime. Lively Spanish four-piece Hinds share an intense insight into their all-in approach to the band; Tuff Love take a trip to Iceland and tell our writer about life in a whirlwind of recording and performing ahead of their debut Resort’s release this month; and Steve Mason offers a candid track-by-track guide to new album Meet the Humans, including new vocab in the form of ‘A Cameron’ (noun, substitute for a different word beginning with c.)

February is one of Film’s most exciting months, as it heralds the arrival of Glasgow Film Festival and our bespoke mini guide, the CineSkinny.

To preview the GFF programme we have words with Aidan Moffat, star of new documentary / tour diary Where You’re Meant to Be, premiering in the Barras this month. We also speak to director Ben Wheatley, whose take on JG Ballard science-fiction classic High-Rise screens as part of the festival.

Comedy is warming up for Glasgow Comedy Festival, and speaks to Isy Suttie and Fringe sensation Tony Law. Theatre celebrates a decade of the National Theatre Scotland with artistic director Laurie Sansom, discussing the 2016 programme and bringing back the James Plays. Art is very excited about the arrival of the British Art Show 8, the touring litmus test of contemporary art, and also about discovering the word ‘quinquennial.’

Think we’ve forgotten about Valentine’s Day? Well we haven’t! Things get very romantic at different points throughout this here magazine. In Food, we’ve got a brief guide to winning at restaurants (get ready for a fight, remember to not be a dick and always have a plan B / reservation). Our Deviance editor thought she’d test out a theory and created a Tinder profile conforming to all those alleged stereotypes of women longing for true love’s kiss, a man to bake cookies for and a life of domestic servitude and flute-playing. This proved depressingly popular with the male population of the app.

Finally, putting a nail in the coffin of romance once and for all, Fred Fletch wraps up the issue by parsing a couple of pick-up artists’ greatest works to offer you, dear readers, a foolproof guide to seduction. We cannot take responsibility for your actions after reading it. [Rosamund West]

SMHAFF returns for 2016 The Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival returns in 2016 for its tenth year, based around the theme of ‘time’, and they’re celebrating the anniversary with a series of year-round events supported by Creative Scotland and See Me Scotland. Opening on World Mental Health Day, programme highlights include a new play from Alan Bissett about the life of Syd Barrett, a new project (in partnership with the National Theatre of Scotland) looking at transgender lives, and their International Film Competition. SMHAFF runs from 10-31 October. More at mhfestival.com

FEBRUARY'S COVER ARTIST

Along with all the globetrotting action in this month’s magazine, we’ve cast our net far and wide to bring you guides to some of the planet’s most exciting cities, written by people who actually live there. Read our guides to Amsterdam, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, and Madrid at theskinny. co.uk/travel

Keith Tyson (b. 1969, Ulverston, Cumbria, England) began working as an apprentice engineer making nuclear submarines after leaving secondary school at age 15. Deciding to pursue art, he quit the shipyards and gained admission to the Carlisle College of Art, England, graduating in 1990. Tyson earned his M.A. in Alternative Practice at the University of Brighton, England in 1993. He works in various media, including painting, drawing and sculpture, won the Turner Prize in 2002, and is the fourth Neverman.

XpoNorth registration opens Creative industries festival XpoNorth has announced details of its 2016 programme. This year’s festival features workshops, panels and masterclasses dedicated to music, broadcasting, fashion, gaming, design and publishing. The festival takes place in Inverness on 8 & 9 June, and the best part is it’s all free, registration is open now via xponorth.co.uk – musicians, writers and filmmakers looking for the chance to showcase their work can submit pieces via the festival website; the deadline is 1 April.

Dundee International Book Prize open for 2016 Calling all unpublished authors! The Dundee International Book Prize has invited entries for its

2016 edition. The winner of this year’s prize will receive £5,000 and a publishing deal with Freight Books, winners of the Publisher of the Year category at the 2015 Saltire Literary Awards. Entries close on 19 Feb; more info at dundeebookprize.com Edinburgh Art Festival call for submissions Edinburgh Art Festival has launched an open call for emerging artists looking to appear at this year's festival. The festival's Platform group show will return for 2016 and EAF will provide up to five artists with a production budget, an artist fee, and support ahead of and during the festival. Applicants must be Scotland-based recent graduates in Fine Art or a related subject.

Submissions close on 29 Feb; full details at edinburghartfestival.com Declaration festival announces programme The inaugural Declaration festival comes to Glasgow next month, promising to explore health and human rights with 30 events spread out over four days, with each event responding to a different article in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Featuring conversations, performances and film screenings, and with guests including the likes of novelist Louise Welsh and poet Jenny Lindsay (also of Rally & Broad), Declaration takes place between 3-6 March. Full programme at declarationfest.com

Online Only

Worlds collide as Fred Fletch shares air molecules with The Governator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and we catch up with US standup Nick Thune ahead of his debut UK shows. theskinny.co.uk/comedy

Spot the Difference TWO CATS Check out these two fans of The Skinny. They’re both valued members of our readership, and their feedback has been instrumental in shaping many of the developments we have recently made to our digital platform.

While they might look at first glance like two peas in a pod, there are in fact some subtle differences that distinguish them. Only one of

them, for example, is friends with the voice of Miss Piggy, Frank Oz. Can you tell us which one?

If you think you’ve got the answer, you could be in with a chance of winning a copy of Things We Have in Common by Tasha Kavanagh, courtesy of our dear old chums at Canongate. Head to the website (theskinny.co.uk/competitions) to enter.

Competition closes midnight Sun 31 Jan. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms-and-conditions

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Chat

THE SKINNY

Shot Of The Month Daughter, Queen's Hall Edinburgh, 23 January by Rita Azevedo

Crystal Baws with Mystic Mark

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ARIES Your circle of friends appears to be just that; a circle of sinister hooded figures stood around you chanting ancient Satanic mantras.

TAURUS Perfume ads are engineered to make you believe that some people don’t do big wet farts that sicken entire rooms.

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GEMINI Looking at pictures of food on your phone is not a healthy diet.

CANCER In February you finally get your license to become a professional plane driver.

LEO This month the Dog God sends his only pup to Earth so that he may be run over by a car in order for all the bad dogs to have eternal walkies in the big park in the sky. Through the Son of Dog all bad dogs can be forgiven, but only if they ‘sit’ and give their paw to the One True Owner.

Bad dogs who don’t roll over are doomed to Dog Hell which is a very big kennel, bigger than the park, where bad doggies have to stay forever with no walkies, where the toys never squeak, where demonic vets poke and prod with torturous implements, and every night is firework night.

VIRGO Don’t blow your own trumpet; blow other people’s trumpets when they’re not looking to give them a fright.

LIBRA LIFE HACK: When picking off scabs pour glitter into the wound and when it dries you’ll have a glamorous glitterscab like a top celebrity.

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SCORPIO This year you plan to be yourself, which leaves your friends bitterly disappointed by the funless joy-hole who now meets them for lunch and turns up to their birthday parties. They beg for whoever you were previously to return and inhabit your shell instead.

SAGITTARIUS God finally ends world hunger this month after His titanic corpse is marinated in a sea of wine before being fried up with a few thousand tonnes of garlic by United Nations chefs, prior to being shipped out to the starving millions around the world. Now everyone has a genuine reason to praise God; how flavoursome He is and how the tender meat just falls off the bone.

CAPRICORN Dancing like nobody’s watching seems naïve in the post-Snowden world, since GCHQ now monitor all dance moves so effectively it allows them to map your gait and feed the data into their dance database for signs of radicalised behaviour.

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AQUARIUS Do something today your future self will hate you for.

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PISCES Based on your best-selling book, this month you sell the film rights to the moving true-life story of that time you got your bellend caught in the door of a spaceship.

twitter.com/themysticmark facebook.com/themysticmark

Credit: Bart Heemskerk

March Issue: Out 1 Mar

Credit: Jock Mooney

Next issue we start looking optimistically towards ‘summer’ with a rundown of the international festivals we’d most like to attend this year. We’ll also have words with Deftones and Policia, while our Art team will be taking a sneak peek behind the

February 2016

scenes of NVA’s new sound a light extravaganza Hinterland. Glasgow Comedy Festival will be rolling into town, and we’ll be leading our coverage with an interview with Richard Gadd.

Opinion

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Showcase exhibition Converge welcomes a trio of invited artists – Steven McIver, Andrew Mackenzie, and Sam Johnson – each displaying work with delineation through architectural study and structural design at its heart, showing alongside a series of open submissions, a Graduate Showcase, and the Cordis Trust Award shortlist nominees. Go marvel.Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh, until 20 Feb, free

Close Up

Sat 6 Feb

Sun 7 Feb

Mon 8 Feb

Manipulate festival rounds off this year's programme with work-in-progress piece How The Light Gets In – as part of its Snapshot: Artists @ Work series – a collaborative performance and research project about compulsive hoarding, created by theatre-maker Laura CameronLewis, singer Camille O’Sullivan, and stage designer Shona Reppe.

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 6.05pm, free

Admit it, the chance to witness a Get Your Own Backstyle gunging is essentially what's been missing from your cultural calendar?

Well, ne'er fear, as Glasgow's The Stand introduce allnew show Gunge! A Show With Gunge In It – a gameshow in which host Lee Kyle invites two teams of comics to win nothing at all, except the joy of watching the losing captain get gunged. The Stand, Glasgow, 3pm, £5

The oddball beats of Public Service Broadcasting – a London duo made up of J. Willgoose Esq and his drumming companion Wrigglesworth – make their way to The Queen's Hall for a rescheduled date (postponed from last Nov), bringing to life tracks from their unique concept-art LPs, made by sampling old public information films and archive material and setting them to new music. The Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, 7pm, £20

Gunge! A Show With Gunge In It

Keep the Cross High, Laura Wooff

Steven McIver, Nexus

Public Service Broadcasting

Sat 13 Feb

Sun 14 Feb

Enveloping your whole weekend with indie-pop loveliness, Southside gig promoters Pop!South take to the (firmly Southside – phew!) Glad Cafe for the return of the Glasgow Pop!South Weekender, this time including sets from Trust Fund, MJ Hibbett and The Validators, Milky Wimpshake, and Breakfast Muff, with profits split between the bands, the venue, and Sarcoma UK. The Glad Cafe, Glasgow, 12-14 Feb, £22 weekend

National touring exhibition British Art Show 8 spreads its wares across a trio of Edinburgh galleries – Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Inverleith House, and Talbot Rice – offering a curated overview of 42 artists deemed to have made a significant contribution to UK art over the past five years, encompassing sculpture, film, video, photography, painting, performance, and design. Various venues, Edinburgh, 13 Feb-8 May, free

Made unique by the fact it's the only festival in Europe curated by 15-18 year olds, Glasgow Youth Film Festival rounds off an eclectic programme with an immersive Valentine's Day Closing Gala screening of Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands, taking place in a specially-created atmospheric set at converted church St Luke’s. Perfect date film, no? St Luke's, Glasgow, 8pm, £5

Trust Fund

Credit: Derek Robertson

Fri 12 Feb

Mikhail Karikis, Children Of Unquiet

Wed 17 Feb

Thu 18 Feb

Fri 19 Feb

The Glasgow Film Festival kicks off its twelfth year with a programme studded with myriad new strands and premieres – of which the Coen brothers' Hail, Caesar!, starring George Clooney, Josh Brolin, and Scarlett Johansson, gets its UK premiere at the Opening Gala, just days after its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.

Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow, 7pm & 10.15pm, £15 (£13)

A community project built on a passion for food, the CCA's 'Cooking Pot' series continues this month with – wait for it – spoon carving!

More interesting than it sounds, punters will be invited to carve their own spoon from locally-sourced Scottish hardwoods before preparing a tasty soup to test said spoons with. Now if that doesn't warm your heart, nothing will. Kinning Park Complex, Glasgow, 5pm, free (but ticketed)

A previous Skinny cover star – not to mention #5 in our Albums of 2015 list, for gem of a fourth LP Have You in My Wilderness – LA's eccentric poet laureate Julia Holter takes to a live setting for a set of her ethereal vocals and blossoming melodies, merging experimentation with pure pop sensibility.

Also playing Edinburgh's Summerhall the following night. SWG3, Glasgow, 7pm, £16.50

Edward Scissorhands

Cooking Pot Series

Hail Ceasar!

Julia Holter

Fri 26 Feb

In celebration of LGBT History Month, Leith community theatre project Village Pub Theatre take over the Traverse bar for a special two-night programme of short plays under the theme of 'LGBT Innovators', including a sneak peek reading of James Ley’s new play Love Song to Lavender Menace.

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 23 & 24 Feb, 7.30pm, £6.50

Inspired by Jeff Wall’s famous photograph, showing a ransacked room in which every item of furniture has been torn up and destroyed, Glasgowbased theatre company Vanishing Point's The Destroyed Room muses on the profusion of lenses which both track what's going on in our world whilst keeping it at a clinicalised distance. Go ponder.

Tron Theatre, Glasgow, 25 Feb-5 Mar, from £10

Fresh from hosting the 2015 Turner Prize, southside art space Tramway get in on the GFF action, hosting two-day artist film exhibition This is Now: Film and Video After Punk (1978-85), a series of digitally remastered archive films – many of which have been out of circulation for over 30 years – by artists including John Maybury, Cordelia Swann, and Jill Westwood. Tramway, Glasgow, 26 & 27 Feb, £tbc

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Chat

The Destroyed Room



Credit: Mihaela-Bodlovic

Thu 25 Feb

Credit: Tony Cook

Wed 24 Feb

Village Pub Theatre

Credit: David P Scott

The shortest month of the year, but no less packed for it, February brings with it such highlights as the return of the Glasgow Pop!South Weekender, touring exhibition The British Art Show 8, annual cinephile heaven the Glasgow Film Festival, a Four Tet Sub Club takeover, and more...

After its initial opening in Aberdeen Manipulate gets under way proper over in Edinburgh – with a highlight of the first day's proceedings being the UK premiere of Close Up, the final part of Editta Braun's magical trilogy, with a grand piano, one pianist, and five dancers taking the place of spoken dialogue. Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 7.30pm, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

John Maybury

THE SKINNY

Credit: Iain scott

Compiled by: Anna Docherty

Tue 2 Feb

Credit: Editta Braun

Heads Up

Mon 1 Feb

Fri 5 Feb

Manipulate's 2016 programme continues with Edinburgh-based theatre group Ludens Ensemble's stylised Macbeth: Without Words – a new take on Shakespeare's familiar tale of greed and destruction, performed using video projections, animation, and a brooding DJ set in replacement of actual words. Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 9pm, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

Catch the first ever show from Smash Williams, an all new collab project drummed up by members of Frightened Rabbit/ French Wives: Gordon Skene and Stuart Dougan.

Lyrical, gentle and something slightly more tender to ease you into your February. The Hug & Pint, 7.30pm, £5

Following a busy ol' 2015 – which included supporting Ride on their first UK tour in 20 years – femalefronted fuzzy guitar pop trio Tuff Love take to the hometown setting of Glasgow's Stereo to launch their debut LP Resort, with a selection of as-yet-unrevealed special guests, followed by a post-party with the TYCI DJs and DJ Sycophantasy. Stereo, Glasgow, 7pm, £10

Tue 9 Feb

Wed 10 Feb

Thu 11 Feb

Marking its first UK staging since its Royal Court debut six years ago, Tron Theatre present the Scottish premiere of their production of Mike Bartlett’s Cock – an ofthumorous play about the breakdown of a long-term gay relationship, pitted with cockfights and indecision. Also at Edinburgh's Traverse Theatre, 25-27 Feb. Tron Theatre, Glasgow, 9-20 Feb, from £10

GRAMNet (Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network) continues its film series at CCA with a screening of Yasmin Fedda's doc Queens of Syria – the story of 50 women from Syria, all forced into exile in Jordan, who came together to create and perform their own version of The Trojan Women, the timeless Ancient Greek tragedy about the plight of women in war. CCA, Glasgow, 6pm, free (but ticketed)

Taking its title from the animation technique used to render movement realistic on-screen, Breaking Joints showcases a series of new works by a budding young generation of artists that deal in, or are influenced by, animation and its use in constructing hyperreal narratives and liminal spaces that flip between fact and fiction (aka prepare from some mindfuckery). Tramway, Glasgow, 7.30pm, £5 (£3)

Cock

Tuff Love

Smash Williams

Queens of Syria

Tue 16 Feb

Taking its cue from PBH's Free Fringe, Fringe Abridged Festival returns for its sophomore year (running 15-20 Feb) – kicking off with Josie Miller's Birthday Cabaret (with guests The Improverts and Tray Full of Brownies, plus some promised 'gin and crying'), before taking in a sketch comedy (Biscuit Box), a book club discussing non-existing books (The Apologist Book Club), and more. See listings.

The Tron, Edinburgh, 7.30pm, free

Banff Mountain Film Festival arrives in Glasgow (following its Edinburgh airing in January), screening the 'Red' film programme – a selection of adventure shorts featuring thrillseekers climbing, running, skiing, mountain biking, and such-like in some pretty wild places, including Unbranded's 3,000-mile trek from Mexico to Canada on wild horses. SECC, Glasgow, 7.30pm, from £11

The Improverts

Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic

Mon 15 Feb

Breaking Joints

Unbranded

Sun 21 Feb

Mon 22 Feb

Tue 23 Feb

Veritable masters of the site-specific screening, GFF outdo themselves with a 35th anniversary airing of Raiders of the Lost Ark – taking to the perfect setting of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum for a bells'n'whistles screening amidst the antiquities, preceded by a live-action presentation from Indiana Jones stunt double Vic Armstrong. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, 6.30pm, £tbc

On a mission to eke out the weekend as long as they can – and presumably see to it that you start Monday with a pounding hangover head, er, thanks – Sub Club hand over the decks to a certain Mr. Kieran Hebden for the full four hours, taking to the stage under his Four Tet moniker for a set of his e'er lovely post-rockmeets-electronica, awash with abstract sensibilities.

Sub Club, Glasgow, 11pm, £15

Comic book buffs – assemble! Glasgow Film Festival's 'Nerdvana' strand serves up a furiously exciting documentary documenting the history of Marvel. Directed

by Philippe Guedj and Philippe Roure, The Road To Civil War: Marvel Renaissance dishes doodley dirt on everything from bankruptcy to their fusion with Disney. Time to geek out. Massively. CCA, Glasgow, 8.30pm, from £5

The veggie and organic food wizards at Amy's bring their touring van – Amy's Mobile Kitchen – to Glasgow for the final stopoff of its February UK tour, serving up soups and chillis (plus bread from Glasgow's own bakery247) in exchange for a donation to local charitable organisations.

Track the van and its scran daily via @amyskitchenuk.

Various locations, Glasgow, 23-28 Feb, £donation

Four Tet

Raiders of the Lost Ark

Credit: kata rokkar (flickr)

Sat 20 Feb

Marvel Renaissance

Amy's Mobile Kitchen

Sun 28 Feb

Mon 29 Feb

As part of the Festival of Architecture – an international, Scotland-wide celebration of Scotland’s unique built environment – DCA present Grey Gardens – an exhibition of art and architecture inspired by modernity and nature, including work by Scotland-based architects Morris and Steedman, and Peter Womersley, plus a look at the Marmite town art of Cumbernauld. DCA, Dundee, 27 Feb-1 May, free

Glasgow Film Festival draws to its official close with a Closing Gala screening of Anomalisa, which marks the first foray into animation for master of melancholic comedy, Charlie Kaufman, co-directed with Duke Johnson, telling the tale of a depressed motivational speaker who begins an intense relationship with a woman he meets on the road. Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow, 8pm, £15 (£13)

Departed Edinburgh venue The Soundhouse continues its fundraising gig residency at the Trav – raising pennies for The Soundhouse Organisation, a charity dedicated to founding a new music venue in Edinburgh offering a fair deal to musicians – this edition hosting a rare intimate solo set from Borders folk songbird Karine Polwart. Go support the cause. Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 8pm, £10

February 2016

Tomba Brion by Carlo Scarpa, San Vito d'Altivole, Italy

Credit: Guido Guidi

Sat 27 Feb

Anomalisa



Karine Polwart

Chat

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Credit: Edmund Fraser

Macbeth: Without Words

Credit: Rita Azevedo

Thu 4 Feb

Credit: Chrysa Karagianni

Wed 3 Feb

S RE AT U FE

Three The Hard Way Nearly a decade under wraps, Mike Patton, Adam Drucker and Tunde Adebimpe emerge as Nevermen this month.

In their first full interview, the trio meditate on making music like tapas and driving around in a mega Godzilla

“M

ake something, smash it, make it something else. Can’t get bored, there’s not enough time left for that.” Tunde Adebimpe cuts to the heart of Nevermen’s manifesto. With their debut LP finally in the post, the TV on the Radio co-founder, actor, director and visual artist finally gets to talk about the alliance he’s forged alongside two fellow outliers – Mike Patton (Faith No More/Tomahawk/ Fantômas) and Adam ‘Doseone’ Drucker (Themselves/Subtle/13&God) since joining Drucker in his Williamsburg warehouse rehearsal space for the first time eight years ago.

Although their collective discography reaches well into the dozens across myriad projects, this trio of journeymen – the minds who brought us groundbreaking work on fearless benchmark records like Return to Cookie Mountain, cLOUD-

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DEAD and Angel Dust, no less – have never stopped questing for the next revelation. As our idols continue to move past this life, the transcendental spirit of a project like Nevermen becomes all the more precious.

Nevermen touches the far reaches of hip-hop and psychedelic soul music, its personnel finding an almost paradoxical point of convergence on the journey. “Three chameleons,” says Drucker. “For me, it’s funny how – despite our obvious differences – we even sound alike at points on the record.”

“I think that if there’s any intent at all,” Adebimpe notes of the project’s spirit, “it’s to surprise ourselves.” The lyric sheet itself presents a lexicon that’ll take some cracking. “It’s about escaping, period,” Patton sums up. “Adam wrote 100% of the lyrics on this record… so I should defer to

him. But I can say there is a general theme about responsibility and accountability in our line of work. And the consequences involved.”

“ Three chefs and never a knife fight” Adam Drucker

“They are the Nevermen, the greatest heroes who never existed – in the mission they never expected!” Did the Dark Horse comic book influence the project beyond its name?

Adam Drucker: You found it huh!? Actually we were all very unaware of the graphic novel – the

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Interview: Dave Kerr

name came to us, then we found that a while later.

If Guy Davis ever does a Nevermen movie we will do all the music for free in order to compensate him for any wrongdoing he may feel the universe has done unto him via our synchronous minds finding the same name separated by time.

Tell us about the circumstances of Nevermen’s genesis... I know Adam and Mike go back to Peeping Tom; is there a similarity in the way this project functions? What was your awareness of one another’s work prior to meeting and what compelled you to want to collaborate in this particular combination?

Adam: Somehow, all three of us are cut from the same hybrid cloth in one way or another, and I met both these guys as a fan long before I met

THE SKINNY

them as a peer. The genesis was kinda threefold…

Mike and I met and instantly were like, ‘We should do a thing together.’ Tunde and I met and instantly said, ‘We should do a thing together.’

A year or so after having met them both, Mike and I were chopping it up about a band with just frontmen in it. I immediately thought of Tunde and all the things his aesthetic/voice/brain do that Mike and mine don’t. So I asked Tunde if he was down, and poof – t’was the catalyst for becoming what we are today.

Mike Patton: Peeping Tom was my thing, it was very dictatorial in a sense. Nevermen is a different beast, all three of us entered into the adventure with equal input and output. I wanted to work with these dudes ‘cause I respect and love, in a grand sense, what they do. And I felt that a collaboration between the three of us could construct something larger.... hope we achieved that!

Tunde Adebimpe: I was listening to a lot of cLOUDDEAD and other Anticon stuff right around the time I was writing a lot of things on fourtrack that would eventually become TVOTR songs.

I loved it instantly. It was definitely one of those big ‘what the fuck is this?!?’ moments in art or music that happen – I feel – only a few times in your life if you’re lucky. From there, I heard his solo work, Themselves, 13 & God and Subtle, who TVOTR toured with early on. He’s a genius. That’s that.

Mike I knew through Faith No More, of course, but I was in a two-piece noise band in 1996 or so, and my bandmate gave me a Mr. Bungle CD and that was it. Yet another ‘what the fuck is this?!?’ moment. Then I found Mike’s solo work, the 8,000 other projects and bands he’s in, and all of the stuff he’s put out for bands on Ipecac. He’s a huge inspiration and coincidentally, a total genius.

I really don’t toss that word around, but it totally applies to both of these fools.

What compelled me to work with them?

The opportunity was there and it sounded like it’d be a shitload of fun. It sounded like we’d get to scream and break a lot of things, which we can also file under ‘a shitload of fun.’

Adam: That’s what Nevermen is in a sense – the fleshing out of our connection. We have all lived completely similar but different lives bent around making music; this is a non-GMO adventure in exploring our combination, like we would if we were all in the same town and 20-ish, starting a first band.

The group has been talked about for so long that it was beginning to feel like one of those projects that we might never hear. You’re busy men, of course, so what compelled you to push a fulllength album over the finish line after all this time?

Mike: One of those instances was probably where one of us opened our mouths too soon, that’s all. Things take time, and become exciting once they take shape. Then, they live. The source of inspiration came from a talk I had with Adam many moons ago. We agreed to do something together, and have it be a singer-based affair, without band dynamics… when Tunde came aboard, it felt whole.

Wish I could give you a specific band to reference, but honestly… I can’t think of one. We approached this adventure as ourselves, nothing more or less.

Adam: Nevermen just had a ‘raise one kid at a time’ energy around it since day one, all them days ago. Each song was worked on until it was done, and so each one grew and became what it was trying to be in demo form, and then we would move onto the next song. Honestly, not rushing your music to completion is a luxury that none of us are ever really afforded. For one reason or another, one rushes some aspect of album creation; with Nevermen we sort of treated ourselves to not rushing for once, and in the end there is not a drop of juice on this record that is squeezed out.

Tunde: I think that about two years in, with all that everyone was doing seperately, we hit the ‘It’ll get done when it gets done and that’s actually

February 2016

awesome’ point and we just kept piecing things together until it was time to plug the monster in and see if he danced funny enough.

Mike remarked that the initial sessions were very loose and improvisational but you’d become surgeons in the editing. You all have form as abstract songwriters; was there a write-and-pass method to the way you built these songs (reflective of the way they’re performed)?

Adam: Yeah you kinda hit two nails on the head… the songs and their production are a product of editing this huge pile of improvised material we had made… and parts of it rose to the top and became demos. Simultaneously, we were working on words/lyrics that stood on their own. Then we intuitively sort of matched lyrics to demos and made crap-ass versions of everything. Once a song had demo bones and lyrics, it went to Mike for re-production, and he had carte blanche to embellish and delete whatever he wanted. One at a time, demos would emerge as songs from Mike’s oven. Then they went back on the chopping block for all three of us to alter, resing parts and make them what they wanted to be. Finally, every song got a group finish and polish and champagne bottle across its face.

Tunde: Adam came into the project with a lot of ideas and writing. He had poems and lyrics that he’d done and picked out/pieced together in the direction of whatever we’d be doing, and I had a bit too, then he and I bounced some stuff off of each other and edited and added when he came out to New York. I think the same thing happened with Adam and Mike on the west coast – music production and lyric wise – and then I’d come out there and we’d do more writing/vocals at Adam’s place and so on.

“ A frontman does not necessarily mean ‘ego-man’, OK?" Mike Patton

It’s funny, one of the things I like the most about the project is that it’s really been an exquisite corpse sort of deal, we were almost never all in the same place at the same time, writing or recording wise, and things would get sent off and come back with an entirely different arrangement, or chopped up or fuzzed out or whatever. Factor in to that the amount of time it took, and what everyone experienced separately during that time mixed in there, it’s a weird one. It’s like staring at a ton of evidence and having no idea who did the crime.

Yeah, a lot of ‘Wait, is that me? That was you, right?’ happened while listening back.

Adam: Shiiiiiiit, all that – except maybe Stills and Nash. All three of us are and always have been music fans, so this is kinda like three record collections colliding. We are influence-rich in our aesthetics in general, so that bleeds into all our choices and songs, but in the end there was very little ‘hey, make this part sound more like so and so.’ We more often made songs go where they were already trying to get, and in doing so pulled all kinds of shit out of our culminate bag of tricks.

Tunde: I think En Vogue, *NSYNC, Boys II Men and The Three Tenors were brought up one evening but then we ran out of drinks and pretty much just referenced each others’ bad jokes from there on in. Diamond Dave Hosley was a big influence, we got to go see him once or twice while working on the album – he’s the best.

Mike: For me? Zero! Maybe E.L.O.? Our palette, to my ears, was only limited by what wasn’t appropriate to our collective ears. For example, I wrote a fucking country ballad for these guys, and we didn’t use it... haha!

Adam: That actually became one of the Nevermen songs no one has heard yet – it is no longer very country though. One of my favorite things about picking demos out of Patton’s hat was some of the shit he makes is so beyond my palette, it was like picking a fight with the biggest dude in the room. It was a blast and challenge to try to bring country into our fold.

Mike: We all approached this project from unique viewpoints and provided those instincts… but ultimately, it was an exercise carried out between the ears. Meaning: we trusted each other’s background and impulses. Nothing more. If you are looking for a ‘genre-flag’, then keep looking.

The group’s ethos seems to be ‘three equal frontmen, no leader.’ Did you successfully circumvent the associated democratic problems of having a single ego in charge?

Adam: Yeah we became friends through the process of making these songs, and that to me is the big beautiful in all this. Three chefs and never a knife fight. Also, for me the album solves itself of this leadership dilemma, by no one having solos or alone verses, it’s a proper hydra of voices even down to the hooks.

Mike: This record was recorded in small pieces, ‘tapas’ style if you will, but we all knew that no one was leading, or dragging. Even when you are in a band, those things sort themselves out.

This ‘band’ had no such problems or issues.

Because we are all used to being assholes and getting the job done. All three of us have experienced ‘leader’ issues in the past. This project is a great way for all of us to step back and let the music lead. By the way, a frontman does not necessarily mean ‘ego-man’, ok?

Tunde: I think that not really having an actual, physical studio to record in all at once did away with that... it was more like, ‘I have an idea, I’ll send it over.’ ‘I’m done! I’ll email it to you soon!’ and ‘Cool, we got all that, I’ll see you in two months to a year!’

“ It’s time to plug the monster in and see if he dances” Tunde Adebimpe

Throughout this eight year period, was there any music left on the cutting room floor that you perhaps felt didn’t belong or was in some way incomplete?

Adam: Jesus, eight years!? One song a year, that’s how we do! Yeah, there’s a ton of cool crap, not enough trimmings to make a dress, but lots of cool scraps.

Mike: Yes, there’s plenty of stuff left over.

And that is exactly why it didn’t make the record… we felt it wasn’t good enough. Outtakes are called that for a reason.

Does live performance seem like a logical next step for the group or do you picture this as more of a continuing studio endeavour? Or, indeed, is this it?

Adam: Oh no, we are coming to a theatre near you; hard at work on preparations now.

Tunde: I dunno, you spend eight years building a mega Godzilla, you gotta drive it around a little bit, right? We’ll drive it around a little, it’s just so shiny. And it has fins!

Mike: We’ll see how she goes, maybe it is indeed a studio project? But why not try to bring this zombie to life?

Nevermen is out now via Lex lexprojects.com/nevermen/

WIN A LIMITED EDITION COLOURED VINYL COPY OF NEVERMEN Visit theskinny.co.uk/competitions to enter.

As principal lyricist, Adam, did you find yourself writing from multiple perspectives?

Adam: Yeah, I wrote about the ‘culminate us.’ I suppose the way to say it is: there is no me in these lyrics that isn’t them. A lot of it was written with Tunde in the room too, and refined with the three of us in mind. So where I did run with the writing ball, I tried more to write about what we had in common, than multiple perspectives. So when we sing these songs, they mean what we are.

The inevitable question of influence: Were there any particular touchstones you referenced in the beginning? The vivid but often cryptic lyrics evoke Edgar Allan Poe, the layered delivery puts us in mind of Subtle, but the overall premise seems to aspire to the Crosby, Stills & Nash of outer limit hip-hop...

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Credit: Colin Lane

Positively Radical Fay Milton talks about a personal kind of politics and how Savages’ second album Adore Life is a force for change

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avages won’t tell you how to feel – they just want you to feel something. “People are smart.

People don’t want to be told what to think,” drummer Fay Milton states, very firmly, when The Skinny calls her on a frosty January afternoon. “We can make our own minds up about what we believe in… But you can create an atmosphere for positive change, and music is a part of that.”

The London four-piece own an inimitable voice. When Savages – Milton, alongside bandmates Jehnny Beth, Gemma Thompson and Ayse Hassan – choose to speak up, know that it’s because they have something urgent to say. After the success of wall-shaking, fire-starting first album Silence Yourself (2013), the band took several years on the road, scrutinising the reactions of their audiences, before heading back to the studio with new tracks in tow. In fifteen all-too-short days (“We were flying by the seat of our pants”), Savages recorded their sophomore album, Adore Life.

Moving at high speed between icy, impassive post-punk and the spit and sweat of a truly incendiary punk band, Savages aren’t strangers to being described as radical. But while Silence Yourself was built upon cool, glacial fury, Adore Life takes a different tack. A call to arms in the truest sense, the record is founded upon a firm belief in the power of positivity. “It’s about being strong enough to change who you want to be,” confirms Milton.

Released in late January, Adore Life is an album of love songs – but in a far from conventional sense. Forget air-brushed ballads or cynical deconstructions of heartbreak, Adore Life offers an incisive, honest and brutally intimate perspective.

On semi-title track Adore, Beth’s lyrics explore the complexities of desire and identity, demanding you to ask, “is it human to ask for more? Is it human to adore life?” In stripped-back, eloquent form Savages shine an intimidatingly bright light on the all-too-human tendency towards restrictive, prescriptive guilt: what do we think we deserve?

Questioning how sexuality can inform identity on Mechanics – “I was never told about my sex,” and half-warning, half-admitting “this is what you’ll get when you mess with love” on single ‘T.I.W.Y.G.’, the album feels part character study, part confession. Milton admits that the band are preoccupied with trying to answer life’s hardest questions, but not always in such serious tones; “You know,

there’s this really great love life column... I found it because it’s called Savage Love, by a guy called Dan Savage. It’s amazing! I’d love to do a Savages version. We’d call it Savages Love, obviously. Love and sex and relationship advice…”

But, really, it’s shocking how radical a simple statement – “I adore life” – can sound; not a twee, throwaway statement, but in direct admittance and acceptance of human nature’s deepest, stickiest secrets. It’s no small task to write a visceral, brutalist album that demands love rather than revenge, empathy rather than aggression, and Savages avoid cliché by staring these questions straight in the eyeball.

Savages’ attack has sharpened, and this focus was imprinted in their recording strategy. “Always, when we record, we start with a version that we all play together. Last time we used a lot of those original versions… but this time, we’d go over each instrument. Individually. You can really expand the sound, and do things that you can’t do when you’re recording live,” Milton explains. This meticulous process allowed the band to insert truly theatrical touches. At the start of T.I.W.Y.G. there’s a tiny screech, a precisely placed ear-splitting yelp, just before the band plunge into the meat of the track. It sounds totally alien… but Milton laughs, “That’s bass feedback! Only Ayse Hassan can make that noise. We took an extra week recording this time too, so we got more time to look into those details. But still, I’m often envious of other bands who can record at the same time that they’re writing. It’s not really possible with Savages. We’re too loud.”

Milton details the physically punishing implications of writing a record that packs so much sonic weight. “Try not to smoke!” she warns. “Noone becomes a drummer for an easy ride… but we all stay really fit. Yoga and stuff. And running. It’s a full time job, staying fit enough to actually do the job.” To steal the tone of a lifestyle mag, if you want to emulate Savages’ energy, Milton recommends porridge – “you’ve got to put cinnamon and turmeric in it. Make it spicy.”

Once you’ve heard the record, or better still, seen the band in live action, you’ll understand the need for such strict routine. A Savages show is intense, and so is their schedule. The group have just announced a staggering list of shows; tou-

ring Europe and the US over a four-month period, they’ll be dropping in on Glasgow at the tail end of February. Moreover, their records are built on adrenaline and conviction, designed to raise your blood pressure – Savages want to move you, emotionally and physically. “We all really enjoy listening to live music, bassy music… So I guess through our taste, it’s in-built in our own music. Especially with Ayse really destroying the bass on songs like Surrender and er… well most of them, really. It’s definitely in our live shows; we make sure that the sound is really good, so people can really feel it as well as hear it.” Milton continues: “Maybe it’s a power thing? To want to get on stage and really move someone? But having the power to do that is something that really draws you back to performing… it drives you on.”

“ Right now there’s definitely a movement of believing in what’s simply, obviously, just” Fay Milton

There is definitely power-play at work.

Savages have a degree of control over their performances which is almost chilling; the power to tip a show almost over the brink of chaos, and just as suddenly pull it back. “Yeah, there’s something really freaky about it!” Milton enthuses, seemingly delighted. “I really like pushing that kind of… psychotic edge.” It’s transfixing – on record and off – and suits the tension which the record is built upon. “Do we want to scare everyone?” she laughs.

“Yeah, of course we do.” But she’s just as quick to remind us that positivity is the key to the record, “despite it being very wild in its sound.”

Any attempt to conflate music and politics usually results in crossing dangerous, muddy ground. However, given Savages’ insistence on releasing a statement to accompany their records, crammed with manifesto-like rhetoric, it is ground

Interview: Katie Hawthorne

which must be trodden. Unsurprisingly, Milton has firm views: this is no party-political record. “Politics is a really tricky word,” she begins, “because usually if you think of politics, you think of specific issues. For some people the word is a great thing, to others it’s a kneejerk reaction. Even within our band, there are very different reactions. For me… there’s a really great quote from Ai Weiwei, which is: ‘Everything is art. Everything is politics.’ I see things in that kind of sense.”

As in, art offers a specific perspective on life – which is why it will always be political? “Yeah, I think so. It’s a really strange time at the moment.

We know about so many things that a few years ago we wouldn’t have known about. We’re all following different news stories from around the world every day. It’s very… it’s really difficult. You pick one cause, and then you have to justify why you haven’t supported something else. So in a sense, it’s difficult to be overtly political.” She pauses. “But you can have your stance, and you can be who you are by standing up and showing that kind of outlook – that can be a positive way of taking a political stance. Because, you know, if you start criticising the world you’re never going to stop.”

Through thorough Twitter-based investigation, The Skinny discovers that Fay met Jeremy Corbyn last November. With Corbyn’s call for positive, stripped-back politics often dismissed as radically, unrealistically utopian, is there any link between this mentality and Savages’ own call for positivity?

“You know, that’s the best compliment… to have the album likened, or the band likened, to Corbyn.

“You can never tell until later down the line how movements start and spread, but right now there’s definitely a movement of believing in what’s simply, obviously, just. There’s belief that people shouldn’t be treated differently, or judged, on sexual orientation or gender. In the face of mass confusion there is a small but steady movement growing, of positive thought and solidarity. I think that art always reflects its time. It would be nice to look back and think that we were a part of something… We’ll watch and wait.” Take heed, naysayers, of this band’s open-hearted, calculated push for positivity; this is what you’ll get if you mess with Savages.

Savages play Glasgow Art School on 21 Feb Adore Life is out now via Matador savagesband.com

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Visual Arts Exhibitions 12-19 FEBRUARY The biscuit factory Gayfield Creative Spaces City art centre Scottish Storytelling Centre

Performing Arts FRI 12 FEBRUARY ASsembly ROXY

SAT 13, 15-19 FEBRUARY Scottish Storytelling Centre

EDINBURGH STUDENT ARTS FESTIVAL

2016 FOR THE LOVE OF SCIENCE AT SUMMERHALL

SUN 14 FEBRUARY Stall Market 11am-4pm wORKSHOPS 12PM+ PERFORMANCES 2pm-7pm Live music 7.15pm-11pm

#ESAF2016 OUR SUPPORTERS

February 2016

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Folk Like Us It may have started life as a tour diary – a celebration of traditional Scottish folk music, looking for a story – but as Aidan Moffat explains, new film Where You’re Meant to Be discovers much more Interview: Duncan Harman

T

here’s a brief establishing passage in Paul Fegan’s debut feature; a familiar, hirsute, slightly rotund musician sits expressionless in a van, while beyond the windows brews the nocturnal fug of Glasgow on a night out.

It’s a scene that eerily echoes Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin – which raises the issue: is Aidan Moffat the new Scarlett Johansson?

“That’s never occurred to me. But now that you mention it…” chuckles Moffat at the prospect.

“I’m never going to be her boyfriend, so maybe being her is a more attainable achievement?”

The two films diverge at this point – no picking up lads on the streets on Govan for the Arab Strap frontman turned folk yarn-spinner – yet an accidental movie star Moffat doesn’t make. “Kind friends and companions, come join us in rhyme,” he intones to kick things off. A tour diary, yes – a jaunt north, west and east, musicians with a backpack full of folk songs re-engineered for contemporary Scotland – but if travel brings wisdom, then Where You’re Meant to Be finds it naturally, eschewing the passive regurgitation of Caledonian kitsch that can still be found underpinning the Scottish travelogue for an exploration of people and places through its oral traditions.

“I wasn’t even supposed to be in it that much to begin with. The plan was that the tour was something to hang stories around – me playing in certain places, and we’d find a story to tell. But as time went on we became more intimate with the people involved – especially Sheila Stewart.”

Stewart – famed folk singer and Scottish Traveller, who passed away while the film was being put together – was a larger than life character, not one for suffering fools gladly, and it’s her relationship with Moffat (and in particular, distrust at his appropriation of the traditional ballad) through which many of the film’s themes are explored.

“There’s a scene when we’re in the car, having a chat; that was the point that we realised the story was between the two of us. It wasn’t even an argument or a disagreement, just two completely opposed ideas. After that day we realised that was where the story was going to come from.”

“You’ve taken the context and blootered it,” is Sheila’s scolding response to Aidan updating The Parting Glass to include split lips and puke in the gutter. Considering that folk music’s ongoing integrity lay in its open-source nature – each generation acting as custodian of song, ensuring that it reflects contemporary as well as historical mores – was he surprised at her reaction?

“I was taken aback,” he admits. “Sheila – and her mother Belle – were known for that sort of thing; of making songs their own. The track Mickey’s Warning in the film – there’s a whole verse that no-one’s really sure where it came from, and people think that Sheila added it herself. So she was no stranger to it – she just didn’t particularly like what I was doing. Perhaps the parameters that she’d set said that you can move it just a little bit, but you can’t just take it and rewrite it.

“The stuff in the film is really about the one issue: the music. Outwith that, we actually had quite a good laugh. That time in the car, it broke down that day and we ended up sitting together

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for quite a while; when we weren’t talking about music we got on quite fine (and I did my best to try to steer the conversation away from music).

“She was a pretty funny woman. What’s the word to use? Acerbic. I certainly respected her.”

Such umbrage is curious considering that Moffat is clearly no musical tourist, treating songs handed down from generation to generation as a museum piece or shortcut to a cheap gag. Indeed, during our chat he talks at length about how this musical storytelling documents working class lives, mentioning names such as Alan Lomax and Ewan MacColl as integral in protecting such heritage against the onrush of post-war modernity.

“MacColl did a lot of recordings of people in their natural environment performing these songs – those field recordings that were made back in the sixties are the best ones you can find.

They’ll often be unaccompanied, usually just one voice, all their mates singing the choruses, and those are the things that affected me the most.”

As the film suggests, there’s also a thematic link between the vocabulary of folk and Aidan’s own back catalogue. “What I wanted to do with Arab Strap was to write about my life in the language that I used at the time. There weren’t really a lot of Scottish singers doing anything like that. The Proclaimers are the only ones I can think of; I loved their first two albums because it was refreshing to hear that voice. It’s what I wanted to do, which coincidentally is where the roots of folk music are – people singing about their lives.”

Hence the tour diary element of Where You’re Meant to Be, Moffat and band (Stevie Jones, Bdy_Prts’ Jenny Reeve and The Twilight Sad’s James Graham) heading off the beaten trail – Drumnadrochit, Lewis, the tiny settlement of Lerags in Argyll – and inviting the entire community to gather round, much like his folk forebears would have done. Evenings of stories shared; of

laughter, and a wee dram.

“The thing with folk music is that people think it’s a very austere scene, and to a degree it is. Sheila Stewart kind of embodies that – music that must be respected. So for that reason I chose to do a few funny songs; I wanted to make sure that people came to listen, and laugh, and have a good time.”

“Scotland in a nutshell: humour and darkness” Aidan Moffat

And while Moffat’s reinventing of ballads that (in some cases) go back centuries may have upset a traditionalist or two – the reaction to one gig in particular can be best described as lukewarm – there is a clear context that upholds the music’s spirit, referencing nights gone awry and bawdy brouhaha in a manner that 21st century ears can readily relate to.

Or, as his narration asks, “Instead of hills and heather, why not sing of glass and neon?”

Where You’re Meant to Be is not so much a film about Moffat as people, and places. Of love, and loss. Of a nation’s past, but also its future.

“It’s quite Scottish in tone,” is his own appraisal. “It has quite a dark sense of humour, and a humility to it that’s very Scottish. Scots aren’t very good at shouting about how brilliant they are, so it is quite self-deprecating in that respect. But hopefully it shows the roots of the music.

“A lot of it comes from the north and east – from the farmhands and things like that; rooted very much in working class culture. It’s where

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a lot of our traditional songs and the songs we know most come from, and we tend to dismiss them quite easily. I did that myself. I wasn’t really interested in the music at all, but then you started to look into it and realise where it comes from, and the darkness too – I think you can appreciate it more. That’s pretty much Scotland in a nutshell: humour and darkness.”

Sheila Stewart passed away at the end of 2014.

Her death gives the film a poignant presence, over and above her final appearance, on the tour’s final night at Glasgow’s Barrowlands (where she interrupts Aidan’s rendition of The Parting Glass – pretty much her signature tune – with the declaration, “This is the original version”).

“The last time I saw her was at the Barrowlands, but we were planning to do stuff the following January and do more filming… then she died, and we had to rethink it. The story was already about the two of us, but after she died we had a greater responsibility to make sure we did it right and do her justice. It became more focused as time went on – the film is probably a year late – and her death played a part in that because you have to make sure you get the balance right in that respect.”

And is he happy with the end result?

“It’s an entertaining film about death; a reflection of what to me is the best music… how we chose to portray ourselves, and what we want to leave behind.

“What I like about the film is that there’s no resolution; it doesn’t end with us particularly agreeing or anything. We didn’t come round to either’s way of thinking – if I had turned a corner at the end I think it would have been far too sentimental, and that’s what I like about it.”

Where You’re Meant to Be premieres at the Barrowlands as part of the Glasgow Film Festival on 19 Feb, with a UK-wide cinema tour and live album due later in the spring whereyouremeanttobe.com

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The Tower Block Inferno With his latest movie, Ben Wheatley takes on JG Ballard science-fiction classic High-Rise. Ahead of the film’s screening at Glasgow Film Festival, the genre renegade discusses the craft of filmmaking and explains why blowing up buildings isn’t his bag

Ten of the Best at GFF Words: Jamie Dunn

Interview: Josh Slater-Williams

T

he Skinny’s chatting to director Ben Wheatley on the phone on the evening of the Glasgow Film Festival programme launch, with the Scottish premiere of his fifth feature, High-Rise, an adaptation of JG Ballard’s beloved 1975 novel, being among the screenings announced. It’s a dystopic tale of alienation, corruption and societal breakdown within the confines of a lavish apartment complex that starts off sleek and appealing, only to gradually transform into the kind of tower block that wouldn’t look out of place in the world of Judge Dredd. Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons, as grand architect Royal, topline an impressive cast for the British director’s first foray into bigger budget filmmaking.

“What it gives you as a filmmaker is much more control,” Wheatley says of the scale change. “You can have much more control on very basic stuff like the colours of the rooms, how costumes relate to spaces, and how spaces relate to the overall design of the whole film. I think it’s a big difference.”

Over in the States, a lot of debut filmmakers (or at least white male ones) are getting plucked from indie breakout hits to helm massive blockbusters for their second turn at the bat. Fellow Brit director Gareth Edwards has been a recipient of this fortune Monsters to Godzilla (and now an upcoming Star Wars spin-off), but Wheatley is one of this past decade’s emerging talents who’s been quite comfortable making steady progress through a string of ‘smaller’ features, from Down Terrace and Kill List to Sightseers and A Field in England.

For Wheatley, this productivity is how he’s honing his filmmaking. “When you look at the people who are any good at it,” he says, “over time they’ve done a lot, they’ve directed a lot of things.

Ridley Scott did thousands of adverts in the 60s/70s. John Ford had done a hundred [short] movies before he did his first feature. And the making of stuff, it helps with learning the craft of it. I think if I’d gone from a short or low-budget feature to a massive movie, then I’d have been learning on the job, which would have been a bit

terrifying. I shot my first film when I was [nearly] 40, so I’m not young, particularly, but I’ve spent time learning. Learning about how all the different departments work and how storyboarding works.

I’ve done a lot of writing, I’ve worked a lot in television, and it’s always been slightly like baby steps just to make sure I knew what I was doing.”

High-Rise is Wheatley’s most stylish film yet and the production design is key, with the film’s modernist architecture shaping a lot of its action and thematic concerns. “We wanted to create a space that reflected the script, in the respect that the apartments themselves are by Royal, and they impinge on the lives of the people inside,” Wheatley explains “They’re not blank, clinical boxes.

When you see the flats with these weird concrete shapes inside them, you feel like the building itself is stopping, somehow, the people inside the rooms making their own homes, and that was important.

But then we also dealt with the period stuff – we wanted to make and create a kind of alternate 70s.”

After watching High-Rise, this writer was reminded of the late Ken Russell when it came to the film’s disorientating foray into darkness. When we bring the comparison up, Wheatley expresses admiration: “I’ve certainly been appreciating the Ken Russell stuff a lot over the last few years, rewatching it. I’m a massive fan of The Devils. It’s a spectacular movie and one of the best British films made, if not one of the best films made. For me, it’s kind of the holy trinity of him and [Nicolas] Roeg and [John] Boorman, but they seem to be quite underappreciated for some reason. I don’t know why. I mean, when you see something like Point Blank... incredible film, and from someone who was very young at the time. I’ve been rewatching that quite a lot and it’s very modern, it doesn’t really date. And it’s interesting if you watch Point Blank and then watch The Revenant – basically the same movie – and see how Boorman handled that material in the 60s, in a much more incredibly clear way, and a more modern way, a sophisticated understanding of revenge and where it leads you to.”

Wheatley’s holy trinity of Brit filmmakers certainly came under fire from censors at the time, as did the last major Ballard adaptation, David Cronenberg’s 1996 take on Crash. “If Crash came out tomorrow,” Wheatley says, “no one would bat an eyelid. It’s part of the general reclassification of cinema. I bought a copy of The Terminator the other day and it’s a 15 now. And I think most movies that were 18 from the 80s would be 15s now.”

“ If Crash came out tomorrow, no one would bat an eyelid" Ben Wheatley

As we wrap up, we’re given a little insight into how films of the past have inspired Wheatley’s next film, Free Fire, a 70s Boston-set action thriller starring Brie Larson, Cillian Murphy and Armie Hammer: “I’d seen a lot of big Hollywood stuff and a lot of buildings blowing up. Incredible action sequences that should have been blowing me away, and I was watching them thinking, I just don’t care.

I don’t understand why I don’t care about any of this stuff. It’s technically incredible, but it’s really boring and I don’t know why. And I kinda figured that maybe there’s something about the human scale of it. And I thought, what did I used to like in action films? I wanted to get back to that, really.

To stuff where it was people fighting each other in a very intimate, close space. I think when the body count gets too high, it just gets silly, doesn’t it?” And with that, you can probably dash any hopes you might have of a Wheatley-helmed Marvel movie.

High-Rise Scottish premiere at Glasgow Film Festival.

18 Feb. Followed by a Q&A with Wheatley

Arabian Nights Miguel Gomes’ last film was the spellbinding Tabu, and word is he works similar magic with this sly, three-part remix of Scheherezade’s classic fairy tales. Vol 1, 22&23 Feb; Vol 2, 24&25 Feb; Vol 3, 25&26 Feb The Club This darkly comic study in guilt and punishment from Pablo Larraín (Tony Manero, No) sounds like a sinister twist on Father Ted, centring on a household of disgraced priests who’ve been banished to a perennially overcast coastal village. 18&19 Feb Évolution This strange and mysterious film from Lucile Hadzihalilovic recalls early David Cronenberg in the way it blends sci-fi and body horror to hairraising effect. Not to be missed, especially as Hadzihalilovic will be around for a Q&A after the screening. 20&21 Feb Goodnight Mommy So, your loving mum returns home following cosmetic surgery with her face swaddled in bandages – just how sure can you be that this woman really is your mother? Twin boys find themselves in that exact situation in this devilish psychological horror from Austria. 19&21 Feb I Am Belfast This bittersweet paean to his hometown is Mark Cousins’ best essay film yet. It’s also his most beautiful, with painterly visuals courtesy of master cinematographer Christopher Doyle. 23&28 Feb James White All you really need to know about this dreamlike character study centred on a mother and son is that it’s from Borderline Films, the filmmaking collective behind such movies as Martha Marcy May Marlene, Simon Killer and Afterschool. Everything they produce is unmissable. 19&20 Feb Julien Duvivier retrospective Like his fellow practitioner of ‘poetic realism’, Julien Duvivier got a bit of a kicking from the Cahiers du Cinéma crowd of Godard, Truffaut et al. But the soon-to-be New Wave directors were wrong. Duvivier’s films are ripe for rediscovery, so don’t miss GFF’s screenings of three of his rarely-seen pictures. 18, 21 & 23 Feb Mustang Five orphaned sisters find themselves under lock and key as their strict guardians try to marry them off one by one.This Turkish festival hit has been described as ‘a prison movie with a spiky sense of humor,’ and we hear the performances are as ebullient as the subject matter is grave. 27&28 Feb The Pearl Button Nostalgia for the Light, the previous film from Chilean documentarian Patricio Guzmán, drew a link between astronomy and the ongoing search for those murdered during Pinochet’s reign. In this equally mesmerising film he investigates the significance of water on his nation’s tragic history.

22&23 Feb Speed Sisters This lively doc follows five Palestinian women as they vie to be crowned the fastest broad on the West Bank. Amber Fares’ film is that rare beast, a documentary set in the Middle East that’s both political and playful. 24 Feb Glasgow Film Festival runs 17-28 Feb

February 2016

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THE SKINNY

Get Eclectic Visual Arts Scotland put on their annual exhibition, and look to bring together artists and designers in meaningful and challenging ways Words: Adam Benmakhlouf

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onverge in its scale and brief is a large and ambitious show that seeks to showcase both artists and designers beyond a face value sharing of the Royal Scottish Academy Building. Though disciplinary specificity is encouraged and readily acknowledged throughout the presented work, there is a subtle conversation between the two.

Generally, there’s an interest in design that emphasises concept and experimentation, while invited contemporary artists demonstrate a concern with the possibilities of making and craft.

Taking seriously the connection of art and design comes from the constitution of the VAS itself. Originally starting as a society for women artists, in 80s it made the transition to an open association that promoted crafts and design work, and now too sees these on a continuum with contemporary art.

So it is that VAS set the stage for jewellery graduate Natalie Jane Adams to share pride of place with war-inspired sculpture graduate James Ritchie and fine art printmaker Euphrosyne Andrews. That’s just mentioning a small number of exhibitors in one part of the VAS show, the Graduate Showcase.

These graduates exhibit with three contemporary artists and designers specifically invited by VAS to take part. One of them is Steven MacIver, an artist who works between painting and large scale installations. In some work MacIver builds richly linear forms and compositions often on etched gold leaf on canvas, which might then be transposed into three dimensions via thousands of gold and silver threads. For Converge, MacIver presents one of these large installations, originally shown in New York.

Alongside MacIver will be large scale drawings by artist Andrew Mackenzie, produced during a residency in the Edinburgh Academy. The third of the invitees, designer Sam Johnson, presents smooth stools that come from the Ailsa Craig

quarry, whose stone is considered uniquely strong enough to withstand championship curling.

Joining these artists will be a diverse range of work coming from the Open Submission. Somehow carving out a selection of 150 pieces from 1300 works by around 600 artists, VAS made its primary concern to find artists, designers, craft makers and applied arts practitioners who explored the boundaries of function, form, materials and making.

Providing artists with the space to exhibit in the RSA is already an important opportunity generated by the work of the VAS. They will also be hosting The Cordis prize, the largest competition and award in the world for large scale woven tapestry. Between the nominees, they represent the most up-to-date talent in tapestry from around the world.

Included in the shortlist is Elke Hülse. In her detailed textile work, she makes compositions from her archive of personal photography, which she collages together and changes using photo software. Their large scale and elegant execution jars with the references to screen-based and fast editing effects.

With a host of attractive work on display, VAS are fully prepared for audience participation on Sunday 14 February, aka Hands On Day. On this day, the makers will be taking over the gallery with tools in hand to chat about and demonstrate their techniques. Visitors will be invited too to have a shot at loom weaving, silver chasing and repousse, mosaic, to name a few.

Closing their run, VAS will got out in style with Movers and Makers Wrap party on Thursday 18 February. From 6.30-9pm it’ll be the last chance to see the work on display, as well as to have a drink and enjoy some music – dancing optional.

Converge, by Visual Arts Scotland, 29 Jan-18 Feb Closing party tickets £6, available through Eventbrite

Gosia Walton

Calum Mclure

February 2016

Sam Johnson

Rachel MacLean, Feed Me

Linder, Diagrams of Love Marriage of Eyes

A Wonderful Travelling Show The quinquennial British Art Show comes back for its eighth outing and this time the emphasis is on new technologies, media and the place of artist responses and craft in a newly interconnected present Words: Rosie Priest

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he British Art Show promises to provide, every five years, a glimpse into contemporary art as it is made and exhibited in the UK and beyond. This mammoth exhibition will be hosted by Edinburgh this month, from 13 February. Finishing its run in Leeds Art Gallery, BAS8 will now take over three historic galleries in the capital from February: Inverleith House, The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art and Talbot Rice Gallery.

In the context of an increasingly complicated internationalisation, with technology changing as rapidly as connectivity grows, BAS8 in its programming makes a clear sign that it’s not afraid to engage with these contemporary and cross cultural themes. According to the curators, in the accompanying catalogue, their selection of new and old work, as well as a handful of special commissions, explores ideas on the object “at a time of increasing convergence between the real and the virtual”.

Much of the work takes as its focus these kinds of virtual realities, artificial intelligence and technological advancements. There is an appreciation and foregrounding of strategies to address the difficulty of artistically responding to subject matter that might demand a certain level of technical expertise. There is an emphasis on new realms of audio visual media while some artists in contrast revisit traditional craft-based skills or industrial techniques as a starting point.

As an example of some of the sublimely crafted works take for instance, Diagrams of Love: Marriage of Eyes. This gun-tufted wool rug was produced – in collaboration with Dovecot Studios – by Lancashire based multimedia artist Linder (aka Linder Sterling). Spiral-cut rug and decorated with imagery drawn from Linder’s photomontages of elements drawn from images of domestic objects, pornography and female forms, Linder describes this work as a shape-shifting ‘21st-century version of a magic carpet.’

In the context of new media and contemporary ideas of an international connectedness, there is a welcome edging of BAS8 away from being an exhibition of British art, strictly defined. So it

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is that several UK-born artists who’ve moved abroad are represented, and are offset by 17 of the 42 artists hailing from outside the UK. Speaking of their selection, the curators explain, "We extended our invitation to artists who are neither British nor UK-based, but are meaningfully associated with the UK art scene and have contributed to its vitality."

For one, Ahmet Ögüt, born in Turkey, now lives across several European cities. Ögüt’s work on display is Day After Debt, a UK-centric version of a delicate and truly insightful ongoing project exhibiting a series of money boxes collecting for student debt. This can be understood alongside organiser Anna Colin’s co-founding of the Londonbased free art school Open School East.

Some of the 42 artists selected for this year’s BAS are already well established in their own right.

Think of Ryan Gander, Hayley Tompkins and Ciara Phillips, as well as Turner Prize winner Laure Prouvost, among the artists chosen to represent the best of British Art. The curators were obviously not scared to take a risk on several artists exhibiting this year though. For one, Rachel Maclean gives an audacious and provocative exploration of the commercialisation (and sexualisation) of childhood, and a corresponding infantilism in adult behaviour. This is Maclean’s most ambitious and aggressive project to date.

The sentiment of this year’s BAS is delightfully mirrored by the work on show, notably of Turner Prize nominee Ciara Phillips, who asserts and encourages the collaborative value in making in all its forms by working with local groups in order to produce printed publications, which are available free at the galleries. This is a very tangible and giving example of the exhibiting principles taken up by the Edinburgh galleries. That’s to say, the importance of the interconnectedness of the Arts and how to go about materialising these notions.

British Art Show opens 13 Feb and continues until 8 May in Modern One (Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art), Talbot Rice and Inverleith House

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A decade of NTS The Skinny and Laurie Sansom chat about trilogies, tenth birthdays and touring the world with the National Theatre of Scotland Interview: Emma Ainley-Walker

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he National Theatre of Scotland is like the younger kid in nursery that The Skinny has grown up with. Turning 10 just a few short months after this very publication, they’re celebrating not with one big party, but with a year of grand theatrical events. With some of their most popular shows returning over the next few months, as well as brand new, large scale works all across Scotland, it looks to be a landmark year for NTS. Artistic Director Laurie Sansom took some time out of his hectic schedule to talk to The Skinny about what we can expect from the year ahead, and directing The James Plays once more.

“We wanted to make sure,” he says, “that we were curating a really diverse season of work, that reflected all the different kinds of work the National Theatre of Scotland make.” Over the last ten years one of the key facets of the company, for him, has been their ethos of a “theatre without walls, redesigning what national theatre can be.

We were the first national theatre ever to be established without a building of its own, without a performance space. Taking theatre to places it hadn’t been before, making theatre in new ways was right at the heart of the mission. I think that has reached across the world actually, as well as the UK, and it’s had a profound impact on how we view the role of theatre in public life. It’s a space in which questions can be debated; where people come together to share hopes, dreams, fears about the world, and it’s really a place of celebration.

At the heart of it is a mission to explore the impact that theatre can have in shaping how we view ourselves and our world.”

The world that Sansom talks about is not just the theatre world, or even Scotland, but the international links that the company have created – something they need, in Sansom’s eyes, to push further over the coming years: “We’ve established a fantastic reputation for taking work to

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international territories – we’ve performed in four continents. We need to make work that is about the globe today, that is about our lives and how we’re all connected, and the big issues that we all have to take a global perspective on.”

This is reflected in the current season which began in January, with the acclaimed production Let The Right One In travelling to South Korea.

“I think it’s really important that we can act as cultural ambassadors for Scottish culture, and that’s partly because that then influences Scottish artists,” he says. “Taking work internationally enhances the experience and changes the practices of Scottish actors, directors and writers.”

“ We need to make work that is about the globe today” Laurie Sansom

The company has been incredibly lucky on this front, all starting with Black Watch taking off as an international sensation: “We’re lucky, that’s such a fantastic calling card for us.” This foregrounded the company’s success taking work over to America, where Edinburgh Fringe hit Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour will be going later this year.

Trying to put his finger on just what it is about the work that resonates so well in the States, Sansom credits a “clear sense of identity, something to do with the irreverence of the work. It’s playful, it’s produced across art forms so it uses physicality, song, drama. I think that’s very appealing to an American audience, and we’ve very quickly gained a reputation for a kind of work that’s very

accessible but also provocative, which is at the heart of the work we make.”

Moving onto the current season, the conversation quickly turns to trilogies; a new trend rising through theatre that has even been labeled ‘boxset theatre’ by some, almost as if the Netflix generation and binge-watching culture is spilling off our screens and onto our stages. This is not, for Sansom, what the current trend for trilogies – and specifically the three trilogies appearing over the next five months – is about. Instead, it is all about “scale and ambition,” particularly since the resources available to NTS are greater than those available to other, smaller Scottish companies: “The James Plays, This Restless House and The 306 are all hard to imagine without our creative impetus, so I think it’s on us to make sure that we are making those pieces of work.”

Supporting this will be NTS’s new home, Rockvilla, opening later this year – “a nerve centre for the making of work and the developing of talent.”

It is the first purpose-built location for the company, despite their decade-long existence and importance on the Scottish theatre scene. Sansom describes it as “a place where we can bring rehearsal rooms, technical facilities and office space all under one roof, which will greatly enhance our ability to make groundbreaking work and take it to the rest of Scotland.” So despite its location in Spears Wharf, Glasgow, this hub, lacking any performance space, will still focus heavily on wider Scotland. “That’s my ambition, my goal for the company, to really enhance our touring across Scotland,” says Sansom. One of the programme’s returning favourites, The Strange Undoing of Prudence Hart, will fulfil this ambition with its tour of Scottish town halls later in the year.

The current month however sees the return of Rona Munro’s James Plays. “It’s been fantastic to review them,” Sansom says. “Half of the cast

THEATRE

were part of the company before and half of them are new, with two brand new Kings – James I and James III – and that’s been fantastic because it means it’s brought fresh eyes on the plays. It also gave us the opportunity to look at James II over again because it was the one we tussled with a little bit in terms of the storytelling, and Rona’s written a new first act for it. We’ve developed how we tell the story and I think it’s a much more fascinating piece now.”

Performed originally as part of the Edinburgh International Festival, the plays received great acclaim, but the nature of theatre as a living being is that it is constantly tinkered with and reworked: “We made them so quickly last time. There’s been parts of the rehearsal process where we’ve been having a discussion that we never had before, and we’re discovering new things just by returning to it so it’s been fantastic. And of course we’re in a good place because we know we captured people’s imaginations before, so that gives us a confidence to approach them afresh.”

It’s good to hear such excitement from Sansom even on the morning of the final rehearsal before taking all three plays into technical, and it’s a definite good sign for the play’s return. Given that it’s the morning of the final rehearsal, however, The Skinny must let Sansom return to the rehearsal room. His parting words may be expected, but are sincere: “I feel very privileged to be leading the company in its tenth year and I think its a really good chance to start imagining what the National Theatre of Scotland can be for the next ten years.”

The James Plays, Festival Theatre, ‘til 13 Feb then touring UK Mar-Jun nationaltheatrescotland.com/content/ Buy tickets:bit.ly/jamesplays

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I N D E P E N D E N T

February 2016

C U LT U R A L

J O U R N A L I S M

/TheSkinnyMag

Illustration: Yvette Earl

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THE SKINNY

Rapid Fire Spanish livewires Hinds teach The Skinny about the effort, energy and attitude it takes to tour their debut album, Leave Me Alone

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ome people struggle with first impressions.

Not Hinds. When the Spanish slacker-rock four piece take to a stage, they introduce themselves with huge, genuine grins and live wire enthusiasm.

Winningly confident and infectiously energetic – and with a welcome disregard for tempo – you’d be hard pushed to believe that two years ago, they’d never played a gig. But it’s their inimitable live performances that have earned them a record deal (three, in fact) and seen them burst out of tiny DIY shows in Madrid to hold court in trendy New York boroughs.

Last year they became the first Spanish band to ever play a Glastonbury stage (really!), supported The Strokes at Hyde Park and finished off 2015 with a full tour of the US. There’s no doubt that their warm-hearted, sunshine-coated rock n’ roll is a perfect calling card… But don’t be fooled, there’s nothing breezy about a band that sweats it out this hard.

Initially founded under the moniker Deers by Carlotta Cosials and Ana Garcia Perrote in 2011 – and then reinvigorated in 2013 – the duo released tracks Bamboo and Trippy Gum via Bandcamp the following year. They received a ton of international praise, but when they tried to take the project to a stage, they realised a few extra hands would come in, err… handy. Shortly after recruiting bassist Ade Martin and drummer Amber Grimbergen, the band were forced to change their name after a similarly titled band called dibs.

Before you ask, Hinds is Spanish for a female deer (says Google translate). Characteristically, the band were unfazed.

It quickly transpires that Hinds’ charm isn’t just reserved for the stage. In a rapid-fire interview punctuated by a truly cackling laugh, Cosials talks The Skinny through the most important shows they’ve played so far, and why, to Hinds, a positive attitude is everything; she is the kind of person who, instead of saying a simple ‘yes,’ shouts the affirmation three times over.

We briefly discuss Hinds’ foundations, and Cosials is quick to correct any preconceptions of the band’s unusually speedy ascent to acclaim.

“Okay, if you’re thinking about all of the steps we’ve done… We haven’t missed any, you know. If you see our history: We release a song, labels come to watch us, then we get a booking agent, then we start a tour, then we played a festival… da da da.

It’s just like a real live band!” She pauses for breath.

“But the thing is the timing. What usually takes a band one month, it takes us two days.”

She’s not wrong. This band are a total tour de force. In honour of their debut album Leave Me Alone, Hinds played two release shows across two continents – in the space of 48 hours. When we speak they’ve just arrived in London, on the eve of a wholly mammoth EU tour. A simple ‘How are you?’ receives a whopping answer.

“WELL!” Cosials shouts. “Actually! So… the day before yesterday, we wake up in New York City.

We take a plane, and we go straight out of the airport to play our own release party in Madrid.

After playing the release party we… partied. Ha. And then the day after, we were starting this tour.

So it took us to a FERRY! And that ferry took us to London… and I mean… these three days? Now I don’t know where I am anymore.” She laughs, a lot. The Skinny feels exhausted, seasick and hungover by proxy.

Nothing sums up their recent success so well as Cosials’ hyper-speed recounting of their Brooklyn-based record launch. The 300-capacity show sold out spectacularly, and she cackles as she reports that they “stopped counting” after they’d received over 2,000 e-mail requests for tickets: “Impossible!” Even more spectacular is

February 2016

Interview: Katie Hawthorne Photography: John Graham

how, according to all accounts, the gig was a total shambles by “show” standards – and a riotous success by anybody’s party standards. “It was the craziest, wildest, most-people thing we’ve ever done!” she enthuses. “So okay, okay… everything was a mess. We were telling our label, ‘Please guys, do not worry at all. This is going to be a party.

This is a release party! Of all the parties, it has to be chaos. It is expected!’”

Then, while the show was in full swing, Ade fell sick and had to leave before the encore – which they’d planned to be an audience participation Hinds karaoke, of course. “We had to stop the gig…

‘Sorry! We’ll be back in a minute!’ We went to the backstage, and Ade’s like ‘I’m so sorry!’ Then she took a cab home, and we were like ‘What do we do now?!’ So we had this friend John, from [the band] Public Access TV, and we were like ‘Hey John, do you play bass?’ He says ‘I guess?’ ‘Really? Great!’

So we showed him in the toilet the chords of the songs and he did it! He makes it! So we go back on stage like, ‘Let’s see if this works! Who wants to come on stage and sing with us?’ Suddenly ALL the hands are UP-UP-UP! I mean, come on, karaoke is usually a thing that makes people shy. But everybody wanted to do it! It was like a Disney movie, fighting against all the disadvantages. We had so much fun.” Phew.

That’s the thing, though. No matter how many handfuls of shit hit the fan, Hinds always look like they’re having so much fun. Their live shows are rambunctious, electric, chaotic affairs that feel as homely and inclusive as a house party. With a thirty date ‘World Tour Part One: Europe and UK!’ tour running from January to March (they hit Glasgow mid-Feb), it begs the question: How on earth can they keep up that energy? “It’s always a tough question to answer,” Cosials says, very

seriously. “because I don’t want to say that we’re always having a great time. Every day is a different day. I am a human being exactly like you. People break my heart exactly like you… so… I think we are just good at being in a good mood.

“We’ve had to learn to be completely exhausted. To hate carrying all your shit into a fucking airplane and they’re going to tell you that the guitar cannot be in the plane, and you’ll have to fight…

BUT! We are always very optimistic. Life is a shit – but you can say it with a smile on your face.”

“What usually takes a band one month, it takes us two days” Carlotta Cosials

It’s a universally impressive attitude, and a stern reminder that touring is no picnic. Hinds might look all smiles, but behind the scenes you’ll find nothing but fortitude and focus. The band’s social media is crammed with fans desperate to be the fifth member of Hinds’ gang – something Cosials finds faintly baffling. “It’s not that easy. I really have to tell you. Hinds is my life, completely, and in an extreme way. I’m dedicating everything, everything… every part of my brain and my heart and my sweat and my daily life to this project and… poooffff. Overwhelmed.”

She considers that maybe “it’s our fault, because of the way we started.” Cosials describes

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their rapid rise as something “out of reach of understanding” by the labels and management teams that they work with, and so Hinds are left to sail their own ship: “They just trust in our taste and our ideas, and our way of sharing what we’re doing with the world.” From running their own social media to directing their own videos (“and I am not a professional!”), Hinds infuse everything they touch with their special brand of street-smarts.

Hinds speak your language, they’ll tell you their secrets… and then they’ll play you a total melter of a rock show.

In short: mistake Hinds’ energy and enthusiasm for naivety at your peril. Cosials explains that the band, eager to learn from more experienced musicians they meet on the road, have asked a lot of questions – and received unexpected answers.

“We’re getting so, so surprised about how little involved they are. We even ask about money things, like: ‘How much do you pay your sound engineer?

We’re thinking about getting one.’ And they say, ‘Oh, no. I have no idea.’ But how can you not know?!

Come on man, it’s your band. They say, ‘Yeah, I guess the label knows?’ But come on! It’s your business! It’s your project, it’s your baby. It’s your life!”

All the elbow grease, learning-curves and “table work” considered, Hinds are exactly where they deserve to be. Cosials takes a deep breath; “It’s when we go on stage…That’s the moment.

That’s the moment that I am exactly where I should be, and it’s here, on this stage, with these people; this audience of London, Chicago or Berlin – I don’t care.” So you’re ready for a world tour, then?

“Oh yes. Yes, yes, yes. Yes! We’re ready.”

Playing Glasgow Stereo on 21 Feb. Leave Me Alone is out now via Lucky Number hindsband.com

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Tragedy & Triumph Oscar Van Gelderen – ‘the publisher with the golden nose’ – was also editor of Ali Eskandarian’s modern beat novel Golden Years. He tells here of the tragedy behind the posthumous publication of the murdered writer, singer and songwriter’s debut work

Interview: Rosie Barron

No one – except for some friends – had seen the manuscript. No agent, no editor. I wrote to Ali: ‘I will publish this baby, but since I’m a Dutch publisher, I first need to find a great American or English editor, then we can try and sell it. I will tell all my international publishing friends about it, but in the meantime let’s not wait, let’s get it out.’

That’s when I decided to release parts of the book on Medium.com, a website developed by the people behind Twitter. I wanted to get started so people could take note, I set up his Facebook page and his Twitter account, we had it all worked out, and I thought he should come over to Europe.

I wanted to introduce him to my friends, thinking they should meet this guy and get as excited as I was about him – and around that time we got the phone call from New York: Ali had been killed, two brothers who played in Yellow Dogs were killed too, and Sot was wounded, he was shot in his arm.

It was such a shock; I was sick in bed for a week.

On Golden Years

O

n 11 November 2013, singer, songwriter and novelist Ali Eskandarian was killed alongside two members of the Iranian-American band Yellow Dogs – shot to death by a fellow musician and expatriate who then took his own life. Previous to this, Eskandarian had been conversing with his friend, the publisher Oscar Van Gelderen, about his debut manuscript.

Tragically, he was never to see it published, but the work – a new genre in itself, weaving sex, drugs, music and war – was left in Van Gelderen’s capable hands. The publisher chats here to The Skinny in an interview we dedicate to the memory of Ali Eskandarian and the legacy of Golden Years.

Oscar Van Gelderen on his life and career I’m a publisher in Holland, I’ve been into publishing for 25 years. Since 2008 I’ve been running Lebowski, which is part of an independent group called Overamstel. For a long time now I’ve been publishing an eclectic mix of authors, a mix of international authors such as Dave Eggers, David Sedaris, Niccolò Ammaniti, Marlon James and Phil Klay, and underground and counter culture writers such as William S. Burroughs, Charles Bukowski, Chris Kraus and many others. We also publish (urban) art books: A Dutch ‘translation’ of Banksy’s Wall and Peace, but also Slinkachu and Vhils.

My other great love next to publishing (and my wife) is buying art. I have been collecting art since 1997, and from 2007 on bought many urban and street artists… After a while I wondered what’s happening with this kind of art in Syria?

In Egypt? Or Iraq or Iran, or Palestine?

I have always been very interested in finding art and books from countries where the public

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eye has not been looking into very much, where art is often oppressed and therefore needs to operate underground. That’s how I discovered Icy and Sot – two young street artists who were then living in Iran, and since 2012 in America.

I started to collect their works in 2009, 2010.

From there one thing led to another: my wife and I began representing them, hosted a show in Amsterdam and then came up with the idea of doing a pop-up show in New York, in the summer of 2012, and that’s where I met Ali Eskandarian.

The Yellow Dogs and life on the road Ali Eskandarian, was a little older than the other guys, in fact he called them – both in Golden Years and in real life – ‘the kids’. I think this book gives the reader a good insight into how these guys live, the jokes they make, the dope they smoke, the girls they chase – it has an innocent feel, like being one of the kids, full of hope, because that’s why they all moved to New York, to make art, music, follow their dreams.

Ali had already relocated with his family from Iran to Germany, and then to Dallas, so he knew his way around a little more than the kids, Ali was already more of a man. This moving around, travelling, making new places your home; this ‘on the road’ mentality that accompanies art; the movement that accompanies war; all this movement adds extra layers to the book. It’s not just making art, it’s a way of life.

On Ali Eskandarian I met him only once and I had a very good feeling about him. I saw him performing in the gallery where we showed the works of Icy and Sot.

Afterwards I listened to more of his music, watched a few clips – it’s all very powerful stuff. Then I got an email, a brilliant email, in which he announced working on a novel, asking me if I wanted to read it.

“ The title is ironic of course, it’s about dreaming of the years to come, and for Ali, they will never come” Oscar Van Gelderen

When you meet someone you really like and they tell you that they wrote a book, the first reflex of a publisher is this: ‘Oh no, how can I avoid reading it?’ In your head you are already typing the rejection letter – before the manuscript arrives.

And then I got that envelope and on the first page were two words: American Immigrant.

I thought, ‘That’s an awful title.’ But then I started reading it, and it turned out these were the only two bad words in the book. I suggested a different title, thinking, ‘Let’s change these two bad words into two good words,’ and suggested Golden Years.

Ali loved the title, the wink to Bowie, the double meanings. In hindsight the title is ironic, of course; it’s about dreaming of the years to come, and for Ali, they will never come.

BOOKS

All of a sudden I had this orphaned manuscript – what do you do now? It’s already difficult enough to edit a book with a living author, but how do you edit a book of an author that is not around anymore? I was very honored that Ali’s family – because of my commitment to Icy and Sot’s art and to Ali’s book – trusted me, saying, ‘Why don’t you take of the book and do what you think needs to be done?’ I immediately asked my dear friend and literary agent Vicki Satlow to help me in selling the book, and we made seven deals: the book will be published in Holland, Germany, Portugal, UK/USA, Spain, Turkey and Romania.

It was very exciting to see the book coming together and eventually it was ready to come out.

We invited Ali’s family to The Crossing Border festival in The Hague in Holland, where we launched the book and held a tribute to Ali. It was very emotional: I’ve been publishing 25 years but at this I was truly moved, this was something special.

There is something about Ali, about his writing, that’s very sincere. There’s no posing – that’s why I thought he’s the real deal.

On moving forward There have been talks about turning the book into a film. We have spoken with the other guys that lived with him, with Obash and Koory, the surviving band members, with Ali Salehezadeh, who is the manager of ‘the kids’, and Icy and Sot, and they are reserved about the idea; they have mixed feelings about it, which I can totally understand.

There are many people that want to make a documentary about the Dogs, about the book, about Ali, and I’m sure that this film will come but somehow it feels too soon – the wound has not healed yet. It’s such a loss, such a crazy way to die, a deranged guy taking a shotgun and killing whatever moved. It’s so senseless.

In the end, with Golden Years we have something really special in our hands and I just hope for him and his family that many people will read it and pay attention to it. Ali called the book his ‘Great Iranian-American Novel’, and as I wrote in my afterword for the book, let’s call it that way, until someone proves him wrong.

Golden Years is out now, published by Faber & Faber, RRP £14.99 alieskandarian.com

THE SKINNY

February 2016

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Growing Pains Ahead of the release of her book, and an appearance at Glasgow International Comedy Festival, Isy Suttie chats about trying to live in the moment when the moment is quickly passing by

I

Credit: Idil Sukan

sy Suttie’s new memoir The Actual One – and tour of the same name – revolves around her life about a decade ago: specifically the time after a break-up with someone who she thought was ‘the one’. It’s about growing up – or more accurately, it’s about her friends growing up while she attempts to remain an eternal twenty-something. Growing up is only part of a broader theme, however; the memoir is almost nostalgic for the present moment. It’s like Suttie is putting her hand in a stream and trying to catch the water as it rushes through her fingers. And she’s constantly looking back to find a way to move forward.

“I think what I did during that period was look for security in what had knitted me together as a person,” she says. “When friends, quite rightly, wanted to make plans for the future it just didn’t fit with my mindset at the time. Going home to Matlock – Mum cooking my dinner, listening to 90s cassette tapes, thinking about who I was then and feeling, ‘I’m going to be alright’ – was quite an important security blanket.”

Does this suggest – at least during this period of her life – someone who struggles with change?

“I didn’t always deal with change that well,” says Suttie, and she even recalls feeling, while at parties, the present moment leaving her grasp: “I’d turn to friends and I’d say things like, ‘Oh, I never want this to end,’ and then someone would remind me that I had a driving lesson in the morning and I’d feel like the bubble had burst.”

But those browsing the local bookshop’s humour section need not fear, for her happy-golucky side is not defeated. The Actual One is no ‘misery memoir’ – after all, this is Isy Suttie. The forementioned break-up involves a five-foot papiermâché penguin, and a later lesson in seduction involves her riding a skateboard while wearing nothing but trainers and a fur coat.

It’s this latter experience which inspired the book’s cover image, even if recapturing the story proved trickier than expected. Photographer Idil Sukan’s Richmond studio isn’t generally set-up for a shoot where the subject is on wheels: “I kept rolling,” says Suttie. “It’s a skateboard on a hard floor, which I hadn’t really thought about.” Faced with a moving target, Sukan was forced to get technical: “Idil put a soft towel down to keep me still, which sorted it. Only now the problem was it might not look like I was genuinely skateboarding as I was completely stationary. Idil is really good at details though, like down to telling me to move my little finger a tiny bit to suggest balance.”

Another of the colourful anecdotes within the book – and one of the few that goes outside the main time-frame – recounts a young Suttie in the early 90s. She believes the one person who might best understand her teenage angst is comedian Rob Newman, who back then was something akin to a rockstar in popularity and status. During his and David Baddiel’s tour stop in Norwich, Suttie delivered all her adolescent woes in handwritten rhyme to Newman in person. Fast-forward to the here and now, of course, and Suttie sometimes gigs with Newman. Indeed, she did so as recently as Christmas. Has she seen fit to let him know she was the Norwich admirer?

“I did tell Rob when I saw him at the gig…

Actually, no, I told him that he was in the book, but not about the poems. If you’d asked me before I was a comic I would’ve said there is no way he’ll remember. But as a comedian, if somebody scrawled reams and reams of poetry and handed it to me after a gig – even if it was a long time ago – I think I’d probably remember it. I’m sure I’ll bump into him soon. In fact, I’m planning to see his show at Soho Theatre so (if he hasn’t heard) I might reveal the other part of the story then.”

February 2016

COMEDY

Interview: Ben Venables

Interestingly, Newman’s appearance is one of the few which relate to the world of comedy, and then it’s an event from before the time she became a comedian. Suttie’s choice to keep the book focused on her personal experience, outside of work, and within a specific era of her life makes for a concentrated, even novelistic read. And she wasn’t tempted to capitalise on the cult status her acting work has given her.

“ It’s like having an affair with someone who could poison you at any time” Isy Suttie

“If I started to talk about Peep Show it’d have become a different book. I would’ve felt I had to talk about other telly stuff because I don’t think I could’ve mentioned one thing without mentioning another. And I didn’t want the book to be about ‘work stuff ’. I mean, if you read [former Arsenal and England goalkeeper] David Seaman’s autobiography and he didn’t mention football you’d feel conned, but this is a memoir. It was commissioned after my Love Letters radio series, and I wanted it to be about the emotional side of life and friendship. Once I was concentrating on these few years under a bit of a magnifying glass, it felt like I was stepping towards writing a novel.

“I’d love to write a novel,” she says, answering our next question before it’d been asked.

“This book for me is a celebration of friendship, which I didn’t really know when I started writing it. It’s something I aim for in my live shows.

People have said they feel that I’m their friend and that they can tell me anything, perhaps because I’m spilling my heart out to them – which I am.

“I’ve done three Edinburgh shows and the first was a bit of a story, the second Edinburgh was, well, just a bit of a mess to be honest: a character show with me trying to ‘compere’ – it was difficult second album syndrome. But, it was a very important show for me to do. Then the third in 2011 – Pearl and Dave – became a radio show. I was pleased that, after some trial and error in previous years, I’d found a structure that could allow me to talk more personally, but where there was a clear story with a beginning, middle and end.”

Given her Edinburgh shows’ influence on shaping the structure of her current work, will the Fringe lure Suttie back in future years?

“The Fringe is like having an affair with somebody who could poison you at any time,” she says.

“It is both amazing and terrible all in one single month. It is every colour of the rainbow. I love, absolutely love the Fringe but there are years where I’ve thought, ‘I just want to go home.’ But… yes, I have really missed it. Also, I’m half-Scottish and I’ve been going up for years. I remember watching things like Late’n’Live at the Gilded Balloon and thinking, ‘Wow, this is amazing,’ and I used to love seeing lots of plays. But when you are performing it’s different: it’s very, very intense. It turns Edinburgh into a different place. But I do love it, and I’ll go back.”

Isy Suttie: The Actual One, Orion Books on 28 Jan, £11.99 The tour plays The Stand, Glasgow, 15 Mar, 6.30pm, £11, as part of Glasgow International Comedy Festival 2016 isysuttie.com

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The Shadows Beyond The Rainbow

This LGBT History Month, Toby Sharpe explains the importance of acknowledging the whole story – beyond Caitlyn Jenner and glittery weddings

Words: Toby Sharpe Illustration: Josie Sommer

W

alking through a gallery in New York this summer – a pastime from which most of my anecdotes seem to spring – I had the uncanny experience of art seeming more like a mirror than anything else. From the walls of an exhibition on gay life in the 80s, a horde of young, gangly men stared out at me. Awkward guys at parties, smiling nervously as they danced in and out of shot. They had so much to live for.

Most of these men are dead now. They did not live for long. The AIDS epidemic, which burst into the West in the early 1980s, ravaged these fledgling communities of queer life. It grew exponentially, fed by a climate of fear and homophobia that likely seems alien to the contemporary mainstream.

Despite that sense of separation from the past, it was only in 1987 that Princess Diana controversially shook hands with an HIV-positive man on camera, and it was only in 2006 that HIV-positive people were allowed to travel into the US on standard visas. We like to think that so much has changed.

Recently, we’ve encountered a momentous period for LGBT rights, yet we seem to be erasing our history. The American Supreme Court decision on gay marriage meant people who had never cared about LGBT liberation suddenly got a cute rainbow profile picture. LGBT history has always been a curiously amorphous narrative in the eyes of the mainstream. One could be forgiven for thinking that LGBT people leapt straight from the Stonewall riots into gloriously pink weddings with Caitlyn Jenner as the officiant. These narratives prioritise images of wealthy, white gay men and ignore the people of colour, women, and non-binary and trans individuals who suffered hugely to achieve rights for all. These groups were and are also some of the most likely to suffer from the virus, due to systemic cultures of distrust which painted the epidemic as somehow deserved.

Many LGBT people born in the 80s and 90s feel worlds away from the AIDS epidemic. This is especially problematic in a heteronormative modern Britain, where sex education in school fails to acknowledge the sex lives of queer couples.

Even successful attempts to combat the virus, like PrEP (the drug cocktail which provides possibly up to 96% protection against HIV infection) are not available to the British public outside of research programmes. Instead, PrEP is painted as a party pill for bacchanalian homosexuals by the media; we are building a narrative of HIV/AIDS as a tale of the past, not the danger that it remains.

As LGBT History month rolls around once more, it concerns me that we are being encouraged to champion gay marriage as the watershed moment for gay rights, as if to somehow replace the dark parts of our collective history. We are not taught about the Stonewall riots. Historical figures, from da Vinci to Billie Holliday, have had their gender and sexual identities erased or normalised.

We have to fight against the notion that gay marriage is somehow the end of the movement, and that it was asked for and freely given.

Modern gay life was built on the blood, sweat, and tears of past generations. Even as Pride events become increasingly corporate, we have to remember that, as Cheryl Strayed says in her Dear Sugar columns, these events are “an explosion of love that has its roots in hate.”

We cannot forget homophobia. We cannot forget the paranoia of the AIDS epidemic. We cannot forget that the 35 million people estimated to be with living with HIV worldwide are a historically recent phenomenon, not a necessary fact. Our history lives on, and it’s not just rainbows. We must continue to fight – for us, and for all those who lost their lives. tht.org.uk/sexual-health/About-HIV/Pre-exposure-Prophylaxis

Do Gentlemen Prefer Bland?

Suffering from feminist fatigue this Valentine’s day, our Deviance editor trades in her watertight Tinder profile for that of a Disney prom queen princess. The results are repulsive

M

y friend is excellent at online dating.

It’s not necessarily her right-swipe and bednotch tallies that I envy – impressive though I’m sure they are. It’s more that she’s achieved the actual goal of online dating. A goal beyond sustaining a first date conversation that isn’t about the fact you’d both liked Ryan Hemsworth on Facebook (omg!), beyond hollow one-night stands, beyond feeling like your soul has been melon-balled out and swallowed up by an undeserving bro who peacocked you with his stupid vintage shirt.

Her Tinder aptitude has landed her a top notch champ who she doesn’t even hate one bit.

If online dating earned university credit, she’d be eligible for a PhD in filtering through fuckboys and Nice Guys to find dating gold. And, as her willing tutee, my online profile too exists as a set of watertight frontiers to weed out the worst Tinder has to offer. Sort of like a Takeshi’s Castle for fuckboys.

My bio contains a reference to something niche enough that only the fairest of them all might notice. There are six nice but slightly intimidating photographs of me; well-composed selfies, a snap

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of me lolling with a wide open mouth and cake in my hand, and a shot of me flying through the air like the gangly praying mantis that I really am.

“ I was crowd-surfing on a population of m’lady Tinder boys clamouring for a woman more dull than themselves” I’m sure that with an ounce of patience, this expertly crafted profile will recruit me a sensational person with the foolhardiness to take on

a feminist praying mantis with a loud laugh. But at the time of writing we’re pretty damn close to 14 February, and I’ve begun to wonder my reluctance to be graceful/mild/wholesome is probably the reason Domino’s has already texted me to enquire about my Valentine’s Day plans. Would it be different if I’d been socialised into a meek angel who brushes her hair instead of braiding it, who wears blouses rather than blazers, and whose primary ambition is to be some dude’s asset?

So, I did what any ordinary woman under such circumstances might do – I took a sledgehammer to my Tinder. In place, I uploaded demure photographs taken of me on tame-hair days, reading novels and baking biscuits. The niche-referencetrap also disappeared. In its place, an outline of graceful hobbies and interests fit for a Disney princess prom queen: playing the flute, drinking cranberry sodas(?), waiting for Love’s First True Kiss. I wondered whether I’d gone a little far – surely my new profile was too repulsively Victorian to pass for a real life 21st century woman? What

DEVIANCE

Words: Kate Pasola

modern man would ever want to match with someone quite so bland and eager to marry after the first date?

I needn’t have worried. Inundated with matches and ‘super likes’, I felt as though I was crowdsurfing on a population of m’lady Tinder boys clamouring for a woman more dull than themselves.

Each message telling me I had ‘beautifully sad eyes’ or that I was ‘one in a million’ was flanked by opening gambits about my cooking. Topless men quoted Sleeping Beauty at me, and a guy from Roehampton whose bio read ‘Thug Life’ requested I bring my flute to the first date.

I pondered the one thing in common that these batches and batches of men shared. They were visibly refreshed by my profile’s passivity, alike in their clear contempt for an enlightened female race. My hordes of admirers proved it’s very easy to get a date on Valentine’s Day, as long as you play the game properly. But really, if being a feminazi praying mantis is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.

THE SKINNY

that might ever be useful to you, and memorise them.

The Transmi – buses, overland, in exclusive lanes, with stations – is the fastest way to get across the city at off-peak times only. During peak times – which means around 7-9am and 4.30-7pm – it’s packed full and a little crazy and chaotic: avoid it. The card you use for the SITP can also be used for the Transmi, finally.

“ Colombia, in general, is both far, far safer than it used to be, and far more dangerous than the UK”

By British standards, Bogotá taxis are really cheap, though try not to apply British standards to costs of living in Bogotá, unless you’re lucky enough to be getting paid by British standards! Taxis have a bad reputation in Bogotá, and there have been very rare instances of kidnappings by fake taxis, so while hailing one from the street will almost always be safe, it’s even more secure to use an app like Tappsi or EasyTaxi. Also keep an eye out for unscrupulous drivers who might try to overcharge foreigners, as happens everywhere.

Better than all these options: get a bike.

There are hundreds of miles of cycle paths in Bogotá, and it’s mostly flat, so a bike can often take you where you want to go faster than any vehicle.

Living in Bogotá

Is it safe?

Living in Colombia's Capital as a foreigner presents little everyday challenges that pampered westerners from first world countries might not be used to. Our man in Bogotá offers an insider's guide.

Words: Ally Brown

S

o you enjoy the integrated public transport systems of Berlin, Barcelona and San Francisco; swapping between trams, trains, buses and the metro with a swish of a magnetic card, do you?

Welcome to Bogotá, where we’ve recently welcomed the innovation of the bus stop.

So London can be held to ransom by its underground drivers because the city can’t function without an underground, right? Bogotá has the same population as London, yet has never had an underground. Not even a single line.

Finding an apto Indeed, the biggest practical problem with living in Bogotá is mobility, and that’s something you can mitigate as soon as you arrive by choosing a flat carefully. How do foreigners find a flat? Use your contacts already there, the Facebook group Bogotá Short Term Rentals, or CompartoApto. com. It’s key that you get a location that’s appropriate for where you’re going to be spending most of your time.

Will you be studying or working at IH or one of the central universities? Then live in La Candelaria or nearby La Macarena.

Will you be working at the British Embassy, British Council, or other offices near the Zona Rosa?

Then live in that area or in nearby Chapinero Alto.

Will you be working in offices further north?

Look in Usaquen.

Will you be teaching English for an agency who are likely to send you all over the city? Then Chapinero is probably your best bet – it’s the area roughly halfway between central La Candelaria and Usaquen, respectively the furthest south and furthest north most foreigners will ever need to go.

The other major issue in Bogotá is security, and that’s the one I get asked about most commonly.

Colombia, in general, is both far, far safer than it used to be, and far more dangerous than the UK. That means it’s a lot safer than most people imagine. I lived in downtown Bogotá (La Candelaria) for 2.5 years without any problems whatsoever, and most of my friends never had problems either – but some of them did. All you can do is learn how to minimise the risk.

Specifically, the risk in Bogotá is street robbery. Pickpocketing happens in crowded areas – for example, a packed Transmilenio or buseta – so keep valuables at home or in a zipped pocket, preferably not your back pocket. You’ll learn to be alert in the streets, especially at night, and to

cross roads tactically. If you walk down the wrong street and are confronted by somebody with a knife, give them what you’ve got, it’s worth a whole lot less than your life. They will run away as soon as they’ve got something, and that’s it, over. Possession of a gun in Bogotá is a criminal offence, so guns are very unlikely to be used in a mugging.

Wherever you choose to live, you will learn the areas that are better avoided: from La Candelaria, it’s Belem, Egipto and Tres Cruces on the fringes; from La Macarena, it’s La Perseverencia and Santa Fe; from Chapinero, it’s the other side of Caracas, and so on. Be smart, be alert, but don’t be paranoid.

Why live in Bogotá then?

Because you’ll meet so many lovely Colombians, who are delighted that the outside world is finally paying positive attention to their country, and determined to show it in a positive light; because there are a lot of interesting immigrants there too, like you, who’ve all had roundabout reasons for choosing to live there; because it’s a land of opportunities, with good jobs available sooner to well-educated foreigners, and plenty of potential market gaps for entrepreneurs to explore; because from Bogotá you can travel to other, smaller, prettier and hotter places around it; because you can learn Spanish and salsa, arepas and aguardiente, reggaeton and rum.

Colombia is, in many ways, a different world from the UK, so living there in turn helps you see the world differently. It’s a former Spanish colony with a pervading conservative Catholic influence, with a former slave-holding Caribbean coast, a Pacific coast, an Andean heritage, and is halfcovered in Amazon jungle: and all of those peoples and cultures are in Bogotá , along with the drag queens of Chapigay, the militant leftist students of La Nacho, and the racing guinea pigs of La Septima. In Bogotá third world slums sit across the road from first world multiplexes, the road to the country’s most exclusive university is so potholed it’s like a rollercoaster; and the Presidential palace is a stones’ throw from the lawless crackdens of El Bronx. It’s a country full of warm, wonderful, loving people, and yet: that history is real, too. How do you reconcile that?

Bogotá is never as straightforward as it might seem. The answer to one question is two more questions. And from facing a different set of questions comes a different way of thinking. How do you adapt to a less than perfect environment? By learning that holes in the road might give you a bump, but they’re really no obstacle to happiness.

Find more insiders' guides to living abroad at theskinny. co.uk/travel

Getting around town Bogotá’s public transport system is improving, but it’s got a long way still to improve. Your choices are buseta, SITP bus, Transmilenio, or taxi.

The busetas are the wee old dirty rust-buckets that cover every inch of the city, spewing black smoke. Do your best to read your destination on the placard at the front window, then hail it, anywhere, and give the driver a 2000 peso note. He might give you change – buseta prices differ by company, by route, by time – but 2000 will cover it.

Because they stop anywhere, buseta journeys are slow, and because they stop everywhere, they cram as many people in as they possibly can.

It’s not uncommon to see passengers hanging out of buseta doorways. If you see that, wait for the next one.

The new SITP buses are more comfortable than busetas, faster because they only stop at bus stops, and safer: the card system prevents thieves getting on surreptitiously, as can’t be prevented on busetas. But they don’t go everywhere, yet.

Check out sitp.gov.co to find all of the SITP routes

TRAVEL SPECIAL

Lifestyle

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The Road to Reykjavik After a whirlwind eighteen months since their arrival on the scene, Glasgow fuzz pop duo Tuff Love continue to thrive and flourish ahead of January’s debut LP. We join them on the road to Iceland Interview & Photography: Tom Johnson

I

t’s 5.30 in the morning when we meet Tuff Love at Glasgow Airport. By the time we arrive back from Reykjavik two days later, the band will have travelled over five thousand kilometres in 48 hours, to play two short shows at the 2015 edition of Airwaves festival. The nucleus of the band – Julie Eisenstein (guitar, vocals) and Suse Bear (bass, vocals) – hate flying; a point reinforced by the vice-like grip upon our arm as we take off for the first of the trip’s four flights. The mood is somewhat downbeat; it’s extremely early, the gear is heavy and awkward, the Glasgow rain torrential.

We’re also flown via London because the festival arranged the travel, and so a two-hour trip becomes a seven-hour trip. For a “job” as routinely idolised as ‘touring musician’, the truth is perhaps something a lot less glitzy. Tuff Love, a band who have played Glastonbury, been lauded in The Guardian (as well as in this very publication, of course), heralded by mainstream radio, will be spending the following couple of weeks on tour in Iceland, firstly, and then across the rest of the UK. They’ll be driving themselves, carrying their own gear, selling their own merch. Some of the shows will be poorly attended; if they just get a decent bed they’ll be ecstatic. Suffice to say, an easy life it ain’t.

Of course, in amongst all of this are the highpoints. They’re being flown to Iceland to play a specially invited showcase of some of the world’s best musicians, and for all the many vexations they don’t complain once; there are nerves and tiredness and many stresses, on this one short trip alone, but Tuff Love do as they’ve always done: they keep their head down and plough on regardless.

January 2016 sees the release of Resort, the band’s debut album of sorts, which will see their three previously-released EPs collated as one, and which looks set to see their music reach far greater shores. Resort also underlines everything they’ve achieved in the three years since they started making music together; this Icelandic trip is something of a flag-flying moment for all of their achievements.

Rewinding somewhat to the band’s first release, the long sold-out Junk EP, you have to wonder whether this was always the plan, whether crossing oceans and conquering bigger stages was ever anticipated, or even expected. “I really just wanted to write songs,” Julie says plainly of the band’s initial working. “I think our goals were always more personal, more about what we could do within the project and less about the future success of the band.”

Despite the modesty, or perhaps just limited expectations given their aforementioned place within the industry, the acclaim came quickly. The Guardian came on board almost straight away, streaming the band’s debut track alongside an accompanying handwritten letter that Johnny Lynch (label boss, manager) had sent to the publication. “That was pretty nuts. It was just a mad surprise,” says Suse. “It was definitely something noticeable that happened afterwards. I think people took us seriously, like we were a real band. I guess sometimes it takes a recommendation from someone people trust, like a music journalist, for other people to listen to your music and think it’s ok.”

Lynch’s role in Tuff Love’s development shouldn’t be understated. You probably know him

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best as Scottish electro-folk hero The Pictish Trail but he’s been Tuff Love’s biggest champion from the outset, to the extent that they probably wouldn’t be at the same level without him. “Johnny’s played a big role in getting people to pay attention to the band,” Julie says of his influence. “There are so many gigs we’ve played that we wouldn’t have been able to if it wasn’t for him.” Suse is similarly enthusiastic about his input: “I think we’re pretty self motivated, and once things started to kick off we wanted to take advantage of it all, but there are some things we just could never do ourselves,” she admits. “I think if we’d never met him he would still be making stuff, but he’s really helped push us forward. Lost Map as a whole has been incredible.”

“ Confidence and productivity comes in waves” Suse Bear

Left to their own devices, there would probably only be the music; they’ve only ever spoken sporadically about their own reflections, choosing instead to completely focus on the writing and the playing above anything and everything else.

And it shows. Their development has been palpable and substantial; an almost effortless blossoming of their craft in the 18 months since their arrival.

Resort will show this best, a snapshot of everything they’ve released thus far, from the bedroom demos that got them signed to the latest creations that feel all the weightier and more significant.

“Sometimes I wake up and think I can never make anything ever again,“ Suse says of their craft now, “and then the next day I wake up and I write a song or bunch of riffs and I’m on a creative roll for a week. I think confidence and productivity comes in waves. I’ve felt simultaneously more and less confident with each release. I think if we’ve developed it’s from experience – as confidence is a hard thing to measure when you don’t have much time to reflect.” Julie is suitably straight shooting in her view. “I don’t know if I feel like a better songwriter now,” she says, “but I feel more confident in writing and finishing songs, and maybe I have a stronger sense of direction than I did in the past.

The lyrics are important to me. It’s important for me to get them right, which I haven’t always felt like I’ve managed. It’s as difficult as it ever was, but maybe I’m more decisive now.“ As with all bands at this stage of their career it’s the development which is perhaps the most important aspect – and in that regard Tuff Love are positively prospering. Latest EP Dregs is a magnificent collection of songs, showcasing more shades and textures than we’ve seen from the band before.

Released on the week of their shows in Iceland, it received the most rave appraisals from fans and critics yet. While they were riding something of a wave going in to the shows in Reykjavik, the band will be the first to admit that things didn’t quite go to plan; festivals are always a tricky beast for bands; little time, new surroundings, casual crowds and comfort zones well and truly dispensed with.

“That was a hard one,” Suse is quick to confirm. “There were sound problems on stage and perhaps pressure too; a whole load of things. It wasn’t our best show, but that’s OK. We’re humans not robots and although our live shows are pretty consistent now, circumstances still sometimes don’t work in our favour.” Julie had problems too: “Personally I felt like my ears were hallucinating throughout that show – it was very disorientating.

It has stuck with me, and I try to learn from experiences like that.”

It was obviously a difficult experience for the duo in the aftermath, especially given the unique aspect of such an experience. “We were so, so excited to get to go there and play and I felt really disappointed afterwards, like I’d let people down,” admits Suse. “I find it hard to write these things off. I felt bad about it for a whole week after for various reasons. When you’re at the stage we’re at it’s good to make the most of every opportunity you get because you never know what it might lead to, and in my head that was a big opportunity.”

Such is the rollercoaster ride of being in a band like Tuff Love, however, they didn’t have to wait long to get back on the horse. When we catch up with them a couple of weeks after the Iceland trip they’ve just closed the tour with a Glasgow show that felt like a truly celebratory homecoming.

“Playing in Glasgow always feels good,” enthuses Julie. “It’s nice to be around friends and to feel supported. It was the launch show for the last of our EP trio so it did feel good, like closing a chapter.”

“We’ve not actually played in Glasgow that much this year,” Suse says of the show. “We’ve mostly been playing to new people in new cities so

TRAVEL SPECIAL

it was a noticeably different and positive vibe; I felt like people were actually excited to see us, which then made us more excited too. It made me feel good again.”

It’s been a long year and a half for Tuff Love; heck, it’s been a long couple of weeks. Watching them play to a full, swaggering room at Glasgow’s Hug & Pint, it’s hard not to feel impressed with just how far they’ve come and also the sheer resilience needed to just be a band, to put yourself on show on so many nights, weeks, and months of the year to both strangers and friends. One expects that they might appreciate a rest some time soon?

“We’ve said yes to just about everything that’s come our way this year, and we’re feeling quite tired.”

Suse admits. “It would be nice to take a little Tuff Love thinking break for a bit, and come back excited again.”

It won’t be too long a break, however, with the band already lined up for a host of shows, most notably a batch of dates on the continent. So while precious time for writing and recording might be hard to come by, do they have any idea what they want from the resulting recordings? “I just want to write songs that people actually want to listen to,” remarks Suse, “not songs or singles that people hear on the radio which they forget about as soon as it ends. I want us to write songs that people sit and listen to at home from start to finish. If that means it takes us two years to write an album then that’s cool actually.”

Resort is released on 29 Jan via Lost Map. Tuff Love play Nothing Ever Happens Here at Summerhall, Edinburgh on 22 Feb lostmap.com/tuff-love

THE SKINNY

February 2016

MUSIC

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BERLIN

MARRAKECH

All roads lead to the German capital this February and first up is digital art and media festival Transmediale.

This year’s festival is themed Conversation Piece, a transitory space for discussion of the anxieties of late capital – aka what will we do when the machines take over?

Meryl Streep will be Jury President of 2016’s incarnation of Berlinale, which this year will be screening over 400 films. Generating most interest at this point is the first German feature-length biopic of Anne Frank, and the latest from the Coen brothers: Hollywood send-up Hail, Caesar!, starring George Clooney.

Why have an art exhibition in a gallery when you can have it in a palace? That’s the provocation of the Marrakech Biennale, which eschews ‘bare white walls’ for the rich cultural and historically charged sites of the city. Titled Not New Now, there’s an enquiry into the disappointment of an exhausted postmodernity.

11-21 Feb

Transmediale

AUSTIN

SYDNEY

One of the largest comedy festivals in the world, the 30th incarnation of the Melbourne Comedy Festival has seen it become Australia’s largest cultural event (insert ‘that couldn’t be difficult’ jokes here, that’s comedy after all).

Edinburgh Comedy Award winner David O’Doherty will be in attendance, as well as a host of familiar faces including Daniel Sloss, Stephen K Amos and Sarah Millican.

SxSW, the wide-ranging Texan festival of music, film and, well, other stuff, has morphed into a leviathan of an affair, which can make its reputation as a place for discovering the Next Big Thing something of a lottery. Hoping to be spotted amongst the hordes at this year’s event are Edinburgh’s very own queer transgender pop-punk four piece The Spook School.

Sydney Biennale continues the trend of unconventional settings, as it puts to work a previously defunct funerary Mortuary Station. Considering the blurring of virtual and physical space, there are also a series of events in the more fluid In-Between Spaces, with full details still to be announced.

Melbourne Comedy Festival

SXSW

18 Mar-5 Jun

Photo: Lisa Hause

15-20 Mar

Marrakech Biennial

Berlin International Film Festival

MELBOURNE 23 Mar-17 Apr

24 Feb-8 May

Sydney Biennial

CALIFORNIA

MADRID

NEW YORK

The popularity of Coachella is such that it now takes place over consecutive weekends in April, featuring the same line-up each time. In a remarkably impressive piece of bill-booking, organisers have managed to nab the returning LCD Soundsystem and the much-mooted original line-up of Guns N’ Roses (provided they haven’t all fallen out come spring, of course).

A film festival, but with a difference: documentary storytelling is the theme of Documenta Madrid, if the name wasn’t enough of a clue. In operation since 2004, it traditionally features a host of films, both short and feature-length, with submissions coming in from across the globe.

At the time of going to press, the programme is yet to be announced, so you’re best to keep your beady eyes glued to their website in anticipation.

Split between New York, London, 1:54 describes itself as a contemporary African art festival, with its title referring to the 54 nations which comprise the continent. Placing the fruits of African culture in front of an international audience, it’s a full-on festival of screenings, lectures, panel debates and more, bringing the work of over 60 artists to Brooklyn’s Pioneer Works.

15-24 Apr

27 Apr-8 May

Coachella

6-8 May

1:54 Pop-Up

Documenta Madrid

BERLIN

PARIS

BARCELONA

ZURICH

‘Europe’s biggest design conference,’ they say. ‘Designers from all over the world.’ They’ve got a point too: in 2016, Typo Talk's annual gathering of graphics boffins and related clever-clogs will unite under the slogan ‘beyond design’, asking questions of the industry and the conference itself with a plethora of speakers and presentations.

Perfect for designer types and design enthusiasts alike.

Another of those ‘music festivals’ you’ve heard so much about, Villette Sonique selects its line-ups from more esoteric sounds – any festival that can count The Fall, Joanna Newsom and Half Japanese among previous headliners clearly has its eyes on a very specific sort of prize.

This year’s bill has yet to be announced, but rest assured it’ll be simultaneously cool as fuck and batshit mental.

No doubt you’re echoing The Skinny’s excitement as you lose your shit over this year’s Primavera line-up, but anyone looking for a different festival experience might be interested in the Barcelona festival’s sister event over in sunny Porto. Only downtempo electronica types Air have been announced thus far, but have faith in shared genetics: Nos Primavera Sound will be a guaranteed blast.

It’s the hundredth anniversary of radical art movement DADA’s birthplace Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich. Maybe Manifesta 11’s the 100 day birthday party, as it spreads its exhibitions around the professional workspaces of the city. Titled What People Do for Money, the Biennial itself is the work of contemporary artist Christian Jankowski, who has been picked as the curator.

Villette Sonique

18-20 Jun

In a city where the local barber will probably also be a gallery space, the Berlin Biennale is understandably a loose affair. There’s a casual approach to events organisation, or maybe an understatedly overstated irony in the website’s measured “The 9th Berlin Biennale for contemporary art may or may not include Contemporary Art.” Worst that can happen? You’re in Berlin in June. Yaldi!

The geographical origins of electronic music are too diverse to identify anything as straightforward as a spiritual home. It definitely summers in Barcelona though: Sonar is without a doubt one of the biggest names in dance festivals, and with Jean-Michel Jarre, Four Tet and Laurent Garnier lined up for 2016, it looks like they’ve got another triumphant weekend in store.

Berlin Biennale

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Photo: Gold SoundzIt

BERLIN

BARCELONA

4 Jun-18 Sep

11 Jun-18 Sep

Nos Primavera Sound

Manifesta 11

GDYNIA

29 Jun-2 Jul

Festival fatigue? Whatever, amateur: Poland’s greatest contribution to the festival scene is a sprawling, four-day affair, this year topped by the likes of Florence & The Machine and the all-conquering Tame Impala. Open’er claims to have originated the festival wristband system - perhaps not the factoid to have you running for your credit card, admittedly, but you can't argue with innovation.

Sonar

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Photo: Richard Manning

Typo Talk Berlin

4-6 Jun

Photo: Hugo Lima

21-27 May

Photo: Nina Stössinger

12-14 May

Photo: Katrina Sorrentino

That February darkness getting you down? We've selected the best cultural treats of 2016 from around the world to help you dream of sunnier adventures.

Credit: Nicholas Maigret

2-7 Feb

Open’er Festival

THE SKINNY

Photo: Martin Senyszak

International Events

BERLIN

LIVERPOOL

KARLOVY

MONTREAL

Organised as a story, the entire event is imagined as a narrative taking place across the different “fictional spaces” of the venues.

Residents of Edinburgh and Glasgow, make a friend down South and arrange a mutual crashing contract.

That’s to say, convince one or some Liverpudlians to sleep on your sofa during Glasgow International or the Edinburgh Art Festival, and allow them to repay the favour during the 14week Liverpool Biennial.

Eastern Europe’s answer to Cannes, Karlovy Vary takes place within a time-warped spa town at the north-west edge of the Czech Republic. The films are mint-fresh works from Europe and Asia, as well as American indie fare; the audience is made up of backpackers and filmcrazy locals.

Founded in 1983 as a French-language event, Just For Laughs added more anglocentric fare two years later and went on to become one of the world’s most renowned comedy festivals. Dates but not details have been announced for this year’s affair, but you can put money on it being near unmissable for travel-happy comedy fanatics.

Liverpool Biennial

Karlovy Vary Film Festival

KATOWICE

CROATIA

STOCKHOLM

A music festival of a distinctly alternative bent, hosted in the Polish city of Kattowice, Off celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2015 with performances from indie rock demigods like Sunn O))) and Sun Kil Moon; not too shabby, all told. With five stages and a line-up including Sleaford Mods, Napalm Death and hotly-tipped college rockers Beach Slang, this looks to be one to mark in the diary.

Insider tip: when there’s no details of the line-up to hand, check the location. And WOAH, this is a good 'un – hosted in Fort Punta Christo, a 19th century coastal fortress in Croatia’s Pula region, Dimensions is an electronic music festival with a difference. Last year’s appearances from Four Tet, Funkadelic and Floating Points should give you some idea of the bountiful treats in store.

Alan Partridge had the Swedes nailed, didn’t he?

Abba. IKEA. The vegetable swede. But leaving casual xenophobia aside for one moment, let us point you in the direction of Stockholm Culture Festival, a free affair celebrating art and culture in all its diverse forms. This year the theme is the UK, so presumably they’ll get their revenge on Steve Coogan by being jarringly polite and serving nothing but warm beer and drab, grey food.

11-15 Aug

Stockholm Culture Festival

MALAWI

LONDON

TORONTO

SAO PAULO

On the banks of Lake Malawi, a multinational line-up present an eclectic, high energy bill to a diverse audience under the baking African sun and late into the dark tropical night. With profits going back into the local community, Lake of Stars offers a once in a lifetime experience to sample some Malawian hospitality beside the sparkling blue waters of the nation’s lifesource.

Set up to establish the English capital as ‘the design capital of the world’ – in with a shout, surely – the London Design Festival sees the city resplendent with events and exhibitions dotted across its many fine venues. Celebrating both homegrown and international talent, if you’ve got any interest in the broad spheres of art and design, you’d be best advised to tag along.

TIFF may be the festival at which Hollywood begins its assault on the awards season, but it’s also the most audience-friendly of the major international film festivals, with stars happy to rub-shoulders with the city’s film fans in screenings. High-Rise, Sunset Song, and Anomalisa, as well as Oscar contenders Spotlight, The Martian and Room all made waves at last year’s event.

2016’s got a lot going on. If FOMO’s made you unsure of which of the many cultural horses to back, relax.

Uncertainty itself is the theme of the Sao Paulo Biennial, and it’s considered to be the condition of the present time. Swithering and doubt are used as themes to bring together disciplines as diverse as astronomy and anthropology, as well as the work of 90 artists.

Lake of Stars

8-18 Sep

London Design Festival

10 Sep-11 Dec

Toronto International Film Festival

Photo: George Pimentel

17-25 Sep

Photo: Stuart Bannocks

30 Sep-2 Oct

Sao Paulo Biennial

KRAKOW

HONG KONG

UTRECHT

REYKJAVIK

Having begun in 2003 and subsequently expanded to New York, Adelaide, London and Toronto, Unsound is a Krakow-based music festival at heart. It embraces the cutting edge in a way few music festivals seem keen to match, with its line-up shrouded in mystery until right before the event.

The Hong Kong Literary Festival started in 2003 in the original Glamour Room at M on the Bund in Shanghai, and has run every year since. The festivals have attracted many local and regional authors as well as others from well over 20 countries around the world.

Utrecht in November mightn’t be too high up your list of things to do, but the intensely excellent Le Guess Who? should make it a little more pressing. It’s a city full of character and astounding buildings, while a carefully-curated line-up brings together the great and good of modern alternative music. With Wilco on board to headline the 2016 affair, it’s set to be another victory for all concerned.

Originally hosted in an aircraft hangar in 1999, Iceland Airwaves has gone on to become one of the staples of the international festival calendar. Could be down to the presence of its vast showcase of Icelandic talent, could be its tendency to secure the sort of names that leave you staring longingly at the poster as you frantically check your band account… Either way a good time is a certainty.

26 Oct-8 Nov

10-13 Nov

Hong Kong International Literary Festival

2-6 Nov

Le Guess Who?

Photo: Juri Hiensch

Unsound

Photo: Camille Blake

11-18 Oct

Iceland Airwaves

TURIN

AUSTIN

RENNES

KOCHI

While Italy’s most famous film festival, Venice, concerns itself with celebrities and prestige premieres, Torino Film Festival is more interested in discovering the best new artists pushing at the boundaries of cinema. It's is also famed for its retrospectives – the likes of Walter Hill and John Carpenter have seen their careers championed here.

Fun Fun Fun Fest is something of an anomaly in terms of US-based music festivals, largely sticking to the tried’n’tested formula of hip-hop, electronica and alternative rock. It’s a solid policy though – 2015’s impressive bill saw the Wu-Tang Clan and D’Angelo rubbing shoulders with Jane’s Addiction, Venom and Future Islands.

2016 is bound to scale similarly dizzy heights.

Les Rencontres Trans Musicales, aka Les Transmusicales de Rennes… whatever it’s called, it delivers the goods every time. And they should really know how by now: 2016 represents the festival’s 37th year. A quick glance at last year’s bill indicates it’ll be another diverse affair, with Scotland’s own Hector Bizerk having led the charge alongside psych genius Klaus Johann Grobe.

Nestled in the southwest of India, Kochi is a port town in the state of Kerala and home to India’s first biennial art festival, the Kochi Muziris Biennale which is this year curated by Sudarshan Shetty. According to their wiki page they’re Tate Modern’s favourite biennale, so they must be doing something right. Enjoy some visual art from one the the world’s most vibrant contemporary scenes.

6-8 Nov

Torino Film Festival

February 2016

7-11 Dec

Fun Fun Fun Fest

Photo: Ralph Arversen

18-26 Nov

TRAVEL SPECIAL

Photo: François Philipp

Dimensions

Photo: Dan Medhurst

Photo: Anna Spies

26-30 Aug

Off Festival

Just For Laughs

12 Dec 2016-29 Mar 2017

Transmusicales

Kochi-Muziris Biennale

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Photo: Anita Eldjarn

5-7 Aug

13-31 Jul

Photo: Phil Roeder

1-9 Jul

Photo: Thierry Bal

9 Jul-16 Oct

The Mathematics of Style GSA’s Fashion & Textiles students present a diverse show on the theme of Geometry

range of manipulation and traditional techniques associated with embroidery.”

For Kate Connell, Adobe has helped in recreating the ‘clean’ precision of the images and lines that inspired her and developing designs which will manipulate traditional sports fabric “to create subtle prints… using heat reactive binders to create embossed fabric,” playing with traditional expectations of materials and prints and posing a challenge to conventional ideas about ‘what print actually is and has the ability to be!”

The Fashion Show always treats us to an exciting and captivating presentation of unexpected ideas. The fact that the four textile specialisms offered at GSA – print, weave, embroidery and knit – are all represented, putting their own spin on the ‘geometric’ theme highlights the diversity that sets the show apart, a real testament to the talent produced by the department. Zac, Kate, Sophie and Kevin demonstrate this eclecticism by combining their individual areas of expertise with influences ranging from 19th Century art to Dior Couture. Kate Connell’s favoured “boxy, almost unflattering” silhouettes of Comme des Garçons and Issey Miyake, and prints inspired by Bauhaus

G

lasgow School of Art’s burgeoning design talent are set to impress again at the Fashion and Textiles department’s fashion show on 2 & 3 March at The Art School. The annual extravaganza allows second and third year students to showcase new works – with three looks presented as the product of their research. When the students aren’t working away perfecting their designs, they’re running the show, holding open model castings and throwing parties to help fund-raising efforts and make it all a huge success.

The students collaborate to produce the show, with all proceeds helping current third years to showcase their graduate collections at New Designers London in 2017. Sophie Chen, Kate Connell, Zac Wood and Kevin Cleary – four students presenting their work this year – gave up some of their precious sewing time ahead of the show to give some insight into what we can expect to see on the runway. This year, students were asked to explore the broad theme of ‘Geometry’ – a simple brief allowing wide-ranging exploration and research which is sure to produce an eclectic mix of pieces. The students really seem to emphasise the potential of taking this inspiration in their own individual direction with a plethora of sources of inspiration and influences.

With Zac Wood describing the inspiration behind his work as ‘Queen Boudicca at a Cocteau Twins gig in 1895’, we are certainly in for a visual treat. Formidable warrior women aside, inspiration has come from all angles (pardon the pun) for the students. Some collections look to the geometric patterns found in everyday forms – Kate

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Connell’s collection echoes the precise lines of a series of photographs she took of tennis courts, while Kevin Cleary looks to discarded packaging and found objects, an approach which he assures us has been ‘very cost effective’.

Others cite art and architecture as their influences with Sophie Chen seeking inspiration from the Russian Avant-Garde movement Suprematism an artistic expression using geometric forms in a refined colour palette – think Malevich’s Black Square. Chen describes the development of her ideas: “Initially I created a room exploring space where I developed perspectives and three-dimensional compositions, using geometric shapes and compositions inspired by Lissitzky’s 1923 Proun room.” The process has been developed with Chen making use of embroidery techniques like pleating and appliqué to present her interpretation of the original brief.

Each of the students has a very different design process but Kevin Cleary suggests that the brief is reliant on research in a “personal and very self-led direction.” This idea is echoed by Zac Wood, who describes his approach as being about “narrowing down the pool of research and inspiration until I can come up with something that both fully represents me as a designer and that people besides me will want to wear!” In terms of materials and techniques it seems that a fusion of traditional embroidery techniques, digital technology and unusual or contrasting materials make up the collections. Specialising in embroidered textiles, Kevin Cleary is “focusing on contrasting and fusing materials together,” allowing the use of a “broad

FASHION

Words: Fern Logue Photography: Mihaela Bodlovic

Art Deco, are sure to present something entirely different from the works of Zac Wood who cites Vivienne Westwood, Christopher Nemeth and the Pre-Raphaelites among his influences. 20th Century Russian Art dominates for Sophie Chen, with nods to Christian Dior and Roksanda Illinic, while for Kevin Cleary, the structural forms of artist Giuseppe Randazzo have been key.

There will be two showings (7 and 9pm) on both 2 & 3 March, with tickets available from TicketScotland, theartschool.co.uk and The Art School Bar and Shop in the Reid Building. If past shows are anything to go by, the students’ designs are sure to offer some perspective of the fascinating process of interpretation and creation as well as probably making you see Geometry in a whole new light. Certainly not to be missed!

2 & 3 March (7pm & 9pm), £7, Tickets can be purchased via Ticketscotland, theartschool.co.uk, the Art School bar and shop (located in the Reid building). twitter.com/GSA_FashionShow facebook.com/gsafashionshow16 Instagram: THEFASHIONSHOW16

Sophie Chen

Zac Wood

THE SKINNY

grandfather. So it’s in my blood, really! I loved going round to the mill when I was younger, with dad, and seeing all the different processes, so I think I just absorbed it all and that’s how it started. I remember seeing the weaving looms, and I loved the dye house too. My dad and I didn’t actually make things together when I was little, mum did a lot of that with me. She taught me to sew and encouraged me to paint. I always loved being creative and it was at Northumbria that I chose to specialise in knitwear. My mentor is my father, who is a fountain of textile, knitting, weaving and business knowledge!”

Apart from the encouragement and practical support, Rosie’s parents gave her another advantage by moving to Scotland when she was born.

“Working in Scotland definitely keeps me focussed, I love the space you can get. It really helps to clear the head, and the mind to soar. My favourite place is probably home in the Borders, where I ride horses with my neighbour. There’s nothing like cantering through a stubble field to leave you feeling exhilarated.”

Occasionally, clearing the mind is quite the necessity in a creative career, with all its ups and downs. On her path to world domination, Rosie recalls a key moment that paved the way: “When I launched the business, I remember emailing Harriet Quick at Vogue. She very kindly put a little article

and a picture on the Vogue blog. It was my first piece of press, it was such an exhilarating feeling to see my name in lights and it just made my new business feel very real to me!” Rosie also has some experience with the less glamorous side of the fashion industry, even when in one of the most glamorous of places. “Paris Fashion Week is fun but mostly hard work as I take my collection to a trade show every year, to meet buyers. The trade show is long hours and often indoors, but in the evening I always make sure to go for a delicious supper.

Last year my friend Karen Mabon and I decided we needed a falafel. So we spent about two hours walking in circles in the Marais trying to find the perfect falafel… Thankfully we did find an amazing place!”

All of Rosie’s efforts have made the business grow, and things look as though the next range will be sold in even more varied outlets. When asked what her new pieces will look like, she clearly shows that she has the business figured out. “I can’t say yet as it’s not out until next year – sorry! But a lot of it was inspired by my trip to Japan last year, all the crazy shops we visited, the colours and the way of dressing, it’s so considered and particular.

I loved it!” rosiesugden.com

Cashmere Queen Rosie Sugden’s designs can now be found far beyond their Edinburgh origins – we find out more about a designer with a sharp eye for minutiae Words: Leonie Wolters

T

he accessories of Edinburgh-based knitwear designer Rosie Sugden have their fans in many places. It’s sold at ALC in Edinburgh, Liberty and Harrod’s in London, and by stockists in different European countries. Soon Rosie’s cashmere creations will warm limbs even further from home, as she recently signed with a Japanese agent. Regardless of her success, she has not yet had the experience of spotting one of her own designs in the street. “I’m really annoyed I haven’t yet!” she says.

“I would love to! My sister sees people in London wearing my turbans or fluor pink beanies all the time. She always sends me pictures, and they always put a smile on my face.”

If Rosie were to stumble across someone in one of her pieces, the item in question would surely not escape her notice. A keen eye for the sartorial choices of fellow citizens gracing the world’s streets is a key part of what inspires her designs: “I love street style photographs by Tommy Ton, he captures the most amazing close-up details. I love love love Miroslava Duma. I just think she looks amazing in everything, I love the proportions of her clothes, she always offsets an oversized coat with miniature accessories or baggy jeans with heels. I also love Pernille Taesbeck, she has really individual style.”

From all these images, Rosie distils the essential ingredients for her pieces as part of her design process. “It usually starts with colours and references I’ve collected over the year – something I’ve seen on Pinterest, or a new stitch we’ve developed at the mill. Then I draw up my initial ideas for the collection, take them to the mill and my brilliant technician programs everything for me.

Quite often there will be designs we have to drop.

I’m always pushing the limits of what we can do technically, on different machines and also hand-

February 2016

knitted. Inevitably, there are styles that don’t work, but there’s always something new each year that I’m really excited about, and that’s how the collection evolves.” Asked how certain designs can run into trouble when confronted with cold hard reality, Rosie explains: “Quite often it’s the shape in intarsia patterns that we can’t get to look right, they’re often too squat or stretched. One that took a while to get right was the heart-shaped wrist warmer. Perseverance pays off, as that’s been a best seller this season!”

“ I’m always pushing the limits of what we can do technically, on different machines and also handknitted” Rosie Sudgen

Taking an idea and a skein of cashmere and turning them into a heart shaped wrist warmer is a process that requires a lot of time and effort.

Turning a little girl into a successful knitwear designer requires even more, and this process started early on in Rosie’s life: “I grew up around textiles; my father worked in the industry for 40 years, as did his father, my maternal grandpa and great

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Confessions of a Restaurant Worker One writer looks at the realities of life as a humble restaurant server Words: Anonymous Illustration: Lottie Pencheon

“S

o what else do you do?” There it comes again, like a scalding hot plate across your hand; you sigh as you reel out the reply you’ve given 1000 times before. “Nope, just this, this is me.” The tender age of 26, staring at yourself in the mirror with your Primark shirt and Topman shoes.

Worn down and torn down, much like your patience with the general public – such is the life of the humble restaurant server.

Over the years I’ve been sworn at, called racist and accused of being homophobic (despite being gay). One glorious review claimed that I had an attitude akin to a ‘catwalk makeup artist.’ Sure, chances are I don’t like you, but chances are that your repeated demands for extra mayo and complaints about how your kid’s burger isn’t quite medium-rare/medium-rare-rare enough means you probably don’t like me either.

The fact is, the hospitality business isn’t as bad as you think, and the horror stories are few and far between. No one spits in your food or picks their nose as an extra burger topping. For a genuine kitchen error, an apology and a bottle of wine will do the trick, but it’s the serial complainers, churning out the same complaint every week, you have to watch for. A half-price bill here and two dishes there soon adds up; these are the people bankrupting the industry.

Covered in a week’s worth of béarnaise and kept clean with a spritz of disinfectant, you can snap your average server’s apron in half like a student’s bed sheets. Replacing uniform is only done as a necessity – you can afford some new trainers, but that tear in your work crotch can only be replaced when the Crown Jewels are on display. Being a server toughens you, and there’s a pack mentality of ‘all for one and one for all.’

On a busy Saturday, as the ship sinks, we are the musicians on the Titanic going down with it.

That pack mentality comes into full flow when food is involved. Think what you will, but eating food from someone’s plate isn’t as bad as all that, and when food is sent back, you literally drop whatever may be in your possession and run.

You would stab your own sister with a steak knife to get at that sent-back steak, and believe me, having worked with my sister, I’ve done this on numerous occasions.

If you think an evening customer is hard work, wait for the lunch rush. Portly men and power women flock inside, playing a Russian roulette of how many beers or wines they can consume before conveniently working from home in the afternoon.

After devouring their three courses, your business luncher will toss a black Amex card at you, scoffing at the ‘would you like to add a gratuity’ screen.

“I would tip you, but the company is paying.” They ask for the VAT receipt and you apologise that the printer has run out of paper, screwing up their precious expenses. It’s the little things that get you through.

Christmas creates a sort of shell-shock; you can never quite remember what really happened.

Then, while you lot settle in to your relaxing January months and pay off that December debt, we are up to our eyes in ‘50% off ’ customers. They sit scanning the menu while repeatedly showing their printed-off voucher; two tap waters, two burgers and £10 lighter, they leave without giving a tip.

Sunday is the Lord’s day, and no one knows the pain of it more than your nocturnal hospitality worker. You may spot others, lucky to have the day off. These rare creatures will give you a sorry look of despair, blow their vodka-laden breath on you, down a shot of coffee Patron and leave a generous ‘sympathy’ tip. A Sunday finish will usually involve a trip to an all-night speakeasy – and the cycle continues...

In The Name Of Love So you’ve decided to go out on Valentine’s Day? Rather than sarcastically wishing you good luck then running away, we’ve put together a guide to what to do, and where to go

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alentine’s Day is the elephant in the social room – it ominously hangs over us all as we try to avoid its gaze, but yet we can’t help nodding in its direction and pointing at its tusks. “It’s such a big deal,” you say. “Hope it doesn’t crush our hopes and dreams beneath its mighty hoof.” Well, if you follow our simple guide, you’ll see that it’s just like any other day, albeit with more sappy cards and teddy bears strewn about the place.

First thing’s first – be ready for apocalyptic crowds. Doesn’t matter where you’re off to, just know that you’ll need to be in elbows-out mode.

Fighting through a scrum at the bar might not sound like the most romantic way to begin an evening, but it will give you something to complain about, which will make for excellent conversation/ allow you to show your true, misanthropic colours (delete as applicable).

Knowing that everywhere will be busy, have a back-up plan in case your initial scheme falls

February 2016

through. If your ‘no reservations’ choice is queued out the door, you’re going to have to go somewhere else, so work out where that second place is beforehand. And no matter where you end up, be extra nice to the staff. It’s not their fault that you haven’t booked a table, or checked whether it’s possible to book a table, or done any planning whatsoever. If you think the hubbub of 'The Most Romantic Night Of The Year' is tough, imagine having to deal with it dozens of times in one evening, without the opportunity to do a runner via the bathroom window when things get awkward.

Use that empathy you claim to have in your Tinder bio, and try to make sure that everyone involved in the waiter/waitee relationship comes out with their dignity and respect for mankind intact.

As for where to go, we recommend one of two approaches. Option one is to find a good hiding place, where you can have a nice evening without fear of being needlessly harangued by your idiot

friends or passing members of the public. The subterranean duo of Under the Stairs in Edinburgh and the Flying Duck in Glasgow fit the bill, with their kooky decor, good drinks lists and great atmosphere making them ideal Valentine’s Day hideouts.

Hillhead Bookclub and Paradise Palms offer the chance to hide in plain sight, their aesthetics allowing you to spend your evening blending into a background of foliage, bric-a-brac and retro gaming consoles, while having some delicious cocktails as you go.

Option two is to embrace the ‘sharing plates’ trend and head somewhere with lots of small dishes. This approach has a number of positives – for starters, there are few better ways to assess a person than by putting some delicious scran in front of them and heavily inferring that they shouldn’t eat it all. There’s also no awkward faffing about with the bill at the end, because you shared everything. Crucially, the sharing configuration

FOOD AND DRINK

Words: Peter Simpson

means that the evening can be extended (or shortened) much more easily than in a standard startersmains-dessert configuration.

The Spanish are established masters of the sharing food game, and Edinburgh tapas fans are well-served by the likes of Serrano Manchego in Leith and El Quijote in Tollcross. Over in Glasgow, Cubatas in Charing Cross leads the charge, with La Boca in the city centre and Malaga in the south side also good options. Different flavours but similar portion sizes abound at Ox and Finch (which you voted as one of your favourite date places in our Food Survey) and Mother India’s Cafe (try the spiced haddock – you won’t regret it). And there you have it – make a comprehensive plan, be nice to absolutely everyone, then go and hide among some pot plants or surround yourself with loads of tiny little plates. Like we said earlier, just like any other day.

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Food News This month, one of the country’s coolest restaurants pops up in Glasgow, there’s beer and wine a-plenty in Edinburgh, and we take a look at some of Scotland’s newest food and drink venues Words: Peter Simpson

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e begin this month with the whiff of burned New Year’s Resolutions stinging our nostrils.

Face it mate, you were never going to learn to ride that unicycle, so it’s time to find something better to do. Thankfully, the Edinburgh Pub Craft Club are here to help. This month’s meetings at Paradise Palms blend delicious drinks and a Miami Viceesque setting with classes on weaving dreamcatchers and making linocut prints. Just think, you can learn new skills from a trained professional and have a lovely cocktail at the same time – we believe it’s called ‘multi-tasking’. 2 & 9 Feb, 41 Lothian St, £15, book via Eventbrite Next up, beer! The Bow Bar kicks off 2016 proper with their annual Winter Beer Festival, which runs until 7 February. The taps will be positively heaving with seasonal beers from across Scotland, the UK and beyond. Beers to watch out for include the Winter Spiced edition of the Outaspace Ale from Food and Drink Survey winners Drygate, and Track Brewery’s Sonoma pale ale, one of the favourites of your fellow readers down in the Northwest. Until 7 Feb, 80 West Bow Conscious consumption is the order of the day at Bon Vivant’s Spring Wine Panel, with the chance to influence the wine lists at the Edinburgh restaurant and adjoining bottle shop. You’ll sample dozens of tipples and vote on your favourites, with the most popular heading behind the bar for the spring. A chance to try nice wines and ensure the good ones come back again? We’re sold. 23 Feb, 6:30pm, 51 Thistle St, £10, book via Eventbrite or instore.

Across in Glasgow, one of your favourite new venues of 2015 – the delightful bakery47 – hosts a two-night pop-up from the team behind hotlytipped Loch Fyne restaurant Inver. It’s been named one of the coolest in the country., and lavished with outrageous amounts of praise. It’s an hour and a half by car from Glasgow, so this might be your best shot at trying it out – be sure to leave some room for us. 24 & 25 Feb, details at bakery47.com Towards the end of February, Edinburgh outdoor food pop-up The Pitt returns after a triumphant pre-Christmas debut. Expect a range of stalls and stands from some of the city’s best street food vendors all crammed into a cosy little space down in Leith. Plenty of tasty food, and very little walking from stand to stand – long may this continue. 27 Feb, 125 Pitt St Also taking place that weekend down the M8 is a discussion on Scotland’s somewhat mixed relationship with the world of food. Approaching Scotland’s food culture from social and environmental aspects, the FoodThought event will bring together speakers from across the foodie spectrum to look at exactly what we’re getting right and/ or wrong, and what we all need to do to make things better. 28 Feb, 7pm, Fred Paton Centre, 19 Carrington St, Glasgow, free, book via CCA And finally, head to the website for our roundup of the best new venues to open their doors in recent weeks. Among the newcomers are a pop-up cafe from Obadiah Coffee, with the new Edinburgh-based supplier serving up their ownroasted, single-origin coffees. Elsewhere in Edinburgh, Century General Store & Cafe have opened a second venue off Easter Road complete with a lovely wee cafe, while over in Glasgow, barbecue mainstays Smoak have a new permanent home following residencies at bars across the city. Full details at theskinny.co.uk/food

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Lifestyle

Phagomania: Pantone Smoothies Stop asking what your smoothie does for your insides and start thinking, ‘Does this smoothie go with my look?’, as we get the lowdown on the meticulously colour-matched Pantone Smoothies project

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e know that since the turn of the year you’ve had to listen to nothing but health advice, flirtations with veganism, ‘eat clean’ lectures, bamboozlement by detoxing and supercilious superfoods. Maybe you have already lost faith with the multitude of goodness that your blender was supposed to unlock for you. But maybe we’ve been looking at this whole smoothie thing the wrong way all along?

Well, don’t consign the blender to the back of the cupboard just yet – and welcome your smoothie to Pantone, the favoured colour-matching system of the design world. Pantone Smoothies is the brainchild of Hedvig Astrom Kushner, a Swedishborn art director now based in New York. The project started out as a creative curiosity and flourished into a simple, bold and stylish execution

that has made the rounds on the internet.

“I was curious to see if it was possible to create tasty smoothies in any colour, blending only natural ingredients,” explains Hedvig. “I also make a lot of smoothies at home, and somehow I got interested in the colour of the smoothies. I could be preparing a beige one with peanut butter and banana, but adding just two spinach leaves would give it a fresh green shade.”

Okay, they look nice but would you actually drink them? Hedvig replies: “Sometimes it took a few tries to ensure that the final result was also delicious.” She adds that people have been in touch to report that they’ve tried them at home. “A dream is to create a cookbook,” she states, “but I’m equally thrilled if people appreciate just the visual aesthetics of it.”

FOOD AND DRINK

Words: Lewis MacDonald

But drafting up good-looking visuals is all part of the day job, isn’t it? Hedvig acknowledges: “As a creative I have ideas all the time. And sometimes it’s nice to see them come to life.” We wondered if there had ever been any word from Pantone themselves on the project? “I have not had a conversation with Pantone about it,” she affirms, “but if anyone from Pantone is reading this I would love to collaborate!”

We often gawp at some artery-clogging wonders in this column, but Pantone Smoothies goes to show that healthy food can also be a feast for the eyes. And yes, you can definitely pass it on to your graphic designer friend; they’ll appreciate it more than another cleanse plan, that’s for sure. pantonesmoothies.com/

THE SKINNY

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Delivery Through The Decades From early Roman takeaways to having a whole city’s worth of restaurants at your fingertips, we look at the history of the humble takeaway, in association with Deliveroo

works a treat, except for the obvious downside that trying to move any more than two pizzas at a time results in toppings getting smooshed all over the place. Tom Monaghan (of Domino’s Pizza fame) stepped in to save pizza fans everywhere when he developed the corrugated cardboard box in the early 1960s, allowing pizzerias to stack their pizzas while venting out the steam, thus saving literally millions of people from the unpardonable sin of damp and disappointing pizza.

“ Whether or not the King of Italy left a tip for the first ever pizza delivery has gone unrecorded”

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e it some fried chicken, a bowl of noodles or a juicy burger, the story of your weeknight takeaway doesn’t begin in a kitchen. It doesn’t start in your empty fridge. It all kicks off in a distant land, thousands and thousands of years ago. It begins with fire. Fire was conquered by early humans around a million years ago, and we soon worked out that this toasty new toy could be used to cook our food. Instead of taking a bite out of the first thing that came to hand, we realised that we could throw said thing in the fire, and it came out much tastier. Evolution took hold, the years passed, and we continued to develop our culinary abilities.

Then one day, we had a thought: “Hey, surely we can get someone else to make the dinner tonight?”

Fast forward to ancient Rome, and to the earliest forerunner of the takeaway, the thermopolium. These proto-restaurants, found among the ruins of Pompeii, served up ready-made hot food to the Roman lower-classes who didn’t have their own kitchens. The counters might have drawn snobby glances from the Roman upper crust, but the thermopolia’s customers had the right idea – have your food made by professional chefs, no need to do any of the cleaning, and food that’s ready for you when you want it. The only thing missing was the delivery, which would take a while.

Italy was the site of the first pizza delivery, the momentous occasion taking place near Naples in 1889. This time it was the richest people on the block who got in first, as King Umberto and Queen Margherita of Italy found themselves in a spot we’ve all been in – wanting to try the hot new restaurant in town, but unwilling to cope with all the pushing, shoving and generally dealing with people. Luckily for Umberto and Margherita, they were the King and Queen of the country, so they drafted in the best local pizziola to bring them their dinner. Raffaele Esposito’s tomato, basil and mozzarella pizza was a hit with the royals, and soon entered into foodie folklore. Sadly, whether or not the royals left a tip for their delivery went unrecorded by history.

February 2016

At around the same time, on the other side of the world, an Indian entrepreneur called Mahadeo Havaji Bachche was kickstarting a groundbreaking food delivery business. An immigrant from Pune new to Mumbai, Mahadeo saw his fellow incomers struggle to find food they wanted at lunchtime, and he hit on a simple plan. The best people to make the workers’ lunches, he reasoned, were those workers’ partners, so why not just round up all the lunches from home and bring them in at lunchtime? Mahadeo started his dabbawala service with around 100 staff, using the Indian capital’s railway network and a complex system of codes and markings to deliver tasty home-cooked food with a frankly terrifying degree of accuracy.

Today, 5,000 dabbawalas will deliver around 200,000 lunchboxes across the city, and the chances are they won’t make a single mistake. Think of that the next time you spill your cup of tea after losing track of where your hands are.

Meanwhile in the United States, an increasing number of delis and merchants were hitting the roads with horse and cart to provide an ad-hoc food delivery service. New Orleans and New York both saw horse-drawn deliveries of deli snacks, cheeses and oils, while UK families grew to associate the clip-clop of horses with their daily milk deliveries. It makes a change from nipping to the supermarket, we’ll say that much. It took until the 1950s for the takeaway as we now know it to really catch on both in the UK and the US. There was more food, and more money, sloshing around after the Second World War, and people were just beginning to embrace the routine of sitting in front of the telly with their dinner.

Pizza was one of the first widely-delivered foods, but there was just one problem – soggy bottoms. Stop laughing, and we’ll explain what we mean. Pizzas taken straight out of a 400-degree oven have a tendency to let off steam, which if allowed to collect causes your delicious pizza to go a little limp. Initially, vendors placed their pies on a cardboard base inside a loosely-fitted bag, which

Delivery continued to develop bit-by-bit over the course of the 20th century, but it really took the advent of the internet to knock things up a notch. All of a sudden, you could have food brought to your front door without talking to anyone at all.

There was a whole world of opportunity out there, just waiting for you to take a big bite out of it. Still, there was a bit of a problem – a lack of variety.

By and large, the same types of takeaway and delivery food dominated, and it became easy to get stuck in a bit of a foodie rut.

Enter Deliveroo, with a simple plan to make your nights in that bit more interesting. Deliveroo aims to bridge the gap between restaurants, who make delicious high-quality food, and you, who would like some of that delicious food but also wants to stay in and finish this box set, thanks very

much. Deliveroo connect users with a host of local restaurants, from the classic pizzerias and takeaways to gastro-pubs and high-end burger joints, allowing you to browse through dozens of options in quick succession to see what takes your fancy.

Once you’ve settled on your choice, make your order through the Deliveroo website or app, and your chosen restaurant will whip up the food as usual. Meanwhile, one of Deliveroo’s drivers will swoop in, dabbawala-style, to pick up your dinner and ferry it to your door in just over half an hour. Payment’s all dealt with through the website so there’s no need for panicked runs to the nearest cash machine, and because Deliveroo collect the meals and provide the transport there’s a greater choice of at-home food than ever. Pizzas, burgers, Japanese, Thai, a freshly-cooked steak or an array of tacos with all the accompaniments – the choice is well and truly yours.

As technology continues to advance, and we spend more and more of our time with our phones and computers, the humble takeaway looks set to develop even further. Placing your order in emojis?

It’s now possible. Menus that can read your eye movements and guess what you want before you make your order? They’re being trialled. But the final frontier of takeaway could lie with another of man’s great achievements – flight. Drone delivery has been mooted by a number of companies, big and small, as the future of the takeaway. We can see some positives – the high drama of your food flying towards you, plus no more awkward hungover chats with delivery drivers, which is surely a bonus for both parties. That said, we also have our reservations, not least some slight worries about what might happen when trying to collect a box of chow mein that’s hovering outside a third-storey window. For now, we’ll stick with the Deliveroo bikes; the world of food is always moving on, but some elements of it will do just fine for the time being. deliveroo.co.uk

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Credit: Jassy Earl

Credit: Iain Scott

Credit: Sonia Mallan

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Vampire Weekend

Julia Holter

SUEDE

Gig Highlights Words: Claire Francis

Despite February’s brevity, there’s a generous selection on offer to quell any lingering winter discontent ur mini-month starts off promisingly as Durham country-twang favourites Kitty, Daisy & Lewis appear at Electric Circus in support of last year’s rather perfunctorily titled third album The Third, which sees the sibling group foray into blues and disco with their impressive multi-instrumentalist approach (2 Feb). A few days later, there’s a similarly upbeat vibe in store as Glasgowdwelling duo Tuff Love launch their well-crafted fuzz-pop debut Resort. Replete with winsome harmonies and fuzzy, addictive guitar hooks, it’s the perfect antidote to any remnant seasonal malaise (Stereo, 5 Feb; also at Summerhall, Edinburgh, 22 Feb).

February also plays host to a swathe of righteous guitar rock, not least from ladies of the moment HINDS. The Spanish indie rockers erupted onto the international scene last year, and not without good reason – their debut record Leave Me Alone is a near-perfectly assembled work of charisma, insouciance and crackling riffs. See them while you can in Stereo’s intimate surrounds, as these girls are surely destined for much more (21 Feb).

Another to keep ‘em peeled for are Michigan natives Heaters. Setting themselves apart from the current slew of psych revivalist acts saturating the circuit, these guys have got hazy mindbenders nailed with their own self-described ‘psychotropic buttermilk’ – taste it for yourself at Sneaky Pete’s on 16 Feb. And if you’re hankering for something a little heavier, punk rock veteran, pro wrestling aficionado (fact: he was a one-time writer for WCW) and ex-Hüsker Dü frontman Bob Mould plays The Liquid Room on 8 Feb. The man hits our shores to showcase his upcoming solo release Patch The Sky, and amid swirling rumours we’ll quietly keep our fingers crossed for a Hüsker Dü reunion.

Speaking of reunions, resurrected Britpop darlings Suede venture down memory lane at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on 8 Feb. After an acrimonious split in 2003 and a subsequent reconciliation seven years later, the group (still minus original guitarist Bernard Butler) are firmly a current concern. Indeed, don’t just expect a greatest hits show – new album number seven, Night Thoughts, is being hailed as the finest of their

February 2016

two return records thus far. Another artist receiving their fair share of press is American wunderkind Halsey. The outspoken 21 year old songstress of dark, topical alt r’n’b headlines O2 Academy on 19 Feb – not a bad effort for a singer with just one LP to her name. Support comes from the equally lauded BØRNS. Hipsters, enjoy yersels.

Elsewhere, February offers up a delightful mix of local and international mavericks. For the former, take your pick from on-the-up Glasgow art rockers WHITE, who are yet to disappoint with their tongue-in-cheek new wave revivalist shtick (QMU, 20 Feb); the prolific Hector Bizerk, filling the experimental homegrown hip-hop quota at Summerhall on 25 Feb; native post-pop champions Monogram, supporting the similarly electro-pop inclined, Brighton-based Fickle Friends at Electric Circus

on 29 Feb; and from across the border, The Wave Pictures, who have been hovering on the periphery of the scene for near-on a decade. They pop over to Sneaky Pete’s to show off their promising lo-fi release A Season In Hull.

Meanwhile, the intercontinental contingent features Vampire Weekend bassist Chris Baio as his electronic alter ego Baio at King Tut’s on 23 Feb. Meanwhile, Afghan Whigs frontman and solo raconteur Greg Dulli swans into King Tut’s for an unmissable ‘Evening With’ (10 Feb), and the muchadored Julia Holter returns to the country in a stroke of luck for those who haven’t yet heard her stunning, sparkling Have You In My Wilderness (voted #5 album of 2015 in these very pages) in the flesh (20 Feb, Summerhall).

We might as well finish by addressing that

most nauseating of Hallmark holidays – yep, St Valentine rears his saccharine head on 14 Feb. For those who prefer not to confine their amorous intentions to one overhyped and consistently disappointing day each year, escape can be found in the loopy dance punk of !!! (Chk Chk Chk), as the Sacramento indie stalwarts transform the occasion into a riotous diversion, on the back of their boisterous sixth album As If (CCA Glasgow, 14 Feb).

Or you could take it one step further and drown your sorrows the night before, to the modern day riot grrrl grunt of Manchester outfit PINS. Influenced by the likes of Hole and My Bloody Valentine, and fresh from a support stint for Sleater-Kinney last year, we doubt this fearsome quartet care much for romance, either (The Hug and Pint, 13 Feb).

Do Not Miss SAVAGES, GLASGOW ART SCHOOL, 21 FEB

Credit: Colin Lane

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Music

Even if you know nothing about Savages, the strength of their sophomore album alone makes the London-based four piece a must-see act.

Adore Life is a majestic gem of a record; scoring a full house in these pages last month, it’s a unique, assured and striking work that insists on repeat listens. It’s perfectly paced, balancing the caustic, frenetic punk that made tracks like Husbands (from their 2013 debut Silence Yourself) so arresting, with a couple of slow-burning, heart-rending ballads.

They’re billed as post-punk revivalists but it’s an insufficient label for a group of songwriters so creatively and philosophically motivated. Frontwoman Jehnny Beth’s vocals recall a young Patti Smith, and Savages’ lyrics similarly reflect Smith’s endearingly romantic yet cynical outlook. This is an excellent opportunity to see a group who may be staking an early, but wholly legitimate, claim to one of the essential records of 2016.

[Claire Francis]

Preview

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Photo: Derek Robertson

Photo: Ritz Azevedo

Daughter

Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, 23 Jan

rrrrr

Daughter have always been quietly, unassumingly tough. Rough on the heartstrings, yeah, but also tough in a vengeful, honest, self-critical manner that belies their breathy balladry.

Second album Not to Disappear sees the London trio build on their surreal, dream-goth formula, returning with an altogether huger sound.

Without losing any trace of intimacy, this album leaves very real bruises. In an interview with The Skinny in January, Elena Tonra admitted that the band have grown “a bit more confident and a bit more aggressive,” and this newly found tension is more than apparent on the Queen’s Hall stage.

In delicate, but rigorously crafted gaps between bars, or verses, or tracks, Daughter exercise control – elongating pauses almost excruciatingly,

really letting the moment sink. One such pause turns out to be because Tonra’s quietly burst into tears, and she half-laughs “Sorry for being so snotty” into the mic before briefly leaving the stage. It feels very far from a gimmick.

After driving through shadowed, harrowing renditions of new tracks How, Numbers and Alone / With You, Daughter’s sharper edge is shown off in heavier, more assertive versions of their older material. Amsterdam, Home and Youth feel bolstered, buoyed up by their newly discovered self-confidence – and all the more thrilling for it. Saturday night pre-drinks are rarely soundtracked by songs about Alzheimers and existential crisis, and Edinburgh’s crowd is strangely rowdy at times – offering up gruff ‘We love you!’s and over-excited whoops – but at other times, we’re all held so captive that it feels as if no one can breathe. [Katie Hawthorne] ohdaughter.com

Diet Cig / Bruising

Broadcast, Glasgow, 10 Jan

rrrrr

If guitar-based pop music is so simple, then how come so many people make such a hash of it? The crucial ingredient that separates the wheat from the chaff is always good ol’ intangible, mysterious magic – a je ne sais quoi that grabs you and doesn’t let go. Take Bruising, for example: write down the theory and there’d be little to separate ‘em from any other bunch of Primitives-influenced noisepoppers, but they stand out thanks to the sheer majesty of gems like irresistible latest single Emo Friends, and tonight the Leeds quartet wins a whole bunch of new friends in Glasgow. They’re exuberant as fuck and hella awesome, and that’s really all you can ask for.

Speaking of exuberant, Broadcast isn’t quite prepared for Alex Luciano. The Diet Cig

singer/guitarist bounces relentlessly around the stage, high-kicking and dropping to her knees in mock rock poses before reeling off breathless, fast-paced spiels about tour life and “everyone’s problematic favourite” Taylor Swift. It’d be quite easy to decide she’s commandeered all the world’s tartrazine if this delirious, fuzzing energy didn’t also translate to their punky, Go Sailoresque pop, and by gosh, Diet Cig’s songs aregood.

They’re best when they play with dynamics (slow groove Sleep Talk recalls Mates Of State in its wry subtleties) and everyone gets a chance to drink in Luciano’s clever-kid-confessional lyrics, but when they rev up and go full pelt, it’s best to just watch ‘em go. It’s early days for this band just yet – one 7” and a cassette EP ain’t much to tour on – but something about their winsome energy pegs ‘em out as a band to fall head-over-heels for, schoolkid-style. Practise writing their name on your exercise books now. [Will Fitzpatrick]

Dilly Dally

guitarist Katie Moss wrestles with a mutinous mic stand, the band subsequently seeming somehow unsure of themselves. This doesn’t last, luckily: a rrrrr snarling, sludgy cover of Drake’s Know Yourself Raw. Harsh. Guttural. These are all words that gives Dilly Dally space to get murkier, and they duly have been used to describe Toronto quartet Dilly build in intensity before slamming hard into a gloDally on their maiden visit to these shores, build- riously savage Purple Rage. ing the impression of a ferocious beast, slithering Moss’ vocal in particular is a revelation: a softlyalong the belly of modern rock’s tame slickness rasping slur on record, here it soars, cracks and and ready to slice its guts open. Take a listen to screeches in all the right places, justifying the hype debut album Sore, though, and you might wonder (and then some). By the Hole-go-supernova pop what the fuss is all about: too polished for punk, of closer Desire, they’re in full triumphant flow, with not grainy enough for grunge. It’s a collection of Liz Ball’s anthemic guitar lines bordering on astral solid alt rock bangers right enough, but it’s not projections. Tonight we get a glimpse of the band really the story we’ve been sold.

Dilly Dally could become once they find a way Still, momentum like theirs isn’t amassed for to translate their live potency to the studio – their nothing, so how will their Glasgow debut fare? potential is scintillating. [Will Fitzpatrick] Things get off to an inauspicious start as singer/

Massive Attack / Young Fathers

backdrop visuals, Massive Attack themselves are a strangely small stage presence. Robert Del Naja and Grant Marshall open their set with two backrrrrr to-back bangers that have the ecstatic audience ‘Support slot’ is a woefully inadequate descriptor transported to the glory days of 90s acid rave, but for Young Fathers. We’re here in giddy anticipation the new material and the constant shifting between of trip-hop giants Massive Attack, but the majestic up-tempo electronica and meandering ballads O2 Academy is momentarily bewitched as the rau- create an atmosphere of disengagement. cous Edinburgh trio scene-steal with aplomb. For Massive Attack’s greatest dilemma may be those who’ve not seen Young Fathers in the flesh, that their sublime recorded output is near imposit’s a revelation: a glorious, cacophonous and fear- sible to recreate live. Though the enchanting some romp through their genre-redefining sopho- Martina Topley-Bird does commendable vocal more album. Intensified by touring drummer duty and the endearing presence of Horace Andy Steven Morrison’s percussive acrobatics, it’s not lessens Tricky’s tangible absence, Massive Attack’s so much a hint, as a promise of things to come. wilful evasion of their hit singles and abrupt oneAs we later witness Messrs Massaquoi, Bankole song encore (though the song in question is the and ‘G’ Hastings return to the stage to unveil their wonderfully executed Splitting The Atom) leave the collaborative effort with the Bristol stalwarts, the venue slightly stultified. Rather than flexing their expansive, ominous Voodoo In My Blood, there’s pioneering influence, tonight they leave it to the a palpable paradigm shift, an audible torch-pass rapidly ascending Young Fathers to provide the between the classic innovators and the young extra magic. [Claire Francis] successors. Despite the colossal sound desk, twin massiveattack.co.uk drum kits and strobing, politically-incendiary O2 Academy, 22 Jan

40

Review

Photo: Derek Robertson

Broadcast, Glasgow, 24 Jan

John Grant

vindictively cathartic climax), and the pulsing acid squelch of Pale Green Ghosts. This latter truly transcends the studio version: that discordant trumpet rrrrr stab mid-chorus (“Pale green ghosts at the end of Glasgow crowds never fail to disappoint. No sooner May – BWAM!”) like a brass arrow through the heart. has the mighty Mr. Grant ambled onto the Royal But for every explosive crescendo and syntheConcert Hall’s spacious stage (casually dressed: siser groove (You & Him, a hip-shakin’ Snug Slacks), jeans, Nikes, beanie, baggy tee) than a lone voice there’s a tender piano ballad (Marz, Where The belts out from the silence: “I love you, John!” The Dreams Go To Die, and an icy reprise of Drugs from singer returns a coy “I love you more.” The audience his time in The Czars). The pipes on him are really titters. A beat later, a voice – the same, a new one, something: a true titan’s baritone, deep and textudoesn’t matter – yells back: “No, you don’t!” red, earnest and powerful. Hearing Glacier’s “This Even in such a regal, sophisticated setting, paaain is a glacier moving through you” echo through Grant’s fans are a passionate bunch. Each number the hall, in person, is vertebrae-tingling. And Grant’s – deliciously vivified by his deft band – is met with a natural storyteller, too, flitting effortlessly from screams of glee, in a set comprising highlights wry cynic to damp-eyed romantic. from his three solo records to date. Though mostly In the much bayed-for encore, Grant and his from Grey Tickles, Black Pressure, there’s an ecsta- band trip up on the tricky opening to Voodoo Doll. tic response to early favourites, like the puffed-chest He starts again, apologising, wanting to “do it right”. choruses of GMF and Queen of Denmark (the drum- Of course, one voice in the crowd doesn’t miss mer – Budgie, of Siouxsie and the Banshees fame this chance: “I still love you, John!” [George – literally stands up to smash his cymbal for that "Mustang" Sully] Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, 26 Jan

MUSIC

THE SKINNY

piano, vocals, delays, horns and many other things I can never ever, ever tell you about.

Through My Window This is my home demo with no change made whatsoever. We did think about it but the atmosphere is perfect. My voice was real croaky like an old bullfrog and I liked that as well. You have to know when to leave things alone. It’s a good break on the album swell from all the big songs and production. This was actually the first thing I recorded in my house after moving to Brighton. Maybe I was saying goodbye to Fife and the solitude I had left up there. Now I’m the party guy in Brighton.

All the hen do’s come to me to organise their fun.

“ Crying on the dancefloor, that’s what I like” Steve Mason

Planet Sizes Credit: Brian David Stevens

This one was also co-written with my pal Iain Archer. Writing songs with someone else is not something I have done for around 20 years really.

I missed it very much but you have to do it with the right person. I had such a productive time with Iain; it was great, writing up in the bell tower of a church in North London. Like Quasimodo meets Veronica Lake via Jim Davidson on a good day. Iain is a vicar at the church so he always wants to put bits about some God or other in the songs. That’s the only thing we fall out about. That and where kebab meat comes from. I’m very happy with the production on this; we nailed the harmonies in the chorus and the melody has just the right amount of ‘Universal Wonderment’ in it.

Meet the Humans Never one to shirk the big issues, Steve Mason meditates on love, death, UFO sightings and organising hen do’s on his exceptional new LP

Like Water Water Bored The lyrics from this were partly inspired by a friend of mine’s eight-year-old son who told me how he and his friend had been sleeping out in the garden one night in a tent. His friend had got up in the night and saw a flying saucer in the sky. He called out to my friend’s son but by the time he got out of the tent it had gone. I just imagined the aftermath of that for a kid. The trust you have at that age in things like police and government, then you grow up and you’re sitting in front of a computer that knows when you have a toilet break and it tells your boss you have been away from your desk for longer than three minutes. From the wonder of the heavens to being a lab rat in ten years.

Alive This was the first time in years I used my melodica in a song. I used to put it on everything – especially during King Biscuit Time – but then it sat like a lightsaber at the back of Obi-Wan’s sock drawer, waiting. This started out with a very soothing sweet vocal and very run-of-the-mill lyrics. I hated them but was a bit stumped on how to sort them out. If I don’t nail the lyrics as the song is being written, I find it very difficult to go back and write them on a different day. After trying a more aggressive vocal style out, the new words came pretty easy in the control room with Craig [Potter, of Elbow] hovering over the record button. I hate pressure but sometimes it’s exactly what you need.

Alright This started out as a weird country-and-western ballad about four years ago. I hated it, but I thought there was something in there somewhere. I had been hanging out with the drummer in a shoe-

February 2016

gaze band for a while and thought I could maybe invent a new genre. Classical Shoegaze. So I gave it a go, but the shoegaze bit is maybe too watered down. That will be cranked up for the gigs, I reckon.

It’s about boys and girls having relationships that don’t last. Are we really supposed to be together forever?! Such a strange concept. Quite a big production on this, especially when Joe Duddell brings his orchestra in against the distorted guitars.

Classical Shoegaze. It’ll be over by June I reckon.

The NME will ruin it.

Another Day For the first time on any album I’ve made I got the boys in my live band together in a rehearsal room and we played through some of the songs that were going to go on there, to see how they felt and sounded in real life rather than just listening to a demo. I’m sure most bands do this but it’s not so easy for a solo artist. Because it was something I had not done for many, many years it was a bit of a revelation and a lot of fun. I’m not used to having fun so I had a double good time.

There’s a bit more Joe Duddell on this one, four horn players, all recorded live and double-tracked at Blueprint in Manchester. You don’t want to go overboard with that whole horn thing, though.

Ran Away Very simple; I just tried to let this song do its thing and not throw a wall of sound at it. Sometimes you have to step back and let the thing run around the paddock on its own. Like a baby giraffe. Wobbly legs an’ all. It’s a kind of hate song, I suppose.

Wishing ill on someone who cracked your heart and hopes. It’s not always a good idea to write these kind of things but I feel confident in my twisted

misery. Some quite cutting things in here, but that’s OK, as long as you cloak them a little. Better to open your heart and mind right up and let the bad poison out. As Cliff Richard might say.

To a Door The death song! Grab your partner by the hand and get on the dancefloor. I just wonder what it’s going to be like to die and be dead. It might be amazing. Nobody knows. I think maybe we have been sold a load of bullshit about death. Back in the olden days, people were not as frightened or squeamish about death as we all are now. I think eternal consciousness is entirely possible. But it’s also just as likely that there is nothing; the computer programme just runs its course and fizzles out. Seems unlikely though, no? Considering humans have no idea what consciousness is or the nature of it, we seem very sure that there is nothing after the body dies. That’s humans for you, though, no fucking idea what they are on about.

I love this song, and the melodies. I’m very happy with it. The end section was written with a friend called Iain Archer and the backing vocal is Kristina Train.

Hardly Go Through When Craig Potter – who produced the album – heard this he didn’t like the feel and drums I had used on the demo, so we tried a few things out with the band. I really like how it’s ended up; just relentless pulsing, which is broken up by the strings in the chorus. And it just builds and builds.

It was a Cameron to mix; to get the dynamics really hitting hard by the last chorus we had to start off very quiet. But not too quiet. Plus there is a hell of a lot going on: strings, guitars, bass,

MUSIC

After we had recorded this with the band, it sounded like a pub rock song that no one wanted to hear. Very strange and very disappointing. I thought about scrapping it but we listened back to my demo (I demo every song fully at home) and realised I had used a loop of myself playing the drums.

Just a four-bar loop, no actual live drums, so there was no dynamics from the kit at all. Everything else was rising and falling around the drums.

That was the key. We made a new loop with my playing and praise Jesus in heaven and all his kebabeating angels, it sorted it right oot. Nae bother.

I suppose it’s about the reality of writing songs about your own life, not just making shit up like Chris de Burgh does. If you live it, it’s a tough thing.

A bit like driving a ten-wheeler lorry in a blizzard on the A9. Southbound, obviously. Plenty of percussion on this: a cutlery drainer full of spoons, knives, forks and stolen plastic chopsticks, shaken by me.

Words in My Head I think this started out as another moaning acoustic type of song, but I’d had enough of them so I put it through the B-Boy Trance Machine (don’t Google that) and when it came back out it had the required energy without losing the emotion.

Again, praise Jesus. The vocals are from my demo.

We tried to re-record them but the results were basically pish. I love using stuff from demos, though. Makes it very personal. I think at the gigs we are going to try and build this into an eightheaded Hydra machine of danceability. Crying on the dancefloor, that’s what I like. Ain’t nothing but a heartache every day.

Meet the Humans is released via Double Six on 26 Feb; Playing Edinburgh Liquid Room on 26 Apr stevemasontheartist.com

Review

41

Album of the Month Animal Collective

Painting With [Domino, 19 Feb]

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On the face of it, at least, it seems faintly ridiculous to ever use the word ‘stale’ in relation to Animal Collective, given how pointedly they’ve always looked forward, and seldom back, over the course of their career. After 2013’s Centipede Hz, though – which failed to inspire quite like Strawberry Jam and Merriweather Post Pavilion had – there was perhaps a feeling that time out to recharge wouldn’t be a bad thing.

The making of this latest LP, Painting With, sounds as if it was considerably less awkward than its predecessor. With the band regrouping as a three-piece – Josh ‘Deakin’ Dibb sits this one out – they evidently chose to focus on a more primal work.

The Baltimore trio eschew their penchant for extended ambient

The Wave Pictures

A Season in Hull [Wymeswold Records, 12 Feb]

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So, how did you celebrate your last birthday? Pub was it? Dinner with friends perhaps? Sigh – how unproductive. You want to take a leaf out of the ever-prolific Dave Tattersall’s book: when his birthday last rolled around, he took the opportunity to gather the rest of The Wave Pictures and record an album start to finish, with everyone playing together live into a single microphone.

This lo-fi, devil-may-care air translates well to record, with A Season in Hull capturing and accentuating the band’s characteristic camaraderie and casual, Jonathan Richman-esque charm – not least on the playfully surreal Tropical Fish and the breezy, Modern Lovers-referencing The Coaster in Santa Cruz.

Admittedly, the stripped-down setup has drawbacks too, leaving the material with nowhere to hide and exposing an uncharacteristic patchiness. But given the record’s low-key genesis and release (limited edition, vinyl-only), that seems excusable, with enough flashes of genius to warrant raising a glass. [Chris Buckle] Playing Glasgow Old Hairdressers on 23 Feb; Edinburgh Sneaky Pete’s on 24 Feb thewavepictures.com

myanimalhome.net

Field Music

Nevermen

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Commontime [Memphis, 5 Feb] The Brewis brothers' first release since 2012’s Mercury Prize nominated Plumb, Commontime sees the band re-expand to include original keyboardist Andrew Moore, with extra vocals, bass touches and hints of string thrown in for good measure. Warm, meticulous and packed with the off-kilter, jaunty pop touches Field Music made their name with, there’s plenty to encourage long-serving fans of the band – but there’s very little to stop your mind from wandering.

Over 14 tracks, repetitive funk riffs and chatty, conversationalist lyrics start to wear a little thin, and a lack of diversity makes for such comfortable listening that you risk all-too-comfortably tuning out. It’s a shame, too, because this hazy, samey-ness means you could risk overlooking the cinema of disorientating politico-ballad Trouble at the Lights, tucked in mid-record, or the far more fresh That’s Close Enough For Now. Mid-record, the brothers’ twin vocals ask How Should I Know If You’ve Changed? – supposedly detailing the awkwardness of school reunions, but hitting a fraction too close to home. [Katie Hawthorne]

Nevermen [Lex, 29 Jan] Some eight years since they first teased the possibility, maverick Anticon co-founder Doseone (‘mind’), TV on the Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe (‘heart’) and ever-prolific Ipecac co-honcho Mike Patton (‘body’) emerge from the kitchen with Nevermen’s first serving.

“Don’t rush the fuckin’ music,” they warned. Now to reward your patience; presented as a rule-discarding labour of love for the trio, the results are a timeless, genre-smashing work with a psychedelic soul. Inevitably, fans of any constituent member will find vivid snatches of past guises strewn across the debut’s ten tracks, but the collective whole works toward something more, determined to dart off into the unknown at every labyrinthine lyrical turn.

With a complementary range and at times uncanny similarity between them, the three voices often intertwine and harmonise in ecstatic union, from Tough Towns’ roaring crescendo and the rapid fire gang chorus that underpins At Your Service to Mr Mistake’s choral calm. A refined supertrio for the ages. [John Langlands] lexprojects.com/nevermen

Playing Glasgow CCA on 13 Mar | field-music.co.uk

Beacon

Teen

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Escapements [Ghostly International, 5 Feb]

passages, often complex in construction, and instead choose to focus on simpler pleasures; accordingly, they sound as if they’re having real fun again, from the boisterous bounce of opener FloriDada to the off-kilter strut of Spilling Guts.

The sheer pace of the record barely lets up; each song imbued with a real urgency. A leaner sound frames typically abstract lyrical preoccupations – with topics as unlikely as dinosaurs, the Ukraine conflict and the USA’s North-South divide making the cut – and Animal Collective still lay down a challenge. It’s the sound of a band refreshed. [Joe Goggins]

Love Yes [Carpark Records, 19 Feb]

Working For A Nuclear Free City What Do People Do All Day? [Melodic, 29 Jan]

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Having garnered plaudits for the spacey electronics and sweet vocal mix of 2013’s The Way We Separate, Brooklyn duo Beacon return with a more complex take on their RnB and Warp obsessions, but one which is no less captivating. The album’s title refers to timekeeping regulators in clocks, and the fascination with inexorable decay is evident in songs like Running Out and Preserve.

Musically, Thomas Mullarney III’s sighing vocals float over dense rhythms and deep bass, taking their cue from the icy atmospherics of James Blake as much as the narcotic ennui of The Weeknd. Better and Worse drives forward with a soft dance pulse, while Still’s skittery build up gives way to lush melodic relief as and when it feels like it. It’s a creative licence found across the album; the sense of a band exploring their sound with a freedom that comes from not knowing the destination. A late night journey of the highest order. [Dan Pilkington]

Its sharp pop sensibilities could fool you into thinking it’s not quite as weird as it is, but don’t be fooled: Love Yes is away with the fairies and delightfully so.

Teen’s off-kilter oeuvre, fuelled as ever by the wayward fancies of lead singer Teeny Lieberson, gains extra purchase here via their strongest set of songs to date. The four-piece manage an airy, radio-friendly vibe but their synth sheen is just one facet of their beguiling endeavour.

Gone For Good and Example straddle so delicately the line between art pop and mainstream appeal, and reference points are all over the shop: Sparks, Jane Siberry, Tango in the Night, early Madonna. Another Man’s Woman, with a guitar break only playable with rolled-up jacket sleeves, is the silkiest stadium balladry.

Beneath the surface, watchful engagement and debate inform, as ever, Teen’s literate manifesto. Uplifting and electric, Love Yes is a blast. The kids are alright and then some. [Gary Kaill]

An unwieldy moniker they may have, but Manchester’s WFANFC have always peddled a neat line in intelligent indie pop, not afraid to bounce around a little. And having maybe split up then perhaps not, they’ve returned with a record in which Madchester beats and quirky harmonies float amidst Richard Scarry technicolour (whose slightly satirical artwork depicted towns of animals enacting the mundanity of adult day-to-day).

Befitting a Scarry illustration, there’s plenty of detail behind What Do People Do All Day?, from the space hopper bass of opener Bottlerocket and Motown stomp underpinning Turned Too Tight, to more reflective narratives reminiscent of The Beta Band’s less flashy material. It’s an album of shattered dreams and primary colours – “Where’s your sense of humour?” decries Blunderland – and more than once it isn’t obvious if the band are laughing with us or (in the nicest possible way) at us. [Duncan Harman]

ghostly.com/artists/beacon

carparkrecords.com/artists/teen

melodic.co.uk/wfanfc1/

Rangda

Steve Mason

Cavalier Song

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The Heretic’s Bargain [Drag City, 19 Feb]

Meet The Humans [Double Six, 26 Feb]

There’s a storm brewing. Clouds writhe and branches flail as it grows bigger and bigger, the sky turning darker by the minute, until everything suddenly dissipates – only for the process to begin all over again. This is the image evoked time and again while listening to improv rockers Rangda’s latest effort, their wiry instrumentals consisting of sinister, circuitous riffs churned over and over till they’re ready to burst.

Guitarists Richard Bishop (Sun City Girls), Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance) and drummer Chris Corsano thrive in the perpetual build-up, exhibiting a symbiotic chemistry as they rattle through brisk opener To Melt the Moon and meld together during a later track’s prolonged drone section. All three are considerable technicians and practice refreshing restraint; both in their playing (intricate but not showy) and their sound (sharp and dry, with few effects). The result, however, can feel like a bit of an academic exercise at times – music to be admired rather than really inhabited.

[Andrew Gordon]

Steve Mason’s third solo album under his own name finds the erstwhile Fifer embracing a folktronica style familiar from those Beta Band days. There’s a move away from the man-the-barricades politics that defined 2013’s Monkey Minds In The Devil’s Time, but sharp social observations can be found on opening track Water Bored. The themes running throughout Meet the Humans are more personal reinvention and romantic reflection than the perils of neoliberalism.

Mason relocated last year from London to Brighton and this new start has led to a positive outlook. ‘I know you ran away – but I’m fine, as I don’t mind,’ he tells us on Run Away, while the following To A Door is positively jaunty. These songs are strong enough to be recorded with minimal accompaniment and that instantly recognisible, hushed voice – but the best moments are when his love of electronica shines through, as on lead single Planet Sizes. Now in his early 40s, Mason sounds like an artist finally finding his creative stride. [Chris McCall]

dragcity.com/artists/rangda

stevemasontheartist.com

42

Review

RECORDS

Blezard [God Unknown, 22 Feb] Where to even begin with Blezard? It’s a unique collection of guitar-led sonic explorations. You’d hesitate to label it noise- or post-rock, but terms like ‘abstract’ and ‘experimental’ seem insufficient. At times impressionistic, others simply allusive, it saves its sole moment of direct, rock-‘em-sock‘em heroics for the coda of Stones For Throwing, which teases at industrial riffage and then clanks the fucker ‘til it bursts. Elsewhere we find Cavalier Song wandering inquisitively over softer terrain before galloping through undulating, discordant passages, with their giddy glee at each new discovery audible at every turn.

There’s no dominant mode here; opener Anode wields pensive, Yo La Tengo-esque sweeps of cracked psych-jangle while 10-minute closer Trees is more expansive and complex, begging to be absorbed through repeat plays rather than half-chewed and swiftly swallowed. Blezard is a triumph of imagination – a wide-eyed stare at the skies, in love with sound and possibility. [Will Fitzpatrick] facebook.com/cavaliersong

THE SKINNY

So Pitted

Basia Bulat

Sarah Neufeld

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Neo [Sub Pop, 19 Feb]

Good Advice [Secret City Records, 12 Feb]

The Ridge [Paper Bag, 26 Feb]

Melodies are all well and good, but they’ll only get you so far. Sometimes all you wanna hear is something that’ll crush you into the ground. Step forward Seattle’s So Pitted: a trio for whom no riff is complete unless it fully articulates the sensation of stuffing one’s head in a blender while falling down a spiral staircase.

At times (Pay Attention To Me, Rot In Hell), their chief inspiration point seems to be Nirvana’s seething grind through Devo’s Turnaround, but their gleeful dedication to deafening scree also calls to mind both No Age and TAD’s 8-Way Santa; each staring longingly at the other before smashing themselves together, skull-first.

Naturally, it raises questions as to the wisdom of resurrecting grunge’s faux-nihilistic sense of bleak irony, but even if the price we have to pay is another generation of yarling, po-faced chancers, records as righteous as Neo are worth suffering for. [Will Fitzpatrick]

The Canadian singer’s fourth album is a subtle but distinct redefining of her angular pop aesthetic. Produced by Jim James of My Morning Jacket in his Kentucky studio, its Bulat’s most soulful and engaging work to date. With, as you’d expect, increased emphasis on feel and groove, Good Advice emerges as the showcase her voice was surely waiting for all along.

That voice – a beautiful instrument, roughened and rangy – elevates these songs. From the crisp soul beats of In the Name Of to the haunting atmospherics of The Garden, Bulat performs with passion and authority. Ten songs and not a hint of filler. If the likes of Eleanor Friedberger and Joan as Policewoman have hooked you with their gift for advanced melodics and artful storytelling, here’s an artist whose newfound ambition puts her in their league. Don’t let this one slip by: Bulat is suddenly, finally, a serious contender. [Gary Kaill]

Sarah Neufeld’s previous outing, Never Were The Way She Was, provided a fascinating conversation between the fluid majesty of her violin and the virtuosic skronk of fellow Arcade Fire collaborator Colin Stetson’s sax; an ugly-beautiful, impressionistic symbiosis that bewitched even as it unravelled. Stetson returns here for her second solo album proper, although this time he’s firmly in the background.

The Ridge uses voice and violin to paint a crisp scenery that feels like the fresh stillness of early morning countryside one moment and a jagged storm the next. The presence of Jeremy Gara on drums peppers the record with a likeable melodrama that’ll seem familiar to fans of Funeral or Neon Bible, although this particular record requires much closer listening to fully appreciate its charms. As ever, Neufeld is worth your intrigue. [Will Fitzpatrick]

subpop.com/artists/so_pitted

Playing Glasgow Broadcast on 15 Apr | basiabulat.com

sarahneufeldmusic.com

Universal Thee

El Guincho

All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace [Eventual Heirs, 19 Feb]

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Jesu / Sun Kil Moon

Hiperasia [Everlasting Records, 19 Feb]

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon [Caldo Verde Records and Rough Trade, Out Now]

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If it’s become a cliché that Scotland – a dreich outcrop sitting atop Western Europe like a soggy top hat – understands the virtues of sun-blessed and sparky guitar-driven pop like nowhere else, then the Edinburgh quintet’s second long player celebrates that stereotype unashamedly. The power-pop licks and Caledonian jangle (think Guided By Voices meets Teenage Fanclub circa Grand Prix ) may not represent the most original of sonic set-ups, but there’s so much fun embedded across these ten tracks that any complaint feels moot.

Cue upbeat, catchy choruses (Hounds; forthcoming single Speaker), cute hooks and swish boy/girl harmonies (Lost at Sea; Hamlet), the twin guitars buzzing away with wry determination.

Neither is All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace over-polished, the album’s rough edges, lo-fi chops (on tracks such as Sail Away) and gliding naturalism adding to the wider sense of bounce.

Sophisticated? Not especially. Grin-inducing? Very much so.

[Duncan Harman]

Album número tres from astro-exotica producer Pablo Díaz-Reixa plays like a radio shuffling through stations. Hiperasia – named after a string of Chinese discount shops in Madrid – is an associative, jazz-like journey, studded with cyber-tropical percussion and autotuned robo-Spanish vocals, and manages to be both brusque and twitchily playful.

A drummer at heart, El Guincho again turns to his fixation with repetition, building each track around their calypso loops and illuminating them with gaudy, fluorescent synth stabs, guided by some closely guarded tempo that’s sometimes difficult to tap into. It’s the capricious teases (Abdi’s eventual ascending melody ends just as it’s peaking, and just try dancing to the title track’s stop-start rhythm) that frustrate most of all, despite being entirely in keeping with the record’s distractible pace.

Less exotic than his sizzling debut Alegranza!, and less outwardly tuneful than Pop Negro (nothing here resembles catchy single Bombay), Hiperasia might be a less accessible album, but it’s Díaz-Reixa at his most experimental and inventive. [George Sully]

On Last Night I Rocked the Room Like Elvis and Had Them Laughing Like Richard Pryor, Mark Kozelek recounts 13 June 2015, blow for blow, including trying to call his sister on her birthday (she eventually picks up) and reading a review online (‘Pitchfork gave me a ‘6’).

He continues to read fanmail from Singapore slamming the British press reaction to a notorious London show last year. With this, we may have reached peak Kozelek. It sounds sublime, the lyrics are wonderful, and he just can’t help but needle his critics.

Jesu’s crunching, industrial guitar, subtle drum machines and harmonies compliment Kozelek’s meandering, caustic tales differently to past collaborators such as The Album Leaf and Desertshore, but it works just as well, helped by star turns from the likes of Low and Will Oldham. After an infantile year in which his profile soared for the wrong reason, the music does the talking here, reminding us that for all his flaws, Kozelek has found a way to splice proclivity and excellence. [Finbarr Bermingham]

Playing Edinburgh Sneaky Pete’s on 19 Feb | universalthee.com

hiperasia.style

Sun Kil Moon plays St Luke’s Church in Glasgow on 21 Jun | sunkilmoon.com

DIIV

Wild Nothing

Mass Gothic

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Is The Is Are [Captured Tracks, 5 Feb]

Life Of Pause [Bella Union, 19 Feb]

Mass Gothic [Sub Pop, 5 Feb]

There are more than a fair few Brooklyn bands that have a particular taste for jangly guitars and not washing. It is only a minority of these, however, where the substance is greater than the style. DIIV fall in to the latter category, peddling reverb jangles in a way that doesn’t just sound like a Cure pastiche. This second full-length offering is a sprawling continuation of their debut. While Oshin was exploratory yet managed to remain concise, Is The Is Are rambles somewhat over an unhealthily long 17 tracks.

The same almost esoteric mysticism that made their debut so beguiling remains throughout, guitar lines intricately weaving around rolling bass and Zachary Cole Smith’s hazy croon; there are some gems within – the Joy Division-indebted Valentine and glorious pop of Dopamine attest to this. Repeat visits are sure to unearth more of the band’s thought process, but there’s a lingering sense that less could’ve been so much more. [Will Moss]

Life of Synth may have been a more apt title for Wild Nothing’s third record, cultivated as it is around layers of woozy electronic timbres. Nowhere is this better delineated than on opening track Reichpop, an energising, effervescent jumble that circumvents its stern title with layers of drums, marimba and a merry multitude of synth-produced pops, whirrs and bubbles.

It’s a statement of intent from Wild Nothing’s architect, singersongwriter and Virginia native Jack Tatum, who lead with the group’s guitar-pop debut Gemini before sophomore album Nocturne saw the outfit evolve towards a more sophisticated, intricate sound. The evolution continues with Life of Pause, and it’s largely successful; – Tatum’s commitment to detail and texture invigorate tracks like A Woman’s Wisdom, but leave the languid title track feeling bogged down and bloated. Perhaps it isn’t quite a fully realised picture, but Life of Pause still paints a very pretty sonic landscape. [Claire Francis]

Here comes the cliché: there’s a handful of good songs on Mass Gothic – enough to constitute a strong, promising EP. A good album it is not, however, which is a shame given the alluring sound ex-Hooray for Earth frontman Noel Heroux sketches on Nice Night and Soul; a sort of downtempo indie rock with meaty, dour guitars filtered through glitchy effects. Pier Pressure and Money Counter are the other keepers, the former a patient melodic number which, sporting ethereal keys and a chopped up drum solo, could pass for a gloomy Tame Impala cut.

The remainder ranges from merely bland to bloated, finding Heroux repeatedly straining to muster a convincing sense of tension. Haphazard sing-a-long Every Night You’ve Got To Save Me is just plain annoying and isn’t helped by its likeness to Future Islands’ monster tune Seasons (Waiting on You), but thankfully it’s the record’s only drastic misfire. Nevertheless, there’s still too much filler here to warrant an unqualified thumbs up. [Andrew Gordon]

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wildnothingmusic.com

subpop.com/artists/mass_gothic

Cavern of Anti-Matter

Holy Esque

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Void Beats / Invocation Trex [Duophonic Records, 19 Feb] It’s been seven long years since Marxist ambientboogie machine Stereolab decided to go on an indefinite hiatus, leaving a small army of vinyl junkies bereft. Thankfully, for all those missing his group’s self-styled ‘space age bachelor pad’ music, Cavern of Anti-Matter sees Tim Gane return to the fray with an epic 72-minute album full of the kind of metronomic beats, Krautrock and electronica which made his previous band such an eclectic delight.

Unlike Stereolab, where Laetitia Sadler’s vocals played an integral part in proceedings, the emphasis here is on stretched-out soundscapes and electronic manipulation. Opener Tardis Cymbals builds and builds upon a layer of vintage synths and jerky drumbeats while Melody in High Feedback Tones does exactly what it says on the tin.

With original Stereolab drummer Joe Dilworth also involved, there’s the feel of an avant-noise supergroup when DeerHunter’s Bradford Cox and Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom lend some typically out-there contributions. Deeply sublime. [Jamie Bowman]

At Hope’s Ravine [Beyond The Frequency, 26 Feb]

At Hope’s Ravine is an assured jolt of broad-canvas, nouveau-post-punk pristineness: part-Twilight Sad, part-Bunnymen, and more than a shade of Simple Minds (back when they were any cop). Yes, it’s a polished, muscular record, and its detractors may point to a tendency toward the anthemic on tracks such as Doll House and Tear, but such is the intensity of Pat Hynes’ mottled, high-register vocals – eerily reminiscent of JJ72’s Mark Greaney, but somehow more desperate, more real – any complaint feels moot.

Both keyboard and wailing guitar paint big pictures (opening track Prism; recent single Hexx; the roof-lifting St.) – and they do so unapologetically, in charcoal shades of light and dark; it’s not until finale At Hope’s Ravine when the band perhaps lean in the direction of stadium rock girth a little too closely. But this is a sharp and quite possibly an important album, as memorable and considered as it is acerbic. Bravo. [Duncan Harman]

The Top Five 1

Animal Collective

Painting With

2 Nevermen Nevermen

3

4

So Pitted

Neo

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon

Jesu / Sun Kil Moon

5

Steve Mason Meet The Humans

Playing Glasgow Art School on 7 May | athopesravine.tumblr.com

duophonic.com

February 2016

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Neo-grunge Seattle’s So Pitted took their name from a viral YouTube video, and their noise-rock racket looks set to make waves on a similar scale. Nathan Rodriguez fills us in Interview: Will Fitzpatrick

f there’s one thing Nathan Rodriguez likes, it’s the word ‘conversation’. It crops up time and again over the course of our telephone chat, betraying his fondness for dialogue and participation – which isn’t what you’d expect after listening to his band So Pitted. Their debut album Neo communicates entirely through volume, texture and rhythm; a searing blast that rolls up its lyrical proclamations in a carpet of fuzz (so thick you can practically feel it), then throws the whole mess off a bridge. It’s hardcore punk slowed down to a mechanistic crunch, and rather than anything so convivial as a conversation, it feels like being furiously and incomprehensibly shouted at through thick, isolating fog.

Still, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. In all likelihood, this will be the first you’ve heard of So Pitted, so you’ll be wanting to know crucial things like ‘are they any good?’ and ‘what do they sound like?’ In response to the former: yes. Very.

As for the second question, we’ll defer to Rodriguez, the band’s founder member: “When people ask me how we sound,” he says, “I tell them we kinda sound like Nirvana – just to be simple.”

That’s a fair assessment: there’s more than a little overlap with their Seattle home and its musical legacy (albeit with a heavy dose of Devo, PiL and similarly-minded experimentalists), and indeed Neo is set for release through Sub Pop, the city’s foremost grunge outlet during the genre’s late 80s/early 90s heyday. “I just wanna give them the gist real quick,” he continues. “I definitely think we’re more than grunge but I think grunge is a part of us.”

Personally, The Skinny will settle for somewhere between noise-rock and post-punk, but whichever genre traces you detect in their thoroughly enjoyable racket, there’s certainly more to their sound than Kurt Cobain worship. For one thing, there’s the name – fertile ground for discussion thanks to its origins in a viral YouTube clip, where an enthusiastic young surfer bro explains the thrill of some particularly gnarly waves. “You get the best barrels ever, dude,” he tells a baffled reporter. “You just drop in, ride the barrel and get pitted, so pitted.”

Unsurprisingly as residents of America’s Pacific Northwest, the band aren’t surfers themselves (“It’s not ideal for the community over here,” Rodriguez explains drily). But for all its douchey, so-lame-it’s-cool appeal, the term ‘so pitted’ works as an explanation of Neo’s viscerally joyous listening experience: it buffets and batters you even as it pushes you along.

“Yeah, I think that kind of happened over time,” agrees Rodriguez. “On accident. I definitely would’ve liked it to be like that – I would’ve liked it to be more intentional – but when we first started we had no idea what we were doing. It took a good amount of time for us to grasp what we wanted to make.”

Fleshed out by the metronomic muscle of drummer/vocalist Liam Downey and guitarist Jeannine Koewler, So Pitted in its current iteration remains a relatively new prospect. Having worked through a succession of earlier line-ups before settling on the one responsible for Neo, Rodriguez explains how they all came together: “I met Liam ‘cause I was a fan of his band,

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Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head – they were kind of a big deal, at least in Seattle; they were signed to Warner Records. I was going to a lot of his shows – I was such a fan of his – and over time we started hanging out with mutual friends. One day he just showed up at this So Pitted practice, and our other drummer couldn’t make it. So we were like, ‘Ok, you wanna hang out? Wanna play drums?’

And he played, and he’s so good. It just worked out.

“A couple of years after that I met Jeannine when we worked together at this clothing shop, and she was just so cool. She learned how to play guitar for our band… and she learned so fast!”

The sound quickly coalesced around the nascent trio, and things quickly progressed. “I think it started happening around the time Jeannine joined the band. We joked about being on Sub Pop when we first started, but it was funnier then ‘cause we sucked so much. But it does kind of make sense for us to be signed to a label like that – I remember as soon as they showed interest in us, I was honoured, but there’s times when I was like, ‘Well, who else?’ It’s pretty cool to be part of a bigger conversation.”

“ I just wanna give them the gist real quick” Nathan Rodriguez

Talk turns to post-punk – Downey, it turns out, is a huge Devo fan, perhaps informing his factory machine rhythms that add to the band’s sheared metallic clunk – and in particular its exploration of the relationship between man and machine, both in terms of subject matter and use of equipment. Given this influence, we suggest that it’s somehow appropriate that So Pitted should take their name from a snapshot of human experience, brought into the wider consciousness thanks to the advancements of shared technology.

“Yeah, I definitely noticed that. I feel good about it too. Initially it seems really tacky, but YouTube is a part of our culture. It’s pretty absurd, and it’s amazing at the same time. It’s odd ‘cause that privilege is amazing, just being able to have access to any sort of entertainment, but it’s kind of funny what we end up choosing to do with that.

“Lately I’ve been watching… you know that game The Sims? There’s compilation videos of the Sims catching on fire. It’s really funny to think about the people who are making these videos; the people who are spending hours of their time: they’re staging this video, they’re filming it, they upload it, they even put words with it. I wanna know who those people are!”

This frivolous nature doesn’t seem apparent when scrolling through the album’s song titles: Woe, The Sickness, Holding The Void, Rot In Hell…

It’s not cheery stuff. Rodriguez laughs.

“It’s just a lot of concerns that we write about.

And it’s kind of abstract at that point, it could be something as simple as a person we know, or an attitude that a group of people has… for example, Rot In Hell: that was my feelings towards co-

Credit: Sarah Cass

I

workers that were so money-hungry. Looking back, it’s almost like stuff I’m saying to myself… like a very internal kind of thing, a very internal conversation.”

In short, they’re the same concerns that register with every young punk band: life and how to live it in the face of daily frustrations. But it’s the sheer, unrepentant noise concocted by So Pitted that’s the chief reason you’ll become enraptured; a nail bomb of pent-up rage that feels palpably capable of horrifying, mutilating destruction. It’s early in the year to make this sort of claim, but we can say with confidence that in ten months’ time you’ll be looking back on Neo as one of 2016’s best debuts, by some distance. The most frightening thing about it? They think they’re capable of better.

“It’s about progress, not perfection,” Rodriguez concludes. “A lot of people get lost in these tan-

MUSIC

gents of what’s wrong in the world, based on what’s not perfect. And that’s true, there’s a lot that’s not perfect and I’m not trying to shut down any conversation, but you can lose a lot of your life avoiding what isn’t perfect. You could just make progress instead, in any way or form.

“Like, I look at these songs that we’ve made.

They’re not perfect songs by any means. There’s moments where I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s really cool’, and there’s things I would change, parts I would sing differently, parts I would take out. But it wouldn’t be what it is if I went back and changed it.

I’ll create what I wanna create next time.”

Pray they never figure out what they’re doing.

Until then, let’s just see where the conversation takes them next.

Neo is released via Sub Pop on 19 Feb subpop.com/artists/so_pitted

THE SKINNY

Advertise in the Zap Need a last-minute boost to ticket sales? Talk to us about advertising in our weekly top ten events e-letter for timely, targeted exposure Audience network of 75,000+ every Thursday To find out more contact us on 0131 467 4630 or sales@theskinny.co.uk @theskinnymag /TheSkinnyMag Illustration: Rachel Davey

February 2016

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Clubbing Highlights February’s clubbing schedule boasts the likes of Carl Craig, DMX Krew and The Black Madonna Words: Ronan Martin Illustration: Andrew Denholm

EDINBURGH We focus on the capital first, with the Nightvision series returning for 2016 with a bass-heavy soiree at The Liquid Room. First teaming up in 2004, Calyx & Teebee began pushing a frenetic brand of drum and bass for labels such as Moving Shadow and Subtitles, the culmination of a friendship that dates back to the late 90s, when both were ploughing their own furrow with increasing flare. Their sound has continued to evolve and they regrouped in 2012 with a string of records incorporating more vocal elements and deeper sounds. Also on the bill is veteran DJ Zinc, who brings a welcome dose of jungle to proceedings, while the everversatile Paul Woolford also appears under his Special Request guise. Not content with dropping house and techno anthems on the likes of Hotflush, Woolford uses this more recent moniker to focus on bass-driven party tracks with an old school junglist feel underpinning much of the output (6 Feb, £15/17.50).

Next up, the Substance lads come up trumps once again, this time inviting Hamburg’s Helena Hauff along to the Bongo Club. Resident at the celebrated Golden Pudel club in her hometown, and increasingly hailed as a gifted producer, Hauff’s sound will appeal for those with a penchant for gritty techno, dark synth-driven EBM and electro.

Although now firmly involved in the production game, with releases on the likes of Werk Discs and Solar One to her name, it’s reassuring to know that Hauff made her mark as a DJ first – normally a pretty safe guarantee that the party is well covered. As she demonstrated in her DJ chart for us last September, Hauff has impeccable taste so expect pulsing acid lines, stark techno and plenty of vintage analogue fuzz (12 Feb, £10 adv).

Fast forward a couple of weeks and it’s time for seasoned party starters Karnival to celebrate

February 2016

10 years in the game with the visit of Detroit veteran Carl Craig. A prominent figure in the second wave of techno to emerge from the Motor City, the Planet E founder is perhaps one of the most diverse artists to grace the scene. Operating a dizzying array of aliases over the years – most effectively as Paperclip People and 69 – his work has covered jazz-inflected techno and disco-inspired house, though his entire output defies any attempts at simple classification. Equally revered for his skills as a remixer, he has put his magic touch to records by everyone from fellow Detroit heads Theo Parrish and Kevin Saunderson, to X-Press 2, Caribou and the Chemical Brothers. Needless to say, he knows how to move a crowd too, so this birthday bash should be in safe hands (27 Feb, La Belle Angele, £12.50/15).

GLASGOW Moving on to Glasgow, our first shout is Missing Persons Club, who this month welcome techno siblings the Zenker Brothers to work the booth at La Cheetah for the entire night. Ilian Tape founders Marco and Dario Zenker have been operating since around the mid-2000s, at first producing independently of each other – both tending towards a slick and minimal brand of dub techno, elements of which still seep into their sound.

Recent years have found them producing darker and more robust dancefloor cuts, earning a glowing reputation through releases for the likes of Tresor and 50 Weapons. This time last year, the brothers’ increasingly fruitful partnership produced the debut album Immersion and their stock has continued to rise, with their DJ sets helping to earn them a reputation as one of the most exciting acts in techno at the moment. It’s also rare, given those pesky Scottish licensing laws, to get

to experience the kind of long, immersive sets enjoyed by those on the continent, so get down early and make the most of it (5 Feb, £8/10).

We’re straight back out the next night as Something Wicked have outdone themselves with an unmissable one at Stereo. Heading up the bill is electro whizz Ed Upton aka DMX Krew, a prolific and frequent contributor to Aphex Twin’s celebrated Rephlex label, who has spent years transmitting a heady blend of shimmering synth pop, acid party tracks and choice electro cuts. DMX performs a live set, as does fellow Rephlex signing Monolith, whose 2011 debut album Welcome brought to mind the work of Aphex Twin under his The Tuss alias, but had more than enough ingenuity and raw funk to establish Monolith as an exceptional talent operating in his own realm. In support are two longstanding amabassadors of Glasgow’s clubbing scene – Intergalactic Funk Smugglers’ Twonko Tftv and Dave Shades, whose energetic and rapid brand of mixing should set the tone nicely for this one (6 Feb £7/9 adv, £10 door).

It’s off to the Subbie next, as Bigfoot’s Tea Party host increasingly in-demand selector Marea Stamper aka The Black Madonna. Resident and Creative Director of Chicago’s legendary Smart Bar, Stamper is the kind of DJ we could be doing with seeing more of. Untroubled by genre barriers, and with a bullshit-free approach to her craft, the artist from Kentucky simply knows good music – and how to keep a party ticking over nicely. Though long involved in music, it was her adoption of The Black Madonna guise, unveiled in 2012, which has seen Stamper come to prominence globally. Her output spans rich house grooves, acid plodders and deep disco workouts but, behind the decks, her scope broadens even further and we expect the Sub Club will be just the place to bring out her best.

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She is joined by Berghain/Panorama Bar resident and Ostgut Ton artist, nd_baumecker (19 Feb, adv sold out, limited tickets on door, £10).

ABERDEEN Our Aberdeen pick this month takes us to the trusty confines of The Tunnels where Minival kick off their year in the company of Daniel Ansorge, better known as Barnt. As well as being responsible for 2014’s club-destroying Chappell, a thundering percussive offering with the kind of teasing start/stop approach that leaves dancefloors sodden in sweat, Ansorge has built a reputation as a fine DJ. We highly recommend his well-crafted mix for Resident Advisor’s celebrated podcast series if you’re looking for an introduction to his style. He is joined for this one by Cristof, Gangs of Seaton and Dimbee (6 Feb, £6-12).

DUNDEE Our final pick for February takes us Tayside, where The Reading Rooms host the Autodisco 9th birthday. For the occasion they welcome an old favourite in the shape of The Revenge. Making his name with a series of impeccable disco edits – many released on the much-loved Instruments of Rapture label he co-helmed until 2012 – Graeme Clark remains one of Scotland’s most esteemed, yet reassuringly modest producers. Now bringing a much more personal feel to his productions, and with his new Roar Groove label off to a flyer – his debut album A Love That Will Not Die was among DJ Mag’s top albums of 2015 – Clark has the reputation of a skilled all-rounder. Joining him are residents Dicky Trisco and Dave Autodisco (6 Feb, £10).

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DJ Chart: Big Miz Words: Ronan Martin

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ollowing the release of the blinding Safari Park Nonsense EP, Offbeat’s Chris McFarlane aka Big Miz gives us a peek inside his record bag.

Earning early acclaim for your music within Glasgow’s infamously crowded electronic scene is by no means a given. Of course, it helps if you’ve honed your skills from a young age and fully immersed yourself in the party scene through which most of the city’s creative juices flow. This is certainly true of Chris McFarlane aka Big Miz, one of the latest artists to be given a spotlight through Dixon Avenue Basement Jams. Announcing his presence with the Midnight Man Handle EP last year, Big Miz capably distills the vibe of the muchloved Offbeat parties which he co-founded, drawing on classic house and techno influences with notable aplomb.

McFarlane’s latest release, a rare digital-only offering from DABJ, is evidence of the young producer’s impressive range and his growing confidence in the studio.

Giving us a glimpse into the diverse array of influences which inform his work as a DJ and producer, Big Miz’s 10-track selection includes bona fide techno classics and favourites emerging from the rich local scene that has nurtured his talent over the last few years.

The Fog – Been a Long Time Starting off with a classic. I play this track out nearly every set and the vocal always gets a good reaction. I really like the drums on this one too the hi hats are on point.

Kim English – Nite Life (Armand Van Helden Remix) This track is an absolute belter from Nervous Records. Starts off pretty heavy but when the vocal comes in and you feel the swing of the synth line you can’t help but go nuts. Could have put a few from Armand Van Helden in this list. The guy is a boss.

Ian Pooley – Celtic Cross This is one of the first records that I bought, and it actually sat in my room for months before I properly listened to it. The drums are so jacking and, when the vocal comes in, it gets me every time.

A sure fire party starter!

Atlus – Gum This is a fairly new record compared to the rest and it’s an absolute weapon. Full-speed-ahead disco edit from Atlus aka Glasgow’s own Denis Sulta. This man is definitely one to watch this year and it was a hard choice picking one of his many belters for this list.

KMA Productions – Cape Fear I first heard Jackmaster play this record at a certain infamous afterparty when I was around 17 and it’s been a firm favourite ever since. The catchy vocal and the way the beat slows down nearly to a halt before coming back in full force is enough to send any crowd wild. Dancefloor destroyer if dropped at the right time!

This is a record I just acquired recently after hearing it on a Boiler Room. Quite a simple driving beat but the synth line over the top is an absolute belter. Dropped this recently in Aberdeen for the first time and the place went nuts. Definitely a good tool to have in the bag.

Casino Royale – Hell House This one is the most recent release on Dixon Avenue Basement Jams, which can do no wrong in my eyes. A record of four weapons but this one takes it for me. Top drum machine work, coupled with the mad vocal sample makes this one an evil belter, perfect for the dancefloor.

Galaxy 2 Galaxy – High Tech Jazz An absolute classic on Underground Resistance and a must-have record for any techno fan. It’s seen many a ‘techno karaoke’ in Glasgow and perfectly combines funky elements with the classic Detroit sound.

MMM – Nous Sommes Full speed ahead banger from the MMM troops here. This track has been dropped at many an Offbeat in the La Cheetah basement over the past few years. Never fails to send the crowd over the edge.

Deacon Blue – Real Gone Kid Last up is a perfect end of set track, when the lights are up and it’s nearly time to go home.

Keeping it Scottish as well!

Safari Park Nonsense by Big Miz is out now. soundcloud.com/bigmizglasgow

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Art News

Another Minimalism Fruitmarket Gallery

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This month sees a large multidisciplinary show on concrete and Scottish architecture in Dundee Contemporary Arts, a huge student arts festival in Edinburgh (ESAF) and new exhibits from Ingleby, Collective, Transmission and more Words: Adam Benmakhlouf

BELL, Cube #15 (Amber) 2005

conditions, enabling the artists to conduct their scrupulous investigations without interference from chaotic external environments. Such an indefatigably meticulous approach is akin to scientific observation within a laboratory. After all, Isaac Newton conducted his own pioneering optical experiments simply using the sun and his own eye. Compelled to retire to a darkened room, a rainbow-like after image danced before his eyes for days. [Jessica Ramm] Another Minimalism at Fruitmarket Gallery, until 21 Feb

Tomba Brion by Carlo Scarpa, San Vito d'Altivole, Italy

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Merlin James CCA

rrrrr Long Game is the first large-scale exhibition of Glasgow-based painter Merlin James in the city.

The show displays a large body of work from the 1980s to present. Though a painting show, drawings, prints, and small wooden model buildings also feature.

With little in the way of chronological classification, explanations about the paintings on show are also limited. Equally, there’s an effacing curation that spreads attention equally across interiors, rural landscapes, seascapes, sexual intimacy and geometric compositions.

Throughout these works, there is no protective reflective glass and those on canvas are left unframed. All the better to see the layers, underpaintings, and edits. Although muted in colour and modest in size, even the larger paintings are neither overwhelming nor particularly conspicuous.

A modest stripping away continues into the recent ‘frame paintings’. These wooden frames

February 2016

surround stretched sheer fabric revealing underlying stretchers. In some, there’s again a kind of nude intimacy, shared too with the paintings of bedrooms. Or there’s more of a close skirmish like in Tree and building (1990). When the canvas is cut to reveal the wall behind it, the shadowed base layer jostles with the intensity of his dark marks.

There is a commitment to paint’s physical materiality, but also as a means of representation. In certain instances this is manifested more formally in line, colour, or subject matter.

As is the case in Ruin (1995) and Church (1984), which recall reformed Abstract Expressionist Philip Guston’s City (1969).

Although spanning the last thirty years of James’ career, Long Game departs from the narrative leanings expected of ‘the retrospective’.

Without clear timeline, there is an aptly economical appreciation of James’ singular enquiry into the conventions of painting, questioning even the most commonsense notions of past into present into future. [Holly Gavin] Long Game is at the CCA until 13 March zzzzzzzzz

n 13 February, the quinquennial British Art Show comes to Edinburgh for its eighth outing – read our preview of its enquiry into new and traditional media as means of response to contemporary technological advancement (page 17). Also this month, we’ve interviewed Jamie Crewe, who from 20 February occupies Transmission’s Scottish Solo Show slot with But What Was Most Awful Was A Girl Who Was Singing.

Closer to the beginning of the month in Edinburgh, the Ingleby Gallery presents the work of Glasgow-based painter Andrew Cranston. With his creations often sliding off-kilter, Cranston often combines art historical themes with other literary, personal and cultural references. Taking quite seriously the technique and craft of painting, his well-executed works can operate subtly but with severity coming from a painterly nuance.

Titled Paintings from a Room, the show continues from 6 February-26 March.

Also running in Ingleby during this same period, Glasgow-based artist Jonny Lyons presents Dream Easy. His work often takes the form of black and white photography of singular events that have previously involved a well-crafted slingshot, or sawing himself off a timber length from a height into water below. There’s a conscious recklessness and the kinds of ‘anarchic events’ of playing out in a field, or also ‘the physical humour of early silent cinema.’

This month also sees the return of the Edinburgh Student Arts Festival for its second outing. As an impressive organisation of students from five separate institutions, they’re coming back as an award-winning showcase of the latest talent developing in the city. Through the entire duration of the festival from 12-19 February, there is a free visual art exhibition across The Biscuit Factory, City Art Centre, Gayfield Creative Spaces

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and the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Throughout the 12-19, there are also performances, workshops and a special Valentine’s Day market event on Sunday 14 February in Summerhall, with work on sale from over 17 creatives, and presentations from art and science group ASCUS. From 20 February, The Collective Gallery host recent GSA MFA Graduate Katie Schwab as part of their art graduate programme Satellites.

In her practice, Schwab considers conventions of showroom presentation, home design, and craft education, as well as the interplay of function and decoration, with her work spanning ‘textiles, video, ceramics and functional furniture which are brought together in communal installation.’

Also from 6 February, but in Glasgow’s Mary Mary, there is a new group exhibition: Geographies of Dust and Air. Bringing together the five exhibited artists is a shared slightness of sculptural form, reworking of materials, and a kind of incongruous depth of surface or texture than would be expected in wall-based work. Summing up the intention of the show, Berlin-based Manuela Leinhoß explains her aspiration: “I felt a need to make my sculptures even more fragile, more transparent, almost floating.” Leinhoß’s are the only floor-based works to be included in the show, but nevertheless continue to resist formal definition.

Finally, on the 26 February wthere is the preview for the new show from Dundee Contemporary Arts from 7-9pm. As part of the large scale Festival of Architecture, DCA presents Grey Gardens, exploring the use of concrete forms in art and architecture from the 1950s to present.

Sitting between the different disciplines, artist duo Smith/Stewart will present a response to Peter Womersley’s award-winning studio of textile designer and painter Bernat Klein. Grey Gardens continues until Sunday 1 May.

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Credit: Guido Guidi

Another Minimalism presents an ambitious and wide-ranging survey of the continuing influence of the Light and Space art movement that originated in the artistic communities of 1960s and 70s California. Avoiding the art historical preoccupation with differentiating between the various strands of minimalism that were emerging on the West Coast of America at the time, Another Minimalism instead offers an inclusive range of contemporary work by international artists.

On entering the gallery an acrid smell akin to burning sugar permeates the air. This subtly altered atmosphere lingers with a sweetness that tends to cloy, while works of plexiglass, powder coated aluminium and polished stainless steel extend their perfectly geometric forms with an air of slick obstinacy.

Counter to these sultry objects, an antagonistic interplay occurs between projectors, coloured gels and fluorescent tubes, all emitting particular qualities of light. The after-image of one work bleeds readily into the next. Olafur Eliasson’s Ephemeral afterimage star makes it known via the exhibition label that the work includes ‘a two minute break to allow your eyes to adjust.’ While Ann Veronica Janssens’ Yellow Rose, an acidic yellow seven pointed star projected into an artificial mist goes as far as to list ‘artificial lights’ on its humorously pedantic exhibition label.

Negotiating issues of control is a central theme of this exhibition. It is evident that many of the works depend upon the ability of the gallery space to provide optimum control

Film Event Highlights Big screen farewells to Bowie, Haskell Wexler and Vilmos Zsigmond, and warm up for the Glasgow Film Festival with the equally ace Glasgow Youth Film Festival Words: Jamie Dunn

Bone Tomahawk

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or film fans, the deaths of Haskell Wexler and Vilmos Zsigmond, two of cinema’s greatest cinematographers, within days of each other over the Christmas holidays felt like a gut punch.

It was through their gimlet-eyed lenses that 70s American cinema was born. American Graffiti, Days of Heaven and Medium Cool were among Wexler’s best (he also directed the latter) while Zsigmond shot McCabe & Mrs. Miller, The Hired Hand and Blow Out – and that’s just a handful of their achievements. Filmhouse pays tribute with a double-bill of Deliverance (shot by Zsigmond) and In the Heat of the Night (shot by Wexler) on 7 Feb. Head along to say goodbye to these masters of light.

There was, of course, another death in January that rocked the world. David Bowie’s film career wasn’t as celebrated as his music, but it was fascinating nonetheless. Filmhouse are screening a trio of movies in their tribute: The Man Who Fell To Earth (27 Feb), Labyrinth (29 Feb) and concert doc Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (3 Mar). Like his music, Bowie’s film roles were always changing, and he was always magnetic.

True Romance

Valentine’s Day is upon us again, and Scottish cinemas have done a decent job of avoiding the really mushy stuff. DCA, for example, offer up a heartbreaking classic (Brief Encounter) and a spiky cult favourite (True Romance). Filmhouse have taken a similar approach. Golden oldie Casablanca screens along with some more recent studies in amour – Wong Kar-wai’s In the Mood for Love and Yorgos Lanthimos’s The Lobster.

Trumbo, a new biopic about screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, one of the ten filmmakers blacklisted by Hollywood in 1947 for alleged connections to the Communist Party, opens this month and Filmhouse and GFT are taking the opportunity to screen two of the films with which he defied the blacklist – Spartacus (7 Feb, GFT; 21 Feb, Filmhouse) and Roman Holiday (9 Feb, GFT; 29 Feb, Filmhouse) – as well as Martin Ritt’s The Front (1&2 Feb, GFT; 2&3 Mar, Filmhouse), in which Woody Allen plays a man who acts as a pseudonym for a number of his writer friends who’ve been similarly blacklisted.

And finally, the always inventive and inclusive Glasgow Film Festival returns at the end of the month, but don’t forget about its younger sibling, the Glasgow Youth Film Festival. We’d encourage you to make it to its heart-stopping opening film The Witch (12 Feb), which follows a family in 17th century New England who are turned against each other by evil forces. We also like the look of Cronies (13 Feb), produced by Spike Lee, and When Marnie Was There (14 Feb), reportedly the final ever film from Studio Ghibli.

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Review

Bone Tomahawk

Director: S. Craig Zahler Starring: Kurt Russell, Richard Jenkins, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox, Lili Simmons Released: 19 Feb Certificate: 18

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If you’ve been waiting ages for a verbose and bloody Western starring Kurt Russell, then you’ve just hit the jackpot. There’s a risk of Bone Tomahawk being overshadowed by Tarantino’s behemoth The Hateful Eight, but S. Craig Zahler’s strikingly confident and richly imagined debut feature is a film that deserves to be discovered and celebrated.

Zahler’s background as a novelist is evident in his love of language, and the actors clearly relish his crunchy, witty, ornate dialogue, with Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox and particularly Richard Jenkins delivering performances that rank as career highs. It’s a pleasure just to hang out with this mismatched group and enjoy the loose, Hawksian vibe as they embark on their rescue mission, although Zahler’s grasp of the tone gets a little shakier as the film moves towards its climax.

The explosion of grotesque violence that ends the film will thrill some and repulse others, but if you can stomach the gore and the questionable racial politics, then Bone Tomahawk is a rare treat from a distinctive new voice. [Philip Concannon]

Goosebumps

Goosebumps

Director: Rob Letterman Starring: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Ryan Lee, Released: 5 Feb Certificate: PG

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So, you’re making the movie version of RL Stine’s Goosebumps. Which one of his hundreds of monsters do you plump for? 'All of them,' is the answer here, including a hovering poodle, murderous garden gnomes and a creepy ventriloquist dummy named Slappy. Delightfully, the series’ author is also in the mix, played by Jack Black as a cantankerous blowhard prone to boasting about his own book sales.

We can understand his egomania. Stine’s writing is so potent that his creatures literally jump off the pages of his manuscripts unless they’re locked shut, which is swiftly demonstrated when the kid next door (Minnette) accidentally lets the Abominable Snowman loose in the writer’s office. Chaos – and more monsters – ensue.

Even when the screen becomes awash with CGI, director Rob Letterman keeps the action grounded and the goofy jokes coming. All a story needs is “a beginning, a middle, and a twist,” says Stine at one point.

Goosebumps has a whole mess of the latter, and just because you can see them coming doesn’t make them any less fun. [Jamie Dunn] Released by Sony Pictures

A Bigger Splash

Rams

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Director: Luca Guadagnino Starring: Tilda Swinton, Ralph Fiennes, Matthias Schoenaerts, Dakota Johnson, Corrado Guzzanti, Lily McMenamy, Released: 12 Feb Certificate: 15

Director: Grímur Hákonarson Starring: Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theódór Júlíusson, Charlotte Bøving, Sveinn Olafur Gunnarsson, Jörundur Ragnarsson, Released: 5 Feb Certificate: 15

Jacques Deray’s La Piscine, from 1969 – a drama of sexual jealousy and possessiveness – featured big, sexy stars (Alain Delon, Romy Schneider, Jane Birkin). Luca Guadagnino’s take on it, A Bigger Splash, is a similarly starstudded affair, though with a more aesthetically bold approach that should be familiar to anyone who saw the director’s last fiction film, I Am Love.

Marianne (Swinton) is a rock star recovering from a vocal chord operation, taking it easy with filmmaker boyfriend Paul (Schoenaerts). Their peace is disrupted by the arrival of Marianne’s former producer/ex-flame Harry (Fiennes) and his young daughter Penelope (Dakota Johnson). The story from here becomes equal parts psychosexual power-play, Rosselliniesque relationship drama, Patricia Highsmith-recalling thriller, and bawdy farce. This potentially messy mix miraculously works.

All four leads are great in their own way, but Fiennes steals the show with his obnoxious, brash whirlwind of an alpha male bellend. His manic dance to The Rolling Stones’ Emotional Rescue is one of the most invigorating comic set-pieces of recent memory. [Josh Slater-Williams]

The sibling rivalry between two ageing sheep farmers provides the backdrop to Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams, a tender comedy about the struggle for independence in today’s economic climate.

The brothers live opposite each other but haven’t spoken in years, communicating solely through notes delivered by their sheepdog.

However, when an outbreak of scrapie (BSE) is discovered the authorities impose a cull, forcing the brothers into a corner. Do they stubbornly continue their feud, or resolve their difference and fight to save the deeply rooted traditions of their sheep farming community?

Hákonarson’s background in documentary filmmaking imparts this battle of wits and wills with a humanistic angle, while the austere beauty of Sturla Brandth Grøvlen’s cinematography allows the harsh Icelandic elements to articulate the external forces at play. This combination of visual lyricism and naturalism allows Rams to posit more universal questions about globalisation. A beautiful film that’s both broad in its emotional intensity, yet intimately invested in local detail. [Patrick Gamble]

Mavis!

The Green Inferno

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Director: Jessica Edwards Starring: Mavis Staples, Bob Dylan, Prince, Bonnie Raitt, Levon Helm, Jeff Tweedy, Chuck D Released: 19 Feb Certificate:

Mavis is a celebration of Mavis Staples, the mightiest pair of lungs in family R&B group The Staple Singers. Even at 75 years old, she is a force of nature.

She walks uneasily with a cane, but onstage she’s a dynamo, telling us with pride that when people first heard the Staples’ on the radio they would think the nine-year-old Mavis’ parts must have been sung “by a man, or a big fat woman,” and that voice has got more bassy and brilliant with age.

Unfortunately, though, Edwards doesn’t trust us to recognise her subject’s talent with our own eyes and ears. Talking head after talking head is roped in to ramp up the legend. “They were as important as the Beatles,” says one contributor of The Staple Singers. “Aretha Franklin had nothing on Mavis,” says another. Let’s tone down the hyperbole, folks. Mavis herself isn’t one for blowing her story out of proportion. When asked about her fling with a pre-superstar Bob Dylan she says coyly, “We may have smooched.” If only Mavis’ director was similarly restrained. [Jamie Dunn] Released by Dogwoof

FILM

Director: Eli Roth Starring: Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Nicolás Martínez, Daryl Sabara, Magda Apanowicz, Kirby Bliss Blanton Released: 12 Feb Certificate: 18 While The Green Inferno is unlikely to convince Eli Roth’s many detractors that he is now a mature and technically adroit filmmaker, it is a marked improvement on his output since promising debut Cabin Fever. It’s also really quite fun – up to a point. Taking the classic 70s cannibal tribe trope and adding a 21st century spin (self-consciously selfless, inwardly vapid university activists attempting to do good in the jungle), Roth delivers more of his patented grue and giggles schtick with minimal frills.

Lorenza Izzo and Ariel Levy lead the team of disposable nubile cyphers (including former Spy Kid Daryl Sabara) on a mission to Peru to stop rainforest demolition, and it’s not long before things start to go wrong. The set-pieces are inventive and there’s a few neat surprises, but Roth loses control of the tones when going for full-blown stoner comedy. It’s a consistent problem for him, and frequently hinges on a grim predilection for humiliating women in his work. If he can get rid of that rubbish (mercifully brief here), he might find those detractors dwindling. [Chris Fyvie]

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Words: Jamie Dunn 24 Feb, GFT, 8.40pm | 25 Feb, GFT, 12.45pm

20 Feb, Grosvenor, 8.30pm | 21 Feb, GFT, 11.15pm

Love and Death

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he mighty Glasgow Film Festival returns this month to brighten up winter with cinema delights from across the globe and the kind of endlessly inventive screenings that we’ve come to expect from the festival (c.f. Raiders of the Lost Ark at Kelvingrove Museum and The Man Who Fell to Earth at The Science Centre Planetarium). But with over 300 separate events and screenings, including 174 films, choosing what to watch from its bursting programme can be a daunting prospect. That’s where the CineSkinny comes in.

For the past seven years the CineSkinny has been your trusty guide to the festival, and we’re back again this year with a quartet of issues, as well as online reviews and features, and a daily blog to keep you bang up-to-date with what’s going on in and around the GFT, Glasgow Film Festival’s HQ. Basically, we’re your one-stop-shop for festival information.

Issue 1 In Issue 1 we’ll speak to Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín (No, Tony Manero) about his jaw-dropping new drama The Club, which centres on a group of disgraced priests living together in one house in a remote coastal village – think of it as Father Ted but with pederasty and whippet murder. We also speak to another South American filmmaker, Lorenzo Vilagas from Venezuela, about his finelytuned first feature, From Afar, which upset the

bookies by walking away with the Golden Lion at Venice Film Festival last year. We’ll also be chatting with the great Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski about thriller 11 Minutes and his unexpected cameo in The Avengers.

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t’s a dark and stormy night, and I’m heading into the cinematic equivalent of a haunted house – Islington’s Vue – to speak to indie filmmaker David Robert Mitchell, the mind behind It Follows, the most beautiful and ingenious American horror movie in recent memory. As I pass the pick’n’mix and popcorn stands, leaving puddles of rainwater in my wake, I catch sight of the filmmaker as he’s leaving the auditorium after introducing his film to the London

Robert Zemeckis’s The Walk, based on the events surrounding Philippe Petit’s 1974 high-wire walk between the World Trade Centre towers, opens with Petit (Gordon-Levitt) atop the Statue of Liberty, enthusiastically addressing the camera to expound his life story and dreams. Right off the bat, Zemeckis gets across the exact tone his film is going to be pitched at: a bio-drama filtered through the lens of broad, pop entertainment and extravagant cinematic spectacle. It definitely will not appeal to the sensibilities of many, especially those cynical of even bringing Petit’s story to the screen in this way when James Marsh’s beloved documentary Man on Wire already exists.

That being said, for those who can get on Zemeckis’s wavelength, The Walk offers an array of pleasures. It is undeniably goofy in tone, but welcomingly sincere in spirit. Whimsy is laced with tragedy thanks to the unspoken, tragic epilogue of the story (i.e. what happened to the landmark 27 years later), something the very final scene alludes to in a moving, classy way.

In a similar vein to Marsh’s doc, the film’s first half is in the mode of light heist caper, with Petit surrounded by an entertaining band of accomplices. It’s all fun, but the actual extended set-piece of the stunt is where Zemeckis’s visual storytelling becomes truly potent and transportive. It’s a masterly example of a showman filmmaker attuned to how careful composition, movement, space and perspective can stir audiences – physically and emotionally.

DVD Extras: This was the case in 3D on the big screen, anyway.

Now out of cinemas, and an unlikely title for re-release revival, a DVD pre-sentation seems ill-fitting for a work absolutely made for the biggest screen possible. If seeking out this unfortunate boxoffice bomb at home, please at least opt for the 3D Blu-ray. [Josh Slater-Williams]

INTERVIEW:

Céline Sciamma discusses the tender and tough Girlhood

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onsider the coming-of-age movie for a second.

Cast your mind through cinema’s history and what titles flash before your eyes? Chances are there’ll be a fair few US films, names like Rebel Without a Cause, American Graffiti, Breaking Away and Rushmore. But practically every filmmaking nation has a classic film of teen turmoil, from Mexico (Y Tu Mama Tambien) to Australia (The Year My Voice Broke) via Senegal (Touki Bouki) to here in Scotland (Gregory’s Girl).

What’s lacking from the above list? To put it bluntly: women. Female stories are limited in all cor-

ners of film culture, but they’re particularly outnumbered in the coming-of-age genre. Praise be, then, for French filmmaker Céline Sciamma, who seems to be on a one woman mission to redress the balance. Her 2006 debut, Water Lilies, was concerned with the sexual awakening of a group of teenage girls in a synchronised swimming team. In the follow up, 2001’s Tomboy, Sciamma considered the body and identity issues of an androgynous ten-year-old, who reinvents herself as a roughhousing schoolboy after moving to a new town with her family. Her latest, Girlhood, centres on 16-year-old misfit Marieme (Karidja Touré), a shy black girl from a poor Paris suburb who comes out of her shell when she’s initiated into the mini-sisterhood of

Jamie Dunn

three streetwise firecrackers, who like fighting as much as they like dressing up and dancing to Rihanna.

Director Sciamma’s inspiration came from observing similar female cliques as she walked around her hometown. “I would pass by these groups of girls on the streets of Paris. They had this great energy and charisma, with style, and a solidarity,” she says. “I really wanted to look at them – that’s a good starting point for a movie, when you want so badly to look at someone.” She realised the irony, though, that in her profession these girl gangs were never looked at.

“Black girls in French cinema are totally invisible, they don’t exist. I figured OK, I have the intimate urge to look at them and there’s also a collective continues…

continues…

28 Feb, GFT, 8.40pm | 1 Mar,GFT, 11am

23 Feb, GFT, 8.30pm | 24 Feb, Grosvenor, 3pm

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n May 2009, a young man named Xavier Dolan arrived in Cannes to present his new film, the story of a troubled relationship between a mother and her son. In May 2014, a young man named Xavier Dolan arrived in Cannes to present his new film, the story of a troubled relationship between a mother and her son. Just five years passed between

the release of Dolan’s debut feature I Killed My Mother and his latest film Mommy, but the difference we can see in the artist who made them is extraordinary.

What looked like raw potential in 2009 has since been brilliantly realised.

Although the subject matter and the presence of Anne Dorval and Suzanne Clément in the cast list may encourage us to draw comparisons between these two films, Dolan refutes any suggestion that Mommy is a revisitation of earlier themes. “A movie about mothers and sons is like a movie on human beings,” he tells me. “It really is just so vast a theme, and encompasses so many, many, many possibilities for characters who are defined by quests and dreams

INTERVIEW:

Philip Concannon

and personalities rather than just titles.” In general, Dolan is a man who is too busy looking forward to contemplate what’s behind him, but he is conscious of the progress he has made so far, admitting that he finds it hard to watch some of the more jejune moments in his first two features. ”Certainly, every new film is a new opportunity, not necessarily to explore things you haven’t explored in previous endeavours, but more likely to avoid repeating mistakes you’ve made in those,” he explains.

As well as eliminating those mistakes, Dolan has ventured boldly into exciting new territory. After shoo- ting his 2012 film Laurence Anyways in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio, Mommy finds the director squeezing the frame

Lost in Music

INTERVIEW:

Mia Hansen-Løve discusses her brilliant new film Eden, an intimate epic telling the history of the French Touch music scene through one DJ's bloodshot eyes

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ia Hansen-Løve is sitting legs folded, Buddhalike, on a straight back chair in a London hotel conference room. In her hand she’s unconsciously fiddling with a card of stickers covered in Disney princesses.

She sees them catch my eye. “My daughter was playing in here before,” she explains. “I should put them away, really. People will think I’m weird.” She carries on

playing. One gets the impression the 34-year-old filmmaker doesn’t worry too much about what other people think of her.

You can see this strength of character in her small but exquisite body of work. Her first three features (All Is Forgiven, The Father of My Children and Goodbye First Love) reveal a filmmaker with a distinct voice all her own; one that is concerned with organic rhythm and gentle ironies rather than grand dramatics or convoluted scenarios. “I think it’s probably both my strength and my weakness,” she suggests of her low-key style.

“It always brings me problems when I try to finance the script because people tell me there’s not enough drama, there’s not enough plot, not enough violence.

Issue 3 Issue 3 is all about Green Room, sure to be one of the festival’s hot tickets. Film fans will be queueing up to see what director Jeremy Saulnier has come up with to top his debut, downbeat thriller Blue Ruin, which screened at the festival two years ago. The bigger draw, however, is the opportunity to see Sir Patrick Stewart – aka, the nicest-man-in-Hollywood – play a psychotic white supremacist. We’ll also be catching up with Eva Husson about one of the raciest titles in the festival, Bang Gang, a steamy study in teenage sexuallity following a group of high-schoolers in a sleepy coastal town who turn their lazy summer afternoons after school into debauched sex parties.

Issue 4 Closing film Anomalisa gets the CineSkinny treatment in issue 4, where we’ll be talking to its directors Duke Johnson and Charlie Kaufman, who’s

A Touch of Zen

Director: King Hu Starring: Hsu Feng, Shih Jun, Pai Ying Released: Out Now Certificate: 12

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Jamie Dunn

The thing is, my own emotion works this way – I can’t help but trust it.”

Take her latest film, Eden, which charts the rise of French house music from the early 90s to the present day. A more conventional filmmaker might want to tell the story from the point-of-view of one of the scene’s superstars, say Daft Punk. That electronic duo do make an appearance as baby-faced house party wax-spinners, but Hansen-Løve’s focus instead is Paul, a contemporary of Daft Punk’s (he’s at the party where they premiere Da Funk), who didn’t quite make it.

Hansen-Løve based the character on her own brother, Sven Hansen-Løve, who was a DJ on the French Touch scene and ended up left behind by the wave. continues…

continues…

Our cover for issue 2 is given over to the extraordinary French film Évolution, a Cronenbergian horror centred around a young boy who discovers something disturbing in the depths of the ocean.

We’ll be delving into its mysteries with its extremely talented director, Lucile Hadzihalilovic.

We’ll also be looking back to France’s cinema past, with a feature on the great Julien Duviver, whose reputation was once right up there with his contemporaries Jean Renoir and René Clair, but he seems to have fallen through the cracks of critical opinion since his death in 1967.

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delivering a brutal slasher flick as his follow-up. But take away the film’s central monster and we could be watching the same movie. “When I was writing It Follows I kept thinking about the idea of taking characters similar to the characters that I had written in Myth, and then imagining if they were placed in a nightmare and how they might react.”

The nightmare in question is Mitchell’s own recurring one. Perched on a bench in the multiplex lobby, he recounts it: “In the dream I sort of knew it was a monster coming to kill me but it looked like different people.” In the film, too, the eponymous ‘It’ takes many forms, sometimes seemingly-benevolent (a girl in pigtails, a lost-looking old woman)

Quebecois firecracker Xavier Dolan says he sees cinema as revenge against the mundanities of everyday life. With his brilliant new melodrama Mommy, that revenge is served piping hot

Issue 2

Director: Robert Zemeckis Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Charlotte Le Bon, Ben Kingsley, James Badge Dale Released: Out now Certificate: PG

INTERVIEW: Film Festival audience – its chilling synth score fills the corridor, then fades as the cinema door slowly closes. “It’s a little quiet,” he says to the LFF liaison.

“Can they turn it up a notch?”

It seems like a reasonable request until minutes later he’s describing the concept for the score by composer Rich Vreeland (aka Disasterpeace). “We wanted to create a balance between a very beautiful and haunting, melodic piece of music,” he tells me, “and then at times it’s like a controlled noise – it’s assaulting the audience.” If you’re one of the few people to have caught Mitchell’s debut film, The Myth of the American Sleepover, a delicate and swoony comingof-age film, you might be surprised to find him

Dreaming Bigger, Screaming Louder

“Think of The Club as Father Ted, but with pederasty and whippet murder”

The Walk

February 2016

David Robert Mitchell tells us how he turned his childhood dream into indelible cinematic nightmare It Follows

making a glorious return to cinema following the box-office disappointment of Synecdoche, New York. They tell us why they chose stop motion for this tale of loneliness and desire. We also hope to have spoken to Deniz Gamze Ergüven about festival smash Mustang, which is reportedly a stirring and ebullient study in teenage rebellion in a country (Turkey) where that also means a fight for survival.

As well as the print edition, we’ll have a daily, interactive CineSkinny blog and we’ll be asking readers to share their views on GFF films with us on Twitter via the #cineskinny hashtag, with the best reader comments featured alongside our daily content on the films and events at the Festival.

As ever, The CineSkinny will also be dishing out our annual CineSkinny awards, where you’ll be invited to vote in our readers’ choice of the best film of GFF 2015.

Street dates: Issue 1 – 17 Feb; Issue 2 – 19 Feb; Issue 3 – 22 Feb; Issue 4 – 25 Feb theskinny.co.uk/film/cineskinny

Fixed Bayonets!

Director: Samuel Fuller Starring: Richard Basehart, Gene Evans, Michael O’Shea, Skip Homeier, James Dean Released: 15 Feb Certificate: PG

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King Hu’s visionary Ming Dynasty epic stands as one of the cornerstones of the wuxia genre. Set in 14th century China, the story sees a young painter named Gu befriend a beautiful woman living in an abandoned – and supposedly haunted – fortress. The mysterious beauty reveals she is in fact in hiding from the secret police who tortured and murdered her father. Gu finds himself caught between the woman, who’s still hounded by her father’s enemies, and the schemes of the nefarious eunuch who seeks to eradicate all trace of her family.

Not content to simply repeat his past success in the genre, Hu structures his film like a set of Chinese boxes, defying audience expectations as he deftly moves from ghost story to detective story to philosophical action film. Symbolism and visual motifs recur throughout, with the opening scene of murky woods and tangled spiderwebs – suggesting the menacing and predatory nature of the Imperial Eunuch and his East Chamber Guards – crowding the screen before sunlight pierces through, signifying the dazzling clarity afforded by Buddhist enlightenment.

Stunning action sequences influenced by Peking Opera – including the memorable, much-imitated fight in the bamboo forest – are expressively captured by the intoxicating cinematography and the sound design is impeccable. A classic.

It’s a wonder this 1951 offering isn’t better known given the cult of James Dean, who here makes his big screen debut. While the actor barely registers in an uncredited, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance, Fixed Bayonets! crackles with the emotional intensity for which he’d go on to be remembered, maverick director Samuel Fuller paving the way for a generation of restless young firebrands.

A former newspaperman, Fuller is best known for his sensationalist explorations of social issues ranging from sex work to mental illness. This Korean War thriller, his second following on from the same year’s The Steel Helmet, is a patriotic tale of American derringdo, albeit one that vividly evokes the horror of military conflict.

The action revolves around a 48-man platoon, left as a rear guard while the remainder of their division withdraws over an exposed bridge. Gene Evans shines as the gnarled Sergeant Rock, courageously staving off enemy attacks on snow-covered, bullet-battered hillsides, but Richard Basehart provides the film’s emotional and didactic centre. His Corporal Denno is an excellent soldier in most respects, save for an aversion to the grave responsibility that comes with issuing orders. While his characters are painted in broad strokes, as was always his tendency, the director succeeds in conveying the inner life and psychological complexities of each. What results is a blistering meditation on duty, service and responsibility.

DVD Extras: A select scene commentary by critic and Asian cinema expert Tony Rayns provides valued insight for more inquisitive viewers while Golden Blood – a video essay by critic and filmmaker David Cairns – makes for an interesting companion piece to the film.

Stand-out however is King Hu 1932-1997, a 47-minute documentary about the director featuring interviews with colleagues and historians, which provides a fascinating look at Hu’s history, what informed his works and some vivid anecdotes. [Michael Jaconelli]

DVD Extras: The audio commentary and specially commissioned essay that adorn this release are standard extras in the Masters of Cinema series, but do a fine job of contextualising the main feature, presented here in a crisp digital restoration. [Lewis Porteous]

DVD

For more DVD reviews, go to theskinny.co.uk/film/dvd-reviews Review

51

Why Women Love Horror With February being the 7th Annual Women in Horror Month, US author Lauren A. Forry looks into the attraction of the genre. One that's part of her life and career – from M. Night Shyamalan film sets to the pages of her new gothic novel Abigale Hall

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have always loved horror. I was the kid who spent her free time writing stories about blobs that ate children on camping trips. If a princess appeared, she lived in a haunted castle. I read James Howe’s vampire rabbit tale Bunnicula several times over and owned every single book in the Goosebumps children’s horror series. The first fan letter I ever wrote (aged 9) was to The X-Files’ Gillian Anderson. But growing up, I seemed to be the only girl interested in horror. I thought it was because of my father – a genre-loving FBI special agent who used to make his own Super 8 sci-fi/ horror films. However, once I got older, I discovered that I was far from the only woman who loved the genre. There is, in fact, a large, active community of female horror fans. I’ve met them through my own writing (which still focuses on disappearing children and haunted mansions), and through working as a PA on M. Night Shyamalan films in my native Pennsylvania. So when anyone ever asks me, ‘Why do women love horror?’ my first reaction is, ‘Why shouldn’t we?’ But if I ignore the gender bias behind the question, there is a deeper answer. Women love horror for the same reasons anyone loves horror – it allows us to identify with characters and themes that represent our personal experiences and unspoken fears.

Growing up, I strongly identified with Dana Scully because there were very few female heroes in mainstream pop culture at the time. In so many genres, women were – and still are – cast as the damsels in distress, waiting to be rescued by the male hero. I’ve always preferred stories where women get to save themselves, and horror is a genre where women often get the same chance offered to Scully – to be the hero, not the victim.

I wrote my gothic horror thriller Abigale Hall with that mantra in mind: the women of Abigale Hall, heroes and villains alike, would drive the story.

Why? Because I wanted to see myself in those characters. I’m no damsel, and most of the women I know aren’t either.

When discussing representation, it cannot be understated how important it is for a reader

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Feature

to be able to identify with the protagonist – to see a character and think, ‘That’s me.’ When that happens, it makes the story that much more powerful. Horror is a genre, like romance, where women often lead the story. Think of films like Halloween, Scream, It Follows.

Horror literature, too, is often female-driven.

Justin Cronin’s The Passage Trilogy depicts a postapocalyptic world where virus-born vampires have destroyed most of North America. Central to the plot are Amy, a little girl who is the key to defeating the vampires, and Alicia Donadio, a ruthless young fighter. Amy possesses many feminine qualities, while Alicia takes on more traditionally masculine characteristics. Together, they represent the best and worst of what it means to be human, not just women, and both are as pivotal to the defeat of the vampires as their male counterparts.

The Southern Reach Trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer also uses several female protagonists and antagonists to drive the plot. The first book, Annihilation, exclusively features women as the main characters. These women, known only by their job title, explore the terrifying uninhabited area known as Area X. What is wonderful about VanderMeer’s characters is that their gender doesn’t matter. They are fully-fledged, complicated individuals who happen to be women, which makes them all the more believable.

Any good horror story is used as a way to explore topics that may be difficult for some to discuss openly. Because horror often features female characters so prominently, it allows for the exploration of issues concerning women. Take marriage, for instance. You legally bind yourself to a stranger and must share a home and a bed, all while never knowing what secrets that person is keeping from you. It’s terrifying, and many horror tales explore this experience, including Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca and Ira Levin’s The Stepford Wives. The naïve narrator of Rebecca strains to escape the shadow of Manderley’s previous, controlling mistress. The Stepford Wives depicts what happens when wives fail to live up to their

husband’s expectations. It is not the women the men love; they desire a perfect wife. In Rebecca, the narrator and her husband are able to defeat the spell cast by Rebecca and live a happy life in an equal partnership. The protagonist in Stepford is less fortunate – murdered by the men of the town and replaced with an artificial replica. When married, society expects women to behave in a particular way. Through both these novels and others, women can identify with these burdened wives and reflect on their own expectations of what marriage should be.

Now imagine this scenario: an alien creature is implanted inside you – feeding off the nutrients of your body, causing drastic physical and emotional changes – only, when violently removed, to be completely dependent on you or else it will die.

This is motherhood. It’s a miracle. Like marriage, it’s also terrifying. In Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, the governess is not a mother, but when she is put in charge of a pair of children, she sees suspicion in everything they do, becoming so frightened that she ends up murdering the boy. The governess represents a woman unable to cope with the responsibility of motherhood, a fear held by many women, mothers or not. But mention your doubts about being a mother, or even wanting to be a mother, and watch the looks you receive.

Many still see it as unnatural for a woman to deny or fear motherhood, but women deal with these thoughts every day.

Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby is the classic tale of the horrors of pregnancy. Women are able to identify with Rosemary – her desire to establish a good life with her husband, only to see those dreams spiral into her greatest nightmare. She becomes a mother, but a mother to Satan’s child. In Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black, the Woman, when alive, was denied her chance to be a mother because others doubted her ability. She then had to watch her only child drown, unable to save him, failing him as a mother. As a ghost, she assuages her guilt and takes revenge by stealing the lives of other children.

BOOKS

Illustration: Stephanie Hofmann

There is nothing wrong with not wanting to raise children. There is nothing wrong with wanting to raise children. Not everyone may want marriage, but it’s fine if you do. Horror gives women a safe space to think about these issues and others and say, ‘Yes, sometimes I feel that way, and it’s okay.’ It also allows women to subvert such traditional gender roles. Stephen King’s Misery makes the writer Paul Sheldon submissive to the mentally unstable Annie Wilkes. Although Annie has a traditionally feminine career as a nurse, she defies her role by murdering patients and uses physical and mental abuse to bend Paul to her will. When seen from Annie’s point of view, the book becomes a violent revenge fantasy for women who have been controlled by men, and the story offers a glimpse of what it is like for a woman to be the aggressor, even if things don’t turn out so well for her in the end.

And that may be one of my favourite things about horror – the fact that not all endings are happy. Eleanor Vance from Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House was forced to be her crippled mother’s only carer, subject to her every whim. Upon her mother’s death, Eleanor tries to find strength through her visit to Hill House, but the house is too strong and Eleanor succumbs to its call, committing suicide by crashing her car.

In the deliriously brutal film The Descent, which, like Annihilation, features only women, no one – no matter how hard they fight – makes it out alive.

Or do they? And isn’t that ambiguity wonderful?

The lack of resolution in horror more accurately reflects real life than the fairytales of womanhood we’re often told to believe.

I love horror for its weirdness, its scares, its shocks, its monsters. I love it because there is something more lurking just beneath the pretty façade, something unexpected and bold and quite often terrifying, just like so many women I know.

Lauren A. Forry was awarded the Faber and Faber Creative Writing MA Prize for her dissertation, which has now become her debut novel, Abigale Hall – out on 29 Feb, published by Black & White, RRP £7.99

THE SKINNY

Bard is a Four-Letter Word As the year picks up pace, our poetry columnist looks at live spoken word events around Scotland in February, and provides five top tips for budding performers staking their place on the stage

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ne month closer to lighter nights and 2016 is already less of a theory and starting to move along with gusto. With new movement comes the desire for fresh self-expression, so I thought it was time to turn the spotlight on live events and, for a change, open mic. A lot of poetry events include the chance to step up and test your work out on a receptive bunch.

So, for those looking to have regular tasters of spoken word, and maybe try your own skills, there’s plenty to get your teeth into over the coming weeks. On 8 February at 8pm, this month’s Blind Poetics night (held, of course, at The Blind Poet – where else?) features a set from Writers’ Bloc artist Gavin Inglis, and there are five minute slots going for the open mic. If that sounds like your bag, e-mail blindpoetics@gmail.com to book a slot.

For a slightly different flavour, check out Shore Poets, an informal collective who run a session every last Sunday of the month in varying locations, and often offer a wildcard spot. The next diary date is 28 February, featuring Vicki Feaver and Marjorie Gill, and will see them awarding this year’s Mark Ogle Memorial Award. For further details, see the website. Poet and actor Andrew Sclater will also be giving a workshop at the Scottish Poetry Library on Thursday 25 February, concentrating specifically on the art of reading aloud and spoken interpretation – excellent if you want some genuine coaching but don’t want to start by reading your own.

there are always new performance angles to find in anything.

Now, to honing those skills. Performance takes artistic sensitivity to a whole new level, mainly because the audience’s right to close the book and move on is taken away, leaving them with the sole excuse of a loo break… and just like the umpteenth rendition of Jessie J’s Price Tag on karaoke night, there are things you should avoid if you want to keep the crowd on your side. After extensive research, nights out and the occasional trauma, my five top tips for aspiring performers are as follows: 1. Practise projection – the microphone is a brilliant invention, but by no means fool proof. Don’t neglect the old diaphragm, chaps. Nobody enjoys a mumbler, and many amazing poems are ruined by poor delivery.

2. Slow down – five minutes may seem short now, but it isn’t when you’re on stage. You will think you’re going slowly. You will be wrong. Go slower than you think is normal, and remember to breathe.

Your audience has to have space, not only to hear, but to think the poem along with you.

3. But then again – keep an eye on the time limit.

Don’t be that sod who likes the sound of their own voice more than they care about being fair. Instead of filling five minutes, aim for three or four. Everyone will thank you. Seriously.

The High Mountains of Portugal

Under the Udala Trees

The Power of the Dog

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By Yann Martel

Three stories, three grieving men, three years: 1904, 1938, 1981. We begin in Lisbon in 1904, as Tomas sets off in search of an unlikely 17th century artifact in the High Mountains. He drives one of Europe’s earliest motorcars, a fiendish and unfathomable machine that pushes him to the very edge of sanity. He finally arrives at his destination – the tiny village of Tuizelo – and collapses with exhaustion.

Cut to 1938 and a pathologist’s study, late at night. From the roaming of Tomas to the closedin world of Eusebio – we move from the backcountry to the autopsy table. A woman has travelled from Tuizelo to see him, and over the course of the night the fine line between living and dead dissolves. What follows is an unsettlingly straight version of magical realism, with all the unexplained detail of a short story.

The final section finds a Canadian senator travelling back to Tuizelo, with a chimpanzee in tow. Those who’ve read Life of Pi will recognize Martel’s skill in describing relationships between human and animal worlds: this is the writer at his most involving.

Among the loose thematic strands that tie these stories together – things like grief and religion – there is the single, fixed geographic point: the High Mountains of Portugal, which aren’t really mountains at all. It is an unusual novel, a vivid and uncanny adventure in storytelling. [Galen O’Hanlon] Out 2 Feb, published by Canongate, RRP £16.99

February 2016

It almost seems an insult to remind you of Rally & Broad, after the major part they played in our news last year, but newbies to their shows should take the opportunity to be inspired by their Ampersand sessions this month, which will consist of specially-commissioned sets by pairs of artists. Drop into the Bongo Club in Edinburgh at 7pm on 19 Feb to see Hailey Beavis, Faith Eliott, Rachel McCrum, Jonathan Lamy, Russell Jones and Atzi Muramatsu do what they do best, bookended by music groups Bella the Bear and Miracle Glass Company. If you’re more of a lunchtime bean, turn up for 2.30pm at Stereo in Glasgow on 21 February, where Malachy Tallack, Chrissy Barnacle, Jenny Lindsay, Heir Of The Cursed (formerly Genesee), and Loud Poets Katie Ailes and Catherine Wilson will be providing the outpourings.

Finally, if you’re into poetry and performance, but not necessarily writing, it isn’t all about the modern and self-composed; Poetry by Heart Scotland (6 Feb, Scottish National Gallery) is definitely worth a watch. Featuring students from across the nation, it showcases the freshest performing talent around and gives viewers the benefit of overhearing professional critique from seasoned poets. For those of us who wonder where to start with learning how to perform, it doesn’t hurt to watch teenagers – the social group most maligned by an uncommunicative image – take the stage and make the space their own.Re-listening to established pieces also can’t help but show

by Chinelo Okparanta

In an understated author’s note sat quietly on a back page between the novel’s epilogue and its acknowledgements, Chinelo Okparanta states her ambition that Under the Udala Trees might help 'to give Nigeria’s marginalised LGBTQ citizens a more powerful voice, and a place in our nation’s history.'

One of the most impressive things about the novel is that it effectively conveys the horror of growing up as Ijeoma does – queer in the world’s second most religious nation – without demonising her oppressors completely. The mother who tries to 'cure' her homosexuality with rigorous Bible study unquestionably loves her daughter. She is a bigot but she isn’t evil, just hardwired with values rooted more in dogma than humanity.

At this point Okparanta’s literary skill doesn’t quite match her ambition: her writing often feels too self-consciously pretty, becoming prosaic while reaching for poetic, and there is a lack of interiority to Ijeoma which makes her life-risking romances difficult to fully connect with. At a certain point, she feels like an empty avatar going through the too-familiar tragedy of coming of age in the midst of intolerance, more than a fully realised individual.

It’s an imperfect telling of an important tale.

[Ross McIndoe] Out 4 Feb, published by Granta, RRP £12.99

by Thomas Savage

Words: Clare Mulley

4. One poem good, three poems better – keep it fresh. Most people prefer short, digestible chunks and a variety of flavours. One very long poem, unless absolutely amazing, can make people twitchy.

“ Performance takes artistic sensitivity to a whole new level” 5. Try to avoid the dead relative poem – or the dead pet/ dementia/ suicide/ crisis/ tragedy/ *insert depressing experience here.* Notice that I didn’t say ‘don’t’ – some darker subjects make for a wonderful poem, but if it’s all about you treating the stage like the therapist’s couch and spilling your guts, and nothing to do with offering something to the people listening, forget it. shorepoets.org.uk rallyandbroad.com scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk

Nobody Told Me

By Hollie McNish

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Set in 1920s Montana, The Power of the Dog begins as a tale of two competitive brothers. Phil, educated and calculating; George, reliable and kind; the differences between these two successful ranch-owning brothers are exaggerated by the introduction of Rose, a widow, and her son Peter, who are soon swept away by George's kindness, and simultaneously steered into Phil's vicious path.

Beginning like a typical tale of the polarity of brothers, the book soon begins to reveal its com-plexity. Challenging the reader's perceptions from the beginning, Savage's unbridled novel hides its plot twist so cunningly in plain sight, like the landscape itself that resembles a running dog. The Power of the Dog reveals the tradition of western repression: of women in a man's world, of Indians in the white West, of homosexuality in a society built on the intense and intimate relationships of men.

First published in 1967, and now making its 21st century debut with the help of Vintage Classics, The Power of the Dog resurfaces to a new generation of readers, less likely to skirt around the homosexual undercurrent that drives this text to its ultimate twist of an ending. Piecing the novel together from his own private expe-riences, what Savage achieves in the pages of The Power of the Dog is an intense realness, unearthing the inner darkness of the American Dream. [Rosie Barron]

Nobody Told Me: Poetry & Parenthood chronicles three years and nine months of poet Hollie McNish’s life, from discovering she was pregnant – ‘After King’s Cross toilets / after a blue cross / after hands-in-face / with confused then laughing sobs’ – to her daughter’s first day at pre-school, aged three – ‘You seemed less bothered than me.’

A diary of poems, written in snatched moments away from her roles as mother and lover, the book offers an immediate, seemingly unfiltered insight into McNish’s life, and into her experience of motherhood.

In her diary, the poet records her guilt, pain, wonder, exhaustion, frustration, joy, anger and love. There’s no photoshopping here, no smoothing out of the bags under tired eyes or images of serenely smiling mothers breastfeeding on white sofas. There’s crying from exhaustion and cracked nipples and wiping snot from noses and hiding in public loos to feed. There’s the endless barrage of judgment on how to do motherhood right. There is love: for her partner, for her family, for Little One. There is wonder. ‘It is indescribable/ witnessing this small human change.’

It’s a moving and profoundly personal account.

Yet at the same time, Nobody Told Me offers an insight into the shared, unspoken experiences of many mothers. McNish describes Nobody Told Me as ‘All the things I couldn’t talk about.’ It feels like time that we started talking. [Ceris Aston]

Out 4 Feb, published by Vintage, RRP £8.99

Out 4 Feb, published by Little, Brown Book Group, RRP £13.99

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Review

53

Cock On Andy Arnold chats about Valentine’s Day plans and finally getting the rights to Cock Interview: Emma Ainley-Walker

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Life Advice from a Cynical Theatre Critic What plays will get you a date? How do you act ‘in the know’ about theatre? Our resident Auntie Trash is here to answer all your theatrical questions Words: Amy Taylor Illustration: Fran Caballero

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i Auntie Trash, I’m taking a girl to the theatre for Valentine’s Day. I know nothing about theatre, but I’ve told her that I do. How do I fool her into thinking I know more than I do AND get laid after the curtain goes down?

Ta, Need a hand Hi Need a hand, You’ve found yourself in a conundrum that no doubt many people have; you tell someone a white lie to impress them, and before you know it you’re balls deep in the auditorium, shifting excruciatingly as you watch Shakespeare, or Miller, or some God awful devised piece by a friend of a friend of a friend. To which, I say: nae joy, pal.

But before I begin discussing the fine art of theatre, I’ve got to say something. I’m only going to say it once, so here it is: this girl doesn’t owe you shit. Now read that again. Read it again.

And again. And again. And again, until it sticks in there.

When you take someone out to the theatre, they don’t have to perform for you once the house lights go back up. You aren’t entitled to get your dick wet just because you shelled out for a couple of theatre tickets. You are entitled to nothing more than the pleasure of her company for the evening. Afterwards, if she wants, she might top you off, or whatever, but only if she wants to.

OK, now that bit of housekeeping is out of the way, we can get to the really filthy stuff: the art of choosing the right show to take a date to.

So, when it comes to theatre; what’s good?

I admit that I’m pretty fucking biased because I

54

Review

ebruary is a romantic month, and the Tron Theatre are bringing romance to the stage with Mike Bartlett’s Cock. In the words of artistic director Andy Arnold, who will also be stepping up to direct this production: “Cock is a play about sexual identity and sexual confusion.” Specifically, it’s about a man who, after being in a relationship with a male partner for many years, meets and falls for a woman, consequently having to make a decision many face about which path he wants his life to take, and who he wants to take it with.

“It’s a frustrating play in many ways because it doesn’t really provide any answers but it’s very funny, very witty and very clever,” says Arnold.

“The dialogue’s brilliant, Mike Bartlett is a very clever writer and I was drawn to it as soon as I read it. The best plays are the ones where you come out at the end and you’re trying to work out what would have happened next – this is one of those plays, you’ll need to have a chat about it afterwards.”

This is the play’s first UK production since it premiered at London’s Royal Court six years ago, and Arnold has been chasing it almost since its opening night: “I got hold of a copy when I read the reviews because I thought it sounded brilliant and I thought, ‘I’d love to do that.’ I applied to get the rights and they said, ‘They’re not available’ – I assumed it was probably because it was going to the West End but nothing happened. A couple of years later I applied again; they weren’t available and a year or two after that, still nothing.”

He still does not know why he couldn’t get hold of the rights sooner, with the play going to both Australia and America, but then he tried a final time. “I was running a workshop here at the Tron with young artists and I went round the room at the beginning asking, ‘What’s your

review theatre for a (sort-of) living, but there’s a lot of good stuff out there. You have to be aware of a few things.

When taking a date to theatre, especially if said date is much more into theatre than you, I would avoid any show with the following words on the poster, in the synopsis, or in any reviews.

‘Experimental’ ‘Interpretive’ ‘Post-modernism, post-apocalyptic’ — just avoid anything with fucking ‘post hyphen’ in it.

‘Suffering’ Now, I have decided to share this, because, these are the things that can make or break a date. Imagine going to a show and not getting it, and your date gets it. I mean, she totally gets it.

She talks about it during the interval, she talks about it in the bar afterwards, and you have nothing to say. You can’t add anything to this conversation without revealing what you truly are: a liar balls deep in his own untruths.

On the flip side of this, you may be tempted to take your sweet lady to a traditional musical, and again, I must caution you against this. Yes, there was that really great episode of South Park which discussed the little-known and seldomacknow-ledged correlation between musicals and fellatio, but this is totally not true, mate. I’m sorry to break your heart.

I’m not saying don’t go to a musical, I’m laying out the facts for you, because knowledge is power, and Lord knows we need more people out there who know a little something about theatre.

So, in conclusion: if you take someone to the theatre, do some research about the show, ask them lots of questions, be interesting, buy a couple of ice creams at the interval, and don’t demand anything in return. Deal?

THEATRE

favourite contemporary play?’ and someone said, ‘Cock by Mike Bartlett.’ I said, ‘Oh, that’s brilliant, I’ve always wanted to do that,’ so that afternoon I thought I’d try again.”

“What better, go for a nice meal and then come and see the show?”

Bartlett remains very specific about his play, which is to be performed with ‘no furniture, no props, no set and no miming.’ “It’s actually really intriguing,” says Arnold. “It’s almost like a live radio play in some ways. It’ll be interesting in rehearsal to find out how we approach a dinner party, a couple making love without acting it out. That’s partly what appealed to me because I think that’s what makes it fascinating to watch.”

So, is this the play to take your Valentine to?

“I hadn’t thought of that,” he says. “The 14th is a Sunday so we haven’t got a show on the actual night, we’re missing an opportunity! It’ll have to be the Saturday.” That said, he calls it “absolutely” the play for a date: “It’s just a brilliant piece of theatre and it’s very uplifting, so a couple – or just friends on a night out, actually, whether it’s Valentine’s night or another night – would enjoy the experience. What better, go for a nice meal and then come and see the show?”

Cock, Tron Theatre, 9-20 Feb then touring, 7.45pm (2.30pm) tron.co.uk/event/cock

THE SKINNY

Glasgow Music Mon 01 Feb

BERT INSPIRED: A CONCERT FOR BERT JANSCH

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £25

Marking the final day of the Celtic Connections programme, a star-studded line-up – including Robert Plant and Bernard Butler – celebrate the music of Bert Jansch.

Extra date added 1 Feb. BOWLING FOR SOUP

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £20

A night of pop-punk from a naughties fave. They embarked on a farewell tour in 2013, but seem to have changed their minds and are back for another stab. Well, how’s about it?

JOSHUA BURNSIDE (CHRISSY BARNACLE + OWEN DENVIR)

BROADCAST, 20:00–22:00, £4

Northern Irish experimental folk songwriter and producer.

Tue 02 Feb GABRIELLE APLIN

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £16.50

Experimental musician working her magic over the folk-pop template, all hints of choirs and twinkly noises.

MARTHA FFION THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £7

Fuzz pop Irish singer/songwriter signed to Lost Map Records.

CHRISTOPH GRAY AND THE VOGUE (VINTAGE AIR + OWEN COSMO FYFE) QUEEN MARGARET UNION, 19:00–22:00, £8

Dark electronica act formed in Glasgow, built on a bed of trip-hop and dance-influenced rhythms, dark melodic basslines, cinematic orchestrations and breathy melancholic vocals.

OKYUNG LEE + JOHN BUTCHER + MARK SANDERS

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £8

Three musicians whose musical paths have crossed in various ways, playing tonight for the first time as a trio.

GRAHAM BONNET BAND

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £18

The former Rainbow and Alcatrazz frontman returns with a new band and material.

LORDS OF BASTARD + KYLVER + ILSER + BACCHUS BARACUS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, £5 - £7

Get your rock-horns ready for a night of doom, riff and licks.

TUFF LOVE

STEREO, 19:00–03:00, £10

Up-and-coming Baltimore popsters of the melodic indie-rock variety.

Stereo buddies up with Lost Map for Tuff Love’s 2016 album launch.

There’ll also be a bunch of special guests, and an afterparty leaving you to shimmy ‘til dawn.

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

SUN CLUB

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £6

ACADEMY STRANGERS

Satiate your hunger pangs for arena chords and soaring tunes with these Biffyesque Scotch rockers.

Wed 03 Feb MAYDAY PARADE

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £18

Emo rockers hit the road, strained vocals all well and in place.

LISBON

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7

Whitley Bay four-piece who’ve supported the likes of Eliza and the Bear and Little Comets.

AUGUSTANA

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £8

American alt-rock group fronted

by Dan Layus.

Thu 04 Feb SMASH WILLIAMS

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £5

All-new collab project from members of Frightened Rabbit/ French Wives: Gordon Skene and Stuart Dougan.

AUTOBAHN

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £6

Leeds ragers Autobahn dose up a Sneaky’s audience with a big pile of post punk and gothy rock.

HELM (DREW MCDOWELL)

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £8 - £10

London-based sound artist and experimental musician Luke Younger (aka Helm), adept at working with a vast array of revolving instrumentation and abstract sound sources.

SOULFLY

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £16

The Phoenix metallers continue to channel unbridled rage through a cacophony of thrash guitars, grooves, tribal polyrhythms and Max Cavalera’s thunderous roar.

Fri 05 Feb

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: MOZART PIANO CONCERTO NO 25

CITY HALLS, 19:30–22:00, £29

Young Swiss pianist Francesco Piemontesi joins the SCO for two contrasting piano concertos by Mozart: the grand No 25 in C Major and the ‘Coronation’ Concerto No 26 in D. NME AWARDS TOUR 2016

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £25

DIRTY SIRENS

Zero tolerance full-throttle hip-hop.

Sat 06 Feb

RSNO: THE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12.50

The RSNO pay tribute to composer John Williams – y’know, he of the 21 Grammys, seven BAFTAs, five Oscars, four Golden Globes and three Emmys... and the Jaws theme tune!

TESSERACT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £13

Prog-metal from the musical hotspot that is, yep, none other than Milton Keynes.

THE BLIND SHAKE

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £7

Minneapolis punk rockers fronted by brothers Jim and Mike Blaha.

KEVIN MONTGOMERY

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £14

Country, folk and rock-styled acoustic US singer/songwriter.

MISS THE OCCUPIER (BRATAKUS + ERU) 13TH NOTE, 20:00–23:30, £5

The punk-inflected Glasgow popsters continue to blast Sister-era Sonic Youth through ace girl group melodies.

THIS FEELING (THE AMAZONS)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £6

The London rock’n’roll night takes a trip north with a selection of live bands taking to the stage.

Sun 07 Feb ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £8

The American musician, known as one half of indie outfit The Fiery Furnaces alongside her brother, hits the UK gig circuit in support of her third album, New View.

Mon 08 Feb SUEDE

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, £26.50

The Brett Anderson-led alternative rockers continue to ride the wave of their reunion.

BASEMENT

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £14

English rock unit who returned from brief hiatus in 2014.

ULRIKA SPACEK

NME host their annual showcase tour of the most exciting emergent talent around – in their eyes anyway – with Drenge, Rat Boy and Bugzy Malone on’t bill, topped off by a headline set from Bloc Party.

The Berlin-formed experimental rock lot give their debut LP a live airing.

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £14

New York-based Norwegian artist of the dreamy acoustica variety.

YOUTH LAGOON (PIXX)

Solo project of minimal musician, Trevor Powers, making sense of his mind through music.

February 2016

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

OKAY KAYA

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £6

Tue 09 Feb TOGETHER PANGEA

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £8

LA-based rock troupe out airing their new EP The Phage.

JARROD DICKENSON (ALEX CORNISH)

STAR ROVER

MONEY

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS , 19:30–23:00, £5

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £10

The fuzzy pop troupe launch their first EP with help from pals Depeche Choad and Facial Slurs.

EVIL BLOOD + SCUMPULSE + GASTAVONA

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Punk veterans Evil Blood are joined by locals ScumPulse and thee piece metal monsters Gastanova.

JUNIOR BOYS + JESSY LANZA

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £7.50

Texas-born singer/songwriter of the folksy variety.

A double-whammy of Canadian talent with electropopper two piece Junior Boys and and Grimesesque synthpop artist Jessy Lanza.

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £10

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, TBC

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £10

LE1F

THE GAME

Manhattanite rapper Le1f (born Khalif Diouf) is all kinds of eclectic.

A ballet and modern dance graduate, producer, ‘Hoodrat Tumblr aesthetic’ icon and elegant MC – Le1f’s sure to drum up quite the atmosphere when he stops by in Stereo this Feb.

After releasing his debut effort over ten years ago, The Game is back to share the fruits The Documentary 2. Three whole discs full of it.

Wed 10 Feb

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

HOWARD JONES

ORAN MOR, 19:30–22:00, £22.50

The synth-pop master draws on his back catalogue, including renowned albums Human’s Lib and Dream Into Action.

GREG DULLI

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £20

An evening with American rock musician Greg Dulli, known for his work in The Afghan Whigs, The Twilght Singers and The Gutter Twins.

SONS OF ICARUS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £10

The Guilford foursome bring their Kerrang!-approved blend of riffage and old school rock.

TARIBOWEST

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

Catch the much-loved ambassadors for the world of post-rock, new wave and math.

Thu 11 Feb RUNRIG

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, FROM 19:00, £26 - £28.50

The Skye band of rockers return to the live stage in celebration of the release of their new LP The Story.

HURTS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £18.5

Synthpop duo made up of Theo Hutchcraft and Adam Anderson.

NZCA/LINES

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £7

Michael Lovett’s beat-heavy alter ego, lynchpinned on his distinctive robo-like vocals.

REMEMBERING JOONE

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £6.50

Indie rock-meets-indie pop, with a bit of country thrown in for good measure.

ANCHOR LANE + DEAF RAKKET + GUESTS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, £5

Local indie boys Anchor Lane play on home turf with rock’n’roll genre-benders Deaf Rakket.

Fri 12 Feb

Sat 13 Feb

RSNO: RACHMANINOV’S SECOND PIANO

THE BLACK TAMBOURINES (WARM BRAINS)

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £6.50

Cornish quartet channeling ‘ocean rock’ sounds from their Falmouth hometown.

WILEY

SWG3 GLASGOW, 22:00–03:00, £10 - £20

The Godfather of UK grime headlines the Elektrical Sound System launch party.

POP!SOUTH WEEKENDER

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £22

Enveloping your weekend in indie-pop loveliness, Southside gig promoters Pop!South take to the (firmly Southside) Glad Cafe digs for three days of musical hijinks, taking in Trust Fund, Breakfast Muff, Duglas T Stewart and more.

Little Lucy Spraggan, of X Factor fame, now a fully fledged touring musician making ‘flop’ – that’s folk meets hip-hop for the uninitiated.

LITTLE SIMZ

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £8

Experimental English rapper with high profile fanz including Kendrick Lamar and Jay Z. KULA SHAKER

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £22

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £12

THE KERRANG! TOUR 2016

Sum 41 headline the celebration of scuzz and rock horns.

PINS

WILLIAM MCCARTHY

The Augustines chappie holds fort for an evening of stories and songs.

HEATERS (ELECTRIC GARDENS + LYLO) BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £7

Combining an output of ‘reverb coated, fuzz studded, hard driven garage psych’ with a kaleidoscopic, hip-shaking live set, Heaters are quickly forging something new and exciting.

DAMN TEETH + MASSA CONFUSA + CASUAL THREATS + HEAD ROOM

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, £5

A night of post-punk from Damn Teeth and their Geordie support acts Massa Confusa and Casual Threats.

THE OLIFANT COLLECTIVE + ESPERI

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

Classical training meets modern pop sensibilities, resulting in adventurous experimental minimalism.

Thu 18 Feb ALLISON WEISS

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £8

LA-based singer-songwriter known for using Kickstarter before it was cool, who’s now onto her third album.

ENTER SHIKARI

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £23.50

More in the way of new-wave, post-hardcore politicking from the St Albans quartet.

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

Mancunian post-punk quartet currently living out their love of the C86 sound.

JACK ROWBERRY (MESMERENE + THE LABEL + BETTY’S CLUB)

Buy your tickets here: bit.ly/grimes-glasgow

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £6 - £7

BAT BIKE

Experimental ensemble whose recruits stretch from central belt Scotland to South East London, out launching their new LP. THE AUSTINS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £6.50

The Motherwell Americana rockers take to the stage with their current line-up.

FUZZKILL ALL DAYER (FRUIT TONES + HALFRICAN + SWEATY PALMS + THE BELLYBUTTONS + BREAKFAST MUFF + MORE) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 17:00–23:00, £6

Fuzzkill get all warm and, er, fuzzy, at the release of their love-cover compilation album Under The Covers Vol. 2. Cute.

Sun 14 Feb

THE WORLD IS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE & I AM NO LONGER AFRAID TO DIE O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £10

THE CROOKES

Jangly guitar-led pop outfit from Sheffield, who take to the stage in support of latest LP Lucky Ones.

PARKWAY DRIVE

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 18:00–22:00, £21.50

Byron Bay hardcore metal quintet. !!!

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, 19:00–22:00, £11

Dance-punk outfit from Sacramento, pronounced ‘chk chk chk’ (for those that don’t speak exclamation mark.)

GUN OUTFIT (EARTHS + JAMES MICHAEL RODGERS)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

Modest LA rock ‘n’ roll from a group of art film lovers and makers, driven by a moody, lo-fi Americana sound that also works well for fans of Sonic Youth.

Bedford-based alternative rock foursome.

GUTSHOT FOR BROADWAY + KAPAULDIE’S GARAGE + THE USUAL + THE BURNT BRIDGES NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, £7

A quadruple bill of indie rock’n’roll.

LUCIENSGHOST

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, TBC

After the summertime release of their Strange Places ep, this Glasgow / Moniaive fivesome are on home turf performing a ditty or two for your eyes only. Well, and the rest of the audience’s too.

WHERE YOU’RE MEANT TO BE (AIDAN MOFFAT + BAND)

BARROWLANDS, 19:30–20:45, £7.50 - £9.50

A screening of Paul Fegan’s film about Moffat’s quest to rewrite folk songs from his country’s past, complemented by performances from Moffat, his band, and a miscellany of other musicians featured in the movie.

Sat 20 Feb

RSNO: OUNDJIAN CONDUCTS THE SEA

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

Grimes O2 ABC, Glasgow, Sun 13 Mar, 7pm, £17

Tue 16 Feb

EDINBURGH QUARTET: STORM AND STRESS

CITY HALLS, 19:30–22:00, £15 (£12)

The local quartet performs a typical Sturm und Drang work by Haydn, alongside masterworks inspired by extremes of expression

by Bartók and Grieg.

STICK TO YOUR GUNS

CLASSIC GRAND, 18:30–22:00, £15

California quintet doing that hardcore thing led by the scratchy vocals of Jesse Barnett.

GOGO PENGUIN

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00, £15

Acoustic-electronica trio from Manchester recently signed to France’s Blue Note Records.

THE HUMMINGBIRDS

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £5

Six lads from Liverpool blending Merseybeat heritage with folky rhythms.

TELEGRAM

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £7

The psych-pop London foursome do their thing.

MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £22

Welsh songbird/sass-pot Marina Lambrini Diamandis plays another night for her fans (or as she affectionately refers to them, her ‘diamonds’), knocking out the new-wave pop hits in support of her latest record, Froot.

BRETT ELDREDGE

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £13.50

Get a dose of country-strumming and spend the evening with Brett Eldredge, who’s bringing his second album Illinois to ABC this Feb. CAGE THE ELEPHANT

QUEEN MARGARET UNION, FROM 19:00, £15

The Kentucky rockers follow up 2013’s Melophobia with their fourth studio album, Tell Me I’m Pretty, produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and The Arcs.

ROSIE LOWE BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £8

The London songstress plays a set of new material.

THE HIGH FLIGHT LIVE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, £5

Skimming the cream of Glasgae’s finest musical, comedy and poetry talent.

TUMFY & THE DEECERS

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £6

‘Proper-pop’ artists from Peebles Tumfy & the Deecers host a festival themed party in Stereo, complete with facepainting, tinnies and ponchos. They’re expecting rain, it seems?

Ohio-born synthpop duo on the Fueled by Ramen roster.

MYSTERY JETS (JOHNNY LLOYD)

THE ART SCHOOL, 19:00–22:30, £14.50

The London indie-pop quintet tour their most recent LP.

PYRAMIDS + RISING PACIFIC + BLACKBEAR DELAWARE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, £5

Are you seeking unhyphenated rock? Not post-rock nor prog-rock nor rock-rock but plain ol’ properstuff rock? Cool, this one’s for you.

HIGHLIFE: LATIN AMERICAN ESPACIEL (HIGHLIFE)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £5

The globe-trotting Highlife have just returned from a trip to South America, and are throwing an extra special Latin American-themed shindig at The Art School. Expect the best sonic stimulation from the Southern Hemisphere and a heap of awesome footage.

VOICE OF THE EAGLE: THE ENIGMA OF ROBBIE BASHO (BARDS OF CALEDON & OTHER LANDS) THE GLAD CAFE, 19:00–20:20, £7.50 - £9.50

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £6

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £18

The blue-haired electro-pop songstress tours in support of her debut album, Badlands.

ALISTAIR GRIFFIN

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £7.50

The traditional folk artist goes on tour with a host of new songs to boot.

JULIA HOLTER

SWG3 GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £16.50

The LA-based musician again displays her gift for merging high concept, compositional prowess and experimentation with pop sensibility. Go marvel.

SPACEHEADS (HOWIE REEVE + RAFE FITZPATRICK)

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £7 - £9

Experimental duo consisting of Andy Diagram’s hotwired trumpet and Richard Harrison’s drums, percussion and bent metal sheets, accompanied by Rucksack cinema’s live imagery.

Swirly psychedelia and funtime jazz-chords from six piece Big Hogg and the wonderfully titled Sloth Metropolis.

RALLY & BROAD: THE AMPERSAND SESSIONS (EMMA POLLOCK + MALACHY TALLACK & CHRISSY BARNACLE + JENNY LINDSAY & HEIR OF THE CURSED + KATIE AILES & CATHERINE WILSON)

STEREO, 14:30–17:30, £5 - £6

An eve of musical and poetic sessions which is named after a typographical symbol – what a treat. Catch Rally & Broad’s latest, featuring a handsome lineup of musicians, poets and authors with one thing in common –their appreciation of the ‘&’ symbol.

HINDS

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £10

Mon 22 Feb

TWENTY ONE PILOTS

Fri 19 Feb HALSEY

BIG HOGG + SLOTH METROPOLIS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 20:00–22:00, TBC

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £16.50

The monthly curators of the handsomest punk, rock and noise party get Bloc set for a bit of a hell-raiser.

REPEATER

BITE

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £6

The scuzzy Glasgow lot launch their debut EP of no wave glitter rock.

Spaniard badasses HINDS (formerly known as Deers) bring an absolute treat consisting of indie-rock and lo fi garage to Stereo.

The Glad Café screens film-maker Liam Barker’s exploration of underground folk visionary Robbie Basho’s life. Seasoned with live spoken word and musical performances from Gavin Sutherland (aka Fudge Fingas) and Drew Wright of Wounded Knee.

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

London-based foursome bringing the noise with their howlin’ mix of psychedelia, complete with dubtinged rhythm section.

Peter Oundjian and the RSNO take on Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No1 A Sea Symphony.

All-day charity danceathon with live music from The Shiverin Sheiks, Disco Shark and All Star Band (a Scottish supergroup featuring members of Belle & Sebastian, Teenage Fanclub and The Wellgreen), plus myriad DJs.

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £22

THE FLYING DUCK, 19:00–03:00, £6

SAVAGES THE ART SCHOOL, 19:00–23:00, £17.50

THE FLYING DUCK, 15:00–03:00, £5 - £15

POP!SOUTH WEEKENDER

Enveloping your weekend in indie-pop loveliness, Southside gig promoters Pop!South take to the (firmly Southside) Glad Cafe digs for three days of musical hijinks, taking in Trust Fund, Breakfast Muff, Duglas T Stewart and more.

THE WHOLLS KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £9

DANCEATHON FOR SARCOMA (THE SHIVERIN SHEIKS + DISCO SHARK + ALL STAR BAND)

The young blues guitar singer/ songwriter plays a trademark acoustic set.

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £8

The rambling folk singer, who walked over 500 miles along England’s south coast with a guitar on his back, heads back out on the road for a series of new dates.

LUCY SPRAGGAN

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £12

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £18.50

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £8

WILL VARLEY

Mon 15 Feb

The Crispian Mills-fronted postBritpoppers make their comeback with a European tour.

The Oxford rock ensemble tour their new LP, What Went Down, which reached #3 in them there charts, no less.

FOALS

POP!SOUTH WEEKENDER

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00, £18 - £22

Enveloping your weekend in indie-pop loveliness, Southside gig promoters Pop!South take to the (firmly Southside) Glad Cafe digs for three days of musical hijinks, taking in Trust Fund, Breakfast Muff, Duglas T Stewart and more.

Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto forms the heart of the RSNO’s special Valentine's concert.

Gird your angst-loins for a doublewhammy serving of experimental rock and post-rock from the concisely named *deep breath* The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die and mewithoutyou. Aaaand, exhale.

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £19.50 - £29.50

The Manchester outfit, signed to Bella Union, take to the road for a UK and European tour in support of second LP Suicide Songs.

Wed 17 Feb

NORTH ATLAS

If you’re into your Clyro and Nine Inch Nails, get yourself to Stereo for a slammer of a show from North Atlas that’ll leave your ears ringing with joy.

Sun 21 Feb TONIGHT ALIVE

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £15

Aussie rock ensemble led by ballsy young songstress Jenna McDougall and her inimitable soaring contralto.

THE JAPANESE HOUSE (ISAAC GRACIE)

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £8

Dark and dreamy synth-heavy soundscapes from the 20-year-old solo artist less cryptically known as Amber Bain.

ROB HERON AND THE TEA PAD ORCHESTRA

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £8

Western swing, blues, gypsy jazz and country from the Newcastlebased band.

JESSE MALIN (TRAPPER SCHOEPP + DON DILEGO)

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12

New York singer/songwriter who began playing live at the tender age of twelve, in seminal hardcore band Heart Attack.

Tue 23 Feb BAIO

KING TUT’S, 20:30–23:00, £12

American singer/songwriter (aka Chris Baio), best known for being the bassist for the New York City-based indie rockers Vampire Weekend.

JUSTHOPE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, £6

Get all exalted and whatnot at a night of big belter pop-rock with Justhope.

SWEET CREEPS

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

Widely tipped native garage outfit Sweet Creeps swing by with some special guests.

Wed 24 Feb CITY AND COLOUR

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £25

Canadian Dallas Green’s alter ego, under which he makes some rather lovely acoustic folk rock sounds.

Support from the equally lovely Lucy Rose.

THE SHERLOCKS (APRIL)

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £7

Sheffield indie-rock unit made up of two sets of brothers.

GIRLS NAMES

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

Moody Irish post-punkers in possession of a new LP. MICHAEL HEAD AND THE RED ELASTIC BAND

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00, £15

Former Shack man out on the road with his new band.

WHERE YOU’RE MEANT TO BE (AIDAN MOFFAT)

BARROWLANDS, 13:00–14:15, £7.50 - £9.50

A screening of Paul Fegan’s film about Moffat’s quest to rewrite folk songs from his country’s past, complemented by performances from Moffat, his band, and a miscellany of other musicians featured in the movie.

POLAR BEARS IN PURGATORY + NORTHERN NIGHTLIGHTS

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

A two-part night of massive choruses destined to tickle the charts.

Thu 25 Feb TOY TIN SOLDIER

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

Joe Gallacher’s amassed group of musicians – a five-piece currently experimenting with Gallacher’s self-penned tracks – out launching their new LP over two consecutive nights (25 & 26 Feb).

Listings

55

THE JOY FORMIDABLE KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £15

Hardworking female-fronted Welsh trio and their atmospheric indie rock, heavy on melody but with plenty of driving, sinewy riffs.

PLAY 2 MUSIC PRESENTS...A NIGHT OF HIP HOP!

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, FREE

Free hip-hop. What’s not to like?

DAN STUART (FERNANDO)

STEREO, 19:30–22:00, £13

The former frontman of 80s post-punk country-rock group Green on Red tours his most recent solo material.

STRETCHED

BLOC+, 21:30–23:00, FREE

Your monthly home of everything progressive jazz and post-rock.

Fri 26 Feb RUDIMENTAL

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £29.50

The Hackney-based quartet hit the road armed with their newest LP, blending drum and bass with souldrenched lyrics along the way.

TOY TIN SOLDIER

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8

Joe Gallacher’s amassed group of musicians – a five-piece currently experimenting with Gallacher’s self-penned tracks – out launching their new LP over two consecutive nights (25 & 26 Feb).

WILSON

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £7

The Detroit hellraisers head our way, promising more in the way of ‘fuckery, rock’n’roll and all round good times’, which is nice.

DEADLY INSCRIPTION (DANCING WITH DAKOTA + RARE BREED)

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £6.50

High-energy UK metallers formed back in 2006 by guitarist Ryan Peacock and drummer Colin Campbell.

PUP

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, TBC

Word has it, this Toronto-born punk rock band takes its name from an acronym meaning Pathetic Use of Potential. We hope that’s not true.

STILLMARILLION

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £10

StillMarillion swing by their hometown to play a full performance of Misplaced Childhood as part of their 30th birthday festivities.

Sun 28 Feb THEORY OF A DEADMAN

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £15

The Canadian rockers make a headline return to the UK and are anticipating, in their own words, ‘a crackin’ good time’. We’ll take their word for it too, thank you very much.

BARNS COURTNEY

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:00, £6

The singer-songwriter tours his latest album, Glitter and Gold, following support slots for the likes of Ed Sheeran and The Libertines with his approachable blues rock.

FLOWERS

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00, £6

The Fortuna POP!-signed trio return with their second LP Everybody’s Dying to Meet You. FUFANU

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, TBC

Icelandic rock’n’roll with roots reaching out into techno, for your auditory pleasure.

DMA’S

STEREO, 19:00–22:00, £7

Garage music straight from the heart of Newtown. (No, not Edinburgh’s bourgie hub of vegandom – we mean the Newtown in Sydney. Silly.)

BARONESS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £14

US-of-A hailing heavy metallers, traversing the line intelligently between melodic and ferocious.

Mon 29 Feb SUNDARA KARMA

KING TUT’S, 20:00–23:00, £8

Reading indie mob with a fresh and euphoric take on guitar rock.

ADEM

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £8.50

Founding member of pioneering post-rock band Fridge, now a solo maestro in his own right

Edinburgh Music Mon 01 Feb ARMIDA QUARTET

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:45–22:00, FROM £13

LUCKY STAR (LIVE SCORE – ELA ORLEANS)

Young Berlin-based string quartet, and indeed the only string quartet to have been included in the BBC's prestigious New Generation Artists series for 2014-16.

MACKINTOSH CHURCH, 19:00–21:10, £10 - £12

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £16.50

GABRIELLE APLIN

Warm your wintered soul with a screening of WW1 tragic-romance flick Lucky Star, complete with a specially commissioned live score performed by vocalist and composer Ela Orleans.

Experimental musician working her magic over the folk-pop template, all hints of choirs and twinkly noises.

Sat 27 Feb

Pretty much what it says on the tin: a showcase evening from The Academy of Music and Sound, picked from their many music courses that run across the city.

RSNO: RACHMANINOV’S THIRD PIANO CONCERTO

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

The RSNO take in a programme including Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No 3.

FUN LOVIN CRIMINALS

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £24

Huey Lewis and his NYC hip-hop/ rock ensemble descend, hopefully minus the mug-smashing.

ANDERSON .PAAK & THE FREE NATIONALS

O2 ABC, 19:00–22:00, £12.50

American rapper, producer and generally cool human Anderson .Paak trades in the California rays for a trip to our gloomy Glasgae.

Bringing with him a slice of sun to accompany his latest album, Malibu, we hope.

BROWNBEAR

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00, £6

Ayrshire foursome of the alternative indie variety.

MARC EVANS + BLACK AND WHITE BOY

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 19:30–22:00, £5

Buckley-esque Marc Evans strums your soul back to health, with support from Glasgow alt-folkies Black & White Boy HOLY SMOKIN’ SWAMP BOOGIE

STEREO, 23:00–03:00, £7

Special night of live music, records and visual delights to keep you swaying into the night.

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Listings

ACADEMY OF MUSIC AND SOUND SHOWCASE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 18:00–22:00, TBC

Tue 02 Feb

KITTY, DAISY AND LEWIS

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £12

Talented sibling ensemble encompassing a mixed bag of musical influences, from country to rock’n’roll.

Thu 04 Feb

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: MOZART PIANO CONCERTO NO 25

USHER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £11

Young Swiss pianist Francesco Piemontesi joins the SCO for two contrasting piano concertos by Mozart: the grand No 25 in C Major and the ‘Coronation’ Concerto No 26 in D.

Fri 05 Feb LISBON

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £60 - £6

Whitley Bay four-piece who’ve supported the likes of Eliza and the Bear and Little Comets.

MO KENNEY (SNOWGOOSE)

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, £16

The Canadian singer/songwriter plays a set of hits.

Edinburgh Music RSNO: THE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS USHER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £15

The RSNO pay tribute to composer John Williams – y’know, he of the 21 Grammys, seven BAFTAs, five Oscars, four Golden Globes and three Emmys... and the Jaws theme tune!

ROTUNDA + ANGRY ITCH (HAPPY SPASTICS + CRITIKILL + SUNDAY PUNK CLUB)

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £6

An invasion of Birmingham punk, with a few locals on support.

BRONSTON (KEITH STOCKLESS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

Bronston, a groovy new four-piece hailing from Edinburghian turf bring alt rock tracks to Sneaky’s ahead of their official launch, with support from Keith Stockless.

Sat 06 Feb

FAIRPORT CONVENTION (ROGER DAVIES)

Wed 10 Feb

Sat 13 Feb

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £5

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £TBC

THE GRACIOUS ATTEMPT

XSM

Glasgow indie-folk duo made up of Gemma Matthews on keyboard/ vocals and Ciaran Boyle on guitar/ vocals.

Ex-Simple Minds drummer Brian McGee and 80s singer Owen Paul team up to play classic Simple Minds hits.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7.25

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £23.50 - £28.5

LANCASTER

Not exactly what they say on the tin, this rock band is actually a Barcelona export. But, after recently relocating to the UK, they’re swinging by Sneaky’s to dip in Auld Reekie’s crowds.

Thu 11 Feb

RUNRIG

The Skye band of rockers return to the live stage in celebration of the release of their new LP The Story.

JEFF FINLIN

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 20:00–01:00, £13

US singer/songwriter with a distinctive gravelly voice.

THE VALVEETAHS (BIRDHEAD)

WILL VARLEY

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £8

The rambling folk singer, who walked over 500 miles along England’s south coast with a guitar on his back, heads back out on the road for a series of new dates.

The Edinburgh ensemble play a special Valentines gig.

THE HELLFIRE CLUB

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £5

Glasgow’s own Americana collective play an unplugged mix of covers and original songs.

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, £21

The longtime British folk-rockers draw on classic songs old and new, on the go now for nearly 50 years.

SUNFLOWER BEAN SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7.50

The low-slung psyche punk band that had Brooklyn in a spin in 2015 finally make it to Scottish shores.

Tue 16 Feb

HEATERS (HALFRICAN + ZED PENGUIN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

Combining an output of ‘reverb coated, fuzz studded, hard driven garage psych’ with a kaleidoscopic, hip-shaking live set, Heaters are quickly forging something new and exciting. Support from Halfrican and Zed Penguin.

Wed 17 Feb

EDINBURGH QUARTET: STORM AND STRESS

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, £15 (£12)

The local quartet performs a typical Sturm und Drang work by Haydn, alongside masterworks inspired by extremes of expression

by Bartók and Grieg.

JESS GLYNNE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £18.50

The wild-haired British singer/ songwriter heads out on tour, following a chart-topping 2015.

JAMMIN’ AT VOODOO (PETER BRUNTENELL)

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

RALLY & BROAD: THE AMPERSAND SESSIONS (BELLA & THE BEAR + MIRACLE GLASS COMPANY + HAILEY BEAVIS & FAITH ELIOTT + RACHEL MCCRUM & JONATHAN LAMY + RUSSELL JONES & ATZI MURAMATSU) THE BONGO CLUB, 19:30–22:00, £5 - £6

An eve of musical and poetic sessions which is named after a typographical symbol – what a treat. Catch Rally & Broad’s latest, featuring a handsome lineup of musicians, poets and authors with one thing in common –their appreciation of the ‘&’ symbol.

Sat 20 Feb SHUGGIE OTIS

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £20

Rhythm and blues legend, playing a rare spate of shows with his new band.

JULIA HOLTER

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £18.50

The LA-based musician plays the latest installment of Summerhall’s Nothing Ever Happens Here gig series, displaying her gift for merging high concept, compositional prowess and experimentation with pop sensibility. Go marvel.

BLACK CAT BONE (NORMAN SILVER AND THE GOLD + LOGANS CLOSE)

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £7

Monthly live jam with some of Scotland’s leading musicians playing lounge grooves of various genres.

The Edinburgh-based blues/ swamp/rock ensemble play a hometown set.

Scottish acoustic rockers infusing their sound with blues and soul, out launching their new LP Yardbird.

Thu 18 Feb

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

The experimental locals launch their new EP Lost in A Lonely Crowd.

The intrepid musical explorers perform a special set of new and old tracks as part of their 20th birthday celebrations.

Warming electronic drones courtesy of Norwegian/ Danish experimental artists Sindre Bjerga and Claus Poulson’s latest project.

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £6 - £8

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £5

THE RISING SOULS (SCOTT MCWATT + LUNIR + ANTON AND THE COLTS)

Buy your tickets here: bit.ly/steve-mason-liquid-room

THE CAVES, 20:00–00:00, £10

MR MCFALL’S CHAMBER: ALL OF THE ABOVE

ROUX (WREST)

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, £14 (£12)

YORKSHIRE RATS (SIMON PATCHETT)

SALTWATER INJECTION

Indelirium Records-signed chaps straddling the line between punk and rock’n’roll.

COLLAR UP (ERRANT BOY + THE BLET PROJECT)

Steve Mason

Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Tue 26 Apr, 7pm, £20

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, 19:00–23:00, £7

The dream-pop lot play their final gig as a band, supported by street songsters Errant Boy and fledgling electro pop outfit The Blet Project.

Sun 07 Feb JOE JACKSON

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:00–22:00, FROM £25

STAR ROVER

LITTLE COMETS

THE BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 19:30–22:30, £5

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, TBC

The fuzzy pop troupe launch their first EP with help from pals Depeche Choad and Facial Slurs.

PIANO FLAMENCO

The Grammy-winning singer/ songwriter celebrates the release of his first studio album in seven years by touring the US and the UK playing new and old material, solo and with a new band.

Spanish flamenco pianist and singer Eduardo Florido heads out on tour with a variety of muscial accompaniment.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £10 - £12

AUTOBAHN

Leeds ragers Autobahn dose up a Sneaky’s audience with a big pile of post punk and gothy rock.

Mon 08 Feb BOB MOULD

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £TBC

Alternative San Fransiscoan rocker (and one time Hüsker Dü and Sugar man), out and touring his latest solo LP. PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £20

Experimental duo made up of J. Willgood Esq and his drumming companion Wrigglesworth, sampling old public information films and archive material and setting them to new music.

SOUNDHOUSE @ TRAVERSE THEATRE

TRAVERSE THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £11

Continuing its weekly residency at Traverse Theatre, departed Edinburgh music venue Soundhouse hosts the latest in its gig series helping raise funds for The Soundhouse Organisation.

ALEX CORNISH + JARROD DICKENSON

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £10

Edinburgh singer/songwriter of the effortlessly laid-back DIY folkpop songs, playing a joint headline set with NY singer/songwriter Jarrod Dickenson.

ACADEMY OF MUSIC AND SOUND SHOWCASE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 18:00–22:00, TBC

Pretty much what it says on the tin: a showcase evening from The Academy of Music and Sound, picked from their many music courses that run across the city.

JAZZ BAR, 19:00–22:00, £4 - £5

RICHIE RAMONE (KLAMMER + BUZZBOMB)

Punk legend best known for being the drummer for the Ramones.

ELIZA AND THE BEAR

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £10

Five piece euphoric indie pop/ rock lot hailing from London and featuring neither Eliza, nor indeed a bear.

Fri 12 Feb

MIKE MCGEARY AND FRIENDS

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, £12

Edinburgh guitarist Mike McGeary returns to The Queen’s Hall to lead a talented band from across Scotland. Profits go to Nordoff Robbins Scotland.

RSNO: RACHMANINOV’S SECOND PIANO

USHER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto forms the heart of the RSNO’s special Valentine's concert.

FATHERSON

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £TBC

The Kilmarnock trio do their alternative rock-meets-powerpop thing.

EDINBURGH BLUES CLUB (DANNY BRYANT + RED BUTLER)

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:15–01:00, £14

Regular blues club taking in touring blues acts from the UK and beyond.

LUCY SPRAGGAN

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, FROM 19:00, TBC

Little Lucy Spraggan, of X Factor fame, now a fully fledged touring musician making ‘flop’ – that’s folk meets hip-hop for the uninitiated.

BILLY BIBBY

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:30–22:00, £7 - £9

The former Catfish and the Bottlemen guitarist eases into his solo career with a headline show.

Kitchen sink-styled indie-rock quartet led by the dynamic Robert Coles.

REBEL WESTERNS (THE ANGLES + THE NORTHERN + THE SNUTS)

Thrash punk duo whose motto is ‘Life ain’t new, punk is you, spunk on me, I’ll spunk on you!’.

THE GOOD LIFE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £9

Indie rock from the Omaha fourpiece, who tour following last summer’s release of their first LP in eight years, Everybody’s Coming Down.

Fri 19 Feb

RSNO: OUNDJIAN CONDUCTS THE SEA

USHER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Peter Oundjian and the RSNO take on Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No1 A Sea Symphony.

Sun 14 Feb

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £TBC

Av a gander as What's The Noise shows off the best of their local talent.

TIGERCATS (CHORUSGIRL + NICE CHURCH)

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £6

Making music that apparently stems from the weird collision point between Half Japanese, Daniel Johnston, Hefner, Prince and Orange Juice. Go figure.

JOURNALS, MAPS, STORIES AND SONGS (WILLIAM MCCARTHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

Billy McCarthy, charismatic frontman of Brooklyn's Augustines has been touring around the world over the past five years.

His band is revered for their high energy, intensely visceral live performances.

Mon 15 Feb CATTLE AND CANE

BOY AND BEAR

Sydney-based indie quintet deftly mixing driving indie-folk sounds with dainty choral harmonies.

WALK THE MOON

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £16.50

The Cincinnati lyrical indie lot come to the UK to cheer us all with their upbeat anthems.

ENTER SHIKARI

CORN EXCHANGE, FROM 19:00, £23.50

More in the way of new-wave, post-hardcore politicking from the St Albans quartet.

BOY & BEAR

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £13.50

Sydney-based indie quintet deftly mixing driving indie-folk sounds with dainty choral harmonies.

VIKING SKULL (ELECTRIC MOTHER + GAREEDA) BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £8 - £10

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £7

Heavy-styled rock outfit led by vocalist Roddy Stone, out playing a series of intimate dates.

SUSAN TOMES + ERICH HÖBARTH: GLORIOUS SCHUBERT

The Glasgow electro pop newcomers take to the stage, having just won the Best Breakthrough Act at the recent Nordoff Robbins Scotland Music Awards.

Life-affirming indie-folk from the Teeside five-piece, made up of members of the prodigious Hamill family, plus Tom Chapman on drums.

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £15 (£12)

Following their performance of an all-Schubert programme at the Wigmore Hall in 2015, Tomes and Höbarth bring their ‘Glorious Schubert’ programme our way.

SOUNDHOUSE @ TRAVERSE THEATRE

TRAVERSE THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £11

Continuing its weekly residency at Traverse Theatre, departed Edinburgh music venue Soundhouse hosts the latest in its gig series helping raise funds for The Soundhouse Organisation.

WHITE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £7

RUMBLE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, £5

50s rock’n’roll, disco, dirty blues and more, plus live midnight sets from local acts.

TIME FOR LOVE WEEKENDER: PART 2 (THE WINACHI TRIBE + WOLVES UK) LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £8

The Time For Love weekender rolls around for a second outing, this time with guests The Winachi Tribe and Wolves UK in tow.

STAR TURBINE

THE SAFARI LOUNGE, 19:30–23:00, £5

MINNIE + CARBONA NOT GLUE

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £5

Mixed bag of alternative and punk tune-makers.

JESSE MALIN

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, FROM 19:00, £12

New York singer/songwriter who began playing live at the tender age of twelve, in seminal hardcore band Heart Attack.

THE YOUTH AND YOUNG

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £8

The Scottish noisy folk lot celebrate the release of our new LP Gestures.

Sun 21 Feb GRETCHEN PETERS

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £20

The honey-toned American singer/ songwriter does her countrified folk thing, out marking the 20th anniversary of her first LP, The Secret Of Life, and her first UK tour performing in small venues to audiences of 30-40 people.

CJ WILDHEART (VH YES + AC RID)

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £10 - £12

The Wildhearts guitarist plays a full band set to welcome his new solo LP into the world.

Mon 22 Feb

SOUNDHOUSE @ TRAVERSE THEATRE

TRAVERSE THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £11

Continuing its weekly residency at Traverse Theatre, departed Edinburgh music venue Soundhouse hosts the latest in its gig series helping raise funds for The Soundhouse Organisation.

TUFF LOVE (THE PRETTIOTS)

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £8 - £10

Female-fronted trio of the fuzzy lo-fi guitar pop variety, built on wispy soft vocals and loud instruments, stopping by to play the latest installment of Summerhall’s Nothing Ever Happens Here gig series.

DEVON ALLMAN

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £12.75

Songwriter, keyboard player and guitarist, also known as the founder and bandleader of Honeytribe.

Tue 23 Feb GIRLS NAMES

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £9

Moody Irish post-punkers in possession of a new LP. CREEPER

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

The recent Funeral For A Friend supports play a solo set.

Wed 24 Feb

DUNEDIN CONSORT: BACH AND HANDEL

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £20 (£9)

Soprano Sophie Bevan joins the Dunedin Consort for a programme of Bach and Handel favourites.

DEVILSKIN (SKARLETT RIOT)

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £7 - £9

The NZ-based multi-platinum sellers hit Scotland for first time.

THE WAVE PICTURES (NICE CHURCH)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8 - £10

6Music favourites and trio of indie-rockers hit the road in support of their latest release, the formidably-titled, vinyl-only album, A Season in Hull. Support from lo-fi bargain basement jammers Nice Church.

Thu 25 Feb HECTOR BIZERK

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £10

Much-lauded Glasgow-based alternative hip-hop duo made up of Louie and Audrey, MC and drummer respectively, out playing the latest installment of Summerhall’s Nothing Ever Happens Here gig series.

AMY DUNCAN

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £6

The emotive Edinburgh songstress launches her new LP Undercurrents.

I.C.O.N. (THE HERETIC ORDER)

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £6 - £8

The heavy metal unit make a return trip to Bannermans.

CLICK CLACK CLUB

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, 19:00–22:00, £4 - £6

Experimental monthly music club bringing the good times with their Beefheart-inspired funk and special guests.

YOUTH CLUB

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £7

The up-and-coming Southend-onSea-based indie-pop troupe head our way.

Fri 26 Feb

SCOTTISH NATIONAL JAZZ ORCHESTRA + MIKE STERN

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £20 (£18)

Multi-faceted guitarist Mike Stern joins the energetic jazz ensemble for a special programme of contemporary big band music.

RSNO: RACHMANINOV’S THIRD PIANO CONCERTO

USHER HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £12

The RSNO take in a programme including Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No 3.

JOHN MCCUSKER + MICHAEL MCGOLDRICK + JOHN DOYLE

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £16

Three members of the BBC acclaimed Transatlantic Sessions play Summerhall’s Nothing Ever Happens Here gig series as part of their unique European tour.

SUNK

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £5

Multi-genre mix of of alternative country, rockabilly, blues and folk punk.

WINTER’S END ROCK NIGHT (SHARPSHOOTER + BRAVADO + MOOSEKNUCKLE) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

Celebrate cheaper heating bills and warmer fingers with Sneaky’s as they throw on a celebratory endof-winter night, ft. the tastiest local rock talent.

Sat 27 Feb

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: JOHN STORGARDS CONDUCTS VAUGHAN WILLIAMS SYMPHONY NO 5

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00, FROM £11

The SCO take on one of Vaughan Williams’ most tranquil works, Symphony No 5, amongst other works.

MARION (JENNY VEE + DEGRASSI)

BANNERMANS, 20:00–23:00, £15 - £18

Britpop ensemble formed in 1993, disbanded and then reformed in 2006, and again in 2011 (got that?), now touring with the original lineup, out celebrating 20 years since their debut LP. THE CANDIDATES

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, FREE

More in the way of good ol’ soul, motown and dancefloor classics from the Edinburgh seven-piece.

THE SKINNY

SCUZZ PRESENTS: UK THROWDOWN TOUR 2016 (PRESS TO MECO, ALLUSONDRUGS, MAX RAPTOR) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8.50

Gibson Epiphone / Blackstar sponsored metal tour stops by in Edinburgh to shred the gnar.

BARNS COURTNEY

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £6

The singer-songwriter tours his latest album, Glitter and Gold, following support slots for the likes of Ed Sheeran and The Libertines with his approachable blues rock.

Sun 28 Feb KALIBER 44

THE BONGO CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £20 - £25

The cult Polish hip-hop unit descend, treating punters to a selection of new material.

INGLORIOUS (ALI CLINTON + THE KING LOT)

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £12.50

The British rock troupe descend with their self-titled debut LP.

Mon 29 Feb FICKLE FRIENDS

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 19:00–22:00, £7

80s synth-infused indie pop from Brighton, with frontwoman Natassja Shiner hollering at the helm.

JACK LIEBECK + KATYA APEKISHEVA

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:45–22:00, FROM £13

Chamber musician Jack Liebeck performs a special set with his regular duo partner Katya Apekisheva, inclyuding works by Brahms and Debussy.

SOUNDHOUSE @ TRAVERSE THEATRE

TRAVERSE THEATRE, 20:00–22:00, £11

Continuing its weekly residency at Traverse Theatre, departed Edinburgh music venue Soundhouse hosts the latest in its gig series helping raise funds for The Soundhouse Organisation.

Dundee Music Sun 07 Feb

RSNO: THE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS

CAIRD HALL, 15:00–17:30, £15 - £25

The RSNO pay tribute to composer John Williams – y’know, he of the 21 Grammys, seven BAFTAs, five Oscars, four Golden Globes and three Emmys... and the Jaws theme tune!

Thu 11 Feb FATHERSON

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £10

The Kilmarnock trio do their alternative rock-meets-powerpop thing.

Fri 12 Feb RUNRIG

CAIRD HALL, FROM 19:00, £23.50 - £28.50

The Skye band of rockers return to the live stage in celebration of the release of their new LP The Story.

Sat 13 Feb

MAN MADE ORIGIN (RAMAGE INC + MAELSTROM + DIRTY JUDAS)

BUSKERS, 19:00–22:00, £5

Dundee-based progressive metal quintet, out launching their fouryears-in-the-making new LP The Divine Soulless.

Sat 20 Feb MAX PASHM TRIO

CAIRD HALL, 19:30–22:00, £8 - £10

Selection of talent pooled from the Max Pashm Band, fusing Balkan beats, electro swing and vintage-inspired music with cutting edge electronica and live instrumentation.

Wed 24 Feb CREEPER (GRADER)

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, 20:00–22:00, £7

The recent Funeral For A Friend supports play a solo set.

Thu 25 Feb

RSNO: RACHMANINOV’S THIRD PIANO CONCERTO

CAIRD HALL, 19:30–22:00, £12.50 - £17

The RSNO take in a programme including Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No 3.

February 2016

Glasgow Clubs Mon 01 Feb BURN

MISSING PERSONS CLUB (ZENKER BROTHERS) LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £8

I AM SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Resident chaps Beta & Kappa play their usual fine mix of electronica and bass.

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3/FREE WITH TRADE WAGE SLIP)

Illian tape bosses the Zenker brothers take over the decks for the night.

Tue 02 Feb

The NOTJ collective continue to nestle into their residency on the Art School roster, this edition joined by the live solo project of Murray Collier, Grim Lusk.

Subbie’s regular student night with residents Spittal and Nowicki at the helm.

THE FLYING DUCK, 21:00–03:00, £3

HIP HOP THURSDAYS

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005.’

I AM VS HULLABALOO

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Resident chaps Beta & Kappa play their usual fine mix of electronica and bass, this time going head-tohead with locals Hullabaloo (aka Dom & Butsay).

I SEE YOUR GYPSY (FLEETMAC WOOD)

STEREO, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £12

Contrary to what the moniker may suggest, this isn’t a tribute act.

It’s a big ol’ Fleetwood bash, with pumping tunes from deep in the discography and remixes you never imagined could exist.

Wed 03 Feb SUB ROSA (MR TC)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Subbie’s regular student night with residents Spittal and Nowicki at the helm, this edition joined

by Mr TC.

Thu 04 Feb HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic r’n’b and hip-hop.

JELLY BABY

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

PVC

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, FREE

All-new Thursday nighter playing r’n’b, pop, hip-hop and more, plus live dance and performance.

ENSOUL

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

Embrace the funk. Getcha groove on. Basically, go to Ensoul. It’s great.

VICIOUS CREATURES (BREACH)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £8

Fledgling party night intent on breaking free from the chains of normality, this time featuring a guest set from Breach.

Fri 05 Feb OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Connoisseur’s mix of old-school jazz, funk and soul for your jivin’ pleasure.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

JAMMING FRIDAYS

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez.

HARSH TUG

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

Hip-hop and gangsta rap brought to you by the Notorious B.A.G and pals.

SWITCH

CLASSIC GRAND, 23:00–03:00, £3

New night of progressive house, dance and old school played out by DJs James Hollywood and Jamie Firth.

OPTIMO

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, TBC

The Optimo champs curate their occasional fun night, a guest or two oft in tow.

WTF FRIDAYS

SHED, 22:30–02:00, FREE (£6/£4 STUDENT AFTER 11)

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing – as one might expect – cheesy classics of every hue.

NIGHT OF THE JAGUAR (GRIM LUSK)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £4

A NIGHT WITH… CLEOSLAPTRA

Wed 10 Feb SUB ROSA

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Thu 11 Feb BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

New rotation of DJs that represent the best of what Glasgow’s underground has to offer.

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic r’n’b and hip-hop.

Sat 06 Feb

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

BLACK TENT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

The Errors boys are back, with Happy Meals making magic upstairs, too.

THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney.

LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

BALKANARAMA (BAGHDADDIES)

THE ART SCHOOL, 22:30–03:00, £9 - £10

All singing, all dancing Balkanstyled club orgy, with an early live jam session followed by live guests, belly dancing, bespoke visuals and free plum brandy for all.

SINGLES NIGHT

THE FLYING DUCK, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Andy Divine and Chris Geddes’ gem of a night dedicated to 7-inch singles from every genre imaginable.

DEATHKILL 4000

BLOC+, 23:00–03:00, FREE

An eclectic clubnight which carousels through the genres of industrial, rap and electro.

GUILTY PLEASURE

JELLY BABY

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

PVC

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, FREE

All-new Thursday nighter playing r’n’b, pop, hip-hop and more, plus live dance and performance.

STEREOTONE’S 1ST BIRTHDAY

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £8

The Stereotone troops celebrate their 1st birthday by inviting along a super-secret guest act that they’re going to keep you guessing on. The teases.

Fri 12 Feb OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Connoisseur’s mix of old-school jazz, funk and soul for your jivin’ pleasure.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

COMMON PEOPLE

THE FLYING DUCK, 21:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Celebration of all things 90s, with hits a-plenty and a pre-club bingo session.

JAMMING FRIDAYS

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez.

SWITCH

CLASSIC GRAND, 23:00–03:00, £3

Frothy mix of guilty pleasures, old and new, for your Saturday night dancing needs.

New night of progressive house, dance and old school played out by DJs James Hollywood and Jamie Firth.

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£5)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

SHED, 22:30–02:00, £7 (£5)

LET’S GO BACK… WAY BACK

Residents Bosco and Rob Mason bring acid-house, techno and rave back to the dancefloor.

MELTING POT (JOHN MORALES)

THE ADMIRAL, 23:00–03:00, £10 - £12

KUNST

Team Kunst return to their La Cheetah lair for a residents set of house, techno, new wave and obscurities.

GLITTERBANG

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

The Melting Pot crew kick start their 15th anniversary year with a debut set from New York DJ and producer, John Morales.

Does exactly what it says on its sparkly tin - a dazzling night of disco Europop.

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

SHED, 22:30–02:00, FREE (£6/£4 STUDENT AFTER 11)

SUBCULTURE (DEETRON & RIPPERTON)

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic manning the decks, joined by Switzerland's Deetron & Ripperton teaming up for a special showing.

DMX KREW (MONOLITH + TWONKO TFTV + DAVE SHADES)

STEREO, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Master of breakbeat and electrofunk DMX Krew slams into Glasgow with hordes of support from Monolith, Twonko TFTV and Dave Shades.

WTF FRIDAYS

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing – as one might expect – cheesy classics of every hue.

RETURN TO MONO (PARANOID LONDON)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £12

Monthly night from Soma Records, this time playing host to a guest set from Paranoid London.

DIVE: REBIRTH (MISS ANNABEL SINGS + RAISING THE DEAD +)

STEREO, 19:00–23:00, £7.50

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Do LGBT history month justice by partying to your tolerant heart’s content at performance party night DIVE. Along with your host, look forward to the likes of King of Drag Diane Torr and transgender showgirl Taylor Huxley. And a shittonne more besides...

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

Sat 13 Feb

Mon 08 Feb BURN

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3/FREE WITH WAGE SLIP)

HARSH TUG

Hip-hop and gangsta rap brought to you by the Notorious B.A.G and pals.

Tue 09 Feb KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005.’

NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney.

LOVE MUSIC

JAMMING FRIDAYS

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

WE SHOULD HANG OUT MORE

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Fledgling disco night worshipping the genre in all its forms.

GUILTY PLEASURE

SHED, 22:30–02:00, £7 (£5)

Frothy mix of guilty pleasures, old and new, for your Saturday night dancing needs.

COLOURS: 21ST BIRTHDAY (GARETH EMERY + CHRISTINA NOVELLI + LUKE BOND + CRAIG CONNELLY + MARK KNIGHT + PROK & FITCH + MARK STORIE + JON MANCINI)

SWG3 GLASGOW, 21:00–03:00, £19.50

House music specialists Colours celebrate 21 years with a suitably sprawling line-up of guests.

SUBCULTURE (DENIS SUTRA)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic manning the decks, this edition joined by Dixon Basement Jammer and Rubadub Young Team ticket, Denis Sulta.

HI & SABERHAGEN

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

All things house, experimental, tecno-stylee. Best practise your nonchalant head-nod.

Sun 14 Feb

ANNIE MAC’S HIGH-5 TOUR

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Annie Mac’s High-5 Tour makes a Glasgow stop-off, promising house-laden anthems, techno stompers and singalong classics.

Mon 15 Feb BURN

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3/FREE WITH WAGE SLIP)

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Tue 16 Feb KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005.’

FANTASTIC MAN

BLOC+, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Sizzlin hot disco trashtathlon.

Flares optional. No, actually, flares discouraged.

I AM: ICH BIN EIN GLASWEGIAN (ANIMAL FARM) SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Resident i AM chaps Beta & Kappa team up with Animal Farm for a one-off fun night.

Wed 17 Feb NOT MOVING

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

South African house, grime, jungle, r’n’b and hauntology – a tropical mix, ayes – from yer wumman Laurie Pitt.

SUB ROSA (MOSCA)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Subbie’s regular student night with residents Spittal and Nowicki at the helm, this edition joined

by Mosca.

Thu 18 Feb HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez.

SWITCH

CLASSIC GRAND, 23:00–03:00, £3

New night of progressive house, dance and old school played out by DJs James Hollywood and Jamie Firth.

WTF FRIDAYS

SHED, 22:30–02:00, FREE (£6/£4 STUDENT AFTER 11)

NEW LIFE MARKETS

If you like your disco screwball and your house oddball, New Life Markets will have you sorted in no time.

COLIN POTTER + THE ORPHEUS CHOIR + TSEMBLA + F AMPISM + HUSH DJ + PERCY & TRIX DJ

THE FLYING DUCK, 20:00–03:00, £7 - £9

Showcase night of live electronics, soundscapes and experimental composition.

BIGFOOT’S TEA PARTY (THE BLACK MADONNA + ND_BAUMECKER)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £12

Nomadic techno and tech-house crew Bigfoot’s Tea Party invite two of their favourite DJs for an all night session.

Sat 20 Feb NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

SUBCULTURE

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic manning the decks.

THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney.

LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

GUILTY PLEASURE

SHED, 22:30–02:00, £7 (£5)

Frothy mix of guilty pleasures, old and new, for your Saturday night dancing needs.

LANCE VANCE DANCE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

Red-hued adventure travelling through 70s funk, motown and 80s r’n’b, highlighted with glorious rays of disco sunshine. Or summat.

Sun 21 Feb FOUR TET

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £15

A certain Mr. Kieran Hebden mans the decks for the full four hours, taking to the stage under his Four Tet moniker for a set of his e’er lovely post-rock-meetselectronica, awash with abstract sensibilities.

Mon 22 Feb BURN

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3/FREE WITH WAGE SLIP)

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Tue 23 Feb

IN THE BASEMENT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

Thursday session of the finest in northern soul and rock’n’roll.

PVC

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, FREE

All-new Thursday nighter playing r’n’b, pop, hip-hop and more, plus live dance and performance.

Fri 19 Feb OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Connoisseur’s mix of old-school jazz, funk and soul for your jivin’ pleasure.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

TheSkinnyMag

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic r’n’b and hip-hop.

JELLY BABY

theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing – as one might expect – cheesy classics of every hue.

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

Find full listings & buy tickets on our site

KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005.’

I AM: 90S RAVE

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Resident i AM chaps Beta & Kappa set the calendar back in time for a nostalgic 90s rave-off, teasing punters with the promise of a mystery guest.

Wed 24 Feb SO WEIT SO GUT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, FREE

SWSG returns for Feb, filling you up for the month ahead with a bunch of grime and synthwave.

SUB ROSA (MELTING POT) SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Subbie’s regular student night with residents Spittal and Nowicki at the helm, this edition joined by locals Melting Pot for a garage special.

Thu 25 Feb HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3)

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic r’n’b and hip-hop.

JELLY BABY

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

Fri 26 Feb OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Connoisseur’s mix of old-school jazz, funk and soul for your jivin’ pleasure.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

JAMMING FRIDAYS

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez.

SHAKE APPEAL

BLOC+, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Hip-shakers and neck-breakers in all night long rock’n’roll hullaballoo.

STRANGE PARADISE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

Party night from floral-shirted Wild Combination man David Barbarossa, specializing in leftfield disco, post-punk and far-out pop.

SWITCH

CLASSIC GRAND, 23:00–03:00, £3

New night of progressive house, dance and old school played out by DJs James Hollywood and Jamie Firth.

WTF FRIDAYS

SHED, 22:30–02:00, FREE (£6/£4 STUDENT AFTER 11)

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing – as one might expect – cheesy classics of every hue.

LA CHEETAH CLUB PRESENTS... JOY ORBISON

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £10

Following its refurb, La Cheetah reopens official with a special five-hour deck takeover from none other than Numbers’ Joy Orbison, likely doing his electronic dubstepgarage-house hybrid of a thing to suitably barry effect.

PRESSURE (SKREAM + SCUBA + SLAM + MARCEL FENGLER + BORIS + LAURA JONES)

SWG3 GLASGOW, 21:00–03:00, £20

Sat 27 Feb NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£6)

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, FREE (£5/£3 STUDENT AFTER 12)

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney.

LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £6

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

GUILTY PLEASURE

SHED, 22:30–02:00, £7 (£5)

Frothy mix of guilty pleasures, old and new, for your Saturday night dancing needs.

DARK PARTIALS PROJECT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 23:30–03:00, £3

Mixed bag of house and techno obscurities.

PARADOX

THE FLYING DUCK, 23:00–03:00, £3

Fledgling techno party aiming to showcase the most interesting underground acts around.

WEST END COMMUNICATIONS (MARCO BERNARDI)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£7 AFTER 12)

West End Communications launch their new series of events by welcoming back local export Marco Bernardi.

SUBCULTURE (MIDLAND)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic manning the decks, joined by UK bass talent Midland.

Mon 29 Feb BURN

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£3/FREE WITH WAGE SLIP)

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Edinburgh Clubs Mon 01 Feb MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, r’n’b and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

NU FIRE (DJ FUSION, DJ BEEF)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–05:00, FREE - £2

Mighty deep house and techno monthly, coming together for an epic celebration of electronic sound across the whole SWG3 complex with resident DJs Slam and their special guests.

Hip-hop and bass since 2008.

THE FLYING DUCK, 23:00–03:00, £4

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

NITRIC X (FERGUS CLARK + GILBERT + TEMPLE DWELLER)

Fergus Clark and Gilbert team up for party carnage, tearing the soundsystem apart with the deepest dark acid, industrial, and esoteric techno-electro cuts.

SENSU (PACHANGA BOYS)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

Barry Price and Junior provide cutting edge electronic sounds from across the globe, this edition welcoming the Pachanga Boys into their Subbie lair.

Tue 02 Feb I LOVE HIP HOP

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4

Weekly selection of hip-hop classics and brand-new classics to be.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £4

The HH crew serve up their usual fine mix of electronic basslines cooked up with house beats.

Wed 03 Feb COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

Listings

57

Edinburgh Clubs WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £2

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

LOCO KAMANCHI

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

Midweek fun night playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

FLIRT!

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £5

Student night for those of you who can, y’know, afford to party midweek.

TRIBE

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£3)

Weekly selection of dance bangers played by residents Khalid Count Clockwork and Craig Wilson.

Thu 04 Feb

JUICE (CHRISTIAN S + KA MI + DAN JUICE + DECLAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £2

Dan, Declan and Kami make weird waves through house and techno.

HULLABALOO

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£2)

Mash-up of beats, breaks and hip-hop from Trendy Wendy and Steve Austin.

HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, r’n’b and urban in the back room.

FRESH AIR FM PARTY

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £4

Edinburgh’s student run radio station host a wee perty.

HEADS (SEWERSIDE PHONK + DRAE DA SKIMASK + JAISU + ERRATIC SLEEPING PATTERNS + PHYSIKS)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:30–03:00, £6

Occasional night placing the focus on some of the best producers/DJs in the UK with differing approaches to hip-hop.

Fri 05 Feb FUCK YEAH

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

Friday-ready chart, indie and rock anthems spread over two rooms.

FOUR CORNERS

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£5 AFTER 12)

Soulful dancing fodder, moving from deep funk to reggae.

PLANET EARTH

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£6 AFTER 1)

Distinctly retro selections from 1960 to 1999, moving from Abba to ZZ Top. PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

EVOL

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, FREE

Anything-goes indie and alternative anthems.

BALKANARAMA (BAGHDADDIES)

THE CAVES, 22:00–03:00, £9 - £10

All singing, all dancing Balkanstyled club orgy, with an early live jam session followed by live guests, belly dancing, bespoke visuals and free plum brandy for all.

FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £7

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

FAR OUT

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

Jazz, world music and experimental electronica selections. Raising funds for Refugee Action.

KAPITAL (PATRICE BAUMEL)

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £10

The Kapital crew return with their usual beefed-up soundsystem action, welcoming Kompakt’s Patrice Baumel for the evening.

DRUM CLUB

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, TBC

The Samedia Shebeen DJs and the Too Much Drum Club, along with Edinburgh Samba school and the Beastie drummers, present a night of stilt walkers, fire breathers and beats galore. Profits go to Re-Act. JUICE VS LEZURE

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, FREE

A duo of Edinburgh clubbing bods join forces for twice the fun.

58

Listings

FOURPLAY: ONE NIGHT EXCLUSIVE (L.G.I.C. + JACK SIMON + KROWNE + STRUT CHUNKY BURD) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

Fourplay’s family of resident DJs bring a bangin’ eve of tweaky beats, breaks and disco spins for your auditory delectation. Ooh, and they’re promising us some pretty exciting visuals too – a treat for the eyes and the ears.

Sat 06 Feb TEASE AGE

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, FREE (£5 AFTER 11)

Long-running indie, rock and soul night, traversing the spectrum of classic and modern.

THE GO-GO

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Long-running retro night with veteran DJs Tall Paul and Big Gus. BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

BIG ‘N’ BASHY

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 (£6 AFTER 12)

Mighty mix of reggae, grime, dubstep and jungle played by inimitable residents Brother Most Righteous, Skillis, Era and Deburgh.

BUCKFEST

STUDIO 24, 21:00–03:00, £5

Wed 10 Feb COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £2

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, FREE (£5 AFTER 11)

LOCO KAMANCHI

Midweek fun night playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

LATE DATES

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 21:00–03:00, £5

Club night-cum-live dating experience.

The Evol DJs worship at the alter of all kinds of indie-pop, with their only rule being that it’s gotta have bite.

NIGHTVISION PRESENTS... XPLICIT’S 11TH BIRTHDAY (CALYX & TEEBEE + DJ ZINC) THE LIQUID ROOM, 21:00–04:00, FROM £12.50

Club series Nightvision’s first show of 2016 sees ‘em celebrating in bass-led style, as longstanding club night Xplicit celebrates 11 years in the business with one of their biggest ever line-ups to date.

GET TA STEPPIN’

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, 23:59–03:00, £5

50s and 60s R’n’B and soul tunes played out on original 45s.

HEAL YOURSELF AND MOVE (LINKWOOD + HOUSE OF TRAPS + LORD OF THE ISLES) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £7

A new night run by the Edinburgh based label Firecracker Recordings, which specialises in oddball house, techno and electronics.

Sun 07 Feb

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED + SKANKY B) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends.

THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

Mon 08 Feb MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, r’n’b and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

NU FIRE (DJ FUSION + DJ BEEF)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Hip-hop and bass since 2008.

Tue 09 Feb TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £4

The HH crew serve up their usual fine mix of electronic basslines cooked up with house beats.

TEASE AGE

Long-running indie, rock and soul night, traversing the spectrum of classic and modern.

BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £5

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

TRIBE

Raw, high energy r’n’b from DJs Francis Dosoo and Cameron Mason.

FLIRT!

Student night for those of you who can, y’know, afford to party midweek.

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£3)

Weekly selection of dance bangers played by residents Khalid Count Clockwork and Craig Wilson.

Thu 11 Feb TRUANT

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £TBC

Fledgling club night playing and anything and everything good, with special guests to boot.

JUICE (KA MI + DAN JUICE + DECLAN)

Mash-up of beats, breaks and hip-hop from Trendy Wendy and Steve Austin.

SPEAKER BITE ME

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £5

Big techno from up north. With a successful Sub Club residency already added to their Aberdeen activities, it makes sense to tackle the capital in the venue that always reps authentic music. Their first bi-monthly show in a series of six.

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £7 (£5)

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

BIGFOOT’S TEA PARTY (CHRIS + WRICK + GEORGE + JAMES)

Sat 13 Feb

Dan, Declan and Kami make weird waves through house and techno.

More classic Italo and straight-up boogie allied with contemporary house and disco, as Edinburgh’s GDM crew do their thing.

The Pulse troops welcome Jonas Kopp for his Edinburgh debut.

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

Club celebration of the dubious purple nectar, with live music from The Snapping Turtles and Jamie and Shoony, plus metal and rock bangers from The 0131.

GASOLINE DANCE MACHINE

PULSE (JONAS KOPP) LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £8

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £2

HULLABALOO

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£2)

HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, r’n’b and urban in the back room.

GRIME TIME (BIG NARSTIE )

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:30–03:00, £9 - £11

Brand new series from the Champion Sound gang, bringing the cream of the UK grime circuit to Edinburgh.

Fri 12 Feb FUCK YEAH

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

Friday-ready chart, indie and rock anthems spread over two rooms.

PLANET EARTH

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£6 AFTER 1)

Distinctly retro selections from 1960 to 1999, moving from Abba to ZZ Top. PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

POP TARTS

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, FREE - £3

Pop and rock gems spun by DJs from Electric Circus’ Saturday club nights, including Magic Nostalgic, Beep Beep, Yeah! and Pop Rocks.

FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £7

SOULSVILLE

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

DR NO’S

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

DRUID SEQUENCE + COMMUNION + SHIVA SONIC

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 (£7 AFTER 12)

LOCO KAMANCHI

Midweek fun night playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

FLIRT!

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £5

Student night for those of you who can, y’know, afford to party midweek.

MESSENGER SOUND SYSTEM

Conscious roots and dub reggae rockin’ from the usual beefy Messenger soundsystem.

WASABI DISCO + HOT MESS (KRIS WASABI, SIMONOTRON)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £5

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£3)

Off-piste disco from Kris Wasabi, with a little added dirt for good measure from Hot Mess.

Thu 18 Feb

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED + SKANKY B)

TRIBE

Weekly selection of dance bangers played by residents Khalid Count Clockwork and Craig Wilson.

TRUANT

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £TBC

Fledgling club night playing and anything and everything good, with special guests to boot.

HULLABALOO

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£2)

Mash-up of beats, breaks and hip-hop from Trendy Wendy and Steve Austin.

Sun 21 Feb

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, TBC

BEEP BEEP YEAH!

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Retro pop stylings from the 50s to the 70s, via a disco tune or ten.

NIGHTVISION PRESENTS... MUSIKA’S 9TH BIRTHDAY (SKREAM + AME + PARANOID LONDON) THE LIQUID ROOM, 21:00–03:00, FROM £15

The week after Xplicit's bass-y birthday bash, it's the turn for the techno heads as Musika celebrate the best part of a decade in the business.

LA BELLE PRESENTS... CRAIG SMITH

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

Best of selections of house and disco from Edinburgh don Craig Smith and a selection of surprise guests.

TEESH NO.31 (DJ CUPID + DJ CHEERS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

The ‘all you can eat mind-buffet’ has their alternative Valentine's dance featuring the very best in lust / love-filled ledger lines.

Sun 14 Feb

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED + SKANKY B) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends.

THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

Mon 15 Feb MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, r’n’b and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £10

Tue 16 Feb I LOVE HIP HOP

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4

Weekly selection of hip-hop classics and brand-new classics to be.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £4

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £5

Wed 17 Feb COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

Friday-ready chart, indie and rock anthems spread over two rooms.

PLANET EARTH

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£6 AFTER 1)

Distinctly retro selections from 1960 to 1999, moving from Abba to ZZ Top. PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

OFFBEAT (BIG MIZ)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £5

Big Miz and crew venture from their home at La Cheetah to stir up the good times in Sneaky's’ equally vibey surroundings.

FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £7

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

RAVE TO THE GRAVE

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £5

Friday-ready techno and house belters.

MEGADOG SOUND SYSTEM (MIXMASTER MORRIS) STUDIO 24, 22:00–03:00, £8

The legendary Mixmaster Morris joins Megadog Sound System for the evening, with support from Chigs-Techip and Foxtrot.

RETROCITY

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, FREE

All the retro and cult tunes you can shake a stick at.

Sat 20 Feb TEASE AGE

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, FREE (£5 AFTER 11)

Long-running indie, rock and soul night, traversing the spectrum of classic and modern.

THE EGG

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Art School institution with DJs Chris and Jake playing the finest in indie, garage, soul and punk – now taking up a monthly Saturday slot, in what is their 20-somethingth year.

BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

THE GREEN DOOR

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £2 - £5

Surf, blues and rockabilly from the 50s and early 60s, plus free cake.

Job done.

POP ROCKS

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Pop and rock gems, taking in motown, 80s classics and plenty danceable fare (well, the Beep Beep Yeah! crew are on decks after all).

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £5

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends.

SAMEDIA (SAMEDIA + CHRIS ASTROJAZZ)

Get vibey with a full, immersive set design and décor, soundtracked

by Samedia’s old and new sounds of Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America and New Orleans.

FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £7

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

SUCH A DRAG

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, FREE

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, FREE - £3

Mon 29 Feb

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

Mon 22 Feb

NU FIRE (DJ FUSION, DJ BEEF)

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

All-new night of house, disco and techno tunage.

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED + SKANKY B)

THE CLUB

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends.

CREME FRESH

FUCK YEAH

Rare funk, soul and r’n’b night, with free mix CDs on the door.

New monthly drag club night with emphasis on all things risque, with live burlesque and the like.

Fri 19 Feb

The Godfather of UK grime plays a special late night DJ set.

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £5

Playlists of futuristic space funk, deep house, obscure disco and classic house anthems.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Weekly selection of hip-hop classics and brand-new classics to be.

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Student-orientated Friday night playing the best in new and classic indie.

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £10 - £17.50

The HH crew serve up their usual fine mix of electronic basslines cooked up with house beats.

Eclectic night of ragga and hard tek offerings, this edition handing the decks over to an all-girl DJ line-up.

Free prize for first 100 down.

Sun 28 Feb

Fresh playlists spanning metal, pop-punk and alternative soundscapes.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £2

WILEY (TAZ + SKILLIS + HOGZ + DRWOZEE)

A selection of Scottish crews team up for a night of mayhem and music.

ANYTHING GOES ON GIRL’S NIGHT

STACKS

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

Hip-hop and bass since 2008.

Hip-hop and bass since 2008.

Alternative Valentines love-in for those who want to celebrate it by getting drunk in a dark club.

IN2DEEP HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £10

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, r’n’b and urban in the back room.

Danceable mix of the best in 60s ska, rocksteady, bluebeat and early reggae.

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

HOT’N’BUSTER VALENTINES LOVE PARTY

PROPAGANDA THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

HI-SOCIETY

NU FIRE (JUST BLAZE + DJ FUSION + DJ BEEF)

Golden Pudel resident and esteemed selector Helena Hauuf joins the Substance crew for a guest set.

DECADE STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £5

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

SUBSTANCE (HELENA HAUFF)

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Tue 23 Feb I LOVE HIP HOP

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £4

The HH crew serve up their usual fine mix of electronic basslines cooked up with house beats.

Wed 24 Feb COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS, SQUELCHY)

SURE SHOT

Fledgling night spanning 80s-00s hip-hop and r’n’b, manned by The Skinny’s own Peter Simpson and one half of Edinburgh’s Kitchen Disco, Malcolm Storey.

ELECTRIKAL

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £TBC

Soundsystem party-starters, part of a music and art collective specialising in all things bass – this edition joined by Aphrodite, playing a three-hour ‘hostory of d’n’b’ set.

HEY QT!

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, £3

Sweaty dance disco for queer folk and their pals.

DILF

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £8

New gay night playing a heady mix of house and techno.

ANIMAL HOSPITAL (HC KURTZ)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

The Animal Hospital troops continue to medicate Edinburgh with their unique blend of techno, house and minimal, joined for a guest set by emerging talent HC Kurtz.

Sat 27 Feb TEASE AGE

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, FREE (£5 AFTER 11)

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

Long-running indie, rock and soul night, traversing the spectrum of classic and modern.

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 (£4 GUESTLIST)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£7/£5 STUDENT AFTER 12)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–05:00, FREE - £2

LOCO KAMANCHI

Midweek fun night playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

FLIRT!

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £5

Student night for those of you who can, y’know, afford to party midweek.

TRIBE

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £6 (£3)

Weekly selection of dance bangers played by residents Khalid Count Clockwork and Craig Wilson.

Thu 25 Feb TRUANT

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £TBC

Fledgling club night playing and anything and everything good, with special guests to boot.

CHAMPION SOUND

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:30–03:00, TBC

Dub and bass-orientated night playing the best in reggae, dub, jungle and D’n’B. HULLABALOO

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 (£2)

Mash-up of beats, breaks and hip-hop from Trendy Wendy and Steve Austin.

HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, r’n’b and urban in the back room.

JOY ORBISON AT JUICE (JOY ORBISON + KA MI + DAN JUICE + DECLAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £10 - £15

Catch the top notch funk and oldschool jungle DJ Joy Orbison in the smallest venue he’s likely to play. Ever.

Fri 26 Feb FUCK YEAH

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

Friday-ready chart, indie and rock anthems spread over two rooms.

PLANET EARTH

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, £5 (£6 AFTER 1)

Distinctly retro selections from 1960 to 1999, moving from Abba to ZZ Top.

MUMBO JUMBO

MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, r’n’b and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

NU FIRE (DJ FUSION, DJ BEEF)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Hip-hop and bass since 2008.

Dundee Clubs Thu 04 Feb ROOMS THURSDAYS

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £4 - £5

Thursday nighter (as the name would suggest), with Dunc4an, Typewriter and guests playing anything and everything ‘good’.

Fri 05 Feb HEADWAY (SKREAM)

READING ROOMS, 22:30–03:00, TBC

The Headway crew host a threehour set from Skream – one of the key pioneers behind the rapidly developing dubstep movement.

Support comes from residents Andy Barton, Graeme Binnie and Neil Clark.

WARPED

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Funk, soul, beats and mash-ups from the Mumbo Jumbo regulars and pals.

Ska, screamo and pop-punk offerings now in a weekly Friday slot, moving from Alkaline Trio to Zebrahead as it goes.

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, FREE (£4 AFTER 10)

REDD, 22:30–02:30, £3 - £4

BUBBLEGUM

STAMINA

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

All-new Dundee party night, kicking off with local selector Dean Crosbie dipping into his extensive collection of house, techno and Italo.

ELECTRIC CIRCUS, 22:30–03:00, £7 - £9

Sat 06 Feb

MAGIC NOSTALGIC

A hodgepodge of tracks chosen by JP’s spinning wheel – expect 90s, power ballads and a whole lotta one-hit wonders.

RIDE (LADY DUNKS + ZX CHECTRUM)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE - £5

Get misty-eyed and foggybrained with Lady Dunks and ZX Chectrum as they chuck out the best of noughties r’n’b and nineties hip-hop.

MADCHESTER

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £TBC

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like.

TORTURE GARDEN

THE CAVES, 21:00–03:00, £20

Infamous fetish club spread over three dungeon-themed playrooms in the cavernous surrounds of The Caves. Dress code: all the PVC you can slither into.

KEEP IT STEEL

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £5

The Keep It Steel DJs play the best in heavy metal and hard rock.

NO MORE FUCKING ABBA

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, £3

New alternative indie dance party for the queer at heart, with Abba tunes firmly banned. Rejoice!

KARNIVAL: 10TH BIRTHDAY (CARL CRAIG)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £12 - £15

The local house and techno legends make merry for their 10th birthday bash, joined for a special guest slot by legendary Detroit don Carl Craig.

AUTODISCO: 9TH BIRTHDAY (THE REVENGE)

READING ROOMS, 22:30–03:00, £10

The electro-funk, house and disco night celebrates its 9th birthday, joined by renegade brother from the 6th Borough, The Revenge, for a guest slot.

ASYLUM

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Best of selection of rock, metal and alternative tunes to get your Saturday night movin’.

Fri 12 Feb FOOLS GOLD

BUSKERS, 21:00–02:30, £5

Indie-styled night playing, er, anything and everything indie.

CHRIS DUCKENFIELD

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £10

Mr Chris ‘The Duck’ Duckenfield mans the decks for the evening, playing selections of dance-ready house, as is his way.

WARPED

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Ska, screamo and pop-punk offerings now in a weekly Friday slot, moving from Alkaline Trio to Zebrahead as it goes.

Sat 13 Feb

MUNGO’S HI-FI SOUND SYSTEM

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £6

More heavyweight reggae, roots and dub selections from Mungo’s sound collective and pals.

ASYLUM

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Best of selection of rock, metal and alternative tunes to get your Saturday night movin’.

THE SKINNY

Thu 18 Feb ROOMS THURSDAYS

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £4 - £5

Thursday nighter (as the name would suggest), with Dunc4an, Typewriter and guests playing anything and everything ‘good’.

Fri 19 Feb SUBCULTURE

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £8

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic manning the decks.

WARPED

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Ska, screamo and pop-punk offerings now in a weekly Friday slot, moving from Alkaline Trio to Zebrahead as it goes.

Sat 20 Feb JUTE CITY JAM

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £5 - £7

Funk, soul, disco and Latin night, taking in vinyl selections from residents Max Galloway and Calvin Crichton.

ASYLUM

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Best of selection of rock, metal and alternative tunes to get your Saturday night movin’.

Thu 25 Feb ROOMS THURSDAYS

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £4 - £5

Thursday nighter (as the name would suggest), with Dunc4an, Typewriter and guests playing anything and everything ‘good’.

Fri 26 Feb ROOMS RESIDENTS

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, TBC

A selection of Reading Room residents hold the fort for the evening, playing good vibe tunes all night long.

WARPED

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Ska, screamo and pop-punk offerings now in a weekly Friday slot, moving from Alkaline Trio to Zebrahead as it goes.

Sat 27 Feb BOOK CLUB

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, TBC

The Good Stuff DJs spin all genres of disco house and techno, alongside anything else they damn well fancy.

ASYLUM

KAGE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Best of selection of rock, metal and alternative tunes to get your Saturday night movin’.

Comedy YESPBAR VIRGINS

YESPBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, 21:00–22:30, £3

YESBAR, 21:00–22:30, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

DAVID O’DOHERTY: WE ARE ALL IN THE GUTTER, BUT SOME OF US ARE LOOKING AT DAVID O’DOHERTY

ORAN MOR, 20:00–22:00, £16

The Irish comedian presents an evening of talking and songs played on a stupid keyboard from 1986. Obv.

Fri 05 Feb

THE FRIDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + LEE KYLE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

GILDED BALLOON COMEDY @ DRYGATE (RAY BRADSHAW + STEPHEN CARLIN + AMY HOWERSKA + GARY LITTLE) DRYGATE BREWING CO., 20:30–22:30, £11.50 - £12.50

Long-running comedy club the Gilded Balloon hits up Drygate for its residency, combing the joys of a craft brewery setting with a rotating schedule of live comedy talent.

PADDY MCGUINNESS

THE KING’S THEATRE, FROM 18:30, £26

The Farnworth comedian takes a sec from matchmaking to return to the tour circuit. No likey? No li— ugh, forget it.

Mon 01 Feb

RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Wed 03 Feb NEW MATERIAL NIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–22:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

COMEDIAN RAP BATTLES

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £4 - £6

Ro Cambell and The Wee Man’s comedian rap battle-off, where a select batch of comics compete to see who’s got the most swagger when it comes to hippity-hop wit.

Thu 04 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + LEE KYLE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

February 2016

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Sat 13 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (IAN COPPINGER + DAVID LONGLEY + LARAH BROSS + RAYMOND MEARNS)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

ENTERTEASEMENT (KEIR MCCALLISTER + BILLY KIRKWOOD + JAY LAFFERTY + ELLIOT BIBBY + DAIQUIRI DUSK + ROXY STARDUST) THE ADMIRAL, 20:00–22:30, FREE

Live stand-up, magic and burlesque dancing combined in one heady whole.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Sun 14 Feb

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE (LEE KYLE + SAMMY DOBSON)

VESPBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

Tue 09 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Wed 10 Feb NEW MATERIAL NIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–22:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

BBC COMEDY PRESENTS...

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £4

BBC-selected sketch comedy showcase where handpicked new acts get their chance to shine – with each performer getting a quickfire 5-10 minutes on stage.

Thu 11 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (IAN COPPINGER + DAVID LONGLEY + LARAH BROSS + RAYMOND MEARNS)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

Sun 07 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (BENNETT ARRON + ABIGOLIAH SCHAUMAUN + GUS LYMBURN + ROB KANE)

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Sat 20 Feb

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Live stand-up, magic and burlesque dancing combined in one heady whole.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £15

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £3

Tue 02 Feb

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £6 - £12

THE ADMIRAL, 20:00–22:30, FREE

THE SATURDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + LEE KYLE)

Glasgow Comedy THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £6

THE FRIDAY SHOW (IAN COPPINGER + DAVID LONGLEY + LARAH BROSS + RAYMOND MEARNS)

Sat 06 Feb

Chilled Sunday comedy showcase manned by resident Irish funnyman Michael Redmond and his handpicked guests.

More improvised comedy games and sketches, with an unpredictable anything-goes attitude – as it should be.

Fri 12 Feb

ENTERTEASEMENT (PAUL PIRIE + BILLY KIRKWOOD + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHER-BOYD + ELLIOT BIBBY + DAIQUIRI DUSK + JOHN CELETUS)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

IMPROV WARS

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

LAUGHTER EIGHT YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

VESPBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £3

ANTI-VALENTINE’S DAY (DAVID LONGLEY + MICHAEL REDMOND)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Escape the schmaltz of Valentine’s Day by laughing in a dark basement, with added booze,

Tue 16 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Wed 17 Feb NEW MATERIAL NIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–22:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

FREEDOM FROM TORTURE BENEFIT

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5

Sun 21 Feb

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday comedy showcase manned by resident Irish funnyman Michael Redmond and his handpicked guests.

VESPBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

Mon 22 Feb

SO... THAT WAS FEBRUARY?

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £7

Messrs McTavish, Nelson and McAllister return with another show in their pre/post-election series – offering leftfield stand-up, chat and comment on the political state of the world.

Tue 23 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Wed 24 Feb

YESBAR, 21:00–22:30, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 19 Feb

THE FRIDAY SHOW (BENNETT ARRON + ABIGOLIAH SCHAUMAUN + GUS LYMBURN + ROB KANE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

THE GRIFFIN, 20:30–22:30, FREE

Anarchic night of live comedy comprised of variety acts, sketches, monologues, character bits, animations, inanimations, contemporary dance, readings, or indeed just anything silly.

Edinburgh Comedy Mon 01 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Tue 02 Feb GRASSROOTS

THE PLEASANCE, 19:30–23:00, £1

Showcase night featuring the best in fresh, local talent – bringing together first-time and upand-coming comics in a series of quickfire 10-minute slots.

Thu 04 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (FRED MACAULAY + PAUL PIRIE + DAN BLAND + SCOTT GIBSON)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

THE THURSDAY SHOW (SEAN PERCIVAL + GARETH WAUGH)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

YESPBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, 21:00–22:30, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 26 Feb

THE FRIDAY SHOW (SEAN PERCIVAL + GARETH WAUGH) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

THE SATURDAY SHOW (SEAN PERCIVAL + GARETH WAUGH)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £8

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

Sun 28 Feb

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday comedy showcase manned by resident Irish funnyman Michael Redmond and his handpicked guests.

Mon 08 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Tue 09 Feb GRASSROOTS

THE PLEASANCE, 19:30–23:00, £1

Showcase night featuring the best in fresh, local talent – bringing together first-time and upand-coming comics in a series of quickfire 10-minute slots.

Wed 10 Feb

AN EVENING WITH JO CAULFIELD AND FRIENDS (KEIR MCALLISTER + STUART MURPHY + JOJO SUTHERLAND + GARETH WAUGH) THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:00–22:00, £5

Pretty much as it would suggest – funny lass Jo Caulfield holds fort with a host of comedic pals, among them Keir McCallister and Gareth Waugh.

Thu 11 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (NICK WILTY + KEITH FARNAN) THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

THE FREAK EASY

THE BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 20:00–22:30, £2

Comedy variety night bringing together a e’er eclectic mix of performers in one space. Hosted

by Ross Hepburn.

Sun 14 Feb

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 13:30–15:30, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from off-the-cuff audience suggestions.

ANTI-VALENTINE’S DAY (KEITH FARNAN + JAY MILES + STEPHEN DUFFY + GUS LYMBURN)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Escape the schmaltz of Valentine’s Day by laughing in a dark basement, with added booze,

Mon 15 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

JOSIE MILLER’S BIRTHDAY CABARET (THE IMPROVERTS + TRAY FULL OF BROWNIES) THE TRON, 19:30–22:00, FREE

The Imps and Tray Full of Brownies join birthday girl Josie Miller for an evening of absolute lols in lieu of the usual birthday plan of sobbing over gin and tonics.

Tue 16 Feb GRASSROOTS

THE PLEASANCE, 19:30–23:00, £1

Showcase night featuring the best in fresh, local talent – bringing together first-time and upand-coming comics in a series of quickfire 10-minute slots.

BEDLAM THEATRE, 22:30–23:30, £5 - £6

Long-standing improv comedy troupe made up of an everchanging line-up of local students, whose rather fine show is built entirely on (oft daft) audience suggestions.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY FRIDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

Sat 06 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (FRED MACAULAY + PAUL PIRIE + DAN BLAND + SCOTT GIBSON)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY SATURDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

Sun 07 Feb

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN (PAUL PIRIE + ALASDAIR BECKETT-KING + BOB GRAHAM + CHRIS RUTTER + KIRSTY MORRISON) THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled comedy showcase to cure your Sunday evening back-towork blues.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 13:30–15:30, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from off-the-cuff audience suggestions.

Long-standing improv comedy troupe made up of an everchanging line-up of local students, whose rather fine show is built entirely on (oft daft) audience suggestions.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY FRIDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

Sat 20 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (CARL HUTCHINSON + ALISON SPITTLE)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY SATURDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

VIKING LONGBOAT

CANON’S GAIT, 19:30–21:00, FREE

Clue’s in the name. Ish. Comedy troupe offering a night of longform improv and beaucoup de giggles.

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN (WILL HUTCHBY)

Buy your tickets here: bit.ly/dylan-moran-usher-hall

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled comedy showcase to cure your Sunday evening back-towork blues.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 13:30–15:30, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions.

Mon 22 Feb

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

THE IMPROVERTS

THE IMPROVERTS BEDLAM THEATRE, 22:30–23:30, £5 - £6

Sun 21 Feb

Fri 05 Feb

Thu 25 Feb

Sat 27 Feb

YESPBAR VIRGINS

LOVIN’ CHUNKS

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

Thu 18 Feb

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

Mon 29 Feb

YESBAR, 20:00–22:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

Charity fundraiser in aid of Freedom From Torture.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

YESBAR, 20:00–21:30, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

THE FRIDAY SHOW (FRED MACAULAY + PAUL PIRIE + DAN BLAND + SCOTT GIBSON)

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT

Regular comedy slot kicking off at, aye, 8pm – manned by a selection of hot talent from the local circuit.

THE THURSDAY SHOW (BENNETT ARRON + ABIGOLIAH SCHAUMAUN + GUS LYMBURN + ROB KANE)

VESPBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

RED RAW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £2

Dylan Moran Off the Hook, Usher Hall, Edinburgh Tue 12 Apr, 8pm, £25

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Tue 23 Feb BRIGHT CLUB

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £5

Fri 12 Feb

THE FRIDAY SHOW (NICK WILTY + KEITH FARNAN)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

THE IMPROVERTS

BEDLAM THEATRE, 22:30–23:30, £5 - £6

Long-standing improv comedy troupe made up of an everchanging line-up of local students, whose rather fine show is built entirely on (oft daft) audience suggestions.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY FRIDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

Sat 13 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (NICK WILTY + KEITH FARNAN) THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY SATURDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

LGBT YOUTH BENEFIT (LARRY DEAN + SUSIE MCCABE + BRUCE DEVLIN) THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £6 - £8

Charity fundraiser in aid of LGBT Youth, part of the LGBT History month events.

Wed 17 Feb

SO... THAT WAS FEBRUARY?

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £7

Messrs McTavish, Nelson and McAllister return with another show in their pre/post-election series – offering leftfield stand-up, chat and comment on the political state of the world.

BISCUIT BOX COMEDY

BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 19:30–21:00, FREE

Edinburgh-based sketch trio offering to dunk their ladyfingers into the public's rich tea. Make of that what you will.

Thu 18 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (CARL HUTCHINSON + ALISON SPITTLE)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

THE APOLOGISTS' BOOK CLUB

BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 19:30–21:00, FREE

A selection of comedic academics do a stint of stand-up for your entertainment and enlightenment.

Laughs and learning in one neat package = tick.

GRASSROOTS

THE PLEASANCE, 19:30–23:00, £1

Showcase night featuring the best in fresh, local talent – bringing together first-time and upand-coming comics in a series of quickfire 10-minute slots.

Wed 24 Feb

POETS AGAINST HUMANITY

THE BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 19:45–21:30, FREE

Three comedic contestants attempt to tear poetry a new one in a live panel show variation on Cards Against Humanity.

Thu 25 Feb

THE THURSDAY SHOW (TOMMY ROWSON + WAYNE MAZADZA)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

THE FREAK EASY

THE BANSHEE LABYRINTH, 20:00–22:30, £2

Comedy variety night bringing together a e’er eclectic mix of performers in one space. Hosted by Ross Hepburn.

Fri 26 Feb

Joe Hollingworth hosts a group of literary aficionados who only discuss books which don't exist.

THE FRIDAY SHOW (TOMMY ROWSON + WAYNE MAZADZA)

Fri 19 Feb

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

THE FRIDAY SHOW (CARL HUTCHINSON + ALISON SPITTLE)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

Listings

59

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY FRIDAY SHOW BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-and-coming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

PLANET CARAMEL: HOT BED

OPIUM, 20:00–22:30, £2 - £3

The delicious Planet Caramel lot are up to their usual antics, supplying a tasty stream of sketch comedy on the last Thursday of the month at Opium. This month’s edition features Von Stifle, Fluffy Kitten Parade and a very adorable Phil O’Shea.

Sat 27 Feb

THE SATURDAY SHOW (TOMMY ROWSON + WAYNE MAZADZA)

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 21:00–23:00, £15

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY SATURDAY SHOW

BEEHIVE INN, 20:30–22:30, £10

Regular weekend comedy showcase featuring a selection of up-andcoming acts from Scotland and beyond, topped with a guest headliner. See Facebook on the day for line-ups.

Sun 28 Feb

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 13:30–15:30, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions.

Mon 29 Feb RED RAW

THE STAND EDINBURGH, 20:30–22:30, £2

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to roadtest new material.

Dundee Comedy Wed 10 Feb

THE INVISIBLE DOT (PAUL FOOT + THE BOY WITH TAPE ON HIS FACE)

DUNDEE REP, 19:30–22:00, £12 - £18

The industrious comedy innovators bring their variety comedy show Dundee-way, following sell-out success at London's Union Chapel.

Theatre Glasgow Citizens Theatre ENDGAME

4–20 FEB, NOT 7, 8, 14, 15, 7:30PM – 10:30PM, £9.50 - £22.50

Dominic Hill, Artistic Director of Citizens Theatre, brings his talent for gripping contemporary interpretations of classic texts to Samuel Beckett’s macabre masterpiece.

Matinee performances also available.

BLACKBIRD

25 FEB – 5 MAR, TIMES VARY, £9.50 £20.50

David Harrower’s Olivier awardwinning play about a meeting between a middle-aged man and a young woman who rake over their relationship which ended when he was 40 and she was only twelve years old. Matinee performances also available.

Oran Mor

LOVESICK BLUES: THE HANK WILLIAMS STORY

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 5 FEB AND 21 FEB, 7:45PM – 10:00PM, £15

Theatrical retelling of the life and songs of the musical legend.

The Glad Cafe

EVERYTHING I BOUGHT AND HOW IT MADE ME FEEL

18 FEB, 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Theatre-maker Harry Giles presents his thought-provoking piece in which he recalls a year of logging every transaction he made at everythingibought.tumblr.com, dissecting his shopping habits in minutiae details.

The King’s Theatre VAMPIRES ROCK

6 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £22 - £26

Steve Steinman plays the undead Baron Von Rockula, owner of the Live and Let Die nightclub, as he searches for a bride and generally growls his way through some classic rock anthems.

ANNIE

8–20 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £12.50 - £60

Contemporary musical favourite telling the tale of little orphan Annie.

Matinee performances also available.

WEST SIDE STORY

23–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £17 - £20

The Broadway musical favourite returns to the stage 50-odd years after Jerome Robbins transposed a timeless tale of romance and rivalry to the streets of New York. Matinee performances also available.

Theatre Royal PRIVATE LIVES

22–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £14 - £39.50

All-new reworking of Noël Coward’s 1933 play, in which divorced couple Elyot and Amanda, while honeymooning with their new spouses, discover that they are staying in adjacent rooms at the same hotel.

Matinee performances also available.

SCOTTISH OPERA: ARIODANTE

16 FEB, 18 FEB, 20 FEB, 24 FEB, 27 FEB, 7:15PM – 10:00PM, PRICES VARY

Director Harry Fehr and designer Yannis Thavoris return to offer a fresh perspective on the second of Handel’s Orlando furioso trilogy.

Tramway

PURPOSELESS MOVEMENTS

25–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, TBC

New theatre work from Birds of Paradise Theatre Company by Robert Softley, centred on five guys waiting on stage, each one with cerebral palsy.

Tron Theatre COCK

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 9 FEB AND 27 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Scottish premiere of Tron Theatre Company’s new production of Mike Bartlett’s sharp and witty play, marking its first UK staging since its Royal Court premiere six years ago.

60

Listings

SHEEP 4–6 FEB, 8:00PM – 10:00PM, £7.50

Inspired by attitudes to war and militarization, Tron Young Company present a new work questioning accepted roles for women and men in conflict, modern society’s use of propaganda and what happens when war arrives on your doorstep.

THE DESTROYED ROOM

25 FEB – 5 MAR, NOT 28 FEB, 29 FEB, 7:45PM – 10:00PM, £10 - £16

Inspired by Jeff Wall’s famous photograph showing a ransacked room, Glasgow-based theatre company Vanishing Point muse on the profusion of lenses which both track what’s going on in our world whilst keeping it at a clinicalised distance.

Edinburgh Theatre Appleton Tower

EVERYTHING I BOUGHT AND HOW IT MADE ME FEEL

18 FEB, 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Theatre-maker Harry Giles presents his thought-provoking piece in which he recalls a year of logging every transaction he made at everythingibought.tumblr.com, dissecting his shopping habits in minutiae details.

Bedlam Theatre THE PILLOWMAN

2–6 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £5.50 - £6.50

Talented young director Emily Aboud brings Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman before a Bedlam audience. Bring a blanket, it’s going to be chilling.

Festival Theatre THE JAMES PLAYS: JAMES I

3 FEB, 6 FEB, 10 FEB, 11 FEB, 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, £32.45 - £39.50

Vividly imagined, The James Plays bring to life three generations of Stewart kings who ruled Scotland from 1406-1488, with the Festival Theatre showing James I, II and III during February.

THE JAMES PLAYS: JAMES II

4 FEB, 6 FEB, 11 FEB, 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, £32.45 - £39.50

Vividly imagined, The James Plays bring to life three generations of Stewart kings who ruled Scotland from 1406-1488, with the Festival Theatre showing James I, II and III during February.

MUM’S THE WORD 2

GOBO. DIGITAL GLOSSARY

HOW YOU GONNA LIVE YOUR DASH

11–20 FEB, NOT 12, 13, 14, 15, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

6 FEB, 7:30PM – 8:25PM, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

28 JAN, 29 JAN, 11 FEB, 12 FEB, 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

New version of the original hit show detailing the comedic horrors of rearing young children, now updated to include the trials of rearing and living with teenagers. Matinee performances also available.

THE WIZARD OF OZ

23–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £16 - £20

Southern Light present their all-singing production of the musical favourite for all the family. Matinee performances also available.

Royal Lyceum Theatre THE WEIR

15 JAN – 6 FEB, NOT 24 JAN, 25 JAN, 31 JAN, 1 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, FROM £13

Conor McPherson’s moving, elegiac tale of a young woman arriving in Dublin with a haunting tale to share.

Matinee performances also available.

THE CRUCIBLE

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 20 FEB AND 19 MAR, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £10 - £29.50

Arthur Miller’s famous Tony Awardwinning re-telling of the 1692 Salem witch trial hysteria, a powerful modern tragedy of one man’s search for self. Matinee performances also available.

The Edinburgh Playhouse

RUSSIAN STATE BALLET: THE SNOW MAIDEN

2 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £18 - £31

Enchanting tale based on a traditional folk story, set in the snow covered landscape of rural Russia.

RUSSIAN STATE BALLET: GISELLE

3 FEB, 7:30PM, £31 - £38

Russian State Ballet’s classical ballet about love and betrayal, brought to life with mesmerising sets and lavish costumes.

RUSSIAN STATE BALLET: SLEEPING BEAUTY

4 FEB, 7:30PM, £31 - £38

Russian State Ballet present their magical re-telling of the classic fairytale, set to Tchaikovsky’s original score.

RUSSIAN STATE BALLET: SWAN LAKE

5 FEB, 7:30PM, £31 - £38

Russian State Ballet’s retelling of the classic love story, brought to life by Tchaikovsky’s haunting score.

BLOOD BROTHERS

8–13 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £12 - £42.50

The favourited musical tale of separated-at-birth twins who grow up on opposite sides of the tracks.

Matinee performances also available.

Scottish premiere of Russia’s Akhe Theatre’s ambition performance piece, hurtling through seventeen sketches at breakneck speed. Part of Manipulate.

THE TAILOR OF INVERNESS

9–11 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £8 - £16.50

Matthew Zajac brings his play about his Polish father back to the stage, a powerful allegory for all victims of war.

TORN

5 FEB, 7:30PM – 8:20PM, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

Faux Theatre present their poignant and powerful wordless portrayal of one woman’s effort to find and experience love. Part of Manipulate.

KEEP THE CROSS HIGH

1 FEB, 6:05PM – 6:45PM, FREE

Excerpt from a new play written by Francesca Caprioli, one of only three female theatre directors to graduate from the prestigious Accademia Silvio D’Amico, performed by Laura Wooff. Part of Manipulate.

CLOSE UP

1 FEB, 7:30PM – 8:30PM, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

UK premiere of the final part of Editta Braun’s acclaimed trilogy. Part of Manipulate.

LOOPSEND

2 FEB, 7:30PM – 8:45PM, £16.50 (£13.50/£8.50)

Paper Doll Militia continue their innovative approach to choreography and theatricality, presenting the world premiere of a new aerial theatre piece exploring dynamics and dangerous fixations. Part of Manipulate.

MACBETH: WITHOUT WORDS

2–12 FEB, 9:00PM – 10:00PM, £16.50 (£10.50/£8.50)

Ludens Ensemble’s stark and stylised new performance of this familiar tale of boundless ambition, greed, and destruction. Part of Manipulate.

BIRDHEART

3 FEB, 9:00PM – 9:45PM, £16.50 (£10.50/£8.50)

5 FEB, 6 FEB, 12 FEB, 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, £32.45 - £39.50

Agatha Christie tale in which the residents of Chipping Cleghorn are astonished to read an advert in the local newspaper that a murder will take place at the home of Letitia Blacklock. Matinee performances also available.

COCK

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 9 FEB AND 27 FEB, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Scottish premiere of Tron Theatre Company’s new production of Mike Bartlett’s sharp and witty play, marking its first UK staging since its Royal Court premiere six years ago.

Dundee Theatre Caird Hall MUM’S THE WORD 2

11–20 FEB, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Selection of new works from painter and art critic Merlin James, presented alongside a selection of other works from across his career.

EMMIE MCLUSKEY + MARY WINTOUR: I THOUGHT YOU KNEW

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 13 FEB AND 5 MAR, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Joint showcase exhibition of painting and sculpture by Emmie McLuskey and Mary Wintour, working together to create an installation specifically for Intermedia.

Glasgow School of Art RACHEL LOWTHER

16 JAN – 20 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Following being commissioned to spend time researching The Glasgow School of Art Archives and Collections’ World War I holdings in 2015, Rachel Lowther unveils a new body of work, including sculpture and films.

Glasgow-based performer-director Al Seed and Paris-based practitioner Judith Milligan explore the relationship between the theatrical styles of Tragedy and Bouffon, with emphasis on physical and visual perspectives.

Part of Manipulate.

DREAMERS/PROCESS DAY

12 FEB, PRICES VARY

Scottish Dance Theatre returns to the Traverse with a special double bill of new works created by choreographers Anton Lachky and Sharon Eyal, and music producer/ artist Gai Behar.

The Gardyne Theatre CRIMSON RIBBON

3–5 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £12 - £14

Musical play from Malcolm Dowie set in Dundee in 1919, where the ripples of WWI are still being felt deeply across the city.

THE TRANSPARENT TORTOISESHELL AND THE UN-RIPE UMBRELLA

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 23 JAN AND 25 MAR, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

GoMA

RIPPLES ON THE POND

1 MAY 2015–3 APR 2016, TIMES VARY, FREE

Glasgow Museums’ collection exhibition designed as a conversation between works by women on paper and moving image, taking as its starting point recent acquisitions from the Glasgow Women’s Library 21 Revolutions series.

18 SEP – 28 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Group exhibition exploring Glasgow Museums’ contemporary art collection through connections with Glasgow School of Art, including work by Christine Borland, Jim Lambie, Victoria Morton and Simon Starling.

The James Plays Edinburgh Festival Theatre, 3-13 Feb

Director Harry Fehr and designer Yannis Thavoris return to offer a fresh perspective on the second of Handel’s Orlando furioso trilogy.

A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED

In celebration of LGBT History Month, Leith community theatre project Village Pub Theatre take over the Traverse bar for a special two-night programme of short plays under the theme of of ‘LGBT Innovators’.

MERLIN JAMES: LONG GAME

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 23 JAN AND 13 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Hunterian Art Gallery TRAVELLERS’ TAILS

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 1 OCT AND 25 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

HAIRSPRAY 22–27 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £20 - £45

Toe-tapping musical based on the film by John Waters, following the tale of a girl with big hair and an even bigger heart. Matinee performances also available.

Traverse Theatre BIRD

4 FEB, 9:00PM – 10:00PM, £16.50 (£10.50/£8.50)

Actor, musician and theatre maker Sita Pieraccini’s touching tale of friendship, courage, magic and madness created through inventive clowning, mime and visceral physicality. Part of Manipulate.

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 16 JAN AND 5 MAR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Portrait artist Tanya RaabeWebber displays the fruits of her work completed during residence with Project Ability.

Street Level Photoworks

LIZA DRACUP: RE: COLLECTIONS

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 30 JAN AND 27 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

English photographer Liza Dracup displays a photographic study of British wildlife vertebrate specimens, using The Natural Sciences Collections held by Bradford Museums & Galleries as reference.

ULLA SCHILDT: A RARE VISITOR

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 30 JAN AND 27 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Series of images of natural history museums and zoos in cities such as Oslo, Dublin, Berlin, London, Paris and Tallinn – a study of spaces where 'nature' has been artificially constructed for people to experience.

The Hidden Lane Gallery MARGARET WATKINS’ LONDON

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 11 DEC AND 20 FEB, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Hidden Lane Gallery play host to the first ever showing of Canadian photographer Margaret Watkins’ photographs of London in the 1930s.

4 FEB, 6:05PM – 6:45PM, FREE

SCOTTISH OPERA: ARIODANTE

1–6 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

VILLAGE PUB THEATRE: LGBT INNOVATORS

23–24 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £6.50

The New York-born, Sheffieldraised experimental artist explores the idea of liminal space beyond the corporate web, an attempt to negotiate potentially autonomous negative space within the internet.

DEVILS IN THE MAKING

16 FEB, 18 FEB, 20 FEB, 24 FEB, 27 FEB, 7:15PM – 10:00PM, PRICES VARY

THE PERFECT MURDER

Poignant play following the journey into adolescence of a young girl growing up in rural Ireland in 1987.

22 JAN – 5 FEB, NOT 25 JAN, 1 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Group exhibition exploring how artists uses every-day objects to create abstract pictorial assemlages, including work by Eva Berendes, Stephanie Mann, Rallou Panagiotou, Vanessa Safavi and Samara Scott. Also a contender for best exhibition title ever.

Crowd-pleaser of a musical, complete with singalong pop-rock score and nifty dance moves a-plenty.

Matinee performances also available.

Best-selling author Peter James returns to the King’s Theatre with his first critically acclaimed stage hit, starring Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace offa Eastenders. Matinee performances also available.

18–20 FEB, 8:00PM – 10:00PM, £8 - £16.50

CHRISTOPHER MACINNES: RETINA GOTHIC

Project Ability

TANYA RAABE-WEBBER: #SUMMITPORTRAYED

Dundee Rep

THE BOUFFON-TRAGEDY PROJECT

FOOTLOOSE

29 FEB – 5 MAR, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

MY NAME IS SAOIRSE

CCA: Centre for Contemporary Art

Exhibition of comic Billy Connolly’s artworks, shown together with a range of objects from Glasgow Museums’ collection – including those famous banana boots and his guitar made from a White Horse whisky box.

Glasgow Sculpture Studios The Lighthouse

16–20 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £22 - £42

King’s Theatre Edinburgh

Scottish Dance Theatre returns to the Traverse with a special double bill of new works created by choreographers Anton Lachky and Sharon Eyal, and music producer/ artist Gai Behar.

Glasgow

ART OF BILLY CONNOLLY

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 28 AUG AND 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Julian Crouch and Saskia Lane’s intimate chamber piece of animated theatre created with a sheet of brown paper, found objects, shadows and a box of sand. Part of Manipulate.

bit.ly/jamesplays

Vividly imagined, The James Plays bring to life three generations of Stewart kings who ruled Scotland from 1406-1488, with the Festival Theatre showing James I, II and III during February.

DREAMERS/PROCESS DAY

17–18 FEB, NOT 14, 15, 16, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Art

New version of the original hit show detailing the comedic horrors of rearing young children, now updated to include the trials of rearing and living with teenagers. Matinee performances also available.

Buy your tickets here:

THE JAMES PLAYS: JAMES III

Edinburgh-based live artist and director Jenna Watt presents her new work, powerfully exploring the life-altering decisions we make in order to get the most out of our time on earth, based on real life testimonies.

People’s Palace

WINNIE HOPPER 5 FEB, 6:05PM – 6:45PM, FREE

Jenny Lyn and Andrew Simpson’s physical work of visual storytelling, exploring the family tales that transform through generations of telling. Part of Manipulate.

HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN

6 FEB, 6:05PM – 6:45PM, FREE

In-development collaborative performance and research project about compulsive hoarding, with the makers sharing scenes from the script and musical score and discussing the ideas behind the project. Part of Manipulate.

Themed exhibition on exploration, art and science, inspired by the National Maritime Museum’s acquisition of the Kangaroo and Dingo

by English painter George Stubbs, with the on-loan Kangaroo forming the exhibition’s centrepiece.

Mary Mary

GEOGRAPHIES OF DUST AND AIR

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 6 FEB AND 19 MAR, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

Group exhibition focusing on sculptural pieces which offer a slightness, an abstraction or a reworking of material, taking in work

by Leonor Antunes, Sara Barker, Germaine Kruip, Manuela Leinhoß and Bojan Šarcević.

HELLO MY NAME IS PAUL SMITH

21 JAN – 20 MAR, TIMES VARY, £4-6

Popular touring exhibition offering an insight into designer Paul Smith’s creative process past and present via a replica of his office, a recreation of his design studio, archive garments and shop designs.

The Modern Institute JACK MCCONVILLE

23 JAN – 26 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

The Edinburgh-born artist showcases a new body of work, coinciding with the release of his book, ‘Jack’, comprising 106 drawings printed in colour risograph in a limited edition of 150 books.

Tramway

RICHARD SLEE: WORK AND PLAY

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 6 FEB AND 20 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Selection of work by well-known British ceramicist Richard Slee, encompassing his most radical work to date produced over the last 10 years.

UAINEAD

19–20 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM, £5

Gaelic work-in-progress combining live theatre with visual art and sculpture, exploring nature and memory and what falls through the cracks in translation.

BREAKING JOINTS

11 FEB, 7:50PM, £5 (£3)

Tramway showcases a series of new works by a budding young generation of artists that deal in, or are influenced by, animation and general mindfuckery.

Transmission

BUT WHAT WAS MOST AWFUL WAS A GIRL WHO WAS SINGING

20 FEB–26 MARCH, 11:00–5:00PM £5 (£3)

Jamie Crewe's first solo exhibition, and Transmission's Scottish Solo Show for 2016. See page 17 for more info.

THE SKINNY

Edinburgh Art Bargain Spot Project

OBJECTS FROM THE TEMPERATE PALM HOUSE

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 16 JAN AND 27 FEB, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

Interview Room 11 EMILY RICHIE: II

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 15 JAN AND 13 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Latest body of work from artist Emily Ritchie, developed during a residency in Finland over the last three months of 2015, responding to the alien setting and the disquiet of the northern winter.

ROBERT DAVIES: DEVELOPMENT

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 19 FEB AND 11 MAR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Group exhibition presenting new, existing and commissioned work by eleven object-orientated or sculptural artists from Scotland, the UK and Europe, presented alongside artefacts from the archive of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

Focused on the landscape around us – its architecture, structures both permanent and temporary – artist Robert Davies displays a body of work exploring how ideas and experience of time change over time.

City Art Centre

Inverleith House

THE ARTIST AND THE SEA

26 SEP – 8 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

Themed exhibition by a range of different artists capturing the character of the sea, taking in painting, drawing, printmaking, photography and sculpture, and including works by John Bellany, William McTaggart, Joan Eardley and Elizabeth Ogilvie.

WILLIAM GEAR

24 OCT – 14 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Retrospective exhibition of the British abstract painter, tracing his influence through his association with CoBrA in the 1940s, right through to his later work and death in 1997.

JAGGED GENERATION: WILLIAM GEAR’S CONTEMPORARIES

24 OCT – 7 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Selection of artworks from the City Art Centre’s collection, chosen to complement the exhibition retrospective of William Gear, which runs alongside.

BRITISH ART SHOW 8 @ INVERLEITH HOUSE

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 13 FEB AND 8 MAY, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Touring show spread across a trio of Edinburgh galleries – Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Inverleith House and Talbot Rice – offering an overview of 42 artists deemed to have made a significant contribution to UK art in the past five years.

Royal Scottish Academy RSA RSA OPEN 2015

28 NOV – 14 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Exhibition of small works sourced by open submission from artists across Scotland, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, prints and photographs – all available to buy – from around 400 different artists. Expect the usual pick’n’mix wonderland.

Scottish Collective Gallery National Gallery KATIE SCHWAB: TOGETHER IN A ROOM

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 20 FEB AND 24 APR, 10:00AM – 4:00PM, FREE

Artist Katie Schwab presents a collection of works drawing on her research into histories of domestic design, showroom display and craft education, exploring ideas of function and decoration in their composition and arrangement.

Dovecot Studios DAVID POSTON: NECKLACE FOR AN ELEPHANT AND OTHER STORIES

12 FEB – 26 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, 10:30AM – 5:30PM, FREE

In what is his second exchange with Dovecot, jeweller, designermaker, interdisciplinary problem solver and 3D technologist David Poston displays a series of pieces documenting his extensive exploration into materials, ideas and collaboration.

Edinburgh Printmakers

RACHEL DUCKHOUSE: RHYTHM IN RESEARCH

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 23 JAN AND 26 MAR, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Glasgow-based artist Rachel Duckhouse presents a selection of screenprints, etchings, lithographs and drawings created in response to several artist residencies and self-directed research projects undertaken in Scotland and Canada.

Ingleby Gallery JONNY LYONS: DREAM EASY

6 FEB – 26 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Solo exhibition from the Glasgow-based artists whose practice explores the fragility of friendship and adventure through performances documented by photography and film.

ANDREW CRANSTON: PAINTINGS FROM A ROOM

6 FEB – 26 MAR, NOT SUNDAYS, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

The Glasgow-based artist displays a body of work drawing on a variety of sources, in particular his own personal history.

ROCKS AND RIVERS: THE LUNDE COLLECTION

3 APR 2015–30 JUN 2017, TIMES VARY, FREE

Long-term loan from one of the finest private collections of 19thCentury Norwegian and Swiss landscape paintings, American collector Asbjörn Lunde, taking in 13 works by artists including Johan Christian Dahl, Alexandre Calame and Thomas Fearnley.

D.Y. CAMERON: THE SPIRIT OF LINE

24 OCT – 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Selection of prints and watercolours from the Scottish National Gallery’s extensive collection of Sir David Young Cameron’s work, marking the 150th anniversary of his birth.

CONVERGE 2016

29 JAN – 20 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Three invited artists – Steven McIver, Andrew Mackenzie and Sam Johnson – display work with delineation through architectural study and structural design at its heart, alongside open submissions, a Graduate Showcase and the Cordis Trust Award shortlist.

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art MODERN SCOTTISH WOMEN: PAINTERS AND SCULPTORS 1885-1965

7 NOV – 26 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, £9 (£7)

Showcase exhibition of work by Scottish women artists, concentrating on painters and sculptors, covering the period from 1885 to 1965.

BRITISH ART SHOW 8 @ SCOTTISH NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART

13 FEB – 8 MAY, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Touring show spread across a trio of Edinburgh galleries – Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Inverleith House and Talbot Rice – offering an overview of 42 artists deemed to have made a significant contribution to UK art in the past five years.

Scottish National Portrait Gallery DOCUMENT SCOTLAND: THE TIES THAT BIND

26 SEP – 24 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Photographic collective comprising of Colin McPherson, Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert, Sophie Gerrard and Stephen McLaren – four Scotsborn photographers, each exponents of documentary photography – featuring 50-75 photographs of, and about, Scotland.

February 2016

BP PORTRAIT AWARD 2015 10 OCT – 28 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Annual showcase of the best in contemporary portrait painting from around the world, now in its 34th year and marking the sixth time the Scottish National Portrait Gallery has hosted the exhibition.

THE UNTITLED

30 JAN – 8 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

Throughout 2015, the National Galleries’ Outreach Team invited ‘the next generation’ to make the kind of art they would want to see, inspired by the work of contemporary artists – here young people from Alloa, Irvine and Edinburgh showcase the fruits.

St Margaret’s House MICHAEL WIGHT: XLA

23 JAN – 7 FEB, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Artist Michael Wight presents a selection of work based on his personal experiences of living with a long-term illness, showcasing a mix of large canvas paintings and photography.

JENNY CAMPBELL: BROKEN LINES

23 JAN – 7 FEB, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Artist Jenny Campbell presents a personal show of paintings, drawings and monoprints featuring figurative and abstract works.

CORDULA MARKS: THE THIRD KINGDOM

23 JAN – 7 FEB, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Solo show from Cordula Marks exploring an imaginary, sub-human ‘kingdom’, combining work in various media, storytelling and a collection of paintings.

The Fruitmarket Gallery ANOTHER MINIMALISM

14 NOV – 21 FEB, TIMES VARY, FREE

Group show bringing together a select group of current artists with that of two pioneers of West Coast American minimalism (Robert Irwin and Larry Bell), examining the impact of California Light and Space art on artists working today.

The Queen’s Gallery

SCOTTISH ARTISTS 1750-1900: FROM CALEDONIA TO THE CONTINENT

6 AUG – 7 FEB, 9:30AM – 6:00PM, £6.60 (£6 STUDENT/£3 UNDER 17S)

First ever exhibition devoted to Scottish art in the Royal Collection, bringing together paintings, drawings and miniatures collected by monarchs from George III to Queen Victoria.

Dundee Art Cooper Gallery

SWEET FA

DCA: Dundee Contemporary Arts

13–28 FEB, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Double-header exhibition of work produced in the last year by emerging artists Neil Ogg and Colin Wilson.

Stills

JOSEPH MCKENZIE: WOMEN OF DUNDEE / PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE MARGARET MORRIS COLLECTION

6 FEB – 9 APR, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Two-part exhibition presenting a body of work by Joseph McKenzie, dating from the 60s, alongside photographic material from the Margaret Morris collection, dating from the 1910s-30s, all on display in Edinburgh for the first time.

Summerhall

WHITNEY MCVEIGH: LANGUAGE OF MEMORY

12 DEC – 9 MAR, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Solo exhibition by Whitney McVeigh, centering on her short film ‘Birth’: Origins at the end of Life, recording six women’s experience of birth and existence, in the setting of St Christopher’s Hospice in London.

RICCARDO BUSCARINI + RICHARD TAYLOR: IN PARTING GLASS

12 DEC – 9 MAR, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Choreographer Riccardo Buscarini and visual artist Richard Taylor work together for the first time, transforming the glass cabinets in Summerhall’s Laboratory Gallery into living archives to explore memory, intimacy and exposure.

MEDITERRANEO CARNEVALE

6–7 FEB, 9:00PM – 1:00AM, £10 - £11

Mediterraneo and Nothing Ever Happens Here team up for Carnevale 2016 – a night of Balkan brass, Italian Pizzica, Greek rembetiko and mask-wearing, featuring live sets from Orkestra Del Sol and The Badwills.

Talbot Rice Gallery

BRITISH ART SHOW 8 @ TALBOT RICE

13 FEB – 7 MAY, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

Touring show spread across a trio of Edinburgh galleries – Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Inverleith House and Talbot Rice – offering an overview of 42 artists deemed to have made a significant contribution to UK art in the past five years.

Book by 17 February. Call us now on 0131 4674630 or email sales@theskinny.co.uk

ALL SYSTEMS... GO

13–28 FEB, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Showcase of design posters based on a single word typographic theme, all created specially for the exhibition.

We’re offering exclusive deals if you combine the magazine with theskinny.co.uk when booking your March adverts. And the best part? You could reach 270,000 people next month.

22 JAN – 27 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Group exhibition featuring moving image works by leading international artists Liam Gillick and Anton Vidokle, esteemed filmmaker Miranda Pennell and emerging artist Dominic Watson.

THEMEATIC

BE SEEN EVERYWHERE

theskinny.co.uk @TheSkinny /TheSkinnyMag

Illustration: Alessandra Genualdo

IC-98: DRAWN INTO TOMORROW

28 NOV – 14 FEB, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Showcase of work by the artist duo IC-98 in their largest UK show to date, fresh from representing Finland at the 2015 Venice Biennale.

GREY GARDENS

27 FEB – 1 MAY, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Exhibition of art and architecture inspired by modernity and nature, including Modernist houses by Morris and Steedman, Peter Womersley’s Studio for Bernat Klein and the town art of Glenrothes and Cumbernauld. Part of the Festival of Architecture.

Generator Projects

GENERATOR MEMBERS’ SHOW 2016

VARIOUS DATES BETWEEN 13 FEB AND 6 MAR, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

The return of Generator Project’s annual members’ show, featuring work by an array of artists that make up the gallery’s varied collective.

Hannah Maclure Centre AH-BIN SHIM: 2

9 NOV – 12 FEB, WEEKDAYS ONLY, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Solo exhibition by Korean visual artist Ah-Bin Shim as part of NEoN Digital Arts Festival – whose work explores conflict, both conceptually and in its materiality.

The McManus TAKING A LINE FOR A WALK

5 DEC – 17 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Showcase of pencil and paper works taking its title from a Paul Klee quote, featuring both playful and outsize works by artists including James Gunn, June Carey, Franziska Furter, Tim Knowles and Massimo Bartolini.

University of Dundee MAT FLEMING

30 OCT – 20 FEB, NOT SUNDAYS, TIMES VARY, FREE

Solo showcase presenting the works developed by artist Mat Fleming during his 10-month residency at LifeSpace. In the LifeSpace Gallery.

Listings

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Win tickets to see Fickle Friends!

Walking the Black Dog Tony Law's Frillemorphesis was one of The Skinny's highlights of the Fringe, but off-stage it was a testing time for the comedian. Now on tour, Law speaks candidly – and with good humour – about his experiences Interview: Craig Angus Illustrator: Sarah Kirk

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isco-tinged indie quintet Fickle Friends first caught people's attention back in 2014, thanks to the fast-growing internet buzz surrounding debut single SWIM, which amassed over 750,000 Soundcloud plays. Subsequently becoming HypeMachine’s 25th most blogged artist of 2014, the band have gone on to rack up yet more critical acclaim from such notable sources as Zane Lowe, Billboard and BBC Introducing.

The Brighton-based band's proclivity towards upbeat summertime synth-pop has already seen them wow the crowds on the festival circuit, and this year they embark upon their first UK headline tour – including stops in Edinburgh (29 Feb) and Glasgow (3 Mar).

You can find the full tour details on the

band's Facebook page, but in the meantime we've got two tickets right here to see Fickle Friends at Edinburgh's Electric Circus on Monday 29 Feb. For your chance to win, just visit theskinny.co.uk/competitions and correctly answering the following question: What is the name of Fickle Friend’s debut EP? a) Cotton b) Velvet c) Silk Competition closes midnight Wednesday 24 February.

Winners will be notified via email within one working day of closing and will be required to respond within 24 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts & Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

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Win a GoPro Camera and learn to snowboard!

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lcon Entertainment’s high-adrenaline action thriller Point Break hits cinema screens this month, with Luke Bracey starring as Johnny Utah, a young FBI agent who infiltrates a cunning team of thrill-seeking elite athletes, led by Edgar Ramirez’ charismatic Bodhi. Deep undercover, and with his life in imminent danger, Utah strives to prove they are the architects of a string of inconceivable crimes.

To celebrate the release of Point Break, in cinemas on 5 February, we’ve teamed up with Warner Bros. Pictures and Snow Factor to offer one lucky reader the chance to win a GoPro Camera AND learn to snowboard!

Begin your snowboarding journey at Snow Factor, where you and a friend will learn about the equipment, become comfortable sliding around on your snowboard and be introduced to basic posture and control, and controlling your speed

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and direction.* If you’re feeling lucky, head to theskinny.co.uk/competitions and answer the following question: Name the Australian actor who stars in Point Break, known for his performances in November Man and G.I. Joe: Retaliation: a) Luke Bracey b) Luke Skywalker c) Luke Warm

*See full terms and conditions on the Snow Factor website: snowfactor.com Competition closes midnight Sunday 28 February. Winners will be notified via email within one working day of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts & Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

nyone who thinks Tony Law’s exuberant stage persona is actually just a construct, and that the real Tony Law is the shy and retiring type, need only attempt to call him. After three tries in which the ringing is replaced in its stead by those familiar, animated Anglo-Canadian tones – “Leave a message for TONY LAAAAW!” – a text comes through: “Ready”.

“Sorry about that,” says Law, “I’m walking my giant black German Shepherd, and I needed both hands because he does massive shits.” And he laughs, a booming, infectious pronouncement of joy, and the first of many.

But there’s more to that laugh than appears.

Law is touring his show Frillemorphesis, after what we’re surprised to learn was a personally challenging Edinburgh Fringe run. Entertaining 200 paying customers each day for most of August, Law found himself only doing so while surfing a wave of maniacal frenzy. It turns out he was going through a hard time, abusing alcohol and suffering from an undiagnosed mental illness.

“I was pretty much rock bottom and out of control when I did it [Frillemorphesis] in Edinburgh,” Law says. “I went into rehab in September, so I’ve basically spent the last three months recovering from all sorts of things – levelling out, going to see psychiatrists.” He pauses again to laugh, before adding with veritable warmth: “Anyway, I’m healthy and normal for the first time since I was about 17.”

A genuine sense of optimism permeates our conversation. Law calls his journey “some fuckin’ Disney shit”. In truth, while the compelling tale of personal redemption – climaxing with personal and professional epiphanies – might fit Law’s Disney template, his interpretive dance digressions and surreal equine flashbacks would stop it becoming the sort of feelgood comedy you watch with the family.

It’s fair to say Law has a renewed sense of purpose this year, and that his experiences have

COMPETITIONS / COMEDY

impacted upon both his current show and his aspirations going forward. Speaking about the new, improved Frillemorphesis he says: “I have so much more time on my hands now, so I might as well write something, rather than turn up and just say, [growls] ’Oooh, got away with that one!’ I still have mania – as you can tell – but I think a lot of the show seems to be developing real themes that come from reaching 46 and finally realising what life is about, and being actually happy rather than pretending.”

Law’s disarming honesty extends to his own struggles with mental health. He acknowledges that the mania is something he’ll always carry, but that he’s not alone with that. “Every single one of us has a mental illness, haven’t we?” he says.

“And I think definitely it is easier to deal with, the stigma isn’t being attached and people are able to say, ‘Oh fuck, that’s what I was struggling with’ – that’s a great liberation for scores and scores of people. You can tell I’ve been through a lot of therapy because everything I say is so frickin’ positive!”

He’s still unmistakably Tony Law though, going off on tangents about Wolfy, the aforementioned pooch, and at one stage pitching a panel show set in a moving truck, driven by Law, where the questions are all based on whatever town the said vehicle pitches up in. “I want barbarous audiences!” says Law, then he’s off to walk Wolfy the German Shepherd again, something he says is a continual source of amusement: “Sometimes I can’t put my finger on it, but I find myself just really laughing at him playing. He reminds me of the big black dog of depression. So I look at him and I just feel a little better.”

Tony Law: Frillemorphesis plays The Lowry, Salford on Sat 20 Feb; The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen on Thu 10 Mar; and The Stand, Glasgow – as part of the Glasgow International Comedy Festival – on Fri 11 Mar mrtonylaw.com

THE SKINNY

How to Seduce like a Pick-up Pro With Valentine’s Day upon us, our romance expert gives a literary review of two of the most famous seduction manuals used by ‘pick-up artists’

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eading Robert Greene’s The Art of Seduction leads me to wonder if the book accidentally got mixed up at the printers with the welcome pack to Guantanamo Bay. He describes women as ‘targets’ and ‘victims’, advising me to, “Study [my] prey thoroughly, and choose only those who will prove susceptible to [my] charm.” But should I also tell the detainee his hair looks pretty?

Many would-be Casanovas think they’ll benefit from such wisdom and I’ll consider Greene’s main advice to seducers point-by-point – because someone has to rescue Valentine’s Day. Choose the right victim Apparently ‘the right victims’ are those for whom you can “fill a void. Those who see in you something exotic. They are often isolated or unhappy, or can easily be made so.”

Basically, what Greene suggests here is that the key to an invigorating life of passion is to fuck with the heads of any girl who’s about two episodes of Mr Robot away from a rope, ceiling rafter and a wobbily chair.

Create a false sense of security – approach indirectly “If you are too direct early on, you risk stirring up a resistance that will never be lowered. At first there must be nothing of the seducer in your manner. The seduction should begin at an angle, indirectly, so that the target only gradually becomes aware of you.

Haunt the periphery of your target’s life – then strike.”

I don’t want to come on too strong. What if she’s shy, or simply just allergic to the swarms of locusts flowing from your mouth, Greene? Yeah, it’s better to haunt her. Like a fucking ghost. Because that’s way less creepy.

Send mixed signals “Once people are aware of your presence, and perhaps vaguely intrigued, you need to stir their interest before it settles on someone else.”

Don’t worry, Greene, they’ll already be frantically trying to figure out if you can be killed with conventional weapons or if they’ll need some sort of glowing ceremonial dagger.

Words: Fred Fletch Illustration: Nick Cocozza

Appear to be an object of desire – create triangles “Draw your victims closer and make them hungry to possess you, you must create an aura of desirability – of being wanted and courted by many.”

At this point you’ve already advised to become a ghost and hit on a suicide risk, so it really shouldn’t be that difficult to have a girl hunger for you like for Johnny Depp-cock and ice-cream by dropping the hint that the Galactic Space Council want you for sex crimes on Saturn.

Create a need – stir anxiety and discontent “A perfectly satisfied person cannot be seduced.

Tension and disharmony must be instilled in your targets’ minds.”

Seriously. I think we’ve ticked this box the moment you rose up at their table in a cloud of Egyptian curses and banshee screams.

Enter their spirit “Most people are locked in their own worlds, making them stubborn and hard to persuade. The way to lure them out of their shell and set up your seduction is to enter their spirit. Play by their rules, enjoy what they enjoy, adapt yourself to their moods.

In doing so you will stroke their deep-rooted narcissism.”

This is a good example of when a suggestion starts off good, then just ends up the same flavor of ‘dangerous madman’ as the previous tips. We all ‘act interested’ in other people’s bullshit from time to time. Whether it’s your girlfriend telling you about ‘the weirdest dream’ she had last night, or just saying you love dogs because amazing breasts top-trump a rabies shot EVERY SINGLE TIME, but the way Greene puts it sounds like a deleted scene from The Silence of the Lambs.

Create temptation “Lure the target deep into your seduction by creating the proper temptation: a glimpse of the pleasures to come.”

Around this point, your ‘victim’ will be cursing the day she solved that Cenobite-filled puzzle box.

Keep them in suspense — what comes next?

Fuck only knows, Robert. Space-Prison?

Cannibalism? Brad Pitt shoots you in the face, finally bringing your message to its inevitable conclusion? I can only assume that shortly after writing this book, Greene proceeded to instigate Plan B: DESTROY THE AVENGERS FROM WITHIN.

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hankfully Neil Strauss’s tips in The Game and Rules of the Game are a trifle less sociopathic sounding, but less sociopathic sounding is about as good as it gets.

You can only “game” a woman with whom you are prepared to fail (if you find yourself wanting her too badly, you’ll never have her). AKA: Exude extreme confidence.

This is actually a helpful tip, or perhaps it’s just a far cry from Greene’s bag (which is presumably filled with women’s shoes and jars of deadly, deadly bees).

Demonstrate some kind of value, skill or talent near your target, but not directly to her. Initially, pretend you don’t even notice her.

The amount of time magic tricks are used by pick-up artists for this purpose should make us suspicious of the whole field. However, I’m feeling your desire to wrap your holes around my everythings grow as I do a wicked wheelie on my BMX for your friend with the moustache.

Win over her friends.

FUCKING DONE. He God damn LOVES my rad BMXing Be hard to get.

Five laps around the bar, on my BMX, full speed.

I’m pretty damn hard to get.

Be fun.

SERIOUSLY? Did you miss the BMXing?

Handle challenges from competing men intellectually and psychologically. Never fight.

This actually goes against all of my preconceptions.

I’ve grown up assuming girls’ panties issue Tsunami warnings when I nunchuck their husband to death.

Respond to any signs that she’s not interested as if it were “no big deal” Pfffhhht.

Once you have your target’s attention, playfully insult (“neg”) her. The more beautiful the woman, the more effective the neg is in garnering interest as they rarely hear comments of that nature.

What the fuck is a neg? It seems to amount to saying stuff like, ‘I like your hair, why do you smell of ham?’ Or ‘I don’t usually find freckles attractive you fucking cow.’

Once attraction has been established, punish any unwanted behaviour by withdrawing and disinterest, but do not pout or have an attitude.

This is for that time my date ate a chip from my plate after clearly saying she didn’t want a plate of chips. What’s the implication on ‘punish’ here, Neil? Can I threaten her with a bar stool, or just return to mentally scarring her?

Alternate between attraction and disinterest signals in a push-pull fashion until rapport is established.

Because chicks LOVE a bipolar seduction-wizard on a BMX. Both authors are suspiciously quiet on what to do after a seduction, presumably because there is no game or cheat code to get men out of the handwritten post-coital apology and obligatory offer to pay for the sheets to be cleaned. But, so far, this has all been rather academic. I’ve decided to put Strauss and Greene’s advice to the test in a real world situation. In the tornado of sexual intensity these two necromancers of ultimate seduction had whipped me into I searched out my galactic space diaper. Let us pray vaginas are now equipped with crash bags. I proudly informed my wife I was heading out to “upset the power balances that naturally occur in relationships by seductively taking whatever I wanted from whoever I wanted.”

She told me to take bins out on my way.

Coming soon: Fred Fletch’s further adventures in seduction theskinny.co.uk/comedy

February 2016

COMEDY

The Last Word

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Listings

THE SKINNY