The Skinny December 2007

ISSUE 27 :: DECEMBER 2007 :: FREE

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TODN E L D D I M GOING TO IE M L O C L MA WE’RE ALL ON WHY

THE SKINNY

EDITORIAL Last month I asked what kind of an alternative there might be to an avant-garde culture, feeling like there isn’t enough groundbreaking creative work being done today. Where are the life-changing moments, the agenda-setting manifestos? This lack of revolutionary new stuff applies on an international level as well as just in Scotland, but there is no reason to think we can’t be leaders.

Readers of The Skinny were generally very positive that the issue had been raised, and I look forward to going into your views in more detail in coming issues. Please keep sending them, and tell me if I’m missing out on something essential.

But for December I’m pleased to have an announcement to make. Let no-one accuse The Skinny of being a fly-on-the-wall moaning platform: we’ve arranged a conference with the explicit intention of exploring the future of the music industry (as good a place as any to start the discussion). The conference is titled ‘ON:07 - The Challenge of the New Reality’, and has a worldclass panel of speakers attending.

Peter Jenner, our keynote, has been in music since he left his academic post at the LSE to manage the fledgling Pink Floyd; his recent co-authored paper Beyond the Soundbytes caused major shockwaves in the industry, and he is currently chairman of the International Music Managers Forum. Simon Frith is a former music critic now Tovey Chair of Music at Edinburgh University, who also set-up the Mercury Music Prize. He continues to chair the panel of judges. Will Page is Executive Director of Research at the MCPS-PRS Alliance, and through this role and his independent work he has established himself at the forefront of economic thought on copyright and the music industry in particular. All have great reputations for public speaking, and so the event should be a grand ol’ time for all.

Jenner chose the title ‘The Challenge of the New Reality’, pointing the conference towards a discussion of practical answers. This isn’t so much a question of what might we do someday, as: what are we going to do about what is happening right now?

We are focussing this conference specifically on the music industry because 1.) The Skinny loves music and 2.) it’s an industry that touches everyone, from listeners to artists, and CEOs to producers. In fact, we have a fantastic line-up of guests as well as speakers, with industry-types, academics, policy makers and the press coming out in numbers. But The Skinny has never been about exclusivity, and there are places available to readers at this free event. You’ll need to be quick, as the last places will fill fast, but it’d be great to see a number of you there. Log on to skinnymag. co.uk and follow the ON:07 link to read more about the conference and get in contact for a place. I’m sorry we may not be able to accommodate everyone, but look out for podcasts and follow up literature in the near future.

It’s a great time of year to be engaged with the kind of overview represented by ‘The Challenge of the New Reality’, because this has long been a time for taking stock. This issue we are running a series of look-backs, from the Top Ten Albums of the Year in the Sounds and Beats sections (and what a lot of damn fine albums there were) to a star-studded retrospective of the theatrical calendar, and much more besides. It’s no use just being caught up in nostalgia, though, so next issue look out for our top predictions for 2008. We’ve lined up some cracking interviews with rising stars we’re sure are going to be rocking it next year, so look out for us on 3 January to be ahead of the game.

Back to these fair pages, and it’s worth pointing out that we’re not entirely engaged with high-falutin’ artistic theorising: we’re running a merry and practical Festive Special with tips on how to go Christmas shopping off the beaten track, where to find the best in warming vittles and cheer, and where to let it all hang out come Hogmanay. Hoots!

Happy partying, and see you in the new year. rupert@skinnymag.co.uk

"

CONTACT US: The Skinny offers a wide range of advertising packages and affordable ways to promote your business. Get in touch to find out more: E: SALES@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK T: 0131 467 4630

The Skinny is distributed through a network of public venues in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee. To get on the distribution list email SKINNY@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK Let us know what you think: E: LETTERS@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK P: THE SKINNY, THE DRILL HALL, 30-38 DALMENY ST, EDINBURGH, EH6 8RG.

Issue 27 December 2007 © Radge Media Ltd All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the explicit permission of the publisher.

The views and opinions expressed within this publication do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the printer or the publisher.

Printed by DC Thomson ABC: 22,502. 1/4/07 - 30/06/07

Thanks to Rebecca Davies for providing the festive illustrations that adorn this issue. You can see more of her work at: www.myspace.com/cosbysweaters

COVER CREDIT

WWW.THUNDERHEART.CO.UK

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THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

www.skinnymag.co.uk

6 8 10 12 16 20 22 24

HEADS UP

Vox Pops with the stars

SHOWCASE Paul Ryding

CONTENTS

CONTENTS ISSUE 27, DECEMBER 2007 6

8

LGBT

Pride and Prejudice Review 2007 10

FILM

Best and worst films 2007 DVD

12 14

THEATRE

The stage 2007 in review by industry professionals Comedy: Richard Herring

16 19 Paul Ryding P8

BOOKS Peanuts

GAMES

Wii wish you a merry Xbox

20

22

ART

20 years of Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop

24 The Darjeeling Limited, pg 18

PullOut 26 38 44

SOUNDS

2007: A year in music Malcom Middleton takes on Xfactor

BEATS

Kings Of Electro Onur Özer

PRESENT IDEAS, FOOD, ALTERNATIVE FESTIVE ENTERTAINMENT & TIPS FOR YOUR HOGMANAY NIGHT OUT (OR IN)

26 27

42 44

LISTINGS

Edinburgh & Glasgow Art, Comedy, Theatre, Club and Live Music listings

THE SKINNY TEAM PUBLISHER

SOPHIE KYLE

EDITOR

RUPERT THOMSON

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

MATT MACLEOD

PRODUCTION EDITOR

LEIGH PEARSON

SALES EXECUTIVE

LARA MOLONEY

ONLINE & SOUNDS EDITOR

DAVE KERR

BEATS EDITOR

ALEX BURDEN

LGBT EDITOR

NINE

FILM EDITOR

PAUL GREENWOOD

THEATRE EDITOR

HUGO FLUENDY

COMEDY EDITOR

EMMA LENNOX

BOOKS EDITOR

KEIR HIND

GAMES EDITOR

JOSH WILSON

ART EDITOR

ROSAMUND WEST

SHOWCASE EDITOR

CHARLOTTE RODENSTEDT

EATING & DRINKING EDITOR

RUTH MARSH

CLUBS LISTINGS

ANDREW COOKE

LISTINGS ASSISTANT

ALLY BROWN

LAYOUT ASSISTANTS

CHARLOTTE RODENSTEDT

SUBEDITORS

PAUL GREENWOOD

Malcom Middleton, pg 27

CONTRIBUTORS WRITERS Liam Arnold, Matt Arnoldi, Finbarr Bermingham, Graeme Blaikie, Jamie Borthwick, Ally Brown, Darren Carle, Dave Cook, Heather Crumley, Chris Cusack, Richard Dennis, Emily Foister, Bram Gieben, Matt Gollock, Katie Gordon, Billy Hamilton, Chris Hammond, Rebecca Isherwood, Barry Jackson, Omar Jenning, Hamza K, Johnny Langlands, Kelly Lovelady, Ali Maloney, Franck Martin, Ted Maul, Adam McCully, Cara McGuigan, Kevin McHugh, Sean McNamara, Sean Michaels, Nick Mitchell, Paul Mitchell, Lara Moloney, Jonathan Robert Muirhead, Jonny Ogg, Les Ogilvie, Liam Pritchard, Jenny Richards, Anna Rogers, Jay Shukla, Trank Sinatra, Laura Smith, Karen Taggart, Austin Tasseltine, Fraser Thomson, Jamie Unicorn, Gareth K Vile, Lindsay West, Robert Wingham.

ROBBIE F THOMSON NICK MITCHELL ROSAMUND WEST

www.skinnymag.co.uk

PHOTOGRAPHERS/ILLUSTRATORS Derek Chapman, Jethro Collins, Rebecca Davies, Pete Dunlop, Lewis Killin, Colin Macdonald, Leigh Pearson.

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

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HEADS UP SKINNY jeans

by Lindsay West

ON A MISSION TO SORT OUT SALES SEASON CARNAGE

There was a time not so long ago when, generally speaking, if you read life’s labels carefully, you could anticipate what you might get. Flash floods were as rare as they sounded; the Spice Girls were just girls; and the Backstreet Boys passed for boys (age-wise, anyway). Thanks to global whatsit and ill-advised comeback tours, the world is now topsy-turvy, and labels make as much sense as the sign that once disorientated me for ten minutes in a McDonalds bathroom in Strasbourg: “To get some water, please put-on button on the floor.” The world, it seems, is now our Strasbourgan bathroom – awash with misleading signage and rife with fraudulent labelling.

1. Information is everything It’s all a conspiracy. Shops don’t want you to know when sales begin, in the hopes that you’ll spend £5 rather than £4.50 on those sequined lederhosen: so you’re going to have to crank up your internet-machine for some clandestine help. Discussion forums like those on handbag.com are the place to get the key dates from fashionistas on the front lines.

Get the info; show up early; reap rewards.

2. You’re a sniper, not a scatter-bomb Having synchronised watches during step one, it’s now time for some advance reconnaissance. Check out & try on your target purchases before the sales bomb hits, so you Take, for example, the consumer naive enough know what you’re looking for in the carnage. to stay in all December watching Poirot, confi- There will be sweat, and maybe blood, so get dent in the knowledge that, true to their name, in and get out. Think ninja. the January sales kick off in January. Not so, little grasshopper. Those nasty retailers have 3. Trust no-one (especially yourself) been quietly pushing back sale dates for years Without starting a vicious rumour: I’m fairly so that they now coincide with Xmas gift-buy- sure that sophisticated head-scrambling deing season: thus halving your cash, and dou- vices are installed during sales season, perbling that general air of desperation. It truly is suading us that the addition of a red ‘sale’ a jungle out there, so here are some tips to help sticker makes a swan out of a fugly duckling.

It doesn’t. Put it back. you through the foliage...

MATT

WILL

MALCOLM

AMBER

BARRY

SUSAN

ANDY

JAMES

Gutter Talk

IT’S A ROCK ‘N’ ROLL CHRISTMAS MATT, 36, SINGER, THE NATIONAL

SPROUTS?

SPROUTS?

I used to vomit as soon as they Oh I love Brussels sprouts.

WHAT MUSICAL DISCOVERIES HAVE touched my mouth; it’s the only food I can’t actually eat.

WORST CHRISTMAS TELLY? YOU MADE THIS YEAR? I will watch any stupid thing at There’s a record by the Forms I like Christmas that the family agrees on. and this year is the first I’ve really WORST CHRISTMAS TELLY? Eastenders, for fuck sake. It’s so de- But somehow that Bill Murray film, started listening to Andrew Bird. pressing and it would do a better job Scrooged, which always ends up WHAT’S ON YOUR CHRISTMAS WISH- than any of my songs in ruining your coming on cable. It’s like 11 and I Christmas. still feel like sitting up. I’m stoned LIST? f ro m tu r key a nd d r in k ing w in e Just to stay home in my own bed for all day. I usually end up watching a couple of weeks. And I need more HOME ALONE OR UNCLE BUCK? Home Alone. I’ve not seen Uncle that whole movie. Which is not that socks.

Buck. good, but somehow I always like it at Christmas.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE FESTIVE SONG?

Probably that Pogues song, Fairytale AMBER, 28, SINGER, BLACK MOUNTAIN of New York.

ARE YOU PRO OR ANTI BRUSSELS SPROUTS?

I’m a fan.

WHO WOULD WIN IN A FIGHT OVER THE TURKEY BET WEEN THE T WO SETS OF BROTHERS IN THE BAND?

T he Deve ndor fs are large r but they’re much gentler, I’d assume the Dessners would fight dirty so I might put my money on them.

WHAT’S THE WORST THING ON CHRISTMAS TELLY?

A C h r i s tm a s S to r y w i t h Pe te r Billingsley. It’s a great movie but it’s on 24 hours a day for 2 weeks at Christmas…drives me crazy.

HOME ALONE OR UNCLE BUCK?

I haven’t seen it since I was a kid but I can tell you now, Uncle Buck!

MUSICAL DISCOVERIES?

The Cave Singers, plus the new Sadies album is really good.

ANDY, 23, GUITARIST AND JAMES, 23, VOCALCHRISTMAS WISH? IST, THE TWILIGHT SAD I was thinking of buying a new digital camera as my own little Christmas MUSICAL DISCOVERIES? present to myself, one of those really J: Frightened Rabbit, fucking amaztiny paper thin ones. ing!

A: Cambodian Gazette Archive. I was FESTIVE SONG? playing it in the dressing room the Amber: Oh god! other night and everyone was like Matt (Camirand, bassist) pipes up in ‘get that aff!’ the background: I’m quite partial to J: I really like the new múm record.

Silent Night.

A: And Kate Nash.

J: Fuck off! You fancy her. Don’t put SPROUTS? that!

Oh yes, oh yes.

CHRISTMAS WISH?

J: One of those [points to dictaphone] A: I’ll probably get a lump of coal.

I can’t really ask for anything apart from my two front teeth.

J: I want the Rab C Nesbitt box set that you got.

IF YOU COULD BE A CHARACTER IN A HOME ALONE OR UNCLE BUCK? CHRISTMAS FILM WHO WOULD IT BE? Uncle Buck! John Candy! I’ve prob- A: Well d’you want me to give you it?

I’d like to be George Bailey (It’s a ably seen that 10 times.

FESTIVE SONG? Wonderful Life) or the Grinch.

J: Oh the Home Alone one.

WILL, 31, SINGER/GUITARA: I like the one about the woman IST, OKKERVIL RIVER who’s not got any cranberry sauce, MALCOLM, 33, SINGER/GUITARIST that’s a beast…Christmas Wrapping MUSICAL DISCOVERIES?

by The Waitresses.

MUSICAL DISCOVERIES? I really like the Bat For Lashes I’ve be e n liste ning to a lot of album. And there’s this band called Curtis Mayfield, the first couple of SPROUTS? Jakobinarina. I only heard them the Pavement records and a lot of Dusty A: Pro J: Anti other night but I bought their album Springfield. off iTunes and it’s amazing.

WHICH IS THE BETTER: MACAULAY CULKIN FESTIVE-THEMED MOVIE, HOME ALONE, OR UNCLE BUCK?

WORST CHRISTMAS TELLY?

Worst thing? How about a good thing! Chev v y Chase?! National I’m an Uncle Buck guy. John Candy Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, man. was a genius.

www.gwaaargh.com

illustration: Lewis Killin, www.gwaaargh.com

CHRISTMAS WISH?

THE SKINNY ON TOUR TIMES SQUARE, NEW YORK, USA, WITH THE NAKED COWBOY BUSKER ROBERT JOHN BURCK , WHOSE ROUTINE CONSISTS OF PLAYING GUITAR WEARING ONLY COWBOY BOOTS, A HAT, AND A PAIR OF BRIEFS.

The things that I want are intangible I’d like to maintain some self-respect things like… not to have to tour so much. So I think I might do that. But after all this Christmas single shit. then I’ll always have to do that. So I may as well just be selfish and ask FESTIVE SONG? Probably the Chris de Burgh one (A for a Wii. Spaceman Came Travelling). It’s nice and OTT and always makes you feel FESTIVE SONG? Probably Oh Holy Night. I love the Christmassy. sense of humbling yourself before something spiritual.

CHRISTMAS WISH?

WORST CHRISTMAS TELLY?

A: I like Christmas TV. J: Queen’s Speech. Put that down.

A: Aye, let’s get political!

HOME ALONE OR UNCLE BUCK?

A: Home Alone.

J: Home Alone.

A: He’s like my fucking hero. He’s my desktop image and that.

J: Aye, on his laptop. Our tour manager thought it was his son!

COMPETITION!

Every month The Skinny will be giving away a case of Miller Genuine Draft (24 X 330ml bottles) for each ‘venue review’ printed on the adjacent page. Even better, ever y review featured will be entered into a major draw in December, with one lucky person winning a years supply (15 cases) of MGD! BE IN TO WIN! SUBMIT YOUR REVIEW TODAY!

SEND YOUR PHOTOS FOR SKINNY ON TOUR TO: LETTERS@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK

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THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

HEADS UP

HEADS UP

CHECK OUT OUT OUR READER RATINGS!

VENUE REVIEW

EACH MONTH, YOU GIVE US THE INSIDE TRACK ON WHAT’S HOT AND WHAT’S NOT IN YOUR AREA. TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIAL VENUE BY SUBMITTING YOUR REVIEW TO WWW.SKINNYMAG.CO.UK AND DON’T FORGET TO LET US KNOW YOUR READER RATING!

13TH NOTE, GLASGOW

THE ROSELEAF, EDINBURGH

by Jamie Unicorn

by Adam McCully

INSIDE: A lo-fi delight, the upstairs is where you’ll do your drinking and socialising, with the downstairs hosting an intimate live venue that plays host to a variety of local and not-so-local bands.

CLIENTELE: With bands from every inch of Glasgow’s sub-cultural landscape playing in the large downstairs room, the clientele can be as mixed as the music. Expect anything from hardcore straight-edgers to emo fruitloops.

Alternative is the catchword, although if you go in at lunchtime then you can probably just expect to see most of the local workers enjoying some liquid nourishment.

MAGIC MOMENT: Enjoying a soya milkshake, a great option for those who still feel the effects of last night’s hangover and are wise enough to want to avoid another one. 13th Note provides a variety of vegetarian and vegan-friendly items, for those that way inclined.

ATMOSPHERE: Something of a rich seam amongst Glasgow’s indie-strata, 13th Note has a suitably lo-fi feel. Truss it up nice and tight or let it all hang out - it’s up to you.

INSIDE: Despite being located in the much trumpeted regeneration zone of the Shore, this pub has avoided the worst excesses of that legalised vandalism known as gentrification and kept its original Victorian fittings. A square bar in the middle divides the comfortable, quirky main public bar from the tables and chairs of the dining room. No tellies, puggies or bells and whistles of any kind disturb the atmosphere which makes this a fine venue for that elusive phenomenon of ‘The Quiet Pint’.

CLIENTELE: In its previous incarnation as the Black Swan it was (by dint of its location in the middle of Edinburgh’s erstwhile street-walking ‘tolerance zone’) frequented in the main by working girls, their clients, and people who generally prefer not to get their drugs from the chemist. Now, while not exactly being a yuppified West End style ponceteria the clientele are (slightly) more respectable but retain a certain boho edge. It is Leith after all. Nae neds or that tho.

MAGIC MOMENT: Eggs Benedict from the top notch kitchen, a cool pint, a smile from the waitress and watching your hangover disappear over the horizon into the Firth of Forth.

ATMOSPHERE: Clubbable. As it’s a bit off the beaten track, anybody that’s there has made an effort, and the punters are almost familial as they and they alone (for the time being at least) know about this hidden gem.

OPENER: “What exactly is straight-edge then?”

OPENER: “Have I seen you in here before?”

50-60 KING STREET, GLASGOW, 0141 553 1638

The 13th Note

WHAT’S ON Canvas: Vues

© Derek Mark Chapman

WWW.13THNOTE.CO.UK

Sloan’s

THE ROSELEAF, 23-24 SANDPORT STREET, LEITH, 0131 476 5268 WWW.ROSELEAF.CO.UK

photo: Stephanie Stewart

THE SKINNY BRINGS YOU THE PICK OF THIS MONTH’S EVENTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH MILLER GENUINE DRAFT THE MILLER URBAN ART PROJECT

ACOUSTIC CAFÉ

CARING CHRISTMAS TREES

Dec – Jan, various venues

Edinburgh, Fri 14 Dec

Bethany Trust

Miller Genuine Draft has commissioned five urban artists to create limited edition prizes for the Miller Urban Art Project. Throughout December if you drink Miller Genuine Draft in one of 220 bars across Edinburgh and Glasgow you have a one in ten chance to win limited edition canvases, tee shirts, posters and sketchbooks featuring the work of AsOne, Elph, GazMac, RogueOne and Vues.

We at The Skinny – true to our name – have been known to get so excited about a gig we’ll miss out dinner altogether (plus much more besides). But now, these two distinct joys need not be exclusive, with the arrival this month of Acoustic Café, on at the Out of the Blue Drill Hall in Edinburgh. The music will be courtesy of such local luminaries as William Douglas & the Wheel, Frog Pocket, Seven Things and many more.

And there will also be food, so you can sup while you cup (your ears, as it were) – and enjoy table service as you take in the best alternative sounds and performances. The food will be provided by the wonderful Drill Hall Café (where we get our lunch every day) so is sure to be both cheap and delicious (like Skinny staff).

Sleeping rough, especially during the winter, is dangerous and life threatening.

Caring Christmas Trees raises funds for Bethany’s Care Shelter, giving homeless people a hot meal, a safe place to sleep and much-needed advice over the winter months. Caring Christmas Trees are fresh, needle-last, high quality and from sustainable tree farms. All revenue made goes to help the homeless people supported by Bethany Trust, so what better way to get your xmas tree? Go to the website for more details and info on how to order online.

You will also get the chance to watch these artists work live in-bar, plus take home the art at the end of the night by entering a free prize draw.

EDINBURGH Mon 26 Nov: AsOne at Shanghai (Le Monde) Fri 14 Dec: AsOne & Elph at Walkabout

GLASGOW Sat 24 Nov: Vues at The Box Sat 26 Jan: RogueOne & Vues at Walkabout

Tee design: ELPH

ACOUSTIC CAFÉ, OUT OF THE BLUE DRILL HALL, 30-38 DALMENY ST, EDINBURGH, FRI 14 DEC, 7PM – 10PM, £5

GOT A GIG?THEN TEXT

TEXT

www.caringchristmastrees.com

VALDOR Glasgow, opens Fri 14 Dec Think you’re glamorous and glitzy? Well head along to the opening of the new boutique bar ‘Valdor’: exuding style and aspiring to a fashionista crowd, this venue is set for a disco, soul and electro vibe. On the opening night cocktails, drink promotions and DJs will be getting everyone dancing.

VALDOR, 46 QUEEN STREET, GLASGOW, OPENS FRI 14 DEC, OPEN 10PM – 3AM, FREE

LET US KNOW WHAT’S ON! YOUR BEST SUGGESTIONS WILL BE READ OUT LIVE ON AIR!

GUIDETHEN YOUR MESSAGE TO 80XFMOR VISIT WWW.XFMSCOTLAND.CO.UK/THEGUIDE

www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

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PAUL RYDING This month we are pleased to present a showcase of illustrations by regular Skinny contributor Paul Ryding. Since graduating from the Glasgow School of Art in 2003 Paul has been working both at home and abroad as an illustrator and print-maker for a variety of publications, while also continuing to exhibit his images. He has recently worked for Kesselskramer in Amsterdam, Channel 4 and the arts magazine 2’debir in Istanbul.

“Aside from my illustration work, I also have a love of and inclination towards por traiture. I am interested in narrative and how it can be subjective within the sitter without them showing any facial expression. I have chosen some of the most random people I have briefly met for this reason.”

L ike w hat you se e? Paul is available for commission. “I have a studio on Kings Street and a Young Persons Railcard so am ready to visit you with my portfolio at the drop of a large hat.”

WWW.PAULRYDING.COM ARE YOU A DESIGNER/PHOTOGRAPHER/ ILLUSTRATOR AND WANT YOUR WORK TO BE SHOWN HERE? CONTACT CHARLOTTE@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK TO FIND OUT HOW TO APPLY.

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THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

SHOWCASE

SHOWCASE www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

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LGBT EDITORIAL

Oh, bollocks. I swear I was going to write something f luffy and positive this ti me rou nd, but then it came to my at tention that Janice Raymond is visiting Glasgow in December. Where’s a Scotland chapter of the Transexual Menace when you need one?

Raymond is author of The Transsexual Empire: The Making of the She-Male, the gist of which being: “biological woman is in the process of being made obsolete by bio-medicine”. Sample quote: “All transsexuals rape women’s bodies by reducing the real female form to an artefact, appropriating this body for themselves ...

Transsexuals merely cut off the most obvious means of invading women, so that they seem non-invasive.” Research methods: unethical or completely absent. But this was 1979, and the book was an influential text for a generation of feminists. The repercussions for an already marginalised and persecuted minority were significant.

That Scottish feminists are welcoming such a bigoted nutjob is pretty worrying. Still, she’s apparently not here to spread the gospel of transphobia; she’s visiting in her role as an anti-prostitution crusader. Her work in this area involves more flawed research and sweeping generalisations, and an ultimate ‘solution’ of criminalisation – which, again, has significant repercussions for an already marginalised and persecuted minority. Way to go!

Check out a response to Raymond’s oft-quoted 10 Reasons For Not Legalizing Prostitution at www.tinyurl.com/337bwy, and have a fluffy, positive festive season. /Nine

5EVENTS

REVIEW Pride and Prejudice Who’s Your Dandy?

LIZZIE MARAN LOOKS BACK ON A FEW NOTABLE EVENTS OF 2007 I’ve never personally encountered real intoler- mosexuality. But they met their match after ance, so I don’t tend to bother much with Pride demonstrating at the funeral of Lance Cpl. events. It’s important, and frightening, then, Matthew Snyder, killed in Iraq. His father was to remember that not everyone has such an awarded damages in compensation for emoeasy time - so good on Amnesty International tional distress and invasion of privacy. This for showing solidarity with other nations. This was the first civil case involving the ‘church’ year saw the first Pride march in Riga, Latvia, following rulings by many states prohibiting that went ahead peacefully. Although it had protests at funerals. Let’s hope a precedent to be heavily policed to reach even this level, has been set and this cult will have to keep other Eastern European countries have yet to their immorality to the privacy of their own manage this. Russian law, for example, pro- homes. vides no right to protest and this led again to mass riots at Moscow Pride where many - no- A nd f i n a l ly, J K R owl i n g revea led t h at tably Right Said Fred singer Richard Fairbrass Hogwarts’ headmaster Albus Dumbledore is - were first beaten gay. What I found by the public, then most interesting taunted by the police. 2007 SAW A LANDMARK RULING was the reaction A lthough I’d like to IN THE US WITH THE SUING OF f rom gay r ig ht s think the egalitarian RIGHT-WING INBRED CRAZIES THE campaigners, who ef fect of EU memargued that it WESTBORO BAPTIST CHURCH bership affected the should have been Latvian march, this more explicit. contrasts with Poland’s continued constitu- Because that’s just not Rowling’s style. She tional support of homophobia, with legislation is rarely explicit about romance and when she banning the promotion of homosexuality in is, we’d really rather she wasn’t (see Ron kissschools, clinging to the old myth that people ing Lavender Brown). Sounds to me like peocan be converted. ple are just upset that they didn’t get it – had Grindelwald been a woman, everyone would Rights to protest unfortunately go both ways have presumed a romance – which questions though, and 2007 saw a landmark ruling in where the prejudice really lies. JK has in the US with the suing of right-wing inbred cra- fact struck a blow for equality by giving the zies the Westboro Baptist Church - famed for relationship the status of absolute normality. the catchphrase God Hates Fags - for $11 mil- Most concerning, however, is this Stonewall lion (currently about $5.5 million and falling). quote: “Now young gay men know they can For anyone who hasn’t heard of these folks, achieve anything – even being a wizard headthey go to soldiers’ funerals, memorials and master.” Pity the poor careers counsellor who so forth and ‘remind’ people that their deaths has to break it to bright-eyed young boys were a punishment from God for tolerating ho- – you may be queer, but you’re still a Muggle.

DITORIAL * EDITORIAL * EDI

TOP

REVIEW

Reality / Stick it in My Party Hole

THE WITNESSES 30 Nov - 6 Dec, 8.45pm Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh Set in Paris in 1984, this French drama looks at the early days of AIDS through the eyes of a group of friends and lovers. £6/4.50, WWW.FILMHOUSECINEMA.COM

LOUD & PROUD FESTIVE CONCERT 8 Dec, 8pm (doors 7.30pm) Church Hill Theatre, Morningside Road, Edinburgh Edinburgh’s LGBT choir covers a mixture of Christmas favourites and seasonal music from other countries and cultures. £7/5, WWW.LOUDANDPROUDCHOIR.ORG

UTTER GUTTER ANTI-XMAS PARTY 8 Dec, 11pm – 3am Art School (upstairs), Renfrew Street, Glasgow Featuring special guests Madame S and I-Jay Sin £10/8, WWW.UTTERGUTTER.COM

DEATH DISCO XXXMAS PARTY 15 Dec, 11pm – 4am The Arches, 253 Argyle Street, Glasgow Alternative, open-minded, straight, queer and hot – what’s not to like? £12, WWW.THEARCHES.CO.UK

VELVET 29 Dec, 10pm – 3am The Ark, 3-7 Waterloo Place, Edinburgh Drag king night at the new venue for Edinburgh’s women’s club night.

SEE WEBSITE FOR INFO ON TICKETS, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/CLUBVELVET

Venus as a Boy

10 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

/ Martin O’Connor’s boutique performances demonstrate the strengths of Glasgay!: commissioning a confident and adventurous local artist, who works outside of the stereotypical ideas of queer entertainment, he plunges into the masculine crisis with his latest show.

Distinctively Glaswegian, O’Connor locates his observations between compassion and satire.

His X-Factor audition skit might be obvious, but he pitches his shallow hero between idiocy and sympathy. His characters are trapped in a world where reality is defined by a cynical and shallow media, or self-serving morality that doesn’t consider the situation or people involved. Martin O’Connor is a complex artist, willing to challenge himself and his audience, and he is not afraid to leave uncomfortable conclusions even as he snaps back for the killer punch-line.

Who’s Your Dandy? is the kind of event that reminds you what’s great about living in a city. Going on a rainy Monday night to a free performance of queer poetic experiments and deeply funky music — this is the anti-Into the Wild. Hold onto your over-priced flat, indie culture’s happening here! The performers’ voices are confident, incisive, and, best of all, playful. This isn’t ‘My Coming Out Poem of Pain’: it’s host Sandra Alland’s brilliant Beckett cutups and Andra Simons’ poem cycle about the life and death of his imaginary Siamese twin.

The images come so fast you sometimes feel like a Slinky falling down the stairs, yet the emotion and intention are clear, moving, and often funny. The evening’s music is provided by Contrabajo: Emma Smith thumping and plucking double-bass notes that resonate through your chest, while Yudnara Josephine plays guitar, somehow gets a whole drum kit out of a Peruvian fruit box, and sings in a sweet, smoky, untouchably cool voice. Word Power Books have opened their new expanded space to the community, so let’s hope for more events like this. [Hamish MacDonald] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/CONTRABAJOBAND

Yudnara Josephine

REVIEW

Mama Cass Family Singers

TRON, EDINBURGH, 27 OCT

Q GALLERY

Reality consists of three distinct personalities - a teenage wannabe celebrity, a soldier stuck in Afghanistan while his wife becomes a famous, and glamorous, activist, and a young father who struggles to remain irresponsible.

Ranging from sardonic humour to eerie menace, O’Connor brings the characters to vivid, sympathetic life, imbuing their crises and anxieties with sensitive detail. From the soldier’s long-distance relationship’s inevitable decline to the wannabe’s frustration at his grandmother’s sudden ascent to fame, the characters lack the ability to control their lives, yet never succumb to despair. Their determination prevents the show from being maudlin, even when it is blatantly tragic, and allows O’Connor to find humour in uncomfortable places.

WORD POWER BOOKS, EDINBURGH, 12 NOV

Glasseyed’s Stick It In My Party Hole lacks cohesion. A weak opening of computer graphics and a mock-serious voice-over is partially redeemed by Sleep Dolly’s manic monologues and deadpan electro tunes, only for the show to degenerate into a predictable structure of performance and video interludes. Far too many of the set-pieces wander around a simple joke and the kitsch aesthetic rapidly overwhelms the thin material.

Sleep Dolly does pull some laughs from her sexual and social frustrations, and the conceit of a bad house party offers bawdy humour and delicious embarrassments. Yet Party Hole fails to deliver, aiming at the obvious - kitsch reconstructions of Hammer Horror - or the easy - a video pastiche of 2 Unlimited. There are suggestions that Sleep Dolly is the product of a bad environment, but Party Hole never engages with a wider world, never seems to have a point or purpose, simply shambling through a series of tangentially related sketches. [Gareth K Vile] WWW.GLASGAY.COM

The Mama Cass Family Singers is a tall story, spun out with video clips and supported by Amy Lamé’s relaxed and amiable presence.

Amy Lamé has developed a ubiquitous media personality in the past five years, through her club Duckie, teaming up with Danny Baker on the radio and bringing a sly irony to her minor celebrity status. Shifting almost imperceptibly from family anecdote into wild fantasy, Lamé shares her childhood and family photo-album, before introducing an implausible yet perfectly evoked adventure of abduction, faked death and singing children.

Lamé doesn’t bring much light to bear on the various themes that the story suggests. There are polite meditations on weight and food - unsurprising, given that both Cass and Lamé are both strongly identified as positive, plus-size women - and vague thoughts on family and fame. Keeping the atmosphere playful, Lamé leads her family through their memories of a time when the four children were abducted from a shopping mall by a 60s folk singer - presumed dead - and taken on a tour of the States as a cabaret band. Some fairly dark matters - sibling rivalry, mafia connections and drug addiction are glossed over and Lamé keeps a straight face throughout, making the join between fact and fiction difficult to discern.

If The Mama Cass Family Singers is a slight work, it does showcase Amy Lamé as an idiosyncratic and charming performer: certainly, in lesser hands, this show would descend into absurdity and trite kitsch. Instead, she is almost able to convince the audience that she was selected at random to relive Mama Cass’s thwarted dreams of musical success. Although a little trivial, MCFS is a celebration of Amy Lamé’s easy-going personality. [Gareth K Vile]

LGBT

LGBT www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

11

FILM EDITORIAL

Has it been a good movie year then? On b a l a nce, prob ably yes. Granted, the majority of the summer releases were major disappointments, b u t t h e r e we r e a few nice sur prises too, as well as some crackers spread throughout the months. Check out the review of the year to see what made it as our number one choice. A quick glance at 2008 gives some cause for excitement already: Indy IV, The Dark Knight, Rambo/Rambo IV/John Rambo/Whatever They End Up Calling It, another trip to Narnia and the return of Bond and Star Trek. It’s a fine time to be a geek.

Have a great Christmas (even though I’m writing this on 10 November) and a happy New Year. Have fun and see you in January. /Paul.

Review of the Year

The Last King Of Scotland

by Paul Greenwood

It’s that time of year again, folks, when we take a look back at the bestest and the worstest movies of the year. Rather than just have me pick my faves, we went for a thoroughly democratic approach, with the final list being compiled from everyone’s votes using highly sophisticated computer technology. Honest. Looking back at the films of 2007, what surprised me was that in selecting my ten best, I found I had a list of 20 that I had to whittle down – it’s not often that happens. Plenty good stuff was on many people’s lists and just missed the cut: The Lives of Others, Death Proof, Atonement, The Simpsons, Transformers. No, really...

RELEASE SCHEDULE

BOTTOM 10

TOP 10

5 DEC The Golden Compass (TBC)

7 DEC A Very British Gangster (15) Code Name: The Cleaner (PG) He Was A Quiet Man (15) The Killing Of John Lennon (15) KM 31 (TBC) The Sacrifice (15) Silent Light (TBC) Southland Tales (15) You Kill Me (15)

1. NORBIT

1. THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND

They say this disgraceful film cost Eddie Murphy an Oscar for Dreamgirls. Good, we say.

It may have been released way back in January, but this exceptional thriller has stayed long in our memories and is deservedly and overwhelmingly the Skinny Film of the Year.

2. EPIC MOVIE

Why? No, really, why?

2. THIS IS ENGLAND

14 DEC Bee Movie (PG) Chromophobia (TBC) Enchanted (PG) It’s A Wonderful Life (U) Les Chansons d’Amour (15) Mr Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (U) My Kid Could Paint That (TBC) We Own The Night (15) The Wedding (TBC) Youth Without Youth (15)

21 DEC Alvin And The Chipmunks (TBC) I’m Not There (15) St. Trinian’s (TBC) Strange Wilderness (TBC) Welcome (TBC)

Balls Of Fury (12A) The Kite Runner (12A) P.S I Love You (12A)

The most expensive comedy ever made. We could tell you the ratio of dollars to laughs, but you can’t divide by zero.

3. HOT FUZZ

4. OUTLAW

It’s been a great year for comedies, and it’s nice that one of the best is British. Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright cemented their position at the forefront of UK film comedy with this one.

Is there really an audience out there for Nick Love’s nasty little films featuring Danny Dyer going around calling everyone a “caant”?

4. KNOCKED UP

MAN OF THE YEAR - JAMES MCAVOY

5. SUPERBAD

McAvoy’s breakthrough year started with a bang with a BAFTA nominated performance in the best film of the year, The Last King of Scotland, and ended with his turn in the highly regarded Atonement which may see him earn an Oscar nomination. In between he was in period fluff, Becoming Jane, and found time to film Wanted with Angelina Jolie, due out in April.

My vote for the funniest film of the year goes to Judd Apatow’s rude but good natured sexcomedy that made a star out of Seth Rogen.

Check out the deleted scenes on YouTube.

The younger brother of Knocked Up was almost as funny and probably even sweeter, with Rogen in a supporting turn this time and also co-writing.

26 DEC

3. EVAN ALMIGHTY

We always knew Shane Meadows was good, but he knocked this tale of racism and disillusionment in 80s Britain right out of the park.

Hands up those doubters who thought this was going to be shit? After a 12-year absence, John McClane was back, albeit in slightly toneddown form. Still, the boy Bruce done good.

Closing The Ring (12A) Don’t Touch The Axe (PG) Paranoid Park (15)

I must confess to not actually having seen this one, but it’s votes that count. David Lynch is another love him or hate him deal, as this also turned up on some people’s bestof lists.

8. HAIRSPRAY

No film this year was as flat-out enjoyable as this sunny musical romp that featured wonderful songs and Travolta in a fat-suit.

10. BLOOD DIAMOND Southland Tales

12 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

Leonardo Di Caprio scored his third Oscar nomination for a dodgy Zimbabwean accent and for getting shot at the end of this exciting action adventure with something to say.

Remember the trailer for this one? It was excellent wasn’t it? Shame the film itself was an over-plotted disaster with probably the year’s worst ending.

8. INLAND EMPIRE

This biopic of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis was among the year’s most stylish movies.

Once the furore over the Grindhouse debacle died down, all we were left with was two brilliant films. Death Proof was good, Planet Terror was even better.

6. SMOKIN’ ACES

Take your pick from any of these abysmal attempts at horror – each of them loud, idiotic and boring as hell.

7. CONTROL

9. PLANET TERROR

Last year’s remake of Wes Craven’s classic was one of the best horrors of recent times.

This sequel to that remake is an embarrassment from start to finish.

7. THE BREED/THE REAPING/THE RETURN/CAPTIVITY/PARADISE LOST

6. DIE HARD 4.0

28 DEC

5. THE HILLS HAVE EYES 2

9. SPIDER-MAN 3 WOMANOFTHEYEAR-CATEBLANCHETT The Aussie superstar probably had her best year yet, with Babel, The Good German, and an Oscar nomination for Notes On a Scandal, which will likely be followed by another one for The Golden Age and/or for playing Bob Dylan in I’m Not There. And she even had time to cameo behind a mask in Hot Fuzz. Look out for her next year as the baddie in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Not so much a total stinker as the year’s biggest disappointment. After two brilliant opening episodes, you’d have a right to expect more from the most expensive film ever made.

10. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END

Another threequel that fell woefully short of expectations, this shambolic plot-free romp also managed the remarkable feat of being thoroughly dull.

FILM

FILM

REVIEWS

FILM OF THE MONTH:

I’M NOT THERE DIR: TODD HAYNES STARS: CHRISTIAN BALE, CATE BLANCHETT, HEATH LEDGER RELEASE DATE: 21 DEC CERT: 15 WWW.IMNOTTHERE-MOVIE.COM

Todd Hayne’s daring, surreal and exhilarating paean to Bob Dylan has no less than six actors playing different aspects of the elusive troubadour. The result is an impressionistic, wildly inventive film that circles tantalisingly close to reality without ever name-checking the singer.

Crazy as it sounds, the multiple casting is a terrific conceit: this is Dylan as shapeshifter, endlessly reinventing himself and his career. We have Bale, magnetic and intense, as Protest Bob and then again as Born-Again Bob; Ledger swaggers through the 70s as leather-coatwearing Butch Bob; a black, 11-year-old, geetar-toting Mini Bob channels Woody Guthrie, and Richard Gere is stubbly and cryptic as Backwoods Bob, getting back to nature in the metaphorical town of Riddle. Confused yet? And I haven’t even mentioned Cate Blanchett, who truly never has to worry about type-casting, and is fabulous as frizzy-haired Sixties Bob. Stooped, stoned

CHROMOPHOBIA DIR: MARTHA FIENNES STARS: PENELOPE CRUZ, RHYS IFANS, RALPH FIENNES RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: 15

A starry cast scuttle around stately country piles, modish yuppie palaces and (for social balance) the odd bit of run-down urban squalor.

It’s an ensemble piece so there’s lots of swirling sub-plots that – wait for it – are all inter-connected and come together at the end. Yep, it’s Magnolia meets Crash, by way of Eastenders, the end-result a peculiarly chilly mulch of bungled class commentary that rings hollow. An embarrassment of thesps soldier on regardless through plot strands involving dodgy dealings at a powerful law firm, dysfunctional familial relations and the neuroses and

and skittish, staggering through Andy Warhol parties and literally machine-gunning a folksy crowd as Dylan goes electric, she is utterly mesmerizing. Haynes lets the different stories shift in and out of each other in radically different styles, from mockumentary to surrealist fable, with nods to Richard Lester’s Beatles films and shades of Fellini. This is biography viewed through a kaleidoscope, subjected to a dream-logic; a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.

Haynes wanders off track somewhat in the Gere sequence: the deliberate strangeness of the spooky carnivalesque Western is perhaps a shift of focus too far. But in all it’s an extraordinary pop art puzzle, vivid and textured, with a brilliantly executed soundtrack that always reminds you of the ghost at the centre of it all, fractured and many-faced, there but not there.

[Laura Smith]

screw-ups of a bunch of rich, pretty people. Performances are good but unremarkable - Ben Chaplin does the movie journo thing pretty well, looking crumpled and harassed, while chainsmoking and swearing. Penelope Cruz and Rhys Ifans mooch around being poor and superfluous for a while. This is a brittle, ill-judged soap opera, unforgivably derivative of its more assured American predecessors. [Laura Smith] WWW.CHROMOPHOBIA-LEFILM.COM

BEE MOVIE DIR: STEVE HICKNER, SIMON J SMITH STA R S: J ER RY S EI N FEL D, R EN ÉE ZELLWEGER, MATTHEW BRODERICK RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: PG

Forget the buzz surrounding Jerry Seinfeld’s big-screen break – Bee Movie is a flick that deserves to

be swatted out of cinemas. In DreamWorks’ latest, everyone’s favourite TV comedian provides the voice of Barry B Benson, a young bee who, upon graduation, is told by his career officer he’s set to be stuck in a dead-end job for the rest of his life. Stung at the news, our hero flies the hive in search of adventure. Bee Movie fails to take off because it simply isn’t any fun for kids. Sure, the animation is as slick and well-drawn as you’d expect from the studio that brought us Shrek and Shark Tale, and Seinfeld, who also co-produces and cowrites, shows his fans that he is still on form. The environmental and believe-in-yourself messages are well intentioned, but adults are going to appreciate the humour and characters far more than the little ones will. [Kevin McHugh] WWW.BEEMOVIE.COM

Bee Movie

www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

13

he’s still there guiding her, with ‘I love you’ accompanying every note.

A romantic comedy about grief, the script has one or two unexpectedly good lines and, as a variation on Truly Madly Deeply, Richard LaGravenese’s film neatly unravels the romance of two people taking the story back to the moment they met. But it’s slightly creepy to believe Gerry would leave such a detailed plan of messages and deliveries from beyond the grave and more luck rather than contrivance that each one should be received

by Holly in the way that Gerry would have hoped. [Matt Arnoldi]

We Own The Night

CLOSING THE RING DIR: RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH S TA R S :

SHIRLEY

MACL AINE,

CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER, MISHCA BARTON, NEVE CAMPBELL RELEASE DATE: 28 DEC CERT: 12A

Dear, dear Dickie, still making movies at the age of 84. His first film in eight years, this multi-strand drama jumps between World War II and the early 90s, and connected characters in Belfast and the States, where MacLaine is burying her husband and 50-year-old secrets are being unearthed. Ridiculous title notwithstanding, Closing The Ring is a curious beast. The first hour is full of stuffy, stilted scenes, and it takes a while to work out everyone’s place as the four separate stories play out with no real structure or rhythm. The younger actors in the wartime scenes are extremely wooden, and it only manages to survive for long stretches on the charms and skills of MacLaine and Plummer (and possibly Barton topless). But it finishes far better than it starts, despite flaws in storytelling and editing, and has enough ambition thematically to paper over these cracks and emerge as decent. [Paul Greenwood] CLOSINGTHERING.PICZO.COM

ENCHANTED DIR: KEVIN LIMA S TA R S : A M Y A D A M S , PAT R I C K DEMPSEY, JAMES MARSDEN, SUSAN SARANDON RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: PG

Disney’s attempt to out-subvert the subversives comes with this often delightful rom-com fairytale.

Having clearly taken umbrage at the amount of pretenders and lampooners in recent years, they reverse convention and take the archetypal

Mouse House heroes from the 2D world into modern day New York with surprisingly effective results, as chirpy young princess Giselle (Adams) is banished from her animated kingdom by a wicked queen (Sarandon). Beginning as a so-overthe-top-it’s-genius parody of their own back catalogue, the ‘toon section introduces Giselle as an amalgam of every animated heroine in the studio’s history. In our world she’s less fish-out-of-water than nut-outof-rehab, the adorable conceit being that the rules of her realm still apply in ours. Adams makes for a winning heroine even if she wouldn’t necessarily be the first name on the team sheet when casting a princess. Only a somewhat overcooked dragon finale disappoints, but there’s always room for that happily ever after, leaving Enchanted as a hugely enjoyable slice of Shrek-baiting that’s cute without being cloying and clever without being snide. [Paul Greenwood]

the film, and it’s a pretty bleak trip until then. From the bright, eager, early scenes, where George is bursting to see the world, his dreams are stolen one by one and replaced by a life of financial stress and drudgery.

Never has a filmic fate been so truly sealed with a kiss as when he gets together with Mary (Reed), protesting all the way: “I don’t want to get married - ever - to anyone! I want to do what I want to do.” Yes, it’s a timeless classic but, by the end, George Bailey has learned to accept his fate and stop dreaming. It’s possibly akin to yuletide blasphemy, but you can’t help thinking maybe he was sold a turkey. [Cara McGuigan]

WWW.ENCHANTEDMOVIE.COM

Christophe Honoré delivers another polymorphous, pansexual oddity, this time featuring a ménage-atrois of Gauloise-puffing, bed-hopping, Parisian twenty-somethings who just happen to burst into song.

A lot. Now, a spontaneous songand-dance number or two would improve most French imports these days (Lady Chatterley: The Musical, anyone?), but Honoré’s Love Songs is let down by its relentless succession of utterly unremarkable, wispy ditties, with lyrics so gratingly awkward that either the subtitler had a perverted sense of humour, or they really are singing about l’amour entirely through fruit metaphors. It starts off with a breeziness that’s affable enough - look at them singing about threesomes and entertaining each other with charades for words like ‘tranquillity’ and ‘despondency’, all terribly, terribly French. But then the songs start to sound rather alike, something bizarrely tragic happens completely out of nowhere and they all get very depressed. And sing about it. A lot. [Laura Smith]

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE DIR: FRANK CAPRA STARS: JAMES STEWART, DONNA REED, HENRY TRAVERS RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: U

As seasonal films go, It’s a Wonderful Life is the granddaddy of them all.

Frank Capra’s 1946 classic is the story of George Bailey (Stewart), a small town good guy prevented from jumping off a bridge by wingless angel Clarence (Travers), who takes George back through his life, Christmas Carol style, to see what things would have been like had he never existed. Everyone remembers bubbling when Clarence gets his wings, and leaving the GFT’s Christmas Eve showing with a festive glow. However, Clarence doesn’t appear until more than halfway through

LES CHANSONS D’AMOUR DIR: CHRISTOPHE HONORÉ STARS: LOUIS GARREL, LUDIVINE SAGNIER, CHIARA MASTROIANNI RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: 15

P.S., I LOVE YOU

PSILOVEYOUMOVIE.WARNERBROS.

run to the last. Adapted from the bestseller of the same name, and set during 20 years of Afghanistan’s relentless flux – from Soviet occupation to Taliban control – it’s the story of childhood friends who are brought together by kite flying, but kept apart by class. Rather than becoming mired in exoticism or invective, it focuses on fundamentals like loyalty, kinship and duty, accomplishing the notable feat of allowing a profoundly foreign narrative to both retain its identity and feel familiar to Western audiences.

Powerful, vibrant and improbably optimistic, The Kite Runner is a daring piece of filmmaking, and a real pleasure to watch. [Lindsay West]

COM

WWW.KITERUNNERMOVIE.COM

PARANOID PARK

WE OWN THE NIGHT

DIR: GUS VAN SANT

DIR: JAMES GRAY

STARS: GABE NEVINS, DANIEL LIU,

STA R S: J OAQ U I N PH O EN I X , M A R K

TAYLOR MOMSEN

WAHLBERG, E VA MENDES, ROBERT

RELEASE DATE: 28 DEC

DUVALL

CERT: 15

RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC

Gus Van Sant’s latest addition to his canon dealing with youth in crisis may well be the apogee of his career. Many elements of the director’s previous work, such as the adoption of a non-professional cast and the deliberate discrepancy between sound and visual tracks are maintained here, but these rudiments converge to awesome ef fect in Paranoid Park.

Cinematographer Christopher Doyle’s signature style undoubtedly contributes a significant formal element by complimenting the director’s abiding fascination with the beautiful awkwardness and poignant transience of youth; long tracking shots are interspersed with slow-motion Super 8 footage of skateboarders that put the adolescent body through a cinematic ceremony revealing a quasi-balletic quality that reminds us these are bodies fundamentally in transition. However, it is Van Sant’s uncanny ability to visually map the teenage rituals invoked to deal with immense pain that remains in the viewer’s mind long after seeing the film and confirms him as one of the genuine auteurs of American cinema. A scene of breakdown, rendered poetically through the use of an expressionistic soundtrack and tight close-up, is a particularly memorable moment. If this isn’t teen art, I don’t know what is.

[Anna Rogers]

CERT: 15

WWW.PARANOIDPARK.CO.UK

THE KITE RUNNER DIR: MARC FORSTER STARS: KHALID ABDALLA, HOMAYON ERSHADI, ZEKERIA EBRAHIMI RELEASE DATE: 26 DEC CERT: 12A

With its worthy subject matter, inbuilt political controversy and distant location, The Kite Runner could easily have veered into pretentious art-house territory.

Instead, director Mark Forster’s comparatively ‘Holly wood’ choices have the effect of creating an ego-less film with real pulse that races from the first kite

A possible companion piece to Eastern Promises by way of The Departed, We Own The Night sees Phoenix running a nightclub as a front for the Russian mob, while his father (Duvall) and brother (Wahlberg) are, respectively, the chief of police and a rising-star detective. Forced to take sides, this sets up a reasonably intriguing moral quandary for Phoenix, who wants money and power and everything they bring, but doesn’t really want to be mixed up with gangsters if his family is in danger. Moody and exciting, We Own The Night aims high, which is commendable, but never quite achieves the reach of its ambition.

Strong performances are a given, but it suffers from an overdose of machismo and ends up muddled and clichéd and nothing we haven’t seen before. [Paul Greenwood] WWW.SONYPICTURES.COM/MOVIES/ WEOWNTHENIGHT

YOUTH WITHOUT YOUTH DIR: FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA STARS: TIM ROTH, ALEXANDRA MARIA LARA, BRUNO LANZ RELEASE DATE: 14 DEC CERT: 15

Roth plays Dominic Matei, an ageing professor of linguistics, who heads to Bucharest in the late 1930s. Matei miraculously survives being struck by lightning and when nursed back to health he finds he’s recaptured his youth, despite his inwardly septuagenarian status. He soon becomes highly sought after, with the Nazis keen to witness his phenomenon, but Matei escapes their clutches and is left with a dilemma - concentrate on his studies into the origins of language or pursue his true love, Laura (Lara). Written and directed by Coppola, Youth Without Youth is elegantly staged and achieves resonance through the persuasive performance of Roth but the film is let down by a sea of linguistic terminology overburdening the script that would test the hardiest intellectual. It only becomes more accessible late on as the unwavering passion between Matei and Laura becomes more profound. [Matt Arnoldi] WWW.YWYFILM.COM

DIR: RICHARD LAGRAVENESE STARS: HILARY SWANK, LISA KUDROW, GERARD BUTLER RELEASE DATE: 26 DEC CERT: 12A

Enchanted

14 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

Sweethearts Holly (Swank) and Gerry (Butler) have their whole lives to lead when Gerry gets a terminal illness and dies. Holly, with the big ‘3-0’ looming, is devastated. She starts to live again upon discovering that Gerry has left an elaborate scheme of notes and presents to be delivered, as if

It’s a Wonderful Life

YOU KILL ME DIR: JOHN DAHL STARS: BEN KINGSLEY, TEA LEONI, LUKE WILSON RELEASE DATE: 7 DEC CERT: 15

Ben Kingsley as an alcoholic hitman sounds like the perfect cocktail. He plays Frank, an assassin with a liking for the hard stuff, who’s been ordered to dry out by his mob boss after drunkenly missing a hit. Forced to join Alcoholics Anonymous, he’s sponsored by the laidback Tom (Wilson) and lands a day job at the local morgue, where he meets the sarcastic and witty Laurel (Leoni) at her father’s funeral. An offbeat indie with a perfect ensemble cast, Frank’s road to recovery is a poignant journey that slips as easily down the throat as a low-alcohol beer. Director Dahl (Rounders, The Last Seduction) returns to his comfort zone, with bottom-of-the-glass wit, fizzing suspense and dry-as-Martini sarcasm - the result is 90 minutes of classic black comedy. [Kevin McHugh] WWW.YOUKILLMETHEFILM.COM

30 DAYS OF NIGHT DIR: DAVID SLADE STARS: JOSH HARTNETT, MELISSA GEORGE, DANNY HUSTON OUT NOW CERT: 15

The premise of 30 Days of Night is a good one. An area of Alaska goes through a whole month of total darkness as a Vampires on Tour 2007 holiday troupe arrives just in time to make the most of the sunlight-free backwater. Josh Hartnett, adding ‘horror survival cardboard’ to his repertoire of acting styles, plays the local sheriff determined to keep himself and the ragtag cannon fodder inhabitants of the town alive. With the potential to be as interesting a vampire flick as Near Dark or the often overlooked Nadja, 30 Days of Night somehow doesn’t make the most out of an undoubtedly promising concept, but does manage to score big with the portrayal of the vampires themselves. These are ugly, screeching monsters, far removed from the Dawson’s Creek-style neck biters of Buffy and even less like the aristocratic, velvet clad, theatre going types we have come to expect from the genre, so it’s just as much fun seeing them being torn asunder as it is watching them mangle the hapless denizens of Hicksville. [Chris Hammond] WWW.30DAYSOFNIGHT.COM

BEOWULF DIR: ROBERT ZEMECKIS STARS: RAY WINSTONE, ANTHONY HOPKINS, ANGELINA JOLIE OUT NOW CERT: 12A

Certificate 12A my arse: rampant nudity, blood everywhere and truly terrifying, Beowulf certainly ain’t for the kiddies. Using motion capture techniques to animate over the actors, the 8th century Anglo-Saxon poem is brought vividly to life in this outstanding adventure. Ray “I’m ‘ere to kill your monstah” Winstone is the eponymous mo-cap mo-fo who turns up at Danish king Hopkins’ court to help them out with a little demon-beastie problem they’ve been having. Quickly besting the Gollum-inspiring Grendel, the real trouble begins when he has to deal with Grendel’s understandably upset mummy (Jolie). Though stunningly rendered and full of rollicking action, the timeless strength of the story lies in its examination of the pride, vanity and weakness of man.

But the heroism of Beowulf transcends even these iniquities, which is why his song will be sung forever.

[Paul Greenwood] WWW.BEOWULFMOVIE.COM

FILM

DVD FAMILY GUY SEASON 6 DIR: VARIOUS STARS: SE TH MCFARL ANE, ALE X BORSTEIN, SETH GREEN OUT NOW CERT: 15

Is it better to burn out or fade away?

Although it may lack the longevity of the family friendly Simpsons, season six of Family Guy sees levels of profanity and political incorrectness reach new heights of hilarity, and proves the show is definitely burning as brightly as ever.

Ludicrous storylines covered this season include prostate exam/anal rape confusion, Peter’s aspirations of redneck status and Lois’s dangerous liaisons with a certain Mr Clinton. But without doubt the most disturbing, and therefore hilarious, scenario is Stewie’s newfound adoration for his arch-nemesis mother after she saves his beloved teddybear Rupert from the jaws of death.

Although season six goes that extra mile to horrify viewers – the scene in which Peter confuses Stewie’s face for various parts of his wife’s body comes to mind – Family Guy proves it can still do the odd clean joke and make you giggle till you pee and poop. [Jenni Cruickshank]

EXODUS 2 DIR: PENNY WOOLCOCK STARS: DANIEL PERCIVAL, BERNARD HILL, CLAIRE-HOPE ASHITEY RELEASE DATE: 26 NOV CERT: 15

Set in the dystopian near-future of Pr o m i s e d Land, Exodus is a contemporary reworking of the story of Moses that remains staunchly faithful to its biblical reference points. But while some of these nods give the film resonance, most are accommodated by laughable plot contrivances. When a biblical reference can’t be shoehorned in, a narrator intermittently appears to help clear things up. But narrative flaws are the least of Exodus’s problems - unforgivably, parts of the dialogue are inaudible, and it’s beset by an unhelpful political agenda that pitches Moses as an ambiguous terrorist/freedom fighter, carrying out atrocities to free his own people. This ambiguity reaches its nadir when the plague that kills the first born children of Egypt is represented by a suicide bombing in a primary school. Not even a malevolent turn by Bernard Hill as fascist leader Pharaoh Mann is enough to save Exodus from being at best misguided, at worst politically dubious. [Christopher Mackie]

LA VIE EN ROSE 3 DIR: OLIVIER DAHAN STARS: MARION COTILLARD, SYLVIE TESTUD, GÉRARD DEPARDIEU OUT NOW CERT: 12A

It’s a sad fact that trage d y

www.skinnymag.co.uk

often makes for more compelling viewing than comedy. In the case of French singer Édith Piaf – born on a pavement in Paris, blinded by meningitis until the age of seven and dead from lung cancer by the age of 47 – her story should translate into cinematic gold. Piaf’s rise from obscurity to France’s most popular entertainer is told here in flashback/flash-forward/flash-sideways as a dying Édith (Cotillard) remembers her early life as a street, then nightclub, singer.

Darkness permeates the film, both in theme and colour: blacks, browns and reds envelop characters in an evocative recreation of pre- and postWorld War II Paris as a range of emotions surface. Piaf is portrayed as a strong, not always likeable, character. Cotillard’s performance is always compelling, while Depardieu’s cameo adds a touch of gravitas to an often absorbing, if structurally unsound, film. [Jonathan Melville]

PERFECT CREATURE 2 DIR: GLEN STANDRING STARS: DOUGRAY SCOTT, SAFFRON BURROWS, LEO GREGORY OUT NOW CERT: 15

Set in a bizarre antipodean fantasy metropolis, vampires and human cops must do their utmost to stop Edgar (Gregory), a scraggy haired, slightly pissed of f villain, from creating open war between the two species.

Director Glenn Standring’s visual style is reminiscent of a bargain basement Tim Burton, with a nod to the underrated yet utterly ludicrous Christian Bale vehicle Equilibrium, but Perfect Creature is really just a lot of grimy, gloomy shots of a gothic New Zealand cityscape interspersed with the housewives’ favourite waste of talent, Dougray Scott, scrapping and chatting ponderously with our badly dressed vampire from hell, Edgar. So, all the ingredients needed for a black eyeliner brigade cult following then? Absolutely, although didn’t they say the same about the near-identical Adrian Paul monstrosity The Breed? [Chris Hammond]

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE 3 DIR: DAVID SILVERMAN STARS: DAN CASTELLANETA, JULIE KAVNER, NANCY CARTWRIGHT RELEASE DATE: 10 DEC CERT: PG

There are a few rules for TV-to-movie transitions that should be obeyed. One, y o u r f av o u rite characters should all be present and correct. Two, said characters should go on an emotional and/or literal journey, usually denied them in weekly episodes, allowing a better understanding of their personalities and emotional states. Three, the status quo should be returned to by the final frame. The Simpsons Movie offers loyal fans all of the above, forcing America’s first family away from the safety of Springfield by way of ecological disaster. While all the regulars make welcome appearances as the plot (what there

FILM/DVD

REVIEWS

is of one) unfolds, the question of why a film was needed after 18 years does remain. Luckily, a more prominent role for Ned Flanders adds some welcome poignancy as realisation dawns on Homer about what it means to be a dad, finally proving that father d’ohs best.

[Jonathan Melville]

PREPAREZ VOUS MOUCHOIRS (GET OUT YOUR HANDKERCHIEFS) DIR: BERTRAND BLIER STARS: GERARD DEPARDIEU, CAROLE LAURE, PATRICK DEWAERE OUT NOW CERT: 15

Solange (Laure) is miserable. She can’t eat or sleep and suffers from fainting fits. At his wit’s end, her husband, played by a youthful Depardieu, approaches a stranger in a café and asks him to become her lover. The two men form a deep, unlikely friendship based on their shared devotion to a woman they don’t understand, but even the lover’s Mozart obsession and alphabetised bookshelves fail to make her smile. The buffoonery of Depardieu and Dewaere’s brilliant double-act infuses the film with dark humour but at its heart this is a tender, taboo-breaking tale of human misunderstanding and the love to be found in the least likely places. While those around her go to increasing lengths to bring her happiness, Solange discovers her own answers in a strange, touching relationship with an outcast 13-year-old boy. With strong performances and a wonderfully bizarre plot, Handkerchiefs won the Best Foreign Film Oscar in 1978.

Almost 30 years later it still has the power to surprise, shock and deliver the laughs. [Caroline ScottThomas]

TENDRES COUSINES DIR: DAVID HAMILTON S TA R S: T H I E R RY T E V I N I , A NJA SCHÜTE, VALÉRIE DUMAS OUT NOW CERT: 18

A cross between a French Carry On film and The Great Gatsby, but with more breasts, Tender Cousins (1980) presents Julian (Tevini), a 14-year-old boy entering an early 1940s upper-class household where his adulthood is encouraged to develop in the new and highly sexualised environment in which he finds himself. As the threatening new male, Julian’s sexual endeavours being hampered by the other male predators make up most of the very loose plot.

Be under no illusions – this is soft porn at heart, and the plot’s role as mediator between sex scenes reflects this. Looking almost selfconsciously dated and clichéd, with maids and stable boys undressing each other in every other scene, it’s easy to criticise. Yet worryingly there seems to be a profundity behind the hair and nipples, reminiscent of Jean Renoir’s work in the 1930s, that makes one pause before slating the film too heavily.

[Kieran Westbrook]

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

15

FAMILY GUY SEASON 6 DIR: VARIOUS STARS: SE TH MCFARL ANE, ALE X BORSTEIN, SETH GREEN OUT NOW CERT: 15

Is it better to burn out or fade away?

Although it may lack the longevity of the family friendly Simpsons, season six of Family Guy sees levels of profanity and political incorrectness reach new heights of hilarity, and proves the show is definitely burning as brightly as ever.

Ludicrous storylines covered this season include prostate exam/anal rape confusion, Peter’s aspirations of redneck status and Lois’s dangerous liaisons with a certain Mr Clinton. But without doubt the most disturbing, and therefore hilarious, scenario is Stewie’s newfound adoration for his arch-nemesis mother after she saves his beloved teddybear Rupert from the jaws of death.

Although season six goes that extra mile to horrify viewers – the scene in which Peter confuses Stewie’s face for various parts of his wife’s body comes to mind – Family Guy proves it can still do the odd clean joke and make you giggle till you pee and poop. [Jenni Cruickshank]

EXODUS 2 DIR: PENNY WOOLCOCK STARS: DANIEL PERCIVAL, BERNARD HILL, CLAIRE-HOPE ASHITEY RELEASE DATE: 26 NOV CERT: 15

Set in the dystopian near-future of Pr o m i s e d Land, Exodus is a contemporary reworking of the story of Moses that remains staunchly faithful to its biblical reference points. But while some of these nods give the film resonance, most are accommodated by laughable plot contrivances. When a biblical reference can’t be shoehorned in, a narrator intermittently appears to help clear things up. But narrative flaws are the least of Exodus’s problems - unforgivably, parts of the dialogue are inaudible, and it’s beset by an unhelpful political agenda that pitches Moses as an ambiguous terrorist/freedom fighter, carrying out atrocities to free his own people. This ambiguity reaches its nadir when the plague that kills the first born children of Egypt is represented by a suicide bombing in a primary school. Not even a malevolent turn by Bernard Hill as fascist leader Pharaoh Mann is enough to save Exodus from being at best misguided, at worst politically dubious. [Christopher Mackie]

LA VIE EN ROSE 3 DIR: OLIVIER DAHAN STARS: MARION COTILLARD, SYLVIE TESTUD, GÉRARD DEPARDIEU OUT NOW CERT: 12A

It’s a sad fact that trage d y

www.skinnymag.co.uk

often makes for more compelling viewing than comedy. In the case of French singer Édith Piaf – born on a pavement in Paris, blinded by meningitis until the age of seven and dead from lung cancer by the age of 47 – her story should translate into cinematic gold. Piaf’s rise from obscurity to France’s most popular entertainer is told here in flashback/flash-forward/flash-sideways as a dying Édith (Cotillard) remembers her early life as a street, then nightclub, singer.

Darkness permeates the film, both in theme and colour: blacks, browns and reds envelop characters in an evocative recreation of pre- and postWorld War II Paris as a range of emotions surface. Piaf is portrayed as a strong, not always likeable, character. Cotillard’s performance is always compelling, while Depardieu’s cameo adds a touch of gravitas to an often absorbing, if structurally unsound, film. [Jonathan Melville]

PERFECT CREATURE 2 DIR: GLEN STANDRING STARS: DOUGRAY SCOTT, SAFFRON BURROWS, LEO GREGORY OUT NOW CERT: 15

Set in a bizarre antipodean fantasy metropolis, vampires and human cops must do their utmost to stop Edgar (Gregory), a scraggy haired, slightly pissed of f villain, from creating open war between the two species.

Director Glenn Standring’s visual style is reminiscent of a bargain basement Tim Burton, with a nod to the underrated yet utterly ludicrous Christian Bale vehicle Equilibrium, but Perfect Creature is really just a lot of grimy, gloomy shots of a gothic New Zealand cityscape interspersed with the housewives’ favourite waste of talent, Dougray Scott, scrapping and chatting ponderously with our badly dressed vampire from hell, Edgar. So, all the ingredients needed for a black eyeliner brigade cult following then? Absolutely, although didn’t they say the same about the near-identical Adrian Paul monstrosity The Breed? [Chris Hammond]

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE 3 DIR: DAVID SILVERMAN STARS: DAN CASTELLANETA, JULIE KAVNER, NANCY CARTWRIGHT RELEASE DATE: 10 DEC CERT: PG

There are a few rules for TV-to-movie transitions that should be obeyed. One, yo u r f avo u rite characters should all be present and correct. Two, said characters should go on an emotional and/or literal journey, usually denied them in weekly episodes, allowing a better understanding of their personalities and emotional states. Three, the status quo should be returned to by the final frame. The Simpsons Movie offers loyal fans all of the above, forcing America’s first family away from the safety of Springfield by way of ecological disaster. While all the regulars make welcome appearances as the plot (what there

FILM/DVD

DVD is of one) unfolds, the question of why a film was needed after 18 years does remain. Luckily, a more prominent role for Ned Flanders adds some welcome poignancy as realisation dawns on Homer about what it means to be a dad, finally proving that father d’ohs best.

[Jonathan Melville]

PREPAREZ VOUS MOUCHOIRS (GET OUT YOUR HANDKERCHIEFS) DIR: BERTRAND BLIER STARS: GERARD DEPARDIEU, CAROLE LAURE, PATRICK DEWAERE OUT NOW CERT: 15

Solange (Laure) is miserable. She can’t eat or sleep and suffers from fainting fits. At his wit’s end, her husband, played by a youthful Depardieu, approaches a stranger in a café and asks him to become her lover. The two men form a deep, unlikely friendship based on their shared devotion to a woman they don’t understand, but even the lover’s Mozart obsession and alphabetised bookshelves fail to make her smile. The buffoonery of Depardieu and Dewaere’s brilliant double-act infuses the film with dark humour but at its heart this is a tender, taboo-breaking tale of human misunderstanding and the love to be found in the least likely places. While those around her go to increasing lengths to bring her happiness, Solange discovers her own answers in a strange, touching relationship with an outcast 13-year-old boy. With strong performances and a wonderfully bizarre plot, Handkerchiefs won the Best Foreign Film Oscar in 1978.

Almost 30 years later it still has the power to surprise, shock and deliver the laughs. [Caroline ScottThomas]

TENDRES COUSINES DIR: DAVID HAMILTON STA R S: T H I E R RY T E V I N I , A N JA SCHÜTE, VALÉRIE DUMAS OUT NOW CERT: 18

A cross between a French Carry On film and The Great Gatsby, but with more breasts, Tender Cousins (1980) presents Julian (Tevini), a 14-year-old boy entering an early 1940s upper-class household where his adulthood is encouraged to develop in the new and highly sexualised environment in which he finds himself. As the threatening new male, Julian’s sexual endeavours being hampered by the other male predators make up most of the very loose plot.

Be under no illusions – this is soft porn at heart, and the plot’s role as mediator between sex scenes reflects this. Looking almost selfconsciously dated and clichéd, with maids and stable boys undressing each other in every other scene, it’s easy to criticise. Yet worryingly there seems to be a profundity behind the hair and nipples, reminiscent of Jean Renoir’s work in the 1930s, that makes one pause before slating the film too heavily.

[Kieran Westbrook]

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

15

THEATRE EDITORIAL 2007 in a nutshell Welcome to the theatre section of the last issue of The Skinny in 2007. Panto season is now in full swing: a blessed time for hundreds of jobbing actors to find regular paid work but of less interest to the Skinny readership.

THERE’S NO MISSING THE PRODUCTIONS THAT REALLY MATTERED TO YOU PERSONALLY

That’s right, you’re young, single and quite possibly a student with no interest in reading about Widow McTwankey and her Seven Ugly Sisters burning griddle cakes and sweeping chimneys. If you’re not and you are coping with a houseful of bored holiday-time children desperate for some light entertainment, then apologies because there are absolutely no tips as to where to go here. Instead, we prefer to look back at the past year on the stage with a few key people in the Scottish theatre world, and check in with a resurgent Scottish Ballet poised to move into a brand new home at Glasgow’s Tramway.

Of course, we have our usual complement of reviews and a mixed bag they are too, veering from the breathlessly eulogistic to the distinctly offhand. It’s important to realise that The Skinny relies on talented volunteers to fi ll its review pages, and while we as editors can police style and grammar, it’s impossible to comment on content. This is not an objective science: reviews are necessarily based on personal opinion and while we won’t print over the top rants or any form of intolerance, criticism is part and parcel of theatre coverage. So please remember, if you have had a production that has had a less than rapturous reception in these pages, it’s just one person’s opinion. What we can guarantee is that the productions we cover have every chance of getting a positive review. If you are a director or an actor and you would like The Skinny to cover your production then please email me. If you are budding writer or critic, we are always on the look out for emerging talent. Just send a couple of recent examples of your work through email and we’ll be in contact. Happy Christmas and New Year when it comes.

Hugo Fluendy hugo@skinnymag.co.uk

TOP

5 OF 2007

1. BALLETS C DE LA B: VSPRS Intense, total theatre from Belgium: dance that is equal parts religious ritual and aesthetic experiment.

2. SCOTTISH BALLET- THE PUMP ROOM Staking out the boundaries between ballet and comtemporary dance- it signalled Ashley Page’s willingness to take on a Tramway aesthetic without abandoning the classical past.

3. LTC MELANCHOLIA Despite the predictable plot (Deer Hunter for the Iraqi war), this young company played hard and fast with theatrical convention to get across an uncompromising anti-war message.

4.TIMELESS @DANCE BASE Housed two works that were not only individually stunning, but combined to a greater whole. Hawkins and Payne-Myers’ Muscular Memory Lane and Beth Cassani’s 13 attracted attention because of the performers’ ages- Cassani used her two young sons, twelve and fourteen, to discuss young manhood, and eighty year old Diana Payne-Myers astonished with her fancy footwork and serene expression.

5. NTS AALST National Theatre hits the dark side.

Penelope Keith

16 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

by Hugo Fluendy

That’s the thing about hindsight and end of year lists too: you don’t know what you’re missing until, aux escaliers, your rusting critical apparatus crunches arthritically into gear and in a sudden flash (for what other kind is there?) of belated 20/20 vision/intellectual cowardice you realise that the play you hated back in January was actually quite good. You know that because everyone else said so too.

In real life, being right after the fact is entirely useless, and in criticism, frankly irritating.

But despite this annual ritual of self-congratulatory consensus there’s no missing the productions that really mattered to you personally. These are the shows that hit you hard at the time and continue to resonate even as the initial CMYK impressions fade into a nuanced sepia. Some productions are so hotly anticipated that the list-induced, herd mentality works its mediocre magic in advance and you are dishing out the plaudits before the curtain has even gone up. Mabou Mine’s masterfully surreal Doll’s House at the Edinburgh International Festival was one: the dream sequences from its hallucinatory take on Ibsen’s period piece seemed to etch themselves onto your subconscious like the ghost image of a light bulb. Others, such as quirky mother and son dance piece Susan and Darren at The Traverse in October, are more unexpected. An eccentric, audience participative lament for a murdered father, the show’s boozy picnic to a pop reggae soundtrack format was instantly

charming, yet the dignity of the eponymous lead as he struggled to make sense of his loss lingered long after your hangover.

Certainly 2007 has been a year packed with incident; geo-politics finally made it onto the agenda w ith Suspect Cu ltu re’s rev ue Futurology, the National Theatre of Scotland growing in stature with each new production, a new home for the continuing renaissance at the Scottish Ballet under Ashley Page at The Tramway, Breakin’ Convention’s international celebration of street dance at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, a new Artistic Director for The Traverse as Philip Howard steps down after 12 years at the helm, A ndy A rnold’s

nlut ely fa n ab s o d t o b e a s a w e t on sider er G yn g ht Pe n of wh at’s c at we c a n do: “ I t hou h io w ere r o d uc t s h ow s d we w t a s t ic p play. It ju st o it a n e opp ord o lt t u c d th a d if fi w a nt e g ive h im e new work ic H il l ble t o e a s D o m in e o b t ed to h D av y t a st ic deli g ht wa s a lso fa n e A rc h e s w it do It t Th a t t hey t u n it y. lm a n a old doing wh e K s e b y J a m nd A nd y A r n ya M a cK a .” ll e w o s s t one e at her V ick y F Di rec tor ot l a nd ic e of S c r A r tist t a e h al T Nation

“20 07 ha s be en a gre at yea r for Ar ch es T he a t re , pa r t icu l a rly for ne w pl ay s – Me ga n Ba rke r’s Pit at the Tr ave rse in Au gu st and ou r tw o James Kelman pla ys; Herbal Remedies and Th ey Make Th ese Noises. Never look ba ck thoug h – it’s now on to The Water Ba bies for Ch ristmas.

My favou rit e other sho ws - the Ru ssi an co mpa ny Ak he at the Arches Sprin g Fe sti va l and The Arab and the Jew in Ed inburg h thi s sum mer.”

Andy Ar nold Ar tistic Di rector The Arches tta Fi lm Fe sti va l st home from Ca lcu

“It’s been qu ite a w eird yea r skewed v for me – iew I’ve got q a s p a rt o . I’ve been in Ne u ite a w York m f an NTS ost of th re si d e n c c omp a ny e ti me y w it h a c a lle d T E yo u n g th A M or T A m e ri c a e a tr e he a tr e o n Mome n f the E m t - th e y a t th e H e rg in g h a d a sh o e a rt la n d w, P art ic , at T he Shaw n’s o ularl A rc ne -ma n sh ow, T he F h e s. S e e in g Wa ll y tre in Ne w York w ace ever, at T a he Acorn s ing the a thea ud ience to a h ig hpoint. He b eg in s by some c a n sha re a g inv itap la ss of c h a mp a g n ten se, inc é s w it h h im befo e a nd re isive con la u n c h dem natio ing into a n hou r a a n inno nd a ha lf monolog u f con su mer society but th is e wh ich I’ . It’s wa s bri ll ia d n n Dav id Ha t. I a lso orma lly h met Scott rrower on ate ish play w B in a cit y rig of eig ht m roa dway – ju st bu mped into ht il lion – a duction o nd went to h f h is play see a new im Blackbir D a ve y A d wh ich I p nde r s on ro rea lly enjo Play w r ig yed.” ht/d irec to r

“A pe rso na l hig hlig ht wa s my ow n pro sta ge a t, fel art He of du cti on Sm ith’s bestselladaptation of Aid an ha rd Hib s fan wh o ing no vel ab ou t a die r’s s fan dur ing thi s yea art He a as r spend s a yea ma nce s for per ing nd sta out Leith Fes tiv al, wit h ng. n Hay and Ch ris You

by Tom Fre em an, Sea . I wa s als o 08 20 in it ive rev We’re ho pin g to at The s of Code Butterfly, thr illed by the succes nal lysio fes pro Ha ll. The Out of the Blue Dr ill ned in tur th Lei m fro ple led cas t of you ng peo cul ar for ma nce s in a specta some wonderfu l per venue.”

John Paul McGroa rty Ar tistic Di rec tor Leith Fe stival

Arches managing to both champion emerging talent with initiatives such as The Brick Awards and The Arches Festival, while also ensuring more established voices continue to be heard with the fi rst new drama from James Kelman in over a decade and of course the Edinburgh Festival continues to burgeon with more than 2,000 shows making it the world’s biggest festival of the dramatic arts by a country mile to name only a few. So while the opinion gathered here does not claim to offer a defi nitive record of Scottish theatre in 2007, but merely a study for a much, much bigger picture, it’s testament to the vitality of our nations cultural scene that such a wide spread of productions are on offer.

“Ju a lw ay s I lo ve t he m i nu t e s a go . A s ar sti va l, bu t th is ye Fe Ed inb ur gh Bo ok lle be Isa d an Me ow tw o sin ge rs, Me ow l, as hear t. The Fe stiva my le sto es, org Ge es. I ris rp su delig htf ul always, wa s ful l of and en att to n pla d have att ended 51 an e!” other 51. Stay festiv es yn Jim Ha aver se Theatre, fou nder of the Tr Ar ts Lab

“ My t op t h ea Po i n t ’s S u t re event s bw ay this y t hou g ea r an ht of t he Subway w d T i m C r o were Va n i sh i n g a t r e, as a g u c h’s b t he m e E e u s i c a a ut i f u l ly p nu i nely t h n g l a n d . I r i l l i ng g r ated nd t h e r fo r m e piece . e e x p e r Eng la nd w d r a m a w e d a nd i n wh ich r ience a e per s a r , ea l ly fe c t l y fou nd a nd i th n t i v i sit m he piece i n t e r e s t i n g ou g ht-prov n t e in tha o f u r iat y feel i n g bu i ngs a t i n i t k i ng ha l f. P ia l ly tt ft e I t h e m r sona l ly, I er t he ut ter hen I ha d g ue s s t ly br i l a jor e l ia nt s o re d i re c t wh ich vent . in ec A I T h a n k w a s n e v e m a s s i v e , g P e e r G yn o n d r su re i mp o s t wa s f u l ly it fa nt a s sib w d id a n t ic.” d t he o u l d c o m e l e p i e c e D om i a u t o d ienc n e re sp g e t h e r.

A r t i s ic H i l l on s e t ic D i wa s re c to T r a ve r rse

THEATRE

THEATRE

TAMBURLAINE MUST DIE LAZY FROM CONCEPTION THROUGH TO EXECUTION - AN INSIPID AND STAID INTERPRETATION OF A BRUTALLY POETIC NOVEL Given Kenny Miller’s reputation for accessible and spectacular work at the Citizens, and Louise Welsh’s brutally poetic novel, Tamburlaine Must Die is an astonishingly poor play. Based on the mysterious death of poet Christopher Marlowe during the reign of Elizabeth I, Tamburlaine has been adapted for the stage as more recital than performance - despite an impressive set and at least three actors sharing the role of Marlowe, each scene seems a mere illustration of the hero’s monologue. Apart from some irrelevant and distracting nudity, this production only directs the audience back to the novel’s scintillating descriptions of a plague and paranoia ridden London.

With only shaggings, stabbings and executions actually performed, the actors are required to do little beyond swagger around the stage and recite. Characterisation is told, not shown, and breasts and balls are exposed at regular intervals, although the sex scenes are generally enacted fully clothed. The intrigue surrounding the plot - someone has set Marlowe up as a revolutionary heretic - evaporates in a series of pedestrian encounters, interspersed with Marlowe’s anti-theological and political mus-

ings. The teeming life of the Elizabethan underworld is rendered as static posturing, with the set working harder to establish the atmosphere than any of the actors.

Tamburlaine Must Die feels lazy from conception through to execution: as if it had been decided that the source material was so strong, it needed little embellishment, or that the audience would be happy with sops of controversy. And while both the Tron and the Citizens have used Scottish voices to make Shakespeare and other classics more approachable, the thick, bellowing accent of one Marlowe turned the sixteenth century into an episode of River City. After the Edinburgh Festival success of Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads, it is disappointing that Glasgay!’s latest commission is such an insipid and staid interpretation. (Gareth K Vile) TRON RUN ENDED WWW.GLASGAY.COM WWW.TRON.CO.UK

ENDGAME DIRECTOR ROBERT RAE’S STAGING ULTIMATELY FAILS TO DELIVER BECKETT’S ABSURDIST PUNCHLINES, PREFERRING INSTEAD TO WALLOW IN THE SHALLOWS OF THE TEXT’S UNRELENTING MISERY. The lights come up on this production of Beckett’s postapocalyptic masterpiece to the faint tolling of a bell, revealing a set reminiscent of the back of your local Scotmid.

Clov, a masterful turn by wheelchair bound actor Garry Robson, appears, wheels himself around and, snickering quietly, exits, leaving a set drab in the extreme.

The ‘kinetic set’ was designed by Glasgow’s Russian emigre artists Sharmanka and resembles the creations of a particularly morose team on dire TV show Scrapyard Challenge, their creations therefore chiming appositely with Beckett’s dystopian vision. Despite their kinetic billing, the only discernable moving part is a bell with phallus clapper rung by the twisted character that emerges from behind a bloodied sheet halfway up the tower of scaffolding that dominates centre stage.

This is Hamm, the despotic, but ultimately vulnerable, blind and paralysed main protagonist who is played by Nabil Shaban whose impressive c.v. oscillates from Dr. Who to Hamlet. Hamm yearns for death. Clov, his dogsbody and foil, hankers for escape but they stay, obstinately and inexplicably refusing the other his wish. “I’ll leave you” says Clov repeatedly, but he always comes back. Their flawed interdependance is the crux of the play. Clov’s disabilty reflects the impossibility of escape and his physi-

www.skinnymag.co.uk

cal incapabilities act as a metaphor for the profound emotional shortcomings of the main characters.

Beckett’s mastery of the humour of despair is encapsulated by the figures of Hamm’s parents, Nell and Nagg. Confined to the wheely bins, their comic turns leaven the unremitting bleakness and they, for a brief, deeply poignant moment, remind the audience of a life of romance and youthful exuberance with a Joycean reminiscence of their days as young lovers.

Despite Nagg’s assertion that “nothing is funnier than unhappiness”, director Robert Rae’s staging ultimately fails to deliver Beckett’s absurdist punchlines, preferring instead to wallow in the shallows of the text’s unrelenting misery.

And, this being Beckett, both Nagg and Nell are dead by the end of the play. [Adam McCully] ENDGAME WILL TOUR SCOTLAND AGAIN IN FEBRUARY 2008 THEATRE WORKSHOP, EDINBURGH WWW.THEATRE-WORKSHOP.COM

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

17

Sleeping Beauty

THEY MAKE THESE NOISES

by Gareth K Vile

KELMAN SEDUCES WITH FLORID LANGUAGE AND AWKWARD HUMOUR At first sight, They Make These Noises seems inconsequential. A two-hander exploring romance in an unknown English city, it suffers from a slight plot and a severely underwritten female part. But, like Brian Ferguson’s garrulous lead, Kelman seduces with florid language and awkward humour.

The minimal plot - boy meets girl, boy and girl sleep together, boy is ejected from lodgings - gives Kelman enough space to concentrate on the confusions of new found intimacy. Insulated from the wider world by only a thin wall and the dubious security of their feelings, the two characters are uncertain of themselves and each other, their conversations constantly testing boundaries. Kelman avoids clichés of competition or domination: Ferguson is sincere, nervous and expansive, and he catches the frailty of macho extravagance.

Danielle Stewart has far less to do as the woman: she initiates sex out of some mysterious impulse, and has

very little character, beyond her refrain of “Excuse Me?” Again like his lead, Kelman seems bemused about the feminine, and the play would have been as effective as a monologue.

A CHRISTMAS TREAT FOR BALLETOMANES AND SCHOOLCHILDREN, INFORMED BY BALANCHINE, WAGNER’S RING CYCLE, GOTHIC FASHION AND THE DECLINE OF EUROPEAN ROYAL FAMILIES.

Nevertheless, Kelman makes much of the social awkwardness, delivering bawdy laughs and moving the action along to a sharp denouement. David MacKay’s direction is crisp and the recreation of Ferguson’s bedsit is appropriately depressing. A very different piece from the recent Arches’ company production of Herbal Remedies, it lacks that work’s universality but has a more personal tone: despite the rough accents and occasional naughty word, They Make These Noises is tender and optimistic.

[Gareth K Vile] THE ARCHES, RUN ENDED WWW.THEARCHES.CO.UK/THEATRE

Since Ashley Page became the Artistic Director of Scottish Ballet in 2003, the company has been rightly praised for its brave new direction.

Integrating classical technique with contemporary flair, Page has taken a moribund troupe and orientated them towards the future.

An hour with Ashley Page is a thrilling journey through history, music and dance: like Steve Slater from Tramway or Kenny Miller, formerly of the Citizens, he combines a rigorous knowledge of theatre with a unique aesthetic vision.

He retains a boundless enthusiasm for the traditions of ballet - especially Russian - but makes connections with other arts, and the influence of Glasgow’s innate cultural confidence. Sleeping Beauty may appear to be a standard Christmas treat for balletomanes and schoolchildren, but Page’s version is informed by Scottish Ballet’s adoption of Balanchine pieces, Wagner’s Ring Cycle, late Regency Gothic fashion and the decline of the European royal families.

© Niall Walker

A SOLDIER’S TALE INSPIRED DIRECTION, REFRESHINGLY INNOVATIVE LIGHTING DESIGN, EXCELLENT SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT AND A HAPPILY DISCONCERTING SURREALIST FILM Here is a sparkling, bushy-tailed production, its theatrical enthusiasm and quick-witted directorial intent strangely borne of monochrome war-era fear and despair. Presenting as ever more sombrero than sombre, this fable nonetheless wears a translucent skin, beneath which we see the organs of a suspicious and distrusting post-war society.

© Nobby Clark

The Academy of St Martin in the Fields has achieved near perfection in their concept. The choice of narrative seems almost inconsequential: the cast performs not A Soldier’s Tale, but the essence and core of Stravinsky himself. Above the stage he dangles; a strange, looming, lolloping creature of mismatched phrases and cold-hearted voicings, dancing his gangly dance, singing his deafening, lonely song. The characteristics of a potent soundworld are then slapped ferociously like playing cards onto a prismatic, three-dimensional Cubist montage, hovering loudly between inspired direction, refreshingly innovative lighting design, excellent

18 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

spatial development and a happily disconcerting Surrealist film compliment.

The Academy has struck upon the epitome of cross-disciplinary theatre by staunchly refusing to compromise their specialised musical identity.

Rather than a half-hearted conflation of flimsy elements, they have extended their own musical range and sensitivity to dictate the natural continuation of sound and idea into neighbouring media.

The lead characters are well-cast and equally magnetic: a pinkish-tinged Devil, a captivating French Julie Andrews, a narrator, silvered and aloof. Critically acclaimed solo violinist Anthony Marwood gives an exuberant, arresting performance as the soldier, eliminating the stunt double and performing himself, often by heart, the twisted, metrically tangled and undeniably virtuoso violin part usually mimed by the onstage soldier. This is realised with the pizazz of a worldclass musician. A semi-staged discourse is set up with the ensemble, which suddenly appears not as supporting technicians, but a lively stage presence in its own right. It is exactly this dissolution of pretence, both in treatment of narrative and overlapping media, which imbues this production with the authenticity to float equally as a sociopolitical war commentary as a fantastical Faustian rollercoaster. [Kelly Lovelady] RUN ENDED THE TRON THEATRE, GLASGOW WWW.TRON.CO.UK WWW.ASMF.ORG

Page is aware of the challenges posed by the scale of Sleeping Beauty. “It is probably the biggest show you could do: it is the Ring Cycle of the ballet world! Four acts, lots of dancing, and we are trying to give the story a bit more life. The Tchaikovsky score is a prescribed thing and although it is fantastic music it does restrict you in the narrative. It’s very episodic, which is the way Russian ballet was when Petipa first choreographed the work.”

In line with his approach during the rest of the year, Page brings an up-to-date aesthetic to the ballet, modernising where appropriate but showing respect to the past. The Christmas season has always been good box office, but Page sees it as more than a cash cow.

“We don’t want to do them because we have - we want it to be as interesting and alive and vibrant as the contemporary programme that we do through the rest of the year. That’s why I decided to do them myself. I put this company together and we have been forging a company style through our works, a language of dance that fed into our other works. Sleeping Beauty, like Nutcracker or Cinderella, is glorious fun- a tradition, but not just a novelty.”

Scottish Ballet’s repertoire now includes works from the legendary choreographer Balanchine, whose works offer a compromise bet ween Classical Ballet and the emergent modern dance of the early twentieth century. Aside from the playful post-modernism of the sets and the reimagining of the stories, Page has observed that “a Balanchine edge has crept into even the most traditional aspects” of the large scale ballets.

This cross-fertilisation of style is expressive of Page’s vision, as is his respect for Sleeping Beauty’s heritage. Having danced with the Royal Ballet, he “grew up with the Russian ballets, which had been inherited from a man called Sergevei, who came out of Russia in the 1940s. They became the Royal Ballet’s signature pieces and broke them in America.” The creation of Sleeping Beauty, for Page, came at

the time when “the Russian School was really at its peak” and while there have been numerous additions to it from the great British choreographers, it is Petipa’s original that provides Page with his foundations.

There are, however, some aspects of the original which would be out of place in a modern production. “The prince didn’t dance: the male dancing has accumulated over the years. I’m stripping these down and giving them an edge,” explains Page. There are also the apparently random appearances by characters from other fairytales. “In act 3 there are divertissements for fairytale characters doing a party piece. We thought we’d give them a reason to be there.

We selected four stories that take place in the forest- Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Belle from Beauty and the Beast and Snow White, who are encountered by the prince as they are lost in the forest going through their own stories. Later, they are guests of honour because they are part of the story.” On the other hand, some parts defy change. “I was thinking about doing the mime scenes that tell the story in another way - but I was defeated.”

Perhaps the most distinctive changes are in the chronology, which are most evident in the costumes and set. Indeed, Sleeping Beauty offers considerable scope. “I work very closely with Antony McDonald- the design is completely wrapped up in the choreography and the story,” he says. “It’s set in three eras. We start off in 1830 - late Regency style and European Gothic. There was a growing fascination with the fairy world. We are sort of in Russia really: the extended European families and the aunts and uncles from various states all attending Aurora’s christening. In Act Two, it is 16 years later - early Victorian definitively - a champagne reception in a hot-house botanic garden.

Then it jumps a hundred years to 1946, when the Sleeping Beauty is woken up by her prince.

A massive change in fashion and behaviour and also the Royal Ballet premiered the Sleeping Beauty that year in the refurbished opera house. A new age and a new beginning but all those aunts and uncles of Princess Aurora have lost their realms now: it’s all gone to hell, they live off selling their jewellery. The story has made the same journey as the ballet, from Russia to Britain.”

Sleeping Beauty is obviously a long way from a lazy Christmas cash-in, or a simple pantomime for the middle-classes. Page appears to be exploring ideas about ballet as overwhelming, total theatre, integrating music, dance, costumes and set. While it is unlikely to achieve the intensity of Page’s Pump Room, Sleeping Beauty is not an anomaly in the company’s programme: it shares the restless and inquisitive spirit that has powered Scottish Ballet to national attention.

SLEEPING BEAUTY, GLASGOW THEATRE ROYAL, 11 - 29 DECEMBER WWW.SCOTTISHBALLET.CO.UK

THEATRE

THEATRE/COMEDY

COMEDY Laugh if you wanna Go Faster

by Emma Lennox

THERE IS A FORBIDDEN QUALITY TO A GOOD NIGHT OF STAND UP; IT’S BEST SUITED TO SMALL DARK ROOMS WHERE COMICS DARE TO WHISPER THEIR UNSPEAKABLE THOUGHTS OUT LOUD “Stand up is about the night and the moment” says Richard Herring on his DVD Someone Likes Yoghurt. “It’s so immediate, it’s kind of private.” It’s true that there is a forbidden quality to a good night of stand up; it’s best suited to small dark rooms where comics dare to whisper their unspeakable thoughts out loud. But transferring these moments to the screen has proved difficult. TV execs grapple with formats and schedules, but somehow the bright studio lights burn out the most intimate qualities of stand up. It’s not impossible, but it’s just not very profitable (unless you’re Ricky Gervais or Peter Kay), and therefore comedians are limited to panel games and the occasional ten minute spot on variety shows. But true stand up, as Jerry Seinfeld says, is hours, not minutes, long, and when - even in this technological, media savvy world - there is no room for comedians outside the light entertainment spotlight, it’s clear that something is wrong. It’s a problem that occurred to Chris Evans of Chapter Art Centre in Cardiff, to whom the solution seemed radically simple: film his favourite stand ups in his local theatre and produce DVDs dirt cheap.

Now a year old, Go Faster Stripe’s creation began with Stewart Lee’s 90s Comedian, a show which no major distribution company risked even a glance at without fear of retribution. Yet it’s a critically acclaimed show, one which Time Out enthused ‘should win the Booker prize’ and that Evans thought needed recording for posterity. “Sometimes when you are watching a show you realise that something special is happening, and that’s how I felt watching 90s Comedian for the first time. It was very, very funny. And yet occasionally painful to watch.”

90s Comedian is now the first in a series of Go Faster Stripes’ growing DVD collection.

Following Lee to Cardiff is his old partner in crime Herring, with his 2005 show Someone Likes Yoghurt. Like 90s Comedian, Herring’s act is an exercise in audience bating, but if you

think Lee’s attempt to get charged with blasphemy is ‘a bit edgy’ then wait till you see what Herring does with a trout. By experimenting with tedium and inanity, Herring somehow manages to create a fun hour of boundaryhammering comedy.

Simon Munnery’s Hello, however, has a completely different feel. Munnery wraps his audience in a knitted scarf, which brings an enjoyable change of pace from the rather exclusive styles of Lee and Herring. A deconstructive clown, Munnery subverts the norms of comedy with 96 minutes of hyperactivity, characters, poetry and rubbish drawings. He’s in his element with the close-knit crowd, riffing off their occasional heckle.

If stand up is about ‘the night’ and ‘the moment’ then the audience are a key factor in the show’s success. Filming in such a lo-fi way, it’s easy to see the jokes live or die on the crowd’s reactions. There is a high chance of seeing a comedian die on their arse, but thankfully these performers are old pros. Evans concurs: “The people we are filming are at the top of their game, so it’s nice that we occasionally get to show off their dealing-with-people skills.

We can always edit it out if it doesn’t work.

And it doesn’t always work; the show we are working on at the moment has a whole section where the show descends into madness and two hecklers end up walking out. We cut it out of the main show, and put it in as an extra.”

This is comedy, warts ‘n’ all, so forget the grand finales of swivelling cameras and flashing lights: there is no Chris Rock-style balloon release on the final punchline. It’s just one sweaty comic saying ‘Thanks for coming’. Now that’s entertainment.

DVDS ALL £10 WWW.GOFASTERSTRIPE.COM

Richard Herring

REVIEW MARK WATSON

THE STAND, GLASGOW, 9 NOV Perhaps it’s because the Commonwealth has deemed it a proud day to be Glaswegian, but there is a definite ‘love in’ vibe in the packed Stand tonight. This feeling of goodwill is helped by headliner and master of anecdotal whimsy Mark Watson, who ends his set positively beaming about the friendliness of the audience. Everything he says is met with tsunami-like waves of appreciative claps or belly laughs as each punchline hits its mark, but then it’s hard not to enjoy the awkward comic’s style.

With nervous energy Watson babbles out his material in enthusiastic bursts, so desperate to talk he’s constantly

www.skinnymag.co.uk

interrupting himself. Some of his references are a little easy (Amy Winehouse, Facebook, etc) and fail to say anything new, but it’s his personal stories, including the suicide note he wrote to his father after losing at Connect Four, that bring the extra comic perspective.

His lyrical Welsh accent may be for show, but there’s no doubt that Watson’s talent is genuine. [Emma Lennox] REVIEWED ONLINE: MILTON JONES (19 NOV) AND ROB DEERING (27 NOV)

DECEMBER 07

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BOOKS

Peanuts: from comic strip to bookshelf

by Gareth K Vile

CALVIN AND HOBBES GAVE ITS CHILDREN-AS-ADULTS MORALITY A MODERN EDGE, BART SIMPSON BECAME THE POST-MODERN CHARLIE BROWN, WHILE EVERYTHING FROM DILBERT TO SOUTH PARK HAS CO-OPTED SCHULZ’S MINIMAL, CLEAN LINES From 1950 until the millennium, Peanuts established itself as the longest running, and ultimately most popular, daily comic strip. Declared by The Comics Journal, a magazine more readily associated with underground art, as the second greatest comic of the century and even identified as “arguably the longest story ever told by one human being” by a Professor Thompson of Syracuse University, Charles M. Schulz’s four-panel meditations have produced several 20th century icons. Spawning television and theatre shows, innumerable ranges of merchandise and inspiring artists as diverse as Garrison Keillor and Matt Groening, Peanuts is one of the few comics that has straddled the divide between popular and geek culture.

Canongate’s reprints of the entire run may help to clarify Peanuts’ impact. By the time of Schulz’s death, Charlie Brown and the gang had already passed into the establishment, possibly more famous as celebrities than as a vibrant commentary on modern life. In the light of The Simpsons or South Park, the strip appears conservative, the battles of will between Snoopy or Lucy and Charlie an unending soap opera trapped in an ahistoric bubble. But, with a legion of celebrity guests penning respectful introductions, and modern comic superstar Seth designing the covers, Fantagraphics’ collection sets Peanuts back into its context.

Its later apparent irrelevance is the direct consequence of this influence. Calvin and Hobbes gave its children-as-adults morality a modern edge, Bart Simpson became the post-modern Charlie Brown, while everything from Dilbert to South Park has co-opted Schulz’s minimal, clean lines. The characters have become so ubiquitous that it seems impossible for them to say anything worthwhile. Like Elvis, or Shakespeare, or Botticelli, their revered status has robbed them of relevance.

For this reason, the first edition of the collection, covering 1950 to 1952, is fascinating. Schulz was uncomfortable with his early work being republished, since he believed that he had not perfected his art. Characters that would later assume importance are marginal: Snoopy is still a puppy, and unidentifiable children slip in and out of the cast. The trademark stoicism is already there - alongside the back-handed compliments and innocent insults - but so is the whimsy and meandering observations that make the strip seem shallow or predictable. There is also the sentimentality that would later bedevil the TV specials, and the uncertainty that reflected the

creator’s own attitude. It actually showcases his strengths and weaknesses clearly - more than any technical failings, it is his writing that does not yet define his cast’s personalities.

The artwork, although evolving, is consistent and charming, the scripts as infuriating and enlightening as anything he did later.

The Complete Peanuts is beautifully bound, a comprehensive resource and, with an index and introduction, a useful contextualisation of a modern legend. For the casual reader, it is frustrating: a little homespun wisdom and a delusional dog fighter-pilot can go a long way, and two years worth is exhausting. W hat this collection will allow, however, is a re-evaluation of Schulz’s work. This could go a long way to repair the damage done to his reputation by Snoopy lunchboxes.

THE FIRST TWO VOLUMES OF THE COMPLETE PEANUTS ARE AVAILABLE NOW FROM CANONGATE, WITH MORE TO FOLLOW. COVER PRICE IS £15 PER VOLUME. WWW.CANONGATE.NET

The most interesting years will, inevitably, be the 1960s. Here, Schu l z engaged w ith pol itica l change - never explicitly, but subtly making racial integration and satire part of the strip. Charlie Brown - down, but never out - becomes a dogged everyman, while Lucy takes on her role as the guru of the school of hard knocks. In this decade, Schulz established his name and defined the characters that would define the circular and philosophical tone of the strip, and refined his technique - a deceptive simplicity that would inspire a generation of cartoonists.

REVIEWS ALIAS THE CAT

BY KIM DEITCH 3

Kim Deitch has been working outside of the comic mainstream since th e l ate 6 0 s: combining pseudo-autobiography with lop-sided fantasies that involve an invisible cat and the reincarnation of Judas, his Waldo stories are complex and amusing - if an acquired taste. Alias The Cat takes Waldo and Kim deep into America history, from WWI pacifism to absolutely contemporar y terrorist paranoia.

Deitch’s skill - apart from his delicate cross-hatching and psychedelic distortions of perspective - is to introduce unbelievable beings through unreliable witnesses. Waldo the Cat, Deitch’s shadowy antagonist, is only ever seen by the insane or drunk; even warning that his appearance is usually a sign of incipient madness. As Deitch is sucked further into Waldo’s world, his own scepticism is replaced by belief, terror and, finally, a spell under psychiatric observation. Perfectly matching the of f-kilter narrative,

Deitch’s art swirls and enchants, creating a fairy universe bedevilled by sordid behaviour and uncomfortable eroticism. Romanticism drives Alias The Cat, with Deitch’s wife supporting her errant husband and one of the three chapters dedicated to a doomed affair from the 1910s. But unlike many romances, these are inconclusive and absurd - just, as Deitch says, like real life. Deitch’s confusion seems to extend beyond his life, becoming a philosophical acceptance of uncertainty. His willingness to leave characters hanging, their motives vague or their lives lost in the past lends the book a realism that stories of bad-boy soft-toys can’t usually inhabit. While Deitch is no Crumb or Alan Moore, his subtle storytelling and distinctive illustration is a slow-burning pleasure. [Gareth K Vile] OUT NOW, PUBLISHED BY JONATHAN CAPE, COVER PRICE £11.99 WWW.RBOOKS.CO.UK

EDINBURGH: 40 TOWN AND COUNTRY WALKS

BY KATIE GORDON

Take a tour from the Old Town of Edinburgh, with its maze of closes

20 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

and wynds, to the elegant crescents and circuses of the New Town, and what strikes you first is the sheer contrast in surroundings.

A quick stroll becomes a voyage into the varied historic past of Scotland’s capital city. Walk a little further and soon you will meet rolling hills and picturesque scenery far removed from the hub of urban life. This book celebrates the continual contrasts that Edinburgh and the surrounding areas offer. Each walk featured is accompanied by detailed directions, photos and a clear map of the route. Notable pubs such as The Canny Man in Morningside and The Sheep Heid Inn at Duddingston village also get a mention – enough to encourage even the most unwilling of ramblers. Destinations further afield, including Linlithgow Palace and Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve, provide perfect afternoon excursions for anyone seeking a break from the hustle and bustle of the city.

The practical pocket size of the book means it is easily portable and always on hand to inspire even the wettest of Sunday strolls. All in all a perfect way to atone for festive over-indulgence. [Katie Gordon] OUT NOW, PUBLISHED BY POCKET MOUNTAINS, COVER PRICE £6.99.

TAMARA DREWE

BY POSY SIMMONDS 3

With the obvious exceptions of Matt Groening’s Life in Hell series and the brilliantly inexplicable Perry Bible Fellowship creations, newspaper ‘funnies’ are pretty shameful.

But along came Posy Simmonds in 2005 with something different for the back of the Guardian’s n e w l y r e f o rm at te d l i terature supplement.

Astonishingly, her strips, while of ten witty, weren’t designed to be funny, which automatically elevates them above the ‘force the clown to dance’ effect of the average newspaper strip. Instead, they deliver a friendly, almost Archers-feeling story with - gasp! - literary origins.

In the case of Tamara Drewe, we have a retelling of Thomas Hardy’s Far from the Madding Crowd: the story of a sleepy village and how the eponymous randy urbanite becomes the inspiration for an entire writers’ retreat. This new compilation comes with expanded and refined editions of Tamara Drewe. Lengthy

paragraphs - usually internal monologues of the characters - have been added alongside the strips but it’s uncertain what these are supposed to achieve, as the comics work brilliantly in their own right.

The extra stuff sadly feels like unnecessary padding. The effect is an odd one: like wading through smelted tarmac one moment and skating along an ice rink the next. A simple straight-from-the-newspaper compilation would have been perfectly justified, as this strip remains a cut above its competitors. [Robert Wringham] OUT NOW, PUBLISHED BY JONATHAN CAPE,

COVER

PRICE

£16 . 9 9

HARDBACK.

UNDEAD ON ARRIVAL

BY NICK SMITH 3

From Night of the Living D e a d to 28 D a y s L a te r, the living are rather fond o f t h e c o rporeal undead. Usually portrayed as mindless, decaying corpses

with a penchant for human brains, Undead On Arrival tells an altogether more ‘ordinary’ zombie story. Here we have the sorry tale of Glen Glass, a man dissatisfied with his mediocre life, whose only pleasure stems from his passion for spy movies and in particular his hero, John Dance. Caught up in a bizarre sequence of events, Glen is given the chance to live life (of a sort) as he had never before thought possible when he returns to earth as one of the undead.

As part of t he growing zombie community Glen is subjected to scientific experiments and questionable attacks while the government struggles to understand and control its members. Overcoming the obvious physical drawbacks of his condition, he fights to discover the nature of his death and pursue the woman he loves. The third offering by Nick Smith (his previous books were Milk Treading and The Kitty Killer Cult), Undead on Arrival is a witty and original book. But though it has all the ingredients of an extremely good read, it somehow fails to mix them quite as well as it could. [Rebecca Isherwood] OUT NOW, PUBLISHED BY LUATH PRESS, COVER PRICE £9.99 PAPERBACK.

BOOKS

GAMES Wii wish you a Merry Xbox STILL PINING OVER THE DEMISE OF SEGA? WITH THE FESTIVE GAMES MARKET IN FULL SWING, IT’S TIME TO LEAVE THE NOSTALGIA BEHIND AND EMBRACE THE PRESENT, ARGUES LIAM PRITCHARD Christmas. If ever there is a time of year to delve into the nostalgic mists of the past, then surely this is it.

The company of friends and family, the memories of Christmas past; most folk simply can’t help but let out a contented sigh as they recall fond memories from days of yore. If you are a gamer, however, don’t let the veil of nostalgia blind you from the facts - there truly is no time better than the here and now. This Christmas season brings with it an embarrassment of riches for gamers. Be you a hardcore gamer or simply a Nintendo newbie, there is a choice to cater to every taste.

Of course, if you come under the banner of ‘traditional gamer’, fret not. For all the fears of the market changing to suit the ever widening demographic, the list of truly cracking titles on offer is unprecendented. Although the Playstation 3 may be struggling after the much-hyped releases of Lair and Heavenly Sword fell painfully short of expectations, the Xbox 360 is home to one of the finest Christmas line-ups ever seen. From Halo 3 and BioShock to Mass Effect and Project Gotham 4, the choices are exemplary. Even the Wii is getting around to releasing some flagship first-party titles in the form of Metroid Prime

3 and the mesmerizing Super Mario Galaxy, giving its already eclectic line-up some much needed quality.

With gaming now more sociable than ever, be it playing with your family on Wii Sports or shooting a new found friend in the face over Xbox Live, this Christmas is surely the finest gaming has seen, and one that is going to be very difficult to top. So, if you’re already one of the converted or simply an intrigued bystander, this is certainly the holiday season to forget about nostalgia and live in the now.

Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have all thrown their hats into the ring this Yule, trying their level best to pull in as big a profit as possible from the Christmas punters with quite possibly the biggest mainstream, mass-market push ever seen in the history of videogames. The Master Chief adorns nearly every bus, Nintendo adverts appear with alarming regularity on our TV sets and Sony... well Sony haven’t really got all that much to shout about this Christmas.

For the cynics out there, this kind of visual bombardment is reason enough to retreat to the warm comforts of nostalgia - to a simpler time, when gaming was a purer art, unlike the supposedly tarnished market of today, filled with games of cinematic scope and staggering production values. To argue on this basis however would be to miss the point: the fact of the matter is the market has never offered such a degree of choice.

No longer are these companies fighting solely for the attention of teenage boys; gaming now encompasses a much wider and varied demographic, a socially acceptable venture in which your previously clueless sister is as likely as your teenage brother to pick up a controller this Christmas.

For the retro heads out there, hungry for the more simplistic gaming of years gone by, all three of the ‘next-gen’ consoles now offer extensive download services, with Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo providing a huge array of retro and arcade gaming at your fingertips thanks to Xbox Live, PSN and Virtual Console respectively.

But if you are new to gaming, drawn in by the family-friendly approach of Nintendo Wii, you’re certainly not going to be short of choices in the rapidly expanding casual gaming market. From Wii Sports to Cooking Mama, there is something for everyone, irrespective of age or gender.

REVIEWS CALL OF DUTY 4 (MICROSOFT)

Ta k i n g t h i s series into m o d e r n d ay seems like a natural move for developer Infinity Ward and, with all of the real world conflict going on at present, this game can seem shocking at times.

A story focusing on a Russian nuclear threat seems feasible and therefore more gripping while in no way glamourising war. Controlling both a greenhorn SAS soldier and a US marine, it’s up to you to diffuse the global threat. From storming Iraqi television stations to infiltrating Russian missile silos, each of the missions are full of non-stop action where finding cover and using extreme caution are key to survival.

This is no run’n’gun title, rather a team effort where your AI squadmates are every bit as valuable as you are. Boasting approximately 70 different types of armament, the key to success lies in finding the right weapon for the job as each

boasts ver y dif ferent handling.

Claymore mines, night vision goggles and C4 add a tactical edge to encounters leaving the method entirely up to you. A strong narrative and great voice acting make this one of the most immersing FPS titles to date. You will genuinely feel for your fallen comrades and get into a panic when pinned down by machine gun fire as death comes easy. This is the must-have shooter for Christmas with easy-to-pick-up controls, tons of content, gorgeous graphics and a killer online mode.

[Dave Cook] OUT NOW FOR X360/PS3/PC/DS RRP £44.99/29.99

DEMENTIUM: THE WARD (RENEGADE KID)

Survival horror has been done to death (excuse the pun) but Dementium adds touch screen control and a first-person perspective to shake up the formula a bit. Waking in an abandoned hospital, it’s up to you to solve the

22 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

mystery of what happened, as blood drips down the walls and freakish mutants and zombies wait around every turn. With no recollection of who you are or how you got there, this game always keeps you guessing until the very last moment. You will be amazed at how good this looks for a fully 3D handheld shooter.

The player moves by sliding the stylus around to look while L fires the selected weapon. Ammo is sparse while enemies are tough, creating a great sense of tension. Weapons range from bog standard pistols and shotguns to nightsticks for those close encounters. Some trademark puzzles and spine-chilling music add to the already freaky nature of the game. Thankfully, the puzzles never break the flow of action and most can be solved in a matter of minutes.

This is Doom 3 for the handheld generation, so definitely not one to play in the dark. Some real imagination has gone into the enemy design (the screaming heads are particularly disturbing) and the puzzles, making this a cracking debut for developer Renegade Kid. [Dave Cook] OUT NOW FOR NINTENDO DS £29.99

GUITAR HERO 3: LEGENDS OF ROCK With its predecessors being s o m e of th e most innovative, addictive and acclaimed games of the past few years, much was expected of Guitar Hero 3. They were always going to be hard to live up to, and while the game is still a fair bash, it’s hard not to feel disappointed.

Whether it’s the weak track list (the first two tiers are incredibly monotonous and will leave you questioning your purchase), decreased difficulty level (hammer-ons, while not as absurd as in GH2 are just that little bit too easy) or just the game’s slightly odd obsession with its new, somewhat poorly executed ability to lip synch to songs, you cant help but feel slightly... lost. Throw in an absurdly pointless battle mode to interrupt the mediocre flow of career mode and a rather irritating reorganisation of the menu structure and you definitely feel slightly burned. Previous developer Harmonix’s absence is notable: wait-

ing for Rock Band is highly recommended. [Josh Wilson]

CLIVE BARKER’S JERICHO MERCURY STEAM

If consoles were Halloween parties, Jericho would be the guest who tried so hard but still looks like a prick painted green with a fake bolt through his neck.

The story is set in Al-Khali, an ancient city where God’s first attempt at creating man was banished from the world after being hideously corrupted by horseradish. That may not be strictly true but it doesn’t matter: Jericho is meant to be scary and it isn’t. It’s got gore and tries hard with the shocking images, but a combination of average voice acting and generic ‘horror’ environments that gamers haven’t been shocked by since Doom, means the atmosphere is never enough to draw you in. But what does atmosphere matter if the gameplay is kickass? Yeah… the

innovation in Jericho is that you can flick between six different characters, each of which has a different set of abilities and weapons. Which means that instead of changing weapons you change people. Yay! Only changing people takes longer than changing weapons. And some characters are a lot more useful than others. So the one that can shoot a powerful, controllable bullet, or the one that can stop time, or the one that has a Gatling gun is ten times more useful in a tight situation that one that can vaguely hack at enemies with a sword. And in a game that revolves around tight combat scenarios, having only one player who has grenades (which are shit) is immensely frustrating. But that doesn’t matter, because most of your time will be spent healing idiot AI controlled comrades who have strayed into the path of intense enemy gunfire. What Jericho is crying out for is an online mode where each player has different abilities and together, online, you explore this weird and creepy dimension.

That would make it stand out. As it is, Jericho isn’t bad (some moments make you cry out for more), just totally inconsistent. [Richard Dennis]

GAMES

GAMES www.skinnymag.co.uk

NOVEMBER 07

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ART

EDITORIAL

SURVEY-ing past, present and future

It’s t he le a d - up t o Christmas, and everything’s gone a bit commercial...

Which is fair enough, re a l ly, c on s id er i n g the high cost and low retu r ns su ffered by your average ar tistled venture throughout the rest of the year. Talking to the Embassy stall at Zoo Art Fair back in October, it was clear that the ability to sell just a little bit of artwork is essential to the continued running, indeed continued existence, of the Scottish artist-run galleries we all know and love. The Arts Council purse can only stretch so far, and all too frequently it can only stretch in the direction of the more well-established institutions, leaving the young ’uns who want to make something for themselves a little strapped for cash.

On that note, time to take a look at the Christmas art sales. Good Wives and Warriors have taken matters into their own hands by curating a show combining international drawing and apparel by the French collective SHOBOSHOBO, who are flying in for the occasion and bringing their T-shirts. Glasgow Print Studios and Edinburgh Printmakers are both holding their annual Christmas shows, if limited edition books and prints are your thing, while Recoat and Owl and Lion, in Glasgow and Edinburgh respectively, will both be continuing to walk the line between the commercial and conceptual with their gallery shops exhibiting the finest of cutting-edge art and design.

JAY SHUKLA TAKES A TOUR OF THE SHOW CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF THE EDINBURGH SCULPTURE WORKSHOP, AND FINDS THE INSTITUTION GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH

Hidden away at the northernmost tip of the city, the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop has never been the most visible of institutions, despite its workshops and much sought-after studio spaces serving as the creative headquarters for some of Scotland’s best creative talent. If its location has served to obfuscate it to some extent, then surely its name provides yet another layer of concealment, for most of the work on display here is not sculpture. As has been evident in art schools for an age, trying to confine individual practice within the realm of a single discipline is ultimately counter-productive, and the fantastic breadth of work in SURVEY exemplifies this philosophy.

Choosing to celebrate its 20th anniversary by focusing on the new era ahead for the ESW, curator Colin Greenslade has put together a show which possesses a vital, aggressive thrust and is characterised by a real inquisitiveness and a bold, questioning approach. The visceral, confrontational work of Jessica Harrison is emblematic of this, and Greenslade has chosen well in opening the show with her work. Her reinvention of Gentileschi’s Judith Beheading Holofernes replaces the victim’s head with a single, gawping, giant eyeball that seems to leaven the memory of Buñuel’s similarly violent gesture with an endearingly comic helplessness. Although fear is the

subject of her work, Harrison realises that we can most easily approach its depths using humour as our vehicle, and in a sculpture entitled Peep Show – featuring a lascivious mound of eyeballs jostling to catch a magnified glimpse of their own greedy physiognomy – she succeeds with wit and economy.

Where Harrison deals with the mechanisms of perception, sensation and revulsion, Lara Green has deconstructed the very process of breathing with a work entitled Cage. Animated with the help of a motor, a few cogs and some bicycle brake cables, this impressive kinetic sculpture transmutes the automatic ease of human breathing into a laboured, mechanical process that climaxes in the model’s prosthetic jaw arching into an unnatural robotic rictus. While it would be easy to read the work as a comment on the folly of our lust for technologically-aided immortality, the curious elegance of the work takes it beyond mere satire and creates an altogether more engaging dialogue with the viewer.

Created during his time in residence at Belfast Print Studio, Scott Laverie’s series of photo intaglio prints serve as a glimpse into the creative landscape from which his fantastically outlandish sculptural works originate. These images, showing figures engaged in bizarre practical activities,

are densely atmospheric and mysterious, possessing an almost fairytale-like sense of wonder. His accompanying video work – showing a series of wooden beams efficiently organising themselves into various formations – is similarly compelling.

Like many of the artists in SURVEY, we are left wanting to see more of the worlds that Laverie creates: a clear indicator that the exhibition has succeeded in what it sets out to achieve.

Of the rest of this generous show, special mention must go to Ettie Spencer’s sensitive investigation of depopulation in the Outer Hebrides, in which the artist has employed sculptural intervention as a catalyst for social reflection. As a taste of what to expect from the next 20 years of the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, such work is encouraging to say the least. And with over 65% of the funding raised for a brand new sculpture facility, prospective workshop users can look forward to expanded education and outreach programmes, new IT facilities and twice the number of studios. For an organisation with such a rich past, the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop must be applauded for keeping both eyes firmly on the future.

ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY, EDINBURGH UNTIL 18 DEC, FREE ENTRY. EDINBURGHSCULPTURE.ORG

Go on, support your local struggling artist.

Rosamund West

TOP 1. SURVEY

5 EVENTS

ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY, EDINBURGH. TILL 18 DEC

A contemporary twist on the retrospective form which exceeds expectations. Check it out.

2. MONIKA SOSNOWSKA TALBOT RICE GALLERY, EDINBURGH. TILL 8 DEC

Two complementary floors of installation from the Polish artist, fresh from representing her country at the Venice Biennale.

3. SPREZZATURA MAZE THE STUDIO WAREHOUSE, GLASGOW. 8-28 DEC

An international group show of drawings, apparel and fanzines. Cunningly combines culture with Christmas shopping potential.

4. LAWRENCE ABU HAMDAN WILL SAUNDERS PROJECT TRANSMISSION, GLASGOW. 4-8 DEC

Sonic art graduates produce quasi-cartographic documents of the city of Glasgow using sound. Intriguing?

Indeed. The show will be accompanied by events and performances - contact the gallery for details.

5. THE SHADOW OF THE OBJECT FELL UPON THE EGO ST MUNGO MUSEUM OF RELIGIOUS LIFE AND ART, GLASGOW. TILL 24 FEB

Installation by Glasgow-based artist Beth Ford which explores issues of identity and loss. The work was specially commissioned to commemorate the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade.

Monika Sosnowska

24 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

“CURATOR COLIN GREENSLADE HAS PUT TOGETHER A SHOW WHICH POSSESSES A VITAL, AGGRESSIVE THRUST AND IS CHARACTERISED BY A REAL INQUISITIVENESS”

© Alain Irureta

Sprezzatura Maze @ SWG3 The Glasgow-based curating partnership known a s T he Good W ives a nd Wa r r iors ( Lou i se Chappell and Becky Bolton) have collaborated with Christina Corfield to take on the never-ending challenge of reaching a wider audience in the forthcoming show, Sprezzatura Maze. The former Comme des Garcons guerilla store, Glasgow’s Studio Warehouse, hosts this substantial group show, opening in December to unveil a lattice of work from both local and international artists. The ambition of this project is striking: within the extensive list of persons involved is a number of well-established artists from France and Canada who are exhibiting in Scotland for the first time, most notably the collective known as SHOBOSHOBO. Using lo-fi materials like markers and biro, SHOBOSHOBO work diligently to create

their infamous, fantastical landscapes featuring many weird and wonderful characters. The curatorial concept behind the show is clear-cut: all artists participating have a practice rooted within drawing. Louise and Becky’s work as well as Thom War’s and SHOBOSHOBO’s manifest as large-scale wall drawings, working a site-specific concern into the show. The sheer variety of mediums and methodologies employed by the exhibiting artists within the supposedly narrow field of drawing should render this show interesting, perhaps even challenging our preconceptions. [Jenny Richards] 8-28 DEC WEDS-SUN 12-6PM FREE ENTRY WWW.GOODWIVESANDWARRIORS.CO.UK

Arnaud Loumeau

ART

MONIKA SOSNOWSKA TALBOT RICE

An entirely useless building is a pleasing thing to consider. It is transgressive and reckless, expensive and futile. Sosnowska’s ex h i b i ti o n, w h i l st i t p rovo ke s such similarly fantastic thought, is called Display. This is a school word. More than this, it is a museum word; its inferences are dull.

Downstairs, 27 architectural models of impossible spaces are chaotically arranged. Accompanied by a distractingly dense index, the process of viewing them becomes a studious exercise. To venture upstairs, however, into the space lorded over by Sosnowska’s rubber installation, is to experience absolute joy. A space that is as ripe for the sweaty and ripped as for gallery goers, Sosnowska’s messy mass of rubber strips sits as a knot of dissident euphoria. This discrepancy between the cognitive confusion of exhibit A, and the sensory onslaught of Exhibit B, is key. Sosnowska presents to us a closed system; her implausible spaces are allotropic. By presenting new work in relation to her body of past architectural pieces, the artist sets in motion a dialogue whereby a radical recasting of the whole is perpetual. B changes how we perceive A, but B is not B without A. Resting between a familiar boredom and an anti-institutionalised reverie, these interiors resist definition by any other terms than their own. Sosnowska’s awareness of the politics of display lends these liberated interiors a protective critical cloak with which to address the often fatefully naïve investigation of

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space, and oppressive systems of power. [Rosalie Doubal]

thought-provoking, entertaining results. [Gabriella Griffith]

TIL 8 DEC TUES-SAT 10AM-5PM

TIL 27 JAN. MON-SAT 11AM-6PM, SUN

FREE ENTRY

12-5PM

WWW.TRG.ED.AC.UK

FREE ENTRY

ROMAN SIGNER THE FRUITMARKET

‘Live in your head’ reads the cover of one of Roman Signer’s old exhibition catalogues. Signer has followed this advice throughout his long and successful career and now, thanks to his show at the Fruitmarket gallery, he can invite us to do the same. The works take the forms of installation, sculpture and film. Although all present in the gallery, they have differing relationships to time. Films document action taking place in the past, sculptures suggest that an action has happened and yet the installations are alive with the movement and sounds of actions taking place before us. What unites Signer’s work is an interest in ordinary objects and their subsequent subversion or loss of function. ‘Kayak’, of 1987, presents a kayak in three pieces having been carefully ripped apart by explosives. With its delicately frayed edges, the craft is before us as a new object; robbed of its utility it is entirely vulnerable yet still of worth to the viewer. Upstairs is a hive of activity, with wind powering a number of installations. These are joined by object-based sculptures, familiar yet altered. Surveying the room the viewer can imagine that Signer has crept into their home and rearranged their possessions.

A chocolate Easter bunny has been shot, an umbrella has pierced a briefcase and a pair of skis are wearing armbands. Signer brings surreal scenarios from his imagination to the gallery space with

WWW.FRUITMARKET.CO.UK

STUART GURDEN & NINALOLABACHHUBER GSS

Stuart Gurden’s film The Approach in Three Parts is the most developed piece in this show. Juddering camera movements keep the objects of focus caught within a flickering rhythm of appearance. These overt references to structuralist film-making frame three pared-down signifiers from a hinterland in the approach flight path to Glasgow airport - the horizon, ancient standing stones with graffiti faces carved on them, and a plane coming in to land kept jumping in place in a centre shot of the blue sky.

Literally up in the air and adrift in the outskirts, the experimental tropes of underground film abut with a symbol of global technology and mainstream culture that has absorbed and made their visual language so familiar through advertising and digital technology. Similarly, an act of cultural atavism is scraped on to the ancient landmark - the brutish and primitive as opposition to global forces. Or is this merely one sign system co-opting an older one - a modern conflation?

This lack of unalienated link between referents seems, if anything, to be the point of the work, a conclusion furthered in the grindingly obvious opposition between technology and the ancient. Accompanying drawings and objects add noise music as a referent - the use of technology as a barrier to a ‘centred self’, adding another bead to the abacus of links between cultural hierarchies and atomised referents. By contrast,

ART

REVIEWS

Bachhuber’s work is an unconvincing juxtaposition of sculptural elements embodying surrealism, decadence and sexuality. The play of referents is not as productive and seems without direction. [Darren Rhymes] TIL 8 DEC THURS-SAT 11AM-5PM FREE ENTRY WWW.GLASGOWSCULPTURESTUDIOS.ORG

TOWARDSHEILPRINLAND DOGGERFISHER

I l a n a H a l p e r i n’s e x h i b i t i o n a t Doggerfisher, ‘Towards Heilprin Land’, takes the viewer on a visual journey to the frozen landscape of Greenland.

Halperin has created a series of drawings, watercolours, etchings, photos, videos and text. Some are from a boat trip she made to Greenland, some from memory of a country she knows well from visits made while en route to New York from Glasgow, while others come from her imagination. These images include cross-sections of icebergs, etchings of glaciers and video footage of ice-laden seas. Through these images she shows her interest in vulcanology, geology and geological time. The exhibition also includes a wooden panelled area, said to be a recreation of a section of the boat in which Halperin sailed to Greenland, complete with a cubby hole containing a world atlas and books on volcanoes and Polar exploration. The whole exhibition expertly evokes the feel of the Polar North, helped by the timing of the exhibition. The wintry North Sea wind blowing up Leith Walk and the slategrey skies visible from the gallery’s skylights, coupled with the ice-white of the gallery walls, all help evoke feelings of an Arctic winter. Don’t forget your scarf and gloves. [Michael Kynaston]

Monika Sosnowska

©Paul Zanre/Talbot Rice Gallery

Roman Singer

TIL 21 DEC TUES - FRI 11AM - 6PM; SAT 12 - 5PM FREE ENTRY WWW.DOGGERFISHER.COM

Towards Heilprin Land

DECEMBER 07

© Ruth Clark

THE SKINNY

25

SOUNDS EDITORIAL 2007: A Year in Music Our Top 10 Longplayers of the Year list is back!

A lright, so maybe it’s not quite by popu lar demand but bugger it, D e c e mb er i s mo s t l y about ridiculous lists the leng th of a K i rk Hammett solo anyway, so one more can only t ick le. It’s a l i st, i n December, that’s not likely to cost you a bomb in Argos while you make your way through it.

Of course you’re game. Regular readers might not find too many curveballs ahead; Battles blew our minds at a Cabaret Voltaire back in 2005 and Mirrored was always going to be something special. Queens of the Stone Age have been pissing out killer tunes for years, it was good to fi nd them back on form with Era Vulgaris. I could go on. But perhaps most significant is the phenomenon of a Scottish band that we’d never even heard of before SxSW in April, that has since gone on to beat the likes of Radiohead in our amalgamated poll of reader and writer opinion. By a landslide no less. This reaffi rms my faith in mankind no end. It’s like, suddenly, in a world where the Prime Minister is a guy from Kirkcaldy, Noel Edmonds is back on the telly and Malcolm Middleton releases Christmas singles, anything seems possible.

See the January issue for some of our 2008 predictions. /DGK

CONTENTS TOP 5 OF 2007 METAL UP YOUR ASS SMOKED GLASS CHUTES GLASVEGAS MINUS THE BEAR LIVE MUSIC REVIEWS & PREVIEWS ALBUM & SINGLE REVIEWS

28-29 30 30 32 32 33 35-36 36-37

A MUSO’S TOP 10

MANIC STREET PREACHERS This month’s top 10 mixtape tunes are brought to you in association with whatever product Nicky Wire was using to dye his hair red, badly, while he compiled it for us.

1. THAT PETROL EMOTION - It’s A Good Thing 2. THE GO-BETWEENS - Spring Rain 3. BLUR - Caramel 4. RUSH - Fly By Night 5. SHACK - Comedy 6. NIRVANA - Pennyroyal Tea 7. SYD BARRETT - Dominoes 8. HOLE - Doll Parts 9. THE ENEMY - Had Enough 10. CHERRY GHOST - Dead Man’s Suit MANIC STREET PREACHERS PLAY MUSIC HALL, ABERDEEN

MEASURE THE LAST TWELVE MONTHS IN DEEDS, TRAGEDIES, AND POLITICAL DISASTERS? NOT HERE. THESE ARE THE ALBUMS THAT MADE OUR YEAR THAT WEE BIT BRIGHTER

#10 ARCADE FIRE NEON BIBLE (CITY SLANG / SONOVOX)

No term in the music press is bandied about a s f l ippantly a s ‘d i fficult second album’.

This ostensible longing for a sophomore slump leaves many a band on the recording trail of a follow up LP caught somewhere between a rock and hard place.

You’re damned if you stick, you’re damned if you twist. Cue Arcade Fire to prove everybody wrong. Splicing the enthusiasm, passion and archetypal beauty of their debut with a range of unforeseen influences and darker intonations, they climbed atop said rock, performed a mocking dance and showed that the terms ‘best foot forward’ and ‘step into the unknown’ need not be distant relatives. Neon Bible is an asphyxiating charge through an emotional dictionary, the likes of which had been shelved since Funeral. Possibly the fi nest act in the world today with defi nitely one of the greatest cuts of 2007. Well, we reckon. [Finbarr Bermingham]

#9 ANIMAL COLLECTIVE STRAWBERRY JAM

With their cult fan-base - reeled in by previous ex per i ment a l ef for t s such a s Sung Tongs and Feels - it was perhaps inevitable that the Animal Collective going ‘pop’ was going to cause a critical dichotomy. If Feels was Panda Bear, Avey Tare, Geologist and Deacon taking some tentative steps away from their campfire, freeform psychedelic roots, then Strawberry Jam saw the veteran New York ensemble well and truly fly the coup.

Lead single Peacebone served as an accurate blueprint and, ultimately, the highlight of what was to follow. In an alternative reality, its deliriously giddy maelstrom of laser-guided chaos and hyper-undulating vocals would have taken over Rihanna’s Umbrella as the chart-hogging pop anthem of 2007. Alas, until the rest of the world catches on, the Collective will have to make do with gushing plaudits from the alternative music press, including being one of The Skinny’s albums of the year. Sorry chaps.

[Darren Carle]

ON 2 DEC AND CORN EXCHANGE, EDINBURGH ON 3 DEC WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MANICS

Nicky Wire

© Valerie Nicky Philips Wire

(DOMINO)

The National

Okkervil River

#8 THE NATIONAL #7 OKKERVIL RIVER BOXER (BEGGARS BANQUET)

THE STAGE NAMES (JAGJAGUWAR)

“Hopefully we’re not gonna lose the fans b e c a u s e w e d o n’t have any screaming songs on this” fretted T he Nationa l’s Matt Berninger back i n Apr i l. T he ma n needn’t have worried.

Fast forward seven months and victory seems assured for the Brooklyn quintet. “It’s been a huge year for us” he says, retrospectively.

“We’ve suddenly got a whole new, much bigger audience so it’s been a massive change. This is the year the band came out of the shadows.”

Although their 4th LP, Boxer, didn’t exactly emerge from the locker room swinging, it slowly revealed itself to be a blindsiding heavyweight with a considerable left hook, full of nuances sure to floor anybody curious enough to afford it the time. Full of character-driven monologues and ugly truths, Berninger rasps over estrangement and body politics while the music takes its grip. And once it has you on the ropes, Boxer refuses to let go; Mistaken for Strangers will knock the wind out of your gut while Racing Like a Pro – featuring one Sufjan Stevens on keys no less - is guaranteed to deliver the knockout blow. “It’s about reconnecting with friends” offers Berninger. Cilla Black move over. [Dave Kerr]

Speaking recently to The Skinny, Okker vil River’s lead singer Will Sheff likened penning an album to cooking a meal: “You need to have an idea what’s going to come of it and make sure you’ve got the ingredients to produce that outcome.” This year, Sheff created The Stage Names: in gastronomic terms, a wholesome feast of sumptuous melodies served up with rich, vintage instrumentation. A rarity these days, it’s an uber-intelligent album from start to fi nish, played by a proper full band that embraces a set of songs about the escapism of TV, fi lm, literature, and, of course, being in a rock band. It chugs (Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe), it swoons (A Girl In Port), it borrows (John Alyn Smith comes with the full Sloop John B chorus) and with every other spin, The Stage Names unravels itself to reveal a tapestry so polished, you could eat your dinner off it. [Finbarr Bermingham]

#6 RADIOHEAD IN RAINBOWS (SELF RELEASED / XL)

A lbu m s lea k on l i ne every day and nobody tal ks about them. A few people pick them up, buzz slowly builds, there are inter views, gigs, eventually CDs. In Rainbows’ leak would always be more of an event than most others, but the way in which this internet leak was announced, controlled and spun to become an ‘official’ release that fans could pay for, if they wanted, was ingenious. By keeping the master tapes within a very tight and trusted circle, and not sending promos to journalists or bloggers, Radiohead brought the excitement of collective anticipation back to music fans. Meanwhile, a befuddled music industry tried to gather the long-term possibilities of the ‘In Rainbows-model’, and artists across the world wondered if their dedicated fans might pay for ‘official’ leaks they can otherwise get for free. Nobody yet knows the full ramifications of In Rainbows, 2007’s most revolutionary release - but the album wasn’t bad either. [Ally Brown] CONTINUED ON P28

26 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

SOUNDS

by Fraser Thomson SMELLS LIKE LOUNGE SPIRIT...

5 FREE SONGS YOU CAN LEGALLY DOWNLOAD, LISTEN TO AND LOVE by Sean Michaels

There was a sentence in a book I read recent ly t hat kept ci rcl i n g my m i nd.

“Finally, muzak had reached my record collection.” Now, it got me thinking. Will this happen to me?

Would it be a good thing? And what exactly would it sound like?

With the exception of Mike Flowers Pops and their version of Wonderwall, the indie world seems to have remained untarnished by the world of easy listening. However, with a bit of research I’ve uncovered some gems.

Vampire Weekend

1. ORILLIA OPRY - I LIED A sweet Montreal pair, curtains drawn, sing about a relationship that’s over, over, over, broken beyond all repair. “If you come back/come back with a heart attack.”

It has the aching want of Neil Young, the blithe shouldershrug of one Bob Dylan, and yet it’s boy and girl, young and sweet, with lips still good to kiss.

DOWNLOAD AT: HTTP://WWW.SHIPSATNIGHT.COM/SANORILLIAMUSIC2.HTML

Paul Anka, the former 60s heartthrob, released a great album in 2005 called Rock Swings. It’s a collection of classic rock tunes in a lounge style. Smells Like Teen Spirit, Everybody Hurts and, inevitably Wonderwall get a complete overhaul. The album reached number five in the charts and deservedly so.

Less well known, but no less ingenious is the work of Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine. They are 80% Lounge, 20% Big Band and 100% amazing. There is no artist they are afraid to parody. From Beyonce to Nine Inch Nails via Snoop Dogg, no one is safe. The standout track has to be their version of System of a Down’s Chop Suey. Stop reading this and fi nd a copy.

3. COTTON JONES BASKET RIDE - HAD NOT A BODY

K id s of t he 80 s m ay remember F r a n k Sidebottom. He was a man with a giant paper mache head, and even bigger Mancunian accent. I thoroughly recommend acquiring a copy of A,B,C & D – his greatest hits album.

As well as some original tracks, there are some cracking cover versions. However, there is no evidence of the most fantastic Frank story ever told. Apparently, in the 80s, Grand Royale had to intervene to prevent the release of a Sidebottom record, a tribute to the Beastie Boys. It included two versions (one for Christmas, one for birthdays) of the brilliantly named I’m Gonna Write (Some Invites To My Party). I pray it’s true.

This is a new solo project from Michael Nau, the man behind the indie hymns of Page France. But Cotton Jones Basket Ride is heretical, not chaste; it’s behindthe-church not before-the-altar. Channelling the hot kitchen soul of Harry Nilsson and the scuffed balladeering of Lou Reed, Had Not a Body is filled with moseying guitar, brandy-warmed voices, late Sunday air.

Of course, most of these artists were in it for a laugh. It’s not a real attempt to turn indie into muzak. If you really want to hear what Ma x i mo Pa rk, R ad iohead a nd the Zutons sound like as lift music, pick up Mark Ronson’s latest album.

2. LISTENING PARTY - JESUS CHRIST I DON’T KNOW A tambourine leads Listening Party through their repeating refrain: “I don’t know. Jesus Christ I don’t know!”

Later it’s replaced by jingle bells, hollers, and tumbling woodblock drums. You know how sometimes you’re so mad and confused that you get stupid? Imagine if that happened to Arcade Fire.

DOWNLOAD AT: HTTP://WWW.MYSPACE.COM/ WWWMYSPACECOMLISTENINGPARTY

DOWNLOAD AT: HTTP://WWW.QUITESCIENTIFIC.COM/COTTONJONES1.HTM

4. CLEAR TIGERS - IGLOO A song called Igloo that’s not in the least bit chilly: warm fuzzed strums of acoustic guitar, an over-and-over synthline like the slow molecular melt of ice-blocks. When the electric guitar chimes in and a voice is raised, you can almost imagine this as an anthem, a torch song, something for lighters raised in an arena. And then it’s back to an indie rock fit for friends, late nights, and falling asleep on the Edinburgh-Glasgow coach.

That said, I wouldn’t be averse to one day walking past that ever-present pan pipe band on the high street and, instead of hearing Whiter Shade Of Pale or I Will Always Love You, hearing a haunting, hollow, entirely bamboo version on How Soon Is Now? Just once. I’d probably even throw them a quid.

FRASER THOMSON PRESENTS THE XFM WEEKENDER EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT 6-10PM. XFM SCOTLAND 105.7-106.1FM

EDINBURGH

What is DAN DEACON? A performance artist? A classically trained musician gone haywire? The fi rst and last hero of geektronica? A mutant combination of all three would be closer to the mark, so prepare for ridiculous noise, headache inducing postmodernism and impromptu dance-offs when the none-more-hatstand one starts pushing his aural LSD at CABARET VOLTAIRE on 3 DEC. Skinny favourite JAMES YORKSTON rocks up to THE ARK on 17 DEC with support from Adrian Crowley and HMS Ginafore. One of Fife’s very finest, few folk can touch Yorkston when it comes to setting beautiful, touching narratives to such gorgeous, finger-picked guitar. Put it in your diary.

Ex-Delgado EMMA POLLOCK continues touring in support of her smashing new album, Watch the Fireworks, with a gig at CABARET VOLTAIRE on 18 DEC. OK, so Pollock is never going to rival Kiss in terms of spectacular live shows, but the intimate confines of the Cab will be the ideal setting for her atmospheric and often exceptional songs.

Local heroes ABERFELDY set up camp for a special Christmas two-nighter at the newly opened VOODOO ROOMS (the former Cafe Royal) on 19 AND 20 DEC. Few can put a crowd in a good mood as effectively as this band, and coupled with the seasonal cheer, the grin factor for these gigs could approach critical levels.

Oh, and there’s the tunes as well: upbeat, poppy, but fiercely intelligent with it. Sorted.

by Ted Maul

GLASGOW

Veteran industrial pioneers THE YOUNG GODS will bring the goods to THE BARFLY on 4 DEC. After 20 years of experimenting with sound, they’re still creatively fresh and making one hell of a racket. They’ve influenced more bands than you realise, and will continue to do so. Pay your respects.

We’ve got a lot of love for LIARS round these parts, and a lot of that love stems from their reliability in putting on intense live shows that genuinely fuck with our expectations. With an amazing and varied back-catalogue under their belts, and word from the blogosphere suggesting they’re firing on all cylinders just now, we’re banking on their appearance at STEREO on 6 DEC being another powerfully weird experience.

GOGOL BORDELLO: they give good crazy. This much we know, having witnessed them tear it up in Glasgow a year or so back – much to the adulation of the baying crowds, few of whom were ever likely to have seen a killer drum solo being played on a bucket before. Lest we forget, they’re not half bad at writing tunes too. But let’s be honest, it’s the crazy you’ll go for and it’s the crazy you’ll get. ABC 13 DEC.

THE CINEMATICS round things out in Glasgow with a set at KING TUTS on 20 DEC. At the time of writing, we’re fresh from witnessing a slick Cab Vol performance in the ‘burgh full of epic melodies, driving bass and an impressive stage presence. They might put Dingwall on the map yet.

Liars

Malcolm Middleton takes on X-Factor

by Nick Mitchell

Since the nostalgia-tinged era of Noddy Holder’s lambchops and George Michael’s alpine snowball japes, the institution of the Christmas single has succumbed to lobotomised X-Factor muppets or, worse, the death-cheating comebacks of Sir Cliff. But this Yuletide, Scottish singer-songwriter Malcolm Middleton has launched a daunting ascent on the Christmas chart with the darkly-titled We’re All Going To Die. He tells The Skinny why...

“I remember in the 80s I was always really excited about the songs that were gonna get released at this time of year, but the last couple of years it’s just become an X-Factor thing, and now Top of the Pops is dead too.

“We’re All Going To Die is my favourite song off A Brighter Beat. I wanted it to be the fi rst single but it didn’t happen. It got tied up with the people at the label saying it should be a Christmas song. To me it was confusing at fi rst but then I thought ‘Why the hell not?’ It’s as good a time as any to think about mortality. The message is to forget the small stuff and remember what’s important.

DOWNLOAD AT: HTTP://WWW.CLEARTIGERS.COM/IGLOO.MP3

5. VAMPIRE WEEKEND - CAPE COD KWASSA KWASSA In American indie rock circles they’re hyped up the wigwam, and everywhere they’re signed to XL, but what makes Vampire Weekend so special is that they’re truly great, playful and catchy and possessed of a lessthan-white-collar groove. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa is informed by Fela Kuti, Wes Anderson, Spoon, and Paul Simon’s Graceland. It’s a wiggle and a thump, a shake and a bump; it’ll teach you to dance with your sweet Christmas patootie.

DOWNLOAD AT: HTTP://WWW.VAMPIREWEEKEND.COM/

Richard Cheese

www.skinnymag.co.uk

Highlights

SOUNDS

Live Music

“It was 1000/1 [the longest ever odds for a Christmas single] and then someone called today and said it’s 500/1, as if that makes any difference. I’ve never been to a betting office so I wouldn’t know what to do but I might place a bet anyway. I don’t see it making the chart at all, but it’s all about having an option there for people and making a bit of an effort.” [Nick Mitchell]

WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE IS RELEASED ON 17 DEC. MALCOLM MIDDLETON WILL PLAY AN ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS SESSION ON COLIN MURRAY’S CHRISTMAS SPECIAL ON RADIO 1 ON 17 DEC. HE ALSO PLAYS THE ABC, GLASGOW ON 5 DEC AND THE LIQUID ROOM, EDINBURGH ON 6 DEC.

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2007 A Year in Music #5 QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE

#4 INTERPOL

OUR LOVE TO ADMIRE (PARLOPHONE)

ERA VULGARIS (POLYDOR)

It’s never easy on the ego when the fruits of your labour take a kicking. That probably counts for double when your band happens to be Queens of the Stone Age, a group that delivered three of the most revered long players that late nineties and early noughties rock had to offer within the first five years of Josh Homme forming it. So when Lullabies to Paralyze arrived to a touch of fan frost, Homme went back to the drawing board and devised an industrial blow torch called Era Vulgaris to thaw those doubters out. “High and mighty, you say selling out is a shame. Is that the name of your book? Push a silver spoon in your ass. No more holding us down,” he spat in the general direction of critics on I’m Designer. Ouch. When we asked about their new direct approach, Queens guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen shrugged: “We just figured the most concise statement, like: ‘boom, boom, boom, I know you don’t have time and neither do I, so here’s what we have to say and we’re gonna do it really fast, and to the point.’ It’s a quick message.”

And we’re still eating the dust. [Dave Kerr]

Queens Of The Stone Age

When Interpol arrived on the scene, the juxtaposition of exciting and unexcited worked a treat. Here were yet more inspired New Yorkers, hell bent on not batting an eyelid, and every bit as important as the Casablancas and Os of the music world. As The Strokes fucked it up on their follow up and YYYs changed tack, Interpol just continued to produce great tunes while their apathetic demeanour somehow escalated. This year saw the release of their third album, a more expansive and anthemic effort to its insular predecessors, and a very different animal. Initially a disappointment, six months acclimatisation has given Our Love To Admire the required space to prove itself a worthy addition to their back catalogue: the excellent Pioneer To The Falls is one of the fi nest tracks they’ve recorded since that debut. They’d probably still like us to think they don’t give a fuck, and they certainly seemed casual when we met them at T in the Park but, with music as charged as this, they’re fooling no-one. [Finbarr Bermingham]

#2 OF 2007

BATTLES

MIRRORED (WARP) BILLY HAMILTON CATCHES UP WITH TYONDAI BRAXTON TO UNCOVER JUST HOW CLEVER THESE PIONEERING NEW YORKERS REALLY ARE

Glitterbeat? Puzzle Pop? Math Rock? Choose whichever label irks least but there’s no escaping it – this was the year music got clever again. All of a sudden, the idiotic glowsticks and fluorescent melodies that zigzagged across the breadth of the UK were slowly chipped away by an intelligent, spontaneous sonic intricacy bereft of a conventional structure.

At the turn of the year, this cranium bulging revival seemed highly unlikely; The Klaxons were emblazoned on the cover of every trend-ravenous rag in the land (good album that, Myths of the Near Future - Ed.) and High Street stores pumped out psychedelic outfits that could only have been designed by the bedraggled love-child of Johnny Thunders and George Clinton.

In short, things were bad. But then, in April, as if out of nowhere, a bug-eyed, acid-freaking, mind-bending EP called Atlas landed. Known only for their three respected avant-garde EPs that preceded it, it seemed as though Battles had fi nally commenced.

One month later and the Brooklyn-based quartet unleashed the towering long player, Mirrored, a stunning, catalytic debut which propelled the band’s aural intellectualism into the spotlight. Catching up with founding member Tyondai Braxton before a show at London’s Koko recently, it seems they’re still coming to terms with the events that have transpired since.

“This year has been a whirlwind – completely amazing and totally unexpected,” exclaims the multi-instrumentalist. “On one hand, you have a crazy idea that if you like something then someone else will. But if you look at the track record of this type of music I guess it’s surprising when something like this crops over into the mainstream and grabs people when you wouldn’t expect it to. It’s not like the attention has been over the top but we’re all really excited by the reaction.”

This reaction has been experienced globally, with Mirrored turning on everyone from sour-faced British indie kids to the “absolutely manic” Japanese pop-loving public. So, how does the band feel about this newly acquired fan-base? “It’s incredible,” says Braxton.

28 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

“At fi rst we had people at gigs who were a little more tuned into this kind of music and then, as the momentum of Mirrored has picked up, I’ve started to realise a whole cross section of people are interested and that’s a really encouraging thing. It doesn’t matter that there are so many people interested, the thing I’m really excited about is how different the audience is – that’s a really great feeling.”

Impossible to pin down, Battles is a band that works without constraints and it’s this ethos of sheer malleability that Braxton attributes to the appeal of Mirrored: “Our strength is the players and the perspective of the band and the challenge is always to fi nd room enough for everyone to be satisfi ed with what they are doing,” he explains. “The open-endedness of the exploration [during the recording of the LP] led us down fresh paths which makes the record kind of opaque. But the process of creating the record was really fresh and whether people think it’s original or not is irrelevant to us.”

Yet, original is undoubtedly what Mirrored is. Stinging nerve-ends with gnarling laser-gun electro, inter-planetary android warbling and jitterbug percussion, it’s a smorgasbord of Kraut-rock, Dance, Funk and - to a certain extent - Pop. But when prompted to give up the influences behind the record’s sound, Braxton’s answer is equally obtuse: “It’s something we try not to answer – it kind of marginalises us,” he smarts. “In a way, our influences are transparent – you can really hear them [on Mirrored] – and in another way they are quite obscured but, really, I would say the music itself has been pulled out of thin air.”

Tyondai Braxton

John Stanier

Dave Konopka

Right, that’s cleared that up, but with the obligatory ‘Record of the Year’ list frenzy rapidly encroaching, which discs earned Battles’ seal of approval in 2007?

“Oh…”sighs Braxton, “The Dirty Projectors new album (Rise Above) is great but honestly I really don’t know.”

Perhaps this uncertainty means he considers Mirrored the best of 2007? Braxton laughs: “Only if you say so, only if you say so.”

Battles - too clever by half.

Ian Williams

Battles © www.bloodyhoney.co.uk

SOUNDS

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Y A N A M G O H R U O Y N A L P • D O O F E V I T S E F T S E B E H T • S T N E S E R P T S E I K C • THE WA

FESTIVE SPECIAL SKINNY jeans

by Lindsay West

y a n a n o m i g t Ho Edi

It’s time: let’s talk about Hogmanay.

Not because we want to, but because we’re grown-ups now, and we need to learn to face our problems head-on. Yes, the date is looming – crashing through the calendar like a big, meddlesome relative come to stay, uninvited. The uncle that’s not really your uncle, who asks you over the dinner table in a big, booming voice why you’re not married yet and makes you feel bad about yourself even though you’re only thirteen. See, this is the time of year when the air is thick with ‘taking stock’, with top ten lists and retrospectives rife.

This is the one night of the year when you’re simultaneously required to have the time of your life, and to do an existential stock-take. It’s tough stuff, and that’s why we must join hands, pool our knowledge, and try to get through it together.

In this spirit of sharing, I’ll go fi rst: I am never at the right party.

I am always wearing the wrong shoes.

I am invariably dressed in something I bought four hours earlier, in the sales rack dregs, and now regret.

The fi rst issue we cannot conclusively conquer. This is the big dupe: the New Year Fool’s Day joke that’s always on you, even if you hear the bells toll whilst swinging from a chandelier in Iggy Pop’s mansion, singing Jolene. No matter where you are and who you’re with, you’ll always wonder if you could be having a better time at another party. You probably could be, but largely

YOU WOULDN’T SET OUT TO CLIMB MOUNT KILIMANJARO ARMED ONLY WITH A HALTERTOP AND A GLOWSTICK, SO LET’S GET REAL AND SORT OUT YOUR SUPPLIES

it’s psychosomatic, so get back on the chandelier, start verse two, and forget about it.

The second two issues are symptomatic of the very specific breed of New Year brain fuzz that sets in and convinces even the sanest of revellers to don inappropriate clothing. You wouldn’t set out to climb Mount Kilimanjaro armed only with a halter-top and a glow-stick, so let’s get real and sort out your supplies.

Shoes are a minefield: flats are best, but girls, you won’t wear them; so stay away from opentoes (in order not to lose one to the black frost) and take a big-ass handbag to stash some flats in for later. Boys; with the no-trainer policy abundant, you’ll wear the shiny shoes you crack out for weddings- you know, the ones that laser-cut your ankles? That’s what your girlfriend’s/girl-friends’ handbags are for. This is a team game, so split the cloakroom fee and take a suitcase fi lled with an arsenal of trainers. For those of you venturing to the street parties, wear (cool again) Uggs, or get down on your knees and pray for your blood supply.

In order to eliminate the Rosemary’s Baby-byfashion syndrome - the mid-party realisation that you’re wearing something unspeakably hellish that you can’t get away from – you must resist the temptation to get clever. This is no time to experiment (well, not with clothing, anyway). Go with something reliable that you’ve worn before (even if only at home) so there are no nasty surprises when you sit down, stand up, or dance badly. This particularly applies if you’re the night’s Designated Drunk. In this case, strapless dresses for the girls and kilts for the boys are suicide.

Just imagine that there’s a pack of paparazzi following you everywhere waiting to see a wardrobe malfunction: think, “What would Britney do?” and then do the opposite (not a bad mantra for life in general, actually).

Stick with what you know, and then accessorize to change it up, like adding a statement necklace, a belt or, if you’re headed to a street party, perhaps a balaclava. If you opt for the latter, you win on two fronts: 1) you’re toasty warm, and 2) you can be sure that no one will notice you’re wearing the same outfit as last year.

Generally speaking, though, coats are non-negotiable, as are scarves, and the only thing less attractive than pasty white-leg is smarting icecold pink-leg, so save yourself and invest in tights, if not a pair of salopettes.

As for the other stuff, the soul-crushing Hogmanay Blues: give yourself a break, know that we’re all just faking it, and ask Elvis to grant you the serenity to accept the past you cannot change, the courage to expect a brighter future, and the wisdom to know that New Year makes no difference.

soration

.devianta

rt .com

God speed, dear readers, and Happy New Year.

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Hogmanay Alternatives WILL YOUR 2007 PEAK WITH CRUSHED TOES, EPIC BAR QUEUES AND INTIMATE CONTACT WITH SWEATY, DUBIOUS STRANGERS? OR DO YOU WANT TO RING IN THE CHANGES? HERE’S OUR GUIDE TO A FEW HOGMANAY ALTERNATIVES:

#1 HIRE A HOSTEL

Don’t be fooled by recent posters of poor Dawn Weiner hanging upside down on a meat hook - hostels can be charming, welcoming places. As we go to print, the Scottish Youth Hostel Association still had some vacancies over Xmas and New Year. What’s more, its Rentahostel scheme means you can gather your nearest and dearest and hire out the whole place, minimising that stranger danger. Options include Loch Lochy (the lochiest Loch) in the heart of the Great Glen Way; your very own haunted castle on Loch Lomond; and Tobermory, home to that wonderful combination of overexcited toddlers and hungry sea eagles.

WWW.RENTAHOSTEL.COM, 0870 155 3255

#2 GET JIGGY TO A F IDDLE

Unofficially ‘Scotland’s musical meeting place’, this cosy inn nestles (shockingly) on the wide banks of the River Tay as it curls through the postcard perfect Perthshire Cathedral town of Dunkeld. Previously owned by folk legend Dougie MacLean and with everything from mandolins to ukuleles on the walls ripe for plucking, the regulars sure know how to welcome you into their fold. Hogmanay here means spilling out to the water’s edge for an under the stars event of live music, good local ales (the light, frothy Ossian is a must) and, after a night of new-found friends, a morning-after trek through the forests to the local medieval hermitage.

THE TAYBANK, DUNKELD, 01350 727 340

D #3 GET FLAMBEAUX-E

Another lovely riverside village, the residents of Comrie wave out the old with their ancient Flambeaux procession. Whilst the origins of the ritual are a little fuzzy, shortly after the bells have tolled residents light their flambeaux (torches made of long birch poles with tarred rags wrapped around the top) and parade through the town followed by pipe band and fancy dress parade.

After prizes are awarded, the flames are then flung into the River Earn from the Dalginross Bridge, casting out evil spirits. Fire, mild paganism and winning best in show with your fabulous wasp costume or falling asleep in a Yates’s Wine Lodge? It’s up to you...

COMRIE, PERTHSHIRE. WWW.COMRIE.ORG.UK

#4 DO IT THE GREAT GLEN WAY The mountaineers’ watering hole of choice, The Clachaig Inn is everything you dream of stumbling across after a day’s trekking. In the heart of Glen Coe and a stone’s throw from Ben Nevis, a Hogmanay spent in its legendary boots bar (complete with crampons, topless arm wrestling, random pipers, open fi res and St Bernards) will stay with you. The vast open darkness of the glen will help you face 2008 with a vividly clear head; the Clachaig’s fearsome collection of nearly 80 malt whiskies and over 10 draught ales suggests otherwise. The inn itself has rooms and cabins to stay over; if you’re really proving your mettle, pitch up at the Red Squirrel campsite a short romp down the road. Don’t come back too merry, thoughthe owner has one of the most fearsome ‘Shushes’ ever.

THE CLACHAIG INN, GLENCOE. 01855 811252 WWW.CLACHAIG.COM

www.skinnymag.co.uk

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FESTIVE SPECIAL

Party like it’s

by Franck Martin, Lara Moloney, Alex Burden & Karen Taggart

THERE’S NO NEED TO POKE AROUND THE LISTINGS TO SNIFF OUT A GOOD HOGMANAY BASH IN THE CENTRAL BELT, THE BEATS TEAM HAVE DEVISED AND EASIER WAY TO MAKE A DESCISION ON HOW TO SPEND YOUR AULD YEAR’S NIGHT...

GLASGOW FIRST FOOTIN’ HOGMANAY WITH TUBEJERK THE SOUNDHAUS

If you’ve never been, this is one of the more delightfully dirty options - lots of sweat and dancing on tables and the like.

Tim Wright, aka Tubejerk, has the honour of headlining while other spin monkeys confi rmed thus far include Shift’s Graeme Dunn, Terry & Jason Pussypower, 2 Manky DJs from Basement, and Charly Chakra.

9PM-5AM, £TBA

NUMBERS HOGMANAY IN ASSOCIATION WITH MONOX AND KAPUT!

OPTIMO PRESENTS HOGMANAY 2007 THE OLD FRUIT MARKET

Optimo will be serving up some sweet, sweet Hogmanay pie with fruity beat goodness at the Fruit Market this New Year’s.

Alongside Mr Twitch and Mr Wilkes will be Mr Dan Deacon, so if you fancy a quiet one you’d best stay clear of ye olde fruitmarket.

10PM – 5AM, £TBA

EDINBURGH OBSCENE EGO, 22 DEC

EDINBURGH SUBCULTURE SUBCLUB & CLASSIC GRAND

DEPARTURE LOUNGE

The Sub Club and the Classic Grand will be mixing it up by joining forces for a rare treat - it’s the clubbing equivalent of a one-night stand between Glasgow and Edinburgh, phaw! Confi rmed thus far are Derrick Carter and Harri & Domenic - expect an array of confused, guilty-pleasure morning after thoughts.

TIME & PRICE TBA

The Caves is, simply put, an amazing venue: from the sweaty dancing bodies to secluded comfy couches, you can spend hours experiencing the different atmospheres. Kicking off the night are Orkestra Del Sol and the Edinburgh Samba School, to give your dancing feet a workout. Astroboy and Jimenez Cammy (Percussion) will be bringing the main room to a close and reggae legends Mungo’s Hi-Fi will be getting their super loud soundsystem banging out the bass.

10PM – 5AM, £20/£22

THE END OF THE YEAR CLUB THE 13TH NOTE

GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART

The Art School will see your Auld Lang Syne utterly dominated by a mixture of funk, techno and house from the likes of DJ Funk, K A PUT and the Monox crew.

If last year is any indicator, expect your party bag to be fi lled with the patented Numbers mixture of eye popping visuals, cheap booze and banging beats!

10PM - 4AM, £23+BF (ADV.)

Photos: www.kdy-side.com

THE CAVES

COLOURS HOGMANAY PARTY THE ARCHES

HEADSPIN HOGMANAY The Bongo are sticking to what they know works, with Headpsin resident DJs cranking the New Year off with a four deck mix of the best that 2007 had to offer. Ensuring the tracks that got your toes tapping from hip hop to funk, hard hitting house to bass fuelled beats will keep you going all night, while classic tunage will be complimenting the session.

11PM - 5AM, £12 ADVANCE

MOTHERFUNK VOODOO ROOMS

The clubbing leviathan that is Colours will be doing much more than brightening up the Arches this Hogmanay. With Eric Prydz, Darren Emerson and Duke Dumont all confi rmed, the Arches are staking their claim to throwing the biggest bash on this side of the coast. Oh yeah, almost forgot, 2 Many DJs are headlining... now that will be fun!

10PM - TBA, £40 ADV

STERE07YPE & TOKY08LU, HOGMANAY SHINDIG BERLIN

THE BONGO If you have a hankering for some quirky electro, pop, disco house then you best head to the 13th Note. Follow this New Year option and your ears will gobble the crazy beats of Bozilla and friends, definitely one of the more interesting acts to come out of Glasgow of late.

9PM – TBA, £TBA

A resounding feature of Edinburgh’s festivities is The Obscene Christmas Party, an almighty showdown of resident DJs, from Termite and Dave Lowe, to DJ Calvin, Sola Perplexus and MC IB to name but a few. A chaotic night of mixes from all angles of d’n’b and jungle, with drinks promotions and the offer of freebies so don’t miss out.

11PM - 5AM, £3

Long running night Motherfunk will be getting the vibe right with sultry soul, disco, hip hop and, of course, funk. Entry is by invite only which can be secured by hitting the bar during open hours before the day.

9.30PM - 3AM, FREE

Also joining forces for New Year are Stereotype and Tok yo Blu w ith a staggering line-up: Huggy, John Hutchison, Iain Gibson, Ryan Ellis, Beefy & Wolfjazz, Harvey, Future B, Master Caird, Niall McKervey, and Dave on Percussion. House, house and more house.

10.30PM - 5AM, £15 /£20

CONCERT IN THE GARDENS PRINCES STREET GARDENS

The biggest NYE Party in Europe will hopefully be going ahead this year, as long as the winds don’t destroy the shenaningans. Indie rockers Kasabian and 2007’s electro revelation, Scotland’s own Calvin Harris will be mixing up the music. Spectacular fireworks, an exuberant atmosphere and the architectural landscape that Edinburgh offers highlight how to celebrate Hogmanay in a more typically Scottish style.

10PM-12AM, £35+BF (GARDENS TICKETS ONLY)

ULTRAGROOVE CABARET VOLTAIRE

You want to get the New Year started to some underground house? Then check out Derrick Car ter, coming to rinse both sides of the Scottish coast with his own blend of ‘Boompty’ tech. This legendary DJ will get you sweaty, merry and make you dance your socks off.

10PM – 5AM, £20/£25

MUSIKA XMAS PARTY PART 2 THE LIQUID ROOMS, 29 DEC

WORKING? IF YOU’RE WORKING ON HOGMANAY, NE’ER FEAR! THERE ARE PLENTY OF FESTIVE NIGHTS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THROUGHT DECEMBER:

Up for an electro/ house boogie to get your New Year’s started early? Well check out Sebastien Leger and Mark Knight who will be mixing up all kinds of musical madness.

Derek Martin plus other guests will be adding their own flavour to spice up the evening.

10.30PM - 5AM, £12.50 (ADVANCE)

WONKY WALLPAPER THE GRV, 21 DEC

Get into the Christmas spirit Beats stylee with a party all about experimental electronica from Double Helix (Audiodacity), with Absolute Chancer (Clutter House) adding to the fusion with offerings from rave and grime, to minimal and acid, to keep you on your toes. A free quality night is just what is needed to save some pennies.

7PM – 1AM, FREE

JAKN CHRISTMAS SPECIAL STUDIO 24, 21 DEC

JakN will be bringing in a live PA for the festivities, featuring a stage show from DogsOnCrack vs KatzOnK, and their fi rst ever appearance in Scotland. Techno and its various strands of sub-genres will be blasted out the speakers, but with an especially hard edge coming from the animalistic guests.

10.30PM-3AM, FREE B4 12AM/£4/£5

STERE07YPE & TOKY08LU, HOGMANAY SHINDIG BERLIN

Also joining forces for New Year are Stereotype and Tokyo Blu with a staggering line-up: Huggy, John Hutchison, Iain Gibson, Ryan Ellis, Beefy & Wolfjazz, Harvey, Future B, Master Caird, Niall McKervey, and Dave on Percussion.

House, house and more house.

10.30PM - 5AM, £15 /£20

CONCERT IN THE GARDENS PRINCES STREET GARDENS

The biggest NYE Party in Europe will hopefully be going ahead this year, as long as the winds don’t destroy the shenaningans. Indie rockers Kasabian and 2007’s electro revelation, Scotland’s own Calvin Harris will be mixing up the

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music. Spectacular fi reworks, an exuberant atmosphere and the architectural landscape that Edinburgh offers highlight how to celebrate Hogmanay in a more typically Scottish style.

10PM-12AM, £35+BF (GARDENS TICKETS ONLY)

ULTRAGROOVE CABARET VOLTAIRE

You want to get the New Year started to some underground house? Then check out Derrick Carter, coming to rinse both sides of the Scottish coast with his own blend of ‘Boompty’ tech. This legendary DJ will get you sweaty, merry and make you dance your socks off.

10PM – 5AM, £20/£25

GLASGOW DEATH DISCO XXXMAS PARTY THE ARCHES, 15 DEC

Forget Sirs Cliff or McCartney, get yourself in the festive feel by going to x-rated x-mass celebrations at the Death Disco Christmas party. What says Christmas more than Erol Alkan, a Shitdisco DJ set, the South Central DJs with residents DJ Mingo-go, Hush Puppy, Johnny Whoop and The Microsluts?

10PM - 4AM, £12

COLOURS BOXING DAY PARTY THE ARCHES, 26 DEC

In case you are working or would just like a full-on dress rehearsal, Colours will be on exactly one week before the Colours Hogmanay party. Bounce away your Christmas hangover to Fedde Le Grand, Seb Fontaine, Tim Deluxe, Sebastian Leger, Micky Slim, Desyn Masiello, FPI Project, Shades of Rhythm, The Bassheads, Allister Whitehead, Jon Mancini and Boney.

10PM-3AM, £TBA

DOWNLOAD

CLUB CLINIC, 26 DEC Fancy some techno or trance to beat away those memories of drunken aunties and even drunker little cousins? Club Clinic is your one stop medicine shop for the Christmas comedown blues. Room one has the techno delights of Robert Natus, Mike Humphries, Ritalin and Chris Craig while room two is trancing it up with William Daniel, Mark Doc, and Stu Laurie.

9PM – 4AM, £10 (ADVANCE)

KINKY AFRO HUM AND HAW RECORDS LAUNCH PARTY SUB CLUB, 28 DEC

In the run-up to Hogmanay, grab yourselves a part of the industry action by dropping in on Alex Smoke, DJ Jim Hutchison, Mr Mafro, The Kinkdogg for their part in the launch of Hum and Haw Records.

11PM-3AM, £10

DECEMBER 07

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Gifts for your

favourite foodie

If you’d rather kick back and start downing the chocolate Santas than hit the high street, there’s a wealth of weird, wonderful and tongue-wetting consumables on the web.

Here’s our guide to five of the best foodie gifts:

#1 ETHICAL SHOPPING FOR THE ‘GREENIE’ FRIEND WITH THE HEMP-WOVEN SHOES...

Large Christmas Stocking by Divine You’re never too old for Christmas stockings, and this one comes complete with the warm glow of doing something vaguely world-improving. Includes Christmas pudding, chocolate coins and milk and white chocolate bars. Even the snazzy sock is made from fair trade materials.

COST – £12.50 (£2.50 DELIVERY) ORDER BY – 18TH DECEMBER WEBSITE - WWW.ETHICALSUPERSTORE.COM

Also try – Green and Black’s Chocolate Lovers Gift Pack @ £20 WWW.GREENANDBLACKSDIRECT.COM

#2 TONGUE TINGLING FOODIE DELIGHTS FOR THE AMATEUR CHEF FRIEND WITH THE INTRIGUING BOTTLED FOODS...

Assorted Preserves by Lyme Bay Winery If you thought strawberry jam was the epitome of breakfast serendipity then think again. Give your toast a makeover with Vintage Marmalade with Whisky & Ginger Liqueur, or Blackcurrant Extra Preserve with Elderberry Port Liqueur. Lyme Bay Winery are a Devonshire food and drink supplier who conjure up images of little old ladies bottling jars full of lovely things in rose-trimmed cottages. And they do nice chutneys too.

#4 SPECIALITY COFFEE FOR THE CAFFEINE ADDICT FRIEND WHO GETS JITTERY AROUND NOON...

Civet Coffee (Lopi Kuwak) by The Civet Cat Posse Only 500 kilos of this coffee are produced each year, making for the most expensive Moccafrappacinnos in the world. And why so exclusive? Because each bean has passed thorough the digestive system of wily Sumatran civet cats, who forage in the coffee plantations at night scoffi ng the best stones. Farmers then sift through their feline droppings to fi nd the undigested beans, producing what really is the best intestinally refi ned brewed beverage in the world…

COST – £22.95 PER 57 GRAMS (£3.95 DELIVERY) ORDER BY – 20TH DECEMBER (LIMITED STOCK)

COST – £2.95 PER JAR (£5.95 DELIVERY)

WEBSITE – WWW.FIREBOX.COM

ORDER BY – 15TH DECEMBER (CONFIRM WITH SUPPLIER) WEBSITE – WWW.LYMEBAYWINERY.CO.UK

Also try – Boater’s Christmas Pudding Coffee @ £2.99 WWW.BOATERS.CO.UK

Also try – Womersley’s Lavender Jelly @ £4 WWW.WOMERSLEYFINEFOODS.CO.UK

#3 PIMP MY BOOZE! FOR THE GLAMOROUS FRIEND WITH THE PURPLE VELVET SLIPPERS...

#5 THE CHOCOLATE MIDAS TOUCH FOR YOU... (AND YOUR FRIENDS IF THEY’RE VERY, VERY GOOD)

Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup by The Wild Hibiscus Flower Company

Malteser and Marshmallow Chocolate Pizza by The Gourmet Chocolate Pizza Company

Aussies have found a novel use for the Wild Hibiscus that grows in the Blue Mountain region. Place a hand-picked bud in a champagne flute, add some bubbly and watch as the flower blooms before your eyes. You’re left with champagne as pink as Barbara Cartland’s loo cover and a delicious, booze-soaked flower to consume at the end (it tastes a bit like raspberry and sweetened rhubarb).

One day, the time will come to put a stop to the ‘chocolate versions of everything – now!’ insanity that invades our society. But not this Christmas. With rich Belgian milk chocolate and white chocolate cheese, this is the perfect boxing day comfort food.

COST – £6.99 FOR A JAR OF 11 BLOOMS (£3.95 DELIVERY)

COST - £17.50 (FREE DELIVERY)

ORDER BY – 18TH DECEMBER

ORDER BY – 19TH DECEMBER

WEBSITE – WWW.LAKELAND.CO.UK

WEBSITE – WWW.NOTONTHEHIGHSTREET.COM

Also try – Champagne with Auntie Quaint’s Lavender Bliss Gourmet Syrup @ $7.50/£3.50

Also try – Non-chocoholics can share The SmallBut-Perfectly-Formed-Cheesebox @ £41

WWW.AUNTIEQUAINT.COM

WWW.THECHEESESHED.COM

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SOUNDS

IF YOU’RE GUTTED ABOUT THE ABSENCE OF THE ARCTIC MONKEYS AND YOUR FAVOURITE ALBANIAN JAZZ METAL BAND, WHY NOT KICK UP A DEBATE ON THE MESSAGE BOARDS AT SKINNYMAG.CO.UK?

#3 LCD SOUNDSYSTEM SOUND OF SILVER (DFA)

Interpol

A s renowned producer and DFA boss, it was inevitable that James Murphy would emerge from behind the mixing desk as his reputation grew, and so LCD Soundsystem began life with 2005’s self-titled debut LP. But as much a s that record sounded so infectiously hip, it lacked any emotional complexity – all party, no comedown. This year Sound of Silver remedied the deficiency with a new lyrical self-awareness and honesty planted squarely behind all the cowbells and throbbing synths. Of course it’s hugely derivative, but that’s perfectly forgivable when it’s a measured reinvention, not imitation, of Murphy’s New York-dwelling heroes, from the Steve Reich minimalism of All My Friends to the Talking Heads electro-pop of Someone Great. The pace only falters on the much-derided fi nal track, but this doesn’t lessen the plain fact that Murphy has now recorded a soundtrack to life, not just the dancefloor. [Nick Mitchell]

LCD Soundsystem

#1 OF 2007

THE TWILIGHT SAD FOURTEEN AUTUMNS AND WINTERS (FATCAT)

IN A YEAR WHEN TITANS CAME OUT TO PLAY, IT TOOK AN UNKNOWN BAND FROM KILSYTH TO BLOW THEM ALL OUT OF THE WATER. NICK MITCHELL SPEAKS TO THE TWILIGHT SAD ABOUT THE ALBUM OF THE YEAR Back in spring, one album took Scotland entirely by surprise.

It began with a resonant guitar, timed to a staccato piano rhythm under a haze of feedback that forebode of things to come. Then a raw West coast voice glides in: “Another hotel, with woollen plans/romantic gesture, with woollen plans” lyrics like shards of memory that withhold their full meaning.

On cue, a scintillating rush of overdriven guitar blasts in, propelled by pounding drums, before the song ends like a fi re fading to embers.

The remainder of Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters, the debut album by Kilsyth’s The Twilight Sad, only heightened our curiosity in a local band who seemed to come from nowhere with an instant classic. We saw them play at SxSW back then, but by the time we caught up with them properly in June, the quartet were already on the road to conquering the indie quarters of America – or its more cultured regions anyway. Fourteen Autumns received rave reviews and the band toured the Eastern Seaboard extensively, playing to full houses most nights.

With Skinny readers and writers alike voting Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters the album of 2007, we dropped in on singer-songwriter James Graham and guitarist/musicman Andy MacFarlane in their broom-cupboard-proportioned dressing room at the Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh, shortly before their fi nal support slot on tour with Idlewild. Luckily they were expecting us.

Looking back on this year’s triumphs, Graham’s still playing catch up while he takes it all in: “If somebody had said to us a year or two ago that we’d have supported all these bands and played all these places and had all this stuff said about us we’d have said ‘shut up’. It’s been a bit of a blur.” MacFarlane agrees: “There’s not really been any time to think about it ‘cos you’re away and you just keep going.”

As much as he’d like to ignore the infl uence of the music media, Graham admits that various respected music bloggers made a huge difference. “We were on tour with Aereogramme at that point but they couldn’t come across ‘cos of Visa problems so we headlined the fi rst half of the tour and it was alright, but the Pitchfork review came halfway through the tour and when that happened it was like...” [blows air out dra-

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matically]. MacFarlane picks up the thread: “We’d turn up for gigs and it was rammed and we were like ‘fuck, we need to tell them that Aereogramme aren’t coming’ and they always stayed anyway.”

But the success they initially enjoyed in America didn’t travel with them back to Scotland, at least not overnight. “Every Sunday night for three weeks we played in a place called Piano’s in New York and every time we played it was packed,” Graham recalls. “And then we came back to Glasgow and we played Sleazys or somewhere like that and it was empty. It’s a bit of a comedown, you know. But the album came out later over here and every gig we play, more and more people come and more and more people are talking about us.”

Another highlight of 2007 arrived when Jimmy Chamberlin from the Smashing Pumpkins invited the Twilight Sad to support them at the Glasgow leg of their tour in August. But what should have been a memorable occasion didn’t turn out so.

“What happened was we got told to be there for four o’clock outside the Academy,” Graham says. “Soundchecks were closed for the Pumpkins and we weren’t allowed in the building at all.”

MacFarlane adds: “They soundchecked from two in the afternoon till half six and the doors opened at seven and we still hadn’t soundchecked. Their egos were fucking ridiculous.”

Graham: “We were standing outside with our drum kit and everything next to the queue of fans waiting to go in, waiting for someone to say, ‘you can come in now’. But I actually really enjoyed the gig -not theirs, I enjoyed mine!”

W hen the band aren’t taking the indie underground by storm or left hanging about on the streets of Glasgow by Billy Corgan, Graham is kept busy by fielding questions on Fourteen Autumns’ dark and ethereal lyrical content.

“The songs are all about where I’m from, people I know, things that have happened to me, things that have happened to other people,” Graham says. “I kinda look at them like folk songs ‘cos I stay in a small village and you hear stories. The album’s completely personal but I never give out what it’s about because I like people to make their own decisions.”

The Twilight Sad

And is there an undertone of adolescent anxiety, as many have suggested?

“I’ve read that a lot, like people saying it’s about being young and I hadn’t really thought about it to be honest,” Graham says. “I’ve read things saying I must have a troubled background. And I’ve got nothing wrong at home or anything like that, it’s just that sometimes I focus in on the bad things ‘cos it’s a way of getting something out.”

The music is equally challenging. It generally flows between two levels - acoustically plaintive accordion-led folk and ear-splitting waves of guitar drone – but amounts to much more than its constituent elements. MacFarlane elaborates: “There was no plan to say ‘oh we need to sound like that’. We just started doing it seriously and the sound came out the way it did. Obviously what you listen to influences it a bit but it’s not like you think ‘let’s make this a wee bit shoegaze-y’. I don’t like getting put into genres because it’s like a category.”

As for the future, Graham and MacFarlane stress – as they did to us back in June – the last thing they want to do is just rehash the triumphs of Fourteen Autumns on the follow-up album, which they plan to begin writing in the new year when the touring fi nally subsides.

MacFarlane: “We’re never gonna stick with the same sound ‘cos that would just get boring. We want to develop and develop and eventually just get completely our own sound. Folk that play the same stuff all the time are shit... Apart from The Ramones.”

Graham: “He’s backtracking!”

MacFarlane, laughing: “Wait a minute, I was just talking a big heap of shite there!”

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H S C T R S A T H R S C A T CH ARTS CHAR TSMetal Up Your Ass! CH ARTS CHAR TS CH ARTS CHAR TS CH ARTS CHAR TS CH ARTS CHAR TS CH ARTS CHAR S CH ARTS CHART S CH ARTS CHART S T H S R C T A R H S A T C R S CH RTS HARTSS RT S CHA RTS C HART S A T H R A TS C ARTS CCHART AR TS CH ARTS H R C A H RTS HA Smoked Glass

by Jamie Borthwick

JIM GELLATLY’S X-POSURE TOP 10 SINGLES OF 2007 1. THE TING TINGS - THAT’S NOT MY NAME 2. RICHARD HAWLEY - TONIGHT THE STREETS ARE OURS 3. BIFFY CLYRO - LIVING IS A PROBLEM BECAUSE EVERYTHING DIES 4. IAN BROWN - ILLEGAL ATTACKS 5. GLASVEGAS - DADDY’S GONE 6. THE WOMBATS - KILL THE DIRECTOR 7. OPERATOR PLEASE - JUST A SONG ABOUT PING PONG 8. THE FIRE AND I - REVENGE TO THE BLOODY ANGEL 9. ISOSCELES - GET YOUR HANDS OFF 10. SERGEANT - COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS

MUSIC:RESPONSE TOP 10 SINGLES OF 2007

1. ARCADE FIRE - NO CARS GO 2. BIFFY CLYRO - SATURDAY SUPERHOUSE 3. THE HOLD STEADY - STUCK BETWEEN STATIONS 4. DAN LE SAC VS SCROOBIUS PIP - THOU SHALT ALWAYS KILL 5. JAMIE T - SHEILA 6. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE - SICK SICK SICK 7. WILLY MASON - SAVE MYSELF 8. HADOUKEN! - THAT BOY THAT GIRL 9. JACK PENATE - SPIT AT STARS 10. LCD SOUNDSYSTEM - NORTH AMERICAN SCUM

MUSIC:RESPONSE TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2007

1. BIFFY CLYRO - PUZZLE 2. THE ENEMY - WE’LL LIVE AND DIE IN THESE TOWNS 3. JAMIE T - PANIC PREVENTION 4. KINGS OF LEON - BECAUSE OF THE TIMES 5. THE HOLD STEADY - BOYS AND GIRLS IN AMERICA 6. COLD WAR KIDS - ROBBERS AND COWARDS 7. THE VIEW - HATS OFF TO THE BUSKERS 8. FOO FIGHTERS - ECHOES, SILENCE, PATIENCE AND GRACE 9. THE PIGEON DETECTIVES - WAIT FOR ME 10. ENTER SHIKARI - TAKE TO THE SKIES

Christmas eh? If there’s just the slightest chance that you feel like ripping off your woolly snowflake jumper, want to stop rotting your teeth on the bumper tin of Quality Street, escape the endless squeal of cellotape ripping off the roll and get the fuck away from Lulu and her smug Morrisons advert chums, these few shows could be just the shilling at the bottom of the stocking for you.

We’ll start with a dusting of Humanfly at Henry’s Cellar Bar in Edinburgh on 1 Dec. The Leeds progmetal riff-wielders appear with Jackie Treehorn and Secta Rouge for a mere £4 from 7pm.

Friday 7 Dec sees the end of a hardcore colossus in the form of In Decades Decline. Their final Edinburgh show takes place at The Ark on Edinburgh Waterloo Place with support from Broken Oath.

Perhaps the uber-parodied Marilyn Manson is your ticket to freedom from the braying aunties and helping the old man put up the tree. The much-maligned makeup loving ‘shock’ rock Goth will be shaking down a medley of hits at Braehead Arena on Saturday 8 Dec.

Funeral for a Friend sidle up to Dundee’s Fat Sams on 17 Dec and Atomgevitter play Satchmos in the City of Discovery on 29 Dec with support from Wasted Nation.

And, because Metal Up Your Ass likes the idea of something a bit bloody different, try and get along to see Korpiklaani at The Cathouse on Thursday 20 Dec. Metal riffs, with pan pipes, folk-style organs and fiddles with Finnish lyrics. Support comes from Battlelore and Edinburgh’s own Man of the Hour.

REMEMBER, REMEMBER, THE RIFF IN NOVEMBER Funeral For A Friend

Beat that, Lulu!

SOMETIMES THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH BEING A BIT TRAD. ARR., AS HEATHER CRUMLEY DISCOVERS. Self-belief is essential for any band wanting to get anywhere. If someone says you’re shit, you need to have the balls to carry on. When making a name for yourself, when no one knows who you are, when no one will even listen, confidence in what you do is vital.

T h i s doe sn’t seem to be a problem for Edinburgh’s Smoked Glass. “Our live shows quite often leave people gaping,” says Roddy MacDonald, the band’s lyricist and manager.

“We are nothing like anyone has ever seen from an unsigned band.”

Formed almost by accident when singer John Keenan approached Roddy for help when auditioning for another band, Smoked Glass have swelled to a sturdy guitar-toting, synth-wrecking five-piece with a drive and confidence worthy of the Gallaghers. Their sound too has echoes of Oasis, with traditional rock influences meeting the blues to create tunes with a hell of a swagger. Sometimes there’s nothing wrong with being a bit Trad. Arr. “It’s diffi cult to ring-fence our sound,” says Roddy. “We cover almost all bases, and our inspiration comes from everywhere, though we defi nitely have a retro edge.”

It’s a sound that seems to be paying off as nobody seems to have a bad word to say about them. Their fanbase is growing rapidly, and their gigs are fast becoming events on the

30 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

Edinburgh circuit, with one paper being so bold as to describe them as being “destined to be one of the most important acts of our time” following a recent show.

“We sold over 200 tickets for our last gig at The Jam House,” Roddy enthuses. “Someone even paid double for one of our t-shirts. We had huge crowds screaming our name and singing our songs. It was a great experience.”

Behind the hyperbole, however, is a work ethic of good solid graft, and Roddy confesses it’s not always easy.

“The band is a drain on all of our fi nances and personal lives, but success is what we want.

We believe in doing everything ourselves, we leave nothing to others and organise the lot from beginning to end.”

That might sound cocky, but they’re certainly doing a good PR job. This month, one fan’s honest feedback was heftily rewarded with an X-Box 360, earned simply by voting for their favourite song on the band’s MySpace page.

“We just wanted to fi nd out what songs people like the most,” shrugs Roddy. “Our fans are so loyal and we want to return something to them.”

DVD and a huge gig are already in motion for next year. If a little self-belief goes a long way, it’s clear they’ve got the jump on many of their peers.

“You can be the next big band if you work hard and believe in yourself,” says Roddy. “It sounds a bit cliched, but it works for us. We know we can do it - just watch us.”

SMOKED GLASS PLAY THE LISTENING ROOM, BLUE BLAZER,

There is, it seems, no stopping the Smoked Glass juggernaut, and plans for an elaborate

EDINBURGH ON 2 DEC. WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SMOKEDGLASS

SOUNDS

SOUNDS www.skinnymag.co.uk

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Another go on the Chutes “WE’VE BEEN PART OF THE EDINBURGH MUSIC SCENE FOR 10 YEARS, AND THERE’S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME THAN NOW.”

again: new name, new outlook. We’re a new entity, something completely different”, he asserts.

Exactly a year ago, The Skinny wrote about a young Edinburgh band called The Rushes, who were creating a little buzz around the city after winning support slots with acts like The Fratellis, The Kooks and New Young Pony Club.

Back then, frontman Daniel James Abercrombie

Despite running out of fuel while doing reasonably well as The Rushes, The Artists Now Known As Chutes are full of optimism for their new project. In just a few months they’ve already played to a packed T Break tent at T in the Park, and recorded BBC radio sessions for Steve Lamacq and Vic Ga l low ay.

D a n iel i s e n couraged by the capit a l’s eternally burgeoning music scene: “ We’r e d o i n g gigs with other Edinburgh bands that a r e c h a l le n ging each other, playing together and inspiring each o t h e r. We’ v e been par t of the Edinburgh music scene for ten years, and t h e r e’s n e v e r been a bet ter time than now.

I often just walk around the place, I f i nd it r e a l l y inspiring.”

said: “Next year I want us to succeed and for people to enjoy what we’re doing.” Just months later, The Rushes ceased to be, but that isn’t the end of the story. “That petered out,” Daniel says now. “We hit a brick wall with it about a year ago. We scrapped all the songs and started

Viva Glasvegas Everyone knows the story about Oasis’ breakthrough 14 years ago: they were spotted at King Tut’s by Creation Records boss Alan McGee, playing a 20 minute set, third on the bill, and offered a deal on the spot.

But he remains level-headed about the chances of succeeding in a music industry still trying to get to grips with the revolutionary effects of the internet: “There’s so many bands up on MySpace that are not going to get anywhere. You have to be realistic - to get to that level of success you need to be well marketed and there has to be a marketplace for you. You can make an album that a couple of thousand people really love but that’s not enough to pay your bills. There are bands like Aereogramme that never broke through to that next level but have made some amazing music.”

Chutes are at the comfortable stage where they can pick and choose the gigs they want to play. When we meet them, they’re supporting trendy New York afro-beat combo Vampire Weekend, and do a much better job of animating the crowd than the esteemed headliners.

They clearly know how to write a hook, and Daniel looks like he’s been a frontman all his life. Their tunes are razor-sharp and call to mind local heroes Idlewild and Geordie upstarts Maximo Park. A year ago Daniel said “We need to get a wee break to progress to the next level.” Tonight he says “We’ve pretty much taken it as far as we can on our own, the next thing is getting involved with the industry.”

Perhaps Chutes are positioning themselves for the ever-anticipated Edinburgh boom around the corner. If there is one, the very least Chutes can expect is to be carried onw a rd s a nd upw a rd s i n t he s l ip s t re a m .

CHUTES PL AY KING TUT’S, GL ASGOW ON 2 DEC WWW.MYSPACE.COM/CHUTESMUSIC

by Ally Brown ported Dirty Pretty Things, The Charlatans and Ian Brown. “Ian phoned up out of the blue saying he’d got given a demo” says James. “The guy’s heart, spirit and soul was an eye opener.”

The release of that debut single on MP3 and limited edition 7” at the beginning of November This summer McGee announced that he had was the culmination of two years’ hard work, but done it again – spotted a brilliant new band things have been accelerating for several months third on the bill at Tut’s that was “the sound of now. Making friends in high places, they’ve supyoung Scotland today.” He told the Guardian: “I hadn’t loved anything that much since the Jesus and Mary Chain demo tape in the 80s.” For Glasvegas, a band that had been quietly working away on their sound and building buzz from the ground up, such a grand statement in a national newspaper caused a huge hike in hype and expectation. But frontman and songwriter James Allen has adjusted to it now: “Through a little time we’ve became friends [with McGee]. His enthusiasm for the songs I write blows me away at times. I see him as the Malcolm McLaren or Tony Wilson of this generation.”

With that 7” in the can, James is already thinking ahead to the debut album: “I’ve got a bunch of new songs ready that the band ain’t even heard yet. My ambition for when we make our first album will be to give as much of myself to

32 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

by Ally Brown

SPONSORED BY

uniquely Glaswegian anthems like Go Square Go and I’m Gonna Get Stabbed. Even the NME has displayed rare good taste by declaring Daddy’s Gone “Single of the year. No question.”

There’s no need to question McGee’s suggested 13 years of sobriety on the strength of this claim and the Mary Chain’s place in the Scottish music hall of fame isn’t yet under threat, but even before they’ve signed a record deal, Glasvegas look a likely candidate for future entry. They’ve borrowed from dozens of sources: a look between The Clash and the Velvet Underground; the shoegaze guitars of early Creation bands and related fuzziness from Suicide; a 50s songwriting style and Phil Spector production values, to mould their own sound unlike anything else being hawked at the moment. Lyrically they have the subtlety to write sensitively about the pain caused by absent fathers, as well as

SPONSORED BY

it as I can give in the hope of making something sugary and soulful.” This year, the Twilight Sad made an indelible mark with a debut album that caught everyone by surprise. Don’t let the same thing happen in 2008: keep a very close watch on Glasvegas, the west coast’s new, new favourite band.

GLASVEGAS PLAY CABARET VOLTAIRE, EDINBURGH ON 7 DEC WWW.MYSPACE.COM/GLASVEGAS

“IAN BROWN PHONED UP OUT OF THE BLUE SAYING HE’D GOT GIVEN A DEMO. THE GUYS HEART, SPIRIT AND SOUL WAS AN EYE OPENER.” - JAMES ALLEN

SOUNDS

SOUNDS

Pole to Pole on a Planet of Ice

Minus the Bear

THESE DAYS, MINUS THE BEAR ARE OFTEN TO BE FOUND TRAVELLING THE GLOBE, HOT ON THE HEELS OF ANOTHER BLISTERING GIG. BUT WHO IS AROUND TO GIVE THEM THE CULINARY GUIDANCE THEY NEED TO MAKE SURE THEY SURVIVE ON THE ROAD? ENTER, THE SKINNY’S JAMIE BORTHWICK When you’re basking in the glory of a having delivered a stellar new album, steaming through a monster tour of almost three months solid on the road, and catching the sights and sores of a couple of continents, not even the inkling paranoia that you might have gone and haemorrhaged some staple fans with your bold new musical direction could kill your buzz, surely?

Minus the Bear vocalist and guitarist Jake Snider is pragmatic in conversation, speaking about his band’s latest opus, Planet of Ice. “I expect some fans to hate it! With every record I expect we’ll lose fans. But I do expect new fans to fill the void. Although we never consider whether we’ll lose fans too much...I think if we did, we’d lose a lot more than a few that only like the songs on the record that introduced them to the band.”

The single, Knights, is the first fruits of what Snider suggests was a productive period for the quintet. Recalling the sessions, he says, “I think about the five of us in the practice space just arranging; we spent every day for months writing and rewriting. We continued to write and refine the songs as we were in the studio, even somewhat into mixing. The constant collaboration between the band and the producers, as well as the members amongst each other, stands out to me.”

For Snider, Knights neatly sums up the progression of the band to their third full-length album, as MTB continues to refine and mature an experimental edge. “The song seems like a bridge to me, from the previous record to the new one.

It’s very simple as well. As a whole, the album reads better as a cohesive piece than anything we’ve done before. I like that. These songs are much more challenging than a lot of the older material”, he adds, summing up simply that, “They’re bigger.”

Indeed, almost as big as their current tour. The mammoth stint that brings the outfit to King Tut’s this month started back in their native Seattle in September, and so far the road has brought nothing but good memories for the band. Consisting of former members from influential acts such as Botch and Kill Sadie, this lot are no strangers to the lifestyle of a travelling post-hardcore busker. “We all love to be on the road...playing shows and travelling are our meat and potatoes”, Snider admits. “Having friends all over the world is amazing. I’ve personally learned more in the past few years on the road than I ever did in school.”

The Skinny does not condone dropping out of your studies to follow a lavish life of portability, kids, though it’s hard not to get a touch jealous of some exploits. “We played this little pub in Iceland once” Snider recollects, “spent the day exploring the beautiful and forbidding countryside then in the evening played a little show. Then after, for some reason the bar owner allowed us to bartend- what a night. We didn’t sleep at all, and then off on a plane we went to Amsterdam.”

And you thought stealing traffic cones on the way home from The Catty was hedonistic. Perhaps a little mellowing is in order for the MTB mob?

“On this tour I think we’ll take it easier after the shows…it’s going to be so long. I’ll die if we go out and drink whiskey with the locals all night; it’s just not possible to do that for three months straight. I hope that we can simply keep it together enough to make it to the end alive...we’ll see....we’ll see.”

Yes we shall. And if King Tut’s isn’t ready for MTB, they’ll certainly be ready for us.

“Scottish crowds are pretty great, but they are very discerning. They know what they like and what they don’t”, Snider notes with a hint of an anecdote not quite eked out of him. Certainly there are no questions over our propensity for a snifter or two. “They seem to be able to keep up with the drinking that we do. It’s always raining when we’re there...just like at home in Seattle.

They’re very similar places.”

In terms of extreme precipitation and a thriving music scene, perhaps, but there seems to be somethi ng lost i n cu ltural transition when it comes to cuisine, a gap we’d like to bridge with a few suggestions.

“Haggis?!” Snider seems startled by the notion. “No, none for me thanks. Cory our bassist would try it I’m sure. But deep fried candy bars? Sounds disgusting and amazing at the same time. I must try one of those.

Where can we find the best fried Mars Bar?” Answers on a postcard please, readers.

MINUS THE BEAR PLAY KING TUT’S, GLASGOW ON 12 DEC PLANET OF ICE IS OUT NOW VIA UNDERGROOVE WWW.MINUSTHEBEAR.COM

Minus The Bear Frank Ockenfels

www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

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LIVE MUSIC REVIEWS

other: The Funk Brothers boast that they’ve played on more charttopping singles than the Beatles, Beach Boys, Stones and Elvis put together, and we get some of them tonight. Indeed, there Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing, but Marvin Gaye is long dead so this is the realest we’ll ever get. To hear that, along with What’s Going On, Uptight and My Girl from some of the original band is a real pleasure. With a rapturous throng demanding “we want the funk, give up the funk!”, 66 yearold George Clinton finally takes the stage sporting an explosive multicoloured hair-do and a face bursting with croaky roars and commands.

Clinton’s call-and-response compering is followed with religious fervour, while the band launches through extended guitar-heavy funk jams with snatches of recognisable motifs dotted throughout. They’re allowed to be indulgent when just five seconds of descending bassline (Flashlight) makes dancers wither at the knees time and time again.

Tonight, crazy George and his legendar y players deliver on ever y claim of the frenzied, clamorous crowd: he gives us all the funk we’ll ever need, and more. [Ally Brown] WWW.GEORGECLINTON.COM

THE NATIONAL ABC, 2 NOV IDLEWILD - www.jethrocollins.co.uk

EDINBURGH IRONANDWINE

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 29 OCT 2 The last time Iron and Wine toured Edinburgh they played the intimate, sweaty and now sadly defunct environs of the Venue. Now the band returns, this time to the prestigious Queen’s Hall. But what have they lost in the flit? Playing with an expanded band which includes Calexico’s Paul Niehaus on steel guitar, their sound is loud and full, filling out the hall with ease. And this works well in the context of songs from their new LP, but poses a wall for the old work. Sam Beam’s earlier albums just don’t survive the transition from solitary whispers and softly plucked guitar to full-band ballads. In fact, they’re terrible. Beam has mentioned an admiration for Tom Waits’ stage experimentation, but artists should sometimes let old work stand for what its worth: first George Lucas, now it seems Iron and Wine have fallen victim to creative redaction.

Comfortable with their new sound but badly applying it to their old style, it’s like a mid-life crisis. [Hamza Khan] WWW.IRONANDWINE.COM

ARCANE KORE

BANNERMANS, 14 NOV 2 The Skinny may occasionally baulk on the issue of bands purposefully misspelling their names - especially the old ‘K replacing C’ malarkey but we’re not going to let some bad education get in the way of a good bit of, er, rawk. Arcane Kore assemble tonight in an incongruous manner best exemplified when a bloke in a tracksuit and baseball cap ambles up to the stage, grabs the microphone and lets rip. That’ll be the singer then, largely indecipherable save for the swear words which ring out loud and clear across the venue.

But perhaps that’s the point. Each member of the band is certainly an accomplished musician, though any attempts at individual virtuosity are

quickly bludgeoned into a metal sludge, which soon becomes the theme of the night. Death metal has always been an unlikely genre to win over hearts in a live setting, even if Arcane Kore do have a good krack.

[Darren Carle]

GLASGOW ENVY

THE ARCHES, 8 NOV 3 The Arches is always liable to throw up a spot of light debate when used for gigs requiring the sort of precision sound required to fully appreciate Envy. The labyrinthine venue is certainly held in higher regard for its club nights than its live band appeal, and it was always going to take a great effort by the techs to do justice to the powerful Japanese screamers. Playing the par t of acoustic guinea pigs tonight are locals DeSalvo, but their thrusting rock ‘n’ growl is lost to the ether – the mixing desk would have to send out a search party to rescue the anaemic guitar sound. Envy’s arrival with Chain Wondering Deeply remains in the slipstream of sonic weakness until mercifully, the guitars suddenly widen, the kick drum slinks back to its place at the back of the mix and we are in business.

A bruising tour through the earlier material brings us to a magnificent post-rock odyssey from new recording, Abyssal, and careers back through the pick of their recent albums, encoring triumphantly. Gig rescued and the punters leave delighted, but can The Arches try and sort the sound quicker next time?

[Jamie Borthwick]

frontman Avey Tare pull out with a throat infection. Playing on without him, Panda Bear and Geologist perform an hour of jams from Panda’s Person Pitch album, with only two Animal Collective tracks appearing all evening: Chores and Derek, both from Strawberry Jam. So for those unfamiliar with Person Pitch – not the easiest of records to get into on one live listen – it emerges as a frustrating night and not what they had bought their ticket for. Perhaps it should have just been cancelled instead: but on the other hand, for those who knew and enjoyed Person Pitch, hearing Take Pills and Bros instead of For Reverend Green is no great loss. In fact there’s a real hypnotic quality about the dreamy throbs and echoing vocals - and the blinding background lights - which leaves the crowd silent and motionless, as if in a trance. Above scything synth noise and snatches of falsetto chorus hammered into a

beat, Panda Bear sings like a stuttering yodeller in a cave, inducing those who are turned on to really tune in for the trip. Those who aren’t tuned in might have preferred it if Panda had dropped out at the start.

[Ally Brown] WWW.MYSPACE.COM/ANIMALCOLLECTIVETHEBAND

BEIRUT

THE ARCHES, 7 NOV Such is the discerning buzz surrounding a 21-year-old American exponent of old-world European folk music, and such are the narrow, flat-floored dimensions of one side of The Arches, that it’s virtually impossible to catch a glimpse of Zach Condon’s Beirut without the use of a hand-held periscope (if only). So it’s just as well that the music which reaches everyone unobstructed is predictably inspired.

Critics have rushed to classif y

Condon’s style first as Balkan and then as French-chanson, for obvious reasons. But it’s more accurately an imagined romanticism - like a contemporary filmmaker shooting in black and white - and no less magical for its artifice. Backed up by his eight-member band, a swap-shop of accordion, violin, ukulele, trumpet, clarinet and more, Condon raises goosebumps with Postcards From Italy, Mount Wroclai and new material such as A Sunday Smile and the stirring In the Mausoleum. Even if you’re blind-sighted, it’s a pleasure to hear this musical journeyman sing from his well-travelled songbook.

[Nick Mitchell] WWW.BEIRUTBAND.COM/

GEORGECLINTON THE ARCHES, 4 NOV

Before our P-Funk maverick takes the stage, The Arches crowd is treated to a support band like no

“You have to do it running, but you do everything that they ask you to”, Matt Berninger rasps, his voice brawling for airspace against a surge of howling gothic guitars and militaristic drums. It’s a powerful snapshot and, as a sold out ABC nods its head in unison, there’s little doubt that the introspective rambling of the National’s frontman finds resonance with this audience of predominantly over-25s enjoying a Friday night respite from the working week. Squalor Victoria is all fallen elegance framed by strings and Berninger’s knockout chorus lines, while rockier efforts like Abel call for the baritone to turn to a roar and the subtler Green Gloves proves no less effective. But it’s the piano-led coda of Slow Show and the accompanying couplet from Berninger that proves to be the gig’s most glorious moment; uncomplicated in its delivery but heart-wrenching by nature, this is the National’s appeal in a nutshell.

[Johnny Langlands] WWW.AMERICANMARY.COM

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/OFFICIALENVY

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE ORAN MOR, 6 NOV

3 Strawberry Jam has proven itself to be one of the most divisive albums of 2007, with just as many people saying they hate it as others who say they love it. Animal Collective’s return to Glasgow sees

34 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

THE SHINS - www.bloodyhoney.co.uk

SOUNDS

THE ARCHES, 23 OCT

ARCADE FIRE

greatness of a band with higher aspirations. [Heather Crumley]

SECC, 26 OCT

WWW.HOTHOTHEAT.COM

Opening with an ethereal chant and wielding two spheres of noisemaking light, Boredoms leader Yamatsuka Eye is less frontman and more pan-dimensional shaman performing a digital exorcism. As he gradually conducts his three drummers into a whirlwind, he builds up the intensity and intricate shifts that make it clear why the Boredoms are such a special live experience. It is trance music, but light years away from the vacuous euphoria that normally goes by that name. The dense poly-rhythms combined with drones, electronics and soaring vocal exchanges between Eye and OOIOO leader Yoshimi bear closer relation to the ancient Sufi music of the Master Musicians of Joujouka. There’s the most wonderful dance music on the planet buried in there, but only if you become totally immersed in the sound. Equally, it can be meditative and serene, and could genuinely be the spiritual music of the future. [Ali Maloney] WWW.BOREDOMS.CO.UK

IDLEWILD

The pompous sloganeering of a spoofed televangelist announces the Arcade Fire to a sizeable crowd, but any comedic effect is lost in the soulless cave of the SECC, where even the loudest of proclamations becomes a muffled mess before it reaches the second row. Black Mirror is a fluke, strangely complimented by the muddy mix while it plays out like the darker, introverted sibling of Rebellion (Lies), but it soon falls upon sheer theatrics to, y’know, Keep the Car Running. Win Butler takes his stance behind a grand church organ like a reluctant messiah to grapple with My Body Is a Cage and Intervention while his gang indulges in beating a crash helmet with a drumstick and the wife skips around them all, merrily playing away on any instrument that comes to hand. True to form, Wake Up could bring a tear to a glass eye; it’s just a pity that the poor acoustics of the venue are no different. [Dave Kerr] WWW.ARCADEFIRE.COM

HOT HOT HEAT ORAN MOR, 10 NOV

BARROWLANDS, 21 OCT Don’t be fooled: Idlewild might look older and wiser - and in the case of the bassist, be a totally different person - but inside lurk the same punky kids behind howling mini-album Captain a decade ago. Tearing around the stage, with proper guitargod shapes from Rod Jones, the band are on ecstatic form. Recently released best of, Scottish Fiction, is peppered with copious treasured album tracks as well as the singles, and tonight’s set is no different. Yes, American English and When I Argue I See Shapes are there, but we’re also treated to rare live outings of Quiet Crown and a stunning rendition of Let Me Sleep (Next To The Mirror).

Just as moans about the lack of anything pre-1998 begin to surface they unleash their two cherished pre-Captain singles, Chandelier and Queen of the Troubled Teens, to the rapture of circle pits. And as Edwin Morgan’s voice rings out over the final chords of In Remote Part, it seems there’s not a single person here who isn’t 100% in love with Idlewild. Here’s to the next ten years.

[Heather Crumley]

The lighting tech is earning his wages tonight. Not the prettiest of bands, Hot Hot Heat look every inch the rock stars, bathed in blue, red and perfectly timed flashes of gold. It’s not all a trick of the light though - since their last tour, Hot Hot Heat have evolved into a band that packs a hell of a punch. From the opening stabs of Harmonicas & Tambourines, to closing with a breathless Goodnight Goodnight, every note oozes pure adrenalin. New-ish guitarist Luke Paquin is a wise addition, adding real power to No, Not Now, but it’s singer Steve Bays that grips the attention. With his frantic vocals - he uses more words per minute than Kanye West, fact - impressive hair and peculiar dancing, he makes for an odd but strangely hypnotic frontman. It used to be easy to write Hot Hot Heat off as a one trick pony, but tonight they’re full of the prerequisite

JOSE GONZALEZ ABC, 28 OCT

As a songwriter the jury is still out on unlikely Swede, Jose Gonzalez.

Thus far his finest cuts have been pilfered from the back catalogues of Massive Attack, compatriots The Knife and, er, Kylie. If this notion is taken as given, it’s much easier to digest and enjoy the ABC performance tonight. With Heartbeats and Teardrop, he has taken two synthetic classics, boiled them down to their most basic form, and twisted them into immaculate acoustic compositions in their own right. With Hand on Your Heart, he has salvaged acceptance for a song that would have otherwise been reserved for TMF Top 50 ‘80s Pop Hits. Whether this is artistry or opportunism could be debated at length, but it proffers talent and sentience which is tangible first hand, without ever being overbearing. Ironically, his lack of on-stage histrionics lends well to the theatre setting: his crystalline vocals having free reign over the vehicular acoustics; the barren stage and striking spotlights reflective of the desolation of his set. For the first few tracks he is unaccompanied, just him and his guitar. When his two band members come to the stage they add little but sparse backing vocals and light percussion. It’s this returning sentiment of frugality that helps and hinders Gonzalez all at once.

Before too long it’s apparent that while atmospheric and melodically sound, his repertoire is limited. The album tracks from each of his two releases are okay, but it’s his renowned covers people have come to hear, their adaptation suggesting a spark only hinted at in his own work. When given the tools to work with, Gonzalez can create something special. Building from the ground up however, he falls just short. [Finbarr Bermingham]

After a gruelling time in the studio with Bernard Butler helming production, the second Sons and Daughters album is finally in the can and the band are currently showcasing their new material on a lengthy UK tour.

Hopes are high that This Gift will propel the band beyond cult status upon its release early next year, and lead single Gilt Complex confirms their knack for conjuring up a menacing number has not deserted them. As a live act, S&D are always compelling – it’s not for nothing that Morrissey chose them to support him on his last visit to Blighty. Lead singer Adele Bethel specialises in prowling the stage provocatively, while the rest of the band get on with providing the musical atmospherics to match the darkly natured lyrics. Amongst the songs new and familiar, we might hear an airing of their superb cover of Adamski’s Killer. [Graeme Blaikie]

MARILYN MANSON

BRAEHEAD ARENA, GLASGOW, 8 DEC

ALSO AT CABARET VOLTAIRE, EDINBURGH ON 2 DEC, MOSHULU, ABERDEEN ON 5 DEC AND GRAND OLD OPRY,

7.30PM, £25

GLASGOW ON 6 DEC

WWW.MARILYNMANSON.COM

7PM, £8.50

WWW.SONSANDDAUGHTERSLOVEYOU.COM

EDINBURGH GIMME SHELTER III 14-16 DEC

Whatever your suspicions about those who perform in not-for-profit-but-great-for-publicity charity gigs like Live8, you can’t deny the c-word’s power to attract a stellar line-up. And it would appear this notion extends to more local events such as Gimme Shelter, now in its third instalment and again attracting the cream of Scottish music talent. The mini-fest aims to raise awareness and funds for homeless charity Shelter, a cause that’s both close to home (for those lucky enough to have one) and always worth supporting. The gigs are programmed over the weekend of 14-16 December, jumping from Glasgow to Edinburgh and back. On the Friday, Glasgow’s Classic Grand plays host to Fence Collective troubadour James Yorkston with his band The Athletes, Colin MacIntyre (aka Mull Historical Society) and Edinburgh indie-pop favourites Aberfeldy. Saturday sees the event shimmy along the M8 to the capital with Beanscene staging an afternoon show of local bands before a trio of Skinny favourites, Foxface, Frightened Rabbit and Broken Records, play an evening show at The Bongo Club. The finale takes place at Glasgow’s Mono on Sunday with the superbly-dour Malcolm Middleton headlining a free-entry night. No egos, just quality music. [Nick Mitchell]

GLASGOW RODRIGO Y GABRIELA BARROWLANDS, 11 DEC

An instrumental-only, nylon-string guitar duo playing the Barras? It’s sometimes hard to believe that these two young troubadours cut their teeth in the Mexican death metal scene. Tired of the same-old, same-old, they picked up their classical guitars and relocated to Ireland where they were discovered busking on the streets of Dublin by music industry stalwarts. It’s no exaggeration to say that this is one of the most inspiring and brilliant young bands anywhere in the world right now, fusing jazz, flamenco, folk and heavy metal influences into every one of their songs. Rodrigo is brilliant, in the most sincere use of that word, but the star is the foulmouthed and sneeringly sexy Gabriela, who provides both percussion and jaw-droppingly dextrous rhythm guitar, simultaneously. If only there were a less trite incentive to offer than “not to be missed”, but no more accurate recommendation for this pair exists. [Les Ogilvie] 7PM, £14 WWW.RODGAB.COM

BIS

ORAN MOR, 8 DEC

THE MOONEY SUZUKI - www.jethrocollins.co.uk ENVY - Pete Dunlop

7PM, £10

Brian Hugh Warner released his sixth album Eat Me, Drink Me in June, mostly to collective shrugs and “meh” from the media. Remember when Marilyn Manson used to be blamed for shootings and ill morals by outraged tea-drinkers everywhere? He’s shocked us so much there’s nothing and nobody left to offend – even the Daily Mail gave the album a positive review. While Manson might still look grotesque, his music has moved from dirty industrial shock-rock to glam and funk-inspired pop-metal. Supporting him at the Braehead Arena will be Norwegian rawkers Turbonegro, who describe their new album as “full of speed, power, humiliation and freedom!” There are 5000 seats at the Renfrew shopping mall, so there’s plenty room to make it an early Christmas treat for the whole family. Yes grandma, you too. [Ally Brown]

HTTP://SCOTLAND.SHELTER.ORG.UK

BARROWLANDS, 9 NOV

www.skinnymag.co.uk

WWW.BISNATION.COM

SEE LIVE MUSIC LISTINGS FOR FULL LINE UP AND DETAILS.

THE SHINS

WWW.THESHINS.COM

SONS AND DAUGHTERS

PREVIEWS FAT SAMS, DUNDEE, 3 DEC

WWW.IDLEWILD.CO.UK

Despite their global fanbase and nigh on universal appeal, The Shins will always be a loveable indie band.

Having seen them stranded on the unforgiving main stage at Leeds Festival this summer, and read the lukewarm report that emanated from these sheets following their Fringe date at the Brobdingnagian Corn Exchange, a switch to the more genial confines of the Barrowlands is a logical and overdue move, and ultimately one which helps them into 2008 with their live reputation still intact. Sporting his trademark porkpie headpiece, frontman James Mercer’s mellifluous and unique delivery encircles the crowd, drawing them in bulbous formation to the front of the stage. A back catalogue of harmonies lined up one after the other makes for an impressive artillery: the ‘doo-wahs’ of Phantom Limb alongside the marvellous Kissing The Lipless. Kudos to The Shins for finally recognising that intimacy is their friend. Now then lads, how about a residency? [Finbarr Bermingham]

DUNDEE

all three members have remained active on the local scene, forming the uber-trendy data Panik with Stuart Memo and Graham Christie. Guaranteed party-starters, they also do one of the best versions of Love Will Tear Us Apart you’re likely to hear. [Paul Mitchell]

These Glaswegian stalwarts have reformed this year for a short reunion tour coinciding with the release of their We Are Bis From Glasgow, Scotland greatest hits compilation. It’s been over thirteen years since Sci-Fi Steven, John Disco and Manda Rin fused their lo-fi punky attitude with exuberant electronica, heirs apparent to Duran Duran’s brand of electro-pop-rock. In 1995, they became the first unsigned act to appear on Top of the Pops, a claim to fame only matched by the fact they also penned the closing credit theme to the Powerpuff Girls animated series. Despite splitting officially in 2003,

SOUNDS

BOREDOMS

BLOC PARTY SECC, 12 DEC

After screeching on to our television sets providing music for such teen cult viewing as the OC and Skins, Bloc Party have become a name no credible drainpipe toting pubescent would have missing from their iPod. With NME’s best album of 2005 and a wagon-load of top 10 hits under their belts, the Steve Lamacq favourites have coined their own distinct sound and their reputation for giving an energetic live performance has yet to be disputed. A successful remix album featuring tracks reworked by players from DFA1979 to Ladytron has seen their domination spread to the dance floor where indie kids can grind their hips to their rapid-fire disco-inspired drum beats. Long gone are the days of Gang of Four comparisons; Bloc Party have steadily turned around their act since early single Tulips - which dismally scraped to number 126 in the charts - and are now promoting their Flux EP over Europe and Stateside.

[Emily Foister] 6.30PM, £18.50 WWW.BLOCPARTY.COM

PELICAN

ORAN MOR, 13 DEC Ah, metal: the music cognoscenti’s favourite whipping boy. Bands like Pelican may have traded stonewash for camouflage, lost the masturbatory solos and developed a more expansive sound, but when sneaker hits distortion pedal, it’s still metal. And amen to that. The group’s previous Glasgow gig, if we may speak frankly, was a triumph. A fine mix of tracks ranging from the eponymous first EP to their punchier last album, City of Echoes. Live, as on record, Pelican are taut/tight/tense - pick your favourite T-word - and seamlessly mix Isis’ weight with the unadulterated hope of Explosions in the Sky. Passages of relative calm become brutal squalls in a second and when the tension breaks it’s only then that the crowd collectively exhales. So, if you need convincing that it’s quite alright to like metal, then swallow your shame and see how far bands like Pelican have brought us from crusading mulleteers like Whitesnake.

[Matt Gollock] 7PM, £10 WWW.MYSPACE.COM/PELICAN

OUT OF TOWN WINTER’S LOVE MINI FESTIVAL SPK POLISH CLUB, FALKIRK 14 DEC

What wise man came up with this? A charitable music festival, in the middle of Winter, featuring some of the finest acts about? This delicious seasonal feast of music, on the 2nd Day Of Christmas no less, sports a line-up that should be unmissable for fans of the contemporary Scottish music scene. The event curators have not shied away from giving local Falkirk acts a chance to shine, with Y’all Is Fantasy Island, author Alan Bissett, Sixpeopleaway, Pavlo Peacock and Coriolis all featuring on the bill. Endor, Ross Clark and Zoey van Goey fly the flag for Glaswegian folk rock, while Auld Reekie is also well represented with the immense Action Group, Broken Records and St Jude’s Infirmary all making the trek in aid of Falkirk Women’s Refuge. At a time of year when bargains are harder to come by than a carry out at midnight, the inaugural Winter’s Love MiniFestival could be your last chance to spend a few quid wisely in 2007. [Finbarr Bermingham] 6PM, £4 WWW.YIFI.CO.UK

DECEMBER 07

BLOC PARTY

THE SKINNY

35

ALBUM REVIEWS SWIMMER ONE

THE REGIONAL VARIATIONS (BIPHONIC)

There are a f e w r e m a r kable albums which sonically embrace technology while simultaneously displaying cynicism, paranoia and claustrophobia at certain aspects of the modern world. The Regional Variations is one such release and joins counterparts The Sophtware Slump and OK Computer in pulling it off so marvellously, the listener comes out the other side reshaped and bizarrely, feeling healthier for hearing it. Swimmer One’s Andrew Eaton recently told The Skinny, “You can’t be truly happy unless you understand what it’s like to be utterly miserable.” From the blatant despair of But My Heart Is Broken (“I hate life”), to the craving for spurned individuality (“I liked you more when you looked like no one else on the planet”) on The Dark Ages, despondency is a familiar theme. On an electro-wave of bass and synths, however, comes a blinding glimmer of hope: “It feels like the earth could be moved if we just shoved hard”, gushes album centrepiece, Regional. When put so wonderfully, Swimmer One make you think any thing is possible.

Perhaps not the cheeriest record of the year, but certainly one of the best, Regional Variations will break your hear t given half a chance.

[Finbarr Bermingham] OUT NOW SWIMMER ONE PLAY LIMBO @ THE VOODOO ROOMS, EDINBURGH ON 22 NOV. WWW.SWIMMERONE.CO.UK WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SWIMMERONE

THE [FUTURE] KING OF SCOTLAND

I’M NOT ANGRY, IT’S JUST YOU BROKE MY HEART (LO FI OR WHAT)

Glancing at the title, it doesn’t seem like we’re in for a cheery ride here and, only a minute i n, we’ve a l ready covered lyrics about heartbreak and fire. However, this proves to be something of a red herring as what unfolds is not the journey into deepest despair it might have been.

No, I’m Not Angry... is brilliantly realised: sensitive, melodic and as touching as it is vitriolic. Yes, it is dark in places - and pitch black in many more - but it’s strangely uplifting, as on The Girl Who Walks Over Glass and brilliantly spiteful The Bottom Has Fallen Out. Just when it seems to descend into misery, it pulls itself out with melodies that echo the blues while simultaneously reaching for the stars.

It’s a trick The Twilight Sad have mastered, and The [Future] King of Scotland is ver y nearly there.

Unsettling but oddly majestic, this marks the birth of a strange new talent. [Heather Crumley] OUT NOW MYSPACE.COM/ THEFUTUREKINGOFSCOTLAND

VARIOUS ARTISTS

NOW THAT’S WHAT WE CALL MUSIC VOL 1 (FANTASTIC PLASTIC) Taking a leaf from the Rough Tr a d e b o o k , the Fantastic Pl a s ti c l a b e l marks its 100th release with this compilation of highlights from the ce nte nar y. Fantastic Plastic began life as a small-town Irish record shop and has grown into a strong yet typically ‘indie’ label. At first it appears that artpop is the enduring theme, with tracks from such quirk-laden dandies as Ikara Colt, Guillemots and The Victorian English Gentlemen’s Club. But there’s a healthy variety here, from the Tyneside post-punk of Futureheads (their rarely-heard debut single) and Kubichek to the sweet lilt of The Immediate’s Big Sad Eyes or the brasher rock of The Beatings’ Bad Feeling. Scotland is represented by the now-defunct Astrid and album closer Local Man Ruins Everything, a collaboration between Gaelic poet Kevin MacNeill and Willie Campbell. If you’re tired of the corporate consolidation of music, give this a spin and have your faith restored. [Nick Mitchell] RELEASE DATE: 3 DEC WWW.FANTASTICPLASTICDIGITAL.COM

SILJE NES

AMES ROOM (FAT CAT) Casual listeners to Nor wegian artist Silje Nes’ debut album will be left with a mix ture of bafflement and curiosity on their collective phizog.

For the most part eschewing traditional song structures for experimental sound collages, Ames Room makes for an intriguing rather than essential listening experience, as each song unwinds ever so slowly and carefully, with various combinations of melodica, glockenspiel, cello, guitar, and everything but the kitchen sink adding genteel textures to rhythms played on found objects. The results can be beautifully uplifting as well as frustrating: Dizzy Street is a lusciously melodic number akin to Belle and Sebastian at their most sun-kissed, while some of the more wishy-washy material on offer, such as the plinkyplonk album closer No Bird Can, would try the patience of even the most hardened left-field sonic experimentalist. Maybe on her next album a happier medium can be struck. [Barry Jackson] RELEASE DATE: 3 DEC WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SILJENES

ANTHONY REYNOLDS BRITISH BALLADS (SPINNEY)

O n p a p e r, Anthony Reynolds comes across as a curmudgeonly old moan, berating our increasingly vacuous obsession with celebrity status and fly-by-night scenesters at the expense of the more important things in life; friends, books, alcohol. On record, things seem almost at a

36 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

polar opposite, as if Reynolds’ selfimposed exile from reality TV and nu-rave has helped him develop his own little domestic fantasy world a la Amelie. On the acoustic A Quiet Life, Reynolds enjoys another night home alone, “drinking, thinking, dreaming”, where he is his own DJ, there are no rude shop assistants and Elvis is still alive. There are guest appearances from Dot Allison and Vashti Bunyan, though their presence is suitably understated. It’s Reynolds’ world after all and, while it may not have you packing away your glosticks or doing a Led Zeppelin with your television set, it’s nice to know it’s there when you’ve had your fill of Pete Doherty’s antics. [Darren Carle] RELEASE DATE: 10 DEC

FEU THERESE

CA VA COGNER (CONSTELLATION) Constellation Records’ output is often said to reflect the expansive, haunting geography of their native Montreal and the vast Canadian wilderness beyond. Having built its reputation on the likes of Godspeed You!, Black Emperor and offshoot A Silver Mount Zion, Feu Therese marks something of a departure from many preconceptions of the label. Opening track A Nos Amours is slightly misleading; rich in whimsical strings and surf-like guitar, it’s atypical of the album’s overall vibe.

Not until the second number, Visage Sous Nylon, are we introduced to the binary Franco-Krautrock frontier explored by the outfit. The impression throughout is very much one of travelling, as cyclical, locomotive beats spur underfoot, relaying to us a landscape far more fanciful than much of Feu Therese’s Canadian peers. Slowly, Ca Va Cogner reveals itself as a 38-minute robotic postcard full of beautiful observation and compelling melancholy; a lost droid sending home signals of what wonders stretch out before it. [Chris Cusack] OUT NOW WWW.CSTRECORDS.COM/ BANDS_FEUTHERESE.HTML

GRAHAM DAY & THE GAOLERS

SOUNDTRACK TO THE DAILY GRIND (DAMAGED GOODS)

Picture the Nor f of Engurland in the late 60s; Lambrettas zip about working class streets and workmen with dirty hands sit down to a cooked breakfast as nonchalant waitresses pour the last cup of coffee from the pot, cigarette hanging from one lip. This record is as 60s garage as modern rock can feasibly get without tearing open time and space. It also clearly prides itself on its down-toearthliness with track titles such as On the Pull, Part-time Dad and of course Soundtrack to the Daily Grind. Fans of the Small Faces won’t hear much new here and the pseudo-political overtones of some lyrics are a little too elementary, but the musicianship is competent and the Gaolers make no attempt to pass this LP off as anything other than distinctly retro. With gritty Northern realism being so in vogue right now, it’s easy to see why this album might go down rather well in some quarters. [Chris Cusack] OUT NOW WWW.MYSPACE.COM/GRAHAMDAYANDTHEGAOLERS

HOLOGRAM

HOLOGRAM+ (N5MD) Japanese ambient art-electro ensembles are apparently a yen a dozen, but Hologram stand way out from the crowd.

Their new album is either self titled or a light orange ‘+’ but either way the cover art’s all style with sparse, th i n g e o m e tr i c l i n e s r u n n i n g vertically; suggesting, not stating.

T he sound appears to follow suit; instrumental and absolutely subtle the first few times you hear

FEATURED ALBUM FOUND

THIS MESS WE KEEP RESHAPING

(FENCE)

“I’m afraid life doesn’t f o l l o w a r t ”, s i n g s Z i g g y Ca m p b e l l o n See Ferg’s In London.

Listening to FOUND’s c h a oti c s o p h o m o re album, one can’t help but wonder how crazy things would be if it did. It would be unfair to the Edinburgh based collective to dwell on their choice of album title here, though it does seem rather apt. This Mess We Keep Reshaping is wonderfully wild and disjointed: it won’t help you off to sleep at night, but then there are plenty of sedatives on the market. This is a set of terrific pandemonium, from the countrified slide guitar of Gifted, to the Looney Tunes/Wu Tang like sampling on Some Fracas of a Sissy, to the early Gomez handclaps on the fantastic Admission Number Two. It’s testament to the depth of sound that it takes repeat listens to notice the strength of Campbell’s voice and the wit in his couplets. Even when trying to be sonically straight (When You Fall), lyrically they’re brilliantly daft.

FOUND seem like the kind of band you could lock in a recording studio with nothing more than a guitar, a laptop and an assortment of crockery: the closest thing Scottish music has to the DIY genius of BA Baracas.

[Finbarr Bermingham] OUT NOW

it, certainly, but there’s a lot more going on beneath the sur face.

There are waves, repetition, motifs and such depth that the music takes time to unfurl intelligently. It’s as if your computer read Stephen Hawk ing’s blog and wants to discuss, or watched Citizen Kane to feel real emotion and now it’s speaking some new language through your speakers. If you’re looking for instant gratification, Hologram will disappoint, but even if you aren’t tapping your feet to the CD, you could still be nodding your head. [Hamza K] OUT NOW WWW.MYSPACE.COM/HOLOGRAMJP

SAMANTHA MARAIS THE PEPPERMINT CONSPIRACY (BUTTERFLY)

O n e o f the most disappointing things that comes with get ting older (I say this as a man who has yet to experience the decrepitude of incontinence and the indignity of sponge baths, of course) is that it becomes more and more difficult to come across music that is truly original. Thank the Lord then, for this strange and eccentric record. It’s a downbeat af fair with a lazy feel to it, but appealingly so. London-based c h a n te u s e S a m a n t h a M a r a i s sleepily walks us through a Fantasia of exotic moods, bizarre imagery and anachronistic melodies. The album opens with what can only be described as Gaelic folk-pop, although later on, more subtle Eastern European and Arabian influences reveal themselves. With spoken poetry, modern acoustic folk, some harps and 12-string guitars, it’s difficult to pigeonhole such an eclectic piece of work, so let’s just call it ‘brilliant.’ [Les Ogilvie]

UK STATES

PSYCHOGEOGRAPHY (HITBACK) UK States’ Psychogeography is experimental folk rock that works; full of well planned, unexpected sounds and smart lyrics. On first glance the album’s artwork implies a traditional folky sound; a line drawing of a guitar and a bottle of alcohol, it smacks of your typical Brit-rock standards. Even the first few tracks are unassuming.

But third track Saddle Me Up is the first indication of expectations flipped: lyrics like “I take a load of pro-plus, I jump in front of a bus, only I don’t, ‘cos I didn’t take enough” are smoothly backed up by lean guitars and hints of synth. A certain willingness to experiment is followed throughout the album on songs like Be Brazil, made up of only six lines.

Complex but still radio-friendly, this is a fair excursion into British folk pop.

[Hamza K] OUT NOW WWW.UKSTATES.COM

VARIOUS ARTISTS WORSHIP THE RIFF

(EXILE ON

MAINSTREAM)

HTTP://WWW.MYSPACE.COM/

Fly with the craws, get shot with the craws; that’s what they say. Case in point: Ostinato must have a real beef with E xile on Mainstream for including them on a CD with Beehoover. The former showcases the better side of EoM: intelligent and moving metallic post-rock, it seduces and pummels in equal measure.

Beehoover, on the other hand, is a gothic abomination masquerading as ‘doom-jazz.’ Reminiscent of Paradise Lost covering System of A Down songs on the pub circuit, it’s hard to keep a straight face. Somewhere between these poles sit the suitably obtuse riffage of Dyse, the filthy crunch of End of Level Boss and the sombre piano of A Whisper in the Noise. There are certainly a multitude of riffs to be had here, though few do anything Alice in Chains and Kyuss haven’t already bettered. Ultimately i t’s a n ave rag e c o ll e ctio n that sees some potentially good artists dragging the dead weight of a few real stinkers. [Austin Tasseltine]

SAMANTHAMARAIS

OUT NOW

OUT NOW

WWW.MAINSTREAMRECORDS.DE/

TOP 5 ALBUMS 1. FOUND - THIS MESS WE KEEP RESHAPING (FENCE) 2. SWIMMER ONE - THE REGIONAL VARIATIONS (BIPHONIC) 3. THE [FUTURE] KING OF SCOTLAND - I’M NOT ANGRY, IT’S JUST YOU BROKE MY HEART (LO-FI OR WHAT)

4. SAMANTHA MARAIS - THE PEPPERMINT CONSPIRACY (BUTTERFLY) 5. FEU THERESE - CA VA COGNER - (CONSTELLATION)

ONLINE REVIEWS NINE INCH NAILS Y34RZ3E0R3MIX3D (INTERSCOPE)

WU-TANG CLAN - 8 DIAGRAMS (BODOG) DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL - THE SHADE OF POISON TREES (VAGRANT)

GRANT CAMPBELL - BEYOND BELOW (CROOKED MOUTH) THE LIBERTINES - TIME FOR HEROES (ROUGH TRADE) NEIL YOUNG - CHROME DREAMS II (WARNER) WEEN - LA CUCARACHA (SCHNITZEL) PSAPP - TIGER, MY FRIEND (DOMINO)

FOUND PLAY OUT OF THE BLUE, EDINBURGH WITH MAKE MODEL ON 4 DEC. WWW.MYSPACE.COM/FOUNDTHEBAND

JAYMAY - AUTUMN FALLIN’ (HEAVENLY)

SOUNDS

MÚM

MARMALADE FIRES

(FAT CAT)

QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE MAKE IT WIT CHU

(INTERSCOPE)

THE DIRTY DOZEN

SOUNDS

SINGLE REVIEWS

we need are late arrivals wearing cheaper clothes. [Ally Brown]

in his bedroom, and he sings like he wants to stay there. [Barry Jackson]

RELEASE DATE: 17 DEC

RELEASE DATE: 3 DEC

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/YOUNGGALAXY

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MLPSONGS

AFTER A MONTH LOCKED IN THE SKINNY’S MUSIC TESTING LAB, NICK MITCHELL DELIVERS THE VERDICT ON DECEMBER’S SINGLE SPECIMENS

THE ADS

THE POEMS

PART I – INDIE

MAYBE TONIGHT (KING TUT’S)

I AM A BELIEVER (X-PHONICS)

The highlight of their impressive Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy album, Marmalade Fires belies its simple, almost lullaby-like melody with lush orchestration, a generous dollop of baroque and an underlying thread of glitchy electronica. They’re from Iceland you see, and it seems it’s written into their constitution that all bands must write otherworldly music that is at once intimately personal and massively panoramic, with no less than fourteen different instruments playing at the same time. It certainly beats whatever rulebook many of our homegrown acts are following. B-side Rhubarbidoo is also worth a mention for the name alone.

[Darren Carle]

Sometimes the worth of a single release is questionable. For the artist, a timely single can at least stir interest in a tour, make it on to radio playlists or just keep their name ‘out there’ in the chattering ether. But what’s in it for the fan who bought the album months ago? Make It Wit Chu is a decent track from an excellent album. The title says it all – this is anti-emotion, primal lust rendered in musical form, with pornographic guitar and Josh Homme at his sleaziest: “Anytime, anywhere” he drawls. Fine, but without any B-side, remix or bonus material, where’s the incentive in buying it? [Nick Mitchell]

You can often rely on King Tut’s as an arbiter of decent new music, and it looks like they’ve backed another winner with East Kilbride four-piece The Ads. Having already bagged a single of the week on Colin Murray’s Radio One show with their debut single, Autopilot, the band looks to continue its upward trajectory with Maybe Tonight, a powerhouse rock tune in the grand ‘three chords and the truth’ tradition. Propelled by a blistering rhythm section and a killer chorus complete with “bah-dabahh” chanted backing vocals, this’ll no doubt send Murray’s foot into a flapping spasm once again. [Barry Jackson]

OUT NOW

OUT NOW

RELEASE DATE: 17 DEC

QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE PLAY

THE ADS PLAY CABARET VOLTAIRE,

No, not a cover of the 60s made-forTV-scamps Monkees’ classic, but instead a very catchy, very melodic folk-pop gem straight outta Glasgow.

Vocalist Kerry Polwart briefly left The Poems when the rest of the band had the temerity to accept monetary payment for their first ever gig in a high school. Thankfully, in time, they managed to shake the artistic purity out of her - gently of course - and Kerry’s crystal-clear, deadpan vocals on I Am A Believer neatly compliment the early Beatles-y sway of the tune, and make the perfect musical antidote to the leaden skies of winter: all sufferers of SAD should take note and have a listen. [Barry Jackson]

PLAYING ORAN MOR, GLASGOW ON

CARLING ACADEMY, GLASGOW ON 28 NOV

EDINBURGH ON 14 DEC AND KING

OUT NOW

14 DEC

WWW.QOTSA.COM

TUT’S, GLASGOW ON 15 DEC.

MYSPACE.COM/THEPOEMSMUSIC

Maxïmo Park switch down a gear from their usual breakneck postpunk for Karaoke Plays (3 stars, 3 Dec), another razor-edged but samey track from Our Earthly P l e a s u r e s . N ex t i t ’s down to Alan Partridge country with Norwich’s Bearsuit: Foxy Boxer (3 stars, out now) is a bit of fun - nothing more, nothing less. A lesser known band from Sheffield, Arctic Monkeys’ Teddy Picker (2 stars, 3 Dec) finds Alex Turner as acerbic as ever, but could this mark their uninteresting demise? They may be heirs to Turner’s crown, but The Enemy’s We’ll Live And Die in These Towns (2 stars, 3 Dec) is bare-faced plagiarism; Halfway through I had to stop myself reviewing a reissue of The Jam’s That’s Entertainment. Seriously. To continue the Arctic Monkeys theme (tenuously), Undercut’s Hot in That (3 stars, 10 Dec) is pitched somewhere between New Yorkshire and BRMC: scuzzy, catchy, but cumbersome.

Original monkey man Ian Brown trumps them all with Sister Rose (4 stars, 3 Dec). Not quite as tight as past glories, but with its sweeping strings and Bible-black guitar line it’s another swagger-some listen.

STARS

PART II – SINGER-SONGWRITER

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MUMTHEBAND

YOUNG GALAXY OUTSIDE THE CITY

múm in the shower

www.skinnymag.co.uk

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/THEADS

MY LITTLE PROBLEM

(ARTS & CRAFTS)

ELEPHANTS

There’s definitely a Canadian indiepop aesthetic: well-mannered romantic dream-pop with tightly controlled outbursts of passion, and always a male-female vocal duo.

Adding to this over-stuffed market are Young Galaxy, a Vancouver male-female duo who carefully calculate their noisy swirls of emotion in an effort to inject edge into otherwise generic twaddle. It doesn’t work – it’s turned into a formula and is becoming generic itself. Even the originators of the Canadian revival are struggling to progress without a change of direction, the last thing

Images don’t come much more surreal than the idea of “all the elephants in the zoo, hiding tambourines from you”, the first line of My Little Problem’s latest single. And it distracts ever so slightly from the remainder of Elephants, a low-key concoction of violin, acoustic guitar and shuffling, snare-brushed drums, which builds to a satisfying climax of harmonica and trumpet flurries. The only problem with My Little Problem is a slight lack of personality in the vocals rather than the sounds; main-man Simon Janes conjures up most of his music alone

(LIFE IS EASY)

THE NIGHT STARTS HERE (CITY SLANG)

Canadian indie-poppers Stars involve three members of Broken Social Scene, but don’t show any of their verve or bluster here. With over-polished production and twee spaceman synths, Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan make unfathomable drama out of whispered clichés like “forget your name, forget your fear” and “we’ll be angels after all.” Perhaps in the context of the album it’s a barnstormer but, on its own, The Night Starts Here is as sweet as melted marshmallow, and as sickly too. [Ally Brown] RELEASE DATE: 3 DEC WWW.MYSPACE.COM/STARS

Jesse Malin’s Tomorrow Tonight (3 stars, 3 Dec) is all-American, full-fat folkrock. His intended destination is Springsteen-like dusty wisdom, but he forgets to pack his subtlety ... Sorry, did I nod off? Must have been Kate Walsh sending me into a stupor with the silky-smooth, cocoa-clutching Tonight (2 stars, 3 Dec). Zzzz.

PART III – CHRISTMAS For the uninitiated, Shaun the Sheep is an Aardman animation from kid’s TV who has enlisted Vic Reeves to sing Life’s A Treat (3 stars, 10 Dec), a woolly assault on the Christmas chart. Impossible to criticise, surely. Not strictly a festive song, but Hilli (4 stars, 10 Dec) by Icelandic girl group Amiina, who adapted music to Lee Hazlewood’s last ever recording, has the quality of velvet snow on some winter morning. Who’d have thought post-modernism had a place in the Christmas single? The Black Arts’ Christmas Number One (4 stars, 3 Dec) is the evidence – self-mocking, but glam, of course. But what better to warm your Scrooge heart this Noël than Malcolm Middleton’s We’re All Going To Die (4 stars, 17 Dec)? It’s officially a 1000/1 shot for the Christmas top spot, so heed our advice: bet now, buy (a few hundred) on the seventeenth.

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

37

BEATS EDITORIAL Whether you’re more of an Xmas person or a Hogmanay person, this month sees the opportunity to choose your festive holiday and enjoy it to the fullest.

Time was in Scotland that people would relish the opportunity to work on Xmas for the extra cash, and take extra time off at New Year: less gift-giving and face stuffing, and more first-footing and teeth-cracking black bun. Admittedly our ancestors probably ended up seeing Hogmanay in with a belly full of potato scone and a head full of single malt, a trait which has survived and ‘modernised’ to a certain extent (a belly full of whisky, and a head full of sambuca).

There’s less first-footing in the biting morning frost due to the statistical disadvantage of knocking on the wrong door and getting a chibbing rather than a welcome, but try and spread the love where you can, even if it is in the darkness of a club: hug your fellow clubber and celebrate whatever!

Whether you’re more into the celebration of Christ or welcoming in a fresh start with well-meaning intentions, Beats has got it all wrapped up for you: the highlights and starring artists of 2007, Robert Owens, Jae P, new additions to the clubbing scene, and, if you flick to our Hogmanay section, you can follow our quiz and plan your perfect festive December. See you in 2008; the pill-form food and hoverboards must surely be on the 21st Century’s horizon by now. /Later, Alex.

CORRECTIONS: In Issue 26’s feature, Alex Tronic Records: A Voice For Everyone, the author was incorrectly stated as James Blake - the correct writer is Jonathan Robert Muirhead.

CONTENT THE GEMS, JESTS AND GODDAMNS! OF 2007 COLUMNS

46 47

ROBERT OWENS - VOCALISING

47

SPEAKEASY WITH STYLE

48

JAE P - COMING UP

48

EAST AND WEST COAST PREVIEWS

49

ALBUM AND SINGLE REVIEWS

50

DJ CHART

50

TOP

5 ALBUMS

1. BURIAL – UNTRUE (HYPERDUB)

Scene leader Burial’s second full-length album Untrue eschews the drop-heavy digital ska of Tempa and Hot Flush artists, such as Skream and Scuba, in favour of blessed-out synths and subtle 2-step.

2. DONNACHA COSTELLO – COLORSERIES (MINIMISE) Despite being a three-year-old collection of tracks, Colorseries sounds fresh and vital; the kind of emotive and intoxicating techno that Supermayer should have been.

3. KEVIN GORMAN – CHEMISTRY LOCK (INTERNATIONAL DEEJAY GIGOLOS)

An astounding new release from the Gigolo imprint, Kevin Gorman’s debut album combines a fresh take on techno with geeky fan-boy attitude.

4. ROISIN MURPHY - OVERPOWERED (EMI) Ballsy ex-Moloko front woman Roisin Murphy is back with her second album, and she definitely still knows how to make an entrance. Overpowered is like a giant disco, pop and funk-filled glitter ball, with a shimmer of soul and a huge sparkle of electro.

5. THE EX-MEN – A LIFE OF LOVE (BEAN STALK RECORDS)

Like Underworld, it’s a raucous, unruly mix of beats and rolling rhymes of cool, minimalist street poetry that you may not understand, but will certainly love.

38 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

The gems, jests, and goddamns! of 2007

by ALEX BURDEN, LIAM ARNOLD, AND JOHNNY LANGLANDS

ANOTHER YEAR HAS ZIPPED BY IN A FLURRY OF HITS, FLOPS, AND DOWNRIGHT ASTOUNDING RELEASES - READ ON FOR WHO ROCKED OUR SOUND SYSTEMS IN 2007!

Boxcut ter’s Glyphic, Pla net Mu’s Sacred Symbols and, of course, Burial’s Untrue have all impressed in 2007, despite the inordinate amount of hype surrounding these releases, particularly the latter. In contrast, Disrupt’s Foundation Bit and Deepchord’s Echospace series both slipped out without too much fuss, and yet managed to blow both minds and speakers in one fell swoop with their intricately engineered take on low-end electronics.

And having dropped one of the most powerful pieces of music in years in the shape of The Last Resort (2006), A nders T rentemøl ler did it again this year with The Trentemøller Chronicles. Though clearly a long way from his previous incarnation as part of the live house act, Trigbag, whose plaintive wailings extended to depressed robots and wanting to be in The Doors, Anders is now keen on Radiohead, and thinks that Thom Yorke’s The Eraser has some of “the same energy and vibe to it as The Last Resort.” There are similarities in both albums’ introspective, emotive styles, however, The Trentemøller Chronicles is a dancefloor destroying up-tempo beast, full of gnarly bass for your brain and kickdrums for your ears.

As if one stunning techno compilation wasn’t enough for 2007, this year also saw the release of Donnacha Costello’s Colorseries CD, which collects tracks from the 12” released back in 2004 in one rather gorgeous psychedelic trip through the whole spectrum of electronic music. Another album built on expectation has to be Happy Birthday, Modeselektor’s second foray into crunked-up electro and hip-hop posturing, which just manages to hold off Neil Landstrumm’s Restaurant of the Assassins to win ‘Bass Cadet of the Year’. And this was after astounding us all with their twisted, treble-y take on Burial, Spank Rock and everything in between on Boogybytes Vol.3. Son of a Glitch.

On the subject of mixes, Optimo invaded living rooms again with their Walkabout mix CD, meaning it is no longer necessary to go out on a Sunday night.

Mea nwh i le, Under world m a de a f renet ic return to the fray with their fi fth studio album, Oblivion With Bells, and a stonking fi ve star tour before it was cancelled due to illness.

Scotland was grinning like a Cheshire cat to be one of the lucky hosts and witnessed a comeback so pleasing, they reminded us that they’ve never actually left. “I can’t help thinking I don’t remember us making a comeback,” says Karl Hyde, the lead singer. “I thought that was what you did after you’d been away for a very long time at Her Majesty’s pleasure or shipwrecked on a desert island with a luxury item and the works of Shakespeare. We’ve been putting out new music since 2003 and touring the world every year, but you’re right - we haven’t been on home shores for a long time...”

In their ‘hiatus’ they’ve released three download only albums, web radio and live tv casts, a triple live CD from Japan, fi ve 12”s, two fi lm scores and a book. This has kept Underworld busy, “exploring ways of publishing that are different to the traditional album-tour-album formula.” Their embrace of technology was evinced at their Glasgow Carling Academy gig, when live CDs of the event were available to purchase soon after the last note was played - the move from performance to production was almost instantaneous - and a sure sign that the group, far from hanging up the mic and

production equipment, are actually pushing forward the limits of what artists can do in the 21st Century. How does Karl therefore see the dance scene itself progressing into 2008, and what role will Underworld be playing in it? “For a time a few years back, the dance scene was massive and feeling stagnant. Sure it was turning over a lot of cash, but the music was in need of a spring clean. When the scene started to break into smaller factions, the dance scene in the underground began to have an important voice, and the underground is often where new ideas start and grow,” believes Karl.

“If Underworld continue to have some place in whatever scene there is, it would be a smile.

Being around people who want to celebrate and enjoy themselves is a great source of energy.”

Meanwhile, EL-P, the prodigious three-in-one Brooklyn MC, producer and label boss also known as Jaime Meline, fl agged up as one of 2007’s hottest properties. “There are two things that I love about being in the music business,” reckons EL-P; “I love making the record and I love performing the record; the rest of it can basically blow me.” Having dedicated some seven years to ‘the rest of it,’ the impresario set up Def Jux and handled much of the production work for the artists on its roster. “I didn’t create a record label,” he refutes, “I created music and I’ve tried to create a mechanism to get the music out.” And this mechanism has served him well, dropping his second LP proper - I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead - on 2007’s uneasy hip-hop climate like an unexpected Molotov cocktail on a flock of corpse-pecking buzzards. This epic and fiercely visceral polemical assault left Fiddy and Diddy standing cold in designer threads with their heads up their derriere.

assault on young Scottish minds at King Tut’s in October. So can we expect the same level of EL productivity in 2008? Or will he opt for the Hova ‘retirement’ plan? Not likely. “I think I’m on a good path man, I feel energised again,” he enthuses, “I spent five years bubbling up with ideas, influence and experience and I have so much of it pouring out of me now that I feel ready to jump into another record. I’m going to release an EP, I think, in the fi rst quarter of next year... I’ll probably have some remixes as well as about four or five new songs on there.”

This article could probably go on for several hundreds lengths of yarn, and we don’t have enoug h ti me or pages to pos sibly cover absolutely ever yone, so we’ll end it here, but not without a quick shout out to Ny, who became the talk of the grime town mid-2007 as one of the fi rst recognised females on the male-dominated scene; Gui Boratto, thanks for Chromophobia and the Addicted Mi x, champion; Chloe for showing the French how to really do it; Lethal Bizzle and his crazy beats for your stereo & dancefloor needs; Bonde Do Role, those genre-crossing baile-funk fl irts; and the comeback of The Black Dog. Keep pickin’ up The Skinny in 2008 for our predictions.

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/BARRYLYNNMUSIC - BOXCUTTER WWW.PLANET-MU.COM, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/BURIALUK, WWW.DCTRAX.COM - DEEPCHORD, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/OPTIMOESPACIO, WWW.MODESELEKTOR.COM, WWW.MINIMISE.COM - DONNACHA COSTELLO, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/TRENTEMOELLER, WWW.UNDERWORLDLIVE.COM, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/ELPRODUCTO

Marking his return to the ring in style, ELP’s live show made many a jaw drop when it outshone even the mighty Sonic Youth at the Coachella festival back in April, before he proved this to be no f luke with another

Trent Moller

Underworld © Peridon

EL-P

BEATS

Vocalising

Highlights

by Alex Burden

FOR THE FIFTH INSTALMENT OF OUR BACARDI PROFILE SERIES, WE GET SOULFUL WITH THE LEGENDARY CHICAGO HOUSE VOCALIST, ROBERT OWENS

DRUM & BASS CURRICULUM Whether you’ve been into drum and bass for a while or an old hand, you will know that after a spirited year in Scottish dnb, things just keep getting bigger. Thankfully, it’s not all just touring acts and big names that we have to thank for the undoubted buzz, but also our own tight crew all over the country, bringing together a definite and defiant strength.

And so to clubs; Xplicit thunders into the East coast on 14 Dec at the Bongo Club with special guest Teebee, with Eno, Morphy, MC Biz and the Kapital DJs on support dropping dub bombs and dance hits (10.30pm-3am, £9 adv). If you didn’t already know, Teebee is a Norwegian dnb artist with smatterings of ‘neurofunk’ and dark, ambient atmospherics up the wazoo. And to get your new year off to a good start check out Split (1 Jan, Cabaret Voltaire, 10.30pm-3am, free b4 12am/£2) for heavy beats and first rate dnb. On the West Coast Pangea will be seeing in Hogmanay local style (Barfly, 8pm-tbc) with Special Ed, Professor Fresh and MC Troubla at the bargain price of £10, but if you have other arrangements for the evening, then catch them in the same venue on 14 Dec with special

JINGLE BELL HOP HIGHLIGHTS It’s December, yo, and you know what that means – Santa’s laying down some serious work with his elf posse, getting ready to sneak down your chimneys and empty his bulging sacks into your carefully-hung stockings, like some housebreaking, foot-fetishising hobo with sherry breath. In Edinburgh, hip-hop MCs are following Profisee’s lead: making like squirrels, and stockpiling breaks and beats for the winter, getting down to some serious studio time. However, there are still a few spots to hit over the festive period, to get a dose of boom-bap to go with your egg-nog. First up, go catch some trip-hop, dubstep and hip-hop action with DJ P-Haze and friends at Robotales (The Green Room, 5 Dec, £tbc). Biggest draw of the month has got to be Scratch, who bring underground heroes J-Zone & DJ Sheep, AKA XxxTra Chee$e, to drive out those winter blues with a heavy dose of turntablism, raucous comedy, and every kind of break from Miami bass to disco, G-funk to soul. They’re joined

by Edinburgh’s own turntable maestros, Richie Rufftone and Blag1 (The Bongo Club, 7 Dec, £7 adv.)

Next we have Sileni, Edinburgh’s own artcore rap adventurers, who bring their newly-expanded ‘big band’

Born in Ohio, 1961, Robert Owens grew up betwixt two cities in America, which became the breeding grounds for his talent: “Each environment I grew up in moulded me as a person, as I would constantly go between LA and Chicago to see my family.

Teebee guest Termite from Edinburgh’s own Obscene (11pm3am, £5) - her beats will be burrowing through your skull before you can say ‘turn that bass down’. Speaking of Obscene, they’ll be hitting Ego on 22 Dec (11pm-5am, £3).

Looking to the future, Manga, a name synonymous with Scottish dnb, has been extremely quiet of late... never fear a little birdie told me to expect a stonker of a 12th birthday party surprise around February time. Go forth and multiply. [Jonny Ogg and Struan Otter]

to the Hive on 9 Dec (£tbc). Keep a lookout for Sileni supporting Underling at their as-yet-unconfirmed Album Launch Party. Continuing the underground theme, the former Left Bank, now GRV, welcomes Sola Perplexus’ vocal team-up, Double Helix, for their fi rst live set at Wonky Wallpaper, an experimental/audio-visual night, where they will showcase their mix of subterranean dubstep, hip-hop and headfuck electronics. This one’s been a while coming (GRV, 21 Dec, £tbc).

Shutting down Edinburgh for the festive season are the ever-interesting Obscene crew – their Christmas special will feature hip-hop, crazy mashup weirdness, some baile funk and B-more alongside the usual d’n’b shenanigans (Club Ego, 22 Dec, £cheap). Over on the west coast, we’re not hearing any rumblings... our advice? Head to one of Glasgow’s many regular hip-hop jams and ask someone there what’s cracking. You could start at Killer Kitsch (The Buff Club, Tuesdays, £3/4), move on to Freakmoves (The Art School, Thursdays, £3/£4) and finish up at Party Groove (Miso, Saturdays, Free). With acts like Snafu, Dema & Nice, and Boom Monk Ben serving up the breaks, you’ll soon be more in the loop than your humble correspondent. Peace y’all – keep it Jeezy. [Trank Sinatra]

THE HOUSE OF TECHNO There’s no point in me recommending New Year nights out, as New Year is the only time your neighbours can’t actually complain about the bloody racket coming from your speakers and the intensely grinning guests who keep knocking on their door and asking if they have any more drugs. Actually, sod it, you can do that after DJ Funk @ Numbers (Glasgow Art School, 31 Jan, 10pm4am, £23+bf). We’ve been feeling our presents though and How’s Your Party? have a delightful stocking filler in their Baltimore Bass Connection night on 6 Dec, with Diplo’s mate XXXChange swinging by the Subby to rock it out with Devlin and Darko and Jackmaster (11pm-3am, £3/£5). Radioclit will be joining them on 20 Dec, and a week after that Graeme Park will be rocking out on the wheels of steel, celebrating twenty years of Hacienda... yada yada, you know who he is. A quick grope of Kinky Afro’s offering suggests something very, very big, with Soma main-man Jim Hutchinson spinning alongside Rustie, Alex Smoke, and what feels like London’s very finest Dubstep producer (Subclub, 28th 11pm-3am, £tbc). He’s just dropped his second album Untrue, and has so far managed to keep his identity a closely guarded secret...

Wrapped up in a lovely ribbon at Death Disco on 15 Dec is Erol Alkan, along with Shitdisco (The Arches, 11pm-4am, £12). I know who I’d rather find in my stockings. Make Tronic’s Xmas card list and get invited to see Satellite Dub for free at Tronic’s fi nal show at the 13th Note on 21 Dec (9pm-late, free), whilst the Electric Eliminators offer Skream and Sgt Pokes for a mere 8 bones (10.30pm-3am, Glasgow Art School, 14 Dec, £8).

That’s as good as turkey with all the trimmings. [Liam Arnold]

www.skinnymag.co.uk

BEATS

Robert Owens:

clubbing

Boxcutter

Skream

“It has helped in shaping me as a human being, growing up in these different environments; growing up in the urban ghetto where life was a constant struggle with different situations - overcoming adversities - and coming out the other side a stronger person.”

Speaking of ghetto life, Owens is also known for his involvement with the legendary Crips and Black Panthers. He performed at parties with them and witnessed them put aside their political and social differences to celebrate music together. “A lot of my family members were involved with the gangs around both Chicago and L A so I never felt threatened.

Being an insider in the gangs and younger than a lot of people in it, I felt protected by them, and they also seemed to like me, and saw something in me that I had not seen in myself yet. We used to have block parties and basement parties... we charged fi ve dollars to get in and gangs from all around the area would put their differences aside and unite under the spirit of music. This was before the days of house and I would be playing RnB, ballads and soulful things.”

By luck, he met with producer Harri Dennis a nd ended up worki ng on a track ca l led Donny with Harri and Chip E, which soon became hot property on dancefloors. His winning streak was just beginning, and the next week he found himself working with Larry Heard aka Mr Fingers, supplying vocals for Mysteries of Love. They went on to form their own group called Fingers Inc, touring the UK with Marshall Jefferson and releasing Another Side, arguably one of the fi rst albums of the burgeoning house scene, in 1988.

feature prominently, which Owens puts down to his writing being a “reflection of past experiences”. He explains: “I meet a lot of people and I’m influenced by conversations I have with them. I feel it is important that if you can convey some of your experiences then you may be able to touch someone or help them with the same experiences.”

How does Owens think the Chicago house scene would have evolved or survived without the vocal aspect? “It probably would have survived. If you look at the present day with the minimal thing going on now it has a lot of similarities to the old rhythmic house from Chicago. It has just evolved into a new format; it is like another extension of the early house rhythms. But I think vocals are the heart of the situation, the emotional part of the song, but music and rhythms can move you in the same way as vocals can do. But where would we be without a song! A song is vitally important to keep the whole genre of house alive.”

Owens recently performed at a number of Bacardi events, including T in the Park and Oxegen Festival, and describes them as amazing experiences: “You are getting mainstream people, families and perhaps even your doctor all coming together and descending on the Bacardi tent!” Even if you managed to miss out on the Chicago house scene in its heyday and his material released every year since 1986, you’ve probably heard Robert Owens’ silky emotive voice on more recent tracks; Walk a Mile in My Shoes with Coldcut for example. Does he ever see his workload slowing down in the future? “I hope not! I think you have to keep going on everything, trying to keep giving from your soul as long as you are able to. I feel lucky that people are still receptive to my thoughts and my music.”

KEEP YOUR EYES LOCKED ON COMPOST RECORDS AND THE SKINNY REVIEWS FOR OWENS’ NEW ALBUM, ENTITLED NIGHT TIME STORIES, WHICH IS SCHEDULED FOR RELEASE IN LATE JANUARY, AND READ THE SKINNY

Although the coalition did not last (“circumstances at the time forced us to take different avenues”), Owens was invited to work with Satoshi Tomiie, Frankie Knuckles and David Morales, operating under the Def Mix guise, and produced the legenda r y Tea rs. More hits followed, and they featured on Owens’ own album in 1990, Rhythm in Me. Later down the line Owens started moving into newer territory, and sought to combine house music with live instrumentation. He is playing with Larry Heard in Japan soon, and he has been asked to sing on a new track by Heard: “It’s not over till the fat lady sings... he is part of my origins and my humble beginnings.”

We move on to the subject of the music i ndustr y, a nd Owens remains positive: “The best thing you can acquire is your communicative skills and being open and f lexible to working with new people and within new genres... this refl ects in some of the paths I have taken with my music - downtempo, drum and bass, and house... even a bit rock when I worked with the bass player from Pink Floyd.” One thing that has remained fairly constant is the themes that crop up in his vocals. Human relationships and interactions

LISTINGS FOR INFO ON HIS PLANNED TOUR NEXT YEAR. WWW.COMPOST-REC.COM, WWW.MN2S.COM, WWW.BACARDI.COM

“I THINK YOU HAVE TO KEEP GOING ON EVERYTHING, TRYING TO KEEP GIVING FROM YOUR SOUL AS LONG AS YOU ARE ABLE TO” DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

39

Speakeasy With Style

by Penny Green

CLUB IN COMFORT AT CABARET VOLTAIRE’S BRAND NEW ROOM...

Cabaret Voltaire has been the beating heart of the Edinburgh clubbing map for the last two and a bit years. But some might argue they’ve had an easy ride on the popularity wagon, being one of only a handful of credible underground music venues in Edinburgh. However, things are taking a turn in the capital’s nightlife landscape, with two new live music venues - Voodoo Rooms and GRV - opening in November and the Cab upping the stakes and making its clubbers a little more comfortable with the addition of its new room, the Speakeasy.

available from the bar, plus complimentary mixers, and - wait for it - real glass glasses.

The Speakeasy is a space that could easily fit 500 but the Cabaret Voltaire’s capacity will be increasing only by 120. Gone are the days of sore feet and squashed, overheating clubbers; the Speakeasy will simply facilitate more space to party in - in style.

But where does the music figure in all of this?

A soundsystem, hooked up to downstairs, will pipe tunes up but a full acoustic rig will give it a life of its own. With Roisin Murphy opening the room on 30 November and special one-off acoustic nights, the Speakeasy is the right setting within Cabaret Voltaire for a more intimate gig. “This is all about making the building more multi-functional,” says Sarah. “The Speakeasy has natural daylight so we are opening up the use of the room to all kinds of art exhibitions, book readings, and bringing the Cab back to life in the daytime too.

Sarah David of Cabaret Voltaire explains: “As you get older there are certain things that you require on a night out. It’s not really because as you hit thirty you suddenly like Westlife, it’s the fact you actually want to go to a gig or club, have a seat, talk to your mates, even order the occasional real martini and still enjoy good music.” The Speakeasy accommodates those night-owls who have been put off by crowded venues with dripping walls and have begun to stay at home, so it takes something pretty special to coax them out. Sarah rightly points out: “You can’t get these things in an underground venue anymore: there’s been a horrible move in venues towards plastic interiors, LED lighting and run-of-the-mill club nights which are stifling the experience of going out. I think clubbers’ expectations are constantly getting higher and it’s important for an underground venue like the Cab to cater to their needs.”

All fittings in the Speakeasy are hand-made, the floor is inlaid with copper, oak, and black glass, a sunken booth and table is a main feature of the room and the bar will be fully stocked with cocktail ingredients and tended by high-end professional barristas. On top of this, Speakeasy goers will enjoy free preclub table bookings so you can guarantee a seat, table service and whole bottles of spirits

“CLUBBERS’ EXPECTATIONS ARE CONSTANTLY GETTING HIGHER AND IT’S IMPORTANT FOR AN UNDERGROUND VENUE LIKE THE CAB TO CATER TO THEIR NEEDS”

“The underground scene is so vibrant,” Sarah continues. “It’s really important that we take stock of what is happening around us, and the way people are clubbing and realise we aren’t getting ‘old’; there are scenes that haven’t always been our thing.” While it’s obvious from the queues and the dancefloors that there are more than enough clubbers to go around in Edinburgh, it’s also obvious that having a choice of where to go is no longer just defined by the DJ or the gig; the setting is becoming an increasingly large factor in a clubber’s decision.

Just as venues will offer indie nights, metal gigs and nu-rave/electro-clash/mash-up nights, owners are understanding that it won’t do anymore to just jam us into a sweaty room and turn up the volume. The Edinburgh night-life industry may be small, but the next few months will undoubtedly prove that is not lacking in style.

WWW.THECABARETVOLTAIRE.COM

Jae P:

Coming Up

by Omar Jenning

THE SKINNY GATHERS GOOD TIDINGS FROM GLASGOW’S RISING HIP-HOP ARTIST, JAE P

This year has been a busy one for Jae P: re- mined he is to build a strong brand of quality cording and performing to promote himself music. High profile British artists have also and his forthcoming Unsigned & Hungry Vol been impressed with Jae P’s efforts and Grime 1 EP, he has solidified his position as a top Godfather Wiley recently booked him for a emcee coming straight out of G-Town (that’s support slot at his only Scottish date.

Glasgow for those not on the hip side of the fence). As well as writing and producing, Growing up between England, Glasgow, and Ghana, Jae P’s inf luJae P also boasts the ences are d iverse, i nd ep e nd e nt l a b e l Haatsville Records, and he prides himself “I REMEMBER I WENT TO on h i s mu lticu lt u ra l wh ich w i l l relea se SEE KANYE WEST ABOUT upbringing: “I tr y to the dow n load- on ly TWO YEARS AGO AT THE EP. use the multicultural CARLING ACADEMY. ONE inf luence I’ve had in 2 0 07 h a s b e e n a MOMENT I’M IN THE CROWD my music... the style, beats, lyrics and all.” t u r n i n g p o i n t fo r AND THE NEXT I’M PART OF Jae P, who was preHIS ONLY SUPPORT ACT...” viously discouraged Things are falling into and doubtful of his pl a ce a nd t h i s m ay just be the time for Gprospects of obtaining respect and making a living solely from Town to step into the hip-hop mainstream. Jae producing and writing rhymes. The rapper P’s first single - titled You Don’t Even Know recently supported multi-platinum acts Akon My Name - will be released on 3 December and Kanye West and also appeared at the G- through iTunes. It stands out through Jae P’s Unit after-party in Glasgow alongside Lloyd clear storytelling ability. Only time will tell Banks and Tony Yayo, where he proved his if Jae P can live up to the promise of an outstage presence and his ability to shine along- standing year but it seems his time is coming. side the stars as a top-notch UK act.

“Things are going really well, I have been ap“I remember I went to see Kanye West about proached by a few labels for various deals, and two years ago first at the Carling Academy. have signed up with a new management comTo think I was in the crowd at one point and pany,” Jae P says. “I have been producing and then to be part of his only support act on his writing rhymes for over ten years and this year Edinburgh date was an incredible feeling and has made it all worth it!” an amazing experience,” beams Jae P. Noone who witnessed the mayhem he caused ALSO CHECK OUT OUR REVIEW OF UNSIGNED & HUNGRY at the Kanye gig would dispute how deter- VOL. 1 BY JAE P, WWW.SKINNYMAG.CO.UK

40 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

BEATS

EDINBURGH FEDDE LE GRAND

STEREOTYPE MOTEL, LIQUID ROOM, 8 DEC Another highly regarded international guest checks into Stereotype Motel: Fedde Le Grand has enjoyed massive commercial success over the last two years and promises a set to remember here. After a successful season on the ‘white isle’ he was recently voted breakthrough DJ at the Ibiza Awards 2007 and his upcoming album is tipped to top the charts. With recent releases such as his soulful Ida Corr remix on heavy rotation on turntables the world over, this is an excellent chance to see one of the biggest names in house music today. Edinburgh veteran Huggy will provide the support and the legendary Liquid Room crowd will undoubtedly provide Fedde with a legendary reception.

Stereotype Motel: recommended with no reservations.

[Murray Ainslie] 10PM-3AM, £12+BF WWW.TICKETS-SCOTLAND.COM

DIXON

TROUBLE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, 7 DEC “A kindred spirit,” as promoter Andrew Richardson describes him; Berlin’s Steffen ‘Dixon’ Berkhahn makes his Edinburgh debut at December’s Trouble. Starting out playing d`n`b with the Atari Teenage Riot soundsystem, he broke away as his passion for playing house music grew, going on to play legendary clubs Tresor and E-Werk.

In ‘96 he started his own Audio Video Disco night, its popularity establishing him as a key figure in the German house scene. Nowadays Dixon’s famed for his muchrespected Innervisions label and a residency at Berlin’s 12th floor Club, Weekend, while his mix for Get Physical’s Body Language series was one of 2007’s finest. [Colin Chapman]

porting. For anyone looking to blow away the mid-winter blues, this night could be just the thing as rhythm fights for space with some of Edinburgh’s best MCs in contemporary rap. This event also kicks off Northern Xposure’s New Year programme, which takes in a date with DJ IQ at The Caves on 25 Jan. Further events are to be announced as acts and dates are confirmed. [Jonathan Robert Muirhead] 11PM, £10 HTTP://WWW.MYSPACE.COM/NRXPO

GLASGOW DIVERSION

11PM - 3AM, £6/£8

THE CLASSIC GRAND, 15 DEC

WWW.GETINTOTROUBLE.COM

Spawned from their resentment towards greedy promoters who charge punters excessive sums to see their favourite DJs play for short sets, Diversion is the anti-club night we’ve all been waiting for. Situated in an old cinema, the still-young Saturday evening spot at The Classic Grand offers dirty beats coupled with bargain prices on entry and drinks and the odd freebie to boot.

Adhering to a strict policy of twisted electro and fidgety house, a great atmosphere and the occasional smattering of techno and breaks will be present. Resident DJs Dirty Basement and Elliot Castro crank out some seriously filthy tunes and a soiree of fun and frolics is a given.

Put on your best frock and hop to it. [Emily Foister]

WWW.THECABARETVOLTAIRE.COM

MORGAN’S SPICED CLUB WITH HEXSTATIC, HUGGY AND MASH KICKS OFF ON 1 DEC

Club promoters and rum darlings Morgan’s Spiced have just announced their Out Of The Ordinary December to February club line-up, a roster which is guaranteed to warm the hearts of discerning club-goers in the capital.

The programme kicks off on 1 Dec with Hexstatic, Huggy and Mash, all convening for an evening of beats and grooves at Medina. Next up is The Caves on 22 Dec, which plays host to the Scratch Perverts, Eddy TempleMorris and acid house legend Dave Haslam, with the winter programme being brought to a close on 23 Feb at Medina with Simian Mobile Disco and the XFM DJs at the wheels of steel. Further dates and details are yet to be confirmed, so keep your eyes peeled for further details, or visit the website. [Jonathan Robert Muirhead] VARIOUS VENUES, EDINBURGH. 1 DEC-23 FEB WWW.MORGANSSPICED.CO.UK

MEGAMAN, SO SOLID CREW, & NORTHERN XPOSURE THE CAVES, EDINBURGH, 30 DEC

Prominent Edinburgh club promoters and performers Northern Xposure have just announced the line-up for the latest event they will be appearing at: Megaman and So Solid Crew will be headlining with the local group sup-

11PM-3AM, £8

HUNTLEY PILOOSKI AND PALMERS ‘AUDIO CLUB

HETHERINGTON RESEARCH CLUB, UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW, 8 DEC Some dens of debauchery designed for students and their friends have that little something extra to offer other than cheesy student nights, which is definitely the case with the Hetherington Research Club; two flats converted into a venue boasting some of the best underground nights in Glasgow and a growing reputation.

The Huntley and Palmers Audio Club will be making its debut this month, featuring the talents of rising DJ star Pilooski, the Parisian producer and DJ who mainly makes edits of other songs, such as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ Beggin, as well as collaborating with techno producers Krikor and Pentile to produce excel-

BEATS

PREVIEWS

lent disco diamonds. The support on the night will be provided by Jamie Thomson of the now infamous Traxx night in Glasgow. This night joins the expanding roster of regular and irregular nights on at the Hetherington.

Read our full feature online. [Sean McNamara] 9PM-2AM, £7

MANU LE MALIN, HELLFISH & MIKE DRED, IMPACT VS TWISTED & BRAINFIRE THE SOUNDHAUS, GLASGOW, 8 DEC

A follow up to the complete sell-out appearance of The Horrorist and The Producer last time round, the market for intense and frankly downright evil dance music is well and truly cornered here. With techno, hardcore, acid, drum’n’bass and gabba all accounted for, there will be more nastiness crammed into this one venue than the average human could withstand without fear of a highBPM-induced aneurysm. The supporting DJs are enough to moisten the palates of even the most dedicated and depraved dancefloor devotees. But with special guests of the calibre promised here they’ll be frying their attention spans in a effort to catch a piece of each set. This is not for the faint hearted. [Jack McFarlane] TIME TBC, £10+BF

SLAM, AUDION (LIVE), JD TWITCH AND JG WILKES (OPTIMO), FUNK D’VOID PRESSURE, THE ARCHES, 28 DEC

It’s difficult to convince people to go out in the week between Christmas and Hogmanay, when nobody has any money to spare. This month’s Pressure aims to change that with an exciting lineup. Glasgow native Funk D’Void will be there to keep the crowd moving with a hybrid of house and techno, as will Optimo DJs Twitch and Wilkes who, having just celebrated the tenth anniversary of their institutional club night, can seemingly do no wrong at the moment. Also appearing will be Audion, the darker alter ego of producer Matthew Dear, who has been busy of late with an accessible techno album under his real name and recent monsters Mouth To Mouth and Noiser released as Audion. The night is rounded off with Slam, the duo who are never more at home than behind the decks at Pressure. Be sure to put aside some pennies for what promises to be a fantastic night. [Scott Ramage] 10.30PM-3AM, £15

Dixon

www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

41

ALBUM REVIEWS EXAMPLE

WHAT WE MADE (THE BEATS) It comes as some surprise to l e a r n t h a t th i s a l b u m i s the work of one m a n, s o f u l l on does it sound. The toughness of the music is offset well by the street poetry lyrics. There’s an obvious hunger at work here, both to succeed and to get the point across. With rhymes rolled over a nice fat backing bassline accompanied by a throbbing horn section being a good summation of the album’s overall sound, it flows together very well, sweeping you up as it does so. This explains why its lyrics on growing up, pain, etc, are so dark and sensual. Example’s background as a garage MC shows through here, in his rigorous rounding up of all the disparate sounds into a coherent whole - all of which makes for naggingly addictive listening.

[Jonathan Robert Muirhead] OUT NOW

VARIOUS ARTISTS

FORESIGHT (CASUAL RECORDS) Casual Records’ new compilation Foresight is self-described as grassroots music from a collection of artists scattered across the urban music board. Representing from across the UK to Amsterdam, Casual attempt to bring some of the freshest artists from the scene to the attention of those of us who don’t spend countless hours searching through monotonous MySpace pages, scouring various venues for sub-par open mic nights or show up late for gigs and miss a memorable supporting act. Songs such as Bigger Than Us from The Heard and Somewhere 2 Go by Miss Camille typify all that is organic about British Soul. Foresight has plenty of rapping for the hip-hop heads, but rarely is it tolerable and tends to be difficult to digest. One shining moment comes from the social commentary found on Libation by Black Britanyaa which features renowned soul crooner Omar. Casual Records’ inability to find a balance is their only flaw for what is to be an exciting future brand of music. [Omar Jenning] RELEASE DATE: 17 DEC

SINGLE REVIEWS

VARIOUS ARTISTS MIXED BY STEVE BUG FABRIC37 (FABRIC RECORDS)

Steve Bug is without doubt one of the key pioneers of the minimal techno scene that has engulfed major clubs over the last couple of years. When he released a compilation called Da Minimal Funk over a decade ago, he clearly had an eye on the future.

Here we find him creating another compilation, this time for the Fabric series, which has been going from strength to strength recently and is now seen as one of the strongest compilation series available. This one is no different, with a selection of minimal grooves and beats massaged together by Bug. The mix begins with a laidback feel on tracks such as Anywhere You Are and In the Wall by Peace Division. As the mix moves towards its centre, it is clear that minimal is not the only style on the menu. Swirling hypnotic riffs merge into ethereal melodies as the mix gathers cohesion. More minimalism returns in the likes of Mikael Stavöstrand and Lee Curtis before the album finishes with some synth-heavy, futuristic beats just as the 5am feeling takes over with final track Red Doggy by Gui.tar. [Sean McNamara] OUT NOW

DONNACHA COSTELLO COLORSERIES (MINIMISE)

With a predilection for vintage analogue machinery and an ear for ingratiating melodies, Johnny Marr’s favourite DJ finally delivers some of his finest tunes on CD. The ten Colorseries records were originally released in quick succession on vinyl back in 2004, with each coloured disc suggesting a different mood, emotional timbre and sphere of influences. Despite the nods to everything from Plastikman to The Orb, from Basic Channel to Tangerine Dream, Colorseries never sounds disjointed, and manages to unite compelling beats and grinding

bass with splashes of colour and swathes of ambience. This ten track CD collects the finest cuts from eight of the series, doubling up on Grape and offering an unreleased cut from the Cocoa sessions.

Sadly there’s nothing from Green and no chance to hear Olive’s wonky pitch-bend reverberations, but Pistachio’s churning bass and Blue’s off-kilter take on euphoric balearic sounds are heady trips into minimalism that any techno fan should hear. Deceptively simple in their construction, the likes of Cocoa and Orange borrow their structures from Kompakt and subtly fuck with sounds to create dense, dreamlike textures guaranteed to send shivers down the spine. From the tectonic density of Rubine Red to the sunkissed psychadelica of Pistachio A, Colorseries pushes the boundaries of minimalism and proves that there’s still far more to be done with analogue. Despite being a three-year-old collection of tracks, Colorseries sounds fresh and vital; the kind of emotive and intoxicating techno that Supermayer should have been. [Liam Arnold]

DAVE ARMSTRONG & REDROCHE FEAT H-BOOGIE LOVE HAS GONE

(HED KANDI)

From the moment the first note leaves the stereo, one thing is abundantly clear – this is a quality acid house track, with throbbing rhythm and wacky synth shapes that jump out at you.

Its tempo and wham-bam drum sound speeds the heart rate - it is a very colourful record, the sound shooting out of the speakers and grabbing you by the throat. At the end, you should feel exhausted, dehydrated and supremely elated.

This is pure, undiluted house music, its sole purpose to make you dance until your feet are burned red raw.

[Jonathan Robert Muirhead] RELEASE DATE: 7 JAN

WRETCH 32 PUNCTUATION

(NAUGHTY BOY RECORDINGS)

OUT NOW

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 45:33

(DFA/EMI Records) 4 5:3 3 i s t h e somewhat bizarre result of a collaboration bet ween LCD and the sports giant Nike. James Murphy had publicly stated that he wanted to make a long-form record similar to E2-E4 by Manuel Göttschingand.

After some discussion with Nike, Murphy jumped at the opportunity to make something a bit different that was not connected to his studio material. 45:33 was created as a companion for joggers, and as such the mix rises and falls in tempo in a similar way to the average person’s ability to run. Blending funk, soul and LCD, it’s a great listen; the voiceless ve r s i o n of S o m e o n e G r e at a particular highlight. North American Scum is the most ‘LCD’ track on 45:33, with its fast paced electro beats, while Freak Out/Starry Eyes is an uplifting funky, trumpet driven number with a percussion section that is perfect for motivating coach potatoes. [Franck Martin]

FEATURED ALBUM

Wretch 32 proclaims himself to be an Edutainer, spreading entertainment with a message. North London’s hottest prospect for next year has been recognised

by BBC 1xtra after anointing him the title Most Street Heat for his first mixtape, Teacher’s Training Day. Continuing down the path of l i te r a r y m u s i c l e s s o n s fo r all, Wretch 32 is set to teach us about Punctuation with his latest single from his first solo album Wretrospective, which is peppered with profound wordplay. The remix contains all of the original music, which is a montage of strings and piano-led samples, tightly woven around Southern snap beat drum patterns. [Omar Jenning] OUT NOW WWW.MYSPACE.COM/WRETCHCLART

THE GRID

PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER (SOME BIZARRE)

Some readers may remember The Grid (Dave Ball and Richard Norris) from their 1993

top three hit Swamp Thing, and, nearly fifteen years since they released any music, they’re back with the single Put Your Hands Together, the first release from the album Doppelganger (due for release early 2008). Unfortunately after over a decade away from the studio, their st yle of electronica has barely changed. Acid synths combined with a thumping bassline and rave beats make for a very dated sound, made worse by the downright terrible vocals. Only suitable for those old-skool cheesy quavers looking for a step back into the mid-nineties. [Karen Taggart]

42 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

(KEAN AUDIO) 2

CAN’T STOP MOVING (STATESIDE RECORDS)

OUT NOW

OUT NOW

SONNY J

HWWW.THEHAVEX.CO.UK

This is a laidback, euphoric treat that hits all the right notes to get ever y d a nc ef l o o r o n the planet flooded. While on one level it’s just a bit too insubstantial, on another it makes for perfect ear candy. This is emphasised by the lovely orchestral sample which kicks in every so often. Sounds like this make for easy comparisons with The Avalanches, in the way that samples blissfully combine and collide with original sounds. The live, energetic sounds on display here also bode well for the act’s forthcoming tour. [Jonathan Robert Muirhead] OUT NOW WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SONNYJMUSIC

SATELLITE DUB

LONDON HAS MORE LIGHTS (SATELLITE DUB)

Finally making it onto carbon copy, London Has More Lights is a riotous piece of soaring space-rock that crashes through your living room, landing in showers of sparks and explosions of percussion. Intricate and subtle without ever losing the euphoric, futuristic feel, this is one of Satellite Dub’s finest works to date. If Moby or the Chemical Brothers had recorded this, they’d be able to buy their own continent.

[Liam Arnold] OUT NOW. AVAILABLE THROUGH WWW. MYSPACE/SATELLITEDUB AT £1.39.

TERMITE

1. BURIAL - ARCHANGEL (HYPERDUB) Intelligently constructed 2-step beat, with atmospheric, emotionally stirring sounds.

2. AQUASKY - LORDS OF MOTION

Dubstep has come to the fore in Edinburgh and Glasgow over the last year or two, establishing itself as the genre of choice for those who favour intelligent dance music. Scene leader Burial’s second full-length album Untrue eschews the drop-heavy digital ska of Tempa and Hot Flush artists, such as Skream and Scuba, in favour of blessed-out synths and subtle 2-step. Archangel drifts along with a filtered and processed male vocal riding a broken beat, Burial’s trademark pops and clicks running as a gentle counterpoint to the looped, garage-influenced samples. The quieter tracks (Ghost Hardware, In McDonalds) evoke the grey, eroded urban scenes of Burial’s native London, confirming his position as the foremost atmospheric chronicler of the modern citysprawl. Influences include classic garage and bassline house, and serve to round out the evocative, delicately textured vocals: you could call Untrue a coffee-table dubstep album – as much influenced by 4 Hero and

DON’T THINK ABOUT SEX

T h e H a v e x a r e m a r ke te d a s ‘Scotland’s newest dance act’ with this debut track supposedly featuring their style of ‘audio Viagra’. This is actually a very cheesy, disco-pop track, instructing the listener to not think about sex (while pressed up against singer Tilly Brook’s chest).

If fun, throwaway euro-style dance tracks are your thing then this will cater for all your needs, but if you’re into something a bit harder or more credible, then best steer clear. The burlesque-inspired video is certainly worth a watch however, no matter what your musical preference. [Karen Taggart]

DJ CHART:

BURIAL – UNTRUE (HYPERDUB)

THE HAVEX

Don’t think about sex

TERMITE IS THE PROMOTER AND RESIDENT DJ OF OBSCENE AND VOLUME, PLAYING THE FRESHEST MUSIC SHE CAN LAY HER HANDS ON - EVERYTHING FROM JUNGLE, DNB, DUBSTEP, BAILE FUNK, GRIME, RIGHT THE WAY UP TO REGGAE & DANCEHALL.

6. MORPHY - SAMFIE MAN (HORIZONS) Glasgow’s very own Morphy is pushing the boundaries with this melted sound of half-speed jungle and dub.

(SONIX RECORDINGS)

A timeless track. Tough drums, dark techy sounds... goes down a treat everytime.

the ghostly beats of Massive Attack as those of his dubstep peers. This is no bad thing – although there are few tracks here with heavy, dancefloor-oriented drops, Untrue is nonetheless an album that will appeal to dubsteppers and the post-club chillout crowd alike.

In particular, the title track and Raver stand out, with a timeless, ethereal beauty to their fragile structures.

Found sounds that recall broken lighters, twisted rizlas and guttering match flames evoke a wasted smoker’s paradise: a beautifully stoned, 4am bliss.

[Bram Gieben] OUT NOW

3. CASPA - COCKNEY VIOLIN (DUB POLICE) A fusion of sounds – traditional strings with a wobbly bassline, proving how versatile dubstep can be.

4. BLOCKHEAD - INSOMNIACS OLYMPICS (NINJA TUNE) As soon as the distorted vocal begins you realise this is a thought-provoking track which leaves the hairs standing on the back of your neck.

5. MILANESE - CARAMEL COGNAC (PLANET MU) Milanese impresses us once again with this pounding, marching beat, which is complemented by an easy-to-digest vocal.

7. PLASTICIAN FT SHIZZLE, FAESH + NAPPER - CHA VOCAL (PLANET MU) Grimey vocals over a riding bassline. Set to cause a riot!

8. PARANOISE OPTIMAL - HUNTER (UNSIGNED) Breaks that could kill, enchanted vocals – a fine example of well-constructed neurofunk.

9. AARON SPECTRE - SAY MORE FIRE (RAG ‘N’ BONE) Offensive, dirty basslines with the ‘amen’ break thrown in for good measure -a jaw dropping tune.

10. HANDSOME BOY MODELLING SCHOOL FT CAR POWER - I’VE BEEN THINKING (NOVA RECORDS) Deep, sensual, sexy vocals with a heartfelt bass over a powerful, sublime hip-hop beat.

WWW.MYSPACE.COM/BURIALUK

BEATS

BEATS www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

43

LISTINGS ARTS

RECOAT GALLERY

GLASGOW CCA

MOVES, OPENENDED GROUP, Exploring the relationships between choreography, space, human movement and technology SAT 24 NOV – SAT 12 JAN, 11:00 AM–18:00, Mon-Fri, Free

COLLINS GALLERY

COLLINS’ CHRISTMAS MARKET, EVENT, A 4-day wonder for festive shoppers! FRI 30 NOV – MON 03 DEC, Extended opening hours, Fri-Mon, Free

KIRSTY WHITEN, SOLO SHOW, 16 pieces by one of

BLIND FAITH: CONTEMPORARY ART AND HUMAN RIGHTS, GROUP SHOW, Artists Anne Elliot, Lisa Fleming and Jane McInally have been working with young people from Restorative Justice and drivers from Glasgow Taxis to develop new work exploring sectarianism, identity, nation and territorialism. MON 15 OCT – SUN 20 JAN, 10:00(monthu)/11:00(fri-sun)–17:00(fri-wed)/20:00(thur), Mon-Sun, Free

GLASGOW PRINT STUDIO

SORCHA DALLAS

SAT 01 DEC – SAT 26 JAN, 11:00–17:00, Tue-Sat, Free

EDINBURGH PRINTMAKERS

TRAVERSE THEATRE

REMAKE/REMODEL, GROUP SHOW, Group Show

STREET LEVEL PHOTOWORKS

MARJOLAINE RYLEY , RE_SIDENCE ASTRAL , Marjolaine RyleyÕs work explores ideas of memory, history, familial relationships and archival narratives.

SAT 03 NOV – SAT 22 DEC, 12:00–17:00, Thur-Sat, Free

STUDIO WAREHOUSE, 100 EASTVALE PLACE

SPREZZATURRA MAZE, GROUP SHOW, Apparel,

THE BURRELL COLLECTION

CRAWHALL 2007: REYNARD THE FOX, JOSEPH CRAWHALL, features ten watercolours illustrating the medieval fable of Reynard the Fox SAT 20 OCT – SUN 03 FEB, 10:00(mon,thur,sat)/11:00(Fri/Sun)–17:00, Mon-Sun, Free

THE LIGHTHOUSE

THE WEIRDING AND THE UNCANNY, GROUP SHOW, Incorporates a range of international artists using digital video, photography, painting, drawing, and sculpture to explore notions of utopia and dystopia, mystery and the uncanny. SAT 01 DEC – FRI 14 DEC, 10:00–21:00(Mon-Thur), 19:00(Fri), 17:00(Sat, Sun), Mon-Sun, Free

GLASGOW SCULPTURE STUDIOS

STUART GURDEN & NINA LOLA BACHHUBER, GROUP SHOW, new work by Glasgow based artist Stuart Gurden and New York based artist Nina Lola Bachhuber. THU 08 NOV – SAT 08 DEC, 09:00–21:00, Sat-Sat, Free

the UK’s most distinguished architecture practices SAT 03 NOV – SUN 10 FEB, 10:30(mon,wed-sat)/11:00(tue)/ 12:00(sun)–17:00, Mon-Sun, £3(£1.50)

GLASGOW 1999 DESIGN MEDAL 2007, GROUP SHOW, An opportunity to see work by a new

produce quasi-cartographic documents of the city of Glasgow TUE 04 DEC – SAT 08 DEC, 11:00–17:00, MonSun, Free

UBU

THE AESTHETICS OF SPACE, GROUP SHOW,

EDINBURGH CITY ART CENTRE

SEEING DRAGONS IN THE CLOUDS, VARIOUS,

COLLECTIVE GALLERY

JASON NELSON, SOLO SHOW, Part of the New

Work Scotland programme SAT 24 NOV – SAT 22 DEC, 12:00–17:00, Tue-Sat, Free BROWN BAG LUNCHES, GALLERY EVENT, Visit MARKET GALLERY the gallery during lunchbreak for deli snadwiches and CONVULSIVE ILLUSTRATION, GROUP SHOW, FRI 09 NOV – SAT 08 DEC, 12:00–18:00, Tue-Sat, Free artist talks. 13:00, Tues work with daily performances. SAT 13 DEC – MON 15 DEC, Times vary, Thurs-Sat, Free

MODERN INSTITUTE

CORN EXCHANGE GALLERY

by the LA based sculptor SAT 24 NOV – SAT 05 JAN, 11:00–17:00, Tue-Sat

tapestry by students on ECA’s MA course FRI 30 NOV – SAT 22 DEC, 11:00–16:30, Tue-Sat, Free

THOMAS HOUSEAGO, SOLO SHOW, Solo show

MA STUDENT, GROUP SHOW, Sculpture, drawing,

PROJECT ABILITY (MONO)

DOGGERFISHER

TUE 04 DEC – MON 31 DEC, Times vary, Mon-Sun, Free

25 OCT – SAT 22 DEC, 11:00(wed-fri)/12:00(sat)– 18:00(wed-fri)17:00(sat), Wed-Sat, Free

FUNDRAISING CONCERT/ EXHIBITION, GROUP ILANA HALPERIN, SOLO SHOW, New work by SHOW, Exhibition and gig, featuring Teenage Fanclub one of the Skinny’s favourite Doggerfisher artists THU

44 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

large variety artists on sale for the holiday season SAT 17 NOV – SAT 22 DEC, 10:00–18:00, Tue-Sat, Free

installation for the gallery from the Polish artist fresh from representing her country at the 2007 Venice Biennale SAT 27 OCT – SAT 08 DEC, 10:00–17:00, Tue-Sat, Free

REV. STUART JOHN MCCAFFER, New solo show SUN 07 OCT – SAT 01 DEC, 09:30(Mon-Fri, 10:30(Sat)– 00:00(Mon-Wed), 01:00(Thu-Sat), Mon-Sat, Free

FRUITMARKET GALLERY

ROMAN SIGNER, SOLO SHOW, Sculptures, installations and films that bring everyday objects together in unexpected ways. FRI 02 NOV – SUN 27 JAN, 11:00(mon-sat)/12:00(sun)–18:00(monsat)17:00(sun), Mon-Sun, Free

THEATRE

INGLEBY GALLERY

GLASGOW

MARINE HUGONNIER & MATTHIAS FAYOS, GROUP SHOW, Part of the year-long 10th birthday celebrations SAT 01 DEC – SAT 08 DEC, 10:00– 17:00:00, Mon-Sun, Free

CEAL FLOYER & DAN FLAVIN, GROUP SHOW, Part of the year-long 10th birthday celebrations SAT 15 DEC – SAT 22 DEC, 10:00–17:00:00, Mon-Sun, Free

INSTITUT FRANÇAIS D’ECOSSE

DAVE MICHAEL CLARKE AND MICHELLE Naismith: YŽ-YŽ, Group show, Scottish artists, French experience. Performance-based show. SAT 24 NOV – THU 10 JAN, Times vary–, MonSat, Free

INVERLEITH HOUSE

SMITH/STEWART, COLLABORATION, Sculpture, Glasgow-based artists FRI 02 NOV – SUN 20 JAN, 10:00–17:30, Tue-Sun, Free

ARCHES

WATER BABIES, ARCHES THEATRE COMPANY, panto WED 05 DEC – SUN 06 JAN, various, £7 / 4

CITIZENS THEATRE

PETER PAN, Panto SAT 01 DEC – SAT 05 JAN, various, £15 - 9.50

GILMOREHILL G12

SHOWCASE, STAG, Short plays about New Orleans Mardi Gras SAT 01 DEC 7.00pm, £15 - 8

KING’S THEATRE

SLEEPING BEAUTY, Panto SAT 01 DEC – FRI 12 JAN, various

MITCHELL THEATRE

GLASGOW GANG SHOW, SCOUTS & GUIDES ASSOCIATION, Crypto fascist fundraiser SAT 01 DEC

NATIONAL GALLERY OF SCOTLAND

– SAT 08 DEC, 7.15pm £9.50/5

JOAN EARDLEY, SOLO SHOW, Exhaustive

ORAN MOR

retrospective of the painter’s works, drawing and on canvas TUE 06 NOV – SUN 13 JAN, 10:00–18:00, Mon-Sun, Free

FLEETO, A PLAY, A PIE & A PINT, Illiad transposed to a tough Glasgow housing scheme SAT 01 DEC – SUN 02 DEC, 12.45pm£10

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND JERWOOD PRIZE 2007: JEWELLERY, GROUP SHOW, Discover a diverse and exciting collection

of contemporary pieces that push the boundaries of what jewellery is today. FRI 12 OCT – SUN 02 MAR, 10:00–17:00, Mon-Sun, £6(£5)

NATIONAL WAR MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND

COMMANDO COUNTRY, GROUP SHOW, Examining Scotland?s key role in forming Britain?s famous Commando forces – FRI 01 FEB, 09:45– 16:45, Mon-Sun, Free

OPEN EYE GALLERY

New work by four artists which explores the boundaries GROUP SHOW, GROUP SHOW, Including between art & architecture SUN 18 NOV – SAT 15 DEC, by unsettling paintings by Heather Nevay from 20 Oct – , 10:00–18:00(mon-fri)/16:00(sat), Mon-Sat, Free appointment

Ten British artists create fabulous work from the seemingly humdrum. SAT 24 NOV – SAT 12 JAN, HUNTERIAN 10:00/12:00(sun)–17:00, Mon-Sun, Free MY HIGHEST PLEASURES, GROUP SHOW, FRI 15 TEN DECADES, VARIOUS, Edinburgh College of Art JUN – MON 01 DEC, 09:30–17:30, Mon-Sat, Free Centenary Exhibition - a retrospective journey through KELVINGROVE ART GALLERY AND works of esteemed eca alumni and academics, MUSEUM including a 1952 life drawing of Sir Sean Connery SAT 27 OCT – SUN 20 JAN, 10:00/12:00(sun)–17:00, MonKYLIE THE EXHIBITION, GROUP SHOW, FRI 21 SEP – SUN 13 JAN, 10:00(Mon-Thu, Sat), 11:00 (Fri, Sun, Free Sun)–17:00, Mon-Sun, Free SCISSORS, PAPER, STONE, VARIOUS, An exhibition of innovative contemporary works by LOWSALT makers who live, work or trained in Edinburgh SAT 13 PLAIN SURFACE, ERICA EYRES, Showcasing OCT – WED 09 JAN, 10:00/12:00(sun)–17:00, Monsome of the city’s best drawing talent WED 28 NOV Sun, Free – MON 08 DEC, 12:00–17:00, Thurs-Sun, Free

JAMIE GRIER AND CONAL MCSTRAVICK, PERFORMANCE, An exhibition of new collaborative

WINTER EXHIBITION, GROUP SHOW, Work by

ARCHITECTURE 1956-87, GILLESPIE, KIDD & COIA, The first major retrospective of the work of one of film and installation from internationally renowned

generation of design talent SAT 10 NOV – SUN 13 JAN, WHAT I REALLY WANT FOR CHRISTMAS, 10:30(mon,wed-sat)/11:00(tue)/12:00(sun)–17:00, GROUP SHOW, Limited edition prints and books by Mon-Sun, Free a variety of artists, on sale as the perfect Christmas STUART HAYGARTH, SOLO SHOW, Stuart presents FRI 09 NOV – SUN 23 DEC, 10:00–17:30, Tue- Haygarth works on design projects that revolve around Sat, Free the collection of objects. SAT 01 DEC – SUN 24 FEB, 10:30(mon,wed-sat)/11:00(tue)/12:00(sun)–17:00, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART Mon-Sun, Free SOPHIE MORRISH, TRANSPARENT EYE, An TRANSMISSION exploration of our relationship to nature. TUE 20 NOV – SAT 15 DEC, 10:00–21:00(Mon-Thur), 19:00(Fri), LAWRENCE ABU HAMDAN WILL SAUNDERS 17:00(Sat, Sun), Mon-Sun, Free PROJECT, GROUP SHOW, Sonic art graduates

GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART NEWBURY GALLERY

MON 01 OCT – SAT 05 JAN, 10:00–18:00, Mon-Sat, Free

TALBOT RICE

SOLO SHOW, MONIKA SOSNOWSKA, an exciting new

drawing, installation from a variety of artists of different nationalities SAT 08 DEC – FRI 28 DEC, 12:00–18:00, revelealing aspects of the city SAT 24 NOV – FRI 21 DEC, Wed-Sun, Free 12:00 PM–17:00, Mon-Sat, Free THE ARCHES 100 PUNKS, JOHNNY DELUXE, Celebrating the 30th COMPASS GALLERY anniversary of punk Johnny Deluxe uses 18Ó x 24Ó THE COMPASS GALLERY CHRISTMAS SHOW, blown-up, original photobooth images of the young, GROUP SHOW, a huge selection of works by hopeful, beautiful and sometimes ugly generation of numerous artists from near and far - from recent Punk. SAT 10 NOV – MON 31 DEC, 10:00(mon-sat)/ graduates, to many of the most established and 12:00(Sun)–22:00, Mon-Sun, Free popular including a good selection of Compass

GLASGOW GALLERY OF MODERN ART

ART IN THE DARK, GROUP SHOW, Being shown at night and within a darkened space, ‘Art in the Dark’ is a site specific group exhibition combing works of video, sculpture and installation THU 06 DEC , 20:00–late, Thurs, Free

Scotland’s most sought-after young artists FRI 02 NOV – FRI 30 NOV, 12:00–20:00, Tue-Sun, Free

ALLAN LAWSON & STUART MACDONALD, TRACES AND TRAILS, Exhibition focussed on

Gallery’s regular exhibitors. FRI 23 NOV – THU 31 JAN, 10:00 AM–17:30, Mon-Sat, Free

EDINBURGH COLLEGE OF ART

OWL AND LION

CHRISTMAS SHOW, GROUP SHOW, showcase

PAVILION THEATRE

CINDERELLA, Panto SAT 01 DEC – SAT 26 JAN, various, £16/14/13

PLATFORM

WEE WITCHES, LICKETY SPIT, Children’s show WED 05 DEC – SUN 23 DEC, various, £7/5.50/3.50

TRON THEATRE

EETING BEAUTY: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE SPELL GOES WRONG, Panto SAT 01 DEC – SAT 06 JAN, various, £16.50 - 6

EDINBURGH BRUNTON THEATRE

CINDERELLA, Good gags are guaranteed in

of a range of emerging artists in a new gallery, studio and retail space dedicated to expanding the traditional notions of fine art and design. SAT 01 DEC – SAT 22 DEC, 10:00–18:00:00, Mon-Sun, Free

moonlighting Edinburgh Evening News Arts Editor Liam Rudden’s version of the panto staple SAT 01 DEC – SAT 29 DEC, various, £12.75/9.75

PORTRAIT GALLERY

IL BARBIERE DI SIGLIA, SCOTTISH OPERA, Rossini

DIETER APPELT | FORTH BRIDGE: CINEMA, METRIC SPACE, SOLO SHOW, Historical images juxtaposed with photomontage by the German artist TUE 02 OCT – SUN 25 NOV, 10:00–17:00:00, MonSun, £4(£3)

QUEEN’S GALLERY

FESTIVAL THEATRE

SAT 01 DEC , 2.15pm, £42 - 11

CHRISTMAS PARTY, SINGING KETTLE, children’s show WED 05 DEC – SAT 08 DEC, various–, , £11 THE SNOWMAN, BIRMINGHAM REP, musical based on the Raymond Briggs book THU 13 DEC – SUN 30 DEC, various, £23 - 7.50

BRUEGEL TO RUBENS: MASTERS OF FLEMISH PAINTING, VARIOUS ARTISTS, The

KING’S THEATRE

first exhibition ever mounted of Flemish paintings in the Royal Collection FRI 28 SEP – SUN 06 APR, 09:30–18:00, Mon-Sun, £5 (£4.50)

01 DEC – SUN 20 JAN, various, £20.50 - 6.50

ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY

SURVEY, GROUP SHOW, Celebrating 20years of the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop SAT 10 NOV – TUE 18 DEC, 10:00–17:00/19:00(thur), Mon-Sun, Free

SCOTTISH NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART BACK TO THE FUTURE, SIR BASIL SPENCE,

Retrospective of the Scottish architect FRI 19 OCT – SUN 10 FEB, 10:00–17:00, Mon-Sun, £6(£4) A HUMUMENT, TOM PHILLIPS, Solo show of the British artist’s Humument, a treated Victorian novel, one of the most successful artist’s books SAT 06 OCT – SUN 06 JAN, 10:00–17:00, Mon-Sun,

SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE THE LEGACY OF TIM STEAD , SOLO SHOW, The legacy of artist, designer and poet Tim Stead, including sculpture, poetry and furniture designs

GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE BEARS, Panto SAT

PLAYHOUSE THEATRE

WHITE CHRISTMAS, Adaptation of Bing Crosby movie SAT 01 DEC – SAT 08 DEC, 7.30pm, £34.50 - 9.50

ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE

WIZARD OF OZ, Panto SAT 01 DEC – SUN 30 DEC, various, £20 - 5.50

TRAVERSE THEATRE

SEVEN MILES FROM FORTUNE CITY, TRAVERSE THEATRE COMPANY, The Trav’s First Glimpse series of rehearsed readings previews new wrok from Louise Ironside WED 12 DEC 7.30pm, £5/3.50

JOCK AND THE BEANSTALK, WEE STORIES, Acclaimed childrens’ company offer a new take on the bean-based classic SAT 08 DEC – FRI 21 DEC, various, £7.50 MOLLY SWEENEY, NTS/CITIZENS THEATRE, NTS revive award-winning production of Brian Friel’s touching tale of a blind girl’s quest for vision WED 12 DEC – SAT 15 DEC, 7.45pm, £13/8/5

LISTINGS

SAT 01 DEC THE STAND, ANDREW MAXWELL; JOHN SCOTT; DALISO CHAPONDA; ANDY MCPARTLAND., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan

year,20:30:00, £12/£10

SUN 30 DEC HOOTFEST!, TOM STADE; SARAH MILLICAN; KEVIN BRIDGES; SUSAN CALMAN., THE STAND, Mirth and merriment to bring in the new

year,20:30:00, £12/£10

MON 31 DEC HOOTFEST!, TOM STADE; SARAH

Calman. Meal optional.,20:30, £17.95/£10

WED 19 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman.

Meal optional.,20:30, £17.95/£10

THU 20 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

AILSA JOHNSTON, THE STAND, Hosted by Raymond Mearns,21:00:00, £12/10/5

SAT 29 DEC WHOSE LUNCH IS IT ANYWAY?,

THE STAND PLAYERS, THE STAND, improv, stand up and high jinks,12:30:00, Free

HOOTFEST!, MARTIN BIGPIG MOR; GRAEME THOMAS; THE STAND PLAYERS; AILSA JOHNSTON, THE STAND, Hosted by Raymond

MILLICAN; KEVIN BRIDGES; SUSAN CALMAN.,

SPECIAL, SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman.

year,21:00:00, £19.50/£17.50/£12

Meal optional.,20:30, £17.95/£10

Mearns,21:00:00, £12/10/5

SERVICE, JOHN SCOTT; DALISO CHAPONDA; CHRIS FORBES; SEAN GRANT; JIM PARK., THE

EDINBURGH COMEDY

SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman. Meal

THE STAND PLAYERS, THE STAND, improv, stand up

MON 03 DEC DANCE MONKEY BOY DANCE,

SAT 17 NOV JONGLEURS, ROB COLLINS;

SAT 22 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

Morrison,20:30, 12

COMEDY @ THE STATE, TBA, THE STATE BAR,

Different line up each Saturday from the best of the circuit,21:00, 5

SUN 02 DEC MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY STAND, Hosted by Michael Redmond,20:30, £5/£4/£1

RAYMOND MEARNS; PAUL PIRIE; ALLEN CHALMERS, THE STAND, improv, stand up and high

jinks,20:30:00, 4

TUE 04 DEC RED RAW, KEVIN BRIDGES, THE

STAND, Best of brand new on the cheap!,20:30, £2/£1

WED 05 DEC WICKED WENCHES, SUSAN

THE STAND, Mirth and merriment to bring in the new

FRI 21 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS SPECIAL, optional.,20:30:00, £17.95/£10

JONGLEURS, 19:00, 14

SPECIAL, SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman.

FRANCIS, THE STAND, Hosted by Joe Heenan,21:00,

SUN 23 DEC WHOSE LUNCH IS IT ANYWAY?,

SUN 02 DEC IMPROBABBLE, BILLY

and high jinks,12:30:00, Free

JUNIOR SIMPSON; PAPA CJ; MARK MAIER,

LISTINGS

GLASGOW COMEDY

THE STAND, Mirth and merriment to bring in the new

SUN 30 DEC WHOSE LUNCH IS IT ANYWAY?, and high jinks,12:30:00, Free

HOOTFEST!, MARTIN BIGPIG MOR; GRAEME THOMAS; THE STAND PLAYERS; AILSA JOHNSTON, THE STAND, Hosted by Raymond Mearns,21:00:00, £12/10/5

SAT 01 DEC THE STAND, STEWART

Meal optional.,20:30:00, £17.95/£10

MON 31 DEC WHOSE LUNCH IS IT ANYWAY?,

12

THE STAND PLAYERS, THE STAND, improv, stand up

and high jinks,12:30:00, Free

THE STAND PLAYERS, THE STAND, improv, stand up

THU 27 DEC HOOTFEST!, MARTIN BIGPIG

THU 06 DEC THE THURSDAY SHOW,

BONKERS; PETER AITCHINSON; LEE KIRK; BERNARD MCLAUGHLIN; AUSTIN LOW; BILLY KIRKWOOD; DAVE HEFFRON, THE OUTHOUSE,

HOGMANY HOOT FEST!, MARTIN BIGPIG MOR; GRAEME THOMAS; THE STAND PLAYERS; AILSA JOHNSTON, THE STAND, After the show

Mearns,21:00:00, £12/10/5

Carter,20:30, £7/£6/£3

Improvisation and sketches on the far side of probability,20:00, £4/£3

SUSAN MURRAY; SAJ; RICK MOLLAND, THE

ANDREW MAXWELL SPECIAL, ANDREW MAXWELL, THE STAND, The Celtic King of Comedy

finishes punters will be given a pass which allows them to go out, watch the fireworks and then come back and party until the wee small hours in The Stand!,21:00:00, £19.50/£17.50/£12

SAT 08 DEC

treats us to a wander around his mind in this oneoff,,20:30, £8/£6

MURRAY; KERRY GODLIMAN; AL KENNEDY., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman,20:30, £6/4/3

STEWART FRANCIS; SUSAN MURRAY; SAJ; RICK MOLLAND, THE STAND, Hosted by Tony

FRI 07 DEC THE STAND, STEWART FRANCIS; STAND, Hosted by Susan Morrison,21:00, £9/£8/£5 COMEDY @ THE STATE, TBA, ,

Different line up each Saturday from the best of the circuit,21:00, 5

THE STAND, STEWART FRANCIS; SUSAN MURRAY; SAJ; RICK MOLLAND, THE STAND, Hosted

by Susan Morrison,21:00, 12

SUN 09 DEC MICHAEL REDMOND’S

SUNDAY SERVICE, SUSAN MURRAY; CHARLIE ROSS; THE WEE MAN; KIM GRIFFIN; ANDREW LEARMONTH., THE STAND, Hosted by Michael Redmond,20:30, £5/£4/£1

TUE 04 DEC WICKED WENCHES, SUSAN

MURRAY; KERRY GODLIMAN; AL KENNEDY, THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman,20:30, £6/4/3

THU 06 DEC HERESY, MC RICK MOLLAND, JEKYLL & HYDE, Dark comedy at most offensive,20:30,

£3

THE THURSDAY SHOW, MARK WATSON; KERRY GODLIMAN; NIALL BROWNE , THE STAND,

STAND, crazy, lazy, self indulgent, and maverick

behaviour,20:30, £3/£2

Hosted by The Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolfe III.,20:30, £7/£6/£3

WED 12 DEC ROUGH CUTS, SKETCH

FRI 07 DEC THE STAND, MARK WATSON;

KERRY GODLIMAN; NIALL BROWNE , THE STAND,

TROUPE, THE STAND, New sketch comedy for the

Hosted by The Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolfe III.,21:00, £9/£8/£5

THU 13 DEC THE THURSDAY SHOW, PARROT;

JONGLEURS, PIERRE HOLLINS; NICK DOODY; IAN COPPINGER; NINIA BENJAMIN, JONGLEURS,

STAND, Hosted by Sandy Nelson,20:30, £7/£6/£3

19:00, 11

DAVE LONGLEY; LAZYHAND., THE STAND, Hosted

KERRY GODLIMAN; NIALL BROWNE , THE STAND,

Comedy Unit,20:30, £5/£4/£2.50

JOHN ROSS; DAVE LONGLEY; LAZYHAND., THE

FRI 14 DEC THE STAND, PARROT; JOHN ROSS;

by Sandy Nelson,20:30, £9/£8/£5

COMEDY @ THE STATE, TBA, THE STATE BAR,

Different line up each Saturday from the best of the circuit,21:00, 5

SAT 08 DEC THE STAND, MARK WATSON; Hosted by The Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolfe III.,21:00, 12

SAT 15 DEC THE STAND, PARROT; JOHN

JONGLEURS, PIERRE HOLLINS; NICK DOODY; IAN COPPINGER; NINIA BENJAMIN, JONGLEURS,

Hosted by Susan Morrison,21:00, 12

SUN 09 DEC WHOSE LUNCH IS IT ANYWAY?,

ROSS; DAVE LONGLEY; LAZYHAND., THE STAND,

19:00, 14

SUN 16 DEC MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY

THE STAND PLAYERS, THE STAND, Lunch time

SERVICE, DAVE LONGLEY; NICK DAVIES; ANTONY MURRAY; ELAINE MALCOLMSON; JEFF O’BOYLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Michael Redmond,20:30, 15

MON 17 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30, £10/£8

TUE 18 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30, £10/£8

WED 19 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30, £10/£8

THU 20 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30, £10/£8

FRI 21 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A

premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30:00, £12/£10

SAT 22 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, BRUCE MORTON; TONY CARTER; JOHN GILLICK; RAYMOND MEARNS., THE STAND, A premium stand-up show packed with two hours of festive hilarity from top dollar comedians.,20:30:00, £12/£10

improv from Stu and Gary,13:00, Free

MON 10 DEC SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH

IN, KERRY GODLIMAN; RICK MOLLAND; LAZYHAND; JOHN WHALE; MARTIN MCALLISTER., THE STAND, Hosted by the brilliant Tony Carter,20:30, £5/£4/£1

RED RAW, GUS TAWSE, THE STAND, Best of brand new on the cheap!,20:30, 2

TUE 11 DEC MIDWEEK COMEDY SPECIAL, VLADIMIR MCTAVISH; STEVEN DICK; RICK MOLLAND; KIM GRIFFIN, THE STAND, Hosted by Joe Heenan,20:30, £5/£2.50

WED 12 DEC MELTING POT, SKETCH

TROUPE, THE STAND, Sketches by new writers performed and judged,20:30, £5/£4/£2.50

THU 13 DEC THE THURSDAY SHOW,

BRENDAN BURKE; KEVIN BRIDGES; SULLY OÕSULLIVAN; DEREK JOHNSTON., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman,21:00, £9/£8/£5

HERESY, MC RICK MOLLAND, JEKYLL & HYDE, Dark comedy at most offensive,20:30, 3

FRI 14 DEC JONGLEURS, PAUL B

EDWARDS;TOMMY CAMPBELL; STU WHO?; DOUGIE DUNLOP, JONGLEURS, 19:00, 11 THE STAND, BRENDAN BURKE; KEVIN BRIDGES; SULLY OÕSULLIVAN; DEREK JOHNSTON., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman,21:00, £9/£8/£5

SAT 15 DEC THE STAND, BRENDAN BURKE; KEVIN BRIDGES; SULLY OÕSULLIVAN; DEREK JOHNSTON., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan Calman,21:00, 12

SUN 16 DEC SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH IN,

THU 27 DEC HOOTFEST!, TOM STADE; SARAH

JOHN GILLICK; SULLY OÕSULLIVAN; AILSA JOHNSTON; CHRIS FORBES; ANDREW LEARMONTH., THE STAND, Hosted by Gary

THE STAND, Mirth and merriment to bring in the new

MON 17 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

MILLICAN; KEVIN BRIDGES; SUSAN CALMAN.,

Little,20:30, £5/£4/£1

year,20:30:00, £12/10/5

SPECIAL, SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan

FRI 28 DEC HOOTFEST!, TOM STADE; SARAH MILLICAN; KEVIN BRIDGES; SUSAN CALMAN., THE STAND, Mirth and merriment to bring in the new

year,20:30:00, £12/£10

SAT 29 DEC HOOTFEST!, TOM STADE; SARAH MILLICAN; KEVIN BRIDGES; SUSAN CALMAN.,

www.skinnymag.co.uk

MOR; GRAEME THOMAS; THE STAND PLAYERS;

THE STAND, Hosted by Phil Differ,20:30:00, 2

STEVEN DICK; TEDDY; ALLAN MILLER, THE

Best of brand new on the cheap!,20:30, £2/£1

FRI 28 DEC HOOTFEST!, MARTIN BIGPIG

MON 03 DEC RED RAW, KEVIN BRIDGES,

MON 10 DEC THE AMAZING BASTARDS, TUE 11 DEC RED RAW, ANDY SIR, THE STAND,

MOR; GRAEME THOMAS; THE STAND PLAYERS; AILSA JOHNSTON, THE STAND, Hosted by Raymond

Calman. Meal optional.,20:30, £17.95/£10

TUE 18 DEC THE STAND CHRISTMAS

SPECIAL, SANDY NELSON; GREG MCHUGH; GARY LITTLE., THE STAND, Hosted by Susan

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

45

GLASGOW CLUBS

SAT 01 DEC ABC SATURDAYS, GERRY LYONS, ABC1, Soul, punk, rock & indie dance,23:00, £7 (£5), free

b4 11.30pm with matric.

BUFF CLUB, Glasgow institition playing underground

classics,23:00, £5 (£3), free for pub/club workers FRESH, THE POLO LOUNGE, Popular gay venue with house & indie,23:00, £5

THE BASEMENT, SOUNDHAUS, Techno, house,22:30,

SPARKIES 45S, MARK ROBB, CafŽ Rio, Jazz, funk &

£tbc

soul,20:00, Free

STEREODOG, MR. LIVEWIRE & GARY CURLEY, CHINAWHITE, House,22:00, £8 (£5)

THE GARAGE, Pop & rock,23:00, £5 (£3), free +1 b4

THE BLACK RABBIT DEVIL DISCO, BLACK DEVIL DISCO CLUB, THE SUB CLUB, Dark disco,23:00, Free (with Optimo birthday ticket stub)

TOXIC POP, GEOFF M, JUNIOR CAMPOS & MAX,

BOOGIE DOWN, STEWART REID, BLUU, Jazz, disco

BAMBOO, House music, hip hop & lounge,22:00, £5, free

ABC SATURDAYS, DAVID SINCLAIR (KILLER KITSCH), ABC2, Electro, house & pop,23:00, £7 (£5), free POPTIMISM/ROCKTIMISM, DJ ANDY & DJ DEC, b4 11.30pm with matric.

BAD ROBOT, LOOSE JOINTS & STEVIE ELEMENTS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Rock to techno &

breakbeats,23:00, £6 (£5), £2 GSA, free after 12am CLUB NOIR, CARLING ACADEMY, Smoke & mirrors magical burlesque,21:00, £12 (£9) DECODANCE, GUESTS, CLASSIC GRAND, Glamorous house,23:00, £8

DIVINE!, MR. DIVINE & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Northern soul, funk, ska & mod tunes,23:00, £6 (£5)

DON’T FIGHT IT FEEL IT, THE ELVIS SUICIDE, INJUNS, MAGGIE MAYS, Indie, rock & roll, psyche,20:00, £4

GLAMORAMA, LIL RICH, BOHO, 90s house, 80s classics, RnB & chart,21:30, £8 GROOVEJET, MAS, Weekly house & RnB mix,23:00, £7 (£5) HANOI ROCKS, CRAIG WILSON, FIREWATER, Indie, rock & britpop,12:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm HIP DROP, ROBBIE ROLEX & NEL, BREL, Funk, soul, electro & disco,21:00, Free HOME COOKIN’, BELO, Urban music showcase,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm

12am with PIYP

TUE 04 DEC ALL STAR, ANDY WILSON & DJ

& house sounds,22:00, £5, free b4 11pm KASH, BAMBOO, Funk & hip pop,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 COMPUTELOVE, THE MIXING ROOMS, Electronic 11pm/12.30am with matric sounds,20:00, Free FOLK IT!, FOLKS, THE MIXING ROOMS, Up & coming folk COTTON CAKE, KIKI, KRIKOR, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF musician session,20:00, Free ART, Electro,23:00, £10 (£8) KALEIDOSCOPE LIVE, ABC2, Old school rock & roll, CTRL+ALT+DEL, KERIN & MCD, MACSORLEYS, soul, funk, from the 1960’s-1980’s ,22:00, £3, free with Electro, italo disco,21:00, Free matric. After 12am ELECTROBALL, KARBON, 80’s, nu-wave, rock & KILLER KITSCH, THE BUFF CLUB, Electroclash & punk,22:30, £tbc that,23:00, £4 (£3) FLIRTINI FRIDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes REVOLUTION, MARTIN BATE (XFM), QMU, Rock & & floor fillers,21:30, £6 punk ,22:00, £2, £1 members FLUID, LISA LITTLEWOOD, MAS, Funky house,23:00, T.I.T., LISA LITTLEWOOD & GRAEME FERGUSON, £5 KARBON, Dance,22:30, £5 (£4) FREAKMENOOVERS, RUST BAR, Early doors serving WED 05 DEC AFTER HOURS, GERRY LYONS, of hip hop, funk, RnB & soul,21:00, Free THE BUFF CLUB, Pick & mix of everything,23:00, £3 FREAKMENOOVERS, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS,

DELIVERANCE, DJ DEC & COLIN, THE CATHOUSE,

KARBON SATURDAYS, KEV MCFARLANE, STEPHEN LEE & WOODY, KARBON, House & hip hop

Metal, emo & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP JOINTS & JAMS, CUBE, The Longest running RnB night in Glasgow,23:00, £3 (£2) MJAM SALSA, CHRIS TRAYNOR, LIPTONS, Salsa classes from 8pm, free club from 10.15pm,20:00, Free NEW FLESH, FURY MURRY’S, Rock, metal, punk, rap, industrial & alternative music,22:00, £4, £2 from 10pm11pm, £1 with flyer/after 11pm OCTOPUSSY, THE ARCHES, Student night,22:30, £5

classics,22:30, £tbc

POP ROCK-IT, DAVE MULHOLLAND, CATWALK,

HOMEGROWN, STEVIE SOLE MIDDLETON, DOMENIC MARTIN & SCOTTIE B, BAMBOO, House and smooth RnB, jazz & funk,21:00, £5, free b4 10.30pm/ 12.30am students

NU-SCHOOL, THE BUFF CLUB, Fresh northern soul, jazz & Mixed Bag,19:00, Free funk featuring live percussion, classics downstairs,22:30, SQUARE GO!, NICKQ, FREAK SCENE DJS, MAGGIE £6

OFF THE RECORD, 3 CHANNELS, SOUNDHAUS, Techno, minimal,23:00, £10 (£8)

ROUTE 666, CIARAN O’TOOLE, CATWALK, Classic & cult rock,19:00, Free

SCREW LOOSE!, D.I.M., FELIX CARTEL, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Techno,23:00, £4 (£3)

SUBCULTURE, HARRI & DOM, THE SUB CLUB, Weekly snapshot of the ever-evolving house blueprint,23:00, £8, £5 b4 12am THE YARD, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Dub & reggae,21:00, Free

MAYS, Live bands & club,20:00, £3

TONGUE IN CHEEK, BAMBOO, Lounge, RnB & indie,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with matric MARTIN BATE (BEAT 106), THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

THU 06 DEC 45 KICKS, ALEX & JOHN, THE

BUFF CLUB, New York & underground school inspired

beats,23:00, £3

ALTERNATIVE NATION, DJ BARRY & HARVEY KARTEL, BAMBOO, Electro, hip hop, metal,23:00, £4 (£2)

BABAZA, BELO, Hip hop with the funk,22:00, £6, free

UNITED COLOURS OF AMERICA, ROGER b4 11pm SANCHEZ, SISTER BLISS, JUST JACK, THE CUBAN CHILDREN OF THE 80S, CLASSIC GRAND, DJs & live BROTHERS, THE ARCHES, House, big room dance,22:00, performances, 80s tunes,23:00, £5 (£3) £tbc CHIX ON DEX, CHINAWHITE, Rock, funkpunk & house all VOODOO, THE CATHOUSE, Under-18 club with metal, emo mixed by lovely ladies,22:00, £4, free b4 11pm & punk,17:00, £6 (£3)

DJ TOAST & MASH, THE BUNKER BAR, Eclectic,21:00, Free

BARRY, ERIC & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, All things rock,22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 11pm with PIYP DJ NAEEM & MIRRIRBAW, CHINAWHITE, Main room RnB & classics, funky house in the Mao room,22:00, £10 MATT DAREY, CLUB CLINIC, Hard trance,22:00, £8, £6 b4 11pm PAUL NEEDLES, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free

PAUL CAWLEY & KARIM THE PRO-VINYLIST, MACSORLEYS, Eclectic pre-club music,21:00, Free

SCOTT STRACHAN, METROPOLITAN, House & funk,21:00, Free

SUN 02 DEC CLUB PRIORY: RETOX ROOMS, DJ RICHARD LEVINSON, BLANKET, RnB,23:00, £5 (£3) COLD NIGHT SONG, THE GOAT, Guests & DJs play acoustic gems,20:00, Free

DISCO BADGER, DOMINIC MARTIN, KASH & MAX, BAMBOO, Classic house music all night long with other

boogie next door,22:00, £5 (£3), free b4 10.30pm/ 12.30pm with matric

IT SURE BEATS WAITIN’, JUMBLESALE SOUNDS, THE FLYING DUCK, Bass, percussion & scratching,21:00,

Free b4 11pm

JUNK, MARKY MARK, THE BUFF CLUB, Jazz & funk featuring live percussion by Duffy,23:00, £3, free with matric

OPTIMO, JD TWITCH & JG WILKES, THE SUB CLUB, Maximum eclectic,23:00, £6 (£5)

PRE OP, SOLITARY BIO, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free

BLANKET, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,23:00, £6 (£4)

FREQ, MIKE SHANNON, TODD BODINE, THE SUB CLUB, Techno,23:00, £10

HOME OF THE GROOVES, MARK ROBB, MAGGIE MAYS, Jazz, funk, soul,23:00, £5

HORRORSHOW, CRAIG MCGEE, FIREWATER, Indie, rock, punk, electro, soul, britpop,21:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm NOJ, POLAR BAR (ABC), No Music Policy,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

OLD SCHOOL, GORDIE & JACK, THE BUFF CLUB, Old school tunes,22:30, £6

OOFT PRECLUB, ALI & GRAEME (SKYROCKET), TERMINAL BAR, Electronic/dub,21:00, Free

PINUP NIGHTS, THE PLIMPTONS, EXIT PILOT, THE HYPE, THE BEAT CLUB, Indie, punk, soul, electropop,21:00, £5, students free

RADAR 9TH BIRTHDAY, FREAKS, THE WOODY, Electronic,23:00, £tbc

b4 11pm/12.30am students

VIBRATIONS, DJ MINGO-GO & DJ CASIO, CLASSIC GRAND, Electro,23:00, £6 (£4)

VICE, MARTIN BATE (XFM), THE CATHOUSE - LEVEL 2, Indie rock party,23:00, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30pm with PIYP TAM COYLE, THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

ROBBIE ROLEX & THE RADIO MAGNETIC SOUNDSYSTEM, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free DARIO BERNADI, METROPOLITAN, Electronic disco & soul,21:00, Free

SAT 08 DEC ABC SATURDAYS, GERRY LYONS, ABC1, Soul, punk, rock & indie dance,23:00, £7 (£5), free

b4 11.30pm with matric.

ABC SATURDAYS, DAVID SINCLAIR (KILLER KITSCH), ABC2, Electro, house & pop,23:00, £7 (£5), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

BAD ROBOT, LOOSE JOINTS & STEVIE ELEMENTS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Rock to techno &

breakbeats,23:00, £6 (£5), £2 GSA, free after 12am DECODANCE, GUESTS, CLASSIC GRAND, Glamorous house,23:00, £8 DISTORTION, SEWELLY, BLACKFRIARS, Stomping techno & sax,23:00, £4

DIVINE!, MR. DIVINE & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Northern soul, funk, ska & mod tunes,23:00, £6 (£5)

DON’T FIGHT IT FEEL IT, MY FINAL WISH, THE ANSION, BOYFRIEND/GIRLFIEND , MAGGIE MAYS, Indie, rock & roll, psyche,20:00, £4

GLAMORAMA, LIL RICH, BOHO, 90s house, 80s classics, RnB & chart,21:30, £8 GROOVEJET, MAS, Weekly house & RnB mix,23:00, £7 (£5)

FREEFALL, LADY DANA, SIMON FOY, THE ARCHES,

RED & GOLD ROOM, ARTA, Soul musak,22:00, £7,

Trance, house,22:00, £tbc

ROUTE 666, NICOLA WALKER, CATWALK,

mod,21:00, Free

free b4 11pm

FRIDAY STREET, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Northern soul &

Rock,19:00, Free

HANOI ROCKS, CRAIG WILSON, FIREWATER, Indie, rock

SOUND MUSEUM, DJ HUSHPUPPY (ART SCHOOL) & CHRIS GEDDES (BELLE & SEBASTIAN), BREL, Retro soul,21:00, Free

HIP DROP, ROBBIE ROLEX & NEL, BREL, Funk, soul,

& britpop,12:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm electro & disco,21:00, Free

CIGARETTES & F**K ALL, CRAIG MCGEE, THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, Indie & rock ‘n’ roll,21:00, Free

FREAKMOVES, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,

Record Playerz in the bar,23:00, £4 (£3)

FREAKSCENE, JOHN, POLAR BAR (ABC), Indie classics,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

THE FUNKY PRECEDENT, D_FADE, DUNCAN HARVEY & BOOM MONK BEN, SAINT JUDE’S, Hip hop, funk, soul & motown,20:00, Free

HOW’S YOUR PARTY?, XXXCHANGE, DEVLIN, DARKO, JACKMASTER, THE SUB CLUB, Baltimore Bass Convention,23:00, £5 (£3)

MIX GENERATOR, DJ FRAMIE, CATWALK, Classic rock, maetal & alternative,19:00, Free ON DEMAND, DJ EUAN, THE SHED, Requests by text message at this interactive club night,22:30, £3

PLASTIC FUNK, MARK ROBB, TANIA & FRIENDS, BAMBOO, Funk, soul & rock n roll,22:30, £4 (£3), free b4

11pm/12.30am with matric

RADIOMAGNETIC, RADIOMAGNETIC DJS, GAZELLE, Funk, soul & latin grooves,20:00, Free

RECORD PLAYERZ, HI-FI SEAN & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Disco electro,23:00, £4 (£3)

RUBBERMENSCH, ABC2, A night for indie lovers,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

SKINT, DJ BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, hip hop & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with PIYP

THE THURSDAY CLUB, GERRY LYONS & BRIAN, THE GARAGE, Chart anthems,23:00, £5 (£3), free b4

12am with PIYP

UP THE RACKET, DJ TOAST, FIREWATER, Indie, soul, ROCK ON THE SABBATH, CIARAN O’TOOLE & britpop, rock, punk,16:00, £4 (£3), free b4 10.30pm KIERAN ELLIOT, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free SOUL SUNDAYS, PAUL CRAWFORD, FIREWATER, Indie, WHITENOISEFEEDBACK:DISTORTION, STOPSTARTS, WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS, punk & rock,16:00, Free SPANK, THE CATHOUSE, Rock, punk & dance,23:00, £4

BLOC, Live bands & club,21:00, Free

TRICKY DISCO, JON MANCINI & KRIS KEEGAN,

electro & house,21:30, £3 CJ, THE BUNKER BAR, Grunge & new rock,21:00, Free KEVIN STEVENS, METROPOLITAN, Funk & soul 45s,21:00, Free

(£2), free b4 12am with PIYP KARBON, House,23:00, £5

WE LOVE SUNDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £3

NEIL WYPER, THE BUNKER BAR, New & old rock & electronica,21:00, Free

AARON PETRIE, METROPOLITAN, Chill & breakbeat house,21:00, Free

MON 03 DEC BURN, NORMSKI & ZEUS, THE

46 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

ZERO THURSDAYS, DJ NORMSKI, BOHO, Funk,

FRI 07 DEC ABC FRIDAYS, EUAN NEILSON,

ABC1, Genre mash-up,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4 11.30pm

with matric.

BALLBREAKER, BARRY & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Rock & metal,22:30, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30am with PIYP

LISTINGS

Mixed Bag,19:00, Free

£7, free b4 11pm

SQUARE GO!, NICKQ, FREAK SCENE DJS, MAGGIE

HOMEGROWN, STEVIE SOLE MIDDLETON, DOMENIC MARTIN & SCOTTIE B, BAMBOO, House

MAYS, Live bands & club,20:00, £3

and smooth RnB, jazz & funk,21:00, £5, free b4 10.30pm/12.30am students

indie,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with matric MARTIN BATE (BEAT 106), THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

IMPACT VS. T&B DARKSIDE, MANU LE MALIN, MIKE DRED, DAN MONOX, SOUNDHAUS, Hardcore techno,22:00, £10

KARBON SATURDAYS, KEV MCFARLANE, STEPHEN LEE & WOODY, KARBON, House & hip hop classics,22:30, £tbc

MISO, ROB HALL, THE IVY, Techno,20:00, £4 NU-SCHOOL, THE BUFF CLUB, Fresh northern soul, jazz & funk featuring live percussion, classics downstairs,22:30, £6 ROUTE 666, CIARAN O’TOOLE, CATWALK, Classic & cult rock,19:00, Free SUBCULTURE, HARRI & DOM, THE SUB CLUB, Weekly snapshot of the ever-evolving house blueprint,23:00, £8, £5 b4 12am VOODOO, THE CATHOUSE, Under-18 club with metal, emo & punk,17:00, £6 (£3) DJ TOAST & MASH, THE BUNKER BAR, Eclectic,21:00, Free BARRY, ERIC & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, All things rock,22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 11pm with PIYP DJ NAEEM & MIRRIRBAW, CHINAWHITE, Main room RnB & classics, funky house in the Mao room,22:00, £10 PAUL NEEDLES, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free ANDY UNGER, MACSORLEYS, Gospel & soulful house,21:00, Free SCOTT STRACHAN, METROPOLITAN, House & funk,21:00, Free

TONGUE IN CHEEK, BAMBOO, Lounge, RnB &

THU 13 DEC 45 KICKS, ALEX & JOHN, THE

BUFF CLUB, New York & underground school inspired

beats,23:00, £3

Maximum eclectic,23:00, £6 (£5)

PRE OP, SOLITARY BIO, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free

ROCK ON THE SABBATH, CIARAN O’TOOLE & KIERAN ELLIOT, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free SOUL SUNDAYS, PAUL CRAWFORD, FIREWATER, Indie, punk & rock,16:00, Free SPANK, THE CATHOUSE, Rock, punk & dance,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP

TRICKY DISCO, JON MANCINI & KRIS KEEGAN,

BAMBOO, House music, hip hop & lounge,22:00, £5, free

b4 11pm/12.30am students

VICE, MARTIN BATE (XFM), THE CATHOUSE - LEVEL 2, Indie rock party,23:00, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30pm with PIYP TAM COYLE, THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

(£2)

BABAZA, BELO, Hip hop with the funk,22:00, £6, free

percussion,21:00, Free

b4 11pm

DARIO BERNADI, METROPOLITAN, Electronic disco &

RnB & classics, funky house in the Mao room,22:00, £10 PAUL NEEDLES, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free BIOS DJS, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free SCOTT STRACHAN, METROPOLITAN, House & funk,21:00, Free

SUN 16 DEC CLUB PRIORY: RETOX ROOMS, DJ RICHARD LEVINSON, BLANKET, RnB,23:00, £5 (£3) COLD NIGHT SONG, THE GOAT, Guests & DJs play acoustic gems,20:00, Free

DISCO BADGER, DOMINIC MARTIN, KASH & MAX, BAMBOO, Classic house music all night long with other

boogie next door,22:00, £5 (£3), free b4 10.30pm/ 12.30pm with matric

IT SURE BEATS WAITIN’, JUMBLESALE SOUNDS, THE FLYING DUCK, Bass, percussion & scratching,21:00,

Free b4 11pm JUNK, MARKY MARK, THE BUFF CLUB, Jazz & funk performances, 80s tunes,23:00, £5 (£3) SAT 15 DEC ABC SATURDAYS, GERRY LYONS, featuring live percussion by Duffy,23:00, £3, free with CHIX ON DEX, CHINAWHITE, Rock, funkpunk & house all ABC1, Soul, punk, rock & indie dance,23:00, £7 (£5), free matric b4 11.30pm with matric. mixed by lovely ladies,22:00, £4, free b4 11pm

CHILDREN OF THE 80S, CLASSIC GRAND, DJs & live

CIGARETTES & F**K ALL, CRAIG MCGEE, THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, Indie & rock ‘n’ roll,21:00, Free

FREAKMOVES, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,

Record Playerz in the bar,23:00, £4 (£3)

FREAKSCENE, JOHN, POLAR BAR (ABC), Indie classics,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

THE FUNKY PRECEDENT, D_FADE, DUNCAN HARVEY & BOOM MONK BEN, SAINT JUDE’S, Hip hop, funk, soul & motown,20:00, Free

HOW’S YOUR PARTY?, SWITCH, FULL PHAT, OOFT! DJS, THE SUB CLUB, Bumpy house,23:00, £5 MIX GENERATOR, DJ FRAMIE, CATWALK, Classic

THE GARAGE, Chart anthems,23:00, £5 (£3), free b4

12am with PIYP

UP THE RACKET, DJ TOAST, FIREWATER, Indie, soul, britpop, rock, punk,16:00, £4 (£3), free b4 10.30pm ZERO THURSDAYS, DJ NORMSKI, BOHO, Funk, electro & house,21:30, £3 CJ, THE BUNKER BAR, Grunge & new rock,21:00, Free KEVIN STEVENS, METROPOLITAN, Funk & soul 45s,21:00, Free

FRI 14 DEC ABC FRIDAYS, EUAN NEILSON, ABC1,

CAMOUFLAGE, LUSINE, GARY BECK, SOUNDHAUS,

BUFF CLUB, Glasgow institition playing underground

Techno, minimal,23:00, £10 (£8)

classics,23:00, £5 (£3), free for pub/club workers FRESH, THE POLO LOUNGE, Popular gay venue with house & indie,23:00, £5

COMPUTELOVE, THE MIXING ROOMS, Electronic sounds,20:00, Free

POPTIMISM/ROCKTIMISM, DJ ANDY & DJ DEC,

punk,22:30, £tbc

ELECTROBALL, KARBON, 80’s, nu-wave, rock &

THE GARAGE, Pop & rock,23:00, £5 (£3), free +1 b4

FLIRTINI FRIDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes &

12am with PIYP

floor fillers,21:30, £6

TUE 11 DEC ALL STAR, ANDY WILSON & DJ

TOXIC POP, GEOFF M, JUNIOR CAMPOS & MAX,

ROBBIE ROLEX & THE RADIO MAGNETIC SOUNDSYSTEM, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free DJ SAMBA, MACSORLEYS, Deep house &

Genre mash-up,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4 11.30pm with KARBON, House,23:00, £5 matric.

WE LOVE SUNDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes ART OF PARTIES, THE ARCHES, tbc,22:30, £tbc & floor fillers,21:30, £3 BALLBREAKER, BARRY & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, NEIL WYPER, THE BUNKER BAR, New & old rock & Rock & metal,22:30, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30am with PIYP electronica,21:00, Free BOOGIE DOWN, STEWART REID, BLUU, Jazz, disco AARON PETRIE, METROPOLITAN, Chill & breakbeat & house sounds,22:00, £5, free b4 11pm house,21:00, Free

MON 10 DEC BURN, NORMSKI & ZEUS, THE

CHINAWHITE, House,22:00, £8 (£5)

ALTERNATIVE NATION, DJ BARRY & HARVEY KARTEL, BAMBOO, Electro, hip hop, metal,23:00, £4

rock, maetal & alternative,19:00, Free ON DEMAND, DJ EUAN, THE SHED, Requests by text SUN 09 DEC CLUB PRIORY: RETOX ROOMS, DJ message at this interactive club night,22:30, £3 RICHARD LEVINSON, BLANKET, RnB,23:00, £5 (£3) PLASTIC FUNK, MARK ROBB, TANIA & FRIENDS, COLD NIGHT SONG, THE GOAT, Guests & DJs play BAMBOO, Funk, soul & rock n roll,22:30, £4 (£3), free b4 11pm/12.30am with matric acoustic gems,20:00, Free RADIOMAGNETIC, RADIOMAGNETIC DJS, DISCO BADGER, MYSTERY JETS, BAMBOO, Classic GAZELLE, Funk, soul & latin grooves,20:00, Free house music all night long with other boogie next RECORD PLAYERZ, HI-FI SEAN & HUSHPUPPY, door,22:30, £5 (£4) IT SURE BEATS WAITIN’, JUMBLESALE SOUNDS, THE VIC BAR, Disco electro,23:00, £4 (£3) RUBBERMENSCH, ABC2, A night for indie THE FLYING DUCK, Bass, percussion & scratching,21:00, Free b4 11pm lovers,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

JUNK, MARKY MARK, THE BUFF CLUB, Jazz & funk SKINT, DJ BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, hip hop & featuring live percussion by Duffy,23:00, £3, free with rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with PIYP matric THE THURSDAY CLUB, GERRY LYONS & BRIAN,

OPTIMO, JD TWITCH & JG WILKES, THE SUB CLUB,

STEREODOG, MR. LIVEWIRE & GARY CURLEY,

LISTINGS

HOME COOKIN’, BELO, Urban music showcase,22:00,

soul,21:00, Free

ABC SATURDAYS, DAVID SINCLAIR (KILLER KITSCH), ABC2, Electro, house & pop,23:00, £7 (£5), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

ALL TORE UP!!, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Rock-a-billy,21:00,

OPTIMO, JD TWITCH & JG WILKES, THE SUB CLUB, Maximum eclectic,23:00, £6 (£5)

PRE OP, SOLITARY BIO, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free

ROCK ON THE SABBATH, CIARAN O’TOOLE & BAD ROBOT, LOOSE JOINTS & STEVIE ELEMENTS, KIERAN ELLIOT, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free SOUL SUNDAYS, PAUL CRAWFORD, FIREWATER, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Rock to techno & Free

breakbeats,23:00, £6 (£5), £2 GSA, free after 12am

DEATH DISCO XXXMAS PARTY, EROL ALKAN, SHITDISCO, SOUTH CENTRAL, THE ARCHES, Disco electro,22:00, £12

DECODANCE, GUESTS, CLASSIC GRAND, Glamorous house,23:00, £8

DIVINE!, MR. DIVINE & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Northern soul, funk, ska & mod tunes,23:00, £6 (£5)

DON’T FIGHT IT FEEL IT, SCUNNER, GLASGOW GLAM BANGERS, YELLOW BENTINE,”BERT FINKLE”, MAGGIE MAYS, Indie, rock & roll, psyche,20:00, £4

GLAMORAMA, LIL RICH, BOHO, 90s house, 80s classics, RnB & chart,21:30, £8 GROOVEJET, MAS, Weekly house & RnB mix,23:00, £7 (£5) HANOI ROCKS, CRAIG WILSON, FIREWATER, Indie, rock & britpop,12:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm HIP DROP, ROBBIE ROLEX & NEL, BREL, Funk, soul, electro & disco,21:00, Free HOME COOKIN’, BELO, Urban music showcase,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm

HOMEGROWN, STEVIE SOLE MIDDLETON, DOMENIC MARTIN & SCOTTIE B, BAMBOO, House and smooth RnB, jazz & funk,21:00, £5, free b4 10.30pm/12.30am students

KARBON SATURDAYS, KEV MCFARLANE, STEPHEN LEE & WOODY, KARBON, House & hip hop classics,22:30, £tbc

MONOX, PAUL BIRKIN, MONOXIANS, SOUNDHAUS, Techno techno,23:00, £12 (£10) NU-SCHOOL, THE BUFF CLUB, Fresh northern soul, jazz & funk featuring live percussion, classics downstairs,22:30, £6 ROUTE 666, CIARAN O’TOOLE, CATWALK, Classic & cult rock,19:00, Free SUBCULTURE, HARRI & DOM, THE SUB CLUB, Weekly snapshot of the ever-evolving house blueprint,23:00, £8, £5 b4 12am VOODOO, THE CATHOUSE, Under-18 club with metal, emo & punk,17:00, £6 (£3) DJ TOAST & MASH, THE BUNKER BAR, Eclectic,21:00, Free BARRY, ERIC & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, All things rock,22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 11pm with PIYP DJ NAEEM & MIRRIRBAW, CHINAWHITE, Main room

Indie, punk & rock,16:00, Free SPANK, THE CATHOUSE, Rock, punk & dance,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP

TRICKY DISCO, JON MANCINI & KRIS KEEGAN, KARBON, House,23:00, £5

WE LOVE SUNDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £3

NEIL WYPER, THE BUNKER BAR, New & old rock & electronica,21:00, Free

AARON PETRIE, METROPOLITAN, Chill & breakbeat house,21:00, Free

MON 17 DEC BURN, NORMSKI & ZEUS, THE BUFF CLUB, Glasgow institition playing underground

classics,23:00, £5 (£3), free for pub/club workers FRESH, THE POLO LOUNGE, Popular gay venue with house & indie,23:00, £5

POPTIMISM/ROCKTIMISM, DJ ANDY & DJ DEC, THE GARAGE, Pop & rock,23:00, £5 (£3), free +1 b4 12am

with PIYP

TUE 18 DEC ALL STAR, ANDY WILSON & DJ

KASH, BAMBOO, Funk & hip pop,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 11pm/12.30am with matric

FOLK IT!, FOLKS, THE MIXING ROOMS, Up & coming folk musician session,20:00, Free

KALEIDOSCOPE LIVE, ABC2, Old school rock & roll, soul, funk, from the 1960’s-1980’s ,22:00, £3, free with matric. After 12am KILLER KITSCH, THE BUFF CLUB, Electroclash & that,23:00, £4 (£3) REVOLUTION, MARTIN BATE (XFM), QMU, Rock & punk ,22:00, £2, £1 members

T.I.T., LISA LITTLEWOOD & GRAEME FERGUSON, KARBON, Dance,22:30, £5 (£4)

WED 19 DEC AFTER HOURS, GERRY LYONS, THE BUFF CLUB, Pick & mix of everything,23:00, £3

DELIVERANCE, DJ DEC & COLIN, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, emo & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP JOINTS & JAMS, CUBE, The Longest running RnB night in Glasgow,23:00, £3 (£2) MJAM SALSA, CHRIS TRAYNOR, LIPTONS, Salsa classes from 8pm, free club from 10.15pm,20:00, Free NEW FLESH, FURY MURRY’S, Rock, metal, punk, rap, industrial & alternative music,22:00, £4, £2 from 10pm11pm, £1 with flyer/after 11pm OCTOPUSSY, THE ARCHES, Student night,22:30, £5

FLUID, LISA LITTLEWOOD, MAS, Funky house,23:00, KASH, BAMBOO, Funk & hip pop,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 £5 11pm/12.30am with matric FORTIFIED, SKREAM & SGT. POKES, GLASGOW FOLK IT!, FOLKS, THE MIXING ROOMS, Up & coming folk SCHOOL OF ART, Dubstep, grime, electro,23:00, £10 (£8) musician session,20:00, Free FREAKMENOOVERS, RUST BAR, Early doors serving KALEIDOSCOPE LIVE, ABC2, Old school rock & roll, of hip hop, funk, RnB & soul,21:00, Free soul, funk, from the 1960’s-1980’s ,22:00, £3, free with FREAKMENOOVERS, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, matric. After 12am

KILLER KITSCH, THE BUFF CLUB, Electroclash & that,23:00, £4 (£3)

REVOLUTION, MARTIN BATE (XFM), QMU, Rock & punk ,22:00, £2, £1 members

T.I.T., LISA LITTLEWOOD & GRAEME FERGUSON, KARBON, Dance,22:30, £5 (£4)

BLANKET, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,23:00, £6 (£4)

HELL, RYAN & THIERRY GAIDEN, CLASSIC GRAND, House & techno,23:00, £5 (£4)

HOME OF THE GROOVES, MARK ROBB, MAGGIE MAYS, Jazz, funk, soul,23:00, £5

HORRORSHOW, CRAIG MCGEE, FIREWATER, Indie,

rock, punk, electro, soul, britpop,21:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm THE BUFF CLUB, Pick & mix of everything,23:00, £3 NOJ, POLAR BAR (ABC), No Music Policy,23:00, £6 (£4), AUDIO FREQ, BRITISH MURDER BOYS, CLUB CLINIC, free b4 11.30pm with matric.

OLD SCHOOL, GORDIE & JACK, THE BUFF CLUB, Old Techno,00:00, £11 school tunes,22:30, £6 DELIVERANCE, DJ DEC & COLIN, THE CATHOUSE, OOFT PRECLUB, ALI & GRAEME (SKYROCKET), Metal, emo & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP TERMINAL BAR, Electronic/dub,21:00, Free JOINTS & JAMS, CUBE, The Longest running RnB night RED & GOLD ROOM, ARTA, Soul musak,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm in Glasgow,23:00, £3 (£2) ROUTE 666, NICOLA WALKER, CATWALK, MJAM SALSA, CHRIS TRAYNOR, LIPTONS, Salsa Rock,19:00, Free classes from 8pm, free club from 10.15pm,20:00, Free SOUND MUSEUM, DJ HUSHPUPPY (ART NEW FLESH, FURY MURRY’S, Rock, metal, punk, rap, industrial & alternative music,22:00, £4, £2 from 10pm- SCHOOL) & CHRIS GEDDES (BELLE & 11pm, £1 with flyer/after 11pm SEBASTIAN), BREL, Retro soul,21:00, Free OCTOPUSSY, THE ARCHES, Student night,22:30, £5 SPARKIES 45S, MARK ROBB, CafŽ Rio, Jazz, funk & POP ROCK-IT, DAVE MULHOLLAND, CATWALK, soul,20:00, Free

WED 12 DEC AFTER HOURS, GERRY LYONS,

www.skinnymag.co.uk

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

47

GLASGOW CLUBS POP ROCK-IT, DAVE MULHOLLAND, CATWALK, Mixed Bag,19:00, Free

& soul,20:00, Free

STEREODOG, MR. LIVEWIRE & GARY CURLEY,

THU 20 DEC 45 KICKS, ALEX & JOHN, THE

BUFF CLUB, New York & underground school inspired

beats,23:00, £3

ALTERNATIVE NATION, DJ BARRY & HARVEY KARTEL, BAMBOO, Electro, hip hop, metal,23:00, £4

TRICKY DISCO, JON MANCINI & KRIS KEEGAN,

TOXIC POP, GEOFF M, JUNIOR CAMPOS & MAX,

KARBON, House,23:00, £5

BAMBOO, House music, hip hop & lounge,22:00, £5, free

WE LOVE SUNDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party

Free

VIBRATIONS, DJ MINGO-GO & DJ CASIO, CLASSIC GRAND, Electro,23:00, £6 (£4)

VICE, MARTIN BATE (XFM), THE CATHOUSE - LEVEL 2, Indie rock party,23:00, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30pm with PIYP TAM COYLE, THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

ROBBIE ROLEX & THE RADIO MAGNETIC BABAZA, BELO, Hip hop with the funk,22:00, £6, free SOUNDSYSTEM, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free b4 11pm DARIO BERNADI, METROPOLITAN, Electronic disco & CHILDREN OF THE 80S, CLASSIC GRAND, DJs & live soul,21:00, Free performances, 80s tunes,23:00, £5 (£3) THE VILLAGE ORCHESTRA, BOABY CLEAVER, CHIX ON DEX, CHINAWHITE, Rock, funkpunk & house BOB TECHNO, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Numbers (£2)

all mixed by lovely ladies,22:00, £4, free b4 11pm

CIGARETTES & F**K ALL, CRAIG MCGEE, THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, Indie & rock ‘n’ roll,21:00, Free

FREAKMOVES, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,

Record Playerz in the bar,23:00, £4 (£3)

FREAKSCENE, JOHN, POLAR BAR (ABC), Indie classics,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

Christmas party,21:00, Free

RECO’S TORPEDOES, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Ska & reggae,21:00, Free

SAT 22 DEC ABC SATURDAYS, GERRY LYONS, ABC1, Soul, punk, rock & indie dance,23:00, £7 (£5),

free b4 11.30pm with matric.

ABC SATURDAYS, DAVID SINCLAIR (KILLER KITSCH), ABC2, Electro, house & pop,23:00, £7 (£5), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

THE FUNKY PRECEDENT, D_FADE, DUNCAN HARVEY & BOOM MONK BEN, SAINT JUDE’S, Hip

BAD ROBOT, LOOSE JOINTS & STEVIE ELEMENTS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Rock to techno

hop, funk, soul & motown,20:00, Free

& breakbeats,23:00, £6 (£5), £2 GSA, free after 12am DECODANCE, GUESTS, CLASSIC GRAND, Glamorous house,23:00, £8

HOW’S YOUR PARTY?, RADIOCLIT, BOOM MONK BEN, THE SUB CLUB, Eclectic,23:00, £5 (£3) MIX GENERATOR, DJ FRAMIE, CATWALK, Classic rock, maetal & alternative,19:00, Free ON DEMAND, DJ EUAN, THE SHED, Requests by text message at this interactive club night,22:30, £3

DEVIANT BEHAVIOUR, COSMIC FORCE, LUKE EARGOGGLE, ALAN1, SOUNDHAUS, Techno, electro,23:00, £12 (£10)

DIVINE!, MR. DIVINE & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR,

PLASTIC FUNK, MARK ROBB, TANIA & FRIENDS, Northern soul, funk, ska & mod tunes,23:00, £6 (£5) BAMBOO, Funk, soul & rock n roll,22:30, £4 (£3), free DON’T FIGHT IT FEEL IT, 2 THIRDS OF YOUTH , b4 11pm/12.30am with matric

RADIOMAGNETIC, RADIOMAGNETIC DJS, GAZELLE, Funk, soul & latin grooves,20:00, Free

RECORD PLAYERZ, HI-FI SEAN & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Disco electro,23:00, £4 (£3)

RUBBERMENSCH, ABC2, A night for indie lovers,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

SKINT, DJ BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, hip hop & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with PIYP

THE THURSDAY CLUB, GERRY LYONS & BRIAN, THE GARAGE, Chart anthems,23:00, £5 (£3), free b4

MAGGIE MAYS, Indie, rock & roll, psyche,20:00, £4

GLAMORAMA, LIL RICH, BOHO, 90s house, 80s classics, RnB & chart,21:30, £8 GROOVEJET, MAS, Weekly house & RnB mix,23:00, £7 (£5) HANOI ROCKS, CRAIG WILSON, FIREWATER, Indie, rock & britpop,12:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm HIP DROP, ROBBIE ROLEX & NEL, BREL, Funk, soul, electro & disco,21:00, Free HOME COOKIN’, BELO, Urban music showcase,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm

HOMEGROWN, STEVIE SOLE MIDDLETON, UP THE RACKET, DJ TOAST, FIREWATER, Indie, soul, DOMENIC MARTIN & SCOTTIE B, BAMBOO, House 12am with PIYP

britpop, rock, punk,16:00, £4 (£3), free b4 10.30pm ZERO THURSDAYS, DJ NORMSKI, BOHO, Funk, electro & house,21:30, £3 CJ, THE BUNKER BAR, Grunge & new rock,21:00, Free KEVIN STEVENS, METROPOLITAN, Funk & soul 45s,21:00, Free

FRI 21 DEC ABC FRIDAYS, EUAN NEILSON, ABC1, Genre mash-up,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4

11.30pm with matric.

BALLBREAKER, BARRY & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Rock & metal,22:30, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30am with PIYP

BALLERS SOCIAL CLUB, SLEEPLESS CREW, THE IVY, Acid, rave, bootlegs, bass,21:00, £3

BOOGIE DOWN, STEWART REID, BLUU, Jazz, disco & house sounds,22:00, £5, free b4 11pm COMPUTELOVE, THE MIXING ROOMS, Electronic sounds,20:00, Free ELECTROBALL, KARBON, 80’s, nu-wave, rock & punk,22:30, £tbc FLIRTINI FRIDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £6 FLUID, LISA LITTLEWOOD, MAS, Funky house,23:00, £5 FREAKMENOOVERS, RUST BAR, Early doors serving of hip hop, funk, RnB & soul,21:00, Free

(£2), free b4 12am with PIYP

CHINAWHITE, House,22:00, £8 (£5)

SQUARE GO!, NICKQ, FREAK SCENE DJS, MAGGIE b4 11pm/12.30am students MAYS, Live bands & club,20:00, £3 TRONIC, SATELLITE DUB, EMOTIQUON, TONGUE IN CHEEK, BAMBOO, Lounge, RnB & DELTASON, THE 13TH NOTE, Live electronica,20:00, indie,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with matric MARTIN BATE (BEAT 106), THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

SPANK, THE CATHOUSE, Rock, punk & dance,23:00, £4

and smooth RnB, jazz & funk,21:00, £5, free b4 10.30pm/12.30am students

KARBON SATURDAYS, KEV MCFARLANE, STEPHEN LEE & WOODY, KARBON, House & hip hop classics,22:30, £tbc

NU-SCHOOL, THE BUFF CLUB, Fresh northern soul, jazz & funk featuring live percussion, classics downstairs,22:30, £6 ROUTE 666, CIARAN O’TOOLE, CATWALK, Classic & cult rock,19:00, Free SUBCULTURE, HARRI & DOM, THE SUB CLUB, Weekly snapshot of the ever-evolving house blueprint,23:00, £8, £5 b4 12am VOODOO, THE CATHOUSE, Under-18 club with metal, emo & punk,17:00, £6 (£3) DJ TOAST & MASH, THE BUNKER BAR, Eclectic,21:00, Free BARRY, ERIC & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, All things rock,22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 11pm with PIYP DJ NAEEM & MIRRIRBAW, CHINAWHITE, Main room RnB & classics, funky house in the Mao room,22:00, £10 PAUL NEEDLES, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free

PAUL CAWLEY & KARIM THE PRO-VINYLIST, MACSORLEYS, Eclectic pre-club music,21:00, Free

SCOTT STRACHAN, METROPOLITAN, House &

tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £3

TERMINAL BAR, Electronic/dub,21:00, Free

RED & GOLD ROOM, ARTA, Soul musak,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm

REHAB, THE ARCHES, M8 Magazine Night,22:30, £20 ROUTE 666, NICOLA WALKER, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free

SOUND MUSEUM, DJ HUSHPUPPY (ART SCHOOL) & CHRIS GEDDES (BELLE & SEBASTIAN), BREL, Retro soul,21:00, Free SPARKIES 45S, MARK ROBB, CafŽ Rio, Jazz, funk

48 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

OPTIMO, JD TWITCH & JG WILKES, THE SUB CLUB, Maximum eclectic,23:00, £6 (£5)

ROCK ON THE SABBATH, CIARAN O’TOOLE & KIERAN ELLIOT, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free SOUL SUNDAYS, PAUL CRAWFORD, FIREWATER, Indie, punk & rock,16:00, Free

FLIRTINI FRIDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £6

FLUID, LISA LITTLEWOOD, MAS, Funky house,23:00, £5

electronica,21:00, Free

BLANKET, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,23:00, £6 (£4)

AARON PETRIE, METROPOLITAN, Chill & breakbeat

HOME OF THE GROOVES, MARK ROBB, MAGGIE

house,21:00, Free

MAYS, Jazz, funk, soul,23:00, £5

WED 26 DEC AFTER HOURS, GERRY LYONS, THE BUFF CLUB, Pick & mix of everything,23:00, £3

COLOURS, FEDDE LE GRAND, SEB FONTAINE, TIM DELUXE, THE ARCHES, House, big room dance,22:00, £tbc

DELIVERANCE, DJ DEC & COLIN, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, emo & rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP

DOWNLOAD, ROBERT NATUS, MIKE HUMPHRIES, RITALIN, CLUB CLINIC, Acid techno,21:00, £10

HELL, RYAN & THIERRY GAIDEN, CLASSIC GRAND, House & techno,23:00, £5 (£4) JOINTS & JAMS, CUBE, The Longest running RnB night in Glasgow,23:00, £3 (£2) MJAM SALSA, CHRIS TRAYNOR, LIPTONS, Salsa classes from 8pm, free club from 10.15pm,20:00, Free NEW FLESH, FURY MURRY’S, Rock, metal, punk, rap, industrial & alternative music,22:00, £4, £2 from 10pm11pm, £1 with flyer/after 11pm

POP ROCK-IT, DAVE MULHOLLAND, CATWALK, Mixed Bag,19:00, Free

SQUARE GO!, NICKQ, FREAK SCENE DJS, MAGGIE MAYS, Live bands & club,20:00, £3

TONGUE IN CHEEK, BAMBOO, Lounge, RnB & indie,22:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with matric MARTIN BATE (BEAT 106), THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

THU 27 DEC 45 KICKS, ALEX & JOHN, THE

BUFF CLUB, New York & underground school inspired

beats,23:00, £3

ALTERNATIVE NATION, DJ BARRY & HARVEY KARTEL, BAMBOO, Electro, hip hop, metal,23:00, £4 (£2)

BABAZA, BELO, Hip hop with the funk,22:00, £6, free b4 11pm

HORRORSHOW, CRAIG MCGEE, FIREWATER, Indie, rock, punk, electro, soul, britpop,21:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm NOJ, POLAR BAR (ABC), No Music Policy,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

OLD SCHOOL, GORDIE & JACK, THE BUFF CLUB, Old school tunes,22:30, £6

OOFT PRECLUB, ALI & GRAEME (SKYROCKET), TERMINAL BAR, Electronic/dub,21:00, Free

PRESSURE, SLAM, MATTHEW DEAR, OPTIMO, FUNK D’VOID, THE ARCHES, Techno, house,22:00, £15 RED & GOLD ROOM, ARTA, Soul musak,22:00, £7, free b4 11pm

ROUTE 666, NICOLA WALKER, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free

SOUND MUSEUM, DJ HUSHPUPPY (ART SCHOOL) & CHRIS GEDDES (BELLE & SEBASTIAN), BREL, Retro soul,21:00, Free

SNAFU, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free SPARKIES 45S, MARK ROBB, CafŽ Rio, Jazz, funk & soul,20:00, Free

STEREODOG, MR. LIVEWIRE & GARY CURLEY, CHINAWHITE, House,22:00, £8 (£5)

TOXIC POP, GEOFF M, JUNIOR CAMPOS & MAX, BAMBOO, House music, hip hop & lounge,22:00, £5, free

b4 11pm/12.30am students

VIBRATIONS, DJ MINGO-GO & DJ CASIO, CLASSIC GRAND, Electro,23:00, £6 (£4)

VICE, MARTIN BATE (XFM), THE CATHOUSE - LEVEL 2, Indie rock party,23:00, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30pm with PIYP TAM COYLE, THE BUNKER BAR, Vintage rock & indie,21:00, Free

ROBBIE ROLEX & THE RADIO MAGNETIC SOUNDSYSTEM, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free DARIO BERNADI, METROPOLITAN, Electronic disco &

CHILDREN OF THE 80S, CLASSIC GRAND, DJs & live

soul,21:00, Free

performances, 80s tunes,23:00, £5 (£3) CHIX ON DEX, CHINAWHITE, Rock, funkpunk & house all mixed by lovely ladies,22:00, £4, free b4 11pm

ABC1, Soul, punk, rock & indie dance,23:00, £7 (£5), free

CIGARETTES & F**K ALL, CRAIG MCGEE, THE BUTTERFLY & THE PIG, Indie & rock ‘n’ roll,21:00, Free

FREAKMOVES, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,

Record Playerz in the bar,23:00, £4 (£3)

FREAKSCENE, JOHN, POLAR BAR (ABC), Indie classics,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

THE FUNKY PRECEDENT, D_FADE, DUNCAN HARVEY & BOOM MONK BEN, SAINT JUDE’S, Hip hop, funk, soul & motown,20:00, Free

SAT 29 DEC ABC SATURDAYS, GERRY LYONS, b4 11.30pm with matric.

ABC SATURDAYS, DAVID SINCLAIR (KILLER KITSCH), ABC2, Electro, house & pop,23:00, £7 (£5), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

BAD ROBOT, LOOSE JOINTS & STEVIE ELEMENTS, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Rock to techno &

breakbeats,23:00, £6 (£5), £2 GSA, free after 12am BURLY, THE ARCHES, Aimed at gay men 25+,22:30, £10 DECODANCE, GUESTS, CLASSIC GRAND, Glamorous house,23:00, £8

DIVINE!, MR. DIVINE & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR,

Northern soul, funk, ska & mod tunes,23:00, £6 (£5) DON’T FIGHT IT FEEL IT, MAGGIE MAYS, Indie, rock & CLUB, Hacienda classics,23:00, £5 (£3) roll, psyche,23:00, £5 INSIDE OUT, EDDIE HALLIWELL, VALENTINO, GLAMORAMA, LIL RICH, BOHO, 90s house, 80s LISA LASHES, THE ARCHES, Trance, house, white classics, RnB & chart,21:30, £8 party,22:00, £tbc GROOVEJET, MAS, Weekly house & RnB mix,23:00, £7 MIX GENERATOR, DJ FRAMIE, CATWALK, Classic (£5) rock, maetal & alternative,19:00, Free HANOI ROCKS, CRAIG WILSON, FIREWATER, Indie, ON DEMAND, DJ EUAN, THE SHED, Requests by text rock & britpop,12:00, £5 (£4), free b4 10.30pm message at this interactive club night,22:30, £3 HIP DROP, ROBBIE ROLEX & NEL, BREL, Funk, soul, PLASTIC FUNK, MARK ROBB, TANIA & FRIENDS, electro & disco,21:00, Free BAMBOO, Funk, soul & rock n roll,22:30, £4 (£3), free b4 HOME COOKIN’, BELO, Urban music showcase,22:00, 11pm/12.30am with matric £7, free b4 11pm

HOW’S YOUR PARTY?, GRAEME PARK, THE SUB

RADIOMAGNETIC, RADIOMAGNETIC DJS,

GAZELLE, Funk, soul & latin grooves,20:00, Free

RECORD PLAYERZ, HI-FI SEAN & HUSHPUPPY, THE VIC BAR, Disco electro,23:00, £4 (£3)

RUBBERMENSCH, ABC2, A night for indie

funk,21:00, Free

featuring live percussion by Duffy,23:00, £3, free with matric PRE OP, SOLITARY BIO, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free

punk,22:30, £tbc

WHITENOISEFEEDBACK:DISTORTION, DANSE FREAKMENOOVERS, RUST BAR, Early doors serving of OR DIE, THE ADMIRAL, Live bands & club,20:00, £4 (£3) hip hop, funk, RnB & soul,21:00, Free NEIL WYPER, THE BUNKER BAR, New & old rock & FREAKMENOOVERS, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS,

lovers,23:00, £4 (£3), free b4 11.30pm with matric.

SKINT, DJ BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Metal, hip hop & FREAKMENOOVERS, FREAKMENOOVERS DJS, SUN 23 DEC CLUB PRIORY: RETOX ROOMS, DJ rock,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12.30am with PIYP RICHARD LEVINSON, BLANKET, RnB,23:00, £5 (£3) BLANKET, Fresh hip hop & funk cuts,23:00, £6 (£4) THE THURSDAY CLUB, GERRY LYONS & BRIAN, HOME OF THE GROOVES, MARK ROBB, MAGGIE COLD NIGHT SONG, THE GOAT, Guests & DJs play THE GARAGE, Chart anthems,23:00, £5 (£3), free b4 acoustic gems,20:00, Free MAYS, Jazz, funk, soul,23:00, £5 12am with PIYP HORRORSHOW, CRAIG MCGEE, FIREWATER, Indie, DISCO BADGER, DOMINIC MARTIN, KASH & MAX, UP THE RACKET, DJ TOAST, FIREWATER, Indie, soul, BAMBOO, Classic house music all night long with other rock, punk, electro, soul, britpop,21:00, £5 (£4), free britpop, rock, punk,16:00, £4 (£3), free b4 10.30pm b4 10.30pm boogie next door,22:00, £5 (£3), free b4 10.30pm/ ZERO THURSDAYS, DJ NORMSKI, BOHO, Funk, 12.30pm with matric NOJ, POLAR BAR (ABC), No Music Policy,23:00, £6 (£4), electro & house,21:30, £3 free b4 11.30pm with matric.

IT SURE BEATS WAITIN’, JUMBLESALE SOUNDS, CJ, THE BUNKER BAR, Grunge & new rock,21:00, Free OLD SCHOOL, GORDIE & JACK, THE BUFF CLUB, THE FLYING DUCK, Bass, percussion & scratching,21:00, KEVIN STEVENS, METROPOLITAN, Funk & soul Free b4 11pm Old school tunes,22:30, £6 45s,21:00, Free JUNK, MARKY MARK, THE BUFF CLUB, Jazz & funk

OOFT PRECLUB, ALI & GRAEME (SKYROCKET),

ELECTROBALL, KARBON, 80’s, nu-wave, rock &

FRI 28 DEC ABC FRIDAYS, EUAN NEILSON,

ABC1, Genre mash-up,23:00, £6 (£4), free b4 11.30pm

with matric.

BALLBREAKER, BARRY & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, Rock & metal,22:30, £5 (£4), £3 b4 11.30pm, free b4 11.30am with PIYP BOOGIE DOWN, STEWART REID, BLUU, Jazz, disco & house sounds,22:00, £5, free b4 11pm COMPUTELOVE, THE MIXING ROOMS, Electronic sounds,20:00, Free

HOMEGROWN, STEVIE SOLE MIDDLETON, DOMENIC MARTIN & SCOTTIE B, BAMBOO, House and smooth RnB, jazz & funk,21:00, £5, free b4 10.30pm/12.30am students

KARBON SATURDAYS, KEV MCFARLANE, STEPHEN LEE & WOODY, KARBON, House & hip hop classics,22:30, £tbc

NOISE POLLUTION, CEEPHAX ACID CREW, MARTIN PATTON, BLACKFRIARS, Acid, techno, hardcore, electro,23:00, £8

NU-SCHOOL, THE BUFF CLUB, Fresh northern soul, jazz & funk featuring live percussion, classics downstairs,22:30, £6 ROUTE 666, CIARAN O’TOOLE, CATWALK, Classic & cult rock,19:00, Free SUBCULTURE, HARRI & DOM, THE SUB CLUB, Weekly snapshot of the ever-evolving house blueprint,23:00, £8, £5 b4 12am

TWISTED & BRAINFIRE, SCOTT BROWN, ROBBIE LONG, CLUB CLINIC, UK Hardcore,21:00, £10 VEGAS, THE RENFREW FERRY, Lounge, latin, jazz, swing,21:30, £10 (£8)

VELVET WOMENS CLUB NIGHT, THE ARK, Gay girlies and lgbt friends,22:00, £6

VOODOO, THE CATHOUSE, Under-18 club with metal, emo & punk,17:00, £6 (£3)

DJ TOAST & MASH, THE BUNKER BAR, Eclectic,21:00, Free

LISTINGS

rock,22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 11pm with PIYP DJ NAEEM & MIRRIRBAW, CHINAWHITE, Main room RnB & classics, funky house in the Mao room,22:00, £10 PAUL NEEDLES, THE GOAT, Eclectic,20:00, Free STEVIE ELEMENTS, MACSORLEYS, Eclectic pre-club music,21:00, Free SCOTT STRACHAN, METROPOLITAN, House & funk,21:00, Free JACKMASTER, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Eclectic electric,21:00, Free

SUN 30 DEC CLUB PRIORY: RETOX ROOMS, DJ RICHARD LEVINSON, BLANKET, RnB,23:00, £5

(£3)

COLD NIGHT SONG, THE GOAT, Guests & DJs play acoustic gems,20:00, Free

DISCO BADGER, DOMINIC MARTIN, KASH & MAX, BAMBOO, Classic house music all night long with other boogie next door,22:00, £5 (£3), free b4 10.30pm/12.30pm with matric

IT SURE BEATS WAITIN’, JUMBLESALE SOUNDS, THE FLYING DUCK, Bass, percussion & scratching,21:00,

Free b4 11pm

JUNK, MARKY MARK, THE BUFF CLUB, Jazz & funk featuring live percussion by Duffy,23:00, £3, free with matric

OPTIMO, JD TWITCH & JG WILKES, THE SUB CLUB, Maximum eclectic,23:00, £6 (£5)

PRE OP, SOLITARY BIO, MACSORLEYS, Pre club dance,21:00, Free

SPICED, HEXSTATIC, MEDINA, Ninja tunes,22:00, £7 TEASE AGE, CITRUS CLUB, All things rock, motown,

THE GOOD GROOVE, BREADMARK & JOHNNY CASHBACK, PIVO CAFFE, Funk, afrobeat, latin breaks &

alternative & soul,22:30, £6, free b4 11pm

house,19:00, Free

ULTRAGROOVE, ROUAL GALLOWAY, DIE BRUDER WILSON, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, disco,

FREAK, CITRUS CLUB, Northern soul, 70s funk,

soul, funk,23:00, £8 (£6)

GARETH SOMERVILLE (ULTRAGROOVE) & JONNIE LYLEY (SCRATCH), ASSEMBLY BAR, House to

RED, Indie meets early nineties youth club disco,21:00,

ROLLER DISCO, MASH & JON PLEASED, LULU, Past

SUN 02 DEC ALL BACK TO MINE, OPAL LOUNGE, Eclectic mix of personal favourites,22:00, £3, free b4 11pm

WE ARE É ELECTRIC, GARY MAC & GUESTS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, electro, tech-house & breaks

BOOTY, DALE LUSH & FRIENDS, MEDINA, Soul, funk,

with rotating guests in the back,23:00, £2, free b4 12am/members , BARAKA, Funk, soul, disco, dancehall & reggae,20:00, Free DJ QUANTIC, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Funky shit,21:00, £6

disco & chart,22:00, £5

CURIOUS? SUNDAY JOINT, THE BONGO CLUB, Diverse selection of music, free internet & games,16:00, £3, free b4 11pm

EASY SUNDAY, SAM JOSE & TALL PAUL, THE JAZZ BAR, Groovy lounge,23:30, Free

FRICTION, DEREK MARTIN & STUART JOHNSTON, LIQUID ROOM, Weekly dance club,23:00, £4 (£2), £1 Centro card KAYOS, OPIUM, Rock, metal & indie,20:00, Free NEON/HELLRAISERS BALL, THE HIVE, Goth, indie, bleep, industrial, punk & eighties,23:00, Free

Alternative music for justified sinners,22:30, £3

TRICKY DISCO, JON MANCINI & KRIS KEEGAN,

funky,23:00, £3

NEIL WYPER, THE BUNKER BAR, New & old rock & electronica,21:00, Free

AARON PETRIE, METROPOLITAN, Chill & breakbeat house,21:00, Free

MON 31 DEC BACK TO THE FUTURE,

FRANKIE BONES, LENNY D, BASS GENERATOR, TECHNOTRANCE, CARLING ACADEMY, Old school,19:00, £tbc

BLOCMANAY, BLOC, Live bands & DJs,22:00, £5 COLOURS, 2 MANY DJS, ERIC PRYDZ, DARREN EMERSON, DUKE DUMONT, THE ARCHES, House, techno, classics,22:00, £40

FIRST FOOTIN, TUBEJERK, SOUNDHAUS, Techno, electro,21:00, £tbc

HOGMANAY, THE TWISTED WHEEL, Rock & pop,21:00, £3

MELTING POT, , EMERGENCY DJS, MOGWAI DJ SET, THE ADMIRAL, Disco, country dub, techno, soul,22:00, £15

NUMBERS, DJ FUNK, GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART, Booty, new wave,22:00, £23

EDINBURGH CLUBS SAT 01 DEC DUB2CLUB, MANGOMAD &

DJ DEFAULT, PIVO CAFFE, Dance, indie, hip hop & breaks,17:00, Free

THE EGG, CHRIS & PAUL, WEE RED BAR, Indie, garage, punk, ska & more at the Art College’s long running institution,23:00, £5, £4 students/members THE GO-GO, STUDIO 24, 60s psyche, rock, garage, mod,23:00, £5 (£4) HEADSPIN, AIM, THE BONGO CLUB, Funk, hip hop, beats, house,23:00, £8

JACKHAMMER, JESPER DAHLBACK, EGO,

Chart pop & glam,23:00, £4

SCOTTISH HOBO SOCIETY (LIVE), THE BONGO CLUB, SHAKE, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, soulful &

SIENTELO!, EL BARRIO, Latin America music mixed with chart tunes,23:00, Free

SOUNDPROOF OPEN DECKS, SOUNDPROOF DJS, BARAKA, Open decks night,20:00, Free TASTE, FISHER & PRICE, MISS CHRIS & MARTIN VALENTINE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Legendary gay-friendly club,23:00, £8 (£6), £5 b4 11.30pm

TASTE FOREPLAY, MISS CHRIS, BARAKA, Pre-

MOOVN, BERLIN, House, live percussion & MC,22:00,

SESSION, THE FREAKY FAMILY, THE JAZZ BAR, Hip hop, funk,23:30, Free

ALTER EGO, PO NA NA, DJ Diverse with indie, rock n roll & electro,23:00, £5 (£3)

BUMP, THE LIQUID ROOM, Chart,22:30, £2 (£1) GRAFITTI, KIPP$ & MASTER CAIRD, MEDINA, Party tunes all night,22:00, £3 (£2) LIC IT, CITRUS CLUB, Student night,23:00, £2, free b4 12am

LIMBO, FRIGHTENED RABBIT, Y’ALL IS FANTASY ISLAND, THE VOODOO ROOMS, A live band dance party,20:00, £4

POLYPHONIC SOCIAL CLUB, JACEK ZAMOJSKI & GUESTS, PIVO CAFFE, Electric mash up dance grooves,19:00, Free

RED STAR INSTITUTE, RICKY PALYS, REBECCA VASMANT, RED, House, techno,22:00, Free SALSA DISCO, CUBA NORTE, Salsa dance & tasty tapas,22:00, Free

SICK NOTE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Fidget house, booty bass, indie, new wave,23:00, Free

SIREN, AL MAJIK, CHUBBY COX & GUEST, THE

for students & Industry folk, indie, rock & funk,23:00, £3, free for students/industry

SOULED OUT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, FRAZER MCGLINCHEY & GUESTS, OPAL LOUNGE, Soul, disco

MON 03 DEC HAPPY MONDAYS, PO NA NA, Night THE LATE GREAT JAM SESSION, THE JAZZ BAR, House trio plys guests,22:00, Free

THE LATIN QUARTER, JAMES COMBE, MEDINA, Salsa, funk & latin house,22:00, Free

MISH MASH / MOSH, LUCKY LUCIANO, AJ, THE HIVE, Electro house, bootlegs, mashups, rock,23:00,

Free

HIVE, Electro, house, breaks & techno,23:00, Free

& dance,22:00, £3, free b4 12am STILETTO, JEZ HILL, LULU, Electro-pop, classics & disco,20:00, £5, free b4 10pm

YIN-YANG, HUGGY, CRAIG SMITH, SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House,22:00, £6 (£3)

THE DEPARTURE LOUNGE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Jazz to breakbeats,21:00, Free

MOJO, OPAL LOUNGE, Modern music & timeless

FRI 07 DEC BIG TOE’S HI-FI, WEE RED BAR,

classics,22:00, £3, free b4 12am SOUL DOUBT, HENRYS, Soul,23:00, £2

Reggae, dub, dancehall, dubstep,22:30, £5 (£4)

SOUNDS GOOD, ASTROBOY & BREADMARK, PIVO CAFFE, Soul, jazz & funk,19:00, Free

TRADE UNION, DJ BEEFY & WOLFJAZZ, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Night for deserving bar & club staff,22:00, £2,

£1 Trade Union members/ECCF members P-HAZE, BARAKA, Mashup,20:30, Free JEZ HILL, LULU, Classic pop & funk anthems,20:00, £5, free b4 10pm TUE 04 DEC ANTICS, THE HIVE, Rock, emo, punk & metal,23:00, Free

DARK PLANET OPEN MUSIC, PUBLIC, BARAKA, Come play your vinyl, CDs, iPod, mp3 player or laptop,20:30, Free THE DIAMOND DICE, MR. JINX, MASSA, Hip hop, RnB & grime,22:00, £5

FRUNT, DJ STUART JOHNSTON, THE LIQUID ROOM, House music all night long,22:30, Free

INDIE MIX, NICK A.K.A. & THE DALEK, PIVO CAFFE, LIQUID SOUL, MARK B & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Chirpy Indie, alt, Mashup & bootlegs,21:00, Free MOTHERFUNK, FRYER & GINO, OPAL LOUNGE, music,22:30, £6, £3 b4 11pm £tbc

THU 06 DEC 100% ORGANIC HIP HOP LIVE

taste,20:00, Free

Techno,23:00, £10 (£5)

LUVELY, LIQUID ROOM, Mixed gay house night,22:30,

& future electronic classics,20:00, £4.99, free b4 11pm THE PIT, THE HIVE, Rock & metal,23:00, Free TOXIK, DJ NU-CLEAR , OPIUM, New & old metal & hard rock,20:00, Free

PIVO CAFFE, Retro dance, 90s & disco,19:00, Free

Indie, punk & rock,16:00, Free SPANK, THE CATHOUSE, Rock, punk & dance,23:00, £4 (£2), free b4 12am with PIYP

tunes & floor fillers,21:30, £3

£2, free b4 11pm

BACK TO BASICS, IAN ANDERSON & BISCUIT D,

PLAYGIRL MANSIONS, TRENDY WENDY, LULU,

WE LOVE SUNDAYS, JIM DA BEST, BOHO, Party

JERK ALERT, MC BLONDEX, AWESOME WELLS,

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house

ROCK ON THE SABBATH, CIARAN O’TOOLE & KIERAN ELLIOT, CATWALK, Rock,19:00, Free SOUL SUNDAYS, PAUL CRAWFORD, FIREWATER,

KARBON, House,23:00, £5

disco,22:30, £4, free b4 12am INDI-GO, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie & alternative,22:30, £2, £1 students

hip hop,21:00, Free

& latin,20:00, £7, free b4 12am

Original soul, funk, disco, latin & hip hop,22:00, Free SPITFIRES SOCIAL CLUB, RED, Indie social club,21:00, Free

CLUB CLASSICS, SCOTT ELLIOT, CRAIG GEE & GAV GRANT ON ROTATION, PIVO CAFFE, Classic club music from the past 15 years,17:00, Free

CLUTTER HOUSE, PENDLE COVEN THE DOUBTFUL GUEST, STUDIO 24, Rave, techno, dubstep,23:00, £8 (£6)

CULT, DJ NICKI & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Hip hop, disco, funk & RnB,22:00, £5, £2.50 b4 11pm DE LUXE, HUDSON CLUB, Funky house with resident DJs,23:00, £3, free b4 12am DOGTOOTH, HENRYS, Indie, new wave, electro,23:00, £5 (£4) EVOL, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie, hip hop, alternative beats & rock,22:30, £5 GET FUNK’D, DOUBLE D & ISLA, MEDINA, Hip hop to house,22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm MISFITS, THE HIVE, Indie, electro, punk, rock, retro & a tequila girl,23:00, £3, free b4 12am PLANET EARTH, CITRUS CLUB, 80s tunes with residents,22:30, £5, free b4 11pm SALSA CARIBE!, THE LOT, Salsa DJs on the special wooden dancefloor,21:00, £5, £4 b4 9.30pm

SCRATCH PRESENTS EXTRA CHEESE, J-ZONE, DJ SHEEP, THE BONGO CLUB, Hip hop, boogie,

£8 (£6)

SPLIT, EDINBURGH LOCALS, CABARET VOLTAIRE,

turntablism,23:00, £tbc

PARTY NIGHT, DJ PAPI & ALEX GATO , EL BARRIO,

Blend of house, techno, drum & bass, breakbeat, healthy mid-week rave,23:00, Free

SKUNK FUNK, SOUL VACCINATION, THE JAZZ BAR, Heavy funk,23:30, £5 (£3)

SWING DANCE PARTY, THE VOODOO ROOMS,

TROUBLE, DIXON, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Deep house,

Swing,19:00, £10

disco, dub techno,23:00, £8 (£6) TWISTED, HUGGY, STUDIO 24, House,23:00, £6 (£5) UNKNOWN PLEASURES, TEVIOT UNION, Indie club,21:00, £3 (£2) TROUBLE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Big gay disco to hip hop & broken beats,17:00, Free

Salsa night with free classes from 10pm,23:00, Free RETRIBUTION, STUDIO 24, Goth music for the old,23:00, £5, £4 students SANCTUARY, STUDIO 24, Underage goth club,18:00, £5 (£4)

SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY, ERIK D’VIKING & ASTROBOY, THE JAZZ BAR, Live music from Sorenson

SYNTHETIC LOVE, DAVA & HOBBES, LULU, Eclectic set,20:00, £4, free b4 11pm

TUESDAY HEARTBREAK, DJ AKI, THE JAZZ BAR, Funk,23:30, Free

Soul Workout,23:00, £5, £3 b4 11.30pm

VIBE, JAMES LONGWARTH, EGO, Weekly gay club SLASHDOT, NEIL BARTLEY, DAN BLAND, THE HIVE, playing chart,23:00, £4 Techno & electro, drum & bass, breaks, indie, punk, WED 05 DEC BASS INVASION, PACMAN, JOY, new wave,23:00, £5, free b4 12am

SECRET ARCADE, Drum & bass, breakbeat,21:00, Free

SOPHISTIFUNK, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), BLACK SPRING ROCKS, BLACK SPRING DJS, THE CITY, House remixes, funky RnB & bootlegs,23:00, £8

(£4)

SOUL SPECTRUM, JAZZMAN RECORDS, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Soul & funk,20:00, £4

www.skinnymag.co.uk

JAZZ BAR, Music to make girls dance,23:30, Free

CHAMBLES, DJ JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Funk & chart,21:00, £5 (£4)

LISTINGS

BARRY, ERIC & BILLY, THE CATHOUSE, All things

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house & latin,20:00, £7, free b4 12am JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Upfront & classic tunes,22:00, £6, free b4 12am

SAT 08 DEC ADVANCE, MARCO SMITH, MASSA, Funky House,23:00, £6 (£5)

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

49

EDINBURGH CLUBS BEATSVILLE, LORD ROCHESTER’S DIDDLEYITIS, THE LEITH LINKS, HENRYS, Live bands,23:00, £5 (£4) DISKOKITTEN, ALEX ELLINGER, BERLIN, Bootlegs, house,22:30, £8 (£6)

DUB2CLUB, MANGOMAD & DJ DEFAULT, PIVO CAFFE, Dance, indie, hip hop & breaks,17:00, Free

free b4 10pm

house,22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm

metal,23:00, Free

KONTROL, PERCY X, JUSTIN BERKOVI, NOMAD, STUDIO 24, Electro, techno,22:30, £8, £6

TUE 11 DEC ANTICS, THE HIVE, Rock, emo, punk & DARK PLANET OPEN MUSIC, PUBLIC, BARAKA,

MOTEL, FEDDE LE GRAND, LIQUID ROOM, House,23:00, £tbc

MUCH MORE, NASTY P & CUNNIE, MEDINA, Hip-hop & funk cuts ,22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm

NETWORK, DAN KAHUNA, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, techno, electro,23:00, £12 (£10)

PARTY NIGHT, DJ PAPI & ALEX GATO , EL BARRIO, Salsa night with free classes from 10pm,23:00, Free RETRIBUTION, STUDIO 24, Goth music for the old,23:00, £5, £4 students SANCTUARY, STUDIO 24, Underage goth club,18:00, £5 (£4)

SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY, ERIK D’VIKING & ASTROBOY, THE JAZZ BAR, Live music from Diwan,23:00, £5, £3 b4 11.30pm

SLASHDOT, KID ILL, DJ PACMAN, THE HIVE, Techno & electro, drum & bass, breaks, indie, punk, new wave,23:00, £5, free b4 12am SOPHISTIFUNK, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), CITY, House remixes, funky RnB & bootlegs,23:00, £8

(£4)

STEREOTYPE MOTEL, FEDDE LE GRAND, LIQUID ROOM, Popular, funky house,22:00, £12

TEASE AGE, CITRUS CLUB, All things rock, motown, alternative & soul,22:30, £6, free b4 11pm V & V NATION, STUDIO 24, Futurepop,19:00, £18 (£15)

GARETH SOMERVILLE (ULTRAGROOVE) & JONNIE LYLEY (SCRATCH), ASSEMBLY BAR, House to hip hop,21:00, Free

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house & latin,20:00, £7, free b4 12am

SUN 09 DEC ALL BACK TO MINE, OPAL LOUNGE, Eclectic mix of personal favourites,22:00, £3, free b4 11pm

BACK TO BASICS, IAN ANDERSON & BISCUIT D, PIVO CAFFE, Retro dance, 90s & disco,19:00, Free

BOOTY, DALE LUSH & FRIENDS, MEDINA, Soul, funk, disco & chart,22:00, £5

Cosmic funk & synhesiser soul,21:00, £5

FRUNT, DJ STUART JOHNSTON, THE LIQUID ROOM,

NOIZTEEZ, CRIMINAL WAVES, BERLIN, Hip hop,

Indie, alt, Mashup & bootlegs,21:00, Free

MOTHERFUNK, FRYER & GINO, OPAL LOUNGE, Original soul, funk, disco, latin & hip hop,22:00, Free SPITFIRES SOCIAL CLUB, RED, Indie social club,21:00, Free

SPLIT, EDINBURGH LOCALS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Blend of house, techno, drum & bass, breakbeat, healthy mid-week rave,23:00, Free SYNTHETIC LOVE, DAVA & HOBBES, LULU, Eclectic set,20:00, £4, free b4 11pm

TUESDAY HEARTBREAK, DJ AKI, THE JAZZ BAR, Funk,23:30, Free

VIBE, JAMES LONGWARTH, EGO, Weekly gay club

EASY SUNDAY, SAM JOSE & TALL PAUL, THE JAZZ BAR, Groovy lounge,23:30, Free

FRICTION, DEREK MARTIN & STUART JOHNSTON, LIQUID ROOM, Weekly dance club,23:00, £4 (£2), £1 Centro card KAYOS, OPIUM, Rock, metal & indie,20:00, Free NEON/HELLRAISERS BALL, THE HIVE, Goth, indie, bleep, industrial, punk & eighties,23:00, Free

PLAYGIRL MANSIONS, TRENDY WENDY, LULU, Chart pop & glam,23:00, £4

SCOTTISH HOBO SOCIETY (LIVE), THE BONGO CLUB, Alternative music for justified sinners,22:30, £3

SHAKE, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, soulful &

funky,23:00, £3

SIENTELO!, EL BARRIO, Latin America music mixed with chart tunes,23:00, Free

SOUNDPROOF OPEN DECKS, SOUNDPROOF DJS, BARAKA, Open decks night,20:00, Free TASTE, FISHER & PRICE, MISS CHRIS & MARTIN VALENTINE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Legendary gay-friendly

tequila girl,23:00, £3, free b4 12am

MOONSTEP, DIGITAL JONES, THE VOODOO ROOMS,

funk, drum & bass, electro, breaks,22:00, £4, free b4 10.30pm NOT SO DIRTY, RED, House, electrohouse,22:00, £3, free b4 11pm PLANET EARTH, CITRUS CLUB, 80s tunes with residents,22:30, £5, free b4 11pm SALSA CARIBE!, THE LOT, Salsa DJs on the special wooden dancefloor,21:00, £5, £4 b4 9.30pm

SKUNK FUNK, THE RUFFNESS, THE JAZZ BAR, Funk,23:30, £5 (£3)

SOLESCIENCE, NICK YUILL, ROB MATHIE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House,23:00, £5 (£4)

UNKNOWN PLEASURES, TEVIOT UNION, Indie club,21:00, £3 (£2)

XPLICIT, TEEBEE, THE BONGO CLUB, Drum & bass,

playing chart,23:00, £4

breakbeat,22:30, £9

SECRET ARCADE, Drum & bass, breakbeat,21:00, Free

hop & broken beats,17:00, Free

WED 12 DEC BASS INVASION, PACMAN, JOY, BLACK SPRING ROCKS, BLACK SPRING DJS, THE JAZZ BAR, Music to make girls dance,23:30, Free

TROUBLE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Big gay disco to hip DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk,

JERK ALERT, MC BLONDEX, AWESOME WELLS,

LIQUID SOUL, MARK B & GUESTS, PO NA NA,

RED, Indie meets early nineties youth club disco,21:00,

Chirpy music,22:30, £6, £3 b4 11pm

MUCH MORE, NASTY P & CUNNIE, MEDINA, HipROLLER DISCO, MASH & JON PLEASED, LULU, Past hop & funk cuts ,22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm & future electronic classics,20:00, £4.99, free b4 11pm MUSIKA, RICKY RPM, LIQUID ROOM, House,22:30, £7 THE PIT, THE HIVE, Rock & metal,23:00, Free PARTY NIGHT, DJ PAPI & ALEX GATO , EL BARRIO, TOXIK, DJ NU-CLEAR , OPIUM, New & old metal & £2, free b4 11pm

hard rock,20:00, Free

WE ARE É ELECTRIC, GARY MAC & GUESTS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, electro, tech-house & breaks

with rotating guests in the back,23:00, £2, free b4 12am/members , BARAKA, Funk, soul, disco, dancehall & reggae,20:00, Free

THU 13 DEC 100% ORGANIC HIP HOP LIVE

Salsa night with free classes from 10pm,23:00, Free RETRIBUTION, STUDIO 24, Goth music for the old,23:00, £5, £4 students SANCTUARY, STUDIO 24, Underage goth club,18:00, £5 (£4)

SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY, ERIK D’VIKING & ASTROBOY, THE JAZZ BAR, Live music from Digital Jones,23:00, £5, £3 b4 11.30pm

SLASHDOT, ESPION, JD PYZ, THE HIVE, Techno & electro, drum & bass, breaks, indie, punk, new wave,23:00, £5, free b4 12am

SOPHISTIFUNK, JOHN HUTCHISON ALTER EGO, PO NA NA, DJ Diverse with indie, rock n roll (TOKYOBLU), CITY, House remixes, funky RnB & CLUB, Hip hop, techno, FX,23:00, £2

& electro,23:00, £5 (£3)

bootlegs,23:00, £8 (£4)

BUMP, THE LIQUID ROOM, Chart,22:30, £2 (£1) GRAFITTI, KIPP$ & MASTER CAIRD, MEDINA, Party

STEELWORKS, STUDIO 24, Metal,23:00, £5 (£4) TEASE AGE, CITRUS CLUB, All things rock, motown,

tunes all night,22:00, £3 (£2) LIC IT, CITRUS CLUB, Student night,23:00, £2, free b4 12am LIMBO, CHUTES, THE VOODOO ROOMS, A live band dance party,20:00, £4 MALA VIDA, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Spanish, latin, techno,23:00, £2

alternative & soul,22:30, £6, free b4 11pm

POLYPHONIC SOCIAL CLUB, JACEK ZAMOJSKI & GUESTS, PIVO CAFFE, Electric mash up dance

GARETH SOMERVILLE (ULTRAGROOVE) & JONNIE LYLEY (SCRATCH), ASSEMBLY BAR, House

grooves,19:00, Free

to hip hop,21:00, Free

RED STAR INSTITUTE, MURRAY CALDER, BEEFY, WOLFJAZZ, RED, House, techno, minimal,22:00, Free SALSA DISCO, CUBA NORTE, Salsa dance & tasty

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk,

tapas,22:00, Free

SICK NOTE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Fidget house, booty

MAX SEDEGELY & THE SHOOTS, TROUBLE DJS, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Electro funk live

bass, indie, new wave,23:00, Free

band,21:00, £10

THIS IS MUSIC VS. I FLY SPITFIRES, HENRYS, Eclectic, indie, dance,23:00, £tbc

ULTRAGROOVE, GARETH SOMERVILLE, HOBBES, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House,23:00, £8 (£6) VEGAS, EGO, Swing, latin, jazz, lounge,22:00, £10 (£8)

house & latin,20:00, £7, free b4 12am

for students & Industry folk, indie, rock & funk,23:00, £3, free for students/industry

& dance,22:00, £3, free b4 12am STILETTO, JEZ HILL, LULU, Electro-pop, classics & disco,20:00, £5, free b4 10pm

MISH MASH / MOSH, LUCKY LUCIANO, AJ, THE HIVE, Electro house, bootlegs, mashups, rock,23:00,

Free

MOJO, OPAL LOUNGE, Modern music & timeless classics,22:00, £3, free b4 12am

SOUNDS GOOD, ASTROBOY & BREADMARK, PIVO CAFFE, Soul, jazz & funk,19:00, Free

TRADE UNION, DJ BEEFY & WOLFJAZZ, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Night for deserving bar & club staff,22:00, £2,

£1 Trade Union members/ECCF members P-HAZE, BARAKA, Mashup,20:30, Free JEZ HILL, LULU, Classic pop & funk anthems,20:00, £5,

50 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

taste,20:00, Free

MON 17 DEC HAPPY MONDAYS, PO NA NA, Night for students & Industry folk, indie, rock & funk,23:00, £3, free for students/industry

THE LATE GREAT JAM SESSION, THE JAZZ BAR, House trio plys guests,22:00, Free

THE LATIN QUARTER, JAMES COMBE, MEDINA, Salsa, funk & latin house,22:00, Free

MISH MASH / MOSH, LUCKY LUCIANO, AJ, THE HIVE, Electro house, bootlegs, mashups, rock,23:00,

Free

MOJO, OPAL LOUNGE, Modern music & timeless classics,22:00, £3, free b4 12am

SOUNDS GOOD, ASTROBOY & BREADMARK, PIVO CAFFE, Soul, jazz & funk,19:00, Free

TRADE UNION, DJ BEEFY & WOLFJAZZ, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Night for deserving bar & club

Come play your vinyl, CDs, iPod, mp3 player or laptop,20:30, Free THE DIAMOND DICE, MR. JINX, MASSA, Hip hop, RnB & grime,22:00, £5

BACK TO BASICS, IAN ANDERSON & BISCUIT D,

Salsa, funk & latin house,22:00, Free

TASTE FOREPLAY, MISS CHRIS, BARAKA, Pre-

DARK PLANET OPEN MUSIC, PUBLIC, BARAKA,

SOULED OUT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, FRAZER MCGLINCHEY & GUESTS, OPAL LOUNGE, Soul, disco

THE LATIN QUARTER, JAMES COMBE, MEDINA,

friendly club,23:00, £8 (£6), £5 b4 11.30pm

garage, punk, ska & more at the Art College’s long running institution,23:00, £5, £4 students/members

DJ DEFAULT, PIVO CAFFE, Dance, indie, hip hop &

taste,20:00, Free

House trio plys guests,22:00, Free

SOUNDPROOF OPEN DECKS, SOUNDPROOF DJS, BARAKA, Open decks night,20:00, Free TASTE, FISHER & PRICE, MISS CHRIS & MARTIN VALENTINE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Legendary gay-

THE EGG, CHRIS & PAUL, WEE RED BAR, Indie,

SAT 15 DEC DUB2CLUB, MANGOMAD &

SUN 16 DEC ALL BACK TO MINE, OPAL

THE LATE GREAT JAM SESSION, THE JAZZ BAR,

with chart tunes,23:00, Free

breaks,17:00, Free

house,19:00, Free

LOUNGE, Eclectic mix of personal favourites,22:00, £3,

MON 10 DEC HAPPY MONDAYS, PO NA NA, Night

SIENTELO!, EL BARRIO, Latin America music mixed

disco,22:30, £4, free b4 12am INDI-GO, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie & alternative,22:30, £2, £1 students

THE GOOD GROOVE, BREADMARK & JOHNNY CASHBACK, PIVO CAFFE, Funk, afrobeat, latin breaks &

HIVE, Electro, house, breaks & techno,23:00, Free

TASTE FOREPLAY, MISS CHRIS, BARAKA, Pre-

funky,23:00, £3

FREAK, CITRUS CLUB, Northern soul, 70s funk,

chart,21:00, £5 (£4)

house & latin,20:00, £7, free b4 12am JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Upfront & classic tunes,22:00, £6, free b4 12am

SIREN, AL MAJIK, CHUBBY COX & GUEST, THE

club,23:00, £8 (£6), £5 b4 11.30pm

SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, soulful &

staff,22:00, £2, £1 Trade Union members/ECCF members P-HAZE, BARAKA, Mashup,20:30, Free JEZ HILL, LULU, Classic pop & funk anthems,20:00, £5, free b4 10pm TUE 18 DEC ANTICS, THE HIVE, Rock, emo, punk & metal,23:00, Free

CHAMBLES, DJ JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Funk &

SESSION, THE FREAKY FAMILY, THE JAZZ BAR, Hip CURIOUS? SUNDAY JOINT, THE BONGO CLUB, Diverse hop, funk,23:30, Free selection of music, free internet & games,16:00, £3, free A.X.K., INGEN, UBM, SOFA KING, 97X, THE BONGO b4 11pm

MISFITS, THE HIVE, Indie, electro, punk, rock, retro & a

Come play your vinyl, CDs, iPod, mp3 player or laptop,20:30, Free THE DIAMOND DICE, MR. JINX, MASSA, Hip hop, RnB & grime,22:00, £5

THE EGG, CHRIS & PAUL, WEE RED BAR, Indie, garage, House music all night long,22:30, Free punk, ska & more at the Art College’s long running INDIE MIX, NICK A.K.A. & THE DALEK, PIVO CAFFE, institution,23:00, £5, £4 students/members FEVER, EGO, Pophouseelectrodisco,23:00, £10 (£8) LIQUID SOUL, MARK B & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Chirpy music,22:30, £6, £3 b4 11pm

b4 12am

SHAKE, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU),

YIN-YANG, HUGGY, CRAIG SMITH, SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House,22:00, £6 (£3)

THE DEPARTURE LOUNGE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR,

free b4 11pm PIVO CAFFE, Retro dance, 90s & disco,19:00, Free

BOOTY, DALE LUSH & FRIENDS, MEDINA, Soul, funk, disco & chart,22:00, £5

CURIOUS? SUNDAY JOINT, THE BONGO CLUB, Diverse selection of music, free internet &

games,16:00, £3, free b4 11pm

Jazz to breakbeats,21:00, Free

EASY SUNDAY, SAM JOSE & TALL PAUL, THE

£5 (£4)

FRICTION, DEREK MARTIN & STUART JOHNSTON, LIQUID ROOM, Weekly dance club,23:00,

FRI 14 DEC BLACK TAPE, HENRYS, Eclectic,23:00, CLUB CLASSICS, SCOTT ELLIOT, CRAIG GEE & GAV GRANT ON ROTATION, PIVO CAFFE, Classic club music from the past 15 years,17:00, Free CULT, DJ NICKI & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Hip hop, disco, funk & RnB,22:00, £5, £2.50 b4 11pm DE LUXE, HUDSON CLUB, Funky house with resident DJs,23:00, £3, free b4 12am EVOL, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie, hip hop, alternative beats & rock,22:30, £5 GET FUNK’D, DOUBLE D & ISLA, MEDINA, Hip hop to

JAZZ BAR, Groovy lounge,23:30, Free

£4 (£2), £1 Centro card KAYOS, OPIUM, Rock, metal & indie,20:00, Free NEON/HELLRAISERS BALL, THE HIVE, Goth, indie, bleep, industrial, punk & eighties,23:00, Free

PLAYGIRL MANSIONS, TRENDY WENDY, LULU, Chart pop & glam,23:00, £4

SCOTTISH HOBO SOCIETY (LIVE), THE BONGO CLUB, Alternative music for justified sinners,22:30, £3

FRUNT, DJ STUART JOHNSTON, THE LIQUID ROOM, House music all night long,22:30, Free

INDIE MIX, NICK A.K.A. & THE DALEK, PIVO CAFFE, Indie, alt, Mashup & bootlegs,21:00, Free

MOTHERFUNK, FRYER & GINO, OPAL LOUNGE, Original soul, funk, disco, latin & hip hop,22:00, Free SPITFIRES SOCIAL CLUB, RED, Indie social club,21:00, Free

SPLIT, EDINBURGH LOCALS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Blend of house, techno, drum & bass, breakbeat, healthy mid-week rave,23:00, Free

SYNTHETIC LOVE, DAVA & HOBBES, LULU, Eclectic set,20:00, £4, free b4 11pm

TUESDAY HEARTBREAK, DJ AKI, THE JAZZ BAR, Funk,23:30, Free

VIBE, JAMES LONGWARTH, EGO, Weekly gay club playing chart,23:00, £4

WED 19 DEC BASS INVASION, PACMAN, JOY, SECRET ARCADE, Drum & bass, breakbeat,21:00, Free

BLACK SPRING ROCKS, BLACK SPRING DJS, THE JAZZ BAR, Music to make girls dance,23:30, Free

CHAMBLES, DJ JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Funk & chart,21:00, £5 (£4)

THE GOOD GROOVE, BREADMARK & JOHNNY CASHBACK, PIVO CAFFE, Funk, afrobeat, latin breaks & house,19:00, Free

FREAK, CITRUS CLUB, Northern soul, 70s funk, disco,22:30, £4, free b4 12am INDI-GO, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie & alternative,22:30, £2, £1 students

JERK ALERT, MC BLONDEX, AWESOME WELLS, RED, Indie meets early nineties youth club disco,21:00, £2, free b4 11pm

ROLLER DISCO, MASH & JON PLEASED, LULU, Past & future electronic classics,20:00, £4.99, free b4 11pm THE PIT, THE HIVE, Rock & metal,23:00, Free TOXIK, DJ NU-CLEAR , OPIUM, New & old metal & hard rock,20:00, Free

WE ARE É ELECTRIC, GARY MAC & GUESTS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, electro, tech-house &

breaks with rotating guests in the back,23:00, £2, free b4 12am/members , BARAKA, Funk, soul, disco, dancehall & reggae,20:00, Free

ABERFELDY, DONNA MACIOCIA, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Aberfeldy,20:00, £10

THU 20 DEC 100% ORGANIC HIP HOP LIVE

SESSION, THE FREAKY FAMILY, THE JAZZ BAR, Hip hop, funk,23:30, Free

ALTER EGO, PO NA NA, DJ Diverse with indie, rock n roll & electro,23:00, £5 (£3) BUMP, THE LIQUID ROOM, Chart,22:30, £2 (£1)

GRAFITTI, KIPP$ & MASTER CAIRD, MEDINA, Party tunes all night,22:00, £3 (£2) LIC IT, CITRUS CLUB, Student night,23:00, £2, free b4 12am

POLYPHONIC SOCIAL CLUB, JACEK ZAMOJSKI & GUESTS, PIVO CAFFE, Electric mash up dance

LISTINGS

RED STAR INSTITUTE, NICK AKA, LUKA, KENNY, RED, Techno, breaks, 22:00, Free

RUBIX, LE RENO AMPS, HI 5 ALIVE, MILOPHOBIA, HENRYS, Indie, 20:00, £5 (£4) SALSA DISCO, CUBA NORTE, Salsa dance & tasty

TEASE AGE, CITRUS CLUB, All things rock, motown,

(UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, 22:00, £6 (£3)

alternative & soul, 22:30, £6, free b4 11pm

THE DEPARTURE LOUNGE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR,

GARETH SOMERVILLE (ULTRAGROOVE) & JONNIE LYLEY (SCRATCH), ASSEMBLY BAR, House to

Jazz to breakbeats, 21:00, Free

hip hop, 21:00, Free

dance, 22:00, £5

FRI 28 DEC ABSOLUTE, STUDIO 24, Hard

tapas, 22:00, Free

CLUB CLASSICS, SCOTT ELLIOT, CRAIG GEE & DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house GAV GRANT ON ROTATION, PIVO CAFFE, Classic club

SICK NOTE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Fidget house, booty

& latin, 20:00, £7, free b4 12am

bass, indie, new wave, 23:00, Free

SIREN, AL MAJIK, CHUBBY COX & GUEST, THE

SUN 23 DEC ALL BACK TO MINE, OPAL LOUNGE,

HIVE, Electro, house, breaks & techno, 23:00, Free

Eclectic mix of personal favourites, 22:00, £3, free b4 11pm

SOULED OUT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, FRAZER MCGLINCHEY & GUESTS, OPAL LOUNGE, Soul, disco

PIVO CAFFE, Retro dance, 90s & disco,19:00, Free

BACK TO BASICS, IAN ANDERSON & BISCUIT D,

& dance, 22:00, £3, free b4 12am STILETTO, JEZ HILL, LULU, Electro-pop, classics & disco, 20:00, £5, free b4 10pm

BOOTY, DALE LUSH & FRIENDS, MEDINA, Soul, funk,

YIN-YANG, HUGGY, CRAIG SMITH, SHANGHAI

Diverse selection of music, free internet & games,16:00, £3, free b4 11pm

(UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, 22:00, £6 (£3)

THE DEPARTURE LOUNGE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Jazz to breakbeats, 21:00, Free

ABERFELDY, DONNA MACIOCIA, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Aberfeldy, 20:00, £10

FRI 21 DEC 3345 FAREWELL PARTY, LEON

EASTER, NICK WATSON, GARY J, TRAV, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House & sax, 23:00, £5 (£4)

CLIMAX, JACKMASTER, DAN MOORE, RED,

disco & chart, 22:00, £5

CURIOUS? SUNDAY JOINT, THE BONGO CLUB, EASY SUNDAY, SAM JOSE & TALL PAUL, THE JAZZ BAR, Groovy lounge, 23:30, Free

FRICTION, DEREK MARTIN & STUART JOHNSTON, LIQUID ROOM, Weekly dance club, 23:00, £4 (£2), £1 Centro card KAYOS, OPIUM, Rock, metal & indie, 20:00, Free NEON/HELLRAISERS BALL, THE HIVE, Goth, indie, bleep, industrial, punk & eighties, 23:00, Free

Techno, Detroit, electro, booty, 22:00, Free

PLAYGIRL MANSIONS, TRENDY WENDY, LULU,

CLUB CLASSICS, SCOTT ELLIOT, CRAIG GEE & GAV GRANT ON ROTATION, PIVO CAFFE, Classic club

SCOTTISH HOBO SOCIETY (LIVE), THE BONGO CLUB,

music from the past 15 years,17:00, Free CULT, DJ NICKI & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Hip hop, disco, funk & RnB, 22:00, £5, £2.50 b4 11pm DE LUXE, HUDSON CLUB, Funky house with resident DJs, 23:00, £3, free b4 12am DOGTOOTH, HENRYS, Indie, new wave, electro, 23:00, £5 (£4) EVOL, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie, hip hop, alternative beats & rock, 22:30, £5 GET FUNK’D, DOUBLE D & ISLA, MEDINA, Hip hop to house, 22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm JAKN, STUDIO 24, Hard techno, 22:30, £6 (£5), free b4 12am MISFITS, THE HIVE, Indie, electro, punk, rock, retro & a tequila girl, 23:00, £3, free b4 12am PLANET EARTH, CITRUS CLUB, 80s tunes with residents, 22:30, £5, free b4 11pm SALSA CARIBE!, THE LOT, Salsa DJs on the special wooden dancefloor, 21:00, £5, £4 b4 9.30pm

SKUNK FUNK, THE OFFENDERS, THE JAZZ BAR, Jumpin’ blues, 23:30, £5 (£3)

UNKNOWN PLEASURES, TEVIOT UNION, Indie club, 21:00, £3 (£2)

WONKY WALLPAPER, DOUBLE HELIX, ABSOLUTE CHANCER, THE GRV, Electronica,19:00, Free

TROUBLE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Big gay disco to hip hop & broken beats,17:00, Free

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house & latin, 20:00, £7, free b4 12am JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Upfront & classic tunes, 22:00, £6, free b4 12am

SAT 22 DEC DUB2CLUB, MANGOMAD &

DJ DEFAULT, PIVO CAFFE, Dance, indie, hip hop & breaks,17:00, Free

THE EGG, CHRIS & PAUL, WEE RED BAR, Indie, garage, punk, ska & more at the Art College’s long running institution, 23:00, £5, £4 students/members

KARNIVAL, RYAN ELLIS, MIKE PINKERTON, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, techno, electro, 23:00, £8

(£6)

LIQUID SOUL, MARK B & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Chirpy music, 22:30, £6, £3 b4 11pm

MUCH MORE, NASTY P & CUNNIE, MEDINA, Hiphop & funk cuts , 22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm OBSCENE, EGO BASEMENT, Drum & bass, breakbeat, 23:00, £3

PARTY NIGHT, DJ PAPI & ALEX GATO , EL BARRIO, Salsa night with free classes from 10pm, 23:00, Free RETRIBUTION, STUDIO 24, Goth music for the old, 23:00, £5, £4 students SANCTUARY, STUDIO 24, Underage goth club,18:00, £5 (£4)

SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY, ERIK D’VIKING & ASTROBOY, THE JAZZ BAR, Live music from Voces Del Sur, 23:00, £5, £3 b4 11.30pm

SLASHDOT, KID TWIST, KMG, THE HIVE, Techno & electro, drum & bass, breaks, indie, punk, new wave, 23:00, £5, free b4 12am

SOPHISTIFUNK, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), CITY, House remixes, funky RnB & bootlegs, 23:00, £8 (£4)

www.skinnymag.co.uk

Chart pop & glam, 23:00, £4 Alternative music for justified sinners, 22:30, £3

SHAKE, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, soulful &

funky, 23:00, £3

SIENTELO!, EL BARRIO, Latin America music mixed with chart tunes, 23:00, Free

SOUNDPROOF OPEN DECKS, SOUNDPROOF DJS, BARAKA, Open decks night, 20:00, Free MON 24 DEC THE LATE GREAT JAM SESSION, THE JAZZ BAR, House trio plys guests, 21:00, £3 (£2)

TUE 25 DEC TASTE ESCAPE XMAS PARTY,

CABARET VOLTAIRE, Mixed gay house night, 23:00, £8

(£6), £5 b4 11.30pm

WED 26 DEC BASS INVASION, PACMAN, JOY, SECRET ARCADE, Drum & bass, breakbeat, 21:00, Free

CHAMBLES, DJ JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Funk & chart, 21:00, £5 (£4)

THE GOOD GROOVE, BREADMARK & JOHNNY CASHBACK, PIVO CAFFE, Funk, afrobeat, latin breaks & house,19:00, Free

FREAK, CITRUS CLUB, Northern soul, 70s funk, disco, 22:30, £4, free b4 12am INDI-GO, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie & alternative, 22:30, £2, £1 students

JERK ALERT, MC BLONDEX, AWESOME WELLS, RED, Indie meets early nineties youth club disco, 21:00,

£2, free b4 11pm

ROLLER DISCO, MASH & JON PLEASED, LULU, Past & future electronic classics, 20:00, £4.99, free b4 11pm THE PIT, THE HIVE, Rock & metal, 23:00, Free TOXIK, DJ NU-CLEAR , OPIUM, New & old metal & hard rock, 20:00, Free

WE ARE É ELECTRIC, XENIA, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, electro, tech-house & breaks with rotating guests in the back, 23:00, £2, £1 b4 12am , BARAKA, Funk, soul, disco, dancehall & reggae, 20:00, Free THU 27 DEC ALTER EGO, PO NA NA, DJ Diverse with indie, rock n roll & electro, 23:00, £5 (£3) BUMP, THE LIQUID ROOM, Chart, 22:30, £2 (£1) GRAFITTI, KIPP$ & MASTER CAIRD, MEDINA, Party tunes all night, 22:00, £3 (£2) LIC IT, CITRUS CLUB, Student night, 23:00, £2, free b4 12am LIMBO, LIVE BANDS, THE VOODOO ROOMS, A place where girls dance and anything can happen, 20:00, £4

POLYPHONIC SOCIAL CLUB, JACEK ZAMOJSKI & GUESTS, PIVO CAFFE, Electric mash up dance

music from the past 15 years,17:00, Free CULT, DJ NICKI & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Hip hop, disco, funk & RnB, 22:00, £5, £2.50 b4 11pm DE LUXE, HUDSON CLUB, Funky house with resident DJs, 23:00, £3, free b4 12am EVOL, THE LIQUID ROOM, Indie, hip hop, alternative beats & rock, 22:30, £5 GET FUNK’D, DOUBLE D & ISLA, MEDINA, Hip hop to house, 22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm MISFITS, THE HIVE, Indie, electro, punk, rock, retro & a tequila girl, 23:00, £3, free b4 12am ON REQUEST, EGO, Music on request, 23:00, £4 PLANET EARTH, CITRUS CLUB, 80s tunes with residents, 22:30, £5, free b4 11pm SALSA CARIBE!, THE LOT, Salsa DJs on the special wooden dancefloor, 21:00, £5, £4 b4 9.30pm

SKUNK FUNK, JOE ACHESON QUARTET, THE JAZZ BAR, Electronic jazz, 23:30, £5 (£3)

SUGARBEAT, UTAH SAINTS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Breakbeat, mashups, drum & bass, electro, hip hop, 23:00, £5 UNKNOWN PLEASURES, TEVIOT UNION, Indie club, 21:00, £3 (£2) TROUBLE DJS, ASSEMBLY BAR, Big gay disco to hip hop & broken beats,17:00, Free OI POLLOI, THE GIN GOBLINS, HENRYS, Punk, 23:00, £5

BAR, Groovy lounge, 23:30, Free

FRICTION, DEREK MARTIN & STUART JOHNSTON, LIQUID ROOM, Weekly dance club, 23:00, £4 (£2), £1 Centro card KAYOS, OPIUM, Rock, metal & indie, 20:00, Free NEON/HELLRAISERS BALL, THE HIVE, Goth, indie, bleep, industrial, punk & eighties, 23:00, Free

PLAYGIRL MANSIONS, TRENDY WENDY, LULU, Chart pop & glam, 23:00, £4

SCOTTISH HOBO SOCIETY (LIVE), THE BONGO CLUB, Alternative music for justified sinners, 22:30, £3

SHAKE, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), SHANGHAI (UNDERNEATH LE MONDE), House, soulful &

LISTINGS

grooves,19:00, Free

funky, 23:00, £3

SIENTELO!, EL BARRIO, Latin America music mixed with chart tunes, 23:00, Free

SOUNDPROOF OPEN DECKS, SOUNDPROOF DJS, BARAKA, Open decks night, 20:00, Free STEREOTYPE & TOKYOBLU, HUGGY, JOHN HUTCHINSON, IAIN GIBSON, BERLIN, House, 22:30, £20

TASTE, STEVE PORTER, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Legendary gay-friendly club, 23:00, £8 (£6), £5 b4 11.30pm TASTE FOREPLAY, MISS CHRIS, BARAKA, Pretaste, 20:00, Free

MON 31 DEC ACME WORKERS CLUB, RAF CLUB, Music, magic & munchies,17:30, £8

BOOMBOX, EGO, Club classics, trance, house, 22:00, £20

COLOURS NYE, 2 MANY DJS, ERIC PRYDZ, DARREN EMERSON, CITY, House, bootlegs, 21:30, £40

HOGMANAY PARTY, THE JAZZ BAR, 2 live bands, Djs, 21:00, £10 DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house LUVELY, LIQUID ROOM, School Uniform dress & latin, 20:00, £7, free b4 12am JEZ HILL, OPAL LOUNGE, Upfront & classic tunes, 22:00, £6, free b4 12am

code, 21:00, £tbc

DJ DEFAULT, PIVO CAFFE, Dance, indie, hip hop & breaks,17:00, Free

ULTRAGROOVE, DERRICK CARTER, SOLESCIENCE DJS, GARETH SOMERVILLE,

EDENANGELS, BARRIE MILLAR, LUCKY LUCIANO, MAX PETRONIO, THE VAULTS, Tribal

VEGAS, OCEAN TERMINAL, Swing, latin, jazz,

SAT 29 DEC DUB2CLUB, MANGOMAD &

house, 23:00, £7, £5 b4 1am

THE EGG, CHRIS & PAUL, WEE RED BAR, Indie,

SUBSTANCE, HENRYS, Techno, 23:00, £tbc TACKNO - THE GLITTER BALL, TRENDY WENDY, STUDIO 24, Disco, 22:30, £20

CABARET VOLTAIRE, Chicago house, 23:00, £25

lounge, 21:00, £30

garage, punk, ska & more at the Art College’s long running institution, 23:00, £5, £4 students/members

GLASGOW LIVE

JACKHAMMER, MARCO BAILEY, CYMBOL, EGO,

SAT 01 DEC BABYSHAMBLES, SECC, Every ticket

techno, 23:00, £10

LIQUID SOUL, MARK B & GUESTS, PO NA NA, Chirpy music, 22:30, £6, £3 b4 11pm

MUCH MORE, NASTY P & CUNNIE, MEDINA, Hiphop & funk cuts , 22:00, £4, £3 b4 11pm

MUSIKA, MARK KNIGHT, SEBASTIAN LEGER, LIQUID ROOM, House, 22:30, £12.50

PARTY NIGHT, DJ PAPI & ALEX GATO , EL BARRIO, Salsa night with free classes from 10pm, 23:00, Free RETRIBUTION, STUDIO 24, Goth music for the old, 23:00, £5, £4 students SANCTUARY, STUDIO 24, Underage goth club,18:00, £5 (£4)

SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY, ERIK D’VIKING & ASTROBOY, THE JAZZ BAR, Live music from The Joy Foundation, 23:00, £5, £3 b4 11.30pm SLASHDOT, ROTATING , THE HIVE, Techno & electro, drum & bass, breaks, indie, punk, new wave, 23:00, £5, free b4 12am

SOPHISTIFUNK, JOHN HUTCHISON (TOKYOBLU), CITY, House remixes, funky RnB & bootlegs, 23:00, £8 (£4)

TEASE AGE, CITRUS CLUB, All things rock, motown, alternative & soul, 22:30, £6, free b4 11pm

TELEFUNKEN, MASTIKSOUL, CABARET VOLTAIRE, House, 23:00, £10, £8 b4 12am

GARETH SOMERVILLE (ULTRAGROOVE) & JONNIE LYLEY (SCRATCH), ASSEMBLY BAR, House to

bought saves a Granny fae a mugging,19:00, £23.50 RYAN ADAMS, CLYDE AUDITORIUM, Country-rock,19:00, £24.00

EP LAUNCH, RASPBERRY BADGER, THE DEAD GENERALS, ABC2, Indie-rock,19:00, £6 PHARMACY, WULL THE THIEF, HIGHWATERS, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Indie-rock, 20:00, £6

THE HARDY SOULS, COME IN TOKYO, THE STATLER PROJECT, THE USUAL, BOX, IndieRock, 20:00, £TBC

THE SAW DOCTORS, BARROWLANDS, Not just “Two Princes”,19:00, Sold Out JOSH ROUSE, QMU, Singer-songwriter,19:00, £15 ROSE HILL DRIVE, WHITE ACE, KING TUT’S, Rock’n’roll from Colorado,19:30, £7 ROISIN MURPHY, ABC1, ex-Moloko dance-pop,19:00, £15 GHOSTBUS, BARFLY, ?, 20:00, £5 SUN 02 DEC THE FIVE ACES, ORAN MOR, old school R&B, 20:00, Free LINDA JACKSON, THE FOTHERS, Soul, jazz, RnB,16:00, Free

FOUR STAR, EL CHUPACABRAS, CORTEZ, BOX, Alt-rock from Perth, 20:00, £TBC PARADISE LOST, THE GARAGE, Goth-rock,19:00, £12 LUCERO, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Southern Rock,19:30, £6

hip hop, 21:00, Free

THE STATE BROADCASTERS, FINNISTON, THE METRO-GNOMES, 13TH NOTE, Gentle Indie-rock, 20:30,

RED STAR INSTITUTE, RED, Open decks night, 22:00,

DANNY TENNENT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, ISLA BLIGE & THE BLOND FLASH, LULU, Soul, funk, house

LO FIDELITY ALLSTARS, KING TUT’S, Funky

SALSA DISCO, CUBA NORTE, Salsa dance & tasty

& latin, 20:00, £7, free b4 12am

grooves,19:00, Free Free

tapas, 22:00, Free

SICK NOTE, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Fidget house, booty bass, indie, new wave, 23:00, Free

SIREN, AL MAJIK, CHUBBY COX & GUEST, THE HIVE, Electro, house, breaks & techno, 23:00, Free

SOULED OUT, GARETH SOMERVILLE, FRAZER MCGLINCHEY & GUESTS, OPAL LOUNGE, Soul, disco & dance, 22:00, £3, free b4 12am STILETTO, JEZ HILL, LULU, Electro-pop, classics & disco, 20:00, £5, free b4 10pm

YIN-YANG, HUGGY, CRAIG SMITH, SHANGHAI

SUN 30 DEC ALL BACK TO MINE, OPAL LOUNGE, Eclectic mix of personal favourites, 22:00, £3, free b4 11pm

BACK TO BASICS, IAN ANDERSON & BISCUIT D, PIVO CAFFE, Retro dance, 90s & disco,19:00, Free

BOOTY, DALE LUSH & FRIENDS, MEDINA, Soul, funk, disco & chart, 22:00, £5

CURIOUS? SUNDAY JOINT, THE BONGO CLUB, Diverse selection of music, free internet & games,16:00, £3, free b4 11pm

EASY SUNDAY, SAM JOSE & TALL PAUL, THE JAZZ

£3

electronica,19:30, £10

THE WOMBATS, QMU, Indie-rock,19:00, £8 LETHAL BIZZLE, THE ARCHES, Grime star,19:00, £10 THE AXIS MUNDI, JAMES APOLLO, CEYLAN HAY, BLACKFRIARS, folky indie-rock,19:30, £3

MON 03 DEC ANDREW BACON, THE

DELUSIONAL, FIRST REPUBLIC, NO SIGNAL, THE DREAMT, BOX, Young singer-songwriter, 20:00, £TBC SHAI HULUD, WINSOR PLAGUES, BARFLY, Progmetal, 20:00, £9

INTERPOL, CARLING ACADEMY, Austere Indierock,19:00, £20

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

51

GLASGOW LIVE

Singer-songwriter from Falkirk,20:00, £6

FLOOD OF RED, YOU ME AT SIX, MY ACTIONS YOUR EXIT, KING TUT’S, Scream-rock,20:00, £7 KINGS OF LEON, SECC, Indie-rock,19:00, £23 DANANANANAYKROYD, CHARLOTTEFIELD, SPY VS SPY, 13TH NOTE, “When Drums Attack!!!”,21:00, £TBC LEVOLORA, BLOC, Emo-lite powerpop,21:00, Free TUE 04 DEC CHERRY GHOST, ORAN MOR, Indie-

pop from former Teenage Fannie Paul Quinn,20:00, £TBC LITTLE KICKS, 13TH NOTE, Indie-rock,21:00, £TBC

THE PRIMARY 5, THE DAISY PARK, WOODENBOX, A FISTFULLOFFIVERS, BOX, Indie-

MARILYN MANSON, TURBONEGRO, BRAEHEAD ARENA, No-longer-shocking Goth superstar,19:00, £25

RUNRIG, BARROWLANDS, More Scottish Than You,19:00, Sold Out

rock,19:00, £9

CHEMICAL BROTHERS, SECC, Block-rocking

HELLOGOODBYE, ABC1, Powerpop,19:00, Sold out WHAT THE BLOOD REVEALED, BLOC, Post-

beats,19:00, £23 BIS, ORAN MOR, Reformed trio, bigger in Japan than hometown Glasgow,19:30, £10

rockers,21:00, Free

BURNOUT, 13TH NOTE, Swaggering Indie-rock,21:00,

SUN 09 DEC MCFLY, AMY MACDONALD,

THE WONDER YEARS, BARFLY, Pop-punk,20:00, £6 THE YOUNG GODS, UNDERCUT, KOBAI, BARFLY,

Competition Winners

£TBC

Swiss Rockers,20:00, £8

DAN DEACON, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Absurdist Electronica,19:30, £8

JOSH RITTER, CLASSIC GRAND, Singer-songwriter,19:00,

PACIFIC AVENUE, ABC1, Pop heaven (or hell)?,14:00,

SUBHUMANS, THE REPEATERS, DEAD BEAT HEROS, THE VOID, BARFLY, Punk,20:00, £8 CHRIS BLAIR, BOX, Singer-songwriter,20:00, £TBC JENNY OWEN YOUNGS, DAVE HOUSE, Y’ALL IS FANTASY ISLAND, KING TUT’S, Feisty singer-

£13

songwriter,20:00, £7

KANYE WEST, SECC, Hip-hop superstar,19:00, £30 HARD-FI, BARROWLANDS, Indie-rock,19:00, £23 IAN BROWN, EXITPILOT, CARLING ACADEMY, Manc

THE DARE! TOUR, THE HUMAN LEAGUE, CARLING

monkey and local boys,19:00, £25

thrice,19:30, £40

rock,19:00, £23

RED TORPEDO KINGS OF THE UNDERWORLD SHOWCASE, LE RENO AMPS, RIESER, ST DELUXE, THE MISS’S, CAPITOL, Alt Country,21:00,

WED 05 DEC HARD-FI, BARROWLANDS, IndieNATIONAL PARK, THE NATIONAL JAZZ TRIO OF SCOTLAND,ALLY KERR, COTTIERS, Blurred and folky indie-rock,20:00, Free

KLAY, THIS FAMILIAR SMILE, KAIKOURA, BLOC, Altrockers,21:00, Free

CAGE THE ELEPHANT, KING TUT’S, Rock/punk/ funk,19:30, £5

THE MONOBROWS, GIRLS DANCE BETTER THAN BOYS, THE PLANES, BOX, Jazzy funksters,20:00, £TBC TINY VIPERS, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Slightly creepy acoustica,19:30, £8

CSS, JUSTICE, METRONOMY, CARLING ACADEMY, Indie-dance,19:00, £16

ROLO TOMASSI, DEAD OR AMERICAN, BARFLY, Experimentalism,20:00, £5

BIG LINDA, SONS OF ALBION, BARFLY, Rock,20:00, £5 THE START, THE CATHOUSE, Rock,19:00, £7 SERVANT, 13TH NOTE, Indie-rock,21:00, £TBC MALCOLM MIDDLETON, MAKE MODEL, ABC1, Morose singer-songwriter,19:00, £11

THU 06 DEC LOU HICKEY, SISA, DJS, BARFLY, Modern cabaret,20:00, £5

ACHREN, RISE WITH THE FALLEN, DAEMONOLITH, THE CATHOUSE, Black metal,19:00, £5

SOUVEIN, BLACK SUN, CO-EXIST, 13TH NOTE, Metal,21:00, £TBC

WHITENOISEFEEDBACK:DISTORTION PRESENTSÉ, STOPSTARTS, WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS, BLOC, Quirky pop,21:00, Free THE KING BLUES, MILK KAN, JUNKMANS CHOIR, KING TUT’S, Reggae party-starters,20:00, £7

KAISER CHIEFS, SECC, Another chance for singalong “wooaaahhhh!”s,18:30, £25

FUTURE OF THE LEFT, FIGHTING WITH WIRE, BARFLY, brilliant Welsh alt-rock trio,20:00, £5

FRI 07 DEC SPEAR OF DESTINY, ORAN MOR, Rock,19:30, £10

THE ROOT SYSTEM, THE BROGUES, THE DECENT SOULS, THE LIKEY LADS, BARFLY, Ska,20:00, £5 THE MODERN FACES, THE DRAYMIN, MONTRA, RACINGREEN, AIRSPIEL, BOX, Local indie-rock,20:00, £TBC

THE VATERSAY BOYS, BARROWLANDS, Folk-rock,19:00, £15

THE TOWERS, ROOMTOLET, OPPORTUNITY CLUB, CLASSIC GRAND, indie-pop-rock,19:00, £5

YOUNG GALAXY, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Canadian indiepop,19:30, £7

THE COMPLETE STONE ROSES, CARLING ACADEMY, Stone Roses tribute,19:00, £12 JACKIE LEVEN, KING TUT’S, Singer-songwriter,19:30, £9 DANSE OR DIE, BLACK TIE AFFAIR, ABC2, Hyperelectro-disco-death-funk, so they say,19:00, £6

JOOLS HOLLAND AND HIS RHYTHM AND BLUES ORCHESTRA, CLYDE AUDITORIUM, Telly’s favourite boogie-woogie tinkler,19:30, £30

SAT 08 DEC JOOLS HOLLAND AND HIS

RHYTHM AND BLUES ORCHESTRA, CLYDE AUDITORIUM, Telly’s favourite boogie-woogie tinkler,19:30,

£30

THE BREAKERS, THE HARRINGTONS, BARFLY, Indierock,20:00, £6

THE COMPLETE STONE ROSES, PETER HOOK, CARLING ACADEMY, Stone Roses tribute,19:00, £12

100% PANTERA, 50:45, 15 TIMES DEAD, BARFLY, Pantera tribute,20:00, £7

ROSS FAIRWEATHER, BELLINGHAM AND ROBINSON, BASICALLY ACOUSTIC, NICE’N’SLEAZY,

52 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

ACADEMY, Don’t you want me baby?,19:00, £23

WET WET WET, SECC, So good they named them

£4

MON 10 DEC MICAHÊP HINSON, MOUNTAIN GOATS, ALISDAIR ROBERTS, ORAN MOR, Singersongwriter,18:30, £15

MISS CONDUCT, A TRUE STORY, GOODBYE SUSPECT, BARFLY, Pop-punk,20:00, £7 THE DISPLACEMENTS, DIRTY HEARTS, VINAL FRETZ, SOLARIZE, BARFLY, 2-step/garage/ indie,20:00, £6

HIM, BARROWLANDS, Like Marilyn Manson, but not as good,19:00, £19

PEGGY SUE AND THE PIRATES, BROKEN RECORDS, WOODENBOX, KING TUT’S, Local indierock,19:30, £5

LIN, STATE OF AFFAIRS, BOX, Indie-rock,20:00, £TBC

LIONS.CHASE.TIGERS, ISEESHAPES, BLOC, Young indie-rockers,21:00, Free

TUE 11 DEC THE COLLECTORS, LIFE LIKE

MOVIES, JOCASTA SLEEPS, LIONS.CHASE. TIGERS, BARFLY, Indie-rock,20:00, £5 THE POGUES, CARLING ACADEMY, Drunk Irish karaoke (but better),19:00, £29

RODRIGO Y GABRIELA, BARROWLANDS, Mexican guitar duo,19:00, £14

JAMES OWEN FENDER, KING TUT’S, Costello music,19:30, £5

I SAY MARVIN, LANDON, LONGSTORYSHORT, IDIOTCUT, BARFLY, indie-disco,20:00, £5 POWDERFINGER, ABC1, Aussie rockers,19:00, £19 WED 12 DEC MR MANANA, BLOC, Grungey indie-rock,21:00, Free

PELICAN, HIGH ON FIRE, ORAN MOR, Instrumental prog,19:00, £10

FRI 14 DEC SENSATIONAL ALEX HARVEY

BAND, ABC1, Veteren Scottish rock’n’roll,19:00, £16 JAMES YORKSTON & THE ATHLETES, COLIN MACINTYRE, ABERFELDY, THE PARSONAGE, FRANCIS MACDONALD, THE CLASSIC GRAND, The best of gentle Scottish singer-songwriters,, £TBC

ARCADIAN, YASHIN, DARK LITTLE POET, TWIN ATLANTIC, SPACE JUNK, BARFLY, Indie-rock plus beeps,20:00, £TBC

RIHANNA-ANNA-ANNA-ANNA ETC., SECC, Determinedly dry chart-topper,19:00, £28 NINE CIRCLES, BOX, Live Music,20:00, £TBC RODDY CAMPBELL, 13TH NOTE, Live Music,21:00, £TBC LORIS, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Electro-house,19:30, £TBC SPITALFIELD, THE CATHOUSE, Final tour from Chicagoan rockers,19:00, £7 CARINA ROUND, KING TUT’S, Indie-rock,19:30, £7 APOCALYPTICA, THE GARAGE, Goth-metal,19:00, Sold Out AMY MACDONALD, BARROWLANDS, Local singersongwriter,19:00, £15 MUM, SEABEAR, ORAN MOR, Icelandic experimentalism,19:00, £15 SAT 15 DEC LED ASTRAY, VOLTS, BARFLY, Led Zep tribute band,20:00, £8

THE STEEPLES, THE BEATNIC PRESTIGE, DELTA AUDIO CLUB, BARFLY, Indie-pop,20:00, £6 THREESEVENTYFIVE, DIRTY HEARTS, THE BLUFFERS, MERCIA DRIFT, HERCULES MANDARIN, BOX, Indie-rock,20:00, £TBC THE VERVE, SECC, Reunited Wiganites,18:30, £33 GUILDED ANGELS, BOX, Live Music,20:00, £TBC FROM THE JAM (BRUCE FOXTON & RICK BUTLER), CARLING ACADEMY, The Jam without Paul Weller,19:00, £19

BJORN AGAIN, CLYDE AUDITORIUM, Abba tribute,18:30, £19

THU 20 DEC DARKLIGHT, AMSTIRDAM,

ODESSA, BARFLY, Indie-rock,20:00, £5 FAT CAT XMAS, THE TWILIGHT SAD, VASHTI BUNYAN, FRIGHTENED RABBIT, THE ARCHES, Fat Cat label showcase,20:00, £8.50 DEAD CITY RADIO, BARFLY, Indie-rock,20:00, £5.00

IS THIS MUSIC PRESENTSÉ, SAN SEBASTIAN, OVER THE WALL, 13TH NOTE, Dreamy indierock,21:00, £TBC

THE WILDHEARTS, CARLING ACADEMY, Geordie rockers,19:00, £14.50

THE CINEMATICS, KING TUT’S, Local and up-andcoming post-punks,19:30, £7.00

KORPIKLAANI, BATTLELORE, MAN OF THE HOUR, THE CATHOUSE, Finnish folk-metal,19:00, £9.00 A TRUE STORY, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Whingey wank,19:30, £TBC

ROOM TO LET, BIG HAND, BLOC, Ska,21:00, Free FRI 21 DEC THE TREND, FIFTEEN MINUTES, BARFLY, Indie-punk,20:00, £6

MAIDEN SCOTLAND, ATTICA RAGE, SYTH, BARFLY, Iron Maiden tribute,20:00, £6

BEECAKE, MINDSET, ELECTRIC DRUGSTORE, BOX, Alt-rock,20:00, £TBC

POOCH, THE GALLERY, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Thrash/ electro/punk,19:30, £TBC

HI 5 ALIVE, LUVA ANNA, THE BROGUES, KING TUT’S, Brightly-coloured indie-pop,19:30, £5

ANAVRIS, CLOSET ORGAN, THE FIRE AND I, THE CATHOUSE, Hard rock,19:00, £5

SILENCERS, ABC1, quirky pop,19:00, £15 SAT 22 DEC DIAGUSTO, THE HIGHWAYS, ROCKBURN, THE IDEALS, BARFLY, Alt-pop,20:00, £6

SILVA, STANDING ORDER, THE ARCHES, 21st Century Sound Xmas Party,22:00, £10 SHED 7, CARLING ACADEMY, Singalong anthems,19:00, £16 JOE STRUMMER TRIBUTE NIGHT, KING TUT’S, The Clash ain’t never gonna die!,20:00, £8

THE ADS, CAPTAIN PHOENIX, BLACK ALLEY SCREENS, KING TUT’S, Local indie-rock,19:30, £6 ROCK ACTION XMAS PARTY, PART CHIMP + MORE TBA, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Extremely loud, bring

THE RETROSEXUALS, THE KOROVAS, LE TEEF, THE LEMMINGS, THE ROUTES, BOX, Electro-

earplugs,19:30, £7

Punk,20:00, £9

THE SAW DOCTORS, BARROWLANDS, Folkrock,19:00, £20

indie,20:00, £TBC

UK SUBS, CULANN, FIRE EXIT, BARFLY,

SUN 23 DEC ZERO THE FOOL, BOX, Aberdonian alt-rock,20:00, £TBC

COURTENEERS, ABC2, Anthemic rockers,19:00, £7 BALLBOY, SWEETHEART REVUE, ORAN MOR,

THE PROCLAIMERS, BARROWLANDS, Singalong-a-

Indie-rock,19:30, £9

THE HEDRONS, ROCKETFOX, HUDSON, KING

SUN 16 DEC DAVID MCDONALD, THE

TRACKS, MAEVE O’BOYLE, BARFLY, Singersongwriter,20:00, £6

Scottish-song,19:00, Sold Out TUT’S, All-girl indie-rock,19:30, £7

WHITENOISEFEEDBACK:DISTORTION PRESENTSÉ, DANSE OR DIE, THE ADMIRAL, Hyper-

DIVINE HERESY, BLOOD RED THRONE, HACRIDE, KING TUT’S, Metal,20:00, £10 JEFFREY LEWIS & THE JITTERS, NICE’N’SLEAZY,

electro-disco-death-funk, so they say,20:00, £4

Folk-rock,19:30, £TBC STATUS QUO, SECC, Still in search of that fourth chord,19:30, £32

SILKSTONE, BARFLY, Alt-rock,20:00, £5 MON 24 DEC STICKY FINGERS, ORAN MOR,

TECHNOPHOBES, IAMCHEMIST + MORE TBA, ORAN MOR, Electro-pop,20:00, £5

CRASH MY MODEL CAR, RODDY HART, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Fragile Scots-pop,19:30, £TBC

Rolling Stones tribute,19:30, £10

WED 26 DEC BULLET, PSYKO DALEK , BARFLY, RATM tribute,20:00, £7

FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND, BARROWLANDS, Welsh

32 MILES TO BREAKFAST, THE LEMMINGS, KING

post-hardcorists,19:00, £17

TUT’S, Indie-rock,19:30, £6

folk,20:00, Free

LINDA JACKSON, THE CLACHIES, THE FOTHERS,

STRUCK DUM RECORDS SHOWCASE, KURAI KOTORO, EIGHT PAGE PULLOUT, TRACK 9, BOX,

MON 17 DEC YOGSTAR, BOX, Singer-

GHOST BAR, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Live Music,19:30, £TBC BIG VERN AND THE SHOOTAHS, ORAN MOR, 9-

INSPECTOR TAPEHEAD, TOM SNOWBALL & FRIENDS, ALLY KERR, COTTIERS, Uplifting

College-rock,20:00, £TBC

Soul singer & folk,16:00, Free songwriter,20:00, £TBC

piece soul band,19:30, £10

THU 27 DEC FOUR GOOD MEN, CLASSIC

JIMI CULLEN, 13TH NOTE, Singer-songwriter,21:00,

OCEAN COLOUR SCENE, BARROWLANDS, Britpop covers band,19:00, Sold Out

£14

PORCUPINE TREE, BARROWLANDS, Gloomy prog-

THE ICICLE WORKS, AMSTERDAM, KING TUT’S,

FUTURO, SIMPLY RONNIE, THE JACKANOORYS,

metal,19:00, £18

Veteran scousers,19:30, £17.50

NICE’N’SLEAZY, Indie-rock,19:30, £TBC

DIAMOND SEA, THE APPLES OF ENERGY, NACIONAL, ROSCOE VACANT, NICE’N’SLEAZY,

rock,21:00, Free

TUT’S, Jerky post-rockers,19:30, £5

BREAKPOINT, SUBJECT 2, ROOM TO LET, DANIKA STAR, BARFLY, Californian rockers,20:00, £5 STEVEN LINDSAY, LYNNIE CARSON, KING TUT’S,

AB/CD, THE CATHOUSE, AC/DC tribute,19:00, £9 FRI 28 DEC AB/CD, THE CATHOUSE, AC/DC

Art-pop,19:30, £15

ITCHYCOO PARK, BOX, Classic rock,20:00, £TBC KEVIN MONTGOMERY & BAND FT. AL PERKINS, SHURMAN & ANDREA GLASS, KING TUT’S, Singer-

£TBC

Indie-rock,12:30, £TBC

MINUS THE BEAR, I WAS A CUB SCOUT, KING TUT’S, Indie-rock,19:30, £10

EL DOG, OLD SOLAR, COMMANDER KEEN, ORAN MOR, Glaswegian post-rock,19:00, £5

BLOC PARTY, SECC, Earnest and epic indierock,18:30, £19

JOHN POWER, BARFLY, The man from The La’s and

TUE 18 DEC THE LAWDOGS, BLOC, Country-

OCEAN COLOUR SCENE, BARROWLANDS, More Britpop memories,19:00, Sold Out COLISEUM, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Punk/metal,19:30, £6 ADELE SAND, ORAN MOR, Soul singer,19:30, £6

Cast,20:00, £10

WED 19 DEC DBSIXTYEIGHT, JOCASTA

M.I.A., THE ARCHES, cross-cultural jams,19:00, £9 THU 13 DEC GOGOL BORDELLO, ABC1, Gypsy

rock,21:00, Free

Punk,19:00, Sold Out

JOHN MAUS, GOWNS, HELD BY HANDS, 13TH NOTE, Atmospheric Hawaiian,20:30, £TBC

BRONTO SKYLIFT, RETROFETS, THE CLICKS, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Indie-rock,19:30, £TBC

ORSON, QMU, belongs to the genre known as ‘unspeakable shite’,19:00, £15 UB40, SECC, Half of Birmingham decamp to Glasgow just for you,19:30, £33

ONE NIGHT ONLY, ISOSCELES, THE DUNDERHEIDS, KING TUT’S, Indie-rock,20:00, £6 TEMPERCALM, ALREADY NAKED,THE KENNY LECKIES, BLOC, Indie-rock,21:00, Free

SLEEPS, TO CATCH A THIEF, BLOC, Powerpop/ OCEAN COLOUR SCENE, BARROWLANDS, Britpop ain’t never gonna die!,19:00, £22.50

GRAND, Veterans of Scottish pop/rock together,19:00,

POPUP, JACK BUTLER, ODEON BEAT CLUB, KING

tribute,19:00, £9

songwriter,19:00, £14

THE UNDERGROUND HEROES, WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS, THE MANIKEES, SIMPLY RONNIE, BARFLY, Indie-rock,20:00, £6 SAT 29 DEC BISMARCK, 102 MILES, DEFICIT, THE GOODNIGHTS, BARFLY, Rock,20:00, £5 COUNTERFEIT CLASH, NICE’N’SLEAZY, Clash

IS THIS MUSIC PRESENTSÉ, FINDO GASK, SAN SEBASTIAN, OVER THE WALL, 13TH NOTE, Electro-

tribute,19:30, £TBC

indie,20:30, £4

BOX, Live Music,20:00, £TBC

THE LAST CORINTHIANS, THOUSANDSOUNDS, THESE CAMERAS ARE EYES, KIDDO, BOX, Indie-

BROXDEN, BARFLY, Indie-pop,20:00, £5 SUN 30 DEC EL PADRE, SIXPEOPLEAWAY, THE TOMMYS, KING TUT’S, Indie-rock,19:30, £5 BIG COUNTRY, ABC1, More Scottish than Runrig?

rock,20:00, £TBC

THE VELCRO QUARTET, CANCEL THE ASTRONAUTS, KING TUT’S, Camp synthsurfers,19:30, £5

ATTIC LIGHTS, DAVE DIXON, ALLY KERR,

THE RAMBLERS, THE JACK KNIVES, THE 123’S,

Fight fight fight!,19:00, £15

MON 31 DEC PANGEA, BARFLY, Live Music,20:00, £10

COTTIERS, Indie-rock,20:00, Free

LISTINGS

better,20:00, £7.50

THE CLICKS, BOZILLA + MORE TBA, 13TH NOTE, Indie-rock,21:00, £TBC

EDINBURGH LIVE SAT 01 DEC VIKING MOSES, TIGER SAW, EAGLEOWL, GOLDEN GHOST, THE BRISTO HALL, Singer-songwriter, plus local slow-core

support,20:00, £5 (£4)

BIG HAND, WHISTLE BINKIES, Ska,23:59, Free THE TRANSATLANTIC COLLECTIVE, THE JAZZ BAR, American 4-piece,20:30, £4 (£3)

THEATRE FALL, :CRYOVERBILLIONAIRES, TWIN ATLANTIC, PO NA NA, Electro-indie,19:00, £5 JACKIE TREEHORN, SECTA ROUGE, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Heavy stoner rock,19:00, £4

THE VIBRATORS, SHOCK AND AWE, BANNERMAN’S UNDERWORLD, punk,21:00, £6

FULLMETALRACKET, CREVIS INSPECTION, BUKKAKE BIRTHDAY PARTY, 3 WISE MONKEYS, THE ARK, Classic rock and metal,19:30, £4

FIGURE 5, CABARET VOLTAIRE, swaggering shockers,19:00, £6

SUN 02 DEC IONA ALLAN, THE JAZZ BAR, Jazz singer,20:30, £3 (£2)

COHOLIC, FINGERTIP, THE ARK, Local indierock,19:30, £4

PAPARAZZI WHORE, THE LANDAUS, ZHAIN, BANNERMAN’S UNDERWORLD, Hull rockers,21:30, £3

THE VIEW, THE LIQUID ROOM, Perfectly normal laundry habits just ain’t rock’n’roll,19:30, Sold out

SPY VERSUS SPY, EUNOIA, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, shouty Indie-rock,19:00, £5

STATUS QUO, PLAYHOUSE, Still in seach of that fourth chord,19:30, £32

SONS & DAUGHTERS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, intense Glaswegian indie-rockers,19:00, Sold out

MON 03 DEC UNDERGROUND HEROES, JOE VITERBO, TIE FOR JACK, THE ARK, Ska/ punk,19:00, £7

MANIC STREET PREACHERS, CORN EXCHANGE, Welsh sloganeering,19:00, £25

DAN DEACON, CUTTING PINK WITH KNIVES, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Absurdist electronica,19:00, £8

TUE 04 DEC THE OFFENDERS, THE JAZZ BAR, Local blues band,20:30, £3 (£2)

ATTICK LIGHTS, MIYAGI, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Indierock,19:00, £6

WAR CHILD FUNDRAISER, FUTURISTIC RETRO CHAMPIONS, THE STAR STRUCK TROUBADOUR, JASON WRINGLE AND AKI, SLOE LORRY, THE MAJESTIC MR. PIN, WEE RED BAR, Fun with synths,18:30, £6 (£3)

WED 05 DEC NICK KEIR, PLEASANCE, Folk,20:00, £6

COLIN STEELE, THE LOT, performing Miles Davis,20:30, £10

GUARANA DROUGHT, + MORE TBA, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Rock,20:00, £4

TRAMPOLINE PRESENTS, THE DEAD BEAT CLUB, THE PUNCH DRUNKS, EARLY SONGS, WEE RED BAR, Acoustic/pop,19:00, £4

THU 06 DEC MALCOLM MIDDLETON, THE

SUN 09 DEC LOUISE DODDS, THE JAZZ BAR, Jazz singer,20:30, £3 (£2)

SHUTTER, GASGIANT, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Postrock,20:00, £5

THE BOOTLEG BEATLES, PLAYHOUSE, Mop-top tribute,19:30, £22

DEAD ON THE LIVE WIRE, THE HIVE, Noise/

RUBIX, LE RENO AMPS, HI 5 ALIVE, MILOPHOBIA, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Indie/rock/ dance/pop,20:00, £5

BALLBOY, SAINT JUDE’S INFIRMARY, SIXPEOPLEAWAY, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Indierock,19:00, £5

FRI 21 DEC JESUS H. FOXX, + MORE TBA,

Breakcore/Industrial/Electro,19:00, £5

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Indie-rock,19:00, £TBC

JUDE’S INFIRMARY, THE VOODOO ROOMS, German

CABARET VOLTAIRE, Indie-rock,19:00, Free

MON 10 DEC BEE AND FLOWER, SAINT chanteuse and top local support,20:00, £5

FLATFOOT 56, BAKERS DOZEN, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Stomping bagpipe music all the way from

Chicago,19:30, £4

HEY GRAVITY, THE CASPIAN SEA MONSTERS, THE HIVE, Pop-punk/glam,19:00, £5

TUE 11 DEC CANTRIP, THE VILLAGE, Folk,20:00, £5

SETSUBUN BEAT UNIT, DJ HOBBES, CABARET

PENNY BLACKS, LITTLE GREEN MACHINE,

SAT 22 DEC THE PROCLAIMERS, CORN EXCHANGE, Singalong-a-Scottish-song,19:00, £23

THE BAY CITY ROLLERS, THE LIQUID ROOM, Popstars from the 70s,19:00, £18

ARKANE KORE, FIREBRAND SUPER ROCK, SOLACY, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Metal,19:00, £TBC ALFONZO, THE SHAKES, AARON WRIGHT & THE APRILS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Rock’n’roll,19:30, £3

VOLTAIRE, Electrospacefunk,19:00, £9

SIZE QUEEN, + MORE TBA, THE ARK, Classic hard

Alternative,21:00, £TBC

THE UNDERGROUND JAM, GENTELMEN PREFER BLONDIE, BANNERMAN’S UNDERWORLD,

WED 12 DEC THE DEAD TOYS, THE ROSELEAF, LAURA CORTESE, NEIL CLEARY, THE VILLAGE, Alt-country,19:30, £8

TONY SHOEBOX, WHISTLE BINKIES, Indie-

rock,19:30, £TBC

The Jam and Blondie tributes,21:30, £4

SUN 23 DEC ANDREA TURNER, THE JAZZ BAR,

rock,22:00, Free

Jazz singer,20:30, £3 (£2)

MALINKY, PLEASANCE, Folk,19:30, £6 UNKNOWN HAGANA, BO DEADLY, HENRY’S

KAYS LAVELLE, DOUGLAS KAY, HENRY’S CELLAR

CELLAR BAR, Alt-rock,20:00, £4

ARTROCKER MAGAZINE TOUR, POPULAR WORKSHOP, UNTITLED MUSICAL PROJECT, FIGHT LIKE APES, I SAY MARVIN, CABARET

THU 27 DEC THE DEAD BEAT CLUB, THE BAR, Indie-rock,19:30, £TBC

BIG COUNTRY, THE LIQUID ROOM, More Scottish than the Proclaimers? Fight fight fight!,19:00, £15

DAVE O’HIGGINS AND HIS QUARTET, THE JAZZ

VOLTAIRE, Indie-pop for over-14s,19:00, £6

BAR, London saxophonist,20:30, £5

trash-surf band,21:00, £3 (£2)

TBA, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Indie-pop,19:00, £5 THE GALLERY, EPIC 26, POOCH, THE ARK, Indie-

THU 13 DEC THE NUKES, THE JAZZ BAR, Local SIZE QUEEN, SYLVANUS, SARA AND THE SNAKES, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Classic Rock,20:30,

FRI 28 DEC THE VACANT TOURISTS, + MORE rock,21:00, £4

£4

DAVE O’HIGGINS AND HIS QUARTET, THE JAZZ

KING BEAR, THE ARK, Electro-rock,20:00, £4 FLATLINER, MARLOW, CAPTAIN MAGENTA, JYM PONTER, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Indie-rock,19:00,

BAR, London saxophonist,20:30, £5

£5

FRI 14 DEC ENERGY PLAN, THE ARK, Punkrock,19:00, £4

THE NUKES, COME IN TOKYO, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Local trash-surf band,19:30, £TBC

THE ADS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, fast-paced indierock,19:00, £6

SAT 15 DEC LUCKY 13, ASPEN GATEWAY, THE ARK, Rock,19:30, £4

ISCARIOTS GOSPEL, THE HIVE, gloomy growlers,19:00, £TBC

MAX SEDGLEY AND THE SHOOTS, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Funk jam band,21:00, £10

SAD SOCIETY, THE CHINESE JOCKS, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Punk rock,19:30, £4

SHELTER BENEFIT NIGHT, FOXFACE, FRIGHTENED RABBIT, BROKEN RECORDS, BELLE & SEBASTIAN DJS, THE BONGO CLUB, Great

SAT 29 DEC BAD MANNERS, THE LIQUID ROOM, Classic Ska,19:00, £13

THE ONE DAY SPEAKERS, JAKIL, JADED PLAYBOY, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Britrock,19:00, £6 SUN 30 DEC GORDON MCNEIL QUARTET, THE JAZZ BAR, Dundee Saxophonist,20:30, £3 (£2)

MON 31 DEC KASABIAN, IDLEWILD,

CALVIN HARRIS, PRINCES ST GARDENS, Hogmanay extravaganza,TBC, £40

DUNDEE LIVE MON 03 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, SONS

AND DAUGHTERS + THE VICTORIAN ENGLISH GENTLEMEN’S CLUB + FANG, FAT SAM’S, 20:00, £8.50

FRI 07 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, WE ARE

SCIENTISTS + FRIGHTENED RABBIT., FAT SAM’S,

Scottish indie-rock,20:00, £TBC

19:30, Sold Out

VINCENT VINCENT AND THE VILLAINS, CABARET

SAT 08 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, GALLOWS +

VOLTAIRE, London rockabilly types,19:00, £TBC

SUN 16 DEC SOUNDS OF SWAMI, JACKIE

ARCHETECTS., FAT SAM’S, 19:30, £8

metallic spasms and punkish twitches,20:00, £4 LIZ MACEWAN, THE JAZZ BAR, Jazz singer,20:30, £3 (£2)

CAPTAIN PHOENIX + THE DAZE, THE WESTPORT BAR,

TREEHORN, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Fistloads of

ELECTROLITE, JAY BROWN, CABARET VOLTAIRE,

WED 12 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, THE ADS + 20:00, £5

FRI 14 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, THE

Indie-rock,19:00, £5

UNDERGROUND HEROES + I SAY MARVIN + THE LIKELY LADS., THE WESTPORT BAR, 20:00, £6

UNDERWORLD, Alt-rock trio,21:30, £4

KIMBERLEY STEAKS, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Punk

FRI 21 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, DRIVE BY

GIANT TANK VS CHOCOLATE MONK NIGHT, DYLAN NYOUKIS, SMACK MUSIC 7, MUSCLETUSK, USURPER, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR,

rock,20:00, £4

ARGUMENT + DESCARTES, THE WESTPORT BAR,

FLOOD OF RED, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Emo-

20:00, £6

rock,19:00, £6

An evening of real OUT noise,19:30, £5 MARY MAC, THE JAZZ BAR, Jazz/folk singersongwriter,20:30, £5

JAMES YORKSTON, ADRIAN CROWLEY, HMS GINAFORE, THE ARK, Singer-songwriter,19:30, £TBC TUE 18 DEC EMMA POLLOCK, CABARET

THU 27 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, MICHAEL

LIQUID ROOM, Morose singer-songwriter,19:00, £11

KLAY, THIS FAMILIAR SMILE, BANNERMAN’S

FRI 07 DEC IN DECADES DECLINE, BROKEN

MON 17 DEC THE ARTERIES, THE

MARRA, THE WESTPORT BAR, 20:00, £10

FRI 28 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, MICHAEL

VOLTAIRE, Ex-Delgados singer,19:00, £9

MARRA, THE WESTPORT BAR, 20:00, £10

OATH, BURNING SCARS OF BETRAYAL, THE

ALIBI, STUDIO 24, A musical for the rave

ARK, Last ever show in Edinburgh by (hardcore) In

generation,20:00, £5

SAT 29 DEC BEAT GENERATOR, AB/CD, FAT

Decades Decline,19:30, £5

ZOMBIE ZOMBIE, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, drummer

GLASVEGAS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, Brilliant new Glaswegian rock’n’roll band,19:00, £5

THE SEX PISTOLS EXPERIENCE, BILLY LIAR, THE HIVE, I’m gonna go out on a limb here and

suggest this is a tribute act,19:00, £6

RANDAN DISCOTHEQUE, DAVID JOHN WILLIAMS, LINSDAY WEST, WEE RED BAR, the new king of Fife?,19:00, Free

SAT 08 DEC THE HURRICANES, BURMESE

DAYS, THE GETDOWNS, TIE FOR JACK, CABARET VOLTAIRE, rockabilly/punk/indie,19:00, £5

VNV NATION, STUDIO 24, Industrial,19:00, £15 CAEZIUM, DOC DANEEKA, THE ARK, Rock,19:30, £4

STRAIGHT TO VIDEO LABEL SHOWCASE, KID CANAVERAL, CALLEL, DANDANDAN, WEE RED BAR, Indie-pop,19:00, £4

www.skinnymag.co.uk

fron Herman Dune,20:00, £5

CHRIS STONE, FRANK BURKITT, THE VILLAGE, Folk,19:30, £5

WED 19 DEC GECKO, THE JAZZ BAR, acid/funk/ reggae,20:30, £3 (£2)

HOLLOW HEART PARLOUR, VASCO DA GAMBA, BILLY BATES, MEARSAULT, EMILY SCOTT, HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, Acoustic,19:30, £5 ABERFELDY, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Edinburgh’s best indie-pop band,20:00, £10 ALIBI, STUDIO 24, A musical for the rave generation,20:00, £5

THU 20 DEC ABERFELDY, THE VOODOO ROOMS, Edinburgh’s best indie-pop band,20:00, £10 ALIBI, STUDIO 24, A musical for the rave generation,20:00, £5

LISTINGS

THE APPLE SCRUFFS, THE MODE, THE DOWN & OUTS, BOX, Punky indie-rock,20:00, £TBC THE LAW, BEATNIC PRESTIGE, DELTA AUDIO CLUB, KING TUT’S, riding on The View’s coat-tails, but

SAM’S, 20:00, £10

THEATRE DUNDEE REP

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK, DUNDEE REP ENSEMBLE, panto MON 03 DEC – SAT 05 JAN, various, £13 - 7.50

COMEDY SAT 08 DEC JUST LAUGH, BOB DOOLALY;

DES CLARK; STU AND GARY’S IMPROV GROUP, FAT SAM’S NIGHT CLUB, Christmas edition of the Dundee

laugh in, 21:00, £9

DECEMBER 07

THE SKINNY

53

MON 31 DEC IDLEWILD, KASABIAN, CALVIN HARRIS, PRINCES ST GARDENS, Hogmanay extravaganza,TBC, £40

IDLEWILD © Jethro Collins www.jethrocollins.co.uk

SUN 2 DEC SONS & DAUGHTERS, CABARET VOLTAIRE, intense Glaswegian indie-

rockers,19:00, Sold out

Sons and Daughters © Pete Dunlop

HH 54 THE SKINNY DECEMBER 07

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ALL ARE WELCOME AT THIS EXCITING EVENT, AND ATTENDANCE IS FREE. PLACES WILL FILL FAST... PLEASE RSVP TO SKINNY@SKINNYMAG.CO.UK ON WWW.SKINNYMAG.CO.UK: CLICK THE ON:07 BUTTON

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SIMON FRITH t ac TOVEY CHAIR OF MUSIC, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH; CHAIR OF ny on kin s the JUDGES, MERCURY MUSIC PRIZE

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- IS THE MUSIC INDUSTRY DOOMED? WHAT CAN BE DONE TO SAVE IT? - IS MUSIC ITSELF GOING TO BE AFFECTED, AND FOR THE BETTER OR WORSE? - HOW DOES THE WAY WE CONSUME THINGS AFFECT OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THEM?

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AS A MAGAZINE COMMITTED TO EXPLORING CULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS AS THEY HAPPEN, THE SKINNY HAS ORGANISED A CONFERENCE WITH A NUMBER OF THE TOP THINKERS IN THE FIELD. THEY WILL BE ASKING: the skinny

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2007 HAS BEEN A BIG YEAR FOR THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. AS THE PRICE OF RECORDED MUSIC ZOOMS TOWARDS ZERO, ARTISTS, MANAGERS AND RECORD COMPANIESonALIKE ARE BEING FORCED TO QUESTION THE FUNDAMENTALS OF HOW THEY DO BUSINESS.

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