The Skinny Scotland April 2017 by The Skinny

.CO.UK

INDEPENDENT FREE

CULT U R A L

J O U R N A L I S M

April 2017 Scotland Issue 139

Music PWR BTTM Little Dragon Sylvan Esso Babe Diet Cig Monkoora Gallops Film Raoul Peck Pablo LarraÃn Juho Kuosmanen

Books Elan Mastai Theatre Dance International Glasgow Bluebeard's Castle Art Brodie Sim & Linda Bolsakova Outskirts Clubs Soma at 25 Nightvision Terminal V

April 2017 I N DEPEN DENT

CULTU R AL

JOU R NALI S M

Issue 139, April 2017 ÂŠ Radge Media Ltd. Get in touch: E: hello@theskinny.co.uk T: 0131 467 4630 P: The Skinny, 1.9 1st Floor Tower, Techcube, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall Pl, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL The Skinny is Scotland's largest independent entertainment & listings magazine, and offers a wide range of advertising packages and affordable ways to promote your business. Get in touch to find out more.

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

Rosamund West Will Fitzpatrick Adam Benmakhlouf Alan Bett Claire Francis Ben Venables Kate Pasola Kate Pasola Jamie Dunn Peter Simpson Tallah Brash Amy Taylor Paul Mitchell

Production Production Manager Designer

Sarah Donley Kyle McPartlin

Sales Sales Manager Sales Executives Online Digital Editor Web Developer General Manager Publisher

Contents

Sandy Park George Sully Victoria Brough Peter Simpson Stuart Spencer Kyla Hall Sophie Kyle

THE SKINNY

Photo: Chris Nash

Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic

P.28 Conscious Uncoupling

Illustration: Jacky Sheridan

P.40 Charlotte de Witte

P.21 Scottish Dance

Photo: Nicolas Karakatsanis

P.10 Record Store Day

Contents Chat & Opinion: Introducing… the 06 Eclectica Experiment, a very special and unusual night of multi-arts performance as programmed by us! Plus, Shot of the Month, competitions, Crystal Baws, online only and What Are You Having For Lunch? Heads Up: Your cultural calendar for 08 April 2017.

FEATURES come, all ye music fans: we take a look 10 O at the best Record Store Day events in Scotland, and check in with this year’s Wide Days conference.

12 Sensational queer-punk duo PWR

BTTM tell us about latest album Pageant, and how hip-hop is destroying heteronormativity.

Still not sick of each other after 20 years 15 together, Gothenburg electro-poppers Little Dragon tell us the secrets of their success.

16 Sylvan Esso seemed like an unlikely collaboration, but the North Carolina pairing of Amelia Meath and Nick Holborn return here with album number two, and it’s a doozey. 18 James Baldwin documentary I Am Not

Your Negro hits UK cinemas this month – director Raoul Peck weighs up the activist’s extraordinary impact in contrast with our troubled times.

After wowing audiences and critics alike 19 with his recent Jackie Kennedy biopic, Pablo Larraín makes a swift return with Neruda, an exemplary study of the Chilean poet-diplomat.

21 Juho Kuosmanen tells us about the

ideas behind Finnish boxing flick The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki, while DIG’s Tim Munn considers the landscape of Scottish dance.

22 Who the fuck is Roy Chubby Brown?

Our Comedy editor takes a look at the horrifyingly successful blue comic.

McFly and Doctor Who leave you 25 Marty tied up in logistical knots? With latest novel All Our Wrong Todays, Elan Mastai addresses your time travel concerns, and then some.

LIFESTYLE

27 Travel: In the second part of our festi-

vals guide, we look at the best places to pitch your tent in the UK this summer.

28 Deviance: With society leaning further

to the right, we look at the politics of coming out, and ponder the benefits of the phenomenon known as ‘conscious uncoupling’.

31 Food & Drink: The smashability factor

is paramount: we pit this year’s Easter eggs against each other so you don’t have to, and look ahead to Gastrofest.

REVIEW

35 Music: Diet Cig are staying positive;

Radioactive Girl talks Tom Waits; Babe on staying weird; plus this month’s albums reviewed, including Father John Misty, Gallops and more.

40 Clubs: DJ Charlotte de Witte prepares for Nightvision's Terminal V festival; plus Slam reflect on 25 years of Soma Records.

42 Books: A round-up of this year’s Ted Hughes Award nominees, plus new books from Paul Cocozza and Paul Kingsnorth.

43 Art: Spring is here, so let’s art – here’s

yer exhibition highlights for the month. We look forward to Outskirts, arriving in Glasgow’s Platform this month with a multi-arts programme.

44 Film: The latest cinematic releases re-

viewed, including The Handmaiden and Lady Macbeth; meanwhile John Ford’s dark Western Two Rode Together gets the DVD treatment.

45 Comedy: Is alternative and political

comedy possible while holding down a day job? Gemma Flynn turns to none other than Immanuel Kant for answers. As you do.

46 Theatre: Scottish Opera’s Lliam

Paterson talks about reviving and reinventing Bluebeard’s Castle, and Auntie Trash delivers more sage wisdom in typically no-nonsense fashion.

26 Rooted in an exchange of haikus, Linda

47 Listings: What’s on in Glasgow,

55 The Last Word: The recently-reformed

Bolsakova and Brodie Sim explain how their Generator Projects exhibition continues to evolve.

April 2017

Edinburgh and Dundee in April. Pay particular attention to 1 April.

Gallops' guest selector.

Contents

Editorial A

s I write, the clocks are about to go forward. The population of Scotland is about to be liberated from the long months of darkness and actually see some daylight on a weekday for the first time since… October? We made it guys, good work. On the cover this month you’ll find Record Store Day, the annual celebration of your local specialist music shop, which sees one-off events up and down the country pop up with in-store gigs, special releases and much more besides. We speak to the folks behind Wide Days to find out their thoughts on the matter ahead of their latest industry seminar series, and meet a few of the bands involved to find out about their favourite vinyl purveyors up and down the country (and in LA). We also interrogated as many of Scotland’s record stores as we could to find out event highlights near you this 22 April. Support your local vinyl dealer. Just before Record Store Day, on 20 April, we are most excited about a very special event which we have programmed in partnership with Black Bottle whisky. The Eclectica Experiment will come to The Caves in Edinburgh with a packed line-up of unusual multi-arts performances, bringing together dance, film, spoken word, music, visuals and much more besides all paired with cocktails specially designed by some of the city’s top bartenders. The night will be compered by the inimitable Jenny Lindsay, and includes spoken word from Iona Lee and Daniel Piper, dance from Ashanti Harris, a special screening of Scottish Ballet’s Maze, and sets from Faith Eliot, Meursault and Future Get Down. The cherry on top will be the debut of Iklan, a new collaboration between Law Holt, the Leith Congregational Choir and Timothy London. All this costs an astonishingly reasonable £10 – that includes the cocktails and also food. Cast your eyes across the page to find out more. In Music this month, beyond Record Store Day, we meet PWR BTTM to hear about facing down prejudice and the transformative effect of Lady Marmalade. We also meet Gothenburg’s Little Dragon, North Carolina’s Sylvan Esso, Monkoora, Babe, New York duo Diet Cig and the recently reformed Gallops, who have kindly shared their formative influences on the inside back cover. Clubs looks forward to the latest Nightvision event, the epic Terminal V out at the Royal Highland Centre on Easter Sunday. We meet Belgium’s Charlotte de Witte, peruse the rest of the month’s highlights

and meet the brains behind Soma Records and Slam to hear about the evolving Scottish scene as they celebrate a quarter century of operations. Did you know that Roy Chubby Brown is in the top ten most commercially successful comedians in the UK? Yeah, that guy in the Biggles glasses who swears a lot and says pretty racist shit. That’s horrifying, isn’t it? Our Comedy editor heralds his arrival in our midst by analysing what it is he… does. And what that means. Bad things. Film meets director Raoul Peck to discuss James Baldwin, I Am Not Your Negro and the troubling rise of ignorance. The remarkably prolific Pablo Larrain introduces his not-a-biopic-biopic Neruda on the great Chilean poet and politician. We meet Finland’s Juho Kuosmanen to learn more about The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki, about an unassuming Finnish boxer who has his nation’s hopes pinned on his success. Books talks to Elan Mastai, here to promote All Our Wrong Todays and take a realistic approach to the problems of time travel. In Art, we meet a duo who’ve been collaborating ahead of an exhibition up in Dundee’s Generator, Brodie Sim and Linda Bolsakova. As it’s Easter imminently, our Food editor decided to see if all those PRs who’ve been hounding him with their nonsense stories about chocolate teapots might want to send him some samples to try and inform readers from actual life experience rather than a rewritten ‘great feature idea’ provided by a stranger who can’t work basic design software. Turns out most of them weren’t up for that, but luckily the few who did were fortunate enough to have their chocolate eggs rigorously and extensively subjected to a series of tests ranging from the normal (what’s it taste like?) to the borderline insane (how well does it roll down this piece of plywood we’ve propped up on the filing cabinet?) Find the full results of our scientific enquiries (the Eggs Directory) on p31. Happy chocolate / resurrection day. [Rosamund West]

Crystal Balls With Mystic Mark

ARIES Anything you do in the garden is called gardening: rolling around in the mud drunk, smoking a few tabs and shouting at the neighbour’s cat. It can be a tough day’s work toiling out there in the heat of the midday sun, wiping the sweat from your brow and pegging slugs over the fence with a tennis racket. TAURUS This month you fall in love with your own penis. For your third date with the penis you take it out to a nice restaurant for a candlelit meal, sexily feeling each other up under the table. Looking deep into its eye you start to believe your penis might be ‘the one’, but back at the flat you are heartbroken to realise you don’t have another penis to make love to your own penis with. GEMINI After the family cat Mr. Snuggles dies this month you decide to hollow him into a glove and immortalise him as an abominable hand puppet to console your children in their grief. CANCER If God created you in His own image then He’s got a cracking pair of tits. EO L It turns out you are the bread loser of the family. Stop losing all the bread. Now think, where did you last see the bread? VIRGO This month you are repossessed by a demon.

APRIL COVER ARTIST This month's cover illustration is by Stewart Armstrong, an Edinburgh-based illustrator and owner of Bob the whippet, one of Summerhall's resident celebrity dogs. You can find out more about his work on his Tumblr at stewartarmstrong. tumblr.com. You can find out more about Bob on Instagram, #bobthewhippet

LIBRA Physicists have long-known the entire universe in which we exist is God’s vast S&M dungeon, having observed through gigantic telescopes the mysterious spectacle, billions of years ago, of the Lord God attaching black holes to his nipples, smashing his balls between two neutron stars, and, alarmingly, plucking entire planets out of the ether and slotting them up his arse. Scientists think it is only a matter of time before the Lord Creator begins using Earth to satisfy His perverse urges, as was foretold in the Book of Revelation. SCORPIO You start shrinking. SAGITTARIUS Living below a 24 hour abattoir is bad enough for noise, but you should really get the landlord to sort out the leaking ceiling. CAPRICORN You win £10 on a scratchcard and blow the lot on bin liners to collect up all the mountains of scratchcards littering your flat. AQUARIUS Sponsored by Chat Magazine This week in Chat: “My hat is on fire and I don’t know what to do!” “I ate my own head to STAY ALIVE,” “I gave my Dad’s daughter’s brother a wank – IT WAS ME!” and “COMPETITION: Replace your entire body with tits!” plus much, much more. PISCES In April you check your bucket list again: Sniff an ape’s crotch Eat an entire packet of crisps Do a poo on top of a plane Punch a robot Plummet to death

Spot The Difference Eroticat We don’t mean to throw any shade here, but this month’s Spot the Difference challenge is a bit of a toughie. Two images stand before you. One features a novel that’s thoroughly blinkered, the other a cat which is covered in blinkers. In one there’s exactly 50 pairs of sunnies, the other erotica so

By Jock Mooney 6

Chat

bad that it’s funny. It’s quite the spectacle, we’re sure you’ll agree, but which is which? We’ve got one copy of Close to the Knives by David Wojnarowicz up for grabs courtesy of our pals at Canongate, so get in the right frame of mind and see if you can throw some light on the matter. But which of you fair readers are up to the task? Could the real Slim Shade-y please stand up?

Competition closes midnight Sun 30 Apr. The winner will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 48 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

THE SKINNY

The Eclectica Experiment comes to Edinburgh ook no further than The Eclectica Experiment. Taking place at The Caves in Edinburgh on 20 April, it’s a melting pot of live performances by innovative local acts curated by The Skinny, matched with whisky cocktails created by some of Edinburgh’s best bartenders. Hosted by unconventional whisky Black Bottle, the Eclectica Experiment is all about stepping out of your comfort zone and discovering new experiences, and our line-up features exciting artists from across music, spoken word, dance and comedy. We’ve lined up Iklan – the brand-new collaboration between experimental dark-pop queen Law Holt, the Leith Congregational Choir and Timothy London (co-producer of Young Fathers’ debut) – plus the epic lo-fi of Neil Pennycook and Meursault, alt-folk songwriter Faith Eliott and the loud, dark, synthfuelled electro of Future Get Down.

There’s also contemporary dance from Ashanti Harris, spoken word from the former and current Scottish Slam Champions – Iona Lee and poet/comedian Daniel Piper – plus a screening of Scottish Ballet short film Maze, and the whole evening is compered by Flint & Pitch’s own Jenny Lindsay. On the refreshment side of proceedings, mixologists from the likes of Voyage of Buck, Bramble and Timberyard – one of your favourite venues in our 2017 Food & Drink Survey – will be putting together unique cocktails inspired by the evening’s events and by Black Bottle whisky. Tickets are on sale now for £10, which includes five whisky cocktails, food, and the evening’s entertainment.

Meursault

Thu 20 Apr, 7.30pm, The Caves, Edinburgh Law Holt

ctzn.tk/Eclectica

Photo: Ryan Johnston

Photo: Drew Farrell

Fancy an evening that’s just that little bit different?

Online Only theskinny.co.uk/music We talk to Baltimore’s finest, Future Islands, as their new album The Far Field hits the streets, chat with PINS as they team up with Iggy Pop, and we catch up with DIY punks Martha ahead of their slot at Manchester Punk Festival. There’s plenty more Record Store Day chat online, including the office’s Desert Island Disc picks, and we pore over the music listings in our weekly gig highlights column. theskinny.co.uk/art Photographer Graham MacIndoe speaks candidly about his recovery from heroin addiction, ahead of a major show of his self-portraits at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

theskinny.co.uk/film Julia Ducournau’s Raw is an incredibly assured debut film; the French director talks us through the story of the cannibalism-as-hazing-ritual horror. theskinny.co.uk/food We report back from this month’s Tales of the Cocktail on Tour in Edinburgh, and round up some of the best new venues to check out at either end of the M8. theskinny.co.uk/books We catch up with 2015 Saltire Society First Book winner Helen McClory; she fills us in on her new novel Flesh of the Peach.

Shot of the Month Drake, SSE Hydro, 23 March, by Ryan Johnston

PINS

Win stuff! To celebrate the release of award-winning Finnish boxing movie The Happiest Day in the Life Of Olli Mäki, we’ve got five subscriptions to streaming service MUBI to be won! Head to theskinny.co.uk/ competitions for details (and visit mubi.com/ theskinny to try a month for free) – this one closes at midnight on Sun 30 Apr, so don’t dally. While you’re there, you can also win passes to this year’s Wide Days convention in Edinburgh! This year’s must-attend shindig takes place on 21-22 Apr, with live performances from The Spook School and more. Closes midnight Sun 9 Apr; entrants must be 18+. As ever, find our Ts&Cs at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms.

April 2017

Opinion

Ride the springtime tsunami of music festivals, geek up at the Science fest, see internationally acclaimed dance and and eat breakfast Brexit-style – this month in Scottish culture...

Mon 3 Apr

Take back control of your breakfast at the launch of Breakfast means Breakfast, the Brexit Factory's latest pop-up cafe celebrating all things Great and British. This Brexit-themed cafe will be serving Eggs Theresa with Nollandaise sauce, British Crescent Pastries, Freedom Toast, Her Majesty's Waffles and of course the Full English Brexit, all washed down with some English Brexit Tea. The Brexit Factory, 10.30am, free

As the Scottish climes get a little milder, you're going to want to brush up on your beverage-making skills. Luckily for you, Tales of the Cocktail, a touring cocktail convention comprising seminars and workshops makes its way to Edinburgh between 1-5 Apr. Tonight Bramble, Bombay Sapphire and cocktail connoisseurs Titi and Christophe buddy up for a night of hip-hop and classic cocktails with a French twist. Bramble, Edinburgh, 11pm, free

Edinburgh Science Festival returns between 1-6 Apr, bringing a cornucopia of geeky treats to the capital. Today, psychologist and creator of YouTube's Quirkology Prof. Richard Wiseman hosts a workshop in NAPPING which sounds surprisingly riveting. It's interactive, so you'll learn about nailing the perfect snooze, before getting comfy, listening to the world's most relaxing music and nodding off for the best nap of your life. Woah. Summerhall, Edinburgh, 2pm, £5-8.50

Tales of the Cocktail

Sat 8 Apr

Sun 9 Apr

Science and drama collide in Caryl Churchill's dystopian classic A Number, performed as part of the Science Festival. The play, which tells the tale of a man who realises he’s one of ‘a number’ of clones resulting from a rogue experiment, will be accompanied by a series of events entitled Who Do You Think You Are, in which scientists, authors and artists will discuss the nature of identity and self. 6-15 Apr, Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, times and prices vary

After celebrating their half-decade anniversary last year, underground music festival Counterflows limbers up for another jubilee of experimental music 'born out of the likes of so-called DIY scenes, the internet or geographically remote communities'. It's packed to the rafters with intriguing acts in carefully chosen venues, so close your eyes, draw a circle round any of the events and you're bound to pick something fresh AF. 6-9 Apr, various venues across Glasgow, see counterflows.com for more info

Vegans and veg-curious people, listen up: after its inaugural effort in 2016, the Scottish Vegan Festival is back at the Corn Exchange for another microcosm of meatfree marvels. There'll be stalls, music, talks, hot and cold fare and bar full of boozy treats – sounds pretty pleasant, if you ask us. The Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, 10.30am-5pm, £3-15

A Number

Photo: Aly Wight

Fri 7 Apr

Anxiety

Sat 15 Apr

The Pictish Trail's most recent album Future Echoes packages up all kinds of wholesome, folky feelings into nonchalant electro-pop parcels. It's an oxygenating record that'll sound even better live, so book your tickets to the live show tonight at Ediburgh's Caves. Happy Meals will be there in support, bringing their ingenious synth-soaked gyrations (and the odd onstage incense stick too, we imagine). The Caves, Edinburgh, 8pm, £12-14

Party etiquette dictates that one should never bring up politics at a party. Pissed Modernism, Edinburgh's annual rage-exhibition and charity event disagrees. They take pissed off artists (along with their pissed off art), bring in the craft beer and throw a big ol' shindig. The exhibition will continue until 23 Apr, but with goodie bags, 'political table football' and Astuto Baffuto on selection duties, the opening party's worth a shout. Patriothall Gallery, 7pm, free

Step 1: skip ahead to page 12 and read our interview with pop-punk rainbow duo PWR BTTM. Step 2: get obsessed with their latest release Answer My Text and eagerly await their upcoming album Pageant, due for release in May. Step 3: decide you can't wait any longer for new material and bagsy a ticket for their CCA gig tonight. You'll be in good company. CCA, Glasgow, 7.30pm, £10

Photo: Beth Chalmers

Fri 14 Apr

Pissed Modernism

PWR BTTM

Thu 20 Apr

Fri 21 Apr

Keep tonight free for our very own cross-platform arts party, The Eclectica Experiment, in association with Black Bottle Whisky. Yeah, yeah, we would say that, wouldn't we? But seriously – one ticket gets you five whisky cocktails, food and live entertainment from Law Holt collab Iklan, Meursault, Faith Eliott and Future Get Down, along with dance, Scottish Ballet film, spoken word from Iona Lee and Daniel Piper AND compere charm from Jenny Lindsay. That's right. The Caves, Edinburgh, 8pm, £10

Good old Wide Days, the music and business convention that's been launching the careers of up-and-coming musicians since 2010 is back for another edition this month (21-22 Apr). There's a roster of miiighty fine showcases taking place across Edinburgh, featuring the likes of The Spook School, The Ninth Wave, and The Vegan Leather, along with heaps of handy talks and seminars. Go see some belters and acquire some industry smarts while you're at it. See widedays.com for tickets and programming.

Meursault

Photo: Martin Senyszak

Wed 19 Apr Sticking with recommendations of a musical inclination, we're keen to catch the whimsical soul of British-Caribbean/ Dutch multi-instrumentalist EM|ME at The Hug and Pint tonight. Her first EP, W I E was self-written, recorded and produced, and sounds somewhat like the debut of someone who's about to blow up. FFO Ibeyi, Lianne La Lavas or Izzy Bizu on a chilled day. The Hug and Pint, Glasgow, 7.30pm, £5

EM|ME

Tue 25 Apr

Wed 26 Apr

Thu 27 Apr

Paradise Palms' e'er expanding events programme has your day locked down today as they host part of Via Festival, a multi-venue pop-up bringing in art exhibitions, live performance, DJs and spoken word between 23-26 April. Further details are under wraps at the moment, but keep an eye on facebook.com/ edinburghpalms to get all the latest. Paradise Palms, Edinburgh, times TBC, free

Trad fans will be pleased to hear that Edinburgh's Trad Fest is making its 2017 return between 26 Apr-7 May. Cockles at the ready, they're about to be truly warmed by over a hundred ever-so-wholesome shows, ceilidhs and special events. See tracscotland.org for the programme. In less virtuous news, Loud Poets play their twisted version of Cards Against Humanity at Banshee Labyrinth, Edinburgh (7.30pm, free)

Who's after some Future Islands, then? They're playing Barrowlands tonight following the release of shiny new LP The Far Field, their first record since 80s synthpop winnerSingles. We gave it four stars (skip ahead to page 38 for that chat), and interviewed the guys themselves (head to the website). Safe to say we're prretty excited. Barrowlands, Glasgow, 8pm, £22.50

Chat

Paradise Palms

Blindtext

Edinburgh Science Festival

Scottish Vegan Festival

Ashley Paul

Thu 13 Apr

The Pictish Trail

Photo: Jennifer Mitchell

Compiled by: Kate Pasola

Sun 2 Apr

Photo: Taymaz Valley

Heads Up

Sat 1 Apr

The Ninth Wave

Future Islands

THE SKINNY

Thu 6 Apr

If the space race is your jam, check out Cosmonaut at the Science Fest. Written by Scotland-based theatre maker Francis Gollop and directed by the e'er-acclaimed Kate Nelson, this new production melds together a trio of tales from the international battle to make it into space in the 1950s and 60s. Expect drama, music, video projection and a whole load of investigation into the idea of history versus myth. 3-5 Apr, Summerhall, Edinburgh, 8pm, £8-10

Those based in Glasgow are ruined for choice today. Glasgow's experimental arts festival Buzzcut is back between 1-5 Apr, bringing a delightfully diverse and progressive programme of art and performance to venues across central Glasgow. See glasgowbuzzcut.wordpress. com for more info. Over at the O2, Stormzy touches down with his belter of an album, Gang Signs & Prayer, an anthology of grime, gospel, hot fire and lyrical brimstone. Don't dare miss it. O2 Academy, Glasgow, 7pm, £23)

Get your bookwormy fix at A Night Full Of Words, an evening of literature and feminism at The Scottish Poetry Library. Along with Sarya Wu and Maddie Haynes, the line-up includes Christina Neuwirth and Sim Bajwa, contributors to 404ink's extraordinarily successful (and Margaret Atwood-approved) feminist anthology Nasty Women. That, and the fact all proceeds will be donated to the venue and Women's Aid makes for a convincing argument to head down. Scottish Poetry Library, Edinburgh, 6pm, £6-8

Cosmonaut

Stormzy

Nasty Women

Wed 12 Apr

If you missed Jenna Watt's dramatic interrogation of nuclear warfare Faslane at the Fringe, catch it at The Science Festival this month. Watt grew up with family members working at Faslane, the home of Trident nuclear weapons – and friends protesting at its gates. This dramatic monologue presents the pros and cons in a way that's sure to be fascinating whether you're well-read on the sitch or looking for somewhere to start. 10-11 Apr, Summerhall, Edinburgh, £10-12

At a loose end with your Tuesday night? Head over to Monkey Barrel's new(ish) haunt on Edinburgh's Blair Street and check out some experimental comedy at their Project X weekly (8.30pm, £3). Ne'er fear if you're West-coast bound, tonight's Red Raw at The Stand Glasgow, your weekly opportunity to see rising stars and the odd established act trying out new stuff. 7.30pm, £3

Scottish Ballet continues to update the world of ballet with its inaugural digital season. Throughout April they'll host a series of online and digital events, comprising short films, interactive media, company rehearsal live streams and a pop-up digital installation at Tramway (25 Apr-5 May). Today sees the release of Title TBC, Eve McConnachie's short film, featuring choreography by Artistic Director Christopher Hampson set to a poem by Jackie Kay. See scottishballet. co.uk/event/digital-season for more info

Faslane

Illustration: Louise Lockhart

Tue 11 Apr

Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic

Mon 10 Apr

Sun 16 Apr

Mon 17 Apr

Tue 18 Apr

Easter Sunday. A fair few people have plans to celebrate the anniversary of big JC's dramatic comeback, but Nightvision have other ideas. They've got a brand new rammy spot down at The Royal Highland Centre and are all set to host Terminal V, their electronic all-dayer featuring the likes of Adam Beyer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Charlotte de Witte Carl Craig, Kerri Chandler and hunners more besides. Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 12pm-11pm (last entry 6pm), £39.50-£54.50

Mark Wallinger Mark, the first Scotland-based solo exhibition from Turner Prize-winning artist Mark Wallinger continues in both DCA and The Fruitmarket after opening in March. The exhibitions present Wallinger’s id Paintings (2015/16), a series of Rorschach blot-like images made from symmetrical gestures with Wallinger's left hand mirroring his right. Other wallbased and sculptural works by Wallinger will also be on display. Until 4 Jun, DCA Dundee & The Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, free

Head to La Belle tonight for the flurrying guitars and rhythmic complexity of Hartlepool post-indie outfit PLAZA. They’re a band of four disconcertingly talented late teens, out on tour with a fistful of mathy anthems unpicking the idea of growing up in austerity Britain ("youthful romance, lukewarm beers, parmos..."). Support comes from Echo Arcadia, The Youth And Young and Mad Tango. La Belle Angèle, Edinburgh, 6pm, £5 (also Bloc+, Glasgow on 19 Apr, 6pm, free

Nightvision

Mark Wallinger, id Painting 57, 2016. Acrylic on canvas

Sat 22 Apr

Sun 23 Apr

Mon 24 Apr

Tough decisions today. Firstly, it's Record Store Day, your annual opportunity to ignite (or fuel) a lifelong passion for vinyl. There are dedicated events happening across Scotland, but we recommend you check out VoxBox's all-dayer (St Stephen St, Edinburgh, 8am-6pm). However, Platform's also hosting its annual cross-platform festival Outskirts, bringing in work from Steev Livingstone (Errors), Suse Bear (Tuff Love), visual artists Pester and Rossi and more. Eek, your choice pal. Platform, Glasgow, 3.30pm, £7.50-10

Arthouse film buffs, find your people this weekend at unDependence Film Festival. Taking place between 20-23 Apr in Edinburgh and 27-30 Apr in Stirling, the festival is a thematic affair; this year it is motivated by the discussion created by the 2014 Independence Referendum and the 2016 EU Referendum, making it the perfect place to get your head around the idea of IndyRef 2.0. See undependence.org for venues, a programme and ticketing info.

More in the way of dancey goodness thanks to the second edition of biennial festival Dance International Glasgow (or DIG, if you're one for acronyms). Everyone from Scottish Ballet to Siobhan Davies Dance are set to attend, bringing a handsome programme of boundary-smashing work. Today, see James Cousins Company's Rosalind, a production created in collaboration with rising stars of the British and Korean dance scenes which unpacks Shakespeare's As You Like It. Tramway, Glasgow, 8pm, £7-12

Outskirts

unDependence Film Festival

PLAZA

ROSALIND

Fri 28 Apr

Sat 29 Apr

Sun 30 Apr

So, after a completely batshit couple of years, where are we now? That's what Neu! Reekie! want to know, which is why they're taking their very own festival of spoken word, hiphop, music, film, discussions, street theatre and art to the UK's city of culture 2017, Hull(!) between 2-4 Jun. Get a taste of what's to come at their Edinburgh edition, featuring Bill Drummond and maire. Leith St Andrew's Church, Edinburgh, 7pm, £7-10

Get some end of the month cloobing under your belt tonight courtesy of Newcastle wunderkid Patrick Topping (plus pals) bringing dance-oriented beats all night long at SWG3, Glasgow (£19.5024.50). In Edinburgh, Haptic and Altitude sign up New Yorker and 96 & Forever don Baltra for a three-hour set of lo-fi house. The Mash House, Edinburgh, 10pm, £5-10

Real sorry to bombard you with even more scheduling decisions, but today is HECTIC, culturally speaking. Option 1: Glasgow's multi-venue music festival Stag & Dagger ft. DMA's, Gold Panda, Baby Strange and more (tickets £2025, see staganddagger.co.uk). Option 2: Glasgow Zine Fest, a publishing jamboree ft. anyone and everyone who's gone near a printer (glasgowzinefest.com). Option 3: let your hair down and try not to catch fire a-top Calton Hill at Edinburgh's Beltane Fire Festival. Told you it was busy.

April 2017

Neu! Reekie!

SWG3

Scottish Ballet Digital Season

Photo: Christina Riley

Wed 5 Apr

Glasgow Zine Fest

Chat

Photo: David Foulkes

Tue 4 Apr

Get Wide What exactly makes Scotland’s only music business convention so pioneering and vital to our music scene? We take a closer look at the showcase line-up and talk record shopping as we celebrate Record Store Day

Interview: Rachel Bowles & Tallah Brash

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t’s a music industry event with a difference,” enthuses festival director Olaf Furniss. “I’ve worked for a lot of different music conferences and showcase events, and what I did was take a bit from all of those events and create a fantasy league music convention out of it.” Wide Days certainly delivers on this promise, optimised for all attending: free gigs for music fans, diverse expert speakers to inform delegates wanting to break into music, and a handpicked showcase of exciting, local talent. “We sourced speakers and emphasised getting the right kind of people to talk at the event,” Furniss continues. “Quite a lot of the time with other conferences it tends to be the usual suspects; we wanted to make sure we had different types of viewpoints. With showcases we’ve also been very different too – rather than have 60 bands and no-one knowing where to go and most of the gigs being empty, we decided from the outset that we wanted to give the artists the best conditions to be showcasing... and really an opportunity to shine. “It’s also a great opportunity for music lovers to get a taste of what’s out there, of some of the most exciting, emerging talent in Scotland. And if you don’t like a band, they only play for 20 minutes so you can just nip out for a cigarette or stay in the toilets! The flipside of that is if you do like an act, it will leave you wanting more.” As this year’s convention is on the same weekend as Record Store Day, we’ve profiled each of the acts showcasing at this year’s Wide Days convention, as well as speaking to each of them about their favourite record shops. Synergy.

The Vegan Leather The Vegan Leather are an electro-art-pop quartet from Paisley but as they’ve played sold-out shows at King Tut’s and supported the likes of Paolo Nutini, The View and Teleman, you probably already knew that! Hailing from the west coast, the band’s indietronica soundscapes evoke the best electro from the Glasgow scene, somewhere between CHVRCHES, Happy Meals and Franz Ferdinand remixed by Optimo. Favourite record shop: “I’ve always had a soft spot for Monorail (Glasgow); I spent my first Record Store Day there. One thing I love about it is the extensive collection of Franz Ferdinand singles.” Best buy: “I spent years and years putting off buying In Rainbows by Radiohead on record – every time I saw it I always thought, ‘Ooft, I’ll get it later.’ I already loved the album but getting a physical copy brought things full circle.”

The Ninth Wave Recently signed to Distiller Records, Glasgow’s The Ninth Wave are a four-piece ambient noise band who make sonically sweet, danceable pop music. Having recently featured on such Glaswegian institutions as Tenement TV and T in the Park, it’s no wonder The Ninth Wave already have a cult following. Favourite record shop: “Mixed Up, down Otago Lane (Glasgow) – they always have interesting records in.” Best buy: “I was flicking through the ‘new in’ section and came across a record with these four freaky looking people on the front of the sleeve. I’d never heard of them before but it was four quid so I decided to buy it. It was a band called Alien Sex Fiend and I’m really into them now. I’d recommend a listen!” [Haydn Park]

The Spook School Queer punk indie rockers The Spook School hail from Edinburgh, though their band name refers to Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Glasgow-based art collective. Forming through their unversity comedy society, the four-piece bring a fresh sense of humour to queer concerns, writing their highly enjoyable pop-punk-indie-disco around the fluidity of gender and happy dissent from rigid heteronormativity. Favourite record shop: “Classified Records in Dundalk, Ireland. I grew up in Dundalk and it felt very quiet sometimes so having a new independent shop open up just made it feel more connected the rest of the world. Viva Dundalk.” Best buy: “T.P.M. – All the Boys on the Dole. It’s a very glamorous depiction of beautiful Dundalk, makes me homesick.” [Niall McCamley]

Declan Welsh and the Decadent West At the age of 24, East Kilbride’s Declan Welsh has already supported The Proclaimers, Ocean Colour Scene, Eddi Reader and Glasvegas. His music is an angry tirade against our bleak times, a 21st century Billy Bragg singing in Scots about May instead of Thatcher, with a touch of Mike Skinner. His band the Decadent West add a bluesy alt-rock musicality to Welsh’s spoken word and beautifully simple punk sensibility. Favourite record shop: “The ones I go to most are second-hand and charity shops to be honest. Love Music and LP Records (both in Glasgow) are cool, but I think I buy most of mine from Oxfam or Mixed Up Records.” Best buy: “I got Billy Bragg’s album Workers Playtime at Mixed Up for seven quid. I was really pleased with that. It’s probably my joint favourite album. It’s just beautiful, so many amazing love songs, so much great social commentary. The lyrics are some of the best I’ve ever heard.” [Declan Welsh]

Vistas Relative new-comers having only just formed in Jan ‘16, Vistas play melodic indie rock that has no right to be as catchy and as beautifully polished as it sounds, and their debut song Sign Language has been featured on Spotify’s Hot New Bands playlist. Best keep your eyes peeled for this Edinburgh four-piece. Favourite record shop: “The Cavern in Aberdeen where I study. It’s everything a record shop should be; it’s down in a basement, dimly lit and there are just piles and piles of records everywhere. It’s impossible to not find something special in there.” Best buy: “The most special record I got in there was Morrison Hotel by The Doors. I got it for my Dad for Father’s Day. It’s a really special album for me and my Dad, so that one will always hold a place in my heart.” [Prentice Robertson]

Emme Woods Emme Woods is a singer-songwriter from Stirling whose alt-rock blues and soulful voice belie her tender years. Having previously performed fiddlebased folk as Something Someone, Woods has gone on to release the darker single I Don’t Drink to Forget as a 7” on the Last Night From Glasgow label. Favourite record shop: “Oh, I’m not sure actually, I don’t know if I have a favourite. I mainly buy my records from gigs or sometimes you can find some little gems in charity shops.” Best buy: “I don’t buy as much vinyl as I would like to because I’m a poor as fuck musician, but I remember finding an Elvis ‘greatest hits’ record. I used to love Elvis when I was younger, I still do. At one point, Elvis was the only record I’d listen to. My sisters were so into the charts but I had Elvis on repeat.” [Emme Woods]

Win passes to Wide Days 2017 at theskinny.co.uk/competitions

JR Green JR Green are brothers Jacob and Rory Green from Strontian, who play Scottish folk-infused pop, self-described as virile, lo-fi traditional skronk. Their first EP Bring the Witch Doctor featured the single Nigerian Princess, which made Song of the Week on both Huw Stephen’s BBC Radio 1 show and Radio Scotland, as well as receiving serious radio play on 6 Music. Favourite record shop: “I think the best record store we have been to is probably Amoeba Music in LA. We could have easily spent all our time and money in there. There is also a shop in Glasgow called Play it Again Records. The two shops probably couldn’t be more different but are both worth a visit.” Best buy: “From Amoeba I bought my girlfriend Pure Bathing Culture’s second album, Pray For Rain, which is a total cracker and certainly beats any tacky souvenirs I could have brought back. From Play It Again I once found Kate and Anna McGarrigle’s Dancer With Bruised Knees. It is one of the albums we were brought up on so it was nice to own it on vinyl.” [Rory Green]

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Tropical Thunder We speak to Paradise Palms Records’ boss Aaron Main about championing local music and the importance of community

dinburgh’s music scene has long been hindered by strict council legislations and lack of opportunity for local artists, but small communities brewing across the city are beginning to change this. One of these communities is Paradise Palms, a tropical-themed dive bar which has grown into a hub for local musicians from varying backgrounds, particularly with the development of its own label last year. “It was quite easy to gauge that there wasn’t enough support for Edinburgh artists in such a broad sense,” says label manager Aaron Main, aka Chow Main. “It was apparent we needed to do something here to help the scene as far as putting out music, especially on record.” It seems fitting given the bar’s aesthetic that the label’s first release, in September 2016, was called Bonnie Tropical: a 12” compilation featuring tracks by 12 artists predominantly from Edinburgh and Glasgow – or “a collection of tracks from acts near here”, as it is simply put on the back of the record sleeve. The label’s latest venture is a digital single release from Paris-based electronic duo Hey Mother Death for their track Deranged My Love, which will include two remixes by local artists. This will then be followed by a vinyl release for Record Store Day, featuring a further four remixes of the track. “The exciting thing is that this project is bringing a lot of different artists together,” says Main. “It’s quite a broad spectrum and I knew each one of those artists would bring something unique to the table.” Many of the artists featured on Bonnie

Interview: Nadia Younes Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic

Tropical and on the upcoming RSD release have previously featured on the label’s monthly SoundCloud playlists or have played at its Paradise Palms Presents nights in the bar. “I think establishing Paradise Palms as a community for music and allowing it to grow organically is how we’ve been able to get those artists on board,” says Main. They hope to continue incorporating this community feel into a new singles club series. “We’re going to do a series of 7” records that will not necessarily be people from Scotland, but people who have played at the bar,” he adds.

“ It’s a much more relaxed approach to the sale of music and there’s no pressure to buy anything” Aaron Main

But the label is also taking steps further afield, with its first music video currently in the works. “One thing we noticed when we started this label was that there aren’t many music videos for local artists. That’s one of the things we wan-

ted to offer artists on the label,” says Main, and the label has been duly working with Edinburghbased experimentalist M.O.T.O on a video for his track Long Shot, alongside filmmaker Magnus Huntly-Grant. “It’s a really powerful track and we wanted to give the artist the opportunity to express what it meant to him visually, so we’ve given him the creative control to represent what it means to him in a music video context.” As well as the label, the bar opened its own record shop last year, which is currently co-managed by Matt Belcher and Andrea Montalto. “We’re trying to focus a lot on what’s going on in Scotland and mainly stock everything new that’s coming from Scotland in electronic music,” says Montalto. “We really aim to keep a community feeling, especially for new DJs and young people who are just starting to buy records.” Both Main and Montalto agree that having the store within a bar setting allows for a less intimidating environment for record buyers. “It’s a friendly environment down at the bar and it’s nice having the records not be the main thing but by the side while you’re having a drink,” says Montalto. “It’s a much more relaxed approach to the

sale of music and there’s no pressure to buy anything,” agrees Main. “If you want advice, you can get it or you can just have a listen.” While the two don’t work particularly closely together currently, there is hope that as both businesses grow, more opportunity to do so will arise. “We hang out together, we listen together, we exchange music tips between all of us involved here,” says Montalto, “so there is a connection because we are on the same page.” “I think they go hand in hand quite nicely,” adds Main. “As time goes on we’ll be able to sell more music that we’re making and promote more local music that’s getting made in Scotland.” Community is certainly key within Paradise Palms, as a venue, record shop and label. It is this sense of community that seems to be the reason why so many local musicians are willing to jump on board with its different projects. With a strong focus on supporting and promoting local music, it manages to transcend its potential status as ‘just another bar’ – it’s pretty clearly that it’s not just the Buckfast daiquiris that keep people coming back. theparadisepalms.com

You Spin Me Round Record Store Day is the one day of the year when over 200 independent record shops all across the UK come together to celebrate their unique culture – we take a look at the Scottish shops getting involved to help you plan your RSD17 adventure VoxBox, Edinburgh VoxBox are gearing up for their annual street party-style RSD celebrations on St Stephen Street with the help of Edinburgh label Gerry Loves Records – as well as putting together a stellar line-up for the day, they’re also putting out a special RSD flexidisc for The Howling Fantods, a collaboration between Martha Ffion and Savage Mansion’s Craig Angus. Confirmed for the day so far are BC Camplight, The Little Kicks, ULTRAS, Ayakara, The Son(s), Miracle Glass Company, the aforementioned collaborators and more! Performances will take place in nearby venues between 12-6pm. facebook.com/VoxBoxMusic LP Records, Glasgow Glasgow-based LP Records launched their own label of the same name back in February, announcing releases from three Glasgow outfits: American Clay, Codist and The Great Albatross. Plans for their RSD party are currently under wraps, but according to their Facebook page they “try to treat the day as a big party and celebration of all that’s good about record stores,” so whatever they end up doing is bound to be bags of fun! They’ve promised us live music, raffles, doughnuts and DJ sets with a special ticketed evening event, featuring some top secret guests. facebook.com/LPglasgow Assai Records, Dundee and Edinburgh To launch RSD17, Assai Records in Dundee held an instore gig on 21 Mar featuring local lads The

April 2017

View, and on 22 Apr they’re planning to pepper their day with yet more live performances. So far they’ve confirmed Dundee’s own Carousel – the first band to release a record on the shop’s own Assai Recordings label, with their six-track 12” Show the World due to hit the shelves specially for Record Store Day. facebook.com/assaiuk Meanwhile in Edinburgh, Assai have just announced they’re opening a specialist vinyl shop on Grindlay Street at the start of April, and on RSD the Triassic Tusk record label will be doing a mini showcase featuring performances from Malcolm Middleton and Lomond Campbell, with more to be confirmed. Watch this space. facebook.com/AssaiRecordsEdinburgh Love Music, Glasgow As this is the tenth anniversary of Record Store Day, Glasgow’s Love Music will be celebrating with over 500 exclusive vinyl releases, live music and cake! Performers on the day include several local artists who are all putting out RSD releases, including Colonel Mustard & the Dijon 5, who will be putting out their Cross the Road single on yellow vinyl. Scottish punk band Reaction also have new music to unveil, in the form of their new Old School Rules EP, as do Static Union, whose double A-side Turn Out The Lights / Accelerator is set to hit the racks. All this, plus a new LP from The Bar Dogs (Friday Night the Eagles Fly) and the debut EP by Storm the Palace: Snow, Stars and Public Transport, with more to follow. facebook.com/lovemusicscotland

Underground Solu’shn, Edinburgh Record Store Day for the team at Underground Solu’shn is “the ultimate celebration of our favourite musical format,” and we couldn’t agree more. “If you love music and you love vinyl,” they continue, “come on down and join the party!” Well, we couldn’t turn down an invitation like that. And what a day they’ve got in store for us all, featuring some of their favourite local labels, vinyl aficionados and artists as follows: Mr. TC (Optimo), Sweet Dieter (Paradise Palms), Kate Lazda (Kid Canaveral / Lost Map), Faith Eliott (Song, by Toad), Inkke (Lucky Me / Different Circles), and a Triassic Tusk showcase featuring Malcolm Middleton, Lomond Campbell, Jo Foster and a Triassic Tusk Janny DJ set, with more still to be announced! All this plus the usual counter sales and musical services supplied by the Underground Solu’shn team, featuring DJ Beefy, EH?Wun, Fudge Fingas and G-Mac. facebook.com/UndergroundSolushn Monorail Music, Glasgow Monorail bring the Record Store Day party to King’s Court this April with a mix of live bands and DJs. As we go to print, they’ve already confirmed Bristol band Snails, whose debut album Safe in Silence has been one of Monorail’s favourite and biggest releases of the year so far, and local outfit Pussy Mothers, whose debut was released last year via Optimo Music. They also have plans for a DJ line-up, headed by Sarah Pickles. With more still to be confirmed and the promise of “superb home baking” on the cards (buy a record, get free

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Words: Tallah Brash

cake – our kind of deal), this sounds like a fun day in the making! facebook.com/MonorailMusicGlasgow Coda Music – Edinburgh Edinburgh’s Coda Music have the largest selection of folk CDs in Scotland and a pretty impressive selection of vinyl across all genres. Having recently undergone a major refurbishment, they now have three times the space for their vinyl room – hurrah! – meaning you’ll be spoilt for choice this RSD. At the time of going to print their RSD line-up is yet to be confirmed, but they’re hoping to have a few instore performances in the afternoon and will be giving out free bacon rolls to the first 75 people in the queue that morning. Yum! If you want to check out the shop ahead of RSD, they have an instore signing with Rhiannon Giddens at 3pm on 2 Apr ahead of her sold-out Queen’s Hall gig that evening. facebook.com/codamusicedinburgh Where Else? Other official RSD participants across Scotland include Mixed Up Records in Glasgow, Feel the Groove in Paisley, Europa Music in Stirling, Rare Trade in Kilwinning, Big Sparra Vinyl in Ayr, Concorde Records in Perth, Mo Fidelity in Montrose, Union Vinyl in Inverness and Spin Vin, Maidinvinyl and Chameleon in Aberdeen. And remember, records are for life, not just one day in April, so please support your local record shops all year round. Record Store Day 2017 is on 22 Apr A full list of RSD17 releases can be found at recordstoreday.co.uk

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QR PWR PWR BTTM tell us about rediscovering themselves on new album Pageant, being born performers and how Lady Marmalade changed their lives

Interview: Nadia Younes

t’s only been a matter of months since PWR BTTM last graced our shores but, just like their fastpaced music, the New York queer-punk duo are not slowing down. “Liv and I actually walked into a haunted cave as children and we’re cursed to be touring musicians, so an evil witch will kill us if we don’t do this,” says Ben Hopkins, speaking from their van on the way back to New York, having just completed another round of live shows in the US. Their touring schedule has clearly been quite gruelling, judging by the sound of Hopkins’ voice: “I’m criminally an optimist despite my sore throat.” It barely feels like any time has passed since the release of PWR BTTM’s debut album Ugly Cherries, a 27-minute long collection of short, sharp and sassy pop-punk tunes about love, heartbreak and fucking shit up at Disneyworld. But the duo refuse to rest on their laurels, quickly returning with the announcement of their second album. Pageant feels like a second album should: a growth and progression on the first, with a more reflective, looking-from-the-outside-in perspective. “We had to take some time to figure out who we are now because we’ve grown up so much since writing Ugly Cherries. I think this record reflects the difference in who Ben and I are since we made that last one,” says Liv Bruce. “We’ve been working on it for a really long time,” adds Hopkins. “Not as long as Solange, but a long time.” The UK release of Ugly Cherries in October 2016 was followed two months later with their maiden jaunt to the UK, by which time it had been out in the US for over a year and work on Pageant was nearly complete. “The last time we were in the UK we were finishing our record via conference, getting masters and mixes back every night, so we were non-stop working,” says Bruce. This time the band are doing things the other way around, with their live shows preceding the album’s release date, a decision they say was intentional. “It’s just fun to take the doggy on a walk before anyone knows the songs. As a music fan, it’s really exciting to me to get to hear new music live before the band puts it out and to remember songs from the show when you finally hear the record.” They’re not only looking forward to less afterhours work on their upcoming tour, however; they’re also hoping for some warmer weather. “I remember Ben was furious all the time,” says Bruce. “I don’t know if you’re aware of this cultural difference but I think people in Britain just generally don’t believe in heating the way that Americans do. We would be soundchecking at a venue and everyone working there would be wearing a scarf, hat and gloves and be like, ‘What are you talking about, turning the heat on?’” Having both studied performance-related subjects in college where they met (Hopkins studied theatre and Bruce studied dance at Bard College in New York), the live show is an intrinsic element of PWR BTTM. “I feel like I don’t really understand our music until we perform it,” says Hopkins. “Just on this last tour, there were a couple of songs that we recorded that I’ve sort of had an idea how to play, then after the live shows I’m like, ‘Oh, this is where the real vibe is.’” There’s one specific performance Bruce remembers as being “truly life-altering”, that being the iconic rendition of Lady Marmalade by Mýa, Pink, Lil’ Kim and Christina Aguilera, as performed at the 2000 MTV Movie Awards. “I remember downloading the video of that performance on Kazaa after it happened and then watching it all the time and just being like, ‘That’s what I want to be when I grow up,’ and here I am. Gotta get that dough, sister.”

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Their love of performing seeps through very obviously into their music videos, where the song’s stories are visualised in a very PWR BTTM way. Their video for Pageant’s lead single Big Beautiful Day is a glitter drag fest, which sees the pair at a party anyone would want to be at. Bruce tells us: “That was the first time we had ever done a music video with a stranger but it felt very similar, very collaborative.” Is it more difficult working with a stranger, though? “It just takes more emails.” For anyone in their early to mid-20s, PWR BTTM’s music is likely to have an element of nostalgia to it, a throwback to the pop-punk bands of their youth. But the band’s influences spread much further out with that genre. “The first time I heard Mykki Blanco, I was like, ‘Holy shit, this is possible,’” says Hopkins.

“ I feel like I don’t really understand our music until we perform it” Ben Hopkins

“I was very much influenced by that music and still am,” Bruce agrees. “The queer hip-hop explosion of the early 2010s.” You might think that it would be more difficult to be accepted as a queer rapper, given the narrative of mainstream hip-hop’s prominent and oft-discussed issues with homophobia, but Bruce is quick to interject: “I think that the indie rock

community can be just as closed off. It happens in ways that might be subtle and not easy to put your finger on, so instead of someone saying, ‘that person is a fag,’ or whatever, they would say, ‘that doesn’t seem very authentic to me,’ or ‘that seems fake,’ or ‘gimmicky,’ but it’s all kind of coded language just getting at the same misunderstanding and almost fear.” Being an openly queer punk band does come with its controversies. Last year, a group of anti-gay protestors picketed PWR BTTM’s show at Big Sleepy’s in Jackson, Mississippi. Instead of allowing them the satisfaction of causing upset, however, PWR BTTM reacted in the only way PWR BTTM

would: with humour. “These protestors at our show said my asshole was going to fall out, and I was like I think I’m a better bottom than that,” the band posted on their Twitter feed. “In a way, I understand them because I want attention too,” says Bruce today, “but we’re better at it and we don’t have to resort to violence and evil to do it.” No matter what’s thrown their way, however, PWR BTTM just keep bouncing back. It really seems there is nothing that can fuck up their big beautiful day. PWR BTTM play CCA, Glasgow, 15 Apr Pageant is released on 12 May via Big Scary Monsters/ Polyvinyl

PWR BTTM On Queer Rappers Mykki Blanco “She is such a genius, incredible creator and has become a friend,” says Hopkins of the performance artist turned rapper. Initially created as a female alter-ego for a video art project before switching to a gender-fluid persona, Mykki Blanco quickly rose to the forefront of the queer rap movement. Following a string of independent releases, she released her much-anticipated debut album Mykki through Berlin-based !K7 Records late last year. Big Momma “The first mixtape that he put out was seriously fire,” says Bruce. “He has some of the most tense and fucked up flow that I’ve ever heard.” Big Momma may not be the most well-known

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rapper in the movement but he’s certainly one of its unsung heroes, gaining attention guesting on tracks by fellow queer rapper Cakes Da Killa. Describing his aesthetic as a mix between Lil’ Kim and the WWE wrestler The Undertaker, Big Momma’s music is fast, frank and fearless. Le1f “I think Le1f has been hinting on Twitter that he might be wrapping up that project and starting to work under a different name,” says Bruce – right enough, Le1f recently uploaded his “last music video as Le1f” for the track Umami / Water to Facebook in February, and has since deleted his Twitter. But Le1f ’s legacy will live on, as one of the most honest and outspoken rappers of his generation.

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April 2017

THE SKINNY

Flying High Little Dragon tell us about celebrating 20 years together and finally feeling comfortable in their own skin

ot many bands can boast twenty years of friendship, but Little Dragon seem to have found the secret to making it work, even if they can’t quite put their finger on it. “It gets stranger and stranger to work together and it gets creepy sometimes,” says frontwoman Yukimi Nagano. “Somehow, we’ve managed to stay together and change, all in different ways, and still like each other.” Over the years, the Gothenburg four-piece have made a name for themselves as musicians’ musicians, collaborating with everyone from Gorillaz to Big Boi and featuring on tracks from SBTRKT, DJ Shadow and Kaytranada. It really feels like Little Dragon have done it all. Coming off the back of their Grammy-nominated fourth album Nabuma Rubberband, however, the band were keen to take things back to basics for their next project and not let all the success go to their heads. “We’re trying to go back even more to the time when we didn’t have a record deal and we were just making songs for the fun of it,” says drummer Erik Bodin. “We’ve gone through phases and all of them have been equally important and part of our journey but right now, we’re not trying to fit in as much,” agrees Nagano. Earlier this year, the band teased us with the first single from their new album Season High with the seductive, 90s R'n'B-influenced slow jam High, appropriately released on Valentine’s Day. But just when it looked like the band might be taking things in a softer, more mellow direction, they followed it up with the club-ready, electro-pop banger Sweet, just to keep us on our toes. “We always like to mix flavours,” says Bodin.

“ We really make music out of passion in our hearts, not to please anybody’s demand so I think creatively it’s better when you have time and that freedom”

process working with four strong-willed people, trying to get to a conclusion and we’re still working on that,” adds Nagano. Once they’ve reached that conclusion, however, they don’t seem to feel that natural sense of relief most people would when completing something. “It’s always a bit frustrating to finish an album,” says Bodin. “You want to leave it sort of fresh and have a feeling that it’s a bit unfinished almost so it’s still open for taking it to the live shows and you can keep on developing it.” The band’s process now sounds just like what it was when they first got together, one big old jamming session. So much so that one of their biggest struggles, they say, is trying to rein themselves in. “There are quite a few songs on the album that are over four minutes and there’s one even going on eight minutes, but it’s just showing our classic ability of not knowing when to end a song,” says Nagano. “An average song at three and a half minutes always feels too short to us… I think it’s like a little beautiful accident constantly.” Just like all their albums previously, Season High was made in the band’s home studio in Gothenburg, which they built themselves and have continued to develop over the years. “There’s a personal touch to it and I think everyone feels at home,” says Nagano. “I think that kind of security is important when you want to somehow express yourself and not feel any walls or restraints, especially when you’re trying to find something new and dig within yourself.” Having that studio space has also allowed the band to encounter fellow like-minded Gothenburg musicians, such as their studio neighbour sir Was, who features on the album playing clarinet on the track Butterflies. “He’s a bit of a Swedish Woody Allen, a beautiful neurotic person whom we love very much, so it was fun to have him on the album,”

says Nagano. But the family affair doesn’t stop there, a childhood friend of the band, Agge, also features on the album. “Some of our first shows we actually did were with him, just at the local shitty jazz club or whatever. He’s someone who everyone in the band loves so for him to be on the album feels like the most natural thing ever,” adds Nagano. It seems routine for the band to take a twoor three-year gap between each album, something they believe allows them the ability to maintain a fresh creative outlook and a healthy balance of work and personal life. “We really make music out of passion in our hearts, not to please anybody’s demand so I think creatively it’s better

Interview: Nadia Younes

when you have time and that freedom, but we also prioritise life,” says Nagano. “It’s nice to step out and take a break from it because then you keep your ears and your mind fresh for when you come back and work with the music.” For Little Dragon, the secret to being able to stay together for so long seems to be keeping things simple. By working in their own studio space and rarely collaborating with anyone outwith their tight-knit unit on their own music, they manage to avoid a lot of the pressures that may come with being a globally successful band and instead, focus on doing things their way, on their own terms. Season High is released on 14 Apr via Because Music little-dragon.net

Little Dragon’s Top Collaborations SBTRKT – Wildfire Much of Little Dragon’s mainstream success can be put down to their feature on this 2011 dubstep smash from the mask-wearing British producer SBTRKT. The track was such a hit that it even spawned a hip-hop remix from Drake, taking it to even bigger, but not necessarily greater, heights.

Gorillaz – Empire Antz Damon Albarn selected Little Dragon as his ‘star of the future’ for Dazed & Confused’s 20th Anniversary issue in 2011 after working with them on two tracks for Gorillaz’ 2010 album Plastic Beach. The subtlety in the production of this track brings Nagano’s vocals to an almost otherworldly dimension.

Big Boi – Higher Res The band featured on three tracks on ex-OutKast member Big Boi’s 2012 album Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumours but this track, also featuring the ever-elusive Jai Paul is certainly the best of the bunch. Nagano described working with Big Boi as “the most exciting collaboration we’ve done so far.”

De La Soul – Drawn One of the band’s heroes, De La Soul got them on board for a track on their 2016 Kickstarterfunded album and the Anonymous Nobody… – DLS' member Kelvin ‘Posdnuos’ Mercer cited the track as one of the reasons they decided to crowd-fund the album, due its experimental nature.

Yukimi Nagano

The band worked with surrealist filmmaker and frequent Yung Lean collaborator, Ossian Melin on the videos for both singles and, despite admitting to not being particularly aware of his previous work, they appear to have formed a strong bond with him, almost like kindred spirits. “He’s a character and a real sort of tortured creative soul that we totally connected with,” says Nagano. “He has a strong artistic personality and his expression is very inspiring so we’re very happy we found out that he existed on the planet,” adds Bodin. For the first time in the band’s history, they chose to work with outside producers on Season High, accepting a helping hand from Simian Mobile Disco’s James Ford and revered pop producer Patrik Berger (Robyn / Charlie XCX / Santigold / Icona Pop / Lana Del Rey). Despite the calibre of those producers though, the band say they are always nervous allowing others into their close-knit circle to work with them on their music. “With our own music, we feel a bit protective because we really feel like it is already a big collaboration between the four of us,” says Bodin. “It’s a big

April 2017

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Static Electricity We catch up with North Carolina-based duo Sylvan Esso to talk anxieties, joys and annoying habits ahead of the release of sophomore album, What Now

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here’s nothing better than when you see someone playing where you can tell they really care about what they’re doing and it makes them feel things. It’s the best!” Amelia Meath is discussing her serendipitous first meeting with Nick Holborn at a Cactus Club show in Milwaukee back in 2010. She giggles, affectionately recalling, “I still have the handbill – the tiny copy of the poster – for that show.” At the time, Meath was playing with her a cappella trio, Mountain Man, and Holborn was embarking upon the second show by his glitch-pop electronic project Made of Oak, so it was a bit of an unusual billing. “The people who booked that show – their thing was bills where no bands sounded like any other band but that they felt shared a kinship. It was this whole time in Milwaukee where that was a pretty popular thing to do, which I still think is my favourite type of show to see,” Holborn says. “[I was] excited about the idea of playing my loud, sad instrumental hip-hop before an a capella band; I thought it was a really weird, engaging thing.” Following the show, the two went on to develop their relationship via good old social media: “It was the early days of Twitter. Nick and I both had accounts, so I followed him – we just tweeted jokes back and forth occasionally,” Meath remembers. “Then when Mountain Man needed a remix I asked Nick, and it took him a very long time, but when he eventually did send it – a year late for what I had wanted it for – it was really good and that essentially was impetus for me to say, ‘We should make more music together.’” Holborn jumps in: “And unlike everyone who’s ever said that to me, she sent me an idea the next

day. It was cool! It was two years after we’d met and we were both at turning points in our lives – I was thinking about moving and she was wrapping up touring with Feist [Mountain Man regularly collaborated with the Canadian songwriter], and this just kept working out; the universe kept agreeing.” The two then moved to Durham, North Carolina. Holborn had moved there as he was playing in Durham-based Megafaun at the time, and Meath quickly followed suit so the duo could work on their self-titled debut. “I thought I’d give it a year, she thought she was gonna give it six months and here we [still] are five years later,” Holborn explains. “It’s a lovely place full of really nice people and it has a brilliant music scene.” Five years on and the two appear closer than ever, bouncing off each other as we continue our chat down the line to them in a hotel suite somewhere in London. We caught them at Primavera Sound Festival in 2015 and their onstage chemistry was exemplary, but can the same be said for behind the scenes? “At this point we’re pretty much fully committed, including to annoying habits,” says Meath. “Touring really – hopefully – teaches you how not to be an asshole,” adds Holborn, “which is the main thing, but it also teaches you how to deal with things that somebody else you’re around cannot change.” “In terms of pet peeves, Nick has no concept of time,” Meath interrupts, expressing her frustration towards Holborn. “You lose time! Sometimes when he’s on the computer time just disappears so you have to remind him a bunch about leaving. ‘We’re gonna have to go in half an hour… we’re gonna have to go in 15 minutes!’”

“My retort would be that Amelia is easily annoyed about the time we’re supposed to leave,” Holborn tickles himself into a fit of laughter, further annoying Meath who replies over the laughter with a disgruntled, “I’m a very punctual person!” Fully aware that we may have just ruined one of the most beautiful musical partnerships of recent times, we swiftly move on to discuss their upcoming release, What Now, and how it compares to their self-titled debut. “That record, it was almost like we were constructing this vocabulary,” Holborn tells us, “and this record feels much more like we’re using that vocabulary to tell stories.” “Here’s the thing,” Meath admits. “We had to kind of remember how we wrote the first one, and even when we figured that out, we realised that we had to write it in a totally different way because we were such different people. Figuring out how we write was one of the hardest parts of it.” “That realisation though – that the experience of the last record had just irreversibly changed both of us and we had both grown up a lot in the three years since it came out – really was liberating,” adds Holborn. The most upbeat, dance-fuelled track on the album comes in the form of Radio which Meath admits “was written completely out of frustration, mostly with the pressure that I was feeling from myself, and from Nick and Martin (Anderson, their manager), to write more songs. I had a frustrating conversation with Nick that morning, and then I was like, ‘fuck it!’ and I sat and wrote that song in an afternoon.” When recording Sylvan Esso, the pair favoured a home set-up over a professional studio, and for What Now the same rules applied for the most

Interview: Tallah Brash part. “We tried to do some studio stuff, but honestly it’s so much nicer when you’re not watching dollar signs click by. When you can take a walk and lose half the day when you need to,” Meath enthuses. “I think it’s so much easier for me to be creative,” Holborn adds. “Home studios to me, or our home studio, I just feel like I really know it. I can hear something in my head and know exactly how to get it out without thinking about it too much... it just feels much more warm and comfortable to me.” As with a lot of music in 2017, there are unavoidable political references and the same can be said for What Now – because, let’s face it, what now? Trump is in power, Brexit means Brexit and Scotland’s pledge for a second independence referendum is underway. It’s surely a question on everyone’s lips. “The title was decided on after Trump got elected,” Holborn confesses. “I woke up in the middle of the night with that phrase on my mind more than any other phrase the year we were making this record.” “And throughout the course of 2016 and now,” Meath adds, “slowly being an empathetic person has become a more and more political act, so it is very political in that way.” “I think we definitely write music about exactly how we’re feeling at any given moment,” Holborn continues. “When I listen to it, I hear how anxious we were and I also hear how joyous we were. I hear the claustrophobia in the production of what we were working with, and even lyrically, I think I hear us looking around for meaning both to our own pasts and dealing with where we feel the present is going.”

“ I was like ‘fuck it!’ and I sat and wrote that song in an afternoon” Amelia Meath

What Now opener Sound – featuring Meath’s voice being tuned to a broken synthesiser – is the perfect metaphor for the anxieties and joy the two were facing when writing and recording the album. “We made it in an afternoon and the minute it was done we knew it had to be the first song on the record,” Holborn excitedly tells us. “It so perfectly encapsulated a way that our two ideas could be intertwined, and became a mission statement for the rest of the record. But that only happened because we had been struggling with all of these things. “I was having a pretty deep long-form anxiety attack about the ramifications of social media and children,” he continues. “The way that we’re all surrounded by all this noise and we’re just trying to find a connection in there, that all of our ideas are being translated poorly through something else and then heard by somebody else somewhere else. It was this sound that’s undeniably human, and yet it’s not. But I like that feeling of reaching through the static to find this message.” With a busy time surely ahead for this hardworking duo, we strongly advise you reach through the static and bathe yourself in the warm popflooded waters of Sylvan Esso’s latest offering. It might just make you feel things. What Now is released on 28 Apr via Loma Vista sylvanesso.com

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April 2017

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Voice of a Native Son Ahead of the UK release of I Am Not Your Negro, the extraordinary doc on writer and activist James Baldwin, we speak to director Raoul Peck about Baldwin’s enduring relevance, experimenting with documentary form and the troubling rise of ignorance

n such troubled times as our current moment, where Western society seems doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past by stalling or demolishing progress in various forms, it is important to take heed of the words of those whose commentary has only become more relevant with time. The late James Baldwin was an American novelist, playwright, essayist, political activist and social critic, best known for his articulations of the unspoken intricacies of racial, sexual and class tensions in Western societies. Being both black and gay gave Baldwin an insight into very specific experiences, but Haitian filmmaker Raoul Peck, himself a political activist, believes that Baldwin’s words resonate beyond race and sexuality. “Baldwin is, at core, a humanist,” says Peck. “He’s speaking to you; he’s not speaking to you as white, yellow or whatever. He’s speaking to you as a human being, because that’s who he is at the core. He doesn’t judge, but he tells you what he has to tell you. You don’t feel insulted, you just take it. He’s like your priest talking to you and telling you a very hard thing, and you do listen to him because he’s credible, he’s respectful. So it’s hard to get away; it’s hard to find excuses because he’s so convincing. And people do listen.” We meet Peck a few weeks before the UK release of his Baldwin documentary I Am Not Your Negro, a recent Oscar nominee and, at the time of writing, the highest-grossing independent film of 2017 so far over in the States. “It’s going well,” he says upon receiving our congratulations. “We’re breaking all records for documentary. I didn’t have that in mind when I made the film.” The 63-yearold filmmaker has been particularly heartened by the audience response. “People go to see it three times, four times. And all the Q&As I did, the people are very involved, touched, whether white or black. People feel concern and the film forced them to reflect on their own life or the way they

see the world; the way they see the other, whoever that other may be. It’s rare that a film can get that kind of overwhelming reaction.” Granted unprecedented access to the Baldwin estate, Peck’s film, in gestation for a decade, focuses on bringing to the screen Baldwin’s words from an unfinished manuscript of only 30 pages called Remember This House, which was to be about the legacies of civil rights figures Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., all of whom were assassinated. Eschewing a traditional talking heads format, Peck’s documentary offers no outside input or interpretations of Baldwin the man, or his work. He instead presents an extended montage of images of black life in America across multiple decades, from films before Baldwin’s heyday to footage of today’s Black Lives Matter protests. Scoring all of these is the voice of Samuel L. Jackson, playing Baldwin rather than narrating, reciting the man’s words from various key texts. On the subject of avoiding certain documentary tropes, Peck is particularly passionate: “All my life as a filmmaker I’ve always tried to ask myself, with each film, how can I go further? And further not only in the content but also in the form. Filmmaking for me, one of the important aspects of it is to be part of film history and to bring my own discovery, or research or experiment, while making films. I’m gonna use a big word, but to revolutionise the form. It’s always, what can I do differently? When I said no talking heads, this is something I used to try to avoid, but sometimes the material, at one point, doesn’t let you. But this one, this time, I could hold on to it.” Peck’s film splices together images of the present with Baldwin’s decades-old text, taking the writer from social commentator of his period to something of a prophet regarding the 21st century. “I don’t read Baldwin, I study Baldwin,” Peck says of the man’s evergreen relevance. “He’s

somebody you go back to. He’s like an incredible philosopher; he’s an incredible political analyst. You want to form your mind about Israel or Jerusalem, there is a small essay Baldwin wrote about Jerusalem and in that small essay you have everything about that country. This is what he does. On any given topics you can go back and say, ‘Oh, let me see what he wrote about it.’ He was always doing much more than current news or current reporting.

“ We are facing a world of decadence, but we don’t see it and we don’t want to acknowledge it” Raoul Peck

“He changed me from the beginning,” Peck continues, “and I’ve used his instrument my whole life. That’s how I would put it. His way of deconstructing everything, this is something I learned from him as well. The way he deconstructs the fabrication of the black image in Hollywood, you can apply that to many other subjects, or races. He gives you the fundamentals, which is, well, film is not innocent. It transports ideology, transports culture, transports commerce. Once you know that, you can apply it to anything else, to any sort of art.” Considering his reverence for Baldwin, we ask Peck whether he considers any current public figures, artists or activists, as approaching that same sort of level. “No, because you can’t create

Interview: Josh Slater-Williams that. It’s always the result of history. I don’t think we have spokesmen at the level of Martin Luther King Jr. or Malcolm X. And you can imagine those men, who were killed before they were 40, what it would have meant if they went until 60 or 65. Those guys were incredible human beings. Most of the leadership of the civil rights movement were killed. So today, to say who could replace them, I don’t see that. And, by the way, you could say the same about any white intellectual. “Today, everything has been so separated in expertise that you don’t find the kind of wide-range erudition that people used to have 40 years ago: somebody who was a great philosopher but knew about music; knew about literature; knew about macrophysics; a lot of different disciplines. You have a lot of people today that are very specialised, very sharp in whatever they have been studying for 40 years, but are totally ignorant of the rest of what’s going on around them. “I’m very worried about the rise of ignorance in our societies; in the Western world. We are facing a world of decadence, but we don’t see it and we don’t want, also, to acknowledge it. There is a lot of denial, but I have seen the change in the last 30, 40 years. “Take politics,” he adds. “We have never seen such deterioration. Take Britain; take somebody like Churchill, now look who we have [Theresa May]. This is a catastrophe. Look at Trump. You go from people like Eisenhower and Roosevelt, and you have Trump today. He’s incapable of writing a text. I’ve never heard of Trump writing a text. That’s something I just realised, because I know there are those incredible speeches of Roosevelt, but I don’t think Trump can write anything that makes sense. So this is where we are.” In closing, we point out that Trump can definitely type, at the very least. “Yeah,” Peck replies with laughter, “140 characters.” I Am Not Your Negro is released 7 Apr by Altitude

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The Life of Pablo Following the Natalie Portman-starring Jackie, mercurial Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín has another left-field take on a national icon with Neruda

hen it comes to productivity, there aren’t many high-profile directors who come close to Japan’s Takashi Miike (who has made approximately five features since you started reading this sentence), but there are a select few who can be relied upon to give us at least one feature film a year, sometimes even two. Michael Winterbottom is good for this, while Steven Soderbergh was very good for it before his self-imposed (and now broken) retirement from film directing. With three films in the last two years, Chilean director Pablo Larraín is making a case to join that select group. It’s also worked out that his two most recent films serve to complement each other very well (the odd duck is Catholic Church drama The Club). Larraín has just been through the awards season madness with his English-language debut, Jackie Kennedy biopic Jackie (which picked up three Oscar nominations), and his third film of the trio, Neruda (which hit festivals before Jackie), is a similarly slippery portrait of a political figure, in this case revolutionary Chilean poet-diplomat and politician Pablo Neruda. It would seem, though, that Larraín isn’t much of a fan of the ‘biopic’ label, nor is he especially enthusiastic about the genre at large. “I usually don’t enjoy biopics very much,” he tells The Skinny over the phone. “I think it’s a very complicated genre. There are some filmmakers that have done great, great [biopics], but I think they’re usually very original takes. People like Maurice Pialat or Miloš Forman, they’ve made wonderful movies about people, but I wouldn’t call them biopics. I think they’re just trying to approach with a specific sensibility into those lives.” Jackie broke from the conventions of political portraiture with its fractured narrative structure

April 2017

and by homing in on a specific period in Jackie O’s life. Neruda also focuses on one particular period of its subject’s life, but the twist here is Larraín positions his subject’s story against a fictional conceit. Luis Gnecco plays Neruda coping with fugitive life after the Chilean government outlawed Communism in 1948, but hot on his tail is Gael García Bernal as a hardboiled inspector who wouldn’t seem out of place in a Hollywood detective film from the same period.

“ I never know how the movie’s gonna end” Pablo Larraín

Regarding artistic references for the unique style, Larraín cites various factors: “Well, we started with a more conventional approach and it was tricky, and I wasn’t completely sure about making the film. And then me and Guillermo Calderón, who did a wonderful job writing the script, came up with the story and the idea to make the story from the perspective of the cop. That opens the doors to something very interesting and strong, which is making like a fiction within a fiction. And we keep saying that this film is not necessarily about Neruda, it’s more about the ‘Nerudan’ world. And there’s so much there... it’s interesting, it’s like going to Neruda’s house and playing with his toys. “It’s a movie about movies, somehow,” he

Interview: Josh Slater-Williams continues. “It’s a movie about the noir cinema that was made in the 40s and 50s; a chase movie; it’s a cop movie; it’s cat and mouse; and a sort of road trip with elements from black comedy. And, also, ultimately, it’s a Western. So it’s just a combination of all these layers and elements that we just feel are fascinating.” While its narrative is eccentric, there’s also much playfulness to be found in Neruda’s visual construction. We ask whether the rhythmic cinematography, with a near-constantly moving camera, is at all inspired by the flow of Pablo Neruda’s poetry. “Yeah, absolutely. Neruda’s poetry has many, many elements and layers, and, of course, one of them is the rhythm,” he says. “And so we tried to deliver that rhythm into the screen and into the way the movie was shot. If you read Neruda’s poetry you will find there’s a specific tone and speed and pace, and we tried to create a reflection of that in the film. That’s why the camera is moving all the time, and it’s just sort of looking and tracking the main characters wherever they are. It’s a movie where people [are] moving from one side to another, from one idea to another, from one life to another. And all that is in the essence of the filmmaking, and that’s what we intended to do.” Also of note are the purple and blue hues of the film’s colour scheme, which is reminiscent of the blue tones incorporated in The Club. “It comes from the colour palette of the period that we found,” explains Larraín. “And we were looking for a very distinctive look that would bring personality to the film. And also there’s a very simple connection with Neruda’s poetry and life. He lived many, many years of his life in front of the sea and

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wrote about the sea and the sky and the blue. Blue was an important colour in his work. And he was also a communist, and that’s red. And if you combined blue and red, you would get purple.” Not to get into third act spoilers regarding the film’s fictional flourishes, but the trickiness of its stylistic device makes one wonder whether the final product resembles what Larraín originally conceived. “Well, we always were trying to have as much material as possible, and different ideas,” he says on this topic. “And working with Hervé Schneid was a real pleasure, he’s such an incredible editor, and we had a chance to reshape the story in a very flexible way. “I never know how the movie’s gonna end. It’s always a process; it’s always part of the undetermined place where you’re going. And there’s a thrill there in trying to place where the movie will settle. I didn’t know exactly [that] the movie was going to end like this, but we were able to sort of try to grab as many elements possible, and then when you bring them to the kitchen and cook the final dish, you offer it to the audience.” As our call wraps up, we ask Larraín what draws him to actor Gael García Bernal, who, following 2012’s No, has been his leading man in two features to date: “First of all, he’s a great friend and one of the greatest actors in our language. And he’s someone who has an incredible amount of mystery, and I think that’s essential to cinema. And he is someone who is able to bring to the screen something that is very particular to him.” With his unusual, personal spin on bringing the art and life of Pablo Neruda to the screen, Larraín’s last statement there could just as easily be applied to himself. Neruda is released 7 Apr by Network Releasing

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DIG!

The Skinny talks to Dance International Glasgow's programmer Tim Munn, about the festival, the Scottish dance scene and what Scotland has to offer the artform Interview: Róisín O'Brien

Gentle knockout The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki is about an unassuming Finnish boxer who has his nation’s hopes pinned on his success. We speak to its director, Juho Kuosmanen, a Finn who’s also carrying his country’s ambitions on his shoulders

t’s a warm Ascension Day in Helsinki, and the city’s residents are out enjoying the clement weather. One Finn who can’t fully embrace the public holiday, however, is Juho Kuosmanen. Not only is the 37-year-old filmmaker scheduled to speak to The Skinny over lunch, also occupying his thoughts is that in exactly two weeks’ time the world premiere of his first feature, The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki, will take place under the microscope of the world’s film community at the Cannes Film Festival. Kuosmanen explains that the prospect of debuting at Cannes has been playing on his mind for a while: six years, to be exact. His previous short film, The Painting Sellers, won Cannes’ Cinefondation in 2010, and part of the prize was a return invite. “It was a nice situation but also a very scary one,” says Kuosmanen. “When you’re writing your first feature and know for certain it’s going to be screening in Cannes, the pressure is quite huge.” In an unexpected twist, this weight of expectations helped Kuosmanen connect with a story he wanted to tell: that of Olli Mäki, a real life amateur boxer, who, in 1962, became the first Finn to compete for a world boxing championship when he was railroaded by Finnish promoters, with dollar/ markka signs in their eyes, into fighting American world champ Davey Moore. “I felt it was very easy to relate to this guy who had this chance of a lifetime and then he fears that it’s going to turn out to be a catastrophe,” explains Kuosmanen with an endearing modesty that’s so rare in his industry. “You can see from all the newspaper headlines at the time people were hoping for him to be the next champion, and he doesn’t feel the same way.” The Finnish film industry have high hopes for Olli Mäki – and they’re right to. In Kuosmanen’s hands, the boxing movie feels fresh again, and the result is a bittersweet knockout. Centred on the weeks leading up to the championship bout, Kuosmanen avoids the underdog sport clichés and instead focuses in on an event on the periphery of the media circus surrounding the fight: Olli (Jarkko Lahti) falling for Raija (Oona Airola), a girl he meets at a country wedding. It’s not an ideal time to be falling in love. Olli

April 2017

Interview: Jamie Dunn Illustration: Jake Hollings

is such a genial, easygoing chap, we suspect he didn’t have the killer instincts of a world class pugilist to begin with, but his feelings of amour really take the edge off. Like its eponymous character, Olli Mäki doesn’t necessarily look like a world conqueror. And it certainly doesn’t scream contender for the Un Certain Regard, the Cannes competition in which it is to compete. Recent winners have included Khmer Rouge doc The Missing Picture, canines-bite-back horror White God and absurdist confinement comedy Dogtooth. Olli Mäki’s open-hearted humanism stands out in this company like a baby labrador in a kennel of pit bulls. Admirably, Kuosmanen didn’t try to darken the story to give it more festival caché. Instead, he embraced his unique situation. “I felt, personally, that with this setup, I could take some distance from the situation and it would be much easier to laugh at this whole thing... I think that was my process for this film: to find the joy of filmmaking again and not think about what other people are expecting you to make.” Olli Mäki’s humanist streak aligns the film with the work of Aki Kaurismäki, Finland’s most celebrated filmmaker, but that’s where the similarities end and Kuosmanen has been wise to keep out of the Le Havre director’s considerable shadow. “I love [Kaurismäki’s] films,” says Kuosmanen. “I’m not blaming him, but he has this very strong style and sometimes that’s something you’re expecting about Finnish films.” Kaurismäki’s style is impossible to copy, but it seems his independent spirit is alive and well in Kuosmanen. “There isn’t anything we can learn from him except that he has always done his own thing and that seems to work.” It’s worked for the young filmmaker too. While we’ll leave you in suspense as to whether Olli up-ends the odds and triumphs at the end of the film, Kuosmanen’s own story follows the Hollywood underdog formula. Two weeks after our interview, The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki knocked out the Un Certain Regard competition and took top prize. Kuosmanen’s delightful and typically self-effacing response on accepting the award: “Thank you for your weird taste in cinema.”

his April, the second biennial festival Dance International Glasgow (or DIG, pronounced as ‘dig’) returns to various venues around the city, and features established artists such as Siobhan Davies and Shobana Jeyasingh, as well as a new commission from Scottish Ballet, alongside work from both Scottish and international artists. “It all started four or five years ago”, explains programmer Tim Nunn, when Tramway decided to make two-thirds of their programme dance. “Crucially, there is no theatre in Scotland focusing on dance. Obviously the big stages in Glasgow get the likes of Rambert, there’s the Edinburgh Festival, bits and pieces here and there at Citymoves. But we didn’t have a stage where people who wanted to see dance could see ‘what’s on’ next week.” Part of this proposal was to create DIG: it was made biennial to avoid ‘dominating’ the programme. He stresses the importance of establishing a local audience, and particularly an audience who wouldn’t normally go to dance. “There is still a common perception that contemporary dance is people flouncing around in coloured leotards. The reality is that a lot of it is has gone beyond the postmodern into what is now a very direct and open communication with people. Lots of the work is really funny: Eleanor Sikorski’s work, for instance, is virtually stand-up!” One of the main reasons they decided to focus on dance at Tramway is because “There are an increasing number of amazing dance artists who are now based in Scotland. This is completely the reverse of what was happening even ten years ago: people would train and go.” Is there a particular ‘Scottish’ dance scene, then? According to Munn, once audiences keep coming back, “and the artists stay in Scotland, able to share and tour. Only then do we really find what it is that Scotland has to offer for the art form.” He lists a wave of current, successful artists based in Scotland, many of whom are at the festival: Joan Clevillé, Saffy Setohy, and Simone Kenyon, amongst others. “I’m not a curator who goes out really looking for a theme, but when you get bombarded with things, themes come up,” Nunn says of the programme. On the one hand is a visual arts emphasis: “The reason we picked dance as a form to focus on is due to the interest among visual arts curators

in dance. At Tramway, one side is a gallery, the other side is a theatre. We wanted to look at how those forms cross-fertilise, and at the work done by dance artists not alongside visual artists but that is taking along some of those ideas.” On the other hand, Nunn outlines recurring themes of “land, geography, notions of state, territory or environment.” Many of the works are staged outside, from the disused Larkfield bus depot to the Neilston Wind Farm.

“ There is still a common perception that contemporary dance is people flouncing around in coloured leotards...” Tim Munn

Does he ever feel that contemporary dance feels the need to justify itself conceptually, resulting in works that are inward-facing, and lacking any audience connection? “I know the extreme of what you’re saying,” he replies, “and I think those works are actually just not very good… You can say exactly the same thing for any art form.” He recommends Frauke Requardt, who has been making “outrageous and in-your -face performance work for ten years.” Is DIG even a contemporary dance festival? “I don’t like to hear it called that. The idea is to be able to draw in very different audiences, to experiment. Other festivals may have a very cogent artistic identity, DIG is where we are at the moment, with really great entertaining work, work that is challenging.” We finish on that note, as Nunn rushes off: “Try doing health and safety for a motorway flyover…” [Róisín O’Brien] Dance International Glasgow, 24 Apr-6 Jun, full programme details can be found at: tramway.org/events/Pages/Dance-International-Glasgow

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The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki is released by MUB

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Photo: Sefa Ucbas

Who the Fuck is Roy Chubby Brown? Blue comedian Roy Chubby Brown is one of the most successful comics in the UK but rarely in the press for comedy

here is a famous experiment where a man in a gorilla suit strolls through a basketball game. Concentrating on the match, the spectators don’t notice the fake great ape. Those of us following comedy can suffer a similar kind of ‘attentional blindness’. It’s an affliction that renders a certain comedian invisible. Roy Chubby Brown is as conspicuous as a gorilla on the loose. He wears a Biggles-style flying hat and goggles, a bow-tie and colourful patches on his suit. His short trousers dangle over suede moccasins. It isn’t only in appearances that he stands out though. His shows are notorious for obscenity and tastelessness. From today’s perspective, it seems to arrive through a 1970s portal; a decade when comedians casually quipped about ‘the wife’, ‘the mother-in-law’ and ‘funny foreigners’. In a typical Brown routine he might express incredulity about the number of black millionaires in the UK, while simultaneously portraying black men as spear carrying savages. While his unrepentant schtick eludes mainstream media attention, it hasn’t deterred his fans. What’s more, Brown isn’t playing to some tiny crowd either. This is not some die-hard faction, furious that the jokes of yore fell out of fashion. Right now, in the Official Charts’ Special Interest DVDs, Brown’s ranks in the Top Ten. The Great British J**k Off sits with titles by Billy Connolly, Sarah Millican and Michael McIntyre. In the 1980s Brown sold thousands of cassettes and his sales only grew with videos and DVDs. His first video, Inside the Helmet, sold a quarter of a million copies. The tours often attract 150,000 fans in total and sometimes up to 350,000. This is all without any conventional publicity or promotion. Love him or loathe him, Roy Chubby Brown is a giant of British comedy. Nuance is not a word we would associate with Brown, although there is more to him than a reputation for derogatory humour suggests. Born in 1945, he grew up in Grangetown, Teeside.

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His father worked at the local steelworks which dominate the town, but his home life was not always a happy one. His mother left the family ‘to live with a guy who came to fix the washer’ when Brown was nine. There followed spells in borstal and, as a young adult, prison. As he puts it, “In those days it was easy to become an arsehole in that environment.” At 25, he read a book by American comedian Bob Hope which changed his outlook. Music and performance offered Brown a new lease of life. After teaching himself ukulele, piano and drums, he joined a band. A natural at patter between songs, Brown soon made the move from musician to comedian. It’s hard to imagine now, but at this point his humour was clean-cut. Then, encouraged by his manager, he soon found he suited blue material. Straightforward swearing killed TV prospects but gave him his own distinctive style. The rare appearances Brown has made in the mainstream seem fortuitous. In 1995, the band Smokie heard an explicit Dutch parody of one of their songs. They recruited Brown to help them record their own sweary version. Living Next Door to Alice (Who the F**k is Alice?) sold half a million copies and took Smokie and Brown to number 3 in the singles chart. In 2000, he appeared in the cult TV series The League of Gentlemen, based on the 1997 Edinburgh Perrier Award-winning show. When adapted for television the grotesque town – a ‘local town for local people’ – became Royston Vasey, after Roy Chubby Brown’s birth name. Brown endorsed this and played the town’s Mayor. Playing along with the joke displays a self-awareness many wouldn’t credit him with. These are traits which make another of his appearances on TV so compelling. In a Channel 4 documentary entitled Britain’s Rudest Comedian, by Will Yapp, Brown comes across like any hard-working entertainer. He has a sharp mind that’s always on the lookout for new

material. He’ll think nothing of getting out of bed and going to the office in the early hours of the day if he’s had an idea for a joke. There’s a piano in almost every room of his house, and this is out of musical passion and not excess. The portrait of his home and family life is a serene one. Brown also displays perspective in areas he’s infamous for. He’s aware that the only black people he saw in 1950s Grangetown were from illustrations in outdated textbooks. Also, that his present experience of immigrants and asylum seekers derives from “what I read in the papers.” Yet, he seems to go on to confirm an overlap between his personal and onstage views in the documentary. It becomes more difficult to accept the view his shows are pure merriment. Or to defend that anyone questioning Brown’s routines is ‘easily offended’.

“ Brown’s routines based on asylum seekers elicit the cheering of a rally rather than mirth” Stewart Lee has made the point that Brown’s recordings escape public broadcasting constraints. But there is no heroism on Brown’s part in circumventing some perceived censorship. It has nothing to do with bodies such as the BBC pandering to the ‘easily offended’ nor is it ‘political correctness gone mad’. It’s more that some of Brown’s jokes rest on plain incorrect premises. For instance, Brown might start a joke with, “You can’t say...”, only to announce words you can say,

COMEDY

Words: Ben Venables Illustration: Nick Cocozza and which he is saying, to hundreds of thousands of fans. From there the jokes evolve with flawed logic, with punchlines unconnected to the set-up. As Lee says, due to Brown’s “impeccable timing and delivery” it can all sound like a joke even if it doesn’t work as one. Lee’s main point is about broadcasting ethics, but Yapp and others also pick up on the significance of these pseudo-jokes. Yapp notices Brown’s routines based on asylum seekers elicit the cheering of a rally rather than mirth. The implication is that the absence of laughter throws into doubt these moments belonging in a comedy show. Brown counters that his audience would say, “it’s a joke”, but that is exactly what Yapp says isn’t happening. Journalist Yohann Koshy, in a superb Vice feature, also noted this aspect of the crowd’s reaction, which becomes sinister if it evokes assault. ‘It’s not even a joke, just an image: a scene of slave-plantation-style brutalism. It’s basically an incitement to racial violence. And it got a round of applause.’ Despite this, Brown doesn’t seem to see his act as contentious in a political sense. He says: “I entertain lorry drivers, road sweepers, welders.” He later adds his audience is not “politically minded” and nor is he “instigating a riot.” It might be some form of dissonance, but Brown does seem sincere in his view. This is at odds with a general perception. Before the EU referendum, the satirical site NewsThump published a spoof news story that the Leave campaign would soon wheel out Brown. But the real Brown is quieter. One thing there’s been a lot of in the last year is politics, but Brown’s social media streams are all friendly greetings and soft promotion of his tours. Stoking fears might be the outcome of what he does and he may disregard his obvious intelligence to do this. But, Brown does seem more all about the job than having some conscious political motive. And, to a certain extent, this is more clear in other parts of his act. His material on men and women also rests on dated roles, but is in the comedic tradition of Donald McGill’s bawdy seaside postcards. Men are randy sods but also tragic and ridiculous. Brown’s appearance works well here. If he’s moaning about his wife, the joke is at least partly on him. As he says: “You can’t be serious looking like this.” As for his fans, it is easy to assume they all share Brown’s onstage prejudices especially given what Yapp and Koshy saw. It’s useful to suspend assumptions though. Brown’s following has caught the attention of academics. In his book, The National Joke, Andy Medhurst identified a sense of belonging which Brown brings to his audience. This has roots in family life and growing up in local communities rather than some shared interest in xenophobia. In Comedy and Distinction, Sam Friedman – former chief at Fest Magazine – uncovers multi-faceted reasons people like Brown. An interview with a primary school teacher suggests she enjoys the jolt of disbelief about what Brown is saying, yet she can distance herself from the content. Background and current situation mingle with comedic taste in ways that are not immediately obvious. It’s striking that Brown tours to many locations which voted Leave, while Edinburgh Fringe comedians have noticed their tours map with the Remain vote. It’s difficult to argue that Roy Chubby Brown isn’t all the things his critics say he is, or that all his fanbase are going for comedy alone. But, in understanding Brown’s endurance and fans it may illuminate the wider divisions unearthed over the last year. Roy Chubby Brown, Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, 13 Apr, 7.30pm, £24

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

An unexpected item on the holiday checklist Passport? Check. Snorkel? Check. Sun cream? Check. Library card..?

K, we admit it. The inclusion of a library card does, at first glance, appear to be pretty spectacularly out of place on the holiday checklist. But with thousands of us getting ready to jet off for the Easter break it turns out that your little library card might actually be one of the most useful items to stick in the suitcase, and it could save you a whole heap of pre-holiday stress (and cash) too. Don’t believe us? Read on… Avoid last-minute panic Your out of office is on, you’ve got your passport and you’re feeling pretty smug about cramming two weeks’ worth of clothes into your hand luggage. Suddenly though, panic ensues. No-one’s printed the tickets. Well, fear not, Glasgow’s libraries have entered the 21st century and now all 33 of them offer free Wi-Fi and PC access, and they’ll also print your documents right there and then. At only 10p, a quick print out from your local library is an awful lot cheaper than the £45 certain airlines charge you if you show up without a ticket. Download an e-mag for the journey Forget coughing up three, four, five pounds for a glossy magazine that gets dog-eared in your bag. You can now download your favourite magazine to your tablet or phone, for free, at home or in the departure lounge using your library card. Naturally, we recommend this online magazine be downloaded only for use after you’ve read your copy of The Skinny cover to cover, which is of course already neatly packed in your carry-on bag. Sort out a playlist Maybe this year you’ve opted for a package deal to the sun, you’re heading to Coachella with mates, or perhaps you’ve bundled the kids into the car and you’re driving to France. Whatever floats your boat – we’re not jealous. At all. Honest. Ok, perhaps we are but putting our jealousy to one side for a moment, we do know that even the best holidays can be ruined by other people.

April 2017

There, we’ve said it. The harsh reality is that if you’re hungover, you’ve run out of polite chit-chat with your travelling companions or you just quite frankly want to avoid everyone around you you’ve probably, rather wisely, already stuck your headphones in. Well, it turns out that libraries can help here too. With your library card you can stream more than 11million songs, including the whole Sony back catalogue, straight to your phone or download and keep the best ones forever. No fee. No hidden cost. Just free songs by your favourite artists to free you up to ignore everyone around you. Or, of course, you could just download Justin Bieber and play him on a loop to the kids in the back during your epic road trip. Your choice. Book in with tradition We thought we better chuck this one in for those of you who are un-nerved by all these technological advances that seem to be happening in libraries. Glasgow’s libraries do still have books. More than three million to be precise. Pack a couple in your suitcase. Order a beer in Spanish, Greek, whatever No-one expects you to be fluent by the time you jet off, but the odd phrase or two probably wouldn’t go amiss with the locals. Order a beer or a pizza or find the nearest loo in 100 different languages by downloading Transparent Languages to your phone. And of course, you’ve guessed it, it’s free, gratis, livre, gratuito with your library card. So, whilst it would be unrealistic to suggest that Glasgow’s libraries can make every aspect of holidaying plain sailing, it turns out they can sort you out with a playlist, save you £45 on printing a boarding pass (or £44.90 for the mathematical geniuses amongst you), provide you with a good book and help you fit in with the locals. So, what are you waiting for? Una tarjeta de la biblioteca por favor! Visit glasgowlife.org. uk/libraries to find out more

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“Time travel is a very human thing” Esteemed screenwriter and author Elan Mastai journeys through time in his new novel All Our Wrong Todays. He tells The Skinny what he himself would travel back to fix and why our present is so easily reimagined as a dystopian future

016 was the kind of year that made you desperately wish time travel was a real thing. Basically just a mass of celebrity deaths, geopolitical disasters and assassinated gorillas named Harambe crushed into something vaguely resembling a calendar, its complete awfulness has inspired a recent wave of sci-fi stories that ponder the possibility of a cosmic rewind button. In his debut novel All Our Wrong Todays, the acclaimed Canadian screenwriter Elan Mastai (What If, Fury) takes this idea a step further by beginning with the basic premise that our world is itself the result of a temporal adventure gone wrong, an accidental dystopia that was never meant to be. For even the most optimistic observer of current affairs, it’s an idea that seems, well, timely. “It was very strange,” Mastai claims when asked about his novel’s unfortunate accuracy. “These big, destabilising events that were happening felt perfectly in line with what I was writing about. It’s disturbing when you find politics catching up with this type of novel. That sense of waking up in a world where the rules have changed, it feels full of anxiety and dread, and you’re not sure how you got here…” The zeitgeist of the last few years in a nutshell, basically, which gives time travel a pretty powerful appeal, as Mastai explains: “The idea of time travel is a very human thing, the idea of a

second chance where we can do it again, do better. Especially when you have these huge, disorientating shifts in politics, there’s the feeling that if we could just go back and fix it everybody would be a lot happier.” Just one person, going back in time to be like “Hey, maybe the person who gets the most votes should be the winner” or “Hey, maybe things that are written on the side of buses aren’t always true.” Time travel is a narrative device which can unlock all kinds of philosophical, emotional and stylistic possibilities, by bending the most basic rules of how a story is told, but when handled badly it can also explode spectacularly, obliterating the suspension of disbelief and sending the audience’s emotional investment straight up in flames. Going in, Mastai had a very clear idea of what sort of time travel he intended to write and what sort he definitely didn’t, beginning with the logistics of time travel itself. “I like it when they take the science seriously. Obviously any story involving time travel is going to be highly theoretical and kind of fantastical but you can take it seriously enough to give it the texture of reality.” A key example in his own work is the problem of ‘where’ in a form of travel based around ‘when’ – given that the earth itself is in constant motion, if a person were to travel back in time to the

exact same physical location they would most likely find themselves floating in the dark abyss of empty space (and then they would find themselves very dead). It’s the little details like these which keep All Our Wrong Todays' flights of fantasy grounded in reality.

“ I like time travel stories where the emotional and psychological implications are powerful” Elan Mastai

The book wanders off into these sorts of scientific and philosophical wonderings at fairly regular intervals, but always does so firmly from the point of view of its lead character Tom. This brings its experiments with the space time con-

Interview: Ross McIndoe

tinuum back down to human scale, framed continuously by one average guy’s experience. Having achieved great success as a screenwriter, Mastai attributes this desire to tell the story from inside his narrator’s mind as a prime motivation for his decision to switch medium. “I wanted to access the interior thoughts of this character, so I wanted to use the first person. The tone is his voice, it’s the thing that brings the reader into the story.” Alongside the attention it pays to the science of its world, it’s this personal quality which keeps All Our Wrong Todays anchored in reality even as its plot spirals out into parallel timelines and hi-tech utopias. “I guess what I don’t like is time travel stories that treat it as if it’s very clean.” Mastai explains, “You just go back, make a slightly different decision and there won’t be any unintended consequences. Why shouldn’t time travel be the hardest thing you ever experience? I like time travel stories where the emotional and psychological implications are powerful.” One of the things that makes All Our Wrong Todays so mindmeltingly compelling is how messy things get when chronic underachiever Tom tries to go back in time to alter a single event, only to trip and knock over half of reality. His struggle to reconcile the world lost with the one he finds himself in, and carry the weight of everyone who now exists and everyone who now doesn’t on his conscience, is the source of the book’s emotional power. In a novel glowing with glittering futuristic invention, this element comes straight from Mastai’s own reality. “Like my narrator Tom, I lost my mom. It happened to me when I was in my twenties and it was quite sudden. Going through the grief of the loss with my family was an intense and difficult time, I don’t think that I even realised the extent to which my life would turn and go in a different direction at that moment.” That longing for time we can’t get back is universally relatable and acts as the heart of Mastai’s novel, keeping it intimately understandable throughout. “If I could time travel, I don’t know that I’d change anything, but I would go back and spend time with my mom and with the version of my family that ceased to exist when we lost her.” The novel has the same easy flow as Mastai’s previous work for the screen, matching 2013’s Daniel Radcliffe and Zoey-Kazan starring What If for the snap of its dialogue, in a way that makes its imperfect characters immediately likeable and gives their pain a true gut-punch quality. Moving from the big screen to the pages of a novel, the skills he honed working on the former prove vital to the success of his new work. “There were definitely times when I said to myself, ‘OK, now I’m going to deploy my skillset as a screenwriter, now I’m going to make sure this scene is very visually dynamic, very kinetic, very propulsive,’” Mastai says, “There are some very cerebral or philosophical or emotional parts of the book where I muse on certain things or the characters analyse their own emotional state, so when I have chapters like that I felt like it’s my job as a writer to reward the reader by kicking up the action with a very cinematic scene.” The result is a novel that reads with the pace and flair of a Hollywood flick without sacrificing the sense that the bodies being flung through space and time are real people. It can slow down to ruminate on a particular moment or fire off into a nerve-jangling action scene, telling a story that remains intimately human even as it rockets off into dazzling futurescapes and metaphysical paradoxes. All Our Wrong Todays is out now, published by Michael Joseph, RRP £14.99

April 2017

BOOKS

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Haiku in 3D Artists Linda Bolsakova and Brodie Sim present the outcome of their emailed haiku exchange and long period of installation from 7 April in Generator Projects, both working with sculptural and complex ideas of nature

n the run up to their two-person exhibition, artists Brodie Sim and Linda Bolsakova have been emailing each other something like haikus since being introduced by Generator Projects in Dundee. Thinking of this Japanese poetry form, Linda Bolsakova says, “What is different is the directness, to state whatever is there. But at the same time, it’s kind of impossible to avoid a depth and symbolism.” Paraphrasing a book she read, “You have to become what you write about. So if you want to write about pine, become pine and learn from pine. It always has to evoke some aspect of season, transient nature, the transience of everything… We don’t really talk, or say this is that, but I might show her what I’m working on and she’ll weave it in, and we let each other know what’s happening and what we’re up to in each other’s lives.” Considering her own work and relationship with Sim, Bolsakova thinks of the phrase “haiku in 3D.” Looking at their work, there are moments of familiarity in the suggestive semi-abstraction, and references to natural forms often through sumptuous, rich materials. Speaking to Sim about this kind of ambiguity of forms, she considers her work to be about “subtle moments… feelings, that come across but aren’t very literal. They might be to do with the material, for example, or light. I use the word ‘tone’ a lot, and it’s the best way I’ve found to explain that translation between the space inside of me and the space in front of me that I’m working with.” Talking about this same strategy of not pulling out visual references so explicitly within her sculpture, Bolsakova nevertheless speaks of coming from a “personal place.” She refers directly to the experience of seeing a tree planted next to the burial place of her father, and realising in a moment that he would become part of natural growths and cycles. To her, it is very important to begin close to her own life experience, “to stay truthful, but I still want it to stay open to interpretation, going from this microcosm to macrocosm and I feel that there’s a strong connection that whatever happens to my life happens to these life cycles in general.”

nature as theme. “There’s a lot of art out there that’s about nature, and it’s not necessarily got great connotations sometimes.” Though admitting that it’d be difficult to put both their work in a room and for it not to react interestingly, Sim nevertheless recognises her own process as distinct from Bolsakova’s. “Our approach is so different, and the writing [email haiku exchange] has been a really good tool because it’s quite abstract. It’s just a way of communicating without having to explain what we’re doing.” Speaking of her own process, Sim describes, “I feel my way through the dark a bit more, to arrive at something.” In particular, she thinks of her own photographic process: “I don’t go out there with a view of photographing something specific. It’s all pocketing moments of where I’ve been. It’s making sense of a landscape or a tone or texture.” These will be shown alongside Sim’s new work Dreaming for Offcuts. “I find a bit of offcut material that someone’s been working with, and has just

gone in the bin – I’ve found these little fragments of material that are so clearly not going to be used. They might be marble or different types of stone. Working at Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, there are a lot of people carving, and the offcuts are really beautiful so I’ve been casting them. Obviously casting is a long process, but it’s so good for catching subtle reverberations between objects and materials. I’ve been casting those in different metals, iron, bronze, pure silver. They’re gonna be really small, but have nice connections to each other, but also this idea of giving them a purpose.” Sim also mentions slipcast porcelain materials and speaks highly of Bolsakova’s philosophical basis and being able to describe different works eloquently, but also thinks of herself as “basking in an ocean of ambiguity” and modesty speaking of her ambition of “hoping that someone might feel something”, and a “poetry or resonance in the space”. Making new connections in her own practice,

Interview: Adam Benmakhlouf

Sim for the first time will display her photography, which previously she used as part of her studio research only. “I might even tape photographs to the wall like I do in my studio, and have a fragmented connection between the photographs and the sculpture and my approach in general.” For Bolsakova, she plans on displaying a moon vase, “a porcelain vase filled with seawater, thinking of the gravitational force of that vase and how usually in vases we put some plant or flower and sustain life. But it will be impossible to sustain life in these because of the seawater. I’ll build another one as an antithesis covered in copper oxide, which will make it black, like an empty moon, but also referring to Venus as a coppery planet.” She’s also collecting birch juice, to display in a glass jar with a birch branch charred up above, alongside a copper spoon that will be filled with milk. “I’m thinking of copper as contraceptive, that it’s essential for life but at the same time it’s used for hospital railings as a kind of disinfector, so bacteria can’t mingle.” Then “milk as reference for mother’s milk, sperm or first feeding.” At the same time, though speculating how the exhibition might look, still in advance of the show, Sim describes enthusiastically not yet knowing exactly how the show will work with both of their practices together. “We’re really lucky because we have a long install time, so we can make those decisions [in Generator], and just be in the space and understand how it will be read.” It was after being curated together that Sim and Bolsakova spent a weekend in the Scottish Sculpture Workshop, taking walks and having long discussions about their respective practices. This is where they came up with the title A Constellation Is Forming Here. Sim describes why it works for her: “I like it because it’s how it happened, these elements all coming together, we can’t quite make sense of it yet and it’s still forming.” From 7 Apr in Generator Projects, Dundee

Linda Bolsakova, Copper Pee

“ It’s nothing spooky or mysterious but very material” Linda Bolsakova

Going in and out of symbolics and “the thing itself ”, there’s a difficulty of applying a word like “metaphor ” straightforwardly, as she works through the very separation that would separate visible growth or decay from something more emotional, personal or putatively “immaterial”. It’s apt then that Bolsakova describes working on the theme of connection in the upcoming exhibition. “The connection between the moon and the sea for example, relationships and how we build or have connections between people, things, places, and how it’s nothing spooky or mysterious but very material. My work is about the interconnectedness between us and the environment… It becomes difficult to talk about these things because it always becomes dualistic. It’s hard to break up boundaries.” Sim continues the thought of taking inspiration from natural forms, but sometimes not feeling like being connected to a conventional idea of

Feature

Brodie Sim, Dreaming for Offcuts

ART

THE SKINNY

LI Knockengorroch World Ceilidh

Be Charlotte

SPRINGFEST

RIVERSIDE FESTIVAL

LOVE SAVES THE DAY

FIELD DAY

SpringFest promises to be a grand old gathering of big names from the pop encyclopedia, headlined by reformed 90s pop faves All Saints. Delving even further into the classics are disco legends Sister Sledge and Teenage Dirtbag hitmakers Wheatus, while Lia Rox heads up the newer names on the bill thus far. Don’t bet against a few more pleasant surprises as the line-up unfolds, mind. (£74)

Scotland’s premier celebration of electronic music is set to provide Glasgow with an unmissable May Bank Holiday weekend. Co-founders of Soma Records, Slam are co-curating the event and will be joined by a mesmerising range of international talent, including: Sven Väth, Nina Kraviz, Rødhåd, Jackmaster, DJ Koze and Alan Fitzpatrick, who will play a special back-to-back set with Slam. This is one for the dance heads not to be missed. (from £40)

Love Saves the Day returns to Bristol’s Eastville Park this May for its sixth instalment. This veritable love fest combines the best of Bristol’s thriving underground with pioneering artists from across the globe. The line-up spans across genres of pop, grime, electro and R'n'B and performers include Kate Tempest, NAO, Little Dragon, Kano, Mura Masa, Bonzai and more. Love is the message and we’re loving this line-up! Go for one day or both. (from £44)

What could possibly beat a delightful summer’s afternoon in London’s Victoria Park? Well, how about if that afternoon also featured the company of techno maverick Aphex Twin, genre-defying turntablist extraordinaire Flying Lotus and gloopy avant-garage rockers Thee Oh Sees? Oh yeah, and then there’s the small matter of some little old rap duo who go by the name of Run The Jewels… yeah, we know. Not too shabby, is it? (£64.50)

EDEN FESTIVAL

AFRICA OYÉ

Planning a trip to the Scottish borders this year? A festival line-up topped by 2manyDJs, Cat Power and Gogol Bordello suggests you probably should – yes, Eden Festival returns for another weekend of fun and frolics, with psychedelic tropical dance tents and Indian wedding marquees filled with hammocks among the many bonus attractions outside of the festivities on display. Adam and Eve surely couldn’t have foreseen this magnificent vision of Eden. (£119)

The largest festival celebrating African music in the UK, famously – and all for the princely sum of… oh, that’s right, it’s all for free. This year’s bill has yet to be announced, but with previous years starring the likes of mind-spinners Mbongwana Star and the redoubtable Ibibio Sound Machine, you can bet any amount you like that it’ll be killer. Oh, and did we mention that it’s free? IT’S FREE. (Free)

Dumfries & Galloway, 8-11 Jun

Little Dragon

Glasgow Green, Glasgow, 7-9 Jul

Kelburn Castle, North Ayrshire, 30 Jun-3 Jul

Biffy Clyro

Kelburn Garden Party

EDINBURGH JAZZ & BLUES FESTIVAL

BELLADRUM TARTAN HEART FESTIVAL

EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

If ever a genre were simultaneously open to adventure while remaining reverential of its own traditions, it’s jazz, and this year’s Auld Reekie shindig is a perfect snapshot of the genre in 2017. Leave the piano-key tie at home and just dive in – whatever you do, be sure to catch Manchester’s hip-hoptinged geniuses The Mouse Outfit. And fear not, Dundeebased jazz fans: another instalment takes place in your own fair city later in the year (15-19 Nov). Nice. (£Various)

Since its 2004 origins, Belladrum Tartan Heart has thrived on its communal atmosphere – “In a sense we have become a clan,” says festival promoter Joe Gibbs, so this year’s event naturally comes equipped with its own clan Bella tartan. Musically, you can expect treats from Glasgow’s arch-popsters Franz Ferdinand and Edinburgh’s chart-slaying KT Tunstall, but leave it to We Are Family hitmakers Sister Sledge to underline the clan sentiment with gusto. (from £117)

Oh, you’ve heard of it…? EIF first took place in 1947, and somewhere along the way it grew into a major part of the world’s largest annual celebration of culture. Not too shabby, eh? With music, theatre and dance forming the main thrust of its programme, there’s a large emphasis on classical (the award-winning Dunedin Consort provide a typical highlight), but keep an eye out for the must-see PJ Harvey, plus a two-night special from The Magnetic Fields. (£Various)

Cardross Estate, Port of Menteith, Stirlingshire, 18-20 Aug

Doune the Rabbit Hole is a small but perfectly formed, family friendly festival set in the stunning Stirlingshire countryside, just an hour’s drive from Glasgow and Edinburgh. As we go to print the line-up is yet to be announced, but if there’s one thing Doune are good at, it’s putting together an eclectic mix of talent, and with the help of Synergy Concerts this year, 2017’s adventure down the rabbit hole is likely to be one of the best yet. (from £99)

Dounce The Rabbit Hole

April 2017

Camperdown Park, Dundee, 12-13 Aug

Photo: Christie Goodwin

Photo: Beth Chalmers

END OF THE ROAD

PJ Harvey

The line-up for the inaugural Carnival Fifty Six festival in Dundee this August has been revealed: Mark Ronson tops the bill on the festival’s first night, with chart-botherers Rudimental and Clean Bandit headlining the second day and DJ sets from the likes of Hot Chip and Basement Jaxx. Further down the bill is a plethora of excellent Scottish talent including WHITE, Jonnie Common, Be Charlotte, Indigo Velvet and Fat Goth amongst others. Top stuff. (from £95)

ELECTRIC FIELDS

Larmer Tree Gardens, South Wiltshire, 31 Aug-3 Sep

Drumlanrig Castle, Dumfries & Galloway, 1-2 Sept

The summer festival season’s traditional curtain-closer for more than a decade, End of the Road’s bread and butter tend towards indie rockers of a folk or alt country disposition (albeit with more than a few surprises added into the mix). Father John Misty’s sole UK festival appearance in 2017 is this year’s coup, with Mac DeMarco, Ty Segall, Lucinda Williams and The Jesus and Mary Chain spicing up a sumptuous sonic banquet. (£189)

Electric Fields festival heads back to the beautiful surroundings of Drumlanrig Castle in the Scottish Borders this year, and since our last issue, the line-up has been ramped up a fair old bit with the mighty Dizzee Rascal set to headline the Saturday night. Other acts include Kate Tempest, Arab Strap, Frightened Rabbit, Anna Meredith, Glass Animals, Real Estate, Future Get Down and Sacred Paws. And with the promise of good food and drink, you can’t really go wrong with this one. (from £95)

Father John Misty's

TRAVEL

Frightened Rabbit

WHITE

FESTIVAL NO. 6

Portmeirion, North Wales, 7-10 Sep

Festival No. 6 are celebrating six years of throwing their annual art and music party, taking place in the beautiful Welsh village of Portmeirion. Heading the 2017 line-up are The Flaming Lips, Bloc Party and Mogwai, with acts like Wild Beats, Steve Mason, Charlotte Church, Public Service Broadcasting, Honeyblood and Jarvis Cocker taking centre stage further down the bill. Also, you could stay in a tipi, yurt, snuggery (whatever that is), or even in a boathouse at this one. Woah. We’ll see you in Portmeirion then?! (from £180) Photo: Richard Ferguson

DOUNE THE RABBIT HOLE

Franz Ferdinand

CARNIVAL FIFTY SIX

Edinburgh, 4-28 Aug

Photo: Derek Key

The Mouse Outfit

Belladrum Estate, Beauly, 3-5 Aug

Photo: Vito Andreoni

Edinburgh, 14-23 Jul

Scotland’s newest festival TRNSMT takes place across the same July weekend that T in the Park normally would, but instead of having to travel to a field in the middle of nowhere, TRNSMT is conveniently located in the heart of Glasgow, and with no camping you’ll likely have a much cleaner, happier time. The line-up includes Belle & Sebastian, London Grammar, Biffy Clyro and Radiohead, who play Scotland for the first time in nine years. (from £59.50)

Situated in the grounds of the 800 year old Kelburn Castle – home of the unique and internationally renowned Graffiti Project – Kelburn Garden Party is an audacious, thrilling, cultural safari consisting of art installations, carnival entertainment and a multi-genre music programme including Mr. Scruff, The Hot 8 Brass Band, Prince Fatty, Flamingods and more making for an amazing three days and nights of music, art and adventure in a fairytale setting. (from £104)

Africa Oyé

Run the Jewels

TRNSMT

KELBURN GARDEN PARTY

Sefton Park, Liverpool, 17-18 Jun

Eden Festival

Victoria Park, London, 3 Jun

Photo: Ross Gilmore

Jackmaster

Photo: Jassy Earl

All Saints

Eastville Park, Bristol, 27-28 May

Photo: JayJay Robertson

Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, 27-28 May Riverside Museum, Glasgow, 27-28 May

Photo: Ryan Johnston

Gold Panda

“A global hoedown in the hills” is how the good folks behind Knockengorroch World Ceilidh describe the event, and well they might: a gathering of folk musicians of all disciplines amid the beautiful surroundings of Scotland’s Carsphairn hills. Self-dubbed ‘Gyp-step’ champions Molotov Jukebox and brass-fuelled hip-hoppers The Mouse Outfit star on this year’s line-up, with more to be announced… how can you possibly refuse? (£115)

The Flaming Lips

Lifestyle

Photo: Andy Sawyer

Words: Tallah Brash & Will Fitzpatrick

Photo: Nick Bojdo

No idea what to spend your hard earned money on this festival season? Look no further than The Skinny’s ultimate guide to Scottish and UK festivals

Dumfries & Galloway, 25-28 May

Founded in 2006, The Great Escape is an annual three-day music festival which hosts around 300 bands across 30 different venues in Brighton, not all that dissimilar to Austin’s SxSW. While bigger names do appear on the bill, this festival is more about discovering new up-and-coming talent from all over the world – several Scottish acts are already on the bill including Be Charlotte, Shogun, The LaFontaines and The Van T’s. Let the adventure commence! (£60)

Mayday, Mayday! Taking place on the last Sunday of April, Glasgow’s Stag & Dagger festival is the perfect way to spring into the May Day Bank Holiday. Taking place across eight venues in the Sauchiehall Street area of Glasgow, DMA’s, Gold Panda and Baby Strange top the bill and with loads more to get your teeth sunk into this guarantees to be a top day! Wristband collection will be available on the day from 12pm at the O2 ABC box office. Enjoy. (£27.50)

KNOCKENGORROCH WORLD CEILIDH

Brighton, 18-20 May

THE GREAT ESCAPE

Glasgow, 30 Apr

UK Festivals

STAG & DAGGER

Is It Safe to Come Out? Coming out isn’t a one-off for LGBTQ+ people – it’s a decision to be made with every new person they meet. We ask whether it’s still safe to do so as society lunges to the right

his is a strange time to be out and proud as queer. In some ways, the world is better for us than it ever has been. We can get married in a bunch of places in the West, openly slaying us like vampires is seen as increasingly passé, and hordes of straight girls have now watched a few seasons of RuPaul on Netflix. Wow! Simultaneously, though, a chilling breeze lingers in the air, inspiring worry. As right-wing politicians vomit hatred and get elected regardless, there is a fear that it is not the safest time to be a queer person out on the streets. Our rights, the newspapers (and presidents) warn us, can be taken away. In this difficult political climate, where even the US Vice-President openly supports conversion therapy, I find myself asking: how can queer people be themselves, be out, and be safe? Does that ‘safety’ really exist, even in progressive liberal bubbles? What’s more, if a person is able to come out as gay with relatively low threat to their safety, do they have a responsibility to do so? For anyone planning to come out, there’s the question of what’s the best result to hope for. How will you know you’ve been accepted, and that you’re safe? Do you want your loved ones to simply say, “You’re gay? Cool, I guess. I don’t care. Let’s have dinner!”? Some people argue that the ultimate aim of gay rights movements is to simply make being queer as commonplace and mundane as being straight. Telling someone you’re gay would be the same as telling them you’re allergic to grapefruit – good to know, but not that interesting. Most queer people, though, want something more: to be welcomed, recognised, affirmed. However, we don’t want this from everyone all the time – after all, we have to come out a lot more than the average straight person might think. If you had to

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hug every person who realised you were queer, you’d never get anything done. Every queer person lives through two narratives of coming out: the time you tell the significant people in your life (often family, close friends, a guardian – perhaps even your kids), and then the endless parade of moments when you have to decide whether you’re telling each new person you meet. Straight people seem to think only the former category exists, as if by announcing your outness, you’re suddenly sticking a neon tattoo on your head for all to see. They often don’t think about the exhausting grind of having to decide whether each new person you meet is a safe bet. Should you scream you’re a big ol’ homo in the first few sentences? Do they think you’re hitting on ‘em? Will your cute outfit (with matching sparkly nails) tell them for you? Will they be cruel, either in ignorance, or in malice? It’s exhausting to think about. The first, huge coming out is hard enough. You’ve probably heard some funny versions. Perhaps your friend literally hid in a closet, then stepped out of it to the tune of Diana Ross’s I’m Coming Out, bewildering her conservative and musically bland family. Or maybe your colleague just left a single pink cupcake on his desk, as if to say, “Stop hitting on me, Sandra; you’re repugnant and I’m calling HR if this shit continues.” You’ll also have heard some sad stories. Families can be terrible. Friends can betray you. A house can become a hell – remarkably easily. Some stories aren’t full of hellfire or rainbows; they’re as painful or awkward as normal life can be. I was never really in. I came out to my school when I was 11, mostly accidentally, and to my parents when I was 14, after a few juvenile years of ineptly pretending I found girls attractive: “Yeah, Mum, she’s cool – I really like her… hair…”

Over some pasta on holiday, I mumbled my ‘truth’ to my confused mother. I kinda figured I could run away and join a circus if it all went to shit; perhaps I overestimated how many circuses there would be near the restaurant.

“ When I came out, there was the seeming option that I could stay in if I’d wanted – and some people don’t have that luxury” Something important to consider when thinking about coming out stories like these is also the issue of passing; some people don’t come off as straight, so even if they don’t announce their queerness, they’re pilloried and despised by straight society. When I came out, there was the seeming option that I could stay in if I’d wanted to try to – and some people don’t have that luxury. Whenever I relate my first coming-out story to people now, I tend to be told that I am, or I was, brave. I normally reply that I was just a kid, that I wasn’t intelligent enough to lie – or, more accurately, to realise that some truths don’t need to be bellowed. Staying in the closet would likely have spared me a tornado of low-key bullying, and a feeling of

DEVIANCE

Words: Toby Sharpe Illustration: Sonny Ross

isolation that still clings to me at night as I try to sleep. Other things about being out that young weren’t great either. But some things were: I had an accepting family, and I grew up in a diverse part of the world. I was among the luckier of my friends, in terms of coming out of the closet, however limp my version of that narrative is. More importantly than that, for my own purposes, I also grew up with a holistic version of selfhood: I wasn’t in for long, so I’ve never had the divided self that being in the closet brings. I’ve rarely had to second-guess my movements, hide my tics, pretend to love those I simply can’t. Instead, I’ve been able to present to the world that person I am, and who I want to be. It’s been scary – but I think it’s been important for me to, as a person with the privilege to do so relatively unscathed. We need to be vocal about our love and our selves for those who can’t, to pressure the often apathetic and the evil into recognising us and our rights. Thinking back on it now, though, I think my first coming out was brave. Bravery is about doing something that’s hard for the greater good. In this world I’ve described, the world we live in, we’re told it’s not only becoming better and better to be LGBTQ+ – it’s also tougher and tougher. You come out hoping that the world will accept you, not just as another grey figure, but, sentimental and silly as it might sound, as a rainbow of a person. Maybe the best response to someone coming out isn’t claiming you’re indifferent, but acknowledging their courage. Coming out is scary, but it’s brave. You come out not just for yourself, but for queer people who are less privileged and less able to, and for those queer generations who will come after you. theskinny.co.uk/sexuality

THE SKINNY

My Favourite Break-up We’re terrible at break-ups as a society. Why were we so quick to dismiss the advice of conscious uncoupling advocates? Words: Kate Pasola Illustration: Jacky Sheridan

his time a few months ago I would have been able to look you in the eye and confidently tell you that Gwyneth Paltrow had little-to-no impact on my everyday life. Sure, every so often I recall her involvement in regrettable VHS flick Shallow Hal; or ponder the thought that should I ever give birth, epidural drugs might cause me to also name my newborn Apple. Or Nectarine. Or, like, Radish? And I did read that she’s allergic to oats and subsequently panic-Google ‘food intolerance quiz online free’. But apart from that, my opinion was neutral. I didn’t even take notice when she ‘consciously uncoupled’ with husband Chris Martin, or when she published an article about it in her goop newsletter, starting a game of thinkpiece badminton. I hastily decided it was a nugget of L.A. pseudo-therapy bullshit that’d die in an Innocent Smoothie label blurb. Then everything changed. I experienced my own goop-style enlightenment: I consciously uncoupled. Except, kind of accidentally. I’ll explain. I’d been dating a stellar guy for a fair few months; he was kind, bewilderingly fit and bought me alcohol for Christmas – a winning trifecta. He also, annoyingly, lived over 400 miles away. After half a year of frustratingly infrequent dates made difficult by distance, and oxytocin overdrives diluted into a WhatsApp saga, he became distant and I got bored of pretending to be a Super Chill Girl Who’s Totally Fine With This Dynamic. In an unprecedented move I asked him, straight up, what the deal was. After an honest and compassionate conversation it transpired that we had incompatible requirements; I was cool with seeing someone infrequently yet continuing to invest in a relationship, and he, er, wasn’t. And that was it. We took the inevitable narrative of miscommunication > resentment > break-up venom and cut it short, because we didn’t want to hate each other. Obviously a break-up’s a break-up, and it still felt like a shitstain on the toilet bowl of January 2017 (it happened the night before Trump’s inauguration, for christ’s sake). But something felt different. The faith he’d restored in me when it came to dating men remained. My self esteem was uncompromised, and I wasn’t left with that toxic ol’ burden of break-up anger. Then it hit me. I’d followed in Gwyneth’s size 5 Birkenstock footsteps. I’d consciously uncoupled. If you’ve been politely reading this article without the foggiest idea of what conscious uncoupling means, here’s a whistle-stop tour as provided by Dr. Habib Sadeghi & Dr. Sherry Sami, authors of the Paltrow-platformed article which sent the term viral: “The idea of uncoupling as an alternative to a nasty divorce has been around since the 1970s. In 1990, author Diane Vaughan further defined the concept while psychotherapist, Katherine Woodward Thomas would popularise it a few years later. In these previous theories, uncoupling is rooted in how to part amicably, keeping mutual respect as part of the process and remembering the needs of any children involved.” Obviously there weren’t children or divorce papers to consider for my particular situation. We weren’t even really a couple. We just wanted to be. Nevertheless, I continued my research, sure that my experience counted for something. I came across Rosie Wilby, a writer, comedian and broadcaster whose work has is rivetingly

April 2017

rooted in dating, relationships, sex and monogamy, and how all of the above interact with neuroscience and psychology. Her new show is entitled The Conscious Uncoupling, and tells the tale of when she too found herself surprisingly inspired by the gospel according to goop. She points out that, historically speaking, lesbians could be credited with the genesis of conscious uncoupling: “It was a small community, and so to some extent you couldn’t really necessarily get away from your ex. If you broke up, you had to find a way to navigate it amicably and stay friends.” We spend the next half hour figuring out the reason why, despite its rich sociological history and demonstrable benefits, society won’t take the idea conscious uncoupling more seriously. Satisfyingly, we establish three.

“It’s good that the principle of conscious uncoupling is out there in the ether, as an antidote to less conscious acts like ghosting” Reason 1: Nobody can fucking agree what it means Rosie points out that conscious uncoupling is an evolving concept, not bound to a single, essential definition. She compared it to society’s everchanging concept of ‘monogamy’: “We assume it’s this universal thing, y’know, but it’s really not. And if it’s so personal, how can we, sort of, ‘sign up’ to it?”. She also clarifies that the process of healthily ending a relationship shouldn’t be restricted to romantic couplings. “I think there’s a broader philosophy about having conscious dealings with people you have worked with professionally. I used to play in some bands and it’d be heartbreaking if my drummer or my bass player left. There’s obviously friend break-ups too. I think particularly women tend to be particularly heartbroken about friend break-ups.” Reason 2: Like death, talking about break-ups is taboo It’s taboo to mourn for an ex, and seems even more ridiculous to plan ahead for a break-up. “It’s almost like the mourning and the grief is not really acknowledged enough. The message is ‘move on’ – if your relationship ends you’re told just go out and get a new one, like getting a new iPhone. It’s this idea of commodity, that things are just replaceable.” This could be part of the reason we’re obsessed with words and phrases like ‘ghosting’, ‘friendzoning’ and ‘winning’ the break-up. They might be reductive terms, but they’re all we have in our linguistic banks. We think and talk too little about ending relationships, so the prospect of a

new piece of vocabulary which could wrench open our idea of conventional break-ups is possibly a little intimidating. Rosie agrees. “That’s why it’s good that the principle of conscious uncoupling is out there in the ether, as an antidote to less conscious acts like ghosting.” Reason 3: It needs a rebrand, ASAP Even if you’ve established a definition for the term, disregarded taboos and convinced yourself to be proactive and realistic about a relationship ending, let’s face it. Conscious uncoupling is a really stupid name. Who’s going to invest energy in a concept that sounds like a Scientologist dating show? Rosie wonders whether a rebrand could help. “I think, in the tradition of inventing language, we could reclaim it and say, ‘it’s not about Gwyneth Paltrow, it’s about something else’, or even invent a similar term that is the same thing, but maybe a different wording.” As for the alternative terminology, a plain old ‘break-up’? She’s unkeen. “The tricky thing is that a lot of the language around break-ups is that it feels there’s a certain violence about ‘breaking’ up. I prefer to think of it like a sculpture that you’re

DEVIANCE

reshaping. It’s still beautiful, you’re not smashing it to pieces. You’re changing it into another form.” I ask her whether it’d be realistic to teach these concepts to younger people experiencing their first serious relationships. “I think there’s no hypothetical information that will ever replicate having been through a break-up”, she tells me, “so you might really only learn by doing. But certainly, if people work to communicate well during the relationship, you’d imagine that they’d communicate during the process of it coming to an end.” And for the far distant future of break-ups? Qazi Rahman of King’s College London will be in attendence at the show to discuss the prospect of an Eternal Sunshine-style break-up drug. “Your brain would rewire those memories and so on,” Rosie continues. “There’s obviously huge questions about the ethics of things like that, but there is sort of an interesting debate to be had about what role science might play in how we break up with somebody.” We look forward to goop’s take on that one. Rosie Wilby’s show The Conscious Uncoupling takes place this month as part of Edinburgh Science Festival at Summerhall, Edinburgh. Sat 1 Apr, 8pm, £6.50-8

Lifestyle

THE SKINNY

Eggs Directory We put a host of Easter eggs through their literal and metaphorical paces, with spectacular results Words: Peter Simpson Illustration: Waldemar Stepien

ver since the first Easter eggs were doled out in the mid-1800s, we’ve come to associate the coming of spring with the chirping of birds, sprouting of crocuses, and rising blood sugar levels brought on by trying to eat all of the Creme Eggs in the country. But now, with the Easter egg biz worth millions every April, and grown children everywhere keen to get wired into large piles of chocolate, it’s time to take stock of the situation. Take stock, then roll that stock down a makeshift hill before smashing it into a million pieces.

Stage 1: Packaging Your host has the visual sensibilities of a concussed goat, so for part one we roped in our designer, a grown man with a child who almost certainly had better things to do than be shouted at about chocolate packaging on a Monday afternoon. Still, he gamely soldiered on, casting his eye over our cast of characters. All much of a muchness, except for Lidl’s Deluxe Dark Mocha egg (£3.49). Yo Lidl, this is Easter, not the sales material for a mid-tier credit card. Jazz up your packaging a bit – we know you’re into the whole ‘floating in a world of white marble’ thing because that’s luxury in a nutshell, but try to lighten up. The clear winner in the design stakes was The Chocolate Tree’s Luxury milk chocolate egg (£15.95), with a simple design that showed off the egg within, plus nifty top and tail holders to stop you accidentally flinging the thing on the ground. Top stuff. Stage 2: Aesthetics Turns out, a lot of Easter eggs look like a dinosaur laid them, and we can’t work out why. Chickens lay actual eggs, and ‘spring chickens’ exist both metaphorically and literally, so surely the only reason that Big Choc would be daft enough to not just say ‘a chocolate hen laid this, now let’s just move on’ is that they’re hiding something. Something scaly. Dinosaur theories aside, this was a chance to vent our long-held childhood beliefs in what constitutes a good egg. The Maltesers egg (£2) was praised as “the egg of your childhood”, which is both a great metaphor for the iconic power of branding and the literal truth. That the Moo Kind vegan egg (£4.25, Real Foods) looked almost identical was taken as something of an affront, while the Chocolate Tree effort was noted for being both Instagram-worthy and a little bit on the ornate side. Oh, and the Lidl egg, with a clump of chocolate coated coffee beans in one side, looked like it had a lump of frogspawn growing out of it. Delicious, caffeinated frogspawn. Stage 3: Rollability If you’ve never seen a host of Easter eggs set loose down a warped piece of MDF, you haven’t lived. You can see for yourself on the Instagram (@ theskinnymag) Here, the most stable and solid eggs performed best – the humble Creme Egg (60p) flew down the ramp like a sugary bullet, followed closely by the Lidl effort which gained some traction thanks to that frogspawn from earlier weighing it down. The Moo Kind took bronze, our pair of Cadbury eggs (£4, £7) came in fourth and fifth respectively – props to the larger one for staying in its lane all the way down – and the “egg of your childhood” made like you did at every childhood sports day, veering off course early on and bumbling into second-last place. The Chocolate Tree egg’s detailing proved to be its downfall – it went off the edge of the ramp and broke apart on the floor. Last place, but it did send a bag of delicious chai almonds sailing through the air, which was nice.

April 2017

Stage 4: Smashability The Chocolate Tree egg was praised for the clean break, while the Cadbury numbers offered a little too much squidgy resistance when smashed with palms and foreheads respectively. The boss stepped in to dispatch the Maltesers egg – the one from your childhood, remember – with one “satisfying” punch a la John Wick, and our designer smashed the Moo Kind egg with an empty bottle in an accidental remake of the most gruesome scene in Pan’s Labyrinth. And the Lidl egg… well, it turns out that you need a reasonable amount of force to crack an egg that’s rammed full of coffee beans, but not quite as much force as you get by throwing the thing full force at the table from head height. Just so you know.

“ If you’ve never seen Easter eggs fly down a piece of MDF, you haven’t lived” Stage 5: Taste There’s something particular about Easter egg chocolate – maybe it’s the fact that it’s always been pawed by three or four people before ingestion. Malleable, flavoursome, but not so sweet that you couldn’t polish off the lot if you wanted to – essentially, we’re looking for the ‘house wine’ of chocolate. The Cadbury’s eggs drew favourable comments, but lacked some of the immediate toothscreaming sugar hit we’ve come to associate with big-name chocolate. The Maltesers egg did better, offering a creamier and smoother finish (stop sniggering, that’s our childhood you’re besmirching with your filth), while the Moo Kind had us fooled for a minute before the standard aftertaste of vegan chocolate kicked in. Creme Eggs were correctly deemed to be delicious, although they lost much of their shine because they don’t smash as spectacularly as others, and the Chocolate Tree’s superpowered Madagascan chocolate divided opinion with its bitter, full-bodied finish. The Lidl egg proved a favourite – bitter, sharp dark chocolate with a strong coffee hit, exactly the flavours for a bunch of jaded millennial caffeine addicts. They may not know how to package the thing, but Lidl seem to know their audience. Our findings With the shards of cocoa picked from the carpet, and sugar highs beginning to abate, we’ve come to some conclusions. The ideal chocolate egg should spark childhood nostalgia, but also pack enough flavour to wake a cadaver. The packaging should be simple and elegant, but the egg itself should lend itself to being smashed to bits in a cathartic display of mindless destruction. That’s all we want – a sweet, bitter, modern but childlike Easter egg with an impressive top speed and satisfying smash. Given that the chocolate industry has apparently been breeding dinosaurs for years (look at those scales!), we’re sure they can find a way to hook us up.

Top of the Chocs: Four of Scotland’s best chocolatiers Coco Chocolatier Unexpected flavours are the name of the game from Coco – from haggis spice to gin and tonic via orange, lemon and geranium, there’s always something on the Coco shelves that you won’t have seen before. cocochocolate.co.uk Edward and Irwyn Artisan chocolatiers in the truest sense, you’ll need to act fast to snap up E&I’s wares if you see them, but trust us, they’re worth it. The duo’s chocolate honeycomb is the stuff of wonder, and their chocolate-coated caramels are among the best chocolates we’ve tasted. And we eat a lot of the stuff. edwardandirwyn.co.uk

FOOD AND DRINK

Mary’s Milk Bar Better known for their wildly popular gelato, the Milk Bar also serves up a host of exciting and intriguing chocolates. The menu changes regularly, but say phrases like ‘Sriracha Almond’ and ‘Malted Caramel’ in our vicinity and we’ll be paying attention. marysmilkbar.com The Chocolate Tree Crafting their chocolate from bean to bar, The Chocolate Tree take the choc biz seriously. The results really do shine through, and their range of chocolates sourced from producers around the world is hard to match. choctree.co.uk

Lifestyle

Food News Words: Peter Simpson

icking off the month in style is Tales of the Cocktail, the mammoth New Orleans cocktail festival that’s making its European debut this April, descending on Edinburgh for a long weekend of exciting drinks and cocktail chatter. The festival’s Dynamic Duos are a great way to get into the swing of things; open to the public, they team some of the city’s best cocktail bars with their colleagues from bars around the world and some of your favourite spirits. Lucky Liquor team with barstaff from The Gibson in London for a Jack Daniels-powered night of zero-waste bartending, Brooklyn Gin join Bramble for an evening of gin cocktails and old-school hip-hop, and Voyage of Buck host a Scottish-Scandinavian crossover of Patron-based drinks. Consider us well and truly on board. 1-6 April, various times and locations, full details at talesofthecocktail.com Also on an alcoholic tip in Edinburgh is the return of political beer-based art exhibition Pissed Modernism. The format is refreshingly simple; artists design bespoke labels, those labels are placed on beers from local breweries, and the resulting bottles are sold to raise money for a good cause, which this year is the Remade in Edinburgh project. Finally, a situation where mixing beer and politics doesn’t end in a massive rammy. 14 Apr, Patriothall Gallery, 7pm, RSVP via Eventbrite (exhibition runs 15-23 Apr).

Elsewhere in the capital this month, Century General Store in Abbeyhill present a two-night supper club residency from Hidden Kitchen (13 & 14 Apr, 7.30pm, £38), The Pitt host an Easter weekend special edition of the street food market (14-16 Apr, all day, £2 entry), and Toasted Radish host a pop-up supper club inspired by (and in the close proximity of) the Mark Wallinger exhibition at Fruitmarket Gallery (22 Apr, 7.30pm, £35) While the Edinburgh Science Festival brings a whole host of food-science crossovers to the capital this month, that hasn’t stopped Glasgow getting in on the imbible experimentation. Glasgow Science Centre’s The Science of Whisky is a masterclass on the brown stuff that blends science, theatricality, and a not-inconsiderable level of drinking. Whisky buffs from Good Spirits Company will talk you through six whiskies over the course of the evening, as astronomers from GSC occasionally interject with scientific explanations for the apparent witchcraft behind a dram. You’ll have your final drink inside the Science Centre planetarium; expect a fun and insightful evening to end with innumerable Brian Cox impersonations. 21 Apr, 7pm, £30, glasgowsciencecentre.org Also in Glasgow, the food anthropologists at Küche continue their great run of events with a pair of intriguing goings-on this month. First up is Tapas and Storytelling, a trans-continental journey through the many ways in which we’re

Tales of the Cocktail

influenced by our food. It’s all led by Küche’s chef in residence Yasmine Sefraoui – born in France to a Brazilian mother and a Moroccan father, with additional Italian and Danish origins – with the aim of exploring the ways in which our identity and memories are shaped by cuisine. 7 Apr, The Glad Cafe, 7pm, £15, tickets via thegladcafe.co.uk At the end of the month is Glasgow’s Lost Food Scape, described as “a four-course cycling journey exploring derelict, renovated and

demolished food producing buildings across the city”. You’ll take in the sights and you’ll learn about Glasgow’s food heritage – depending on how strenuously you ride, you might even find yourself up on the deal calories-wise. It’s not often we get to say that round these parts... 30 Apr, meet at CCA with bike at midday, £10, book via cca-glasgow.com theskinny.co.uk/food

Six to see at Gastrofest From munching along with cult sci-fi to the art of shooting and eating your own deer, we look at the foodie events at this year’s Edinburgh Science Festival

Words: Peter Simpson

How Beer Made Science History 6 & 13 Apr, 8pm, £10 The Barney’s Beer microbrewery is the host of an exploration of beer’s role in science, and vice-versa. Learn how brewing advances in the 18th and 19th century were spurred on by new scientific advances, find out a bit about the science that goes into a pint, and sneak in some tasty craft beers while you’re at it. Multitasking.

Watch and Wolf: Gattaca 7 Apr, 8pm, £25 The latest Watch and Wolf event from experimental party planners Jelly & Gin, pairing uniquely crafted nibbles with key points in the on-screen action. How that works in the context of Gattaca – a eugenics-laden sci-fi thriller about space travel – is anyone’s guess, but it should be an intriguing sight to behold and eat along with.

Disrupting the Food Chain 7 Apr, 8pm, £8.50 The big animals eat the little animals, and then bigger animals eat those animals, and then we swoop in with a knife and fork to complete the cycle; that’s the food chain in a nutshell, but recent tech innovations have offered the chance to disrupt this natural order of events. You may have two questions: a) how, and b) why? Charlotte Maberly, lecturer in Gastronomy at Queen Margaret University, leads a discussion on the topic, looking at what we’ve done to the chain and what effect that could have on our future dining habits.

The Ethical Carnivore, My Year of Killing to Eat | 9 Apr, 8pm, £8.50 For those of us who enjoy a slab of animal or two, there’s an interesting ethical dilemma to consider – we’re happy to feast on the flesh of dead animals, but how would we feel if it was us holding the knife? To answer that question author Louise Gray spent 12 months only eating animals she had personally killed, from seafood right up to small mammals. She shares her story of a year of ethical meateating, while looking at the issues around the meat industry’s handling of animals as well.

The Burger Evolution 7 Apr, 8pm, £20 Oh the burger, with your handheld loveliness and propensity to get meat juice all over our faces and arms at the slightest provocation. We like burgers, and this Science Festival event offers a chance to look at the past, present and future of the dish. Sensory expert Professor Charles Spence and Ben Reade of the Edinburgh Food Studio will be on hand as you try out a host of exciting and intriguing sandwiches, with the helpful excuse of this all being in aid of scientific discovery.

Cheeseology 2.0 | 11 Apr, 8pm, £15 We quite like cheese round these parts, and we also like a made-up word or two, so we’re convinced of the merits of Cheeseology 2.0 thanks to the title alone. It takes the form of a “tutored tasting journey” through a host of cheeses from right across the board, with the innovations and scientific grounding behind each of the cheeses explored over the course of the evening. Presented by “self-confessed curd nerd” and Cheese Chap blogger Patrick McGuigan alongside dairy technologist – the best kind of technologist, if you ask us – Paul Thomas, we’re sure it’ll be a cracker. All events at Summerhall, 1 Summerhall Pl; sciencefestival.co.uk

Lifestyle

FOOD AND DRINK

THE SKINNY

April 2017

THE SKINNY

RE V IE

Making Words Count

Ahead of the release of their debut album, we talk to Diet Cig about cats, dogs, learning guitar and what constitutes ‘being punk’

hen The Skinny catches up with New York duo Diet Cig, singer/guitarist Alex Luciano and drummer Noah Bowman are slogging through a busy day of interviews ahead of a late flight to San Francisco. The pair will soon play at the city’s Noise Pop Festival and are flying to California a few days early to hang out with their manager, Jessi, who has offered them a place to stay. Luciano is particularly looking forward to staying with Jessi’s three “hilarious” feline housemates, declaring herself to be more of a cat person. “They’re so soft and so clean!” Luciano enthuses. “They just clean themselves all day. We have a dog and a cat on our bed right now as we speak, and this dog is so stinky and the cat is a perfect clean little ball of magic.” “I don’t know,” Bowman replies reassuringly. “I like the dirty dawg.” He laughs and we can imagine him patting the nonplussed pet on the other end of the phone line. It’s hard not to take an immediate liking to Diet Cig, whose amiably rickety pop-punk and raucous live presence has brought them much acclaim and hype ahead of the release of their debut album, Swear I’m Good at This. It’s a big reputation for a band that had previously only released a mere seven songs – an EP, Over Easy, in 2015 and a 7’’ single a few months later – and formed despite Luciano never having played guitar before, after she interrupted Bowman during a house show to ask for a lighter. We ask how it feels for them to have attracted such attention on such a small back catalogue. “It’s a pretty cool feeling, I have to say,” says Bowman. “And a lot of pressure from the seven songs that we just kind of wrote on the fly,” Luciano adds. “I’m like, ‘Oh my god! People like to listen to this?’ But it’s cool. We’re super-grateful.” Luciano expresses her excitement at Swear I’m Good at This’s forthcoming release, relieved that Diet Cig can make their debut “as a band with a plan.” Did the pair not feel that they had a plan before starting work on their first full-length? “No,” Bowman laughs. “Going into this new record we definitely had a better idea of what we were doing. Everything was a little more intentional. Over Easy and the 7’’ were a little bit more, ‘we’re recording these songs just ‘cause we have them’, but with this record it was a little bit more thought-out. I feel like we had more fun with this one because we were able to try a lot of new things and just have fun in the process.” “Yeah, I think it was better recording this time,” Luciano agrees. “We were in the studio and we were like, ‘Yo! Time to shred!’ When we first recorded I didn’t even know how to play guitar! And now I can play guitar pretty well so that was a good feeling.” That enthusiasm certainly carries over into Swear I’m Good at This, which enhances Diet Cig’s sound of quickly strummed chords and crashing drums with additions such as tinkling keys in the two-chord racer Blob Zombie, or chiming bells on the explosive Bath Bomb. Meanwhile Luciano’s lyrics remain instantly relatable, covering a range of 20-something, old-enough-to-know-better-butstill-young-enough-to mess-up scenarios: painful romantic fumbles (opener Sixteen), terrible diets on the road (Road Trip), harbouring burning ambition when you barely have the motivation to get out of bed (Blob Zombie again)... From Swear I’m Good at This’s title – half selfdetermination, half saving face – and the LP’s overall effect, there’s a sense of Diet Cig convincing themselves that it’s OK to be uncertain and imperfect, and of them passing that reassurance onto other people. It’s likely one of the reasons

April 2017

that the duo have already built a cult following. “I like to think that the music is trying to make people feel like they’re not alone, that someone is in it with them and putting music to feelings that everyone has,” Luciano says. “Our music is supervulnerable, super-honest, and I was never really a person who wore their heart on their sleeve. Through this music I’ve taught myself how to learn to become more vulnerable and I hope other people can get that feeling too.” While explaining her point Luciano uses the phrase ‘radical softness’, a phrase that she’s used in other interviews recently, and the potential for vulnerability to be a tool for change. Does ‘radical softness’, then, place a new emphasis on participation and understanding, making people feel like they can belong, compared to the antagonistic approach of old-school punk? “Right!” Luciano replies. “We like to think that it’s punk as hell to make sure everyone’s safe at a show, and it’s really punk to look out for your friends who are marginalised. I think caring about people and saying how you feel and being empathetic is way more punk than being aggressive. If you’re like, ‘fuck the establishment’, the establishment is so aggressive and wants you to bottle up your feelings and not care about other people. It’s so much harder to be empathetic and be there for people and I think that is a really strong thing.” Speaking of the establishment, it’s difficult to ignore some of the lyrics on Swear I’m Good at This in the U.S.’s current pussy-grabbing political context, where womanhood is suddenly far more politicised than before. Maid of the Mist sees Luciano warning a would-be groper to respect

consent, while on the album’s sexism-tackling closer Tummy Ache, she resolves to ‘make my words count in a way I haven’t quite figured out’. With Luciano saying that she felt empowered to get involved by the likes of Frankie Cosmos and Frances Quinlan – the throat-and-guitar-shredding songwriter of Philadelphian band Hop Along – she expresses her hope that Diet Cig’s music contributes to a wider wave of encouragement for women to be heard, along with other marginalised voices such as trans- and non-binary people, particularly within the DIY scene.

“ I think caring about people and saying how you feel and being empathetic is way more punk than being aggressive” Alex Luciano

“You don’t have to know what you’re doing but as long as you’re doing it from the right place, you’re trying and it’s good,” Luciano offers in a summary of Diet Cig’s ethic. “I didn’t know how to play guitar when we started this band but it didn’t matter because it was fun, it felt good and I was

empowered by other women musicians that I had seen. I just hope that our band can be that for someone else, like, ‘You can do this too.’ It doesn’t matter if you think you’re not good enough. You are good enough and you have something to say.” Perhaps Diet Cig’s most effective way of inspiring new musicians is their irresistible live show – due to return to the UK this summer and guaranteed to evoke excitable group sing-alongs. The duo’s last visit to Skinny territory was a chaotic whizz of a late set at Dot to Dot Festival in Manchester, which saw Luciano jumping and high-kicking her way tirelessly across the stage, accidentally unplugging half her equipment in the process. As it turns out, she has a similar anecdote about their final show of last year. “I must have not had enough bad stuff happen to me on stage throughout the year and so the universe just wanted to pack it all into one punch,” Luciano says excitedly. “I had a nosebleed in the middle of the set; I did a kick and my shoelaces got stuck in my tuning thing … I was like, ‘This is it, man! I’m going to just get abducted by aliens or something because this is just too much!’” Afterwards, Bowman explains that some of his favourite shows are the ones that fall apart, where despite their struggles the duo have remained persistent in carrying on. “Yeah, you just make it work,” Luciano adds, laughing. “And hope you have a friend to run on stage and untie your shoelaces!” Swear I’m Good at This is released on 7 Apr via Frenchkiss Records dietcig.bandcamp.com

Photo: Shervin Lainez

Interview: Chris Ogden

Music

Review

Radioactive Girl We sit down with Monkoora to chat about the imminent release of her new EP, nuclear proliferation and 50s exotica Interview: Lewis Wade

ulie Fern Crawford has been making steady waves under the Monkoora moniker since the release of her debut mini-LP, Pale Slopes, last year. She made her well-received live debut in June at The Old Hairdresser’s and was also hand-picked by Anna Meredith for an artist’s residency, culminating in a performance at the Manchester Science Museum. “It was only my second live performance, playing in a science museum,” recalls Crawford. “It was massive.” Capturing the eclecticism of her sound is something that can be tricky at times, as well as having to deal with other issues that live performances can bring. “To get my head around my way of performing live took a lot of preparation to begin with, [but] I quite like being thrown into the flames. After my first gig I started to suffer from tinnitus – my very first gig! Repelling Radios is my song about dealing with that. Music is my main passion in life, even though it’s killing me,” she jokes, “it’s either music or nothing.” Signed to independent Glasgow-based label, Hot Gem, Monkoora is gearing up for the release of her latest batch of tunes, Nuclear BB, due out on 21 April. The EP is informed by Crawford’s hometown of Helensburgh, growing up in the shadow of the Faslane naval base, home to the UK’s nuclear weapons. “I come from a nuclear family but also, y’know... radioactive!” she quips, alluding to the double entendre of the title. With a very DIY ethic the artwork for Nuclear BB, was also created by Crawford, featuring a blurry, surreal self-portrait, walled on each side in the barbed confines of Faslane. “It’s a little cartoon me with gross, drippy lettering,” she explains. However, it doesn’t look like she’s physically present; rather a facsimile of something approximating her physical sense has been planted there, lingering indefinitely, while the focus is elsewhere. This sense of identifying with a place, or lack thereof, is something all too familiar for Crawford. “I love Glasgow, but I’m yet to find my tribe. I’m just lost in little old Scotland. I need

to meet some characters, we need to turn shit around, flip it all over.” Crawford’s alias Monkoora comes from the misremembered title of a Martin Denny song (itself a re-imagining of an old standard), The Moon of Manakoora, about a fantasy land. It’s almost proto-psychedelic in nature, blending exotica and jazz, conjuring otherworldly images in the style of the now largely forgotten or maligned ‘lounge music’. Viewed through this anachronistic prism the name makes sense as the vehicle through which Crawford operates; her music takes in a whole assortment of instruments, genres and influences, shuffles them around and spits them back out. “I want to keep my music a surprise, I love surprising people, even just something minor like a chord change or a lyric that no-one suspects.

“ Music is my main passion in life, even though it’s killing me” Julie Fern Crawford

“Sometimes I have an idea of how I want [a song] to start, how I want it to sound, but then it’ll be turned upside down from what I originally wanted. Sometimes the song doesn’t give you what you want,” Crawford reflects. “I start off with the highest possible aspirations, and I work down from that, keeping the essentials, constantly refining.” Using your platform as an artist to say something valuable to the world is something that Crawford believes vehemently in. ‘I was born to be a cyst on the side of the geopolitical divide,’

Do Not Miss Posable Action Figures, Firefly, Dundee, 1 Apr. The Hug & Pint, Glasgow, 4 Apr. Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 6 Apr Posable Action Figures are Gareth Goodlad and John Alexander, an electro-blues, pop-rock two-piece from Edinburgh. A year into their musical adventure, this April sees the duo release latest single, Hummingbird, with a string of live dates across Scotland to celebrate the occasion. The Glasgow date sees band of brothers Ded Rabbit support and in Edinburgh they share the stage with Dunfermline rockers, Foreignfox.

Posable Action Figures

Preview

Mt. Doubt

Mt. Doubt / Foreignfox / SKJØR, Beat Generator!, Dundee, 7 Apr. Nice’N’Sleazy, Glasgow, 8 Apr If you’re at a loss for what to do on the first weekend of the month, and find yourself in Dundee or Glasgow, then look no further than this tasty tripler. Mt. Doubt and Foreignfox release their double A-side – Tourists / Lights Off, Carry Me Home – on 31 Mar, via Scottish Fiction. We recently premiered both tracks online, as well as a music video for Edinburgh-based SKJØR earlier in the year, so you could say we’re fans...

Photo: Kris Kesiak, Styling: I'll Be Your Mirror

she sings on Giant White H’s, a lyric that demonstrates her willingness to oppose social ills and injustice. “I’ve been trying to say what I really feel and not be scared of it and not obscure it under some poetic lyric – I think it’s important to be direct. “It’s really important for musicians to talk about things like this,” Crawford continues. “Music is the art form for me, and for everyone really – it’s in the air. You need to get your opinions out. Music is so direct; people get it right away.” Within Monkoora’s music, there are elements of electro-pop and bubbles of ambience, but also the forthright lyricism usually found in hip-hop or folk, alongside the ambitious auteurism of Tom Waits or John Darnielle. This obviously makes the music difficult to pin down, but the outsiderism is

Jon Mackenzie Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, 9 Apr Scottish singer, songwriter and guitarist Jon Mackenzie recently caught our attention with his latest single, and accompanying mesmeric music video, for Holidays on the Moon, taken from his debut solo EP of the same name. Holidays on the Moon is a collection of fantasy tales with themes of love, travel and hope, making its lunar landing on 10 Apr. Join Mackenzie for the launch at Edinburgh’s Voodoo Rooms this month.

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shrouded by the delectable pop hooks and unpretentious subject matter. “Tom Waits is like my father of music. I like his dark and gross narratives, I’m much less into the narratives of pretty people these days – the Beyoncés and Solanges – couldn’t give a shit!” Comparisons abound, from Kate Bush to Bat For Lashes, with Grimes and Björk thrown in for good measure. These artists give an idea of what you can expect from Monkoora, but from an artist with such boundless ambition and a desire to subvert and challenge, it’s ironically an old cliché that provides the best advice: expect the unexpected. Nuclear BB is released on 21 Apr via Hot Gem monkoora.bandcamp.com

Part Chimp

Part Chimp Stereo, Glasgow, 15 Apr After an accidental eight year hiatus, Londoners Part Chimp are back with their unique blend of loud, scuzzy, sludge-rock. The four-piece return with their fourth studio album, Iv, due for release on 14 Apr via Glasgow-based label, Rock Action, home to the likes of Mogwai and Sacred Paws. Part Chimp will likely make the very foundations of Stereo shake this month so, whatever you do, don’t forget your earplugs.

Jon Mackenzie

THE SKINNY

Don’t Kiss and Tell We meet up with Gerard Black at Glasgow’s Art School, to talk about the evolution of Babe and to find out more about latest LP, Kiss & Tell

n the surface Babe seem standard fare – four lads on vocals, synths, drums, guitar and bass. But the masses of collective musical experience, tastes and influence that filter through the quartet have seen the pieces fall properly into place on their forthcoming second album, with Babe having refocused and refined their sound. Kiss & Tell proves the four-piece are more united as a group than ever, with a clearer musical aesthetic. While the unequivocally talented Gerard Black remains front and centre in both songwriting and performing terms, the original line-up has been altered and the live set-up bolstered with the addition of John Baillie Jnr, ex-Dananananaykroyd and now of Bossy Love, on drums. Completing the line-up are London-based Thomas Ogden on guitar and Frenchman Amaury Ranger (of François & the Atlas Mountains) on bass. Difficult to categorise but easy to be energised by, the band’s sophomore effort is an addictive mix of electro-pop, synths, offbeat R’n’B and Eurodisco awash with the impeccable falsetto-tinged melodies of Black, a singer and songwriter with an effortless star quality that few possess. Where their 2014 debut Volery Flighty flitted between styles and genres like an overexcited puppy, Kiss & Tell retains the group’s eclecticism but in a more measured manner. The first album was pieced together over a few years, combining countless instruments and guests, including CHVRCHES’ Lauren Mayberry. “All the songs were different from one another, but these ones we demoed as a band in the same room with the same set-up, [which] made it sound more cohesive,” Black continues. “[Kiss & Tell] was all written in the same six months and all recorded in the same three weeks, and then produced and mixed in about a month.” Self-produced by Black and Baillie Jnr, the record goes some of the way to recreating Babe’s thrilling full-band incarnation, despite its lack of live drums. Baillie Jnr’s input is a massive part of the energy of the live performance, and his production abilities steered the sound of the

Pumarosa

Pumarosa The Poetry Club, Glasgow, 18 Apr London-based Pumarosa are set to release their much-anticipated debut album, The Witch, next month on 19 May via Fiction Records. The band first came to our attention with their broody, dancetinged track Priestess, released back in 2015, which has since gone on to be remixed by Skinny fave, Shura. Catch Pumarosa in the intimate surrounds of The Poetry Club before they become too big to play there.

new record. This and his percussive skills were largely the reasons he was invited to properly join the band. “I had a new tune that was more R’n’B,” Black begins. “[I asked John to] do a remix and he sent it back and it was like, ‘This is how it should sound.’ [We] had a three-day session and did every single song and we were like, ‘This is amazing’. We listened back and it was a bit too hyped up, we’d lost our little soft outer edge, so we went back in and eased up the compressors and turned everything down.” Then the band’s drummer at the time couldn’t make a gig – Baillie Jnr stepped in, and stayed. “I always knew he was a good drummer. He’s a total beast!” exclaims Black.

“ I always knew he was a good drummer. He’s a total beast!”

Their DIY approach is largely out of financial necessity, and technological availability. “I would love to go and work with a big hotshot producer but who’s going to pay for that? Not me, I don’t have any money!” Black admits. “I can’t really complain because I am getting by… but I don’t know how anyone else would do it. I certainly don’t know how anyone from Shettleston or whatever would be able to start up a band and think they might be able to take it seriously.” With album three already written, Black hints at further reinvention of Babe. It will be self-produced again and hopefully with more of a live feel including live drums rather than programmed beats. “I think if anything it’s going to get smoother, if the demos are anything to go by it’s going to sound more like Sade,” he grins. But for now they’re ready to let Kiss & Tell into the world, and it’s bound to win hearts. Kiss & Tell is released via Kartel Music Group on 28 Apr babeband.co.uk

Gerard Black

Black had stints living in France and Belgium, moving to London at the start of 2015 and returning to Glasgow a year later. The band is now split between London, Brussels and Glasgow but despite this they feel polished and united. “Sometimes we get together and write together. We do that more than we rehearse,” says Black. “Everyone is quite on it in our band, everyone has kind of written their own parts too which I think helps so they remember it and turn up. They’re the sort of guys that can improvise too.” Lyrics don’t seem to take centre stage for Black. “I often feel lyrics get in the way of a good melody,” he suggests. “I hate it when you hear someone whining about something or being emotional about something. Who the fuck wants to

The Eclectica Experiment The Caves, Edinburgh, 20 Apr Curated by The Skinny for Black Bottle whisky the line-up includes Iklan, the new collaborative project featuring Law Holt and the Leith Congregational Choir, dance act Future Get Down, epic lo-fi master Meursault, alt-folk singer songwriter Faith Eliott, former and current Scottish Slam Champions Iona Lee and Daniel Piper, plus Flint & Pitch’s Jenny Lindsay will compere the evening with more to be confirmed. Ooft.

Law Holt

April 2017

listen to me? I try to make it as weird as possible but I also try to keep it poppy as well. “Sometimes when I do songs I do it in the [unintelligible Cocteau Twins vocalist] Elizabeth Fraser style, I sort of go for it and make up words and stuff and then I’m like, ‘I really like the way those vowel sounds go with that melody,’ so I try to shoehorn words into it,” Black continues. “I do spend enough time on them to be proud of them, but it never starts with the lyrics. If I really want to get an idea into a song it’s more about the music first and the feeling of the song, and the words come last in terms of the structure.” Babe reflects Glasgow’s diversity and acceptance of space for all styles in the music community. “It’s always been the way in Glasgow,” suggests Black, positive about the collective feel of the city’s music scene. “I’ve always felt like I haven’t really been part of a scene or anything but then I feel like the scene is more about everyone chipping in and sharing resources and ideas, inviting other people onto bills and so on.”

Jambinai

Photo: Ryan Johnston

Interview: Susan Le May

Jambinai O2 ABC 2, Glasgow, 25 Apr Jambinai are a South-Korean post-rock band signed to Bella Union in the UK. The trio met while studying traditional music at Korea’s National University of Arts in Seoul, where they were drawn to each other by a longing to present music in a new and exciting way. With the use of traditional Korean instruments such as the haegum (fiddle), piri (bamboo flute) and geomungo (zither), you’ll be shocked at the enormous sound this band make.

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Model Aeroplanes Teviot Underground, Edinburgh, 28 Apr Dundee-based Model Aeroplanes are made up of four lifelong friends, brought together by their love of making fresh, honest pop music. The band formed in 2013 and after playing only eight gigs, they found themselves playing the prestigious BBC Introducing Stage at T in the Park. Having released their debut EP, Something Like Heaven, last year they have plans for a second this year, as well as a long-awaited debut album.

Model Aeroplanes

Preview

Album of the Month Father John Misty

Pure Comedy [Bella Union / Sub Pop, 7 Apr]

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Following the breakthrough success of 2015’s I Love You, Honeybear, Joshua Tillman has found himself as yet another reluctant rock star, thrust into the limelight and expected to capture the cultural zeitgeist in 80 minutes or less. But in the guise of Father John Misty, he embraces the role, plays up to it, uses it to bend and manipulate the parameters of modern rock music and has managed to create something bitingly acerbic and cynical, yet achingly sincere. Again. Pure Comedy was mostly written before the rise of Trump, but its subject matter is painstakingly prescient. Its indictments and warnings ring true with the state of contemporary geopolitics, as well as the personal trials and tribulations of an increasingly selfish society. The wider scope suits FJM’s style, and references to man as a demented ape on a rock hurtling through space are sprinkled throughout the album. ‘Oh great, that’s just what we need / Another white guy in 2017 / Who takes himself so goddamn

Little Dragon

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Nuclear BB is a daft and delightfully chaotic clutch of songs that touch upon identity, political responsibility and memory against a multi-coloured tangle of ideas and styles, installing Glasgow-based Monkoora, aka Julie Fern Crawford, as a beacon of omnivorous, unfettered imagination and creativity. Crawford makes her introductions on Bocx Wurld, a squiffy stab at catchy pop in what sounds like a chiptune interpretation of Beirut’s Scenic World. Her voice filtered through autotune, Crawford comes across like a frustrated android as she admonishes society for dragging its heels on liberal progressivism. That sci-fi motif carries on into Giant White Hs via a touch of Margaret Atwood, and like all true cyberpunks, Monkoora espouses the virtues of electronic puff on Vaping on Trains, a wispy dreampop number that riffs on MIA’s Paper Planes. Repelling Radio, meanwhile, features an uncomplicated piano part that’s vaguely moody – you could imagine Adele singing over it, though Monkoora could well have her tongue in her cheek here given the title. Either way, it’s a rare dull moment quickly whisked away by the eerie harmonies on Alaska 14 and another testament to her range. Indeed, Nuclear BB is the work of a passionate, unpretentious artist who isn’t afraid to stick her neck out. It’s a bit scruffy around the edges but it attests to a promising young talent. [Andrew Gordon]

Listen to: Giant White Hs, Alaska 14

Review

seriously’ – Leaving L.A. is the album’s centrepiece, which as FJM points out during it, is a ‘ten-verse, chorusless diatribe’, with enough quotable lines to keep any psychiatrist busy for a while. It encapsulates the style and lyrical content that the rest of the album reinforces; lamentations on a vapid society, the dangers of normalising radicalism and wry, personal asides. The Memo is another standout track on an album full of them, showcasing Tillman at his most vitriolic, railing against selfie culture and our constant need for social gratification. The final minute of the song includes an automated voice going through some of the more groanworthy modern phrases/trends/hashtags (‘fitbit’, ‘chill winter playlist’, ‘music is my life’), highlighting the homogeneity that has been created in spite of our best attempts to be unique. The lengthy running time of the album is used to not only expostulate on these ideas, but to analyse them and put them into context, with barely a wasted moment.

Monkoora

Nuclear BB EP [Hot Gem, 21 Apr]

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Father John Misty

Pure Comedy is the perfect name for an album like this; one that trades in seemingly serious evocations, but ultimately reveals itself to be a farce. After 74 minutes of self-congratulatory back-slapping, proselytising, hand-wringing, and relativising, Tillman reinforces his belief in man’s ineffectuality and weakness amid cosmic

ULTRAS

Season High [Because Music, 14 Apr]

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You’ll remember that Little Dragon had a big 2016, and that’s without releasing this record. The Gothenburg pop pioneers guested on some of last year’s biggest albums: Kaytranada’s 99.9%, Flume’s Skin and De La Soul’s and the Anonymous Nobody... – proving that their unique chemistry remains a) in high demand and b) incredibly versatile. The band’s ability to turn introspective, heart-breaking rhythms into swelling floor fillers has steadily, subtly collected them a deservedly global fanbase. Their third record Ritual Union (2011) broke them well and truly into the mainstream, and 2014’s Nabuma Rubberband gained the Swedes a Grammy nomination. That brings us to 2017: Season High, injecting something a little stickier into their DNA. Opener Celebrate (feat. Agge) builds nostalgia out of permafrost beats, and escalates into a scorching, screeching guitar solo. High, one of the record’s singles, drifts above the clouds, buoyed by warm currents and breathy, lazy excess. The Pop Life throws back the bedsheets and dusts off the disco ball, while second single, Sweet, swings from e-numbered hyperactivity towards a candy-crusted climax. For all Season High’s exuberance, the record never pitches too hard. Little Dragon sense when to turn it down just as well as they know when to ramp it up. Still, you can’t help but wonder what would happen if the four-piece truly let go for a second. [Katie Hawthorne] Listen to: High, The Pop Life, Butterflies

ULTRAS [Hello Thor Records / Instinctive Racoon, 28 Apr]

The new solo project of Gav Prentice from Glasgow cult heroes Over the Wall, ULTRAS combines folk singer-songwriting with electronic, hip-hop influenced beats and samples. While this is very much Prentice’s work, ULTRAS' self-titled debut sees him collaborate with some of Scotland’s finest musical talent, including Jonnie Common, Miaoux Miaoux and on the mournful anti-knife crime ballad Team Handed, his old OTW partner Ben Hillman. Anyone familiar with Over the Wall will know to expect Prentice’s sharp sense of humour, coupled with an ear for a strong track and even

Andrew Wasylyk

Themes For Buildings and Spaces [Tape Club Records, 28 Apr]

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If writing about music is like dancing about architecture, then who knows what music that’s written about architecture is comparable to. Either way, this series of pieces inspired by multi-instrumentalist Andrew Wasylyk’s hometown of Dundee further augments his talents as both musician and composer. Originally conceived as an arts festival piece, Themes For Buildings and Spaces paints an elegant but eerie aural picture of an everchanging cityscape, and despite the absence of Wasylyk’s normally exquisite vocal, this sits well as a stand-alone soundtrack, not just for those familiar with the evolving architectural aesthetics

RECORDS

indifference, but ends on a note of hopefulness, an acceptance of circumstances outside of our control, reminding us, ‘There’s nothing to fear / There’s nothing to fear...’ [Lewis Wade] Listen to: Leaving L.A., The Memo

better production. Following 90-second opener Intro, a meld of samples and slowed down vocals, This is Where I Fall comes storming out of the gate, full of impassioned, strained vocals overlaying a gorgeous guitar riff and playful beat. Meanwhile, angered, scornful Britannica is a boiling critique of Britain’s recent political choices. Despite the impressive cast involved, ULTRAS’ debut does suffer a little from its singularity and repetitiveness, meaning it begins to sag towards the end. Similarly, there are unavoidable comparisons to be had with Arab Strap on tracks such as Royal Names. However, Prentice’s playfulness masks some fairly dark themes, allowing it to stand on its own two feet as an achievement. [Adam Turner-Heffer] Listen to: This is Where I Fall, Barleycorn of Scotland’s fourth largest city. Cyclical piano lines weave through subtle, filmic strings and sorrowful brass embellishments on opener Drift, with the delicate percussive touches and playful keys of Under High Blue Skies following. Via Crucis invokes 1940s movie mysteries while Ghosts of Park Place is disconcerting with haunting synths and distant echoes of carefree children at play. Come the Autumn is a horn-driven, brooding beauty before the rhythmic riffs of Lower Dens Works echo the jute mill machinery of Dundee’s days gone by. The Howff is the formidable final scene; sinister with a lingering, sorrowful air. This type of music-making might not be entirely unchartered water for Wasylyk, but Themes For Buildings and Spaces shows just how adept a composer he’s become. [Susan Le May] Listen to: Drift, Come the Autumn, Lower Dens Works

THE SKINNY

Photo: Guy Lowndes

rrrrr Shite rrrrr Boring rrrrr Solid

Yorkston/Thorne/ Khan

Neuk Wight Delhi AllStars [Domino, 7 Apr]

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Everything Sacred was one of last year’s most pleasant surprises. The debut collaboration between James Yorkston of the East Neuk of Fife, New Delhi’s Suhail Yusuf Khan and Jon Thorne of the Isle of Wight wed traditional Anglo-Celtic folk music to throbbing jazz basslines. But the most affecting element throughout was the presence of Khan’s traditional Hindi singing, and his sarangi – a bowed stringed Indian instrument forged of red cedar. Khan plays it like he sings: at times gently, often impassionedly, but always evocatively. The combination with Yorkston’s folky paeans was haunting and here, barely a year later, they’ve done it again. The chemistry between all three players is exceptional. On second track Samant Saarang / Just A Bloke, Khan and Thorne – a double bassist of real pedigree – work up a hypnotic backbone that evokes the spirit of Terry Riley (or more recently, the intoxicating Riley tribute by James

Holden and Camilo Tirado), while Yorkston plainly sings about one of the starkest and understated issues of our time: loneliness (and possibly depression) among young men. Bales, a simple two-minute affair, uses the swirling strings of the sarangi to remind us that few lyricists remember things as beautifully as James Yorkston, while on False True Piya, the vocalists trade English and Hindi verses about phantom lovers, amid a rising tide of spectral strings and bass. A number of traditional ballads feature, but the familiar track that excels is The Blues You Sang, which originally appeared on Yorkston’s Cellardyke Recording and Wassailing Society (2014). A tearjerker written after the death of his former bassist Doogie Paul, the addition of Khan’s spectacular voice adds a primal tone to grief that’s already present in abundance, while the dextrous bass of Thorne rumbles appropriately throughout. It’s the highlight of an album that’s put together in the same vein it’s played: eloquently, skilfully and tastefully. [Finbarr Bermingham] Listen to: The Blues You Sang, Bale Yorkston/Thorne/Khan

Babe

Kiss & Tell [Kartel Music Group, 28 Apr]

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Babe

While Babe’s 2014 debut, Volery Flighty, walked a varied path – pieced together over time, saturated with instruments and influences – their sophomore effort Kiss & Tell feels more focused than anything the band has done before, signalling a fresh, more measured approach that goes far to replicate the group’s captivating live incarnation. At times they’re part Beta Band, exploring off-kilter electronica and experimental noise with the vocal gymnastics and lyrical ambiguity of the Cocteau Twins.

Gallops

DJ Format & Abdominal

Sylvan Esso

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Bronze Mystic [Blood and Biscuits, 21 Apr] After splitting up in 2013, the Wrexham noiseniks return with a record that takes the moody post-rock of Yours Sincerely, Dr. Hardcore and imbues it with electronics. The album’s pummeling seven-minute Darkjewel serves as its blueprint; the landscape change at the midpoint sums up Bronze Mystic as it moves from four minutes of thumping foreboding before the brief respite of pretty, arpeggiated guitars gives way to a chaotic second half, with aggressive synth spiralling over violent percussion. Bronze Mystic feels like genuine progression and there’s a palpable sense of vitality and renewal running through it. Let’s hope they don’t throw the towel back in quite so quickly this time. [Joe Goggins] Listen to: Darkjewel, Pale Force, Prince 0

April 2017

Still Hungry [AAF Records, 28 Apr]

DJ Format & Abdominal are still a good fit for each other 14 years on – Still Hungry is percussive (massive basslines, thundering drums, good use of flutes à la Beastie Boys) and the rhymes bounce. But aren’t the kids listening to Stormzy these days? You’re probably right, but maybe DJ Format & Abdominal aren’t for the kids. They’ve gotten a little bit old for the vicious rap battles of their youth; they worry about household admin and they may not respond to your emails as quickly as they once did, but they can still cut it. You only have to hear a song like Diamond Hammer to know that these guys are still rendering wack rappers dumb. [Pete Wild] Listen to: Still Hungry, Behind the Scenes

Recorded and self-produced in more linear blocks, Kiss & Tell finally sees Babe as a fullyformed gang, following some line-up augmentations. With members split between Glasgow, Brussels and London, and with involvement in bands such as Bossy Love, Rozi Plain and François and the Atlas Mountains, the pan-European alliance’s collective musical pedigree is undeniable. Opener Ayo is awash with slow-building synth, laid-back R’n’B grooves and understated beats, while Bit Part has room to breathe with handclap samples and wonky riffs. It saunters and builds with repeated near-climaxes, Gerard Black’s immaculate falsetto weaving throughout. Similarly, on Cupola, Black’s vocals are impeccable over a chorus of gentle synths and 80s guitar licks. There’s synergy between the elements and

Listen to: Ecce, Wisteria

Future Islands

Diet Cig

TeenCanteen

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What Now [Loma Vista, 28 Apr]

The Far Field [4AD, 7 Apr]

Mostly, What Now is intent on being bigger and brasher than Sylvan Esso’s 2014 debut, perhaps to avoid politely slipping into the background quite so easily. On opener Sound they strip things back to the fundamentals with Amelia Meath singing an austere duet with a glitchy synth; a bold and intriguing restatement of the organic/ synthetic amalgam at the heart of the whole endeavour. Meanwhile, The Glow is Esso’s most straightforwardly affecting song to date, and a euphoric tribute to the way music can define pivotal moments in one’s life. Along with the luminous Signal, those tracks tease a different side of Esso that’s sadly unexplored on the rest of the album. [Andrew Gordon]

The Far Field is packed with the same eerie synth backdrops and rolling basslines that make Future Islands’ music instantly recognisable. Opener Aladdin eases the listener back in to Samuel Herring & co’s blissful world. Lead single Ran is one of the most slickly produced moments on the album; a welcome surprise comes in the form of Herring’s duet with Debbie Harry on Shadows, and the addition of live drums gives The Far Field a physical presence larger than we’re used to. The similarity between this and Singles, however, has its problems. What was previously disarming in its honesty, we now expect and prepare for. This doesn’t mean that the quality has suffered, it has just softened. [Will Moss]

Listen to: The Glow, Signal

choirboy melodies floating on a sea of sounds. Everything drops in to place for Ecce, and the tempo lifts. Cutesy chirps dance over sweet beats and swirling reverb-laden riffs before the eloquent Eurodisco of Perpetuum Mobile. Wisteria is addictive electropop with heart, buoyant and electrifying, while Scooping Pints is a steel drum flirtation of scale-fluttering trills. Closing track Primo is the album’s well-placed crescendo of infectious energy, with beautiful blips, beats and handclaps. Kiss & Tell is an effortlessly special album from an incredible, largely unclassifiable entity, with endless elements and influences combining to create something thrillingly unique. [Susan Le May]

Listen to: Ran, Shadows

RECORDS

Swear I’m Good At This [Frenchkiss Records, 7 Apr] New York pair Diet Cig’s debut album Swear I’m Good At This lives up to the hype, with the record successfully transferring all the eagerness of their energetic live shows to portray punk with unusual tenderness. As vocalist Alex Luciano yelps about feeling lonely in the big city on Bite Back, the compatibility of a crush’s horoscope sign (Leo) and eating ice-cream on her birthday until she feels sick (Barf Day), backed up by Noah Bowman’s explosive drums, Diet Cig make being young, unsure and messy sound like a triumph. The best thing about Diet Cig: they give us hope that we can be better, kinder people ourselves. [Chris Ogden]

Listen to: Sixteen, Blob Zombie, Tummy Ache

Sirens EP [Last Night From Glasgow, 22 Apr] ‘What you gonna do about me?’ Glasgow four-piece TeenCanteen sing on the opening track to their new EP, Sirens, and it feels like a cry of defiance. TeenCanteen are a riot: noisy, brash, bubblegum pop-punk. Infectious melodies and playful lyrics tinged with nostalgia. Strictly bangers. There’s no doubt that TeenCanteen are a great band, with each of the members bringing something to the table, but lead singer Carla J Easton’s voice is the real rabbit in the hat here. Distinctly Scottish, particularly when she sings ‘pure dead bright’ on the title track, but also almost theatrical at points. It’s almost deliberately indulgent – like a cheesecake is indulgent. [Harry Harris]

Listen to: Millions, Sirens

Review

Introducing Charlotte de Witte Ahead of her Scottish debut at Nightvision’s Terminal V festival, we speak to rising Belgian talent Charlotte de Witte about touring, producing, and the dark side of techno music

he Skinny: What inspired you to pursue a career in DJing and producing? Charlotte de Witte: I actually never intended to become a DJ. It just sort of happened. When I was 16 or 17 years old I started going out more in underground clubs in my hometown in Ghent. I fell in love with the music they played there and wanted to know more about it. First, I started making mixtapes, initially for myself, to listen to while going to school. After a while, I decided to upload those on Myspace and that basically got the ball rolling... I bought my first decks and mixer soon after and seven years later, this is where that all led to. You’ve spoken about how you love the ‘darkness’ in electronic music and specifically, techno. How do you achieve this sound, in a production sense? I think this might come naturally. When producing, you automatically look for the sound you like. I feel much more attracted to weird, hypnotising, screeching sounds than I am to happy, catchy stuff.

Your Voices of the Ancient EP has just been released – what were the inspirations behind the record? Voices of the Ancient has been, to be honest, one of the easiest tracks to make. It all happened so smoothly and fast. All the elements fell right into place. I immediately found the whispering vocal sample and the rest followed automatically. The track is quite stripped and doesn’t really consist of much besides the vocal and the drums. I’m quite proud of that track though. It works well on the floor and I’m honoured to have Keith Carnal and Black Asteroid on board as remixers for that track. You’ve said that it’s very important to compare your own tracks in the process of making them with the tracks of artists you look up to. Which techno artists most inspire you?

It really depends on the type of track you’re looking for. If I’m going for a highly dancefloor-effective track I might look at some of Gary Beck’s work since it’s very aggressive and functional. Slam and anything released on Soma Records keeps on doing the trick on a more repetitive level and nowadays, in general, I’m a big fan of everything Regal, Cosmin TRG, SLV and Amotik are doing. Can you tell us about the best techno set you’ve ever seen? I’ll never forget the first set I heard from Len Faki. It was many years ago at a smaller festival in Belgium, I don’t even remember the name but it was sooo good. Neither will I ever forget dancing in my home studio with one of my closest friends to a set from Ben Klock on a cold winter night. You used the alias Raving George when you started out, was that a way of deflecting the focus from your gender? I did choose a masculine DJ name in the beginning because I didn’t want to be judged for my looks. I wanted people to come to a set because they liked the music, not because I am a woman or even worse, a creature with breasts. When I started seven years ago, the entire sexism thing was much more present then it is now. I have the impression that especially in techno music things are moving in the right direction. What is a ‘typical day’ for you at the moment? Can you tell us a bit about the DJ lifestyle? Except for the weekends or when I’m on tour, I actually have a very normal life. I wake up around 8am and go to bed between 11pm and midnight. I try to make some music every day, but lately I’m very busy checking promos or looking for good music for the radio show. My weekday looks quite normal but I realise I’m a very lucky person to be able to do what I love every single day.

Photo: Nicolas Karakatsanis

Interview: Claire Francis

How would you define success? Is it commercial success or more about expressing yourself as an artist? It’s definitely a combination. I know many people who are very talented but unfortunately will never make it. DJing is a funny thing. In many ways, it’s an art where you’re expressing yourself and the music

you make as an artist but it’s also a service where you’ll have to make people dance. It’s not easy to find the perfect combination between both, but I think that might be the key to success. Charlotte de Witte is playing Nightvision Terminal V, Royal Highland Centre, Sun 16 Apr, from £39.50 thisisourvision.com

Clubbing Highlights Words: Claire Francis

Scotland’s clubs are jam-packed this month – here’s a handful of the best nights to be had this April A Love From Outer Space – Transmission @ The Art School, Glasgow, 1 Apr Now celebrating five years of A Love From Outer Space, Andrew Weatherall and Sean Johnston return with their first cult club night of 2017 – this is no April Fool. Warm up with Weatherall’s live interpretation of his NTS radio show Music’s Not For Everyone in the Vic Bar (free entry) prior to the ALFOS extravaganza upstairs.

many end of the year best-of lists. He makes his Edinburgh debut at the Mash House with support from the Crème Fresh residents.

Headway with Jeremy Underground @ The Reading Rooms, Dundee, 7 Apr DJ Jeremy Fichon, aka Jeremy Underground, is a celebrated crate-digger and champion of the good ol’ days of house music. After ripping it up at a recent Sub Club show, the French selector now makes his Dundee debut with support from Andy Barton, Graeme Binnie and Neil Clark.

Anjunadeep Glasgow @ SWG3, Glasgow, 14 Apr Anjunadeep is an independent record label based in London, founded in 2005 by Above & Beyond and James Grant. With over ten years in the game and some 200+ releases under their belt, the imprint has become synonymous with soulful and melodic electronic music. Having hosted label parties all over the world, Anjunadeep are now embarking on their first ever UK tour, with six special parties throughout April in Glasgow, Leeds, Manchester, Brighton, Bristol and London. This Glasgow stop features Cubicolor, Dom Donnelly, Kidnap Kid and Martin Roth.

Crème Fresh with Kornél Kovács @ The Mash House, Edinburgh, 8 Apr One third of the Studio Barnhus label, Swedish producer Kornél Kovács made quite the impression with his debut record The Bells, which was released in August last year and wound up on

Return To Mono with Nicole Moudaber @ Sub Club, Glasgow, 14 Apr When Carl Cox describes you as “the most underrated DJ”, you know you’re doing something right. The Nigerian-born, Lebanese talent started out as a promoter in Beirut, and then in London, before

Preview

breaking out with her own unfussy brand of mainroom techno. Moudaber plays a special three-hour extended set at Subbie with support from Edit Select, aka Glasgow producer Tony Scott. Terminal V Easter Sunday Festival @ Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 16 Apr Nightvision’s huge Easter Sunday party has a line-up that speaks for itself: Adam Beyer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Carl Craig, Charlotte de Witte, KiNK, Kerri Chandler and many more are set to blow the roof off this mammoth all-day event. Taking place at the Royal Highland Centre, the venue is equipped with stateof-the-art audio and visual installations and multiple rooms to accomodate the raft of talent on offer. On The House & Broken Disco with Shonky @ Drygate, Glasgow, 16 Apr This Easter Sunday, Drygate Brewery are transforming their unique event space with an incredible visual and lighting show – along with welcoming Apollonia’s Shonky to headline the bill. The event will also feature Raeside, Carter, and Denver Brooks for a well rounded serving of disco, house and techno.

CLUBS

Dr. Rubinstein // Texture @ Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 21 Apr Texture host their debut party at Sneaky Pete’s this month, and they’ve invited Berlin acid queen Dr. Rubinstein along for her Scottish debut. The enigmatic Dr. Rubinstein has had a homegrown rise to fame – without any label affiliation or record releases to date, she has clocked up performances at Berlin’s ://aboutblank, plus a closing stint at Berghain, a residency at Oval Spaces alongside DJ Nobu, and a b2b slot with Marcel Dettmann at Barcelona’s Sónar Festival. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for this dark horse. Pulse with Len Faki @ The Liquid Room, Edinburgh, 28 Apr Berlin based DJ, producer and label owner Len Faki is one of the most outstanding and in-demand artists in techno today. A resident at Berlin’s Berghain since its opening in 2004, his shows are an audio-visual adventure and his approach to techno is foot-to-the-floor. Haven’t witnessed his renowned skills in action yet? Here’s your chance. theskinny.co.uk/clubs

THE SKINNY

25 years of Soma Slam’s Soma 25 stage at Glasgow’s upcoming Riverside Festival will celebrate the iconic label’s 25th anniversary year – here the dynamic DJ duo reflect on their quarter-century in the game

Interview: Claire Francis

f there was an award for the duo most synonymous with Glasgow’s celebrated clubbing scene, the accolade would surely go to Stuart McMillan & Orde Meikle. The pair – otherwise known as both techno powerhouse Slam and co-founders of Soma Records – were the original instigators of the fledgling underground in the city’s late 80s musical landscape. Since 1997, Slam have curated the Slam Tent at T in The Park, with internationally acclaimed DJs playing on their mammoth stage alongside local breaking talents. They’re also co-curators of Glasgow’s annual Riverside Festival, and Slam’s Pressure and Return To Mono club events are firmly established as regular highlights of the region’s clubbing calendar. This year also marks the milestone 25th anniversary of the iconic Soma imprint, which boasts a catalogue of some 2,000 plus releases. From humble but exciting beginnings (“Going down to London to master and cut Soma 01, [taking] delivery of the finished copies of Eterna/IBO and sitting in the studio hand numbering the initial 1,000 records”) to obvious highlights (“Meeting and signing Daft Punk in Paris”), it’s been quite a journey for McMillan and Meikle. With the label founded on a ‘vision for the future’, we asked the pair to reflect on the past 25 years and explain how they’ve managed to stay true to that vision. “We have always had an ethos on keeping things moving forward,” the duo explain via email, “right from early club nights in venues like Sub Club in the late 80s with the acid house explosion, to the all-nighter events in 1990 and '91, through to the foundation of Soma Records and birth of The Arches as a club space in 1992.” “Our vision has been to create and promote music and vibes to provide an antidote and an alternative to the mainstream. That continues to be our goal and it’s even more necessary now with very bland and unchallenging mass multi-media. “Whether in the studio or a live environment, we have always worked hard to deliver new experiences. On the event side of things, the Slam Tent at T in the Park has been a big flagship show for us, and more recently we have taken that idea one step further with our Riverside Festival in Glasgow, where we can really roll up our sleeves and deliver an event on a par with the large European club events that take place. It’s an exciting development and project for us and for electronic music in Scotland.” The process of running a label has no doubt evolved over the past quarter century (“SO much has changed in the last 25 years”), and they explain that the technological advancements most artists now take for granted were still relatively new in the early 90s. Their biggest hurdle, however, was the process of getting the label started. “For such a musically-minded city, Glasgow was predominantly rock-based,” they explain, “and the powers that be, at that time, had no interest in or understanding of electronic dance music. So we had to find out everything on our own from scratch: recording, mastering, production, promotion, marketing, licensing, publishing… the lot. “The other memorable hurdle was the transition to the predominantly digital market – we remember being very ahead of the curve on this one, we saw it coming as clear as day – but it still meant a drastic change to our business model.” With such a long-running involvement in Glasgow’s nightlife, McMillan and Meikle certainly know the city’s clubbing scene inside out. Since the days of their own mid-week Black Market club night, they muse, “everything has changed, and yet many of the key ingredients are the same.”

April 2017

“There are not many nights which are based on local DJs playing to a crowd of their mates and friends of friends,” they observe. “People who go to the same place weekly – living for the weekend and getting together to dance and party and let some off steam and shake off the stress of the week – that’s the type of night we put on in the beginning. “Culturally, now, the audience are much more like a live music crowd; waiting to see who the headline act is or what the club night is about in terms of its marketing and branding. The scene is very much event-led; not so much a club in the original sense of the word.” Inevitable changes aside, the pair are quick to sing the praises of their home city and the unique role it plays in shaping house and techno music internationally: “Glasgow certainly punches so far above its weight. Looking at any other UK city or European city, with possibly the exception of Berlin, it’s a challenge to find one with several great house and techno DJs. “Glasgow has and continues to be responsible for so many amazing DJs who are on the circuit. Gary Beck, Jackmaster, Denis Sulta, Jasper James, Harvey McKay and many more all know how to get people dancing and keep them on the floor. It’s a music city and a party place and also has a heritage in club culture and dance music… Maybe it’s the weather; certainly it’s the attitude of ‘I can do it myself ’!” Choosing a particular highlight from the past 25 years is “almost impossible”, they explain, citing the old Woodstock quote: ‘If you were there…’. But Slam are enthusiastic about what the future holds, with what they describe as “the big project”

approaching completion: Soma25, a vinyl box set release, containing brand new music from the likes of Robert Hood, Jeff Mills and, of course, Slam themselves. Marking the milestone anniversary of the label, they explain the importance of new material being on the compilation: “We are very forwardthinking. Some of our favourite artists are on there and the music is dynamite. The box set is a limited edition and pre-orders have gone very well – ironically because of the artwork and the production costs it won’t make a profit even when it sells out!” As for the future of the Soma label? The pair firmly agree that “there’s a lot of good music still to come and the idea of being an antidote to the

bland mainstream is more important than ever. We are working with incredibly talented video artists and designers and we have a fairly young team of enthusiastic people – many starting their career in music – and we want the spirit to survive and the organisation to continue to grow organically. “The buzz of listening , producing and playing music to those who’ll listen is insatiable. We’re sure many people will agree that to end up being able to make a career from the thing you love doing is the best outcome.” The Soma25 box set is released on 31 Mar Riverside Festival takes place at Riverside Musuem on 27 & 28 May

Slam’s Top Five Favourite Soma Releases “There have been so many favourites,” Slam tells us. “All the releases have been hardfought communal decisions of the A&R team at Soma. But a few that spring to mind...”

Schatrax – Mispent Years “Classic bassline and emotional chords. It still makes the hairs on the back of our necks stand up.”

Envoy – Dark Manoeuvres “A track that just wouldn’t lie down. Now a Berghain classic, due to its ridiculously infectious string riff and timeless rhythmical power.”

Otaku – Emelia’s Day Out “Ralph Lawson at his supreme best – true soulful electronica.”

Skintrade – Andomraxxes “Two geniuses from Aberdeen that only produced four tracks for us before splitting up. This was so ahead of its time and still sounds like nothing else we’ve heard to this day.”

CLUBS

Slam – Intensities (In Ten Cities) “The much over-looked B-side of Positive Education – an epic 12-minute journey.”

Feature

Bard is a Four-Letter Word We run through the Ted Hughes Award nominees, while Neu! Reekie! ask us all a big question

pring has sprung, and with it comes the muchanticipated winner of last year’s Ted Hughes Award (presented on 28 March). Created by Carol Ann Duffy, and generously funded with money which would otherwise have gone towards the Poet Laureate’s annual honorarium, the award celebrates exciting new work in poetry, whether in printed form or alternative media. On a poetic scene which, despite the encouraging widening of genres in recent years, is still coming to terms with areas outside the box of ‘printed page’, the most satisfying thing about the Ted Hughes Award is that it brings unorthodox and cross-genre artistic projects into the foreground, allowing them to compete with more traditional forms of writing. For several years now, it has been one of the most impressive accolades a poet can have on their CV, and previous shortlists boast household names like Patience Agbabi, Kate Tempest, Andrew Motion and Alice Oswald. Judging panels have been no less impressive, and the latest shortlist was selected by Canal Laureate Jo Bell, Irish poet Bernard O’Donoghue and singer-songwriter Kathryn Williams. As always, the line-up is interesting, and the gender balance very even. Typically, the ratio leans more towards the printed publications side of things (which, in all likelihood, reflects the majority of nominated works overall), but one of the seven is a first in the award’s history – an album, no less. Salena Godden’s LIVEWire is definitely fresh, with a voice full of gumption,

spice and fun. Furthermore, reading is an inescapably physical activity which requires some effort, no matter how pleasant, while a CD allows for the kind of easy absorption that books cannot always manage. A chatty voice in the room, especially one which you are under no pressure to respond to, feels incredibly therapeutic.

“ Read them all. At this level of excellence, the winning prize is only a token” Clare Mulley on the Ted Hughes Award

While that particular work stands on its own in terms of delivery, the written works on the list are wonderfully varied in theme and presentation as well, and all have their own relevant flavour of the times. Some are more structural experiments; Will Eaves’ The Inevitable Gift Shop combines prose and poetry to carry its quirky subjects across, and Harry Man’s beautiful book Finders Keepers is not just a work about

Words: Clare Mulley

endangered wildlife, but is as much about the ‘symbiotic’ relationship between the poems and Sophie Gainsley’s accompanying illustrations. Theme-wise, The Immigration Handbook by Caroline Smith and Sunshine (a collection about substance abuse, addiction and mental health) by Melissa Lee-Houghton are both very strong, topical contenders, dealing as they do with harrowing issues which need both honesty and creativity to arouse better public awareness. Hollie McNish’s Nobody Told Me, detailing the real ups and downs of motherhood in hilarious detail, is an equally necessary read for so many in its own way. As the media will always seek to pressurise women into having babies using idealistic fluffy marketing, an injection of real-life stories told humorously are a surefire way to help us approach parenthood more intelligently, embracing all the loving mess for what it really is. Finally, Jay Bernard’s lyrical prequel to the medieval Dutch poem Morien (The Red and Yellow Nothing) is also a very beautiful, strong undertaking, not just for its exploration of race and colour, but because he has chosen lesser known historic literature as a base from which to explore those themes – Poems which introduce other works as yet undiscovered are particularly enjoyable. Nothing to say, except... well, read them all. At this level of excellence, the winning prize is only a token. As for events, get on up to Auld Reekie, where the team at Neu! Reekie! are putting on

yet another fabulous evening on 28 April at St Andrew’s Church, Leith, as a prelude to their massive summer festival in Hull, 2017’s City of Culture. Where Are We Now? will be crammed with poets, DJs, film-makers and musicians, with artist and ex-KLF member Bill Drummond, and Clare Pollard (showcasing her new book, Incarnation) at the top of the list. In keeping with this year’s decidedly topical flavour, the publicity is friendly, inclusive, punchy and utterly no-nonsense – in fact, theirs is a favourite blurbs to date: ‘The UK has reached a crossroads. Where it goes next is anyone’s guess. Dark divisive forces of racism and prejudice are stirring across the UK (and Europe) in the wake of Brexit and across the Atlantic following the election of Donald Trump. We need to ask our artists, musicians and writers where they stand. Come together. Ask questions. Listen and watch. Dance. Shake things up. This is where we’re at.’ Couldn’t have put it better. Neu! Reekie!’s Where Are We Now is on 28 April at St Andrew’s Church in Leith. Tickets available from Brown Paper Tickets: £10 or £7 concessions. This year’s Ted Hughes Award shortlist was: Jay Bernard for The Red and Yellow Nothing (Ink Sweat & Tears Press) Will Eaves for The Inevitable Gift Shop (CB Editions) Salena Godden for LIVEwire (Nymphs & Thugs) Melissa Lee-Houghton for Sunshine (Penned in the Margins) Harry Man for Finders Keepers (Sidekick Books) Hollie McNish for Nobody Told Me (Blackfriars) Caroline Smith for The Immigration Handbook (Seren)

How to Be Human

Void Star

By Mariana Enriquez

Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist

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Things We Lost in the Fire

Buenos Aires: a city of ghoulish children with sharpened teeth and murdered teens who return from beneath dark waters. A city of women who see self-immolation as a form of protest against male violence, and where derelict houses entice then consume inquisitive kids. Combine these supernatural terrors with everyday corrupt cops, abusive husbands and hyperinflation in a city with environmental and moral pollution pumping through its arteries. Compare the ghost of a child killer with the spectre of The Dirty War, dictatorship and the disappeared. In her collection of short stories, Enriquez offers these themes equality in terror. Having grown up under the Argentine dictatorship then the shadow of its demise, her modern gothics inhabit a middle ground between the brutality endured and the lasting disfigurement left upon a nation. They exist in the twilight between natural and supernatural, where past atrocities reverberate into the present and guilt and blame fester between generations. These narratives are overtly politicised – feminist, social and environmental subtext seeps through – yet, thankfully, they draw equal influence from genre fiction and film (for example, Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse – that creeping tale of ghosts stalking the internet) to ensure they’re not only supremely important, but addictive and joyfully grotesque. And while, as with all collections, some stories suit tastes more than others, there’s not a single dud among them. Born from the scars of a nation, these will leave a lasting mark on you. [Alan Bett]

By Paula Cocozza

By Zachary Mason

By Paul Kingsnorth

We know from his novels, The Wake and Beast, that Paul Kingsnorth is a wild and iconoclastic writer. This collection of essays confirms him as a fearless thinker too. He was once an environmental activist, fighting the rampant spread of capitalist evil throughout the world. But as the green movement began to focus on ‘sustainability’ rather than protecting wild places for their own sake, he grew increasingly distant from it. He saw environmentalism moving into the corporate world, forgetting the sacrifices that are needed to avert climate change and instead focusing on sustaining our growth-hungry, resource-intensive societies in a ‘greener’ way. We cannot continue consuming as much as we do, he argues, no matter how ‘green’ the consumption. Kingsnorth writes a good essay. Filled with detail and balanced thought, personal anecdote and fully-researched argument, he treads about and pokes at things, uncovering the thorny patches that are so easily avoided – like what exactly our ‘meeting our needs’ means, and what those needs might actually be. Most striking of all is his call to living, and acting, in small ways: grow carrots, try a composting loo, retreat to Ireland to feel and know what nature is again. As soon as you think in abstractions – ‘save the world’ – you have already lost. Focus instead on living consciously, and stop consuming all that shit you don’t need. [Galen O’Hanlon]

Paula Cocozza’s novel How to Be Human is an arresting, appealing debut, telling the story of its protagonist, Mary, and the fox that visits her East London garden – met at first with irritation, then affection, building to an obsessive love. The novel’s sphere is small, set often in Mary’s house or her next-door neighbours’, where she babysits their children and speculates on their relationship. It’s set oftener still in the garden, where she encounters the fox, or in the streets, where she encounters her exfiance. It does not need a wider scope – within this wilderness there are tangles and hiding places, danger, and the power of words unsaid. Cocozza has a knack for imagery, rendering moments vibrant and immediate. Sometimes, however, passages would benefit from paring down where a glut of images impedes the novel’s pace. A slimmer book might have served better as a demonstration of Cocozza’s talent. Early on, Mary’s glance at her outfit’s reflection (‘Midnight blue – so good with her chestnut hair’) sets the scene for a rather uninspired romance; however, How to Be Human is quite a different kind of love story. Transgressive and beautiful, in its pages we find loss and frailty, strength and resilience, sanity and what lies beyond. It is an accomplished debut, from a writer we hope to read much more from in the future. [Ceris Aston]

At an unspecified time in the near future, the oceans have risen, implanted chips make infinite memory a possibility and anti-aging clinics offer eternal youth for top dollar. At the same time, poverty, corruption and war continue to rumble on relentlessly. Through this tangled maze of technology and intrigue, the lives of three disparate characters are drawn inexorably together. Sound complex? It is. Zachary Mason is an undoubtedly gifted writer; his prose is superbly written and tightly constructed, comprising the building blocks of an astoundingly expansive universe. However, the constant flitting between character viewpoints makes for a disorientating experience in itself, while the emergence of complex themes (such as the exploration of memory and alternative planes of existence) further serves to discombobulate. Though packed with action almost from start to finish, it’s often hard to ascertain exactly what the hell is going on. All of this combines to leave the reader struggling to gain a foothold in the novel. While certain characters certainly have potential for development and emotional attachment, others are underexplored or neglected altogether, making for a somewhat 2D impression of the Void Star world. Hardened fans of sci-fi might revel in the absolute immersion of Mason’s creation, but for the rest of us, it’s overwhelming in its density, underwhelming in its payoff. [Jonny Sweet]

Out now, published by Faber & Faber, RRP £14.99

Out 6 Apr, published by Hutchison, RRP £12.99

Out 27 Apr, published by Jonathan Cape, RRP £16.99

Out 6 Apr, published by Portobella Books, RRP £12.99

Review

BOOKS

THE SKINNY

This Month in Scottish Art This month brings a host of new shows from Rhubaba, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, The Common Guild, 16 Nicholson Street and more Words: Adam Benmakhlouf

Hang Tuff We chat to Tuff Love’s Suse Bear about her collaboration with Errors’ Steev Livingstone for this year’s Outskirts festival in April Interview: Tallah Brash

lurring the boundaries between performance, music, art and film, Platform’s annual festival of cross art form experimentation and excellence is back for its 2017 outing this April. An unexpected musical collaboration is set to take place between Errors’ Steev Livingstone and Tuff Love’s Suse Bear as part of the ongoing Easterhouse Conversations project, which has previously featured RM Hubbert, Drew Wright, Kathryn Joseph and The Twilight Sad’s James Graham amongst others. We caught up with Bear to find out more... The Skinny: How did you become involved in the project? Suse Bear: “Alun [Woodward] from Chemikal Underground / Platform asked us individually at the end of last year if we’d be into working on the project. We’d not met each other properly before although I’d seen Steev around a lot and seen Errors live a few times. I have an Errors tour poster in my studio from a gig I saw of theirs in 2010. I am a fan!” Can you tell us a little bit more about the Easterhouse Conversations project itself? “It’s a super-exciting project – I’ve never done anything like this before but it feels like a lot of responsibility. “We’ve been chatting to a few different groups of people, talking to them about how they are connected to Platform or Easterhouse and about their lives in the area. We’d like to communicate their stories through the music we make. We’re trying to involve some of the interviewees in the performance, that would be nice. “It would be great also if this project in some way helps to make people more aware of Platform and Easterhouse. The people we’ve chatted to have all been amazing and are involved in some really brilliant projects either in the surrounding area or hosted at Platform.” Musically, Tuff Love and Errors are two very different things – how is this collaboration going to work? “I guess I don’t exclusively make ‘fuzzy guitar music’; that’s just a Tuff Love thing really. I like keyboards, synthesisers, electronic music, ambient stuff, etc, and have been making all sorts of different crap in my bedroom for years. “We’re adapting round each other, I think we’re both pretty versatile musically. We’re definitely

April 2017

fans of the same sorts of sounds, that’s been really nice, discovering what each other is into and having it matching with what you’re into. “When I walked into Steev’s studio and saw all his synthesisers/keyboards and gear my head nearly exploded – it was very exciting. I am into that.” How would you describe the combined sound of Tuff Love and Errors? “It’s not really sounding like Tuff Love and Errors, more like Suse and Steev. I think I’d have to make a forced/concerted effort to bring the Tuff Love sound to this project, and that doesn’t feel supernatural for this. I think Steev would say the same. He does other musical projects too; not necessarily everything he does comes out sounding like Errors perhaps. It’s not going to be concise three-minute-long pop songs!” What has been your inspiration for the original music you’re creating for this? “We’ve been taking inspiration from the interviews we’ve done, finding a starting point along the way by picking out words and themes. We had a woman sing for us during one of the interviews; it was really lovely. Little things are leading us down different musical paths.”

eginning April a bit early, on 31 March from 6-9pm, 16 Nicholson Street opens their new exhibition following from a three-month mentorship programme they coordinated. With artists of all different levels taking part as mentor or mentee, the participants were paired off and met fortnightly for a check-in and chat at the gallery. New works that have come out of this process will be displayed in the gallery. Then from 1 April, in Platform collaborators Pester & Rossi present a new project in the gallery produced in collaboration with young people at Platform, as well as their band Fallopé & the Tubes and other local artists. Their practice is rooted in a do-it-yourself approach, the duo make imagery, handmade props and costumes that relate to aspects of the body and reference popular culture within immersive performances and social experiments. See what they’ve made in Platform until 7 May. Also on 1 April, there’s the opening event for Rhubaba’s latest in its series of hauntings by different artists. Artist Sarah Boulton will thus ‘occupy the thresholds, high and peripheral spaces of Rhubaba, manifesting… through hidden texts and in quetly strange events, appearances and alterations. Characters and their actions keep recurring across different works, lingering in the room, their work never really finished.’ Titled Saying Yes With No Evidence, the exhibition continues from 2-30 April. In The Number Shop in Edinburgh on 6 April, there’s the opening from 7pm for sculptor Martha Lyons Haywood’s exhibition, I Use to See. She’ll bring together precious natural materials and overlooked urban debris in works based on the philosophies she’s constructed for making artwork. Elsewhere this month, read our interview with Brodie Sim and Linda Bolsakova about their two person show A Constellation is Forming Here. Without knowing of each other beforehand, they were curated together by Generator Projects in Dundee to show there from 7 April. With careful consideration of materials for their conducive and tonal qualities and taking influence from the

natural world, Sim and Bolsakova explore the poetic and material resonance between each other’s practice and the intangible moments of fragmented connection. Finding solace in liminality, their works creates a meditative pace for contemplation. Online at theskinny.co.uk/art read an interview with Graham MacIndoe, who describes the years of his life as a heroin addict, which he nevertheless documented thoroughly with a series of self-portraits. Since recovering, he uses this body of work as a means of opening up conversations about dependency and recovery. Coming Clean will be on show in Scottish National Portrait Gallery from 8 April until 5 November. On 12 April from 6-8pm, Arusha Gallery previews Blair McLaughlin’s Depart de Biscottes. He’ll be showing a series of new paintings made since graduating last year, during which time he’s travelled between Florence, New York, Antwerp and Rotterdam on different residencies, looking at paintings from the Renaissance and studying the logic of speed. Working gesturally and often semi-abstractly, McLaughlin combines histories of painting with reference to imagery of violence to create large and full tableaux in his work. The exhibition continues until 1 May. From 22 April-9 July, The Common Guild hosts its first exhibition of the year, by installation, sound and sculptural artist, Steven Claydon. Claydon adopts a practice of ‘heterogenous assemblage – bringing together divergent historical forms and processes,’ as a means of examining ‘the changing value of objects – aesthetic, functional and financial.’ Also from 22 April, Stills Gallery presents Ambit, a new group show of Scotland-based photographers. In partnership with Street Level Photoworks, they present a two-venue exhibition of five artists in each, as a means of surveying current trends and innovative talent within photography in Scotland. Each gallery will emphasise artists representing diverse approaches to photographic image making. Find weekly art news updates online at theskinny.co.uk/art

Can you describe the process for us? How are you going about the writing, etc? “We’re working independently on ideas then coming together and working in Steev’s studio. I take bits of gear over to his and then we jam out, from whatever idea seed there was, recording and picking the best bits later.” Are you planning to record and release the collaboration at all? “The performance will be recorded live on 22 April – I’m not totally sure about it being released. That would be very nice though.” What can people heading along to Outskirts festival expect on the day? “Our performance will have lots of different instruments in it and hopefully feature some of the people we interviewed too. There’s loads of stuff going on. I’m excited about seeing Fallopé & The Tubes’ performance.” Outskirts is at Platform, Easterhouse, 22 Apr platform-online.co.uk

ART

Review

In Cinemas I Am Not Your Negro

Director: Raoul Peck Starring: James Baldwin, Samuel L Jackson Released: Certificate: TBC

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How do you adapt a piece of highly literary, personal and historical non-fiction work into a compelling piece of cinema? Moreover, how do you do it when the work in question doesn’t exist beyond its first 30 pages? This is the task which Raoul Peck took up when he bought the rights to James Baldwin’s uncompleted manuscript Remember This House and looked to finish what he started in a different medium, in a new millennium. The short answer is, he succeeds completely. One of the keys to his success is the decision to keep Baldwin himself at the centre of the film: like Wolfe, Didion or Hunter Thompson, Baldwin’s writing was always essentially personal, playing the double role of both actor and observer in whatever story he told. Peck translates this quality into film by using only Baldwin’s words (read by a restrained and sonorous Samuel L Jackson) as the film’s narration along with footage of the author himself speaking in interviews and lectures. Wielding language like a precise and delicate instrument, Baldwin’s words slice intricately through race, oppression and ignorance with clinical elegance and without a single unnecessary flourish – if the film were nothing but a supercut of his televised appearances, it would still be something to behold. Having relocated Baldwin’s project to the world of cinema, Peck takes full advantage of the medium by layering the author’s words on top of a century of American images. Drawn from movies, adverts, news broadcasts, reality TV and Malickian shots of the land itself enduring quietly through decades of turmoil, he places the reality of America alongside its fictional representations, and reveals the gap between them and in which the truth might lie. [Ross McIndoe]

The Handmaiden

Director: Park Chan-wook Starring: Min-hee Kim, Jung-woo Ha, Jinwoong Jo Released: 14 Apr Certificate: 18

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After a polarising foray into English-language filmmaking with 2013’s Stoker, Park Chan-wook returns to his native South Korean cinema for this period epic of lust, love and (lady) vengeance. The results on display suggest a director rejuvenated. There’s still all of the off-kilter bombast and blunt force that has characterised his career to date, but with a much more assured control of tone, pitch-black humour and his maximalist stylistic tendencies that makes this a career high. The Handmaiden is based on Sarah Waters’ twisty novel Fingersmith, with the story transposed from Victorian England to annexed Korea in the 1930s, so as well as a treatise on class interaction you now also get a darkly comic discourse on Japanese and Korean relations. As such, there’s just as much bile and fury in the clash of languages as there is in the love/hate triangle between hustlers of all breeds. At the centre point is Lady Hideko (Kim Min-hee), an heiress sought out for marriage by the shady Fujiwara (Ha Jung-woo), a man posing as a Japanese count and enlisting the services of

The Handmaiden

an orphan pickpocket, Sook-hee (Kim Tae-ru), to pose in the title role and persuade the wealthy lady to fall for his charms. But all is not as it seems with any of the relationships, nor does the legacy of the wealthy family have the sort of respectability the unwitting Sook-hee initially expects: less elocution lessons, more erotica-reading tutorials. Park Chan-wook’s films have often expressed an interest in various fetishes, but one of the most

Clash

Released by Curzon/Artificial Eye

Heal the Living

Director: Mohamed Diab Starring: Nelly Karim, Hany Adel Released: 21 Apr Certificate: 15

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Director: Katell Quillévéré Starring: Tahar Rahim, Emmanuelle Seigner, Anne Dorval, Kool Shen, Monia Chokri, Finnegan Oldfield Released: 28 Apr Certificate: 12

Taking place just after the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi in 2013, Clash boils the chaos and complexities of post-coup Cairo down to its barest essentials. The timeline is condensed into the course of one long, hot day and all of the action is confined to the back of a police van. Our fellow passengers are a motley microcosm of the protests at large: Muslim Brotherhood members face off against pro-military supporters, while the unaffiliated cling onto the barred windows and beg to be released. It’s a neat but not entirely novel premise that runs the risk of inviting some unflattering comparisons and requires a dash of unlikely plotting to shore things up. And, perhaps inevitably, something gets lost in Clash’s ruthless process of reduction. It handles the sound and fury of the riots ably, and ends on a particularly powerful crescendo – but when the scrum dissipates and silence falls on the ensemble, the film is left a little lost for words. Choosing to adopt a somewhat toothless neutrality towards its characters, Clash pulls back from the thornier interpersonal issues its narrative situation throws up, and lapses instead into the melodramatic and the mechanical. [Phil Kennedy]

Heal the Living is the story of one heart that touches many lives. When a teenage surfer (Gabin Verdet) is killed in a car accident, his grieving parents (Emmanuelle Seigner and Kool Shen) have to make the decision to donate his healthy organs to those in need. Writer-director Katell Quillévéré divides her film into two halves: first focusing on the family’s emotional shock and ethical dilemmas before introducing us to the woman (Anne Dorval) who will receive the heart in question. This is Quillévéré’s third feature, and it is both her most ambitious to date and her most accomplished. She weaves a rich emotional tapestry through multiple characters – family members, doctors, paramedics – and while it’s easy to imagine this material feeling contrived or soapy in the wrong hands, she pulls it off with unerring elegance and lightness of touch. With the assistance of Alexandre Desplat’s beautiful score, Quillévéré also crafts a number of exhilarating cinematic coups, from the entrancing opening sequence to a rousing flashback that displays the strength of the young man’s heart, in both a physical and romantic sense. [Philip Concannon]

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Mad to Be Normal

Lady Macbeth

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Director: Robert Mullan Starring: David Tennant, Elisabeth Moss, Michael Gambon, Gabriel Byrne Released: 6 Apr Certificate: 15

I Am Not Your Negro

pleasant surprises in The Handmaiden is how the director compellingly, and with considerable candour, explores the total spectrum of sex – romantic to merely physical, beautiful to brutal, playful and funny to deadly serious power play. This may be a film that thrives on social flamboyance and physical grotesquerie, but what lingers most is its carnal heart. [Josh Slater-Williams]

Director: William Oldroyd Starring: Florence Pugh, Cosmo Jarvis, Naomi Ackie, Christopher Fairbank, Paul Hilton, Golda Rosheuvel Released: 28 Apr Certificate: 15

It’s 60s London. How can we tell? Because director Robert Mullan throws every conceivable period film cliché – psych-rock soundtrack, nicotine haze visuals, costumes in every shade of brown – at this tedious biopic of visionary psychiatrist RD Laing. Looking lost in a small number of poorly dressed sets is David Tennant, who has a good stab at playing the erratic shrink, nailing his bracing arrogance and aggressive humanism (Laing’s philosophy seems to be that everybody should be treated equally, except anyone who disagrees with him). The film’s messy focus is Laing’s experimental community clinic Kingsley Hall, where people in various states of psychosis lived and worked through their illness. Tranquilisers and electric shock therapy are eschewed, but Laing’s alternative methods, such as LSD, don’t seem any more helpful, particularly when one patient (Gabriel Byrne) has an acid trip that takes him back to his mother’s murder, and soon after develops homicidal thoughts towards Laing’s pregnant lover (Elisabeth Moss). Is Laing’s treatment to blame? Who can tell, because Mullan fails miserably to let us inside his characters’ heads. For a film about psychiatry, that’s an inexcusable flaw. [Jamie Dunn]

Not another spin on ‘The Scottish Play’, William Oldroyd’s tense, darkly comic feature debut is actually an adaptation of a 19th century Russian novella, Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District by Nikolai Leskov, the story now transported to Northern England around the same time. It’s pretty Shakespearean, though, with a dash of Flaubert, thanks to murderous intentions brought about by young bride Katherine’s displeasure with her sexless marriage and subordinate role in provincial life. More wilful sadist than a distressed damsel, Katherine offers a fine showcase for the hypnotising Florence Pugh to veer from endearing puckishness to dangerously disturbed. Though less elemental in its visual palette, Lady Macbeth echoes Andrea Arnold’s bold adaptation of Wuthering Heights, particularly with some racerelated subtext that occasionally bubbles to the surface. The juxtaposition between the freeness offered by the rural landscapes and the oppressive interior environments is also a key factor in both. Shorn of the extravagant decorations common to stately homes in most period dramas, with a chilly blankness to all its rooms, you could plausibly rename Katherine’s new home ‘Abstinence’. [Josh Slater-Williams]

Released by GSP Distribution

Review

FILM

THE SKINNY

Got To Have A Code Is alternative and political comedy possible while holding down the day job? Comedian Gemma Flynn is also an academic and turns to a great moral philosopher for answers...

he documentary Lost in France has stuck with me for a few weeks now. Niall McCann’s work on Glasgow’s prolific indie music scene of the 1990s and 2000s is all about arguing for getting messy and making things. It’s also a searing economic critique of our current moment. There’s a memorable scene towards the end where Alex Kapranos reflects on the period; there was just enough financial support to get by and prioritise your art with space to fuck about. In other words, to make mistakes and learn from them. McCann’s message is clear; they could not have done it today. So it goes, right? We’re living in the age of food banks so we can’t spend money on alernative art and poetry. Agreed. But, as a way of coping, I feel like there’s an odd struggle emerging in comedy, where I spend most of my evenings. The trouble is the only acts who can pay for the space to develop their comedy freely are not necessarily the people I want to get my politics from – even if those acts were the funniest boys at Eton. For those without an unlimited disposable income, doing something in comedy that might be a bit political or feminist or transgressive is likely done while working in a job that’s either a fucking slog – which makes it hard to get stage time because you’re completely burst – or one that pays more but requires a more professional persona. The latter kind doesn’t necessarily merge well with being a stand-up comedian. It can be tough, for instance, to stick it to the man at the weekends when you’re also in the civil service fast stream. I deal with this by working in academia (which I love, TY cherished employers) while at night finding rooms ‘alt’ enough for me to develop as a comedian. It’s vital if you want to be any good at stand-up to get out there and say things, to make mistakes in a public environment and learn from them. That’s how you write good bits and, hopefully, a show that is entertaining and meaningful. It’s what makes nights like CHUNKS’ monthly gigs so important. Mistakes are crucial in developing critical art. However, there’s an unavoidable clash here when we try to do this in today’s climate of precarious work. This becomes a real problem when you stop yourself from making comments that reveal your opinions, such as if you are pro-choice, or call out misogyny in a way that’s a bit angry and sweary. It’s why everyone has that line on their

April 2017

Words: Gemma Flynn Illustration: Adam Menzies

Twitter bio now that says their views don’t represent their workplace (may my Twitter forever remain a safe space for live-tweeting the Real Housewives of Atlanta). We can’t neuter ourselves or head to the comedy middleground for money, or give up right? Or, the only people left will be the Eton types – the actual gentry – and we’ll never get performers like Arab Strap or comedians we can relate to again.

“May my Twitter forever remain a safe space for live-tweeting the Real Housewives of Atlanta” So the question becomes, how can we carve out creative freedom in this stifling environment without getting hauled up in front of HR? As my boi, the philosopher Immanuel Kant, would have said, it’s possible the only way to gain pure autonomy is through a personal ethical code. Among all the constraints and expectations of the current climate, maybe the way you regain the freedom to create space is by being certain of your own moral boundaries. You’re free when you’re bound by your own laws and not by those of others. Here’s my own ethical code: don’t punch down and learn from my mistakes. Baseline ethical boundaries may be freeing and allow you the certainty your aim is never to harm. A personal ethical code might not necessarily free us from all the challenges of neoliberalism but it could help us to create work which is critical and different while feeling less restricted by the skittish, precarious work needed to support this. It strengthens our determination to be creative, while also paying the bills. The Dash Capital podcast is available on iTunes and Soundcloud Light Bulb: An Alternative Comedy Showcase, Blackfriars, Glasgow, 11 Apr, 8pm, free theskinny.co.uk/comedy

COMEDY

Review

Dark Castle Ahead of a new collaboration with Glasgow's Vanishing Point, Scottish Opera’s composer-in-residence Lliam Paterson tells us about reviving and reinventing a seminal Hungarian opera Interview: Amy Taylor

Ask Auntie Trash:

This Review is Bad Illustration: Stephanie Hoffmann

Dear Trash, My boyfriend is an actor, and he was recently in a play that toured nationally, and got mostly good reviews. However, he got one really bad review, and it singled him out and it really brought him down. He’s a great actor, a fantastic person, an amazing boyfriend, and I just don’t think the review reflects that. I want to make him happy and have the review changed, what can I do? Yours, Actor’s GF

h, hey, I’m going to do a thing here, it’s called a ‘Compliment Sandwich’. It’s where I say something nice to start, put something negative in the middle and end on something nice. First of all, hats off to your boyfriend for getting a part in a touring play, it sounds like he had quite a big role, and he should be really proud of himself for getting it. It’s tough out there, kudos to you, unnamed actor. Now to the gristle: what is it that you want? Maybe your boyfriend is a good actor, maybe the reviewer was unfair? Maybe your boyfriend was having a bad day and forgot how to act? Were you there? How do you know the critic was unfair? Listen, babe, I’m sure your boyfriend is just great, you sound like an absolute darling, trying to find out how to help. I think that’s incredibly sweet and I want nothing bad to happen to you, like, ever. But, girl, there’s not a lot that you can do to make him happy, besides be a shoulder to cry on right now. I know that is probably very difficult to hear, but trust me on this. As much as you want to fight this battle for him, you can’t, because this isn’t about you, it’s about him. Specifically, it’s about him as a professional actor, which is what the critic will have been judging him on. I mean, I’m sure he’s a nice

Review

person and all, but that doesn’t matter when it comes to a review. They could be the nicest person on earth, or a complete and utter cunt, but as soon as they step on the stage, they are someone else entirely, and that is all that matters. Without reading the review, and without seeing the play, I can’t have an opinion on this. However, I would urge your boyfriend to think about what he wants to do. If he feels that the review contains errors that can be easily corrected, like, the writer spelled his name wrong, or they said he delivered a line incorrectly when he did not, he can contact the critic to let them know. And for the love of God, don’t email the critic on his behalf; some of the worst emails I’ve had have been from partners, relatives and friends of a performer/director whom they believe I have somehow slighted. He has to fight his own battles here; he’s a big boy now. You can’t ask the publication to take down the review without a really fucking good reason. Really Fucking Good Reasons include: issues with the production – major technical failures, someone became unwell, or the show had to be cancelled, then, the company are within their rights (in my honest opinion) to ask that the critic return on another date to review it again. Although, from your email, it sounds like the tour has finished and this is unlikely. And finally, the last piece of bread: the main thing is, if the critic was telling the truth, and this was one bad review in amongst scores of positive reviews, then, does it matter? Does it really matter? The answer is no. It doesn’t have to matter. Some of the best actors in the world have been completely eviscerated in reviews, but they got up, dusted themselves off and kept going. That is what your boyfriend needs to do, and what you need to let him do; keep going. Love, Trashie xxx

liam Paterson is working in previously unchartered territory. Tasked with creating a companion piece to one of his favourite operas, Béla Bartók’s dark and unsettling Bluebeard’s Castle, he has joined forces with the Vanishing Point theatre company to create an innovative double bill: a revival of Bartók’s piece, directed by Vanishing Point’s Matthew Lenton, and an all-new piece, The 8th Door, which he composed himself. “I think they [Scottish Opera] had approached Matt to direct Bluebeard’s Castle,” begins Paterson when we ask him how the collaboration came about. “They wanted him to create a first half of the show – because Bluebeard’s Castle is quite short – that would reflect his own theatrical practice and style, so that it would be a genuine exploration of what Vanishing Point and Scottish Opera do. ” The opportunity to create a new piece undoubtedly caused Paterson some nerves, as he readily admits: “It would be slightly foolish to try and write a companion opera to Bluebeard’s Castle!” But the creation of The 8th Door, a piece of musical theatre for six voices and full orchestra, has offered another opportunity for Paterson, who had only seen productions of Bartók’s opera on film. “It was only a few years ago I started watching films of it, mainly online. The interesting thing is: this will be the first time that I’ll actually see it live!” Premiering in 1918, Bartók’s only opera tells the story of newlyweds Judith and Bluebeard arriving at the dark and isolated castle of the title. Inside, they discover a series of seven doors, which Bluebeard opens one by opened to reveal their increasingly mysterious and horrific contents. The piece is renowned for its unsettling (if ambiguous) story, but for Paterson the meaning of the opera and its continuing appeal lie in its simplicity: “Ultimately, it’s a really powerful piece of drama about two people, a couple, who essentially try to communicate and totally fail.” Fittingly, the art of communication was a key part in the development of the piece, with Lenton and Paterson finding themselves agreeing

THEATRE

on a number of vital elements to each of the two pieces. During the work shop process, both Paterson and Lenton agreed that while Bluebeard was an important character, it is his bride Judith who is the real focus of the opera, and it therefore seemed appropriate that this should be replicated in The 8th Door. “The more we discussed it, the more this idea of everything in some ways being about the trauma of Judith, other than about Bluebeard, seemed really interesting. I like to think of Judith as the main character – in trying to get inside the mind of this guy, her partner, I think it’s almost a way for her to confront something that’s happened to her in her own past.” Paterson’s companion piece is more of a prequel than a sequel to the original opera, he explains. The title is a reference to the castle entrance, which he views as both a physical and a psychological portal to Judith’s mind, indicating her perspective as regards the realities of living in her new husband’s castle. “The 8th Door is basically from the woman’s point of view. Essentially, she has a very dark past; she suffered trauma. At the end of our new piece, she decides to face up to what has happened to her, and go inside her own subconscious to tackle it. That portal within herself is the eighth door, and so Bluebeard’s castle becomes her interior world.” But after a year in development, what does how does Paterson feel about co-writing a companion piece to one of his favourite operas? “I’m personally very glad that we’ve created something that is interested in opera, but is not an opera – I think it’s more interesting to explore what the themes of Bluebeard’s Castle can mean in a simple piece of theatre, but not to try and write something that is close in form or in content, which I think we’ve done.” Bluebeard’s Castle and The 8th Door plays at The Theatre Royal, Glasgow, 28 Mar-1 Apr, and Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, 5-8 Apr scottishopera.org.uk/shows/bluebeard-s-castle-the-8th-door

Bluebeard’s Castle and The 8th Door

THE SKINNY

Photo: Tim Morozzo

Glasgow Music Sat 01 Apr BLOSSOMS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £17.50

Psych-pop riffs, vocal melodies, a film noir meets 60s aesthetic, a range of audible references from Arctic Monkeys via Abba to The Doors. KING NO-ONE

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £7

Yorkshire indie rock quartet. ATTILA

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £12

Atlanta party metal behemoths hit the road again. BUGZY MALONE

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £20

The 24-year-old rapper continues his rise as one of the UK’s most promising new artists.

DAMAGED GLASGOW (JORDAN SUCKLEY + MENNO DE JONG + ALEX M.O.R.P.H + SAM JONES + DAVID RUST)

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, £18.50

Damaged Records head honcho Jordan Suckley comes to SWG3’s TV Studio with a handsome line-up of DR contemporaries in tow. ROADTRIP

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 14:00, £15 - £35

Pop rapscallions managed by erstwhile East 17 member Blair Dreelan. SEVEN EYES

STEREO, FROM 19:30, £12 - £45

A band with eclectic and expansive influences, Seven Eyes were formed by rained guitarist Paulo Vinícius from Brazil and London born vocalist, Tanya Wells, who specialises in folk, jazz and Hindustani classical vocal techniques. ATTILA

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £12

Atlanta party metal behemoths hit the road again. DEVON SPROULE (BABY COPPERHEAD)

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–04:00, £10 - £13.50

Charlottesville singer-songwriter and other half of fellow musician Paul Curreri. MUSIC BIG BAND PAYDAY (FALLEN ARCHES + EVERYWHERE + ROSE CITY BLUES)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £6

NHC MUSIC’s annual multi-venue anti P2P festival.

SPITE HOUSE VS. QUEER THEORY: SPITE HOUSE WON’T SUFFER FOOLS (SISSY + VENUS TROPICAUX + MISC + SUE ZUKI + VITAL IDLES + BLACK DOVES + WILL NAAMEH + ANNA SECRET POET + CAIRNDHUNA TERRACE + BUM NOTES KARAOKE) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, 17:00–03:00, FREE

Spite House take over Sleazy's for an all-day feminist rager. KING AYISOBA (ZEA)

PLATFORM, 19:00–10:30, £5 - £10

Ghanaian master Kologo player and keeper of the groove brings his full band to Scotland for the first time. Support Zea is a remodeler and remoulder of modern music and a sometime collaborator with King Ayisoba.

LORDS OF THE LAND FESTIVAL

XERO

BARROWLANDS, 13:00–23:00, £38.50

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £5

Barrowlands host what looks to be the heaviest of metal all-dayers in some time.

Sun 02 Apr GAVIN JAMES

The Toon quartet bring their powerful groove-based hard rock to Glasgow. POSABLE ACTION FIGURES (DED RABBIT + ALL THE FRANKLINS)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5

CROOKED LITTLE SONS (ARIZONA LAW) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6

Plymouth/Exeter four-piece dishing out punk, blues, rock ‘n’ roll and hardcore.

Fri 07 Apr THE WHO

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £60 - £70

The famous 1960s rocker tour for what could be their final time, so expect all o’ the hits. THE AMAZONS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8.50

Dublin singer-songwriter, stepping out of the shadow of Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran support slots with his debut album.

This year looks set to be a breakout year for Posable Action Figures, having already been tipped as one of Vic Galloway’s bands to watch in 2017.

Born and raised Reading locals, Matt, Joe, Elliot and Chris take the aggression of grunge and punk and attempt to splice it with melody and harmony.

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12.50

Wed 05 Apr

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £12

EARTHLINGS?

Psychedelic rock from Joshua Tree, California. JESSY LANZA

BROADCAST, FROM 22:00, £10

Canadian synthpop artist Lanza swings by for a show.

KATEE KROSS & THE AMBERJAX (ANDREW NICOL + JAY THE MIGHTY ROADFLOWER + WILL LEATHERBARROW + KIRSTY QUIN) THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7

The Irish and Manx five-piece stir up a lil folky goodness at Stereo. BERNIE TORME

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £10

The legendary guitarist returns to Edinburgh with full band.

Mon 03 Apr BLACKBERRY SMOKE

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £20

Georgia-based rockers who have been together for more than a decade. CRAIG DAVID

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 19:30, £27 - £38

Newly out of hiding, Craig David’s back with a critically acclaimed set of releases under his belt. BLAENAVON

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £8

Fledgling Hampshire trio built on soaring choruses and the manic energy of yoof. LISA O’NEILL (MOSSY NOLAN)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8

Young Irish singer and songwriter brings third album Pothole in the Sky to Glasgow with support from Mossy Nolan.

Tue 04 Apr MELANIE C

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £23.50

She who shall always be known as Sporty Spice does her solo thing, accompanied by her live band. FRANCES

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £12

Critics Choice Award nominee Frances brings her silky vocals to our way after a stint of songwriting with Disclosure in his garden studio. MY BABY

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

Delta blues dub trio, who supported Seasick Steve on his UK tour. NEW MODEL ARMY

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:30, £20

Post-punk five-piece from Bradford, named after the English revolutionary army of Oliver Cromwell.

PULLED APART BY HORSES

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £12

Leeds-based band running to a tight check list of tortured vocals, distortion, serious riffage, and hardcore clatter. All in the name of some pretty bloody awesome ballsto-the-wall rock, y’understand. SNAILS

MONO, 12 KING’S COURT, 12:00, FREE

Snails show at King’s Court. STORMZY

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £20

South London rapper championed by Radio 1Xtra and, um, Jools Holland. BLACK SNAKE ROOTS (IDAMOS + BETA & KAPPA)

ORAN MOR, 17:00–03:00, FREE

A free evening of stripped down blues at Òran Mór from the Glasgow trio. MANU DELAGO HANDMADE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

TWELFTH DAY

Collaborative musical project of fiddle player Catriona Price and harpist Esther Swift. LYLO (JOE GREMLIN + THE BELLY BUTTONS + WOMAN’S AID)

JOYTOWN GRAND ELECTRIC THEATRE, 19:30–02:00, £7

Single launch from the young Glaswegian outfit who describe their thang as ‘dream pop with a hint of lemon’. Followed by a bit of a party. WAKING AIDA (ORCHARDS + A SUDDEN BURST OF COLOUR)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £6

Bloody brill math post-rock / industrial band from London. THE NEAL MORSE BAND

O2 ABC, FROM 18:00, £25

The American prog-rocker is joined by his latest band collab. REVERIEME (MICHAEL TIMMONS + AMY RAYNER)

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £6

Manu Delago shot to fame after uploading a video of himself playing the hang, a UFO-like hand-played sound sculpture, to YouTube. His latest project sees him joined by producer Matt Robertson (Bjork, The Prodigy).

Reverieme is Louise Connell. She writes and plays music that she describes as “melancholic and hopeful and dark and insular and inquiring and is much better communicated through sound waves than it is through adjectives”.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £10

Sat 08 Apr

OKKULTOKRATI

Rock five-piece all the way from Oslo.

Thu 06 Apr JORJA SMITH

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £10.50

19 year old singer from Walsall, drawing on influences including Mos Def, The Streets and Lauryn Hill. DAN OWEN

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £10

After Dan Owen’s dreams of becoming a guitar maker were tragically interrupted due to an accident in his workshop he became a singersongwriter and prolific performer. Catch his melodic, bluesy and lyrically insightful music this April. BOBBY DEANS (MCEWAN & TORRANCE + RJAY MURPHY)

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–03:00, £8.50

Local singer/songwriter launches his new EP with accomplished support from Joseph Miller, Graeme Quinn and Charly Houston. THE ORIELLES

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7.50

Lovers of surfer and pop music unite for this show at Leith Depot.

HELLYEAH

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £17.50

American heavy metal supergroup featuring members of Mudvatne, Nothingface, Pantera and Damageplan, heading to UK shores after releasing album Unden!able last year. ROSE ELINOR DOUGALL

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

The former Pipettes member continues her constantly evolving solo career, with Broadcast and the Silver Apples among her influences. KID INK

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £25

The young LA-based rapper, producer and songwriter brings his much-tattooed self to our shores. RUSTY SHACKLE

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £6

Monmouthshire-based rootsy folk rock.

BTTF: OLD SKOOL CLASSICS (BASSHEADS + SHADES OF RHYTHM + KELLY LLORENNA + Q-TEX + SCOTT BROWN + MARC SMITH + MORE) SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 18:00, £13

Back to the Future brings a line-up of old skool brilliance to Glasgow, hosted by MC Korrupt and MC Madman.

SIANAR CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 18:00, £8 - £10

Supergroup who’ve risen from the ashes of four disbanded outfits who’re launching a new EP at Classic Grand tonight. MOON DUO

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £13.50

San Franciscan duo (aka Ripley Johnson and Sanae Yamada) built on lazily advancing solos and eccentric organ meanderings of loveliness. BLOOD YOUTH

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 18:30, £8

Lincoln-based rock ensemble led by vocalist Kaya Tarsus. THE MICHAEL EDGAR BAND

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7

Stirring country strings and gentle vocals from NY-based musician Michael Edgar and his band. MT. DOUBT (FOREIGNFOX + SKJØR)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6 - £8

Mt. Doubt brings his dark, pop sound to Sleazy’s.

COUNTERFLOWS: FARMERS MANUAL

THE ART SCHOOL, 22:30–03:00, £7

Radical electronic and visual arts group formed in Vienna in the early 1990s. The group are renowned for their ‘chaos-particle-accelerating’ computer music, released on electronic music labels such as Mego, TRAY and OR.

Sun 09 Apr

HOLY MOLY AND THE CRACKERS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

Young Newcastle-based folk-indie outfit, drawing their influences from such luminaries as Woody Guthrie and Joni Mitchell.

SAINT HUCK (THE STEP BROTHERS + ANDREW NICOL + ALAN TENNIE)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £5

The blues, folk, country and Americana collective play a show at Broadcast. MY VITRIOL

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £16.50

London-based alternative rock lot playing a Stereo show. CHARLIE STRAW

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £6

Wirral-born and Leeds/Londonbased, Charlie Straw takes inspiration from the likes of Jeff Buckley and Justin Vernon. BLACK CAT BONE (MELISA KELLY AND THE SMOKIN CROWS + LOGANS CLOSE + MAMA T)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

British heavy blues rock group from London.

COUNTRY SWING SPECIAL (SHIPCOTE & FRIENDS + MARY JEAN LEWIS & HER LOWMAN ) STATE BAR, 19:30–22:30, £8

Warm and friendly gentle Geordie country swing from Tyneside, plus duo Mary Jean Lewis making a rare appearance.

Mon 10 Apr JON BELLION

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £15

Singer, songwriter, rapper and producer from Long Island, New York, out touring debut studio album The Human Condition. TOSELAND

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

World superbike champ James Toseland dips his toe into the music pool, as ya do. LEAH MCFALL

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £11

Northern Irish singer-songwriter who was a runner up on The Voice, out on her first UK tour.

Tue 11 Apr

LLOYD COLE: THE RETROSPECTIVE

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £22.50

A live set of vintage material from singer-songwriter Lloyd Cole’s discography between the years of 1983 and 1996. CAMERON AVERY

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12

Cameron Avery stops for a set at the Wah Wah Hut with his experimental blues/folk band.

MARY OCHER (CHRISSY BARNACLE + HAIRBAND)

THE FLYING DUCK, FROM 19:00, £7

Moscow-born Mary Ocher’s work is as enchanting as it is polarising, ranging from traditional folk to raw 60s garage, ambient with ethereal vocals and abstract synths, to experimental pop with African and South American rhythms.

THE FLOCKING MURMURATION (BUTLER’S EXPERIMENT + DIFFERENT TYPES BAND) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

Gritty folk rock at Sleazy's.

April 2017

Find full listings at theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

Wed 12 Apr BRUNO MARS

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £47.50 - £75

The man who loves us just the way are, out on his ‘24K Magic World Tour’. Sure, Bruno. PARIS YOUTH FOUNDATION

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7.50

Liverpool alt rock unit stopping by for a Scottish show, JOANNA NICHOLSON AND EMMA LLOYD

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

The Hug and Pint host another The Night With... edition, this time featuring clarinet, violin and electronics from Joanna Nicholson and Emma Lloyd. GOLDEN ORIOLE (LAMINA)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

Abstract and minimal music from members of Staer and Tralten Eller Utpult. THE SNUTS (IMMI)

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, FREE

The Snuts bring raspy, fuzzy indie rock to King Tut’s. THE HOT 8 BRASS BAND

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £22

New Orleans’ Hot 8 Brass Band return with their party-rocking sound and indomitable energy. SONIC SYNDICATE

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £12.50

After a hiatus, Swedish melodic metal band Sonic Syndicate are ready to embrace their change in musical direction with the release of their brand new album, Confessions.

Thu 13 Apr YOU ME AT SIX

SECC, FROM 18:30, £28.50

Angst rock of the mosh-bynumbers emo variety, touring their new LP Night People. BRUNO MARS

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £47.50 - £75

The man who loves us just the way are, out on his ‘24K Magic World Tour’. Sure, Bruno. HAFDIS HULD

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

One of Iceland’s most loved singers, Hafdis Huld has a pure voice and razor-sharp wit to match any comedian. She’s a regular on the major festival circuit and her European tours are a sell-out. THE SHIMMER BAND

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

The Bristolian five-piece bring their self-combusting psychedelic rock sound on tour. FOLKLUB: RYAN YOUNG & CRAIG IRVING (JENNA MOYNIHAN & MAIRI CHAIMEUL)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 20:00, £10

Folklub brings more talented folksters to H&P.

FREEZE THE ATLANTIC + ALBURN AND THE DECOY

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

Farnborough-based alternative rock outfit, still resiliently holding strong after a number of line-up changes over their lifespan. (HED)P.E. (PSYKO DALEK + MONKEY PUZZLE) O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £13.50

Hard rock pioneers from Cali, USA.

Fri 14 Apr GIRLI

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £7

Pop artist and rapper who specialises in hooky bars of a feminist persuasion. Not a sassy songstress, nor a pop princess. CHARLOTTE CHURCH’S LATE NIGHT POP DUNGEON

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:30, £14

The classically-trained musical genius returns to the spotlight under her latter-day pop guise. NESHIIMA

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

Glasgow metal nuts incorporating elements of tech and melodic into their mix, out launching their new EP. PINS

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £9

Cherished Mancunian quartet whose forthcoming EP features a guest vocal from the legendary Iggy Pop. THE NOVACS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £6

Airdrie indie rock four-piece stopping by Garage for a live show.

BITCHES BREW THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, TBC

In response to the eternal assumption that the only woman in the band must be the singer, Bitches Brew is a night of music written, improvised and performed by some of the best female instrumentalists around. HAFDIS HULD

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £7

Blood Sport formed in Sheffield in 2010, and ever since the trio have forged an arresting sound practice from within the city’s industrious art/music community. DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL (POLAR + FOES)

O2 ABC, FROM 19:30, £10

Ambient-influenced progressive metal band, which sounds like an oxymoron to us but there you have it. CHARLIE & THE BHOYS

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £20

Another Barrowland singalong with the Donegal Celtic rockers.

Sat 15 Apr CAULDER

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

A showcase of local music headlined by Caulder. THE PHANTOMS

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £6

Snotty, angst-riddled indie punk influenced by Arctic Monkeys. PART CHIMP

STEREO, FROM 19:30, £11.50

Noise-rock four-piece.

BEN MARWOOD (NON CANON + AUSTIN MILLER)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8

Reading-based songwriter known for his acoustic folk punk sounds served with a poetic lyrical twist. PWR BTTM

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:30, £10

American queer punk duo, with Ben Hopkins on guitar and vocals and Liv Bruce on drums and vocals. THE HIGH FLIGHT LIVE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

Another night of poetry and music from The High Flight.

Sun 16 Apr ED SHEERAN

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:00, £40 - £70

Nnnnnnnope.

BURY TOMORROW

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £16

The Portsmouth/Southampton hailing five-piece bring the rallying metalcore sounds, as per. FOLKLUB: ÍMAR + JOSIE DUNCAN BAND

STEREO, FROM 20:00, £10

The Irish and Manx five-piece stir up a lil folky goodness at Stereo. EWAN MCLENNAN

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

Emerging folk singer/songwriter combining more traditional sounds with a focus on the music of Scotland. THE BLUESWATER

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7 - £8

Young award-winning Edinburghbased band who tour internationally. Influenced by gritty, old-school rhythm and blues they blend the Chicago sound of Chess records with the earthy, droning grooves of Mississippi to create a unique style. LIKE A WOOKIE (THULAH BORAH + EVIL EDISON)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £4

North Eastern female-fronted alt-rock.

Mon 17 Apr ED SHEERAN

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:00, £40 - £70

Nnnnnnnope. GNOSS

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5 - £8

Glasgow folk band comprising flute and fiddle, mandolin, guitar, bodhrán and percussion, plus sweet, sweet wholesome vocals.

LAETITIA SADIER SOURCE ENSEMBLE (BATSCH) CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:30, £12

Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble, the latest project from the singer of Stereolab, plays CCA in support of their new album Find Me Finding You.

Tue 18 Apr RICHARD ASHCROFT

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £35 - £45

Former frontman of The Verve, continuing to ride the solo wave with forthcoming album, These People. PUMAROSA

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7

The mesmeric London five-piece play a show in anticipation of new record The Witch, due for release in May. PATENT PENDING

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £12

Post punk purveyors Patent Pending stop by as part of their mammoth UK tour. GIGGS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £15.50

English rapper (aka Nathaniel Thomson), now on his fourth studio album. JAKE MILLER

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £15

The Florida-hailing pop rapper plays an O2 show.

BRAVING THE SHAVE (HIRSUTE + ESCAPEGOAT + MADELEINE STEWART + RORY MATHESON) BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £9

Sam Mabbett and Dylan Cairns Howarth shave their heads for Macmillan Cancer Support before getting stuck into a Hirsute gig with Michael Biggins and Craig Baxter.

Wed 19 Apr REJJIE SNOW

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £13.50

Irish rapper and record producer known off-stage as Alexander Anyaegbunam. GREAT YTENE (MOTHERS LOVE + CURDLE)

THE FLYING DUCK, FROM 19:00, £5

Great Ytene (pronounced eeten) being their psych-pop / post-punk sounds to Flring Duck.

LITTLE LOVE & THE FRIENDY VIBES (SCUNNER + STEPHEN MCLAREN + THE HECTOR COLLECTORS) THE FLYING DUCK, FROM 19:00, £5

Catchy melodies and quirky hooks from the self-dubbed ‘fun pop’ Edinburgh quartet as they launch their new a new album. GROUP A (EDIT SELECT)

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £8

Japanese avant-garde synth wave duo group A was formed in 2012 by Tommi Tokyo (synthesizers, vocals, percussion) and Sayaka Botanic (violin, cassette tapes). Their early shows featured waves of experimental noise, poetry readings and nude live paintings. EM|ME

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5

Catch the whimsical soul of British-Caribbean/Dutch multiinstrumentalist EM|ME. FFO Ibeyi, Lianne La Lavas or Izzy Bizu on a chilled day. QUEER THEORY

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

An alternative evening of music, poetry, comedy and drag.

Thu 20 Apr FEATHERWEST

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

Art rock and wonky pop at King Tut’s. THE SHERLOCKS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £12

Sheffield indie-rock unit made up of two sets of brothers. BLAKE MORGAN AND JANITA

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, TBC

NYC singer-songwriter and activist Blake Morgan joirns alt / soul act Janita for a show at Broadcast. LUX LISBON

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £14

Rock-pop and indie with a country edge. TOSKA

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 18:30, £7

Three-piece prog-rock and metal band. FISCHER-Z

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

John Watts’ 39-year career as Fischer-Z includes 19 albums and 3000 concerts worldwide. See him live in Glasgow at H&P.

Listings

OUTSKIRTS 2017

Fri 21 Apr COUNTERFEIT

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12

Jamie Campbell Bower-fronted punk outfit. SWAY

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £5

A gig in celebration of Sway’s single launch, along with Drowned Out, Fabric Bear and Pleasure Heads. COUNTERFEIT

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12

Jamie Campbell Bower-fronted punk outfit. ECLIPSE

CATHOUSE, FROM 19:00, £10

The Stockholm hard rockers hit Scotland once again. DOÑA OXFORD’S THIS IS SOUL

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £15

The rhythm and blues powerhouse plays a Glasgow show. FOLKLUB: PONS AELIUS + THE HUR

PLATFORM, FROM 15:30, £7.50 - £10

Blurring the boundaries between theatre, music, art and film, Platform’s annual celebration of cross art form experimentation, Outskirts, returns with a line-up of music, spoken word, film and visual arts. (Return bus leaves Mono at 2pm, £5). SATURDAY GRAND STAND (LIFE MODEL + BODYHEAT + SORROWS HAVE SAILS + CARA ROSE)

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:30, £5

A celebration of local bands and raising awareness and funds in aid of two great local charities - Refuweegee and Glasgow Women’s Aid.

Sun 23 Apr JOHN PRINE

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, FROM 19:00, £27.50 - £30

American country/folk singersongwriter.

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 20:00, £10

RAG 'N' BONE MAN

BLANCK MASS

Bluesmeets hip-hop production for a bawl-along of coffee table proportions.

Six men, loadsae instruments and sweet folky vibes as part of H&P’s Folklub. CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:00, £11

Fuck Buttons co-founder Benjamin John Power is readying a new album under his Blanck Mass alter ego. See it live. SPECTRES (WOZNIAK + FRAUEN)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5 - £7

Uncompromising noise rock act who have wowed and startled crowds in equal measure across the UK.

Sat 22 Apr HACIENDA CLASSICAL

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 19:00, £38.50

Pioneers of the iconic Hacienda sound team up with the 40-strong Manchester Camerata to revisit their classics in a live fusion event. HACIENDA CLASSICAL

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:00, £38.50

Pioneers of the iconic Hacienda sound team up with the 40-strong Manchester Camerata to revisit their classics in a live fusion event. ASHTON LANE (GRAVEL TRACKS + HOLLIE ATKINSON)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £10

Scottish duo imbued with catchy radio hits and uplifting soulful melodies. They’re called Ashton lane because that’s where they first met (they’re now married). Cute. BC CAMPLIGHT

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

The Bella Union-signed songwriter completes his ascension from being down and out in Philadelphia to riding critical acclaim. THE PEOPLE (HAMMER + JUBÉ)

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:45, £6.50

The songs on The People’s record offer a new, psychedelic folk interpretation of traditional musical genres. Tender fingerstyle passages are interrupted by occasional bombast as choral harmonies lighten forlorn strings. THE MENZINGERS

ORAN MOR, FROM 18:30, £15

Four-piece punk/indie band from Philly. HAPPYNESS

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £9

London-based trio still enjoying the benefits of debut album Weird Little Birthday, and 2016’s more recent EP Tunnel Vision on Your Part, via Moshi Moshi. CEOL ‘S CRAIC: TWA LEIDS / DA CHANAN

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:45, £10 - £12

Mairi Morrison and Alasdair Roberts revisit their Scots/Gaelic album ‘Urstan’. Maeve Mackinnon and Fiona Hunter present their new Gaelic/Scots project. TEENCANTEEN (JOYCE DELANEY + AGONY AUNT)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £8

Delightful riot of massive beats, swooning harmonies and the gutsysweet wonder of front woman Carla Easton and Co. JAKE ISAAC

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, TBC

Ascendant South London singersongwriter.

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £14

JOE GODDARD

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12.50

The Greco Roman-signed electronic talent plays King Tut’s. TOBY BEVAN

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, TBC

Free jazz saxophonist brings an eclectic lineup to the Southside. SISTER JOHN

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS , FROM 19:30, £7.50

Lo-fi lushness from multi-instrumentalists Sister John. Joined this evening by the enchanting Djana Gabrielle.

Mon 24 Apr BARRY ADAMSON

FUTURE ISLANDS

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Future Islands play Barrowlands tonight following the release of shiny new LP The Far Field, their first record since synth-pop winner Singles.

Fri 28 Apr THE KOOKS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £25

Tousled-haired Brighton scamps with a kit-bag of guitar-based pop offerings, if anyone’s still listening? HAYSEED DIXIE

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £17

US novelty metal legends playing a mixture of hard rock cover versions and original compositions. CLEAN CUT KID

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

New Liverpool band making waves after the release of new EP, We Used to be in Love. SCISSORFIGHT

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £15

Punk rock band who formed over 20 years ago in Portsmouth. LOS CAMPESINOS!

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £14

The energetic Welsh ensemble do their overwrought folk-punk thing, touring on the back of yet another album of indie gems. I.SOLAR (FENELLA)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8

A band who have, in their own words ‘risen like an agitated phoenix from the flames of Casual Sex’. Their single Concubine, released on Little Tiger, is a banger. GET OUT STRONG (EMBERS + THE PALE KIDS + SISTERKIND)

SPLASHH (HOME$LICE)

EP launch from the Ayrshire alt/ rock band who started gigging in January 2017.

The Manchester/London artist brings soulful psychedelia and industrial dub to the Wah Wah Hut. THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8

Australia, New Zealand and UKstraddling alternative dreamers.

Tue 25 Apr

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6

Sat 29 Apr THE LOUNGE KITTENS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £8.50

JAMBIWAI O2 ABC FROM 19:00, £14

The Lounge Kittens showcase their album, Sequins and C-Bombs, on an October-tide tour

RAT BOY

Indie rock’n’roll band from Scotland.

South Korean post-rock band signed to Belly union in the UK. O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £13

THE HAMMERIN’ TONGS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

THE BELLYBUTTONS

Parlophone Records mischief maker Rat Boy (AKA Jordan Cardy) brings his Jamie T vibes to the stage.

Fuzzkill punks play a show at MONO.

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £8

BARROWLANDS, FROM 20:00, £27.50

JOSH DOYLE

The British-American singersongwriter and Dum Dums lead man comes our way.

Wed 26 Apr SIV JAKOBSEN

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7.50

Mellow indie folk from an Oslo singer-songwriter who’s been compared more than once to Laura Marling. SPEAR OF DESTINY

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £16

Anthemic punk power rock band Spear of Destiny were founded in 1983 by singer and songwriter Kirk Brandon. TINARIWEN

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Tuareg musicians mixing electric blues and traditional Malian vocals, with lyrics rather hypnotically sung in French and Tamashek. WILLIAM MCCARTHY

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12.50

William McCarthy of AUGUSTINES.

FOLKLUB: JAMES LINDSAY + JOSIAH & LUDWIG THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 20:00, £10

Folklub returns, with bassist and composer James Lindsay and fiddle/guitar duo Josiah & Lugwig. MEAT WAVE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8.50

The Chicago garage punks plunge y’all into slacker rock heaven.

Thu 27 Apr SHAWN MENDES

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £27.50 - £45

Canadian singer-songwriter of Vine fame, apparently. JUDAS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7.50

KIERAN ROBERTSON

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

Gothic dark rock from local artist Kieran Robertson.

Listings

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £5

A serving of metal and math from the Glasgow four-man.

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £15

London-based four-piece outfit with members from across the UK.

COLOURS TO SHAME (BLACKWORK + ISLASORNA)

MONO, 12 KING’S COURT, 21:00, FREE

CHRISTY MOORE WITH DECLAN SINNOTT

THE HUNNA BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £16

Hertfordshire indie-rock four-piece. THE SKINTS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £16

London quartet whose rock sound takes in reggae, dub, ska, pop and roots as it goes.

STAG & DAGGER (DMA’S + GOLD PANDABABY + STRANGEAINE + CAHILL + DEAD PRETTIES + DELPHI + FUTURE GET DOWN + MORE)

VARIOUS VENUES FROM 14:00, £20 - £25

Now a firm fixture on Glasgow’s music calendar, the one-ticket, multi-venue export takes over Weegieland on 30 Apr-1 May with a suitably eclectic line-up set across multiple venues. See staganddagger.co.uk for line-up breakdown nearer the time.

Edinburgh Music Sat 01 Apr

MALACH + RUFUZ + DJ GRUBAZ

THE BONGO CLUB, 19:30–22:00, £18

Hip-hop DJ trio back with more of the good stuff. BCB

THE VOODOO ROOMS,19:00, £7

Alternative blues ‘n’ roll five-piece equipped with a pounding rhythm section, layered vocals, catchy guitar riffs, heavy distortion and screaming harmonica. SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: PHILIPPE HERREWEGHE CONDUCTS SCHUMANN

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £32.50

Conductor Philippe Herreweghe leads SCO and pianist Martin Helmchen in an evening of Schumann, Bach and Mendelssohn. JACUZZI GENERAL (MR TC)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Master of hot jets and musical lather Jacuzzi General is joined by Glasgow producer MR TC. Signed to Optimo Music his DJ sets are known for genre-hopping, delving into left field disco, tropical oddities, house and techno.

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, TBC

WASHINGTON IRVING

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

The indie-folk locals (whose story began in a basement flat back in February 2008, fact fans) take to the stage. CLASSIC SHOCK

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 16:30, £15

Dose of country rock’n’roll for ya. THOR & FRIENDS (KITE BASE)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

Swans man and accomplished percussionist Thor Harris plus pals Peggy Ghorbani and Sarah “Goat” Gautier. Minimalism to the, er, max. SCOTLAND CALLING 2017

O2 ABC, FROM 12:00, £30

Hard-styled one-day festival featuring The Toy Dolls, The Exploited, Angelic Upstarts, UK Subs, Chelsea, 999, The Restarts, Gimp Fist, Hi Fi Spitfires and Spunk Volcano & The Eruptions.

REVOLVER (JACK RABBIT SLAMS + WEEKEND DEBT + THE CARTEL + SKELFS)

THE RECORD FACTORY, FROM 19:30, £4 - £5

Indie, blues, rock’n’roll and more.

Sun 30 Apr JAPANDROIDS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £14

The Vancouver garage rock duo step the energy levels up a gear, as per.

ENUFF Z NUFF (VENREZ)

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £13 - £15

With a new album and a selction of classics, Chip and the Chicago legends are back.

Wed 05 Apr AMY MACDONALD

The Bishopbriggs lass hits the road for her first UK tour in four years. DAN OWEN (HUGH KELLY + OLLIE LEE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £13 - £15

Ross hits Bannermans to play a classic Manowar set. EDINBURGH FOLK CLUB (GERRY GREEN)

SUMMERHALL, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £10

Gerry Creen, Belfast born and bred, is acknowledged as one of Belfast’s finest singer-songwriters. THE ORIELLES (THE SNUTS + QUIET AS A MOUSE)

LEITH DEPOT, FROM 19:00, £8

Lovers of surfer and pop music unite for this show at Leith Depot.

Thu 06 Apr

SCO: SCHUMANN SYMPHONY NO 3

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £32.50

Schumann’s Rhenish combines the energy of Beethoven’s the Eroica and Pastoral symphonies. with Schumann’s own highly lyrical gift.

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion and sensual positivity Jacuzzi General, exploring music from around the world.

POSABLE ACTION FIGURES (FOREIGNFOX + THE MOTION POETS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

This year looks set to be a breakout year for Posable Action Figures, having already been tipped as one of Vic Galloway’s bands to watch in 2017. BEN GLOVER

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 20:00, £13

Irish-born, Nashville-based singersongwriter Ben Glover has a rich, powerful voice and music that mixes Americana from his adopted home in Nashville with his native Irish soul. HUXTABLE (ARROWS OF TIME + PYRO)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Riff rock duo band based in Ayrshire Huxtable play a show with the bassy, percussive sound of London band Arrows Of Time and rock band PYRO. HOLY MOLY & THE CRACKERS

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 19:30, TBC

Seven-piece gypsy folk-rock band from the UK. Founders Conrad Bird, Ruth Patterson and ‘Squeezebox’ Rosie lead the band with compelling charismatic style.

Fri 07 Apr COLIN HAY

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £20

The Grammy Award-winning frontman of Men At Work gives his forthcoming solo release a live airing. RSNO BRAHMS FOUR

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £39

Peter Oundjian conducts Jonathan Biss and RSNO in a night of Brahms, Beethoven and Beamish.

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30, £13

Edinburgh Blues Club is a Social Enterprise established to harness popular support for a regular blues events in Edinburgh to ensure that the city, bringing in a roster of quality touring blues acts. DOMICILES (MIKE GEIST)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

From sneering garage rock and throbbing motorik to blissed out space rock via experimental noise music, you’ll see it at Sneaky’s tonight. ALUNAH (KING WITCH + PYRE OF THE EARTH)

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £8 - £11

Doom Psych and classic heavy metal. DED RABBIT

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

Originally from Yorkshire, Ded Rabbit moved to the Highlands in 1996 and through the isolation and a developing love of music, the brothers started playing music together for over ten years. CITY OF GLASS 007: BOOK GROUP + CHUCHOTER + WOJTEK THE BEAR

LEITH DEPOT, 20:00–23:00, £4 - £5

Sparkling indie-pop from Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Sat 08 Apr PALACE

THE DIRTY STRANGERS (TYLA’S DOGS D’AMOUR + THUNDERFUCK & THE DEADLY ROMANTICS)

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £8 - £11

The legends from london promote their new album with two killer supports. FIRRENES (ROSS ARTHUR)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £8

The Firrenes are a five-piece band from Edinburgh, playing original, song-based rock music and drawing on influences as varied as folk, soul, 70s rock and classical. FROST*

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £15

Prog rock supergroup featuring a winning combo of producers and pop songwriters. TOM HINGLEY AND THE KAR-PETS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £8 - £10

Tom Hingley and the Kar-Pets play the hits of the Inspiral Carpets.

Sun 09 Apr BRITISH SEA POWER

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £16

Acclaimed indie rock band based in Brighton.

MEGALOMATIC (A RITUAL SPIRIT + DELUDED BUDDHAS + FREAKSHOW)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

A Weegie rock band with a touch of prog to their timbre. JON MACKENZIE

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30, £8

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £10

Singer and guitarist from Edinburgh who is readying to launch his first release as a solo artist.

LYLO (THE BELLYBUTTONS + JOE GERMLIN)

THE FESTIVAL THEATRE 7:30PM, £24.50 - £27.50

The London alternative rock foursome plays tracks from their debut album, So Long Forever. WEE RED BAR, 19:30–02:00, £5

Single launch from the young Glaswegian outfit who describe their thang as ‘dream pop with a hint of lemon’. Followed by a bit of a party.

OTHER THUMPERS #3 (DONALD DUST)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Edinburgh label Another Thumper’s residency returns with some special guests and your host Donald Dust.

NATHAN CARTER

The twinkly-eyed young Irish country singer returns.

Mon 10 Apr SHAWN JAMES

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £7 - £9

Bluesy folk-soul from the Chicagoborn multi-instrumentalist.

PARADISE PALMS, 17:00–22:00, FREE

THE LOTUS EATERS

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 19:00–22:00, £6 - £7

Russian-borna artist and musician Oleg Gitarkin stops by Broadcast with his ‘low-brow musical concoctions’.

Union Canal launch their Archipelago EP, with a live set from an expanded five-piece Union Canal, plus support from Room of 95.

EDINBURGH BLUES CLUB (GILES ROBSON BAND + THE GERRY JABLONSKI BAND)

Francis Doso and Andy Danet take to the stage for an evening of tropical disco tit-bits and general musical revelry. With David Barbarossa!

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £12.50 - £49.50

MESSER CHUPS

UNION CANAL (ROOM OF 95)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

PARADISE RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL) PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Snotty, angst-riddled indie punk influenced by Arctic Monkeys.

FRANCIS DOSOO + ANDY DANET EASTER SUNDAY SPECIAL (DAVID BARBAROSSA)

The Scouse duo signed to Sylvan Records head our way.

Acoustic-driven British pop unit led by singer Brad Simpson.

Tue 04 Apr

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £27.50

Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist gets stuck in at Barrowlands. THE VAMPS

Edinburgh Music

THE PHANTOMS (THE PHANTOMS PLUS GUESTS)

WEE RED BAR, 21:00–03:00, £4 - £6

PARALLEL LIGHTS (WAX + BAD PROTAGONIST CLUB + ATTIC CHOIR)

A What’s The Noise showcase live at Cabaret Voltaire. THE RISING SOULS (FUNNYBONE + ALTIUS)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Dynamic soulful rock band hailing from Scotland’s capital. Their music is a punchy and intoxicating amalgamation of rock and soul. Think meaty riffs, intricate grooves and soaring vocals.

HEAVY SCOTLAND (BEHEMOTH) (GRAVE + HAVOK + FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE + WARBRINGER + DYSCARNATE + SODOMIZED CADAVER + CENTRILIA) CORN EXCHANGE, 13:00–23:00, £50 - £80

Heavy metal weekender featuring top players and longstanding metal veterans.

Sun 02 Apr

LAKYOTO (LUNA DELIRIOUS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

LaKyoto is representative of a new sound, for young people in ‘The Old City’. The band make electronic pop music with colossal melodies. See the live show tonight. HEAVY SCOTLAND (ARCH ENEMY) (FINNTROLL + DESTRUCTION + INGESTED + BLAZE BAYLEY + EVIL INVADERS + SHIRAZ LANE + DISPOSABLE)

CORN EXCHANGE, 13:00–23:00, £50 - £80

Heavy metal weekender featuring top players and longstanding metal veterans.

Mon 03 Apr BERNIE TORME

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £13 - £15

The legendary guitarist returns to Edinburgh with full band.

THE SKINNY

SNUFF LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £15 - £17

Legendary punk rockers play a show round our way.

Tue 11 Apr HAFDIS HULD

SNEAKY PETE’S, FROM 19:30, £10

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £22

Extraordinary, raw and funky brass band from the streets of New Orleans.

Wed 12 Apr

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING: THE RACE FOR SPACE LIVE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £28

PSB celebrate Yuri’s Night (the celebration of human endeavour in space) with a performance of their hit album The Race for Space. MARY OCHER

PARADISE PALMS, 20:00–23:59, FREE

NYOS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: THE AMERICAS USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £10 - £16

NYOS Symphony Orchestra perform an array of exhilarating and horizon-broadening compositions inspired by The Americas under the baton of conductor Tecwyn Evans.

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

LOGAN’S CLOSE

Fri 21 Apr

PINS

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7.50

Cherished Mancunian quartet whose forthcoming EP features a guest vocal from the legendary Iggy Pop. LITTLE LOVE & THE FRIENDLY VIBES

Power pop influenced by the 80s. THE VOODOO ROOMS, FROM 19:30, £5

Local Edinburgh rock’n’roll band Logan’s Close launch new single Listen To Your Mother.

Sun 16 Apr

HANNAH JARRETT-SCOTT (GUS HARROWER AND BAND + JON MCKENZIE + DANIEL BLAKE)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–23:00, £5 - £7

Hannah’s back on home soil for the launch of new record PICTURES, featuring Marco Cocco alongside a hand-picked band of Scottish musicians including James Grant and Jon McKenzie.

Mon 17 Apr CIGARETTES AFTER SEX

THE CAVES, FROM 19:00, £11

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

EDINBURGH FOLK CLUB (ELLA MUNRO)

Tue 18 Apr

THE FLOCKING MURMURATION

SUMMERHALL, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £10

Ella Munro is a young folk singer hailing from the Isle of Skye, on the west coast of Scotland.

Thu 13 Apr EDDI READER

FESTIVAL THEATRE, FROM 19:30, £23.50 - £25

Reader weaves her velvety vocal palette around a selection of traditional and contemporary songs. PARIS YOUTH FOUNDATION

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7.50

Liverpool alt rock unit stopping by for a Scottish show, PICTISH TRAIL (HAPPY MEALS)

THE CAVES, 20:00–01:00, £12

Former Fence Records mogul Johnny Lynch visits The Caves following the 2016 release of Future Echoes. THE BLUESWATER (SMITTEN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

JOE BONAMASSA

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £55 - £82.50

The American blues rocker returns to Scotland for a stint.

PLAZA (ECHO ARCADIA + THE YOUTH AND THE YOUNG + MAD TANGO)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Since forming in late 2015, PLAZA have quickly gained a reputation for their intelligent songwriting and chaotic live shows around the UK, which includes supporting the likes of Rat Boy, Gengahr, JAWS and High Tyde.

Wed 19 Apr SEASICK STEVE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £27.50 - £35.75

Storytelling country-rockin’ bluesman whose tunes are rich with raspy vocals and personalised guitar. SERENDIPITY

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:00, £6

A multi-arts event aiming to become a haven for restless minds. Four bands will play during the evening, and they will be sharing their space with an exhibition.

XANDER LYONS (WENDY MCAUSLAN + BARON SALMON) LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:30–22:30, £4 - £5

A night of bluesy rock with a stoner edge.

EP Launch night from Xander Lyons, a singer-songwriter from the Borders.

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

Thu 20 Apr

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £6 - £8

CRUEL EXPERIENCE

Fuzz rock four-piece from Lucca. REVERIEME (OCEANCODE + ANNIE BOOTH + ALANNAH MOAR)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £6 - £8

Fri 14 Apr THE ACADEMIC

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

Band of four chucking out indie rock intelligence. LEWIS CAPALDI

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

The Lothian-based singersongwriter brings his sonic wares to Edinburgh. DUNEDIN CONSORT: MATTHEW PASSION

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £10 - £25

The Dunedin Consort perform St Matthew Passion by JS Bach for the fifteenth year in succession.

Sat 15 Apr

JOHN MCCUSKER BAND

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £18

The multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer plays Queen’s Hall following the 2016 release of Hello, Goodbye.

April 2017

THE CAVES, 20:00–00:00, £10

The Skinny curates a melting pot of live performances by innovative acts, spanning music, spoken word, dance and film – all matched with Black Bottle whisky cocktails created by some of Edinburgh’s best bartenders. Ticket price includes 5 cocktails.

Ambient pop from one of Brooklyn’s hottest exports, stopping off as part of their European tour.

Gritty folk rock at Bannermans.

THE ECLECTICA EXPERIMENT: IKLAN (FT LAW HOLT + LEITH CONGREGATIONAL CHOIR) + TIMOTHY LONDON + FAITH ELIOTT + FUTURE GET DOWN + IONA LEE + DANIEL PIPER+ MERSAULT + JENNY LINDSAY)

THE SHIRES

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £22.50 - £32.50

Hertfordshire and Bedfordshirehailing country duo riding a wave of success.

WORST SHIT GIG (CHELSEA ELVIN + STOP THE RAIN + THE SNUTS)

THE BONGO CLUB, 19:00–22:00, £7 - £8

Don the shittest shirt you own for a night of gigs and competitions in aid of Scottish Association of Mental Health.

VOICES OF MIDLOTHIAN

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £3 - £5

Six chours from a selection of Midlothian secondary schools cover classical, jazz and pop songs. RSNO BEETHOVEN ONE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £39

Usher Hall hosts an RSNO showcase of music by composers who ‘took a step too far’. Features work by Sibelius, Mahler, Sibelius and Beethoven.

EDINBURGH BLUES CLUB (THE JENSEN INTERCEPTORS + SMITTEN +, NEIL WARDEN + GARY MARTIN TRIO)

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30, £13

SNEAKY PETE’S, 20:00–23:00, £6

Indie rock from local turf.

DER HIMMEL UBER BERLIN (LOCKHOWL + THE OMEGA CORRIDOR) BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £8

A night of dark post-punk. NEW URBAN FRONTIER

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

Edinburgh-based politicised punk/ dub/soul/ska seven-piece. EUGENE KELLY (WITHERED HAND)

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £14

ANDY OLIVERI & THE MOUNTAINEERS

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

Andy Oliveri & the Mountaineers explore all angles of their collective musical heritage on their debut album which they will be showcasing on this tour.

Monthly party night that celebrating the best in soul and disco from the 60s, 70s and 80s. HONEYBLOOD

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £13.75

Despite their minimal setup, Honeyblood’s songs are fully formed and perfectly assured. With nothing extraneous, their music is driven through tightly-bound instrumentals and laced with the sheer strength and beauty of Stina’s voice. FIRES IN THE ALPS (REGRETTA GARBO + THE LINE)

LEITH DEPOT, FROM 19:30, £5

Edinburgh based four-piece play loud shoegaze post-rock.

NORTHERN STREAMS 2016 (HARTA + THE NORTHERN STREAMS CEILIDH BAND) THE GRASSMARKET CENTRE, FROM 19:30, £10 - £32

New trio from Skye/Lochalsh, Harta plays an intriguing mix of old Scottish melodies and dance tunes alongside music drawn from the Nordic traditions. Northern Streams Ceilidh Band will also give you the chance to try Scottish, Norwegian and Finnish dances

Sun 23 Apr THE BIG MOON

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £10

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, TBC

WIDE DAYS SHOWCASE (THE SPOOK SCHOOL)

Wide Days Showcase with fuzzypunks Spook School and The Ninth Wave.

NORTHERN STREAMS 2017 (LÄRKA + KLB) THE GRASSMARKET CENTRE, FROM 19:30, £10 - £32

Blending Swedish and Scottish fiddle music and song, new duo Lärka, delve into old music collections and draw inspiration from the history of both their cultures. Crispy Nordic tunes plus original compositions form the core repertoire of the KLB trio.

CHARITY CONCERT FOR REVERSE RETT

A night of live music in aid of a Rett Syndrome Charity.

NOT THE SENSATIONAL ALEX HARVEY BAND (NOT THE SENSATIONAL ALEX HARVEY BAND)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £10

Wide Days Showcase with Glasgow singer-songwriter Declan Welsh and his band; art-pop four piece The Vegan Leather and indie rockers Vistas. THE UNTHANKS

The former Mercury Prize nominees return after a couple of years doing their own thing, set to unleash their dark Northern folk on the stage again. SPECTRES

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

Uncompromising noise rock act who have wowed and startled crowds in equal measure across the UK.

MADE OF ACE (SPAT + DOWN TO KILL + BRATAKUS + AWOL) BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £6 - £8

Punk ‘n’ roll at Bannerman’s.

A four man unit hailing from Dundee who’ve been pals and bandmates since the age of 13.

THE CAVES, 20:00–23:00, £12

Sat 29 Apr

ZAHED SULTAN: RESONANCE

Multimedia artist, Zahed Sultan, presents ‘Resonance’ for his debut performance effort across the UK. CHRISTY MOORE (DECLAN SINNOT)

USHER HALL, FROM 20:00, £27.50 - £30.25

Irish folk singer-songwriter, also known for being one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts. JT FORREST (GAZING + CRAIG MEIGHAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

Hailing from the East End of Glasgow comes a wave of acoustic guitars, electronic beats and synths in the form of Jt Forrest. Expect a party. DEAD AUDIO SAINTS

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

Electronic-infused rock noise.

EDINBURGH FOLK CLUB (FIL CAMPBELL & TOM MCFARLAND)

SUMMERHALL, 19:30–22:30, £7 - £10

Irish singer Fil Campbell and her percussionist husband Tom McFarland, have been part of the Irish, British and European folk scene since the early 90s.

ACADEMY STRANGERS (ACADEMY STRANGERS + BELLAROSE + COLOUR TRAP + SLEPT IN FOR FAME)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Explosive four-piece alt rock band based in Edinburgh who bring an energetic live performance full of powerful riffs and catchy lyrics to LBA.

Thu 27 Apr

THE LORNA REID QUINTET: TRUTH IN MY HEART

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 20:00, £16

Lorna Reid brings her gang of esteemed jazz musicians to Queen’s Hall.

SCO: BEETHOVEN - MISSA SOLEMNIS

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £32.50

SCO and a team of talented soloists take on Beethoven’s four-year labour of love, Missa solemnis and more.

CRUSHED OUT

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £6

TINARIWEN

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Tuareg musicians mixing electric blues and traditional Malian vocals, with lyrics rather hypnotically sung in French and Tamashek. WILLIAM MCCARTHY

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £12.50

William McCarthy of AUGUSTINES. CAMPBELLS WILD + ALKANES + BROADSEA

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £10

A three-piece alt-rock/alternative metal band based in Aberdeen, Scotland. FFO Biffy Clyro, Arcane Roots, Oceansize and Fightstar. KEBU

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 20:00, £10

Finnish synth weaver who also goes by Sebastian Teir.

Wed 26 Apr JUDAS

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7.50

London-based four-piece outfit with members from across the UK. CHRISTY MOORE WITH DECLAN SINNOTT

USHER HALL, FROM 20:00, £25 - £27.50

Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist gets stuck in at Barrowlands. TRADFEST: BAGPIPES GU LEÒR

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £20

A Celebration of Scotland’s rich piping story featuring performances from the likes of Callum Armstrong & George Pasca, Brighde Chaimbeul and Allan MacDonald & Seonaidh MacIntyre.

Find full listings at theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

AL STEWART

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £23.50

Along with buds Dave Nachmananoff and Tim Renwick, Al Stewart performs his legendary debut Bedsitter Images and other best-of numbers. SNJO PORGY AND BESS / SKETCHES OF SPAIN

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £26.50

Concert paying homage to Miles Davis and Gil Evans, celebrating their contributions to the world of jazz. SOUNDHOUSE PRESENTS: KAELA ROWAN BAND (KAELA ROWAN BAND)

SUMMERHALL, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £12

Kaela Rowan presents songs from her critically acclaimed 2016 release The Fruited Thorn, accompanied by her band James Mackintosh (Shooglenifty, String Sisters, Grit Orchestra) and Ewan MacPherson (Shooglenifty, Salt House, Fetch). PMX (PMX + SPECIAL GUESTS)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £6 - £8

Melodic punk bands whose debut album Rise and Shine was released worldwide.

Sun 30 Apr WARD THOMAS

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £17

Country duo made up of twin sisters Catherine and Lizzy, who tour in support of new release, Cartwheels.

SOUNDHOUSE PRESENTS: EVENT HORIZON: JEAN DAMEI & GÉZA FRANK

SUMMERHALL, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £12

This concept project, devised by Géza Frank & Jean Damei, aims to create a new sort of music, fusing the group’s eclectic compositional styles with astrophysical and cosmological themes. Part of TradFest. MESSER CHUPS

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30, £12

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

The ‘low-brow musical concoction’ of Russian-born artist and musician Oleg Gitarkin, employing audio collage methods to create thick layers of sampling from trash horror films, cartoons, and other diverse sources.

SILVER STORY

Polish reggae and dancehall vocalist, songwriter, composer and musician.

BRYDE (SKJØR + THE NOWES)

Fierce singer-songwriter who’s often compared to Savages and Tori Amos. BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Dean Owens and traditional fiddle player Amy Geddes come together to form a brand new duo performing transatlantic folk songs. Part of TradFest.

Tue 25 Apr

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 21:00, TBC

Expect lusty shanties, punk folk roar-alongs and crazed whirls of love, fighting and hardcore drinking.

Mon 24 Apr

TEVIOT UNDERGROUND, FROM 19:00, TBC

WIDE DAYS SHOWCASE (DECLAN WELSH)

MODEL AEROPLANES TEVIOT UNDERGROUND, FROM 19:00, £5

Rock and pop punk from St Helens.

Punk ‘n’ roll surf meets country punk.

Wide Days Showcase with singersongwriter Emme Woods and brothers Jacob and Rory Green (aka JR Green).

SKINNY LISTER THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30, £12

Not The Sensational Alex Harvey Band’ are not a tribute band. They are a rock‘n’roll outfit... who happen to only play music by The Sensational Alex Harvey Band.

WIDE DAYS SHOWCASE (EMME WOODS)

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:00, £20

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £7 - £9

BOOGIE NIGHTS

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £4 - £6

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, TBC

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 £32.50

Triaxis return with new singer and killer tunes.

VoxBox opens 8am-6pm, stocked up with as many exclusive RSD releases as they can get, as well as their usual selection of other new and used records. Then 12-6pm nearby venues showcase live music, Q&As and other special events.

Four-piece band based in London, whose sound wanders between the genres of Brit-pop, alt-rock and indie.

Sat 22 Apr

TRIAXIS (DAKESIS)

VOXBOX, 08:00–18:00, FREE

Eugene is a Glasgow born musiciansongwriter who began writing and recording music in 1987 with The Vaselines as well as his band Eugenius.

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: BEETHOVEN THE EROICA

Queen’s Hall hosts SCO for a night of Beethoven’s seminal work The Eroica, featuring Jean-Guihen Queyras on cello.

RECORD STORE DAY PARTY (BC CAMPLIGHT + SAVAGE MANSION + THE LITTLE KICKS + ULTRAS + AYAKARA + THE SON(S) + MIRACLE GLASS COMPANY + MIKE HERON (THE INCREDIBLE STRING BAND) & ANDREW GREIG + MORE TBC)

SOUNDHOUSE PRESENTS: REDWOOD MOUNTAIN: TRANSATLANTIC CROSSINGS

SUMMERHALL, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £12

Fri 28 Apr

EDINBURGH ACADEMY SPRING CONCERT

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £4 - £8

Varied programme of music for choirs, orchestras, concert bands and big band, featuring solos from a selection of Edinburgh Academy final year pupils.

RSNO TCHAIKOVSKY’S PATHÉTIQUE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £39

Nikolaj Znaider conducts RSNO in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s emotive Sixth Symphony. TEENCANTEEN (EMME WOODS + AGONY ANT)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Delightful riot of massive beats, swooning harmonies and the gutsysweet wonder of frontwoman Carla Easton and Co. WOZNIAK

WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00, £5

The Edinburgh-formed noiseniks celebrate their latest release with the usual feedback-fuelled set. SOUNDHOUSE PRESENTS: CONNLA

SUMMERHALL, 20:30–22:30, £10 - £12

Following their Celtic Connections performance at Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall in January, Ireland’s Connla arrive in Edinburgh riding a wave of acclaim. Part of TradFest. DANNY BRYANT BIG BAND SHOW & THE BLACK DIAMOND EXPRESS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £18 - £20

Danny performs with a nine-piece big band, playing re-tooled and rearranged songs from his backcatalogue alongside many of his all-time favourite blues classics.

BEDNAREK

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00, £25

Wed 12 Apr

THE PICTISH TRAIL + MONOLITH

CLARKS, 8PM, £12

Former Fence Records mogul Johnny Lynch.

Fri 14 Apr

GINGER JESUS BOTB: HEAT 3

BAR 15, FROM 19:00, £5 - £6

DIVINE! THE ADMIRAL, FROM 23:00, £4 - £7

Glasgow’s original vintage night moves to the first Saturday of every month! Resident Mr Divine spins an all vinyl blend of northern soul, deep funk, 60s psych, dynamite ska and scorching latin. LEZURE (SVN)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Easy, Grievance, Groucho Underdog, Victorius, The Kalahari’s, VFLambda, ROTU and Kashmir Crows compete for festival stage slots, rehearsal studios, radio airtime and BOTB glory.

La Cheetah welcomes SVN, the cofounder of one of the most quality and consisent labels of the past few years, Sued Records.

Sat 15 Apr

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

GINGER JESUS BOTB: HEAT 4

BAR 15, FROM 19:00, £5 - £6

Josef Lawrence & The Hypocrites, Benedictus, Rose Tinted Eyes, Multistorey Lover, The Rankines, Mercurials, OSKAR Braves and Kryten compete for festival stage slots, rehearsal studios, radio airtime and BOTB glory. 40 YEARS OF PUNK (DRONGOS FOR EUROPE) (DANGERMAN + POTENTIAL VICTIMS + SUNDAY PUNK CLUB + THE JACKHAMMERS + CSOD + ROTTEN APPLES + DELINQUENTS + THE MISPELT + PANIC ATTAK) BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 13:00, £8

Ex-aaactly what it says on its punky lil tin.

Sun 16 Apr THE SECOND COMING

BAR 15, FROM 20:00, £4

Another night of musical frolics and entertainment brought to you by Yvonne Cox, Ellie Diamond, Karma and more. PINS (BABY IN VAIN + YASSASSIN)

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 20:00, £9

Cherished Mancunian quartet whose forthcoming EP features a guest vocal from the legendary Iggy Pop.

Thu 20 Apr FATHERSON

FAT SAM’S, FROM 19:00, £15

The Kilmarnock trio do their alternative rock-meets-powerpop thing.

Fri 21 Apr

HONEYBLOOD (ESTRONS)

BAR 15, FROM 19:00, TBC

I LOVE GARAGE

Garage by name, but not by musical nature. DJ Darren Donnelly carousels through chart, dance and classics, the Desperados bar is filled with funk, G2 keeps things urban and the Attic gets all indie on you. DECADES OF (BLISS ZION) (NEM & LICKSHOTÀ)

JOYTOWN GRAND ELECTRIC THEATRE, 22:00–02:00, £6 - £8

An all female DJ line-up bringing the best in dub reggae. SPITE HOUSE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Queer DJ vibes from DIY legends in the making, Spite House. HOTBOYZ: UKG TIL I DIE (DAN DNR VINYL + SULTAN FT MC OGIE)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £5

The Hotboyz commit their eternal love and devotion to all things swung, broken and vibing with UKG TIL I DIE featuring special guest Dan DnR from Croydon’s legendary DnR Records.

Sun 02 Apr SUNDAY SCIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

As scientific as a club filled with tipsy Sunday night partiers can get, really. LED lights, glow in the dark wands, ‘Science’ cocktails and cannons. Unlikely to instigate any eureka moments, but it’ll do. HOMEWORK (TOM TRAGO + JASPER JAMES)

SUB CLUB, 22:00–04:00, £8 - £12

Recent export to Amsterdam Jasper James and his dutch contemporary Tom Trago get stuck in at Homework.

Mon 03 Apr BARE MONDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

Sat 22 Apr

Lasers, bouncy castles and DJ Gav Somerville spinning out teasers and pleasers. Nice way to kick off the week, no?

BAR 15, FROM 19:30, £7

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

THE VEGAN LEATHER

BURN MONDAYS

Dundee Music

Art-pop quartet from the far-off lands of Paisley.

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Sat 01 Apr

The female-fronted covers band headline a show at Beat Generator.

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 20:00, £5

Tue 04 Apr

POSABLE ACTION FIGURES

FIREFLY, 19:00, TBC

Electro-blues, pop-rock twopiece from Edinburgh. Support from band of brothers Ded Rabbit.

Fri 07 Apr

GINGER JESUS BOTB: HEAT 1

BAR 15, FROM 19:00, £5 - £6

Millsyeck, Razor Sharp Dogs, True Romance, Captain Island, Sonorous, Nick Shane and Demi Mcmahon compete for festival stage slots, rehearsal studios, radio airtime and BOTB glory.

REMEMBERING DUNDEE PUB FOREIGNERS (CHERRY BOMBZ)

MICKEY 9S + JACKAL TRADES + CHERRY DIESEL + SONIC BUCKER + THE MAMERTINES

CONROY'S BASEMENT, 19:00, £8-10

A night of raw rock'n’roll, psychedelia and dirty blues.

Fri 28 Apr

THE TREND (OSKAR BRAVE + PLAYING HOUSE + SECOND STORY OPERATOR)

BAR 15, FROM 19:30, £5

The Glasgow party rock band head north.

MT. DOUBT (FOREIGNFOX + SKJOR )

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 20:00, £6

Dark pop from Mt. Doubt following the launch of their single, Thirst, on Scottish Fiction. Accompanied with limited edition craft beer complete with record download code.

Sat 08 Apr

GINGER JESUS BOTB: HEAT 2

BAR 15, FROM 19:00, £5 - £6

More Than 2, Tantra, Astrophe, The Good Doctor, Volcano X, Catch and All Stations Go compete for festival stage slots, rehearsal studios, radio airtime and BOTB glory. HAPPY MEALS + THE TWISTETTES

CONROY'S BASEMENT, 19:00, £7-9

Glasgow synthpop duo (and Skinny favourites) with rsychobilly and 'real-deal indie’ band The Twistettes. LLOYD COLE

THE GARDYNE THEATRE, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Performing a live set of vintage material from 1983 to 1996.

KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’. #TAG TUESDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Indoor hot tubs, inflatables as far as the eye can see and a Twitter feed dedicated to validating your drunkeyed existence. I AM (BETA & KAPPA)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Residents Beta & Kappa take control at Subbie all night long. JORDANNE SIDNEY

Glasgow Clubs Sat 01 Apr

CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs. THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney. LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests. SUPERMAX (DJ BILLY WOODS)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £8

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

Non-stop fun, non-stop energy at Sleazy’s.

Wed 05 Apr

BASSMENT (KRIS BREEZY + GRAEME DREW + ANDY LAKEY)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Breezy and Graeme to take centrestage, playing house and techno and everthing in between. LIGHTSOUT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

House techno brilliance.

Thu 06 Apr HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R'n'B and hip-hop. JELLY BABY

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

DJ Billy Woods, start to finish, open to close.

Listings

Glasgow Clubs UNHOLY

GLITTERBANG

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

Cathouse’s Thursday night rock, metal and punk mash-up.

DOMESTIC EXILE (MORGUE, CONAL BLAKE, KATIE SHAMBLES.)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £4

Glasgow based Industrial and cold-wave cassette label Domestic Exile hosts an Art School-based residency based around label live acts and their personal circle of DJ peers. DON’T DROP: 4TH BIRTHDAY PART II (OCTAVE ONE) (MCEWAN & TORRANCE + RJAY MURPHY)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

SWG3’s Don’t Drop celebrates four big ones with a good old residents’ night. HAVEN X BURST

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Haven host a crossover with the bosses of Edinburgh’s Burst party.

Fri 07 Apr PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like. CATHOUSE FRIDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Screamy, shouty, post-hardcore madness to help you shake off a week of stress in true punk style. JAMMING FRIDAYS

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez. KUNST (DJ GUY + KYLE WEC + KRIS BELL)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

Guy played a vital role in helping initiate the rave scene in and around Cardiff in the early 90s, earning a reputation for meticulous mixing and blending ambitious sounds emerging in the nascent days of house, techno, acid and jungle.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Exactly what it says on its sparkly tin – a dazzling night of disco Europop. WTF FRIDAYS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing (as one might expect) cheesy classics of every hue. FRESH BEAT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £6

Dance, chart and remixes in the main hall with Craig Guild, while DJ Nicola Walker keeps things nostalgic in G2 with flashback bangers galore. ENRICO SANGIULIANO

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £12.50 £14.50

An Italian-based DJ and Producer, a regular Beatport chart-topper and a highly regarded star on Adam Beyer’s DRUMCODE label.

MAGIC CITY (MATSURI) (MULLY KUSH + KEOMA + DCLN)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £5

Matsuri heads up under the neon lights of Magic City, with hip-hop and R'n'B a-go-go.

Sat 08 Apr CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs. LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests. SINGLES NIGHT

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Pop, disco and rock action at Sleazy’s Singles Night.

WE SHOULD HANG OUT MORE (BRAME AND HAMO)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7 - £8

With releases on Heist and Dirt Crew, this Berlin-based Irish production/ DJing duo playing quality house music with undertones of soul.

SUBCULTURE (KINK) SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £12 - £16

Long-running house night with regulars Harri & Domenic, this time welcoming innovative Bulgarian producer KiNK. I LOVE GARAGE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £9

Hivern Discs' Cleveland makes his Scottish debut at Fenix, playing alongside one of Glasgow export Mr TC (Optimo Music). Support from Fenix residents J Walbaum & A.M. COUNTERFLOWS SOCIAL (CLARA! + LETITIA PLEAIDES)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £5.90

Clara!’s mixtape series Reggaetoneras – is made up of 100% female MCs. Letitia Pleiades is an artist, member of dance group G.O.D.S., notorious pop group Fem Bitch Nation and free-noise mongers Thoth. She is also a killer DJ.

Sun 09 Apr SUNDAY SCIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £5

Huntleys & Palmers team up with Healthy to bring in Young Marco for the Glasgoe leg of the Selectors Tour.

Mon 10 Apr BARE MONDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

Lasers, bouncy castles and DJ Gav Somerville spinning out teasers and pleasers. Nice way to kick off the week, no? BURN MONDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

ELECTRIC SALSA (FENIX)

LOVE MUSIC

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Local party starters Fenix have been stirring up a solid name for themselves since their launch, not too long ago. They join ES for a team a b2b stint.

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

SLEAZE (KEITH KARNEL + HANS BOUFFMYHRE + KEYTE + WOLFJAZZ)

KEEP FIT (ROMEO TAYLOR)

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Romeo Taylor gets on the ones at Sleazy’s for a midweek disco.

Tue 11 Apr

Oliver Dene Jones AKA Skream is a British electronic artist hailing from Croydon. See him at Sub Club this April.

KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’. #TAG TUESDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Indoor hot tubs, inflatables as far as the eye can see and a Twitter feed dedicated to validating your drunkeyed existence. I AM (WHEELMAN) (WHEELMAN + BETA & KAPPA)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Local party starter of the Stereotone night and label stops off in Sub Club for the night.

Wed 12 Apr BREEZY AT SLEAZY’S

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

House and techno relaxation for the soul.

Thu 13 Apr HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R'n'B and hip-hop. JELLY BABY

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer. ELEMENT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Ross McMillan plays chart, house and anthems with giveaways, bouncy castles and, most importantly, air hockey. UNHOLY

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

Cathouse’s Thursday night rock, metal and punk mash-up.

SKREAM.

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £18

Fri 14 Apr KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like. CATHOUSE FRIDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Screamy, shouty, post-hardcore madness to help you shake off a week of stress in true punk style. HIGHLIFE ( INGA MAUE + AUNTIE FLO + ANDREW (H&P))

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £6

On the surface Inga Mauer might seem like an unusual Highlife booking, but their remit is to focus on great music from all over the world – and Russia hasn’t yet featured. ANJUNADEEP GLASGOW

SWG3, 21:00, £14-18

Anjunadeep is an independent record label based in London which has become synonymous with soulful and melodic electronic music. This Glasgow stop of their first ever UK tour features Cubicolor, Dom Donnelly, Kidnap Kid and Martin Roth. TIMMY TRUMPET

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, £21

He’s more than his trumpet, this one. Massive prog house music peppered with brass. It’ll be a big night. THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £6

FORMAL INVOCATION

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Goth, post-punk, EBM, synth, coldwave, house, noise and disco. Aaaand breathe.

INTERGALACTIC FUNK SMUGGLERS (ORPHEU THE WIZARD) THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Can you hear the funk, Major Tom? Helmets on, stars out - an intergalactic dance party to knock your space boots off.

RETURN TO MONO (NICOLE MOUDABER) (EDIT SELECT) SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £12

Monthly night from Soma Records, this time playing host to Drumcode stalwart and Circoloco and Carl Cox Revolutions resident Nicole Moudaber. OUERZONE LABEL LAUNCH (DJ STINGRAY + SOLID BLAKE + DOM D’SYLVA + WARDY)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £10 - £12

Drexciyan DJ Stingray 313 brings his fast paced electro and techno sound with support from Copenhagenbased Solid Blake.

WALK THE NIGHT (JD TWITCH + BOSCO + DJ LEZZERQUEST) JOYTOWN GRAND ELECTRIC THEATRE, 22:00–02:00, £5 - £7

An Easter Sunday shindig ft. a mix of house, disco, electro and other floor fillers. Come as you are – it’s what Jesus would have wanted. LIGHTSOUT IS 1: FEAR-E (DIXON AVENUE BASEMENT JAMS)

STEREO, FROM 23:00, TBC

Italo disco, funky house and detroit techno club celebrates with birthday bumps at Stereo.

Sat 15 Apr

CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs.

NOT MOVING (LAURIE PITT)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Thu 20 Apr

LANCE VANCE DANCE

Multi-hued adventure travelling through 70s funk, motown and 80s R'n'B, highlighted with glorious rays of disco sunshine. Or summat. KERRI CHANDLER

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, £24.50

Connoisseur’s mix of old-school jazz, funk and soul for your jivin’ pleasure.

Wed 19 Apr

Amsterdam-based DJ and producer Keith Carnal comes our way to play his Glasgow debut.

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

OLD SKOOL

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Berkeley Suite’s new hip-hop and R'n'B night comes to the Jamaica Street basement for the evening.

South African house, grime, jungle, R'n'B and hauntology – a tropical mix, ayes – this edition with Laurie Pitt on guest duties.

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Kerri ‘Kaoz’ Chandler brings his rescheduled NYD party to Subbie. Expect house, soul and lots of love.

Dance, chart and remixes in the main hall with Craig Guild, while DJ Nicola Walker keeps things nostalgic in G2 with flashback bangers galore.

Listings

A DJ set at Classic Grand from the electro and trance aficionado.

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’.

FRESH BEAT

GARETH EMERY

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 23:00, £19.50 - £24.50

I AM (MAGIC CITY) (MULLY KUSH + KEOMA + BETA & KAPPA)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £15 - £18

Dance icon Marc Kinchen brings good vibes, eclectic samples and infectious beats to Edinburgh. I LOVE GARAGE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

MAKE THINGS HAPPEN (PHIBES + DJ 5IVE + CIARAN MAC + DISCO BAW) JOYTOWN GRAND ELECTRIC THEATRE, 21:00–02:00, £7

Make Things Happen warm up for their stage at this year’s festival at Kelburn. BALKANARAMA (HALLOUMINATI)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £9 - £10

All -singing, all-dancing Balkan orgy, plus belly dancing and free brandy.

Sun 16 Apr SUNDAY SCIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 22:00, £19.50 - £24.50

Part two of Classic Grand’s Easter Weekend rammy, ft. Egyptian trance music duo Ferry Tayle and Michael Hutcheson.

ON THE HOUSE & BROKEN DISCO WITH SHONKY

DRYGATE, 19:00, £10-12

Drygate Brewery are transform their space with an incredible visual and lighting show - along with welcoming Apollonia's Shonky, Raeside, Carter, and Denver Brooks for a well-rounded serving of disco, house and techno. J-BONE: PRESIDENT T (BIG H + LOGAN SAMA + RAPTURE 4D + POLONIS + CHRISSY GRIMEZ + YOUNG POLO + SHANKO)

THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £10

Big H ‘The King of Scotland’ will be the special guest of J-Bone collective’s next outing, alongside his brother President T, plus DJ duties from Logan Sama. MINDSET: EASTER SUNDAY (DANA RUH)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, FROM 23:00, £8 - £12

A Bank Holiday Easter party ft. Gera hailing, Berlin-based house and techno genius Dana Ruh.

Mon 17 Apr BARE MONDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

Lasers, bouncy castles and DJ Gav Somerville spinning out teasers and pleasers. Nice way to kick off the week, no? BURN MONDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

Tue 18 Apr KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’. #TAG TUESDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Indoor hot tubs, inflatables as far as the eye can see and a Twitter feed dedicated to validating your drunkeyed existence.

HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R'n'B and hip-hop. JELLY BABY

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Thursday nighter of chart, disco and party tunes. Can’t say fairer.

STEREOTONE (TARAVAL + ANDREW + WHEELMAN)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

Text Records artist Taraval stops by on his way to play the Panorama Bar the following night, plus Huntley’s & Palmers bossman Andrew. ELEMENT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Ross McMillan plays chart, house and anthems with giveaways, bouncy castles and, most importantly, air hockey. UNHOLY

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

Cathouse’s Thursday night rock, metal and punk mash-up.

Fri 21 Apr PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

I LOVE GARAGE THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 22:00, £0 - £3

Ghost Girls Society take the decks upstairs at Sleazy’s.

NIGHTRAVE X DON’T BE AFRAID (DJ BONE + SEMTEK + NIGHTWAVE)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–04:00, £10 - £12

Nightrave teams up with superb label Don’t Be Afraid to bring DJ Bone under his DIFFER-ENT alias. Support from label boss and ace selector Semtek and Wardy. THE BERKELEY SUITE (ROSS FROM FRIENDS + BETA)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £8

Lo-fi londoner Ross From Friends takes on The Berkeley Suite.

Sun 23 Apr SUNDAY SCIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

Mon 24 Apr BARE MONDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

Lasers, bouncy castles and DJ Gav Somerville spinning out teasers and pleasers. Nice way to kick off the week, no? BURN MONDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like.

Long-running trade night with Normski and Mash spinning the disco beats.

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Tue 25 Apr

CATHOUSE FRIDAYS

Screamy, shouty, post-hardcore madness to help you shake off a week of stress in true punk style. KÖLSCH

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, £19.50

The Kompakt regular and producer behind 2014 hit anthem Cassiopeia plays a headline set. WTF FRIDAYS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

Student-friendly Friday night party, playing (as one might expect) cheesy classics of every hue. FRESH BEAT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £6

KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic midweeker playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’. #TAG TUESDAYS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Indoor hot tubs, inflatables as far as the eye can see and a Twitter feed dedicated to validating your drunkeyed existence. I AM (BRAIN DANCING) (IDAMOS + BETA & KAPPA)

SUB CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Dance, chart and remixes in the main hall with Craig Guild, while DJ Nicola Walker keeps things nostalgic in G2 with flashback bangers galore.

Brain Dancing, masters of the unknown rock the Sub Club.

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, TBC

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

YELLOW DOOR

Wed 26 Apr DRUGSTORE GLAMOUR

A night of contemporary classics, unheard of gems and well-kent belters, all for your general dancing pleasure, natch.

Trashy, tacky, glamorous and ridiculous. Oh, and fun, too. Very fun.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

ULTIMATE BELTERS (DJ TEACHERS)

Suzie Rodden melts the ego and burns the flag of inhibitions.

THUNDER DISCO (MIDLAND) (HAMMER + JUBÉ) SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £12 - £14

The Thunder Disco Club residents churn out the 90s house, techno and disco hits, as is their merry way. Guest spot from UK bass talent Midland. PARTIAL (INTERGALACTIC GARY)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £8

After his previous appearance for Partial last year, Intergalactic Gary gets another invitation to take control all night long.

Sat 22 Apr

CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs. LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Thu 27 Apr BREAKFAST CLUB

Gerry Lyons delivers 80s and 90s pop and rock hits. SILVER DOLLAR CLUB (COTTAM)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £7

Cottam’s sleek edits and mysterious, untitled vinyl releases have earned him respect from house music aficionados around the globe.

Fri 28 Apr PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like. CATHOUSE FRIDAYS

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

Screamy, shouty, post-hardcore madness to help you shake off a week of stress in true punk style. JAMMING FRIDAYS

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez. EZUP

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests.

Another slammer from the EzUp regulars.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £6

DOMESTIC EXILE

Glasgow based Industrial and coldwave cassette label Domestic Exile hosts an Art School-based residency based around label live acts and their personal circle of DJ peers.

FRESH BEAT

Dance, chart and remixes in the main hall with Craig Guild, while DJ Nicola Walker keeps things nostalgic in G2 with flashback bangers galore. HOT HOUSE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Cat Reilly spins the best in joyous party magic.

THE SKINNY

A CELEBRATION OF THE CARTERS SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, £6 - £7

J and Bey seem to have made up again, so SWG3 are hosting a night dedicated entirely to their combined and respective back-catalogues. LOOSE JOINTS (PLO MAN)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, TBC

A first birthday party from the bimonthly Berkeley suite bashers.

NIGHT OF THE JAGUAR 3RD BIRTHDAY (EVA GEIST + MR TC + HANDSOME DAN + EWAN) THE ART SCHOOL, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Night of The Jaguar play weird and enthralling dance music from the dark side of disco ball.

Sat 29 Apr

CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £6

Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs. THE ROCK SHOP

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Rock, indie and golden indie classics with resident DJ Heather McCartney. LOVE MUSIC

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

Saturday night disco manned by your man Gerry Lyons and guests. SYMBIOSIS (SPECIAL ED + ALCANE + HEX + CALACO JACK + YELLOWBENZENE)

AUDIO, FROM 23:00, FREE

Innovative drum and bass beats in a relaxed, bass-rich environment. SHAKA LOVES YOU

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Hip-hop and live percussion flanked by wicked visuals. I LOVE GARAGE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10 - £12

For DABJ’s second residency party they invite Unknown To The Unknown boss man DJ Haus. JUSTIN ROBERTSON + EWAN PEARSON

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £8

Two house music legends in one at TBS.

Sun 30 Apr SUNDAY SCIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

SUBCULTURE (THE BLACK MADONNA)

SUB CLUB, FROM 00:00, £12 - £16

Long-running house night with regulars Harri & Domenic, this time welcoming DJ/producer The Black Madonna for a set. TORNADO WALLACE + OOFT

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £5

Bank holiday Sunday appearance from one of the best artists to come out of Australia of late.

Edinburgh Clubs

Edinburgh Clubs THE BOROUGH COLLECTIVE: FIND YOUR RHYTHM (CRAIG SMITH & THE REVENGE) CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Craig Smith and The Revenge (6th Borough Project) monthly takeover. The house specialists released a new album last month, check it out at Cab Vol. BIG ‘N’ BASHY (FLIRTA D + D.O.K)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

Mighty mix of reggae, grime, dubstep and garage with support from Brother Most Righteous, Skillis, Era and Deburgh. FIRECRACKER RECORDINGS: HEAL YOURSELF & MOVE #8 (NUMMER) (HOUSE OF TRAPS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–05:00, £7

Edinburgh-based label Firecracker Recordings have international reach and acclaim, specialising in oddball house, techno and electronics. KEEP IT STEEL: METALMANIA IV

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

TEASE AGE

CITRUS CLUB, 22:30–03:00, £0 - £5

Long-running indie, rock and soul night, traversing the spectrum of classic and modern. BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure. ASCENSION (MR. SINISTER & DJX)

TEVIOT UNDERGROUND, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

Alternative club night, bringing you electro, industrial, EBM, Noise-goth, darkwave and alternative 80s every month.

Since May 2012 Hector’s House, known affectionately to many simply as Hector’s, has become Edinburgh’s one of Edinburgh’s fave midweek shindigs. House, disco, techno, garage, hip-hop, soul, funk across three rooms. BIG ‘N’ BASHY (RAPTURE 4D & POLONIS)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

Mighty mix of reggae, grime, dubstep and garage with support from Brother Most Righteous, Skillis, Era and Deburgh.

Wed 05 Apr COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

The famed Edinburgh metal night returns with its annual wrestlingthemed drinkathon, ft. the usual Bucky, beer, riffs and more riffs, along with riotous wrestling shenanigans.

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

NIGHTVISION (DUSKY)

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:00–03:00, £12.50 - £16.50

ANTISOCIAL PANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5

London production duo Nick Harriman and Alfie Granger, who’ve asserted themselves as one of the leaders of the UK electronic music scene get stuck in at Nightvision.

LOCO KAMANCHI

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

New rave-flavour midweeker at Liquid Rooms, founded by a promoter who has literally NO chill.

A.D.F. (DJ SHERLOCK & DJ GIALLO)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £4

La Belle’s particularly credible house and techno weekly, featuring extensive club decor, top Edinburgh DJs and cheap drinks to boot.

Brand new underground techno night hosted in the new second room of LBA. Expect something diffrent from residents Sherlock & Giallo dropping some of their favourite techno tunes.

LEITH DEPOT, FROM 20:30, FREE

Thu 06 Apr

FREAKS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £6

HELL J SCOTT’S MOONLIGHT CLUB

Monthly evening of old school blues, funk, soul and rock’n’roll records (in digital form) spun by Hell J Scott, in the downstairs bar of The Leith Depot.

Sun 02 Apr THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday. BIG FISH LITTLE FISH (ALEX PATERSON)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 14:00–16:30, £0 - £8

Family fun for the post-rave generation of parents. Helping parents be responsibly irresponsible hosting family raves with real DJs since 2013. Heroes and Villains dress code optional. MINIVAL & COALITION PRESENT: JOY ORBISON (JOY ORBISON)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–05:00, £10 - £11

Joy Orbison is back in the intimate confines of Sneaky Pete's for a very special Sunday session. PARADISE VINYL (PERCY MAIN AND ANDREA MONTALTO)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Purveyors of the most choicest of cuts committed to wax, Percy Main and Andrea Montalto present a monthly showcase of their fave sounds from the Paradise Vinyl collection.

Mon 03 Apr MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Sat 01 Apr

HECTOR’S HOUSE CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £6

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, R'n'B and chart classics, with requests in the back room. MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £2

Strictly House grooves from Edinburgh house DJ don Gareth Sommerville. C.U.L8TER

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £7

A funk, disco, house and garage medley.

Tue 04 Apr TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

JUICE (KA MI + DAN + DECLAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Dan, Declan and Kami make weird waves through house and techno. HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, R'n'B and urban in the back room. PLAYROOM (MARTIN VALENTINE)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Slow jams, edits, Afro, disco, house played by the one and only Martin Valentine. PLEASUREDOME

WEE RED BAR, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

Funk, disco and oh-so-soulful house. ODYSSEY. 009 (TOM TRAGO + NOTHING MORE TO SAY)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £10

Targo, an internationally renowned DJ, producer, live performer and label owner with three critically acclaimed albums to his name returns to Cab Vol for another special shindig.

Fri 07 Apr PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like. COSMIC

STUDIO 24, 21:00–03:00, £4 - £7

CRAIG CHARLES FUNK & SOUL CLUB (SMOOVE AND TURRELL + SHAKA LOVES YOU) LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £12.50 - £15.50

The Supernatural funk phenomena that is Craig Charles returns to Scotland’s capital with his Funk and Soul Club, bringing with him his favourite Geordie soul duo Smoove and Turrell. Further support comes from Glasgow funksters Shaka Loves You. FLIP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, £0 - £3

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect. XOXO

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

The fledgling queer night returns to the Wee Red. L’ANATOMIE (AERA) (KIERAN APTER + HENDRY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £8

Panorama Bar Berlin, Harry Klein Munich, Radion Amsterdam, The BPM Festival in Mexico and John Talabot have all enlisted Aera’s skills.

GLOBAL ROOTS (WITH SOME PULP) (ANDREA MONTALTO) PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Global Roots returns to Paradise Palms for a night of Afrobeat, world music and a large helping of disco and funk, provided by Local collective With Some Pulp headed by the main man Montalto.

Sat 08 Apr BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure. REWIND

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

Monthly party night that celebrating the best in soul, disco, rock and pop with music from the 70s, 80s, 90s and current bangers. TEESH (DJ CHEERS + TOM)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

The All You Can Eat Mind Buffet returns; past guests include Rüf Dug, Kindness, Pearson Sound, Palms Trax, Lord Of The Isles and Project Pablo.

THE BOROUGH COLLECTIVE: TOUCHE (HUGGY & MARCO CAPOZZELLA) CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Monthly celebration of house and disco by some of Edinburgh’s top DJs. DANGER ZONE

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

Edinburgh’s fave AOR night returns – this time with a 3am licence. DJs Ball and Scrotes play power ballads and soft rock anthems all night long. MINGIN

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £8 - £10

Mingin returns, 19 years after their first edition, with Brian Dempster & Alan Joy knocking out the tunes in their own unique styles. FREAKS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £6

La Belle’s particularly credible house and techno weekly, featuring extensive club decor, top Edinburgh DJs and cheap drinks to boot. ALEX PUDDU (THE LEATHER CORRIDOR + KRIS WASABI)

The Cosmic Starship touches down at Studio 24 with Zalien and psyUbik from Planet Monkey, Lorraine from Psilocybe Tribe and Dharma from Edinburgh’s Mescal Tribe. On the second floor will be special guests Floating Machine and Luke Festivalvibe.

The Italian virtuoso and his Copenhagen-based band The golden Age Of Danish Pornography doubleheader a night with Glasgow’s The Leather Corridor. For dessert, DJ Kris Wasabi.

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 19:00–22:00, FREE

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 23:00, £5 - £8

DOMINO CLUB (P-STYLZ)

Weekly institution Domino Club is back, with DJ P-Stylz at the helm of the mighty ship every Friday evening. FLY CLUB (THEO KOTTIS)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £10

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

THE MASH HOUSE, 21:00–03:00, £8 - £10

CRÈME FRESH (KORNÉL KOVÁCS)

One third of the excellent Studio Barnhaus, sublime producer and one hell of a party starter Kornél Kovács comes to Edinburgh for their capital debut.

Sun 09 Apr

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED & SKANKY B) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends. THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

April 2017

Find full listings at theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

Mon 10 Apr

BALKANARAMA EDINBURGH (HALLOUMINATI)

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

All singing, all dancing Balkan orgy, plus belly dancing and free brandy.

MIXED UP

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, R'n'B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £2

Strictly House grooves from Edinburgh house DJ don Gareth Sommerville.

Tue 11 Apr TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more. HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £6

Wed 12 Apr COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines. LOCO KAMANCHI

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more. ANTISOCIAL PANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5

New rave-flavour midweeker at Liquid Rooms, founded by a promoter who has literally NO chill.

Thu 13 Apr

METROPOLIS (GRAHMA & PROPHECY B2B + JUSTIN BICKLER + KIERAN APTER)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £6

House and techno all night long from Metropolis, who’re back in Edina after a recent show at Studio 24. HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, R'n'B and urban in the back room. PLAYROOM (MARTIN VALENTINE)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Slow jams, edits, Afro, disco, house played by the one and only Martin Valentine.

PARADISE RADIO: THE JACUZZI YEARS (ANDREA MONTALTO) (SWEET DIETER)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion and sensual positivity Jacuzzi General. Exploring music from around the world. What it was, what it is, what it shall be.

Fri 14 Apr

DOMINO CLUB (P-STYLZ)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 19:00–22:00, FREE

Weekly institution Domino Club is back, with DJ P-Stylz at the helm of the mighty ship every Friday evening. FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £10

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent. ANYTHING GOES

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £5

Bristol’s Katch Pyro play Anything Goes, bringing in an array of different genres ranging from funk, electro and fidget to potentially some dirty drum and bass and jungle. SUBSTANCE (HELENA HAUFF)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Golden Pudel resident Helena Hauff plays Substance. BIGFOOT’S TEA PARTY (WRICK + JAMES + CHRIS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Big techno from up North. This year they’ve added a foothold in Sneaky Pete’s along with their residencies at Sub Club and Farbfernseher Berlin. FLIP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, £0 - £3

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect.

THE CAVES, 22:30–03:00, £10

THE COCONUT CLUB (JACUZZI GENERAL + NIKNAK NIK)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Palms residents Nikki Kent and Jacuzzi General join forces to create an almighty, musical energy ball that’ll blast you through the weekend on a wave of joy.

Sat 15 Apr THE EGG

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

A salad of genres: 60s garage and soul plus 70s punk and new wave, peppered with psych and indie for good measure. BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure. THE GREEN DOOR

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £2 - £5

A tropical tiki paradise for the mad March Green Door! Expect a mix of rock’n’roll, rhythm & blues, doowop, garage, surf and soul. Oh, and there’ll be the infamous Green Door cake to fuel you through the night. WASABI DISCO (KRIS WASABI)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

DJ Kris Wasabi’s notorious sleazy disco party. DECADE EDINBURGH

STUDIO 24, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

Decade’s back with their infamous 90s versus 00s night. They’ll be mixing up some of their classic blend of pop-punk and party with plenty of cheese. Plus N64, jelly shots, fire pong and good vibes. TERMINAL V TEASER (MAIN INGREDIENT)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

A warm up party for Easter Sunday Festival Terminal V. Join Main Ingredient DJs and others for a big one at PP. THE BOROUGH COLLECTIVE PRESENTS: (KARIZMA)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Tue 18 Apr TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more. HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £6

Wed 19 Apr COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits. LOCO KAMANCHI (DJ MARKY)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

HOT SINGLES 45 RPM SPEED DATING

PARADISE PALMS, 20:00–22:00, £5

Gender-neutral speed dating where each date lasts the length of a song, spun by PP DJs. Ice breakers, lovegames and free cocktails with each ticket.

Thu 20 Apr

JUICE (KA MI + DAN + DECLAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Dan, Declan and Kami make weird waves through house and techno. HI-SOCIETY

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, R'n'B and urban in the back room. PLAYROOM (MARTIN VALENTINE)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

REEKIE (DJ SICK BOY + DJ IDRIS + MCS 2T & JED)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5

PARADISE RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion and sensual positivity Jacuzzi General, exploring music from around the world.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Fri 21 Apr

TERMINAL V EASTER SUNDAY FESTIVAL

Clubber’s favourite of indie classics and baggy greats, from Primal Scream and the like.

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends. ROYAL HIGHLAND CENTRE, 12:00-23:00, £39.50-49.50

Nightvision's huge Easter Sunday party has a line-up that speaks for itself: Adam Beyer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Carl Craig, Charlotte de Witte, KiNK, Kerri Chandler and more are set to blow the roof off this alldayer. The venue is equipped with state-of-the-art audio and visual installations and multiple rooms to accommodate this raft of talent. THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday. EASTER SUNDAY SPECIAL (CHRIS THOMAS + GARETH SOMERVILLE)

PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £3 - £5

FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £10

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent. FLIP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, £0 - £3

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect.

GAMESAREFOREVERYONE VOLUME V

THE CAVES, 20:00–01:00, £10

A one-night-only combination of bar and indie arcade.

DR. RUBINSTEIN AT TEXTURE (DR RUBINSTEIN + TEXTURE RESIDENTS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £10

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Texture are inviting Berlin acid queen Dr. Rubinstein up to the decks for her much-awaited Scottish debut..

Mon 17 Apr

STUDIO 24, 22:00–03:00, £5 - £10

Bridging the young and old teams together, Chris and Gareth play together for the first time for this very special disco affair. MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, R'n'B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £2

Strictly House grooves from Edinburgh house DJ don Gareth Sommerville.

SAMEDIA SHEBEEN

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Edinburgh tropical fun machine Samedia Shebeen continue their monthly residency at Paradise Palms.

Sat 22 Apr MUMBO JUMBO

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £7

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Fresh monthly grime night featuring some of the best talent in 0131 in La Belle Angele’s grimey room 2.

Sun 16 Apr

An electric boogaloo with a roster of Finnish and Scottish DJs playing drum and bass, acid and techno house.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

A trip to Sneak’s from the cofounder of label and club night Night Slugs, who currently prefers a propulsive Chicago house and smooth pop vibe.

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £8 - £10

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED & SKANKY B)

TAKOMO

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 23:00, £5

Funk, soul, beats and bumps from the Mumbo Jumbo regulars and pals.

Slow jams, edits, Afro, disco, house played by the one and only Martin Valentine.

Phonik celebrate their first birthday by lining up Cristoph, a man cementing himself as one of the elite artists on Hot Since 82s Knee Deep in Sound label.

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £10 - £12

Distraction celebrates its launch in the capital with two rooms covering hard dance, trance, techno, house and electro.

L-VIS 1990 FOR WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

Straight from the Baltimore, USA, Karizma brings his unique and unmached DJ skills for an eclectic set of deep house, deep techno, hiphop, jazz and broken beats. PHONIK

DISTRACTION LAUNCH PARTY (KUTSKI + PHIL YORK & JASON CORTEZ + SIMON MCLEOD + DEAN NEWTON & TOMMY KAY + CLAUDIO & GREGSTA + ROSS DIXON + NIALL ANGUS)

THE EDINBURGH SOUL TRAIN

An uplifting journey filled with funk, soul, disco and motown classics, leading you along the tracks with hard hitting horns, punchy rhythms and storming beats. Expect dancers, extra lighting & visuals, soul train danceway and dance-offs.

BUBBLEGUM

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure. RHYTHM MACHINE

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, £6

Rhythm Machine is your Late Night Utopian Getaway, featuring music from DJ Yves & M Favors alongside artwork curated by Adam Castle DEFINITION (MARK BALNEAVES + MARTIN LIGHTBODY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Underground house and techno inspired by the likes of Sonar, Fabric, Pressure and Berghain. A NIGHT OF PULP

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00, £5

Clap along with the common people at Wee Reddie. THE BOROUGH COLLECTIVE: HOMEGROWN (LEL PALFREY + ROSS DAVIDSON B2B)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

First instalments of the Homegrown series, focused on promoting Edinburgh’s finest DJs. FREAKS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £6

La Belle’s particularly credible house and techno weekly, featuring extensive club decor, top Edinburgh DJs and cheap drinks to boot.

Sun 23 Apr

COALITION (BELIEVE + GAV MILLER + STU + JORDAN COCHRANE + GED & SKANKY B) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Weekly bass institution hosted by DJ Believe and friends. THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday.

Mon 24 Apr MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hiphop, R'n'B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) (GARETH SOMMERVILLE) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £2

Strictly House grooves from Edinburgh house DJ don Gareth Sommerville.

Tue 25 Apr TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more. HECTOR’S HOUSE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £6

Wed 26 Apr COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + SQUELCHY)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

Listings

LOCO KAMANCHI THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more. ANTISOCIAL PANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5

New rave-flavour midweeker at Liquid Rooms, founded by a promoter who has literally NO chill. NO DIGGITY (DJ BEEF)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £3

La Belle’s new monthly, bringing the best in 90s R'n'B and hip-hop. Special offers on Patron all night long. Just saying.

JUKEBOX BINGO (SUSAN MORRISON + DJ LOLA LEOPARDSKIN)

PARADISE PALMS, 19:30–22:00, £5

Instead of balls and numbers, match songs and artists to Paradise Palms’ speedy soundtrack and pit your wits against the room in a fast-paced musical challenge to win fabulous prizes.

Thu 27 Apr

PLAYROOM (MARTIN VALENTINE)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Slow jams, edits, Afro, disco, house played by the one and only Martin Valentine. JUICE (CHRISSY) (KA MI + DAN + DECLAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

Chrissy is a genre-bending DJ/ producer with productions on esteemed labels like File Under Disco, Tugboat Edits, Hypercolour, Classic, and on his weekly Year Of Edits blog. He co-runs The Nite Owl Diner label with Alex Burkat. SOUNDSCAPE (MARCUS A + SOLEMAN)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 21:00–03:00, £5

Something new at La Belle: house roots, but eclectic in style. Expect a musical journey and a huge night.

PARADISE RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion and sensual positivity Jacuzzi General, exploring music from around the world.

Fri 28 Apr

DOMINO CLUB (P-STYLZ)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 19:00–22:00, FREE

Weekly institution Domino Club is back, with DJ P-Stylz at the helm of the mighty ship every Friday evening. FLY CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £10

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent. LEN FAKI

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £15 - £20

Berlin based DJ, producer and label owner Len Faki takes out a night of being in constant international booking demand and orchestrates some tech and house for your delectation.

TROUBLE: BANG THE BOX (DALI) (JACKSONVILLE) THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Trouble DJs Hobbes and Erik d’Viking being the freestyle groove to Bongo. KAPITAL (GAISER)

THE CAVES, 23:00–03:00, £12.50

Kapital brings in Minus man Jon Gaiser to show off his fourth studio album, entitled III. LIONOIL (AJUKAJA) (PERCY MAIN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

The Lionoil pride bring together Estionian ‘messiah of leftfield house’ Ajukaja and local legend and imminent label signing Thinktank (aka Colvin Cruickshank) for a momentous meeting of minds. Brace yourselves. BUCKFEST 2017

STUDIO 24, 21:00–03:00, £5

The purple nectar party returns, featuring live music and DJs celebrating the chronic tonic all night long.

WOODLAND DANCE PROJECT AFTERPARTY STUDIO 24, 00:00–03:00, TBC

Studio 24 opens its doors to host the official afterpart for Woodland Dance Project.

LOOSE LIPS X SKOOP X BRISTO BEATS (JAISU) HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 23:00, £5

DIY collective Loose Lips host their first Scottish show, in collaboration with local collectives Skoop Records and Briso Beats.

GASOLINE DANCE MACHINE: &ME (KEINEMUSIK) (CHEAP PICASSO) THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 23:00, £5

GDM get stuck into their regular night at new home The Mash House with help from KEINEMUSIK Berliner DJ &ME.

Sat 29 Apr BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure. RIDE (LAUREN + FRANCESCA)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

Nik and Nak are back for their lastfriday-of-every-month takeover. This month they’re joined by friend and muse Neil Walker, a veteran of the Edinburgh house and techno scene. Saddle up. DILF: APRIL UNDERWEAR PARTY

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Dark, dirty, sexy, men’s only club.

Listings

READING ROOMS, 22:30–03:00, £12 - £14

My Love Is Underground label’s Jeremy Underground heads to, er, Headway.

Sat 08 Apr

BOOK CLUB’S LOCAL HEROES (GASOLINE DANCE MACHINE) READING ROOMS, FROM 22:00, £5 - £10

More classic Italo and straight-up boogie allied with contemporary house and disco, as Edinburgh’s GDM crew do their thing.

Thu 13 Apr

ETHOS 10: FIRST BIRTHDAY

READING ROOMS, FROM 23:30, £3.50 - £5

More classic Italo and straight-up boogie allied with contemporary house and disco, as Edinburgh’s GDM crew do their thing at Book Club.

Sat 15 Apr

AUTODISCO (ERIC DUNCAN)

READING ROOMS, FROM 22:30, £10

Turbo fun 90s and 00s hip-hop & R'n'B party with plenty current hits in the mix. THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £7

Thu 20 Apr

MADCHESTER

Established in 1994, Madchester’s a long0running Edinburgh club night celebrating the baggiest beats from the late 80s and early 90s. BIG ‘N’ BASHY

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Mighty mix of reggae, grime, dubstep and jungle played by inimitable residents Brother Most Righteous, Skillis, Era and Deburgh. HEY QT!

WEE RED BAR, FROM 22:30, £3 - £5

Sweaty dance disco for queer folk and their pals.

THE BOROUGH COLLECTIVE: CRASH GOES LOVE (GARETH SOMMERVILLE & CUNNIE) CABARET VOLTAIRE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

The sexy, soulful, and disco-fuelled side of The Borough Collective. BETAMAX: NEW YORK CITY SPECIAL

RECKLESS KETTLE

READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, £3.50 - £5

Party-throwers Reckless Kettle return for another monthly installment of debauchery at The Reading Rooms. Free zines supplied by Rise&Grind.

Sat 29 Apr

BOOK CLUB (KRIS WADSWORTH)

READING ROOMS, FROM 22:00, £10

Decks manned by Detroit electronic DJ, producer and composer Kris Wadsworth at Book Club.

Glasgow Theatre

STUDIO 24, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Featuring late 70s / early 80s sounds and visuals straight outta The Big Apple, plus your regular dose of the best in post punk, 80s synth, new wave, power pop and more. FREAKS

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £6

CCA: Centre for Contemporary Art TRICKY HAT: THE FLAMES!

19-19 APR, TIMES VARY, £2.50 - £5

Finitribe returns with special guest Timothy J Fairplay (perhaps best known for his work with Andrew Weatherall).

The Flames! reignite this year and perform a vibrant event which will include performance, film and music. Created by Tricky Hat Productions and The Flames, the show will explore stories about life after 50; taking a fresh look at how we approach ageing. Directed by Fiona Miller, with music composed by Mick Slaven and audio visuals designed by Kim Beveridge.

Sun 30 Apr

12 APR, 7:00PM, FREE

La Belle’s particularly credible house and techno weekly, featuring extensive club decor, top Edinburgh DJs and cheap drinks to boot.

FINITRIBE (TIMOTHY J FAIRPLAY) (FRANK) PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

THE CLUB

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/ handle on a Sunday. TASTE

THE LIQUID ROOM, 22:30–03:00, TBC

Liquid Room-based LGBTQ night with house tunes and a welcoming energy.

TEN YEARS OF DISKOPOLIS (JUNIOR G)

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5

The Diskopolis crew celebrate ten years since they started putting on parties. Expect techno, house and disco.

JONAS RATHSMAN AT COALITION (JOE BAILEY + GAV MILLER) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £10

Pete Tong named him Future Star of 2013 and he didn’t disappoint, going on to release huge tracks on Crosstown Rebels, Defected and Kompakt. See him at Coalition.

SEQUEL: A PLAY OF ACTS

The second in a series of plays about some paintings and people looking at them, by Jamie Limond. SURFACE AREA DANCE THEATRE: AURICULAR

16-16 APR, TIMES VARY, £5 - £7

A multi-disciplinary performance art piece inspired by British Sign Language (BSL), sensory processing and communication.

Citizens Theatre HAY FEVER

1-22 APR, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Noel Coward’s classic 20th Century comedy follows the Bliss family and their eccentric behaviour. MY COUNTRY: A WORK IN PROGRESS

1 APR, 7:30PM, £12.50 - £22.50

National Theatre of Great Britain in collaboration with Citizens Theatre and seven other UK theatre companies in a play about the EU referendum. LIFE IS NOT A REHEARSAL

20-21 APR, 6:15PM, £2

Dundee Clubs Sat 01 Apr

ALL GOOD (RICHY AHMED) (VAN D + CALUM & ADDY)

READING ROOMS, 22:00–03:00, £15

The All Good chaps return, bringing in Hot Natured resident Richy Ahmed to showcase his evolutionary take on house.

HEADWAY (JEREMY UNDERGROUND) (ANDY BARTON + GRAEME BINNIE)

The electro-funk, house and disco night celebrates double figures with a classic night of resident vibes.

NIKNAK (NEIL WALKER)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Fri 07 Apr

The Citizens Young Co. presents a short, funny and thought-provoking new piece inspired by Hay Fever.

Govanhill Baths COLLECTIVE ENDEAVOURS

30 APR, 7:00PM, £3 - £8

An evening of multi-discipline music and dance, programmed and led by Collective Endeavours as part of Dance International Glasgow.

Theatre Oran Mor THE PILLOWMAN

7-8 APR, 7:00PM, £10

Basement Theatre and Film Company realise Martin McDonagh Katurian’s The Pillowman, the tale of a short story writer who’s implicated in a series of child murders. Bring a blanket, it’s going to be chilling. GIRLS’ NIGHT OOT

23 APR, 4:00PM, £15

Sequel to feel-good production I Will Survive, featuring songs from the 60s right through to modern hits. Frothy as it comes.

Platform HOME

27-27 APR, TIMES VARY, £4 - £8.50

Exploring a new and unknown world, Home immerses audiences with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities (PMLD) in a multi-sensory story of discovery. Home is the latest bold and exciting production from Frozen Light. 13yrs + ONE MAN SHOE

11 APR, 2:00PM, £4 - £8.50

A delightful show for children and families. Jango, a bumbling theatre caretaker, is suddenly thrust into the limelight and embarks on a journey of highly crafted and heartfelt silent comedy, magically realizing his dream of transforming into a star. JONNY AND THE BAPTISTS: EAT THE POOR

11 APR, 7:00PM, £4 - £8.50

Three quarters of MPs are millionaires. A third of the country lives below the poverty line. A riotously funny epic about friendship, inequality and betrayal from the multi- awardnominated musical comedians. NO SHOW

18-18 APR, TIMES VARY, £4 - £8.50

What do you expect when you go to the circus? The greatest show on earth? No Show joyously and heartbreakingly reveals what lies hidden beneath the glitzy smiles, sequins and drum rolls... OUTSKIRTS 2017

22 APR FROM 15:30, £7.50 - £10

The Glad Cafe TENX9: LOST IN TRANSLATION

13 APR, 7:30PM – 3:00AM, FREE

Tenx9 is a storytelling night where nine people have up to 10 minutes each to tell a real story from their lives. Each night has a theme. Tonight’s theme will be Lost in Translation.

The SSE Hydro GOOD MOURNING MRS BROWN

1 APR-25 NOV, TIMES VARY, £22.50 - £39.50

Mrs Brown and her boys take to the road with a new work written by and starring Brendan O’Carroll. DIVERSITY GENESIS TOUR 2017

11 APR, 6:30PM, £25 - £35

More in the way of backflips and BGT-approved choreography.

SLAP AND TICKLE 21-22 APR, 8:30PM, £5 - £9

Liz Aggiss’ ‘dark and ribald physical commentary’ on sexual taboos and cultural mores. Part of DIG (Dance International Glasgow). VOID /IN-SITU

21-22 APR, 8:45PM, £5 - £9

Mele Broomes’ first solo dance piece VOID is restaged under the M74 motorway. Meet at Shields Road Underground 8.45pm. Part of Part of DIG (Dance International Glasgow). ROSALIND

25 APR, 7:00PM, £9 - £12

BROCADE

Brocade has been developed through intensive residencies in England, Ireland and Scotland, and celebrates energetic alliances between unique female dancers and musicians. EACH OTHER

21-22 APR, 7:00PM, £9 - £12

Israeli-Dutch choreographic duo Ivgi & Greben present a bold new dance piece exploring tensions between different political groups. Part of DIG (Dance International Glasgow).

NELL GWYNN

18 APR, 7:30PM, £18 - £31.50

Jessica Swale’s amusing 2016 Olivier Award winner for Best New Comedy, set in 1660s London with an unlikely heroine. Matinee performances also available.

GIFTED

6 APR-7 JUN, 7:30PM, £8

A play about a young woman whose ‘gift’, which she was born with, is the source of her troubles. A MACHINE THEY’RE SECRETLY BUILDING

13-15 APR, 8:00PM, £7.50 - £10

Proto-type Theater chart a course from the secrets of WWI intelligence through to 9/11, the erosion of privacy, Edward Snowden and the terror of a future that might already be upon us. FASLANE

1-11 APR, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

With her family having worked in Faslane all her life, and with friends protesting at the gates, Fringe First winner Jenna Watt explores what happens when the personal and political collide. CHARLES RENNIE MACKINTOSH

9 APR, 2:00PM, £7.50

Robin Cairns in his new drama telling the story of the Dennistoun lad who became the most radical architect in Europe. CORIOLANUS VANISHES

14-22 APR, 7:45PM, £10 - £16

Written and performed by David Leddy, Coriolanus Vanishes combines the moral ambiguity of the global arms trade with the chaotic challenges of adopting an abused child. JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH

20-22 APR, 8:00PM, £7.50 - £10

An experimental, devised production of Jules Verne’s adventure novel Journey to the Centre of the Earth, written by Jules Verne and directed by Paul Brotherston.

Edinburgh Theatre Bedlam Theatre ISAAC’S EYE

6-15 APR, 7:30PM, £7.50 - £8

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

20-29 APR, 7:30PM, £23 - £44

All-new musical comedy tale based on the characters of The Addams Family, in which Wednesday Addams falls in love with a sweet young man from a respectable family. SCOTTISH OPERA: BLUEBEARD’S CASTLE AND THE 8TH DOOR

5-8 APR, 7:15PM, £19 - £82.50

Scottish Opera and theatre company Vanishing Point collaborate over a production of Bartók’s mysterious Bluebeard’s Castle and a new original piece entitled The 8th Door.

Traverse Theatre OFFSIDE

1-22 APR, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

It is 1881. It is 1921. It is 2017. Four women from across the centuries live, breathe, and play football. While each face different obstacles, the possibility that the beautiful game will change their future is close. GIRL IN THE MACHINE

3-22 APR, 7:30PM, £8 - £18

Mon 03 Apr

MONDAY NIGHT IMPROV (BILLY KIRKWOOD + STU & GARRY)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:00, £4 - £6

Two teams of comics battle it out for the biggest laughs under the watchful eye of ‘Improv Warlord’ Billy Kirkwood.

Tue 04 Apr

RED RAW (CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + SCOTT AGNEW)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:45, £3

An elegant and glowing piece of 21st century magic realism – exquisitely directed by the Traverse’s Orla O’Loughlin.

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Meera Syal’s much-loved novel bursts on to the stage for the very first time.

Usher Hall

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

Potterrow

8 APR, 7:30PM, £26.50 - £28.50

ANITA AND ME

1 APR, 7:30PM, £20.50 - £30.50

HEROINE

Royal Lyceum Theatre

Festival Theatre

Scottish Opera and theatre company Vanishing Point collaborate over a production of Bartók’s mysterious Bluebeard’s Castle and a new original piece entitled The 8th Door.

Jerry Bock’s treasured musical, set in early 1900s Russia. Matinee performances also available.

Tron Theatre

28-29 APR, 6:30PM, £5 - £9

1 APR, 7:15PM, £11.50 - £79

5-8 APR, 7:30PM, £15 - £20

30 APR-2 MAY, TIMES VARY, £15

Tramway

BLUEBEARD’S CASTLE & THE 8TH DOOR

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

Production created in collaboration with rising stars of the British and Korean dance scenes, in which choreographer Cousins unpacks As You Like It and asks whether women must adopt stereotypical masculinity to become equals.

A contemporary exploration of Isaac Newton and his path to the Royal Society. Through a combination of fact and fiction, this piece considers the dreams and career aspirations of a young man and how easily they can be eaten up by superiors and society, reminding us that some things truly haven’t changed and that sacrifices need to be made to ensure that great minds become great people.

Theatre Royal

King’s Theatre Edinburgh

Heroine is a human story of Danna Davis (her nom de guerre), a living survivor of military sexual trauma. Her story is both light and dark, and dives in to what healing and forgiveness really mean.

HAY FEVER

1-22 APR, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Noel Coward’s classic 20th Century comedy follows the Bliss family and their eccentric behaviour. CHARLIE SONATA

29 APR-13 MAY, TIMES VARY, £10 - £30.50

Tender and funny play by Douglas Maxwell, taking in reconciliation, redemption and a quest to save a young girl in a coma. DR STIRLINGSHIRE’S DISCOVERY

1-9 APR, 6:15PM, £10 - £15

A family show ft. Dr Vivien Stirlingshire, a cryptozoologist who’s unveiling her latest discovery at RZSS Zoo (and her brother Henry, who’s skeptical of her claims that wild haggis exist). A NUMBER

6-15 APR, 8:30PM, £10 - £20

Caryl Churchill’s dystopian work in which a man named Bernard realises he’s one of a number of clones resulting from a genetic experiment. Directed by accomplished playwright Zinne Harris.

Summerhall FASLANE

1-11 APR, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

With her family having worked in Faslane all her life, and with friends protesting at the gates, Fringe First winner Jenna Watt explores what happens when the personal and political collide.

LOST IN TRANSLATION: A BILLINGUAL JOURNEY

21 APR, 7:30PM – 8:30PM, £6

Performed in four different languages (Occitan, French, English, Gaelic) and inspired by British literature and pop culture, “Lost in Translation…” is a coming of age tale where fantasies meet reality in a hybrid bilingual form. ON THE RADICAL ROAD: ENACTING HAMISH HENDERSON

27 APR, 7:30PM – 8:20PM, £10 - £12

A radical theatrical fusion enacting the poems and songs of Hamish Henderson; a visual, choral and dramatic movement, lyrical and declamatory, personal and political. Part of TradFest.

The Edinburgh Playhouse SISTER ACT

3-15 APR, 7:30PM, £23.90 - £57.90

Theatrical re-telling of the hit movie, in full singalong glory with original music by eight-time Oscar winner Alan Menken. Matinee performances also available. AIDA

1 APR, 7:30PM, £17.90 - £41.90

A tragic story of war, jealousy and revenge at whose heart is the doomed love of the beautiful Ethiopian slave girl, Aida, and the Egyptian hero, Radames. THE KNIGHTS OF MUSIC

28 APR, 7:30PM, £25 - £42

The giggly silver fox that is Phillip Schofield hosts a show celebrating the Knights and Dames of the entertainment industry.

AUDIENCE WITH IAN WAITE AND NATALIE LOWE

A dance showcase from the Strictly favourites.

Dundee Theatre Caird Hall LA BOHEME

2 APR, 7:30PM, £28

Puccini’s tale of Parisian love and loss starring rising star Russian soprano Ecaterina Danu as Mimi. SAM BAILEY

5 APR, TIMES VARY, £29.50

The X Factor 2013 champion clutches onto her relevancy with a new UK tour. RSNO: BRAHMS FOUR

6 APR, 7:30PM, £14 - £18.50

Conductor Thomas Søndergård leads a rousing performance of Brahms’ Symphony No. 4.

The Gardyne Theatre GRANT STOTT

1 APR, 7:30PM, £12 - £13.50

An evening of chat with a man who’s done it all – or, at least, lots of things. Being in the police, being a radio broadcaster, being on the telly and acting in pantos to name a few.

Whitehall Theatre

PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT

11-15 APR, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

A thoroughly O.T.T. musical adventure in which two drag queens and a trans person get a cabaret gig in the middle of the desert. Matinees available.

GLASGOW HAROLD NIGHT (IMPROV GLASGOW)

One hilarious show, completely improvised by two teams, based off an audience suggestion. MARC JENNINGS: SMART FUNNY

YESBAR, FROM 00:00, £4 - £5

Eng Lit grad from Clydebank and comic who’s been nominated for a whole sideboard of awards.

Wed 05 Apr

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material. COMEDIAN RAP BATTLES (THE WEE MAN)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:00, £4 - £6

Comedy and hip-hop clash in rap battles, a concept show which garnered a 5 star review and nuff respect at the Fringe.

Thu 06 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (KEIR MCALLISTER + JONNY PELHAM + JULIA SUTHERLAND + STUART MCPHERSON + JOE HEENAN) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase. YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £5

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 07 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (KEIR MCALLISTER + JONNY PELHAM + JULIA SUTHERLAND + STUART MCPHERSON + JOE HEENAN) THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Glasgow Comedy Sat 01 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (JOHN GORDILLO + DAMIAN CLARK + ASHLEY STORRIE + BRUCE DEVLIN)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sun 02 Apr

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE (DAMIAN CLARK + KIRI PRITCHARD-MCLEAN + RACHEL FAIRBURN + MICHAEL REDMOND)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

GLASGOW KIDS COMEDY SHOW (DAMIAN CLARK + KIRI PRITCHARDMCLEAN + ROB KANE) THE STAND GLASGOW, 15:00–16:30, £4

Kids Comedy Best Suited To 8 -12 Year Olds.

RACHEL FAIRBURN & KIRI PRITCHARDMCLEAN: ALL KILLA NO FILLA (RACHEL FAIRBURN + KIRI PRITCHARDMCLEAN)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 17:00–18:30, £6 - £7

In this live version of the hugely popular podcast the pair will talk all things murder and macabre while having a right laugh doing it.

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sat 08 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (KEIR MCALLISTER + JONNY PELHAM + JULIA SUTHERLAND + STUART MCPHERSON + JOE HEENAN) THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

Sun 09 Apr

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE (MICHAEL REDMOND + BRUCE MORTON + ROB KANE’ DONALD ALEXANDER + RACHEL JACKSON)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

Mon 10 Apr

FOIL ARMS AND HOG: DOOMDAH (FOIL ARMS AND HOGG)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:00, £15

Irish comedy, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, you racist.

Tue 11 Apr

RED RAW (HAILEY BOYLE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:45, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Wed 12 Apr

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

THE SKINNY

Comedy BBC COMEDY PRESENTS

YESBAR VIRGINS

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:15, £4

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £5

BBC-selected sketch comedy showcase where handpicked new acts get their chance to shine – with each performer getting a quickfire 5-10 minutes on stage.

Thu 13 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN ROSS + GUS LYMBURN + GARY FAULDS + MARTIN MOR) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase. YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £5

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 14 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN ROSS + GUS LYMBURN + GARY FAULDS + MARTIN MOR)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sat 15 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN ROSS + GUS LYMBURN + GARY FAULDS + MARTIN MOR) THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sun 16 Apr

BANK HOLIDAY SPECIAL (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN ROSS + GUS LYMBURN + GARY FAULDS + JODIE MITCHELL)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £9 - £10

Celebrate the Bank Holiday in style with a night of banging comedy.

Mon 17 Apr

INSANE CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING’S HAVE I GOT CHAIR SHOTS FOR YOU! (BILLY KIRKWOOD + MARK DALLAS + CHRIS RENFREW + JACK JESTER + SIMON CASSIDY) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:00, £6

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 21 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (DAVE FULTON + NOEL JAMES + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + STEPHAN BUCHANAN + JOJO SUTHERLAND) THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sat 22 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (DAVE FULTON + NOEL JAMES + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + STEPHAN BUCHANAN + JOJO SUTHERLAND) THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

A monthly long-form improv comedy jam. Open to all, no experience necessary. Just turn up and perform (or watch).

Wed 19 Apr

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

GIES A GIGGLE: BENEFIT IN AID OF ROCK TRUST & CHRIS’S HOUSE (BILLY KIRKWOOD + JOJO SUTHERLAND + JULIA SUTHERLAND + PAUL MCDANIEL + SCOTT GIBSON) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:15, £6 - £8

Comedy benefit to raise money for Rock Trust, a suicide prevention charity.

Thu 20 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (DAVE FULTON + NOEL JAMES + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + STEPHAN BUCHANAN + JOJO SUTHERLAND) THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

Edinburgh Comedy Sat 01 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (JOHN MOLONEY + STEPHEN CARLIN + LIAM WITHNAIL + MARC JENNINGS + JOJO SUTHERLAND)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sun 02 Apr

Sun 23 Apr

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE (MICHAEL REDMOND + NOEL JAMES + MARC JENNINGS + PLANET CARAMEL)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out. BENEFIT IN AID OF SCOTTISH BOOK TRUST (FRED MACAULAY + SCOTT GIBSON + JOE HEENAN + JOHN GILLICK)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 17:00–19:00, £12

Join us for an afternoon with some of the top comics on the circuit to raise funds for The Scottish Book Trust’s Bookbug project!

Tue 25 Apr

RED RAW (GARETH WAUGH)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:45, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Wed 26 Apr

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £3

Freedom from Torture provides support to victims of torture, by offering rehabilitation and protection and ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable.

GLASGOW IMPROV JAM (IMPROV GLASGOW)

Celebrate the Bank Holiday in style with a night of banging comedy.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:00, £1 - £6

Tue 18 Apr Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £9 - £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

RED RAW

BANK HOLIDAY SPECIAL (JOE ROONEY + SCOTT AGNEW + LIZ MEILE + JOSEPH GOSS + KIRSTY MORRISON)

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN (HAILEY BOYLE + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + JOSEPH GOSS + DAVID CALLAN + ALEX KEALY + CHRIS FORBES’)

What use, you might ask, does the world have for an ‘interactive wrestling-based comedy show’? Well, comedy punter, the simple answer is that it’s 2016 and these things just happen. Live with it.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:45, £3

Sun 30 Apr

BENEFIT IN AID OF FREEDOM FROM TORTURE

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:15, £5

Thu 27 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (JOE ROONEY + SCOTT AGNEW + LIZ MEILE + JOSEPH GOSS + SUSIE MCCABE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

Chilled comedy showcase to cure your Sunday evening back-to-work blues.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW (STUART MURPHY + GARRY DOBSON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions. PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

Mon 03 Apr RED RAW (HAILEY BOYLE)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:45, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 04 Apr

RICHARD MELVIN PRESENTS: MORE RADIO RECORDINGS! (FRED MACAULAY + ZOE LYONS + GARY DELANEY + DAVE JOHNS + IAIN STIRLING ) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:00–22:00, FREE

Richard Melvin Presents another night of radio recordings on The Stand’s world famous tiny stage. Expect big names and rising stars. PROJECT X

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £3

All-new student night themed around the film of the same name, Project X.

Wed 05 Apr VIVA LA SHAMBLES

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:00, £4 - £5

The Stand hosts a monthly evening of total joke-pandemonium as Edinburgh’s top comics join forces. TOP BANANA

THE BIG SHOW MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sat 08 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN GILLICK + ALFIE BROWN + JODIE MITCHELL + RAYMOND MEARNS) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

Sun 09 Apr

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW (STUART MURPHY + GARRY DOBSON) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions. PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

IAIN CONNELL AND ROBERT FLORENCE: UNCLES (IAIN CONNELL + ROBERT FLORENCE)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:15, £16.50

Robert Florence and Iain Connell, creators of hit BBC sketch show Burnistoun take their hilarious new show on tour.

Mon 10 Apr

RED RAW (GEORGE FOX + BRUCE FUMMEY)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:45, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 11 Apr BONA FIDE

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:15, £5 - £6

Brand new material especially written for the theme of the night delivered by some of Scotlands favourite comics. PROJECT X

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £3

All-new student night themed around the film of the same name, Project X.

Wed 12 Apr TOP BANANA

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

FOIL ARMS AND HOGG: DOOMDAH (FOIL ARMS AND HOGG)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:00, £15

Irish comedy, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, potato, you racist.

Thu 13 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (STEVE HALL + CHRIS FORBES + TOM LUCY + ROBIN GRAINGER + SUSIE MCCABE) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Fri 14 Apr

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene. FUNGASM GAMESHOW

THE FRIDAY SHOW (STEVE HALL + CHRIS FORBES + TOM LUCY + ROBIN GRAINGER + SUSIE MCCABE)

Fri 28 Apr

PARADISE PALMS, 20:00–22:00, £5

The Fungasm Gameshow is a whimsical comedy gameshow inspired by 90s telly with a ‘fantabulous’ host, glamorous assistants, a nonsensical scoring system, random prizes, and special mystery guests.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £5

THE FRIDAY SHOW (JOE ROONEY + SCOTT AGNEW + LIZ MEILE + JOSEPH GOSS + SUSIE MCCABE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 21:45, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sat 29 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (JOE ROONEY + SCOTT AGNEW + LIZ MEILE + JOSEPH GOSS + SUSIE MCCABE)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

Thu 06 Apr

SPONTANEOUS SHERLOCK

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £5

A completely improvised Sherlock Holmes mystery

Fri 07 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (HAILEY BOYLE + JOHN GILLICK + ALFIE BROWN + JODIE MITCHELL + RAYMOND MEARNS)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sat 15 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (STEVE HALL + CHRIS FORBES + TOM LUCY + ROBIN GRAINGER + SUSIE MCCABE) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

April 2017

Find full listings at theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

Sun 16 Apr

BANK HOLIDAY SPECIAL (STEVE HALL + CHRIS FORBES + TOM LUCY + ROBIN GRAINGER + SUSIE MCCABE)

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW (STUART MURPHY + GARRY DOBSON) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, FREE

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:15, £9 - £10

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW (STUART MURPHY + GARRY DOBSON)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Celebrate the Bank Holiday in style with a night of banging comedy.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions. PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

Mon 17 Apr RED RAW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:45, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 18 Apr PROJECT X

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £3

All-new student night themed around the film of the same name, Project X.

BENEFIT IN AID OF PILTON COMMUNITY HEALTH PROJECT (KEIR MCALLISTER + GARETH WAUGH + GARETH MUTCH + PHIL O’SHEA + SUSAN MORRISON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:15, £8

Comedy charity benefit to raise money for Pilton Community Health Project.

Wed 19 Apr

TOPICAL STORM (MARK NELSON’ KEIR MCALLISTER + STUART MURPHY + VLADIMIR MCTAVISH)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:30, £5 - £7

Radical satire from Keir McAllister, Vladimir McTavish, Stu Murphy and Mark Nelson. TOP BANANA

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

Thu 20 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (IAN MOORE + JOE HEENAN + JAY LAFFERTY + GARY MEIKLE + MIKE WILMOT)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase. SPONTANEOUS SHERLOCK

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £5

A completely improvised Sherlock Holmes mystery

Fri 21 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (IAN MOORE + JOE HEENAN + JAY LAFFERTY + GARY MEIKLE + MIKE WILMOT)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sat 22 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (IAN MOORE + JOE HEENAN + JAY LAFFERTY + GARY MEIKLE + MIKE WILMOT)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sun 23 Apr

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN (RAY BRADSHAW + ROB KANE + KIRSTY MORRISON + LARAH BROSS + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:00, £1 - £6

Chilled comedy showcase to cure your Sunday evening back-to-work blues.

PROGRESS!

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

Sat 29 Apr

THE SATURDAY SHOW (JEFF INNOCENT + CAIMH MCDONALD + ROSS LESLIE + SUSAN MORRISON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

Mon 24 Apr

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:45, £3

Sun 30 Apr

RED RAW (GARETH WAUGH)

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material. NOT DEAD ENOUGH

KING’S THEATRE EDINBURGH, FROM 19:30, £27 - £31.50

Shaun McKenna’s adaptation of the third thriller in Peter James’ award winning Roy Grace series.

Tue 25 Apr

RICHARD MELVIN PRESENTS: MORE RADIO RECORDINGS! (RICHARD MELVIN)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:00–22:00, FREE

Richard Melvin Presents another night of radio recordings on The Stand’s world famous tiny stage. Expect big names and rising stars. NOT DEAD ENOUGH

KING’S THEATRE EDINBURGH, FROM 19:30, £27 - £31.50

Shaun McKenna’s adaptation of the third thriller in Peter James’ award winning Roy Grace series. PROJECT X

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £3

BANK HOLIDAY SPECIAL (JEFF INNOCENT + CAIMH MCDONALD + ROSS LESLIE + SUSAN MORRISON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:15, £9 - £10

Celebrate the Bank Holiday in style with a night of banging comedy.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW (STUART MURPHY + GARRY DOBSON) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, FREE

Long-running improvised comedy show with resident duo Stu & Garry weaving comedy magic from offthe-cuff audience suggestions. PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

Dundee Comedy

All-new student night themed around the film of the same name, Project X.

Thu 06 Apr

Wed 26 Apr

The dudes behind BBC sketch show Burnistoun bring their new show to Dundee.

NOT DEAD ENOUGH

KING’S THEATRE EDINBURGH, FROM 19:30, £27 - £31.50

Shaun McKenna’s adaptation of the third thriller in Peter James’ award winning Roy Grace series. TOP BANANA

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene. GAVIN WEBSTER’S NORTHERN HEMISPHERE TOUR (GAVIN WEBSTER)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:00, £8 - £10

Solo show from the Geordie joke engineer and comedy king.

BEARFOOT COMEDY CLUB (GUS LYMBURN+ELAINE MALCOMSON+RUTH COCKBURN+MARK NELSON+THE BEARFOOT COMEDY PLAYERS) THE MERLIN, 00:00–00:00, £10

Bearfoot Comedy Club brings you a fabulous comedy extravaganza of stand-up, sketch and musical comedy.

Thu 27 Apr

THE THURSDAY SHOW (JEFF INNOCENT + CAIMH MCDONALD + ROSS LESLIE + SUSAN MORRISON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase. NOT DEAD ENOUGH

KING’S THEATRE EDINBURGH, FROM 19:30, £27 - £31.50

Shaun McKenna’s adaptation of the third thriller in Peter James’ award winning Roy Grace series.

Fri 28 Apr

THE FRIDAY SHOW (JEFF INNOCENT + CAIMH MCDONALD + ROSS LESLIE + SUSAN MORRISON) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 21:00–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts. NOT DEAD ENOUGH

KING’S THEATRE EDINBURGH, FROM 19:30, £27 - £31.50

Shaun McKenna’s adaptation of the third thriller in Peter James’ award winning Roy Grace series. THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

UNCLES

THE GARDYNE THEATRE, FROM 19:30, £16.50

Glasgow Art CCA: Centre for Contemporary Art DANIEL BAKER @ GLITCH FILM FESTIVAL

1-2 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition featuring works that play with the duality of display and concealment often found in Romani visuality, and by doing so evokes the disruption that remains central to contemporary Roma experience. The complex navigations of visibility highlight both the emancipatory value and the risky politics of being seen. THE SKY IS FALLING

1 APR-14 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition/event programme that presents disparate visual imaginaries, looking at how we organise in the most challenging cities in our world. Features work by Black Audio Film Collective, Laura Oldfield Ford, Clara Ianni, Dora Mejía and Carol Rhodes. GLASGOW ZINE FEST 2017

29-30 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Independent publishing festival that champions DIY art and empowerment. Programme features a slate of events, including screenings, talks, seminars, and a series of practical workshops in zine-making. FLOW INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY FESTIVAL

10 APR, 7:00PM, FREE

Roddy McKenzie and Matt Sillars discuss the impetus and planning of the inaugural international photo festival Flow.

Compass Gallery PETER THOMSON: LIGHT BOX

6-28 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A solo exhibition of new paintings by former Glasgow School of Art Graduate, Peter Thomson.

David Dale Gallery and Studios

ROB CHAVASSE: LOGICAL SONGS

1 APR, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

An exhibition of new work from London-based artist Rob Chavasse, and the first exhibition in the David Dale programme, which is entitled Annex.

Art Gallery 23

GALLERY 23: SCOTTISH IDENTITY EXHIBITION

1-20 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

In a particularly tense period following Brexit, the possibility of another independence referendum, and aftershocks from the United States election, Scottish Identity asks artists to examine their own views of Scotland and her people.

Glasgow Print Studio

STUART DUFFIN: THE JERUSALEM PALIMPSEST

1-2 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A ‘palimpsest’, by definition entails the erasure of what was there before. Stuart Duffin (Jerusalem/Glasgow) presents an exhibition engaging with the tangled topographic history of Jerusalem. Features work by Garbiel Vallecillo Marques and Mikhail Gorbachev. THE LAW OF MATERIALS

1 APR-14 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

Taking its theme from the essay ‘Material As Metaphor’ by Anni Albers, this exhibition focuses on supporting early career artists while exploring what it means to make art, who it speaks to and how materials guide ideas. Artists working predominantly in print but also ceramics, sculpture and textiles will show alongside each other in a celebration of ‘including others in that life that is invisible and intangible’. Exhibiting artists include Euphrosyne Andrews, Rushka Gray, Elle Elks Herrmannsen, Gabriele Jogelaite, Hannah Moitt, Lilian Ptacek and Grace Woodcock.

Glasgow School of Art

FRANKI RAFFLES: OBSERVING WOMEN AT WORK

1-27 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A showcase of photos and material by feminist social documentary photographer Franki Raffles (1955-94). PROFESSOR SKETCHBOOKS

22-30 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Professor Andrew MacMillan and Professor Charles MacCallum, two professors at the GSA Mackintosh School of Architecture, kept personal sketchbooks. It has been decided to publish some of these sketches, as they give an intriguing insight into how an architect thinks and what he observes, including how an architectural idea or detail may be developed. CONNECTED: SIX JEWELLERS FROM DENMARK & SCOTLAND

8-16 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A group exhibition curated by GSA Silversmith & Jewellery staff members Jonathan Boyd & Andrew Lamb. Features Helen Clara Hemsley, Therese Mørch-Jørgensen, Lone Løvschal, Chequita Nahar, Carla Nuis, Andrew Lamb, Jonathan Boyd and Hrafnhildur Halldórsdóttir.

GoMA

PLEASE TURN US ON

1 APR-31 JUL, TIMES VARY, FREE

A group exhibition placing Glasgow at the core of a dialogue between early video art and international counterculture. Features What’s It To You?, a seminal work from Elsa Stansfield and Madelon Hooykaas, among other videographic works. JOHN SAMSON: 1975 - 1983

1-17 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A showcase of the complete works of enigmatic Scottish filmmaker John Samson (1946–2004), exhibiting the five films made during his lifetime.

MAX BRAND AND JOANNE ROBERTSON: POPPIES

1 APR-11 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

A debut collaboration between Max Brand and Joanne Robertson, featuring new painting and sculpture along with a musical work co-produced in the lead-up to the exhibition’s opening. POLYGRAPHS

1 APR-17 SEP, TIMES VARY, FREE

A group exhibition with a central point of Hito Steyerl’s film Abstract, which explores truth, fiction and evidence in a complicated world. Features Jane Evelyn Atwood, Muirhead Bone, Boyle Family, Gerard Byrne, Graham Fagen, Ian Hamilton Finlay and more,

Listings

House For An Art Lover PORTRAIT POSTCARDS

6-30 APR, 12:00AM – 12:00AM, FREE

Portrait Postcards: Glasgow School of Fine Art 1975-2015 is a history painting in five panels portraying artists from the School of Fine Art.

Hunterian Art Gallery

ART OF POWER: MASTERPIECES FROM THE BUTE COLLECTION

1 APR-14 JAN 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

Take the oportunity to see major paintings from the Bute Collection at Mount Stuart on the Isle of Bute. Exhibition split across two venues, The Hunterian and Mount Stuart – ticket price covers admission to both.

Market Gallery THE MINCH

8-30 APR, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A multimedia installation of disembodied voices, handmade instruments and moveable plastic prints that explore the potential of the human imagination to appropriate and animate a concept, an object or an environment.

New Glasgow Society TRANSIENCE

26-29 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

The Glasgow School of Art’s Masters of Research in Creative Practices interim show Transience will open on Wed 26th April at the New Glasgow Society. The exhibition is dedicated to new projects where the process of open-minded inquiry is essential towards developing queries, solutions and outcomes.

Platform

PESTER AND ROSSI

1 APR, 9:00AM – 7:00PM, FREE

Collaborating artists Ruby Pester and Nadia Rossi return. Offering a diverse programme of visual art, performance and workshop activity, the duo will open an exciting exhibition of work, Balancing Acts, on 1 April. OUTSKIRTS 2017

22 APR FROM 15:30, £7.50 - £10

RGI Kelly Gallery THE RGI GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART AWARD 2016

1-8 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

The RGI Kelly Gallery presents a new exhibition of work by Georgina Clapham, Sam Drake and Rebecca Lindsmyr.

Rhubaba

SARAH BOULTO: TITLED SAYING YES WITH NO EVIDENCE

2-30 APRIL, TIMES VARY, FREE

In Rhubaba’s series of “hauntings” by different artists, Sarah Boulton will ‘occupy the thresholds, high and peripheral spaces of Rhubaba, manifesting… through hidden texts and in quetly strange events, appearances and alterations.

Street Level Photoworks ROCK AGAINST RACISM

STEVEN CLAYDON 22 APRIL-9 JULY

The Common Guild hosts its first exhibition of the year, by installation, sound and sculptural artist, Steven Claydon. Claydon adopts a practice of ‘heterogenous assemblage – bringing together divergent historical forms and processes,’ as a means of examining ‘the changing value of objects – aesthetic, functional and financial.’

The Lighthouse

UNCOVERED: STILL HOMELESS, STILL AN ISSUE

1-9 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

The first of its kind, this exhibition of street paper covers and vendors’ stories celebrates the hard work, respect and innovation that goes into creating these life-changing magazines. COLLECT SCOTLAND: SAMPLE

1 APR-18 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

Collect Scotland exhibits the work of 15 contemporary Scottish textile designers. ORIGINS, NARRATIVES AND ARCHITECTURE

7 APR-6 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

Lighthouse exhibits a selection of visuals and models illustrating a wide range of projects covered by Graeme Nicholls Architects, a studio formed by acclaimed educator, critic and architect of the same name.

The Old Hairdressers LOVE LETTER

2 APR, 7:00PM, FREE

Glasgow based lifestyle brand Navara showcase hand lettering/typography work of four Glasgow-based graphic designers, displaying work dedicated to an idol or loved one.

AMBIT

22 APR-18 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

Stills and Street Level Photoworks link arms in an exhibition of Scottish photography. SLP will showcase the work of Tine Bek, Sylwia Kowalczyk, Donnie MacLean, Blazej Marczak and Margaret Mitchell.

The Common Guild

MARIA FUSCO: RADICAL DIALECT

1 APR-30 DEC, TIMES VARY, FREE

An ongoing project conceived by writer Maria Fusco, including a cycle of events, a series of commissioned publications and a major new performance, all taking shape across 2017 and 2018. See thecommonguild.org. uk for info.

Listings

PAPER TRAIL: DRAWINGS, WATERCOLOURS, PRINTS

1 APR-21 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition exploring some of the many ways artists create works from the starting point of a fresh sheet of paper, including work by celebrated figures like Anne Redpath, Joan Eardley, Eduardo Paolozzi and Paul Sandby.

Dovecot Studios THE WEAVER’S APPRENTICE

1 APR-1 JUL, 10:30AM – 5:30PM, FREE

An exhibition featuring objects from the Dovecot’s archive, as well as historic and current works – all intending to tell the story of the Dovecot apprenticeship.

Edinburgh College of Art GERMAN REFUGEE PROJECT

1 APR-26 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of photography, installations, animation and design which showcase the experiences of a group of University of Edinburgh students who, in 2016, travelled to Zotzenheim in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate to take part in an initiative aiming to help refugees integrate into their new home. Please note, the exhibition takes place at 50 George Square, not on ECA premises.

Edinburgh Printmakers PROCESS & POSSIBILITIES

1-15 APR, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Tramway

An archival exhibition curated by Lesley Logue, Process & Possibilities features artists who have helped to lay and then build upon the foundations of printmaking as a fine-art practice in Scotland and beyond.

1-9 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

1-15 APR, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

CLAIRE BARCLAY: YIELD POINT

A new exhibition from Glasgowbased artist Claire Barclay in Tramway, whose thoughtful installations and sculptures will respond to the industrial setting of the former tram depot, through her sensuous and poetic arrangement of materials. A PLACE TO PLAY

1-9 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A collaborative project between Claire Barclay and Donna Jamieson, in which they will construct a ‘play den’ from Claire’s works. SCOTTISH BALLET: DIGITAL SEASON POP UP

21-30 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

For Scottish Ballet’s Digital Season they exhibit a series of films, live streams and installations in a pop-up gallery in the upper foyer of Tramway.

SIOBHAN DAVIES DANCE: MATERIAL / REARRANGED / TO / BE

21-30 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

London-based investigative arts organisation Siobhan Davies Dance brings a new performance installation featuring a performance from Davies herself.

Transmission Gallery TAINTED VERBAL

1 APR-6 MAY, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A solo exhibition by Irineu Destourelles.

Edinburgh Art

1-9 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A collection of photographs by Syd Shelton documenting the streets of the 70s, ‘when racist skinheads danced to Jamaican ska, punks embraced reggae and black kids reached out to punk’.

City Art Centre

Arusha Gallery

BLAIR MCLAUGHLIN: DEPART DE BISCOTTES

13 APR-1 MAY

McLaughlin shows a series of new paintings made since graduating last year, during which time he’s travelled between Florence, New York, Antwerp and Rotterdam on different residencies, looking at paintings from the Renaissance and studying the logic of speed. Working gesturally and often semi-abstractly, McLaughlin combines histories of painting with reference to imagery of violence to create large and full tableaux in his work.

FIREDAMP: REVISITING THE FLOOD

Through installation, sculpture and printmaking Caulfield’s work considers the ways our environment is transformed by forces of urban and industrial growth. Caulfield has transformed the gallery, covering the entirety of the walls with woodcuts. OUT OF THE FRAME

1-25 APR, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

A small-scale exhibition featuring works for sale by the Edinburgh Printmakers studio members.

MY CAT KNOWS WHAT I’M THINKING

22 APR-15 JUL, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

An exhibition consisting of 19 handmade ceramic plates plus four stone lithographic editions. Surprising, humorous and insightful, Great-Rex’s exhibition draws on folk, outsider art and domestic commemorative wares and samplers. IT WORKS! – EP AT 50

22 APR-15 JUL, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

TRACE PRESS BLEED BLEND

THE VIEW FROM HERE

1-8 APR, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

1-30 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A new exhibition from Laura Campbell and Eric Cruikshank at Patriothall Gallery.

Royal Scottish Academy RSA RSA ANNUAL EXHIBITION 2017

1 APR-7 MAY, TIMES VARY, £3 - £5

Now in its 191st year, the RSA Annual Exhibition returns to RSA between April and May, showcasing artworks from Acamedicians Scotland-wide.

IAN HOWARD RSA: THE DEATH OF MAGIC

1-16 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

RSA showcases a selection of recent works by Aberdonian honorary RSA member Ian Howard, demonstrating his mixed media style which references medieval and Renaissance iconography. RSA ARCHITECTURE OPEN 2017

1 APR-7 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

RSA’s Architecture Open returns for a 2017 edition, taking in a variety of submissions which illustrate the most interesting architectural practices from Scotland and beyond.

Scottish Arts Club AT THIS POINT IN TIME

1 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

An exhibition of 33 international artists aiming to prove that the voice of creativity cannot be silenced. Features the likes of Alice Gorton, Jean Gillespie, James Wright, Nectarios Stamatopoulos and more.

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art

BRIDGET RILEY: PAINTINGS,1963-2015

1-16 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A focused display of selected paintings from the works of Bridget Riley, born in 1931. The exhibition chronicles her earlier, iconic use of monochrome, her transition into using a grey palette, before an expansion into using an array of colour. 20TH CENTURY: MASTERPIECES OF SCOTTISH AND EUROPEAN ART

1 APR-18 FEB 18, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

An exhibition of works offering a historical overview of some of the most significant artistic contributions made during the last century. The exhibition also aims to place Scottish modern art within an international context.

Solo exhibition of recent work by Sandy Stoddart (Sculptor In Ordinary to The Queen of Scotland), of which the main focus will be the creation of a new figurative statue of William Birnie Rhind commissioned by the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

National Museum of Scotland

SCOTTISH POTTERY: ART & INNOVATION EXHIBITION

1 APR-25 JUN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A lesser known part of Scotland’s pottery history will showcased at the National Museum of Scotland. Select pieces from Wemyss Ware, one of Scotland’s most well-known potteries, will be showcased including original heart plaques commissioned by the Wemyss family who resided nearby at Wemyss Castle and painted by Karel Nekola.

Patriothall Gallery PISSED MODERNISM

14-23 APR, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

Party etiquette dictates that one should never bring up politics at a party. Pissed Modernism, Edinburgh’s annual rage-exhibition and charity event disagrees. They take pissed off artists (along with their pissed off art), bring in the craft beer and throw a big ol’ shindig. The exhibition will continue until 23 Apr.

1 APR-27 OCT 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

Stills

A collaboration between Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina and C-EENRG at Cambridge University, this exhibition is a multimedia experience played by Earth´s rotation in real time, that shows the new geological epoch that we call Anthropocene fleshing out the unprecedented humankind footprint on our planet.

1-9 APR, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

1 APR-10 MAY, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

THE MODERN PORTRAIT

A display collating paintings, sculptures and works from the Portrait Gallery’s twentieth-century collection, ft. a variety of well-known faces, from Ramsay Macdonald to Alan Cumming, Tilda Swinton to Danny McGrain. THE COLLECTION SERIES

A two-part display continuing an annual series of exhibitions aimed at increasing the visibility of photography collections in Scotland. This show features works from David Eustace’s private collection and Alan Dimmick’s studio archive, 1977-2017. AMBIT

22 APR-9 JUL, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Stills and Street Level Photoworks link arms in an exhibition of Scottish photography. Stills will showcase the work of Eden Hawkins, Lorna Macintyre, Norman McBeath, Kristian Smith and Karen L Vaughan.

Summerhall

LILY HIBERD: DATA HORIZONS

1 APR-10 MAY, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Data Horizons is the result of a collaboration between the Extreme Light group at Heriot-Watt University and Lily Hibberd, Leverhulme Trust artist-in-residence at Heriot-Watt throughout 2016. Led by Prof Daniele Faccio, the Extreme Light group develops experiments in laser physics and quantum optics, inspired by general relativity and the physics of curved spacetimes. These artworks produce encounters with otherwise invisible or inaccessible information emerging from cutting edge research to bridge the gap between everyday and extraordinary behaviour of light.

An immersive live feed audio-video installation produced by the constant movements and tectonic shifts beneath the Earth’s surface and installed in the basement of Summerhall. SEBASTIAN VEREA: SOUNDS OF THE ANTHROPOCENE

1 APR-10 MAY, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

LOUISE MACKENZIE: THE GENOPHONE

Artist Louise Mackenzie researches the metaphysical aspects of making with life in the context of biotechnology, specifically focusing on the insertion of our thoughts into living cells through the creation of transgenic bacteria that house a question posed by the artist within their DNA.

Talbot Rice Gallery THE TORRIE COLLECTION

1 APR-6 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

The Torrie Collection represents the University’s founding art collection and features Dutch landscape paintings of the ‘Golden Age’ and Italian Renaissance bronze sculptures in the tradition of Michelangelo. It was given to the Talbot Rice in 1836. KATE V ROBERTSON: OBJECT(HOOD)

1-8 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A changing exhibition, whereby each week will see complete change around a new object (‘a brain coral, a Gandharan sculpture fragment, a large mannequin head cast by Eduardo Paolozzi, an anatomical eye model…’) from Edinburgh University’s collection, built around a large sculpture cabinet that emanates moving-images and spoken word.

For five years, Edinburgh University has been strategically garnering works of contemporary art which it considers reflective of its teachings as an institution and community. See an exhibition of their acquisitions at the Talbot Rice. MICHAEL BARR: TRG3

13 APR-6 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

The story goes that once upon a time, a puma roamed Talbot Rice’s Georgian Gallery in 1827. Glasgow-based artist Michael Barr undertook his own ‘residency’ in the Old College Quad, mirroring and the duration of the puma’s stay and documenting the process. His costume will be displayed alongside a new etching of Barr in the Quad, historic images of the puma, a sculptural monument and a new video installation centred on the notion of ‘hospitality’.

The Fruitmarket Gallery MARK WALLINGER MARK

1 APR-4 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

A two-part exhibition in DCA and Fruitmarket, focussing on Wallinger’s id Paintings of 2015-16 (a series of Rorschach-esque images) and a selection of his films, sculpture and wall-based work.

The Number Shop MARTHA LYONS HAYWOOD: I USE TO SEE

7-14 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

Martha Lyons Haywood brings together precious natural materials and overlooked urban debris in works based on the philosophies she’s constructed for making artwork.

Dundee Art DCA: Dundee Contemporary Arts MARK WALLINGER MARK

1 APR-4 JUN, TIMES VARY, FREE

A two-part exhibition in DCA and Fruitmarket, focussing on Wallinger’s id Paintings of 2015-16 (a series of Rorschach-esque images) and a selection of his films, sculpture and wall-based work.

Generator Projects

A CONSTELLATION IS FORMING HERE

7-30 APR, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

An exhibition of new works by Brodie Sim and Linda Bolsakova. Taking influence from the natural world, Sim and Bolsakova explore the poetic and material resonance between each other’s practice and the intangible moments of fragmented connection.

The McManus OUT OF THE FRAME: SCOTTISH ABSTRACTION

1-23 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

A collection of works celebrating the artistic freedom afforded by abstraction, including art by Wilhelmina Barns-Graham and Calum Innes, plus a major new acquisition by Victoria Morton. A SENSE OF PLACE: TWENTIETH CENTURY SCOTTISH PAINTING

1 APR-1 SEP, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of primarily landscape paintings, including work from the Glasgow Boys, the Scottish Colourists, James McIntosh Patrick and Joan Eardley.

A collection of works from the short career of Joan Eardley, who died at just 42. This showcase will focus on two contrasting themes in her works; candid paintings of children in Townhead and paintings of paintings of the fishing village of Catterline.

Ingleby Gallery

Ingleby celebrates its 20th year with an exhibition programme of 27 ‘pairings’ exploring the ampersand.

1 APR-10 MAY, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

JOAN EARDLEY: A SENSE OF PLACE

Scottish National Portrait Gallery

1 APR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Taking the theme of landscape through photographs from the 1840s to the present day, this exhibition is drawn completely from the National Galleries of Scotland’s permanent photographic collection and aims to explore the techniques and processes of landscape photographers far and wide.

BETWEEN POLES AND TIDES 1 APR-6 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

1 APR-21 MAY, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, £7 - £9

An exhibition raising questions about the nature and purpose of archives, featuring publications and portfolios from Edinburgh Printmakers’ archive. MARK WALLINGER: AND PER SE AND PART I

STEPHEN HURREL BENEATH AND BEYOND - SEISMIC SOUNDS

MAKING HISTORY

1-9 APR, TIMES VARY, FREE

GRAHAM MACINDOE: COMING CLEAN

8 APR-5 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

Since recovering from years of his life as a heroin addict, Graham MacIndie uses this body of self-portraits as a means of opening up conversations about dependency and recovery. THE TWEEDDALES: POWER, POLITICS AND PORTRAITS

1 APR-28 MAY, TIMES VARY, FREE

Artwork featuring and commissioned by the Tweeddale family, a highly influential dynasty at the heart of Scottish society in the latter half of the 17th century who were known best for contributions to politics and the military. SCOTS IN ITALY

1 APR-5 MAR 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

A showcase of the Scottish experience of Italy in the 18th century, a time when artistic, entrepreneurial and aristocratic fascination with the country was reaching boiling point.

Find full listings at theskinny.co.uk/whats-on

THE SKINNY

Gallops: Under The Influence Mark Huckridge talks us through his musical influences, from first getting into music to his cross-genre love for signature sounds

Interview: Rachel Bowles

rexham-based rock machine Gallops first made waves following the release of their debut album Yours Sincerely Dr. Hardcore back in 2012, before promptly splitting up the following year. Having since realised how much they missed playing together, they now return with Bronze Mystic, an electronically-charged, sci-fi-tinged and thoroughly compelling follow-up – here multiinstrumentalist Mark Huckridge talks us through the records that inspired their thoroughly welcome return.

The Beatles – Anthology 2 [Apple Records, 1996] When I was about 10 or 11 years old, my parents brought me back the CD of Anthology 2 from the supermarket as a surprise gift. They could see I was getting into music and it’s an obvious introduction to guitar-based music – you can’t avoid [The Beatles], I guess. I must have listened to that over and over again; I remember it being a real eye-opening thing. There’s a demo version of Strawberry Fields Forever, it’s just John Lennon doing a cassette recording of that track: I remember that blowing me away at the time. It’s so primitive, just a dude and a guitar. It sounds like something that’s achievable, something you could do by yourself. Oneohtrix Point Never – Garden of Delete [Beat Records, 2015] This is really direct and pointed, and appeals to my inherent sort of geekery. The MIDI programming in that record just completely blew my mind. It was quite influential in some ways to our most recent record, purely because I heard he was using a software synthesiser called Omnisphere. So I thought, ‘Oh, he’s using that, that’s for me!’ The sounds you can create with it are amazing and they’ve made their way onto Bronze Mystic, particularly digital synth sounds and synthetic choral patches. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing when I heard it. I’m still not sure how one guy can think of making music that keeps you that interested throughout, it’s that crazy and detailed. Holden – The Inheritors [Border Community, 2013] I wasn’t really that aware of Holden until this record. What appealed to us with that was he mixes electronic and live instrumentation in a way that works. It can be quite touch and go, that hybrid. I think on that record it manages to be quite out there, electronic-wise, but it retains an organic feel to it that is really hard to do. It led me to get into [synthesiser manufacturers] Modulus too, so it comes back to influencing technology and stuff we buy. I’d love to see Holden live! Jaga Jazzist – One-Armed Bandit [Ninja Tune, 2010] I’m really impressed by Jaga Jazzist, particularly the album One-Armed Bandit. There’s one bloke who composes it all, Lars Horntveth, I think he’s totally underrated as a composer and an artist. The way he uses melodies and counterpoint between different instruments and makes his whole ensemble work.

April 2017

The only way I can describe it would be a bit like Frank Zappa but current; a bit cooler than Zappa. It’s the sort of record that constantly keeps you interested – there’s twists and turns round every corner but it’s not clever for clever’s sake. There seems to be a reasoning behind every choice on it; from start to finish it’s incredible. Holly Herndon – Platform [4AD, 2015] Herndon’s a solo laptop artist from San Francisco and has been a huge influence. We ended up stumbling upon her at Primavera, the way you do at a festival, and she was really impressive. The pressure from the bass and stuff was overwhelming. One thing that particularly impressed me and struck true with what we’re trying to do was the visual effects: sometimes with instrumental music it can get a bit boring, you don’t have that sort of lead singer to focus on, there’s no spectacle. Some bands get away with it and some don’t. I think it’d work with our music; it was like she had this sort of retro 90s technology computer aesthetic. It was a crazy film that drew you in and enhanced the music. I love what she does with the vocal sounds as well, turning them into, non-traditional vocal sounds. We’re tech geeks! Factory Floor – Factory Floor [DFA Records, 2013] I loved how minimal and stark the first record was, and the idea of using a lot of percussion. It’s something we’re very interested in and they leave a lot of space in the compositions so it doesn’t get too cluttered – which is the opposite

of Oneohtrix Point Never; he tends to use a lot of layers. This has a different appeal. It’s really danceable, they really tapped into a certain sound. I’m into a lot of no-wave stuff and ‘disco not disco’ and late 70s/early 80s New York stuff, and Factory Floor have that ESG drum sound. It’s just really upfront and I really admire that. I love the use of guitars on it as well, it’s really off-kilter Arca – Mutant [Mute Records, 2015] Arca’s done a lot of production work for people like Björk, FKA Twigs, even Kanye. I tend to be into the sort of electronic music that suits headphone listening like Mutant. The way Arca uses textures here – it’s mostly beatless actually. He uses this palette of sounds which is really unique. You stick the record on and you know that’s an Arca record straight away. That’s something that a quite lot of electronic artists miss a bit of a trick on, I think because when you’re sitting in front of an arpeggiator or synths or whatever – because the options are limitless – you end up with a bunch of tracks that just don’t have one common thread running through them. Emeralds – Does It Look Like I’m Here? [Editions Mego, 2010] This record came out on Editions Mego, which is Peter Rehberg’s label. He’s put out stuff by Fennesz and Cindytalk. The use of arpeggiators on that album, and the 80s Berlin school sound... it’s really impressive taking that Tangerine Dream thing and running with it; changing it into this modern thing without being too retro. It’s got its own merits. The use of guitars on that record

Music

as well – it’s quite minimal, trying not to overdo it. We love guitars as much as we love electronic stuff, but electronic stuff with guitars can sound pretty poor at times. Emeralds were one of these groups that did it in a really measured and tasteful way. Jefre Cantu-Ledesma – A Year With 13 Moons [Mexican Summer, 2015] It’s got a really sort of foggy and hazy sound. He gets put into this shoegaze revival category but I think he’s really carved his own sound. He’s doing shoegaze in a modern way on his own terms. I just love the use of chord phrases on this album, just beautiful. He’s got this sort of tapist sound throughout it, like he’s made a record in his bedroom, but not in an amateur way. It’s an intimate record. It’s quite strangely mixed so instruments you wouldn’t expect to take a lead role in a track do quite often. It’s my go-to ‘can’t get to sleep’ album. It’s that sort of record. The Necks – Sex [Spiral Scratch, 1989] I am a fan of jazz but it can be a bit po-faced at times. The Necks have got this kind of a punk aesthetic to them, a punk quality to their attitude that’s really raw. What’s influential about this record, because we’re obviously not a jazz band, is how they work as a unit. They use repetition a lot, which is quite rare in jazz particularly; they take it the furthest they can go but with real development. This album is one track and it’s just under an hour long. It takes on a life of its own after a while and it’s really hypnotic. Bronze Mystic is released on 21 Apr via Blood and Biscuits gallops.bandcamp.com

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