The Skinny October 2017

.CO.UK

INDEPENDENT FREE

CULT U R A L

J O U R N A L I S M

October 2017 Scotland Issue 145

H A L LOW E EN SPEC I A L with Wolf Alice, Ghostpoet, The Horrors & A History of Witchcraft MUSIC | FILM | CLUBS | THEATRE | ART | BOOKS | COMEDY | TRAVEL | FOOD & DRINK | INTERSECTIONS | LISTINGS

3

Photo: Steve Gullick

P.19 Gazed and Confused

P.29 The Death of Stalin

P.41 Best Girl Athlete

October 2017 I N DEPEN DENT

CULTU R AL

JOU R NALI S M

Issue 145, October 2017 Š Radge Media Ltd. Get in touch: E: hello@theskinny.co.uk T: 0131 467 4630 P: The Skinny, 1.9 1st Floor Tower, Techcube, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall Pl, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL The Skinny is Scotland's largest independent entertainment & listings magazine, and offers a wide range of advertising packages and affordable ways to promote your business.

Get in touch to find out more.

E: sales@theskinny.co.uk All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the explicit permission of the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within this publication do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the printer or the publisher.

Printed by Mortons Print Limited, Horncastle ABC verified Jan – Dec 2016: 27,332

printed on 100% recycled paper

4

Contents

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

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

Production Production Manager Designer

Sarah Donley Kyle McPartlin

Sales Sales Manager Sales Executives

Sandy Park George Sully Keith Allan

Online Digital Editor Online Journalist Web Developer

Peter Simpson Jamie Dunn Stuart Spencer

Bookkeeping & Accounts Publisher

Rebecca Sweeney Sophie Kyle

THE SKINNY

Photo: Gaelle Beri

P.12 Ghostpoet

Contents Chat & Opinion: Shot of the Month; Spot 06 the Difference; What Are You Having For Lunch?; Crystal Baws.

Heads Up: The events you don’t want to 08 miss this month.

FEATURES

10 With Halloween on the horizon, we chat

to an appropriately spooky trio of bands: Wolf Alice’s Ellie Rowsell gives us the lowdown on their sprawling new record Visions of a Life; Guitarist Joshua Hayward discusses The Horrors’ new album and his aversion to social media; and Obaro Ejimiwe aka Ghostpoet talks Dark Days + Canapés.

Halloween is upon us: witch costume are 15 you going to wear this year?

16 Cryptic founder Cathie Boyd and associ-

ate artist Mark Lyken walk us through this year’s vast Sonica programme, and we discuss the world of XFRMR and Tesla coils with Robbie Thomson.

18 A uthor Siri Hustvedt discusses the complexities of the gendered gaze, and inspired by this conversation, one writer explores the gendered gaze in literature.

21

S atellites Programme participant Timothea Armour tells us about her project The Last Hour!, which concerns our connection to pubs; and we chat to the legendary film theorist Laura Mulvey about the still dazzling experimental films she made in the 70s.

22 Sofie Hagen’s latest show, Dead Baby

Frog, is about her grandfather; she tells us it’s about his death, and he’s not even dead yet.

25 We find Julien Baker in a reflective mood as she discusses her new record Turn Out the Lights.

26 Tender gay romance Call Me by Your Name is one of the films of the year – we chat to its director, Luca Guadagnino.

28

T wo of Scotland’s finest small film festivals return this month: Scotland Loves Anime once again showcases the best of Japanese animation while Africa in Motion shines a torch on the great cinema emerging from Africa.

29 Genius satirist Armando Iannucci returns to the big screen with The Death of Stalin – it’s strange and brilliant and offers some parallels to Donald Trump’s America.

e catch up with Downtown Boys' Joey 30 W DeFrancesco and Victoria Ruiz, who are still pushing punk boundaries and fighting the powers that be.

LIFESTYLE

31 Intersections: A recent study suggesting

a gender bias in comedy reviews during the Fringe has ruffled some publications’ feathers; we discuss the findings with our Comedy Editor, Ben Venables.

October 2017

32 Showcase: We put the spotlight on our favourite designs in this year’s Graphic Design Festival Scotland's poster exhibition.

34 Travel: Considering a move to the capital of the People’s Republic of China? We get the lowdown on life in Beijing.

35 Food & Drink: From farmers' produce to

indoor street food fiestas, here are some of Scotland's finest food and drink markets. Also, we give you a wee recap on this year’s Food & Drink survey categories, and we’ve your monthly food news.

REVIEW

39 Music: Kathryn Joseph and James Graham introduce their new community-inspired collaboration, Out Lines; we chat to Catholic Action, Best Girl Athlete and cherry pick the gigs of the month; and we review new records from Blue Rose Code, The LaFontaines, Wolf Parade and more.

44 Clubs: We catch up with “Baron of

Techno” Dave Clarke as he releases his first album in 14 years, and we fire ten questions Midland’s way; plus your clubbing highlights for October.

48 Books: Reviews of new novels from

Salman Rushdie and Paul Lynch, a chat with Caroline Bird of Flint & Pitch about her collection of surreal poetry, and some highlights coming up at Dundee Literary Festival.

49 Theatre: We take a look at the theatre

line-up at this year’s Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival and ask, Has the topic of mental health finally become accepted by the wider arts community?

50 Film & DVD: I Am Not a Witch, The

Ornithologist and the re-release of anime classic Perfect Blue are among the gems coming to cinemas this month, while The Coens’ Blood Simple and Joe Dante’s The Howling are our Blu-ray highlights.

52 Art: Scotland's digital arts festival North

East of North returns to Dundee with a hoard of eclectic events – we enter its mainframe. Plus reviews of Erica Eyres' subtly unsettling exhibition Alone and I and Kate Davis' solo show at Stills Gallery.

53 Comedy: Can Improv make you a better person? Comedian Will Naameh considers this notion.

54 Listings: Our exhaustive and handy guide to what’s on this October.

62 Competitions: Win a seat at singer-songwriter Nell Bryden’s upcoming Glasgow show and tickets to the prestigious preview of Edinburgh Art Fair.

LAST WORD Heroes Design focus: A look at six 63 Local designers who epitomise Scotland’s eclectic output of high quality textile design.

Contents

5

Editorial

T

his year we’ve decided to fully embrace the seasonal diktat of Halloween, and dedicate the first part of our magazine to things that are related, albeit tenuously, to general spookiness.

Thus you will find interviews with Wolf Alice (wolves = spooky), Ghostpoet (WHAT’S MORE HALLOWEEN THAN GHOSTS?), and The Horrors (obviously) up front in a swiftly reclassified Halloween special.

Following on from last year’s rundown of commonly adopted costumes that are actually really offensive, we’ve taken a closer look at various traditions of witchcraft, including an exploration of the deeply troubling roots of the standard black hat and hook nose witch costume.

Turns out another theme we could have adopted for this issue (although one that would be harder to turn into a jaunty cover illustration) is the gendered gaze. We met celebrated author and essayist Siri Hustvedt back in August to discuss the male and female gaze, power and objectification, and how that influences our daily lives. One writer uses this opportunity to pen a companion piece offering an overview of the topic in literature, while on the following page we meet Laura Mulvey, author of the definitive text on the matter of Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, here to introduce a series of screenings of her work up in Dundee this month.

Continuing the analytical bent, in Music we meet Julien Baker, here to introduce Turn Out the Lights, the follow-up to her deeply introspective Sprained Ankle. ‘America’s Most Exciting Punk Band’ Downtown Boys meet one intrepid writer to talk protest, pushing the boundaries and fighting the globalised power. Kathryn Joseph and James Graham introduce their new collaboration Out Lines, based on Easterhouse’s Platform and drawing influence from that local community.

Catholic Action are finally releasing their debut album – we meet frontman Chris McCrory to hear more about recording In Memory Of. Biennial sonic visual art festival Sonica returns this month with another avant garde programme of sound and vision from around the world. We’ve

taken a look through the programme to pick out some highlights, and met with the director Cathie Boyd and resident artist Mark Lyken to find out more about what’s in store. We also have words with Robbie Thomson aka XFRMR (meaning transformer not ex-farmer, we recently discovered) to learn more about the challenges of travelling with a Tesla coil.

In Comedy, Sofie Hagen is bringing her show Dead Baby Frog to Glasgow this month – she tells us more about dealing with trolls, her Made of Human podcast and including the excluded. In the latest installment of our comedians on ethics column, Will Naameh has penned a piece on the importance of improv as a general life skill to make you able to work flexibly and collaboratively.

Sounds like excellent advice.

Art has also met with Timothea Armour, who brings a project exploring all things pubs to Collective as part of their Satellites early career artist platform. We continue our Scottish design focus with the second part of our new Local Heroes series mapping the design landscape. This month we look at surface pattern design, with a survey of some of the eclectic, vibrant, original works coming out of the country and taking over the world. October is also time for Graphic Design Festival Scotland to return to the Lighthouse – we’re once again presenting some of their International Poster Design finalists in our Showcase.

In Film, we meet director Luca Guadagnino to talk about coming of age love story Call Me by Your Name, while your favourite political satirist Armando Iannucci discusses the challenges of being a satirist in the age of Trump, and the line between comedy and tragedy as he promotes his new film The Death of Stalin. Finally, we continue to revel in the autumnal festival extravaganza, this month welcoming Scotland Loves Anime and Africa in Motion, one of the highlights of which – Zambian satire I Am Not a Witch – brings us neatly back to that Halloween theme we put on the cover.* [Rosamund West]

Spot the Difference OH MY GOURD Though at first glance this looks like a pair of pumpkins, something’s awry. One’s an artfully crafted pumpkin, the other’s a furry lil dumpling.

One’s a plant who wants to be a pug, one’s a pumpkin that’s 90% dug. But which is the real deal? Spot the canine imposter and get in touch,

and you could be in with a chance of winning a copy of The Fortunate Brother by Donna Morrissey, courtesy of our pedigree chums at Canongate. Don’t dally – tomarrow waits for no-one. Make it gourd. We’d continue, but we’ve run out of pun(kins).

Competition closes midnight Sun 29 Oct. 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 full Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

Shot of the Month

LCD Soundsystem, Barrowlands, 19 Sep, by Cameron James Brisbane

*Word count: 666. Halloween af.

Deviance is Dead, Long Live Intersections!

A

decade ago The Skinny took our ‘LGBT section’, imploded it, and rightfully redistributed the culture, stories and excellence of LGBT people across the rest of the magazine.

This left behind a new section, which it was decided would be called ‘Deviance’. It was an area for the fiery, the prickly and the sexy – a rare space for the discussion of dating, gender, sexuality and feminism. The name was an ironic choice – after all, the very ethos was to ‘redefine normal’. If emojis were in common parlance, ‘Deviance’ would have been flanked with eye-rolls and side-eyes.

But the name was always contentious – some missed the point, some found it offen-

6

Chat

sive, some thought it archaic. And now fake news and falseness have muddied the waters of irony and satire, it’s time for a change. The section in its current incarnation publishes everything from race to LGBTQTIA stories, sexual politics to mental health, class and illness and beyond. It represents a meeting place between people and lives and opinions and stories and privileges, and puts loudspeaker to silenced voices. The LGBT section served a purpose; the Deviance section served a purpose, but the world changes furiously and we will too. Which is why, as suggested by Nine, the section’s very first editor, we’re now called Intersections. [Kate Pasola]

THE SKINNY

Crystal Baws ARIES Being a bodybuilder and having a severe allergy to mosquito bites is the perfect combo for getting turbo-ripped prior to competition. Using a shot glass, you carefully position the parasites over key areas to build bulk fast.

TAURUS You’re angry about all the immigrant pets coming over from Romania, taking all the places in dog homes and cat sanctuaries so British pets go last on the list.

Coming over here looking for handouts!

All pets should be made to speak English and understand British values!

GEMINI Exercising your demons only makes them stronger.

CANCER After running out of toilet paper you are forced to use Cool Original flavour Doritos.

By Jock Mooney

LEO In October you start a charity to get more UK billionaire businessmen to become batmen. The charity aims to kill prospective bat-parents early in the young batperson’s childhood, then provide them with a tough mountain-based sensei to tutor them in the ways of righteousness, martial arts and batcave construction.

COVER ARTIST

L

uis Pinto is a graphic designer and illustrator originally from Mexico, based in Guatemala. He usually works on a broad range of projects, from digital/traditional painting to vector icons and lettering. As a graphic artist he gets most of his work from personal sketches. He loves to generate ideas from a concept, and usually finds sketches are the best way to conceive that graphic magic.

‘Carpe diem’ is a phrase that is present in everything he does, and it always makes him put effort and passion into his work.

VIRGO People always tell you to stop putting all your eggs in one basket, but you don’t have a basket, or eggs. The food bank never has eggs.

Inquiries and Commissions: info@luispintodesign.com

LIBRA This month after winning the Euromillions you spend it decimating the rainforest printing out Pornhub and turning the

luispintodesign.com

With Mystic Mark

entire catalogue of material on the site into phonebook-thick flickbooks housed in a bespoke warehouse. Just decide what you want to watch, then drive your forklift through the cavernous library to locate the scene in one of the heavy volumes.

SCORPIO You walk like a man, talk like a man, but you shit like a horse.

SAGITTARIUS You and your wife still don’t see eye-to-eye on baby names. She thinks that Dr. PooButt will hold your child back in life, whereas you’re sure her suggestions of RageLord and BloodSpawn 3D will prevent him from being accepted into good schools.

CAPRICORN Unlike dog owners, cat owners are an example of a man-beast relationship where both sides have absolute contempt for the intelligence of the other.

AQUARIUS Halloween is a strange time. Driving through town you first witness Superman vomiting into a drain at the side of the road, Batman messily trying to eat a burger, and finally Spiderman crying in a doorway while talking into his phone. You lament there are no real crime fighters left in this city.

PISCES You didn’t think the plan through past the first stage which was “crap in your hands”.

twitter.com/themysticmark facebook.com/themysticmark

Online Only

The evolution of Mount Kimbie's sound comes from a reluctance to lean on what has been successful in the past, and an awareness that the listener is going to have a different reaction to the music than they might in the studio. "You pick up tricks you know will work, that you can fall back on..." Campos explains, "[but] it's like people that are funny – as soon as you get the joke, it's time to move on."

Read the full interview at theskinny.co.uk/music Mount Kimbie play The Art School, Glasgow, 30 Oct

Michael Winterbottom on his Wolf Alice film On The Road Director of The Trip and 24 Hour Party People, Winterbottom combines music tour doc and fictional road trip in his new project, released to coincide with Wolf Alice’s second LP Visions of a Life

Carla dal Forno

Carla dal Forno on Blackest Ever Black Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Carla dal Forno fills us in on the London-based label, home to her new EP The Garden which drops this month

“The thing I wanted to capture is some sense of what it would be like to be in that world yourself,” says Winterbottom. “What it’s like in the moments where you’re alone, where you’re missing your family? Or where you’ve met someone and you’re falling in love with them? If you wanna try and capture the mood of being on tour – the feeling of being on tour – you need to have that sort of personal element as well.”

Read the full interview at theskinny.co.uk/film

"I was hearing all of this amazing music that wasn’t being played anywhere else,” dal Forno says, “and it struck a chord straight away. It was mainly old stuff from the 80s – music that I’d always wanted to hear that felt like it had somehow been hidden from me.

"I felt an affinity with the music I was hearing, and thought if I could make music that sounded at home on one of [BEB’s] radio shows then I’d have achieved the sound I was aiming for."

Andrew Hung

Read the full interview at theskinny.co.uk/music Mount Kimbie

October 2017

Carla dal Forno plays Stereo, Glasgow, 23 Oct

Andrew Hung: Under the Influence Ben Power’s Fuck Buttons counterpart releases his debut solo album Realisationship this month, so we asked Hung to pull together a guide to some of the artists and records that have left their mark on his work. The resulting list swings from Caribou to The Clash to The Cranberries; read Hung’s explanations and listen to a playlist at theskinny.co.uk/music/playlists

On The Road

Photo: Zoe Davis

Mount Kimbie on new album Love What Survives We speak to Mount Kimbie's Kai Campos about the duo's third album, and bringing the record to life ahead of their UK tour this month

Samanta Schweblin on Fever Dream The Argentinian author's Booker International shortlisted debut drips dead from its pages, a technical masterclass with a dark soul. Samanta Schweblin discusses Fever Dream, imagined anxieties and the real toxins poisoning us and our planet over at theskinny.co.uk/books

Find more at theskinny.co.uk

Opinion

7

Heads Up Compiled by: Kate Pasola

Because there's so much more to October than Halloween...

Tue 3 Oct

Wed 4 Oct

It's widely known that being called for jury duty is a massive pain in the arse. So why, you might ask, are we recommending Jury Play, Grid Iron's immersive play set in a courtroom? Well, fair question. But this play, written by Ben Harrison and Dr Jenny Scott, is a democratic experiment that brings jurors centre stage and challenges a status quo of Latinate chat and dense cross-examinations. We're on board. Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 3-7 Oct, times vary, £11-22

Chip away at fixing the world today with the World Justice Festival, which kicked off on 30 Sep and continues through until 16 Oct. The festival began back after the G8 meeting of 2005 in Scotland, when promises were made that still haven't materialised. The programme boasts a range of protests, screenings, workshops, exhibitions and more, and today there's a screening of Shadow World, a documentary exposing 'the billion-dollar arms trade that costs millions of lives'. 50 George Square, Edinburgh, 7pm, free

Sun 8 Oct

If you're up for a gig tonight, nip over to Sneaky Pete's, where Alcopop!signed indie-pop trio Peaness give their April EP Are You Sure the live treatment. The stellar line-up also features dark pop artist Mt. Doubt (aka Leo Bargery) and grrrl gang (and Girls Rock School alumni) Tongue Trap. Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh, 7pm, £6

Edinburgh Cocktail Weekend graces the capital's loveliest bars this week, bringing specially-designed signature cocktails in any of the Weekend's participating bars. And sure, it feels like we can't move for cocktail weekends, festivals and conventions at the moment, but since when was a cornucopia of delightfully mixed drinks in gorgeous bars a problem? Since never, actually. Fact. 6-8 Oct, wristbands £6, cocktails £4, see edinburghcocktailweekend. com for participating bars

Peaness

Photo: Debbie Ellis

Sat 7 Oct

Fri 13 Oct

Sat 14 Oct

Mind that time we mentioned Scotland was swimming in cocktails at the moment? Yep, here's another example: Cocktails in the City Edinburgh, in which 20 Edinburghian bars unite to bring mixed drinks and masterclasses, along with DJs and tasty food to a party-ready public. Mansfield Traquair, Edinburgh, 12-13 Oct, 6pm, £12 (tickets include a welcome cocktail and a cocktail booklet), cocktailsinthecity.com

Thanks to Black History Month, the month of October has become synonymous with the celebration and recognition of black excellence and history.

Today, get involved at Fusion Reunite, 'a celebration of Afro/Caribbean inspired music bringing people together'. The line-up features The Glasgow Gospel Choir, Ayawara West African Percussion, Mosa Funk Club and way more besides. We're stoked. The Rum Shack, Glasgow, 7pm, £10

Get some lols under your belt tonight with Punchline Comedy Gala.

Hosted by the effortlessly hilarious Nish Kumar and featuring the acclaimed and utterly essential Felicity Ward, it's set to be an absolute stunner.

Support sets will be provided by Chris Betts and Jamie MacDonald – plenty bang for your buck.

Central Hall, Edinburgh, 8pm, £18.50

Illustration: Raj Dhunna

Thu 12 Oct

Cocktails in the City

Wed 18 Oct

Fri 20 Oct

Geek out at Dundee Literary Festival this week. Taking place between 18-22 Oct, the five-day shindig is packed with readings, performances, screenings, meet-ups, launches and tours. Today, head to Beyond the Binary, an event in which The National Theatre of Scotland’s Adam World Choir (a digital community recently famed for their part in acclaimed EIF show Adam) preview their new book, a collection of first-person accounts by transgender and non-binary people across the world.

Bonar Hall, Dundee, 18 Oct, 7pm, £2-3

Graphic Design Festival Scotland makes a return this week with an expansive programme featuring workshops from MTV, Spin and Supermundane and more.

There'll also be a reprise of GDFS's International Poster Exhibition (21 Oct-25 Nov), discussions, parties, and short film screenings. Also, It’s Nice That founder Will Hudson's hosting an event about networking called Awkward and we're totally game. 20-26 Oct, The Lighthouse, Glasgow, see graphicdesignfestivalscotland.com for times and prices

Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami

Wed 25 Oct TBH, we're convinced that the nationwide broadcast of Grace Jones' Sophie Fiennes-directed film Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami (followed by a Q&A with Jones herself and her closest collaborators) will be one of the highlights of the month, so we're tempted just to leave it there. Because, really, do you need persuading? Book your tickets. It'll sell out if it hasn't already. Cinemas across the UK, including GFT, Glasgow and Cameo, Edinburgh, times and prices vary

8

Chat

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

Thu 19 Oct World Headquarters – the glimmering jewel in Newcastle's clubbing crown – has become rather accustomed to trips north of the border lately, and we're not complaining. This month they're teaming up with Nat Tuner to bring an exclusive group of session musicians and vocalists together for a performance of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in its entirety. The insta-classic was released almost 20 years ago and it's fitting tribute. Don't be a dafty, book your tickets ASAP. Summerhall, Edinburgh, 7pm, £16

Graphic Design Festival Scotland

Thu 26 Oct

Fri 27 Oct Africa in Motion film festival is a thing of wonder. For over a decade they've brought hundreds of cliché-slaying films to our shores in a bid to engage with the African diaspora community living in Scotland. The fest returns this month until 5 Nov, and this year's programme features a collaboration with Glasgow University on a project entitled Africa's Lost Classics which reprises lost and forgotten African movies. Venues across Edinburgh and Glasgow, see africa-in-motion.org.uk for details

Infinite Lives



Edinburgh Cocktail Weekend

Nish Kumar

How does a live lab experiment in which bacteria react to electronic music suit you? If you're intrigued, visit Tramway to catch Robbie Thomson's Infinite Lives, which is, er, exactly that. The event forms part of Sonica (26 Oct-5 Nov, various venues across Glasgow), a biennial festival of visual sonic art from around the world. See sonic-a.co.uk for more info. Tramway, Glasgow, 26-28 Oct, £12

Photo: Robbie Thompson

Adam World Choir

Shadow World

Jury Play

Soleil Ô

Theo Kottis

Sat 28 Oct Unfortunately, this year Halloween falls on Officially The Most Boring Day Of The Week (Tuesday). That in mind, it's important to spend the weekend prior wisely. First up, there's the carnivalesque, Day Of The Dead Glesga, Glasgow's take on Día de los Muertos at St Luke's, with live music, Mexican food, performances and more (8pm, £15).

Up in Aberdeen, Let It Bleed throw a Halloween special featuring Icarus, Theo Kottis, IDA, Rondevu and more. Get spooky and steamin'. Unit 51, Aberdeen, 9pm, £14

THE SKINNY

Reading Rooms

RM Hubbert

Pictish Trail

Mon 9 Oct

Tue 10 Oct

Wed 11 Oct

Potter pals! Find your crowd at The Three Sisters this month with their fortnightlong Wizardfest, during which the bar becomes a wizardy hub of potions classes, feasts, quizzes, and even a speed dating evening dedicated to bringing together single muggles and wizards alike. Or, if you're of the outdoorsy persuasion, head to their Quidditch tournament (we'll leave the mechanics of that one to your imagination...). The Three Sisters, Edinburgh, 9-22 Oct, prices vary

Guys. Scotland has a Mental Health Arts Festival. We know that's not news to you – it's been around for 11 years, after all – but it's a pretty incredible feat, isn't it? Like always, this year's programme is bursting with theatre, film, music, comedy, visual arts and literary events. Oh, and the cherry atop this delightfully progressive cake? This year's festival theme is 'Reclaim'. Mic drop. 10-29 Oct, venues, times and prices vary, see mhfestival.com for the full programme

First up, bottoms up at Edinburgh's Oktoberfest, down at Princes Street Gardens. There'll be all the usual décor, costumes, live entertainment and bevvies. You know the score; turn up, sink a beer within unconvincingly Bavarian environs, wonder if next year you should just maybe go to Germany for a bit instead. West Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh, 11-15 Oct, prices vary

WizardFest

Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival

Oktoberfest

Sun 15 Oct

Mon 16 Oct

Tue 17 Oct

Dog show, anyone? No, seriously. The Barras Arts and Design Centre are hosting their inaugural BAaD Dog Show and we're more than on board. We're so on board we're almost overboard. If you're missing doggos and puppers from your life and fancy hanging out with some perfect dugs, now's your chance to help crown the 'BAadest dog' of all. Carpe diem; carpe canine. Or something. BAaD, Glasgow, 11am-5pm, free

Returning for its eighth year Scotland Loves Anime hits the central belt this month with another programme of awesome Japanese anime.

There'll be a mixture of new releases and old classics, including the world premiere of an English dub version of A Silent Voice; plus the EU premiere of Eureka Seven: Hi-Evolution. There'll also be guest speakers,jury and audience awards and a day of workshops. GFT, Glasgow (13-15 Oct) & Filmhouse, Edinburgh (16-22 Oct, times and prices vary

If October's darkening days leave you fancying some cathartic shouty punk-pop, get involved with duo Diet Cig, who're bringing their sherbetty, explosive album Swear I'm Good at This to Sneaky Pete's tonight. Support comes in the way of selfconfessed queer DIY pop punks The Spook School, and we're more than stoked. Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh, 7pm, £7.50; Broadcast, Glasgow, 18 Oct£7.50, 7pm

Barras Arts and Design Centre

A Silent Voice

Diet Cig

Sun 22 Oct

Mon 23 Oct

Tue 24 Oct

Grime fella AJ Tracey (aka Che Wolton Grant) touches down at SWG3 tonight with his Secure The Bag! tour. Grant rose to fame on pirate radio before slamming a BBC Sound of 2017 nomination earlier this year. Rag'n'Bone man might have (inexplicably) pipped him to the post, but rest assured the West Londoner MC will be spitting the fieriest bars over the chilliest bleeps. SWG3, Glasgow, 7pm, £12-15

In 2011 we described Japanese psychedelic rock unit Acid Mothers Temple as "near-legendary." Six years later (and over two decades since their conception) they're still going strong, and we're still big fans. Today they crashland in Broadcast following a show in Dundonian venue Conroy's Basement last night (7pm, £10).

Don't miss this opportunity to have your senses temporarily assassinated. Broadcast, Glasgow, 7pm, £10

This year's 'creative ageing' festival Luminate takes place between 1-31 Oct, and features exhibitions, films, performances and participatory events in venues across Scotland.

Today, check out When We Were Young, an exhibition exploring how childhood – and its portrayal – has changed over the years (14 Oct-15 Apr, free). See luminatescotland.org for the full programme.

Sun 29 Oct

Mon 30 Oct

Themed bar specialists Pop Up Geeks strike again this month with their Stranger Things bar The Upside Down. Along with décor inspired by the show's iconic aesthetic (all rainbow lights and alphabets), there'll be 80s drinks, hard shakes and alco-ice cream. Head down ASAP, or hold off until their Halloween event on 31 Oct. The perfect spooky diary booking. Below Six Degrees North, Howe St, Edinburgh, Open Sun-Fri until 31 Oct from 4pm, free

Fans of minimalism, head to the aforementioned Sonica Festival today for Nelo Akamatsu's Chijikinkutsu, an installation which melds scientific research and the principle of geomagnetism ('chijiki') to create a soothing sound sculpture which "glimmers and tinkles just at the threshold of hearing". Sounds serene, if you ask us. Govanhill Baths, Glasgow, 26 Oct-5 Nov, 127pm, free

October 2017

Stranger Things



Acid Mothers Temple

David Peat - An Eye on the Street, Glasgow 1968 (Comforting Arm)

Tue 31 Oct

Sonica

Credit: Nelo Akamatsu

AJ Tracey

Photo: Crimson Glow

Sat 21 Oct Thanks to India @ UK 2017, a festival of dance and theatre, this month the High Commission of India in UK and UK/Indian festival producer Teamwork Arts bring two of India’s most celebrated dance companies to Scotland.

Daksha Sheth Dance Company and Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company will both perform in Glasgow on 20-21 Oct. Over at The Barras, Glasgow Tequila Festival stirs up an evening of Mexican madness, with music and DJs, over 30 different Tequilas, Piñatas and Mexican fare.

Barrowland Ballroom, Glasgow, 1pm, £12-16

Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company

Photo: Jassy Earl

Platform's multi-platform festival Eastern Promise returns for its seventh year this month, and they're expanding beyond music to bring visual art and performance to their two-day programme; pairing Lost Map act Pictish Trail with Make a Hoo and Visible Cloaks (Fri); and RM Hubbert and Sexual Objects with Achilles, Leyla Josephine's Hopeless and Pauline and the Matches and Colin James Tennant's Paint it Red. Buses leave Mono at 6pm on 6 Oct, and 4.30pm on 7 Oct. Platform, Glasgow, 6 & 7 Oct, times vary, £7.50-15

Photo: Patrik Kristian

Dundee dwellers, escape the October chill and embrace its darkening evenings by getting stuck into Uncle Phils, Aunt Viv's House, Van D and Mc Salum's gnarly party dedicated entirely to female rappers. Over four hours of SZA, Princess Nokia, Erykah Badu, Missy Elliot and Stefflon Don? Yes please. Thanks. Reading Rooms, Dundee, 10pm, £4

It's Halloween! It's also Tuesday, but does Denis Sulta let that stop him?

No. In fact, he's hosting a 12 Hour Spooktacular which kicks off at the e'er haunted Leith Theatre with Chaos in the CBD and Dixon Avenue Basement Jams, before shuttles take the revellers over to Liquid Rooms to finish things up with Sulta himself, Kornel Kovacs and Big Miz (Edinburgh, 5-11pm & 11pm-5am, £10-15).

Denis Sulta

Chat

9

Photo: Sean Bell

Fri 6 Oct

Photo: Kate Johnston

Thu 5 Oct

S RE AT U FE

Life Drawings Two years after pulling away from the rest of the indie rock pack with My Love Is Cool, Wolf Alice frontwoman Ellie Rowsell talks us through their massive, LA-recorded follow-up

“T

hose nerves about writing the difficult second album – we never really had them, which was weird.”

Really weird, when you consider that there was more pressure on Wolf Alice than most when they faced up to the prospect of following up their Mercury-nominated debut record, 2015’s My Love is Cool. That’s not least because it was one of those first albums that already felt like a fully realised vision, in the same way that perhaps Franz Ferdinand’s, Vampire Weekend’s or Interpol’s debuts did. There wasn’t the sense that the Londoners were building up to making their definitive statement next time around – this was it, a huge, swirling, polished rock record that sounded destined for arenas from the very get go.

Reaching that point, in and of itself, had been a bit of a whirlwind; the present line-up of the band has only been going since 2012, and the recorded build-up to their first long-player was a brief one – a couple of EPs, Blush and Creature Songs, that they released about six months apart.

By 2016, though, Moaning Lisa Smile from the latter EP had been nominated for Best Rock Performance at the Grammys and the group had sold out a threenight run at the Kentish Town Forum in their native Camden. They’re young, too – singer Ellie Rowsell has only just turned 25 – and the degree to which they’ve taken things in their stride thus far is as surprising as it is impressive.

That’s something that extends to the lightningquick turnaround of what should have been their daunting second full-length – a few listens appear to confirm it to have been anything but. Visions of a Life will again be released via Dirty Hit, the hugely exciting East London imprint that’s also called home by The 1975, The Japanese House and Marika Hackman; the kind of label, then, that suits down to the ground any artist who refuses to be modest about their ambitions. That’s precisely the attitude that Wolf Alice seem to have taken on Visions of a Life, a sprawling work that sees them indulge just about every stylistic impulse, from the unhinged punk fury of Yuk Foo to the

10

Feature

woozy, part spoken-word comedown of Don’t Delete the Kisses, via Planet Hunter’s space-rock and the haunting bare-bones starkness that After the Zero Hour represents.

As Rowsell notes, though, enough of the record seemed to have fallen into place by the time they actually turned their attentions to it that there wasn’t a great deal of hand-wringing about making sure they could top the success of My Love is Cool. “We didn’t realise it as it was happening, but we had quite a lot of it done already,” she explains. “We’d had a bit of time off when we finished touring, probably about six months, and then when we all got back together afterwards, it turned out that we already had a lot of material that we all really liked, just from writing here and there – when we were at home between tours, or in breaks out on the road. We were in a much better position than we could have hoped to be, so we were never too worried about the writing of the record – it sort of took care of itself.”

The Grammy nod for Moaning Lisa Smile seemed to cement the band’s success in having broken America, something that was already evident in the sizes of the rooms that they were selling out in the States. It felt natural, then, that Visions of a Life would end up being something of a Transatlantic record, one that was conceived in London but ultimately realised five and a half thousand miles away in Los Angeles. “All of the songs came together in our rehearsal space in London,” says Rowsell. “We treated that like a day job, nine-to-five, giving ourselves the weekends off and occasionally playing shows during them, too. By the time we got to America with the tracks, they were pretty much fully-formed, which I guess means that LA as a place didn’t really have a great deal of influence on them. If there’s any bearing of it on the record, it will have been subconscious, but it did mean that we got to record in a beautiful studio, and it’s easier to want to jump out of bed and get to work when it’s really sunny every day.”

The group decamped to California primarily in order to work with Justin Meldal-Johnsen, who

produced the record and comes with the sort of heavyweight CV that you’d expect from a guy who spent two decades touring with Beck as his bassist and musical director; he’s worked with a dizzying breadth of artists right across spectrums of both genre and sonic fidelity. Given Visions of a Life’s stylistic restlessness, then, he was a very good fit.

“I think we were attracted to the range of different artists he’s worked with,” Rowsell tells us. “He’s produced M83, who have a huge pop sound, and then Paramore, who have always been really hi-fi, even when they’ve switched between rock and pop.

On the other side of that, he did the last record by The Raveonettes, Pe’ahi, which was super scratchy and rough around the edges. He’s done so much touring and playing too, so we knew he’d be able to bring a musician’s perspective to the album.”

“ We put Yuk Foo out because we were excited about playing it live...

Our crowds are really energetic and mosh a lot” Ellie Rowsell

Well ahead of the record’s release date, fans were given a taste of its eclecticism in the form of its first two singles, which couldn’t be further removed from each other. Yuk Foo is a positively feral two-minute torpedo that Rowsell screeches her way through as she breaks off the shackles of a tedious relationship, resolving instead to ‘fuck all the people I meet’. Don’t Delete the Kisses is

Music

Interview: Joe Goggins quite the opposite: gorgeous and dreamy, with soothing synths that burble away in the background as Rowsell delivers a touching, conversational treatise on modern romance between choruses. Releasing the two tracks so close to each other seems like the perfect way to preface Visions of a Life, but it apparently wasn’t meant that way.

“We didn’t actually do that on purpose, but it’s worked out nicely,” laughs Rowsell. “We put Yuk Foo out because we were excited about playing it live, especially with these tours of small venues we’ve just done. Our crowds are really energetic and mosh a lot, and we didn’t feel as if we had enough songs in our set to allow for that and encourage it. Don’t Delete the Kisses is totally different, obviously, but that was what the American label thought would go down best over there, which is why it came out next. We like all our songs, honestly. We’d have been happy to put any of them out.”

When the band head out on their biggest UK tour to date in November, they’ll revisit some old haunts, with a second night already in the diary at the Barrowlands in Glasgow after the first sold out rapidly. More importantly, though, they’ll be making what’s effectively their arena bow at the spacious Alexandra Palace in London, the sort of surroundings they always seemed destined for, but that they surely couldn’t have expected to reach this quickly. For Rowsell, it’s a prospect that’s equal parts unnerving and exciting.

“I think we would always have ended up striving to make a record that sounds as big as this one, even if we weren’t playing venues of this size,” she reflects. “We all share the same taste for polished rock albums, you know? We want to give every song we’re proud of the best shot when we record it. But stepping up to somewhere like Ally Pally – I do think it’s really intimidating. I felt a little bit unsure about it when we booked it, but I suppose that’s the level the band are at now.

God knows – I hope it’s gonna be alright!”

Visions of Life is released on 29 Sep via Dirty Hit Wolf Alice play Barrowlands, Glasgow, 11 & 12 Nov

THE SKINNY

Life in the Machine We speak to Joshua Hayward of The Horrors about their latest album, V, Depeche Mode, Primal Scream, and social media

e can just faintly make out the voice of The Horrors’ guitarist Joshua Hayward when The Skinny call him to discuss the group’s latest album V. “I’ve just got this cheap house phone, because my actual mobile phone doesn’t work in my house,” he explains in a clipped English accent, his tone sits somewhere between politely reserved and lightly amused. Hayward has been doing interviews all morning – “much to my surprise,” he admits. “I completely forgot I was doing them.

Because I have the house phone, and it only rings if it’s an interview. The phone rang first thing this morning and I was like, bollocks,” he laughs.

In the ten years that the Southend-on-Sea quintet have been releasing records – since first smashing onto the scene in 2007 with their debut album Strange House – they’ve shapeshifted their way through gothic garage punk, slick indie cuts and melodic psych rock. With eccentric frontman Faris Badwan at the helm, The Horrors have always maintained an oddball charm, radically reshaping their sound with each record while still keeping a firm grip on their fanbase and those album-ofthe-year lists. However, 2014’s Luminous saw the group hit a bump in the road.

“Going into this record, we definitely felt that with the last record we’d started overthinking things,” Hayward admits. Their fifth album, the aptly titled V, is an assertive return to form for the group. Prior to V’s release, The Horrors supported New Order in 2015, followed by a support slot with Depeche Mode during their international tour this year. These influences show up clearly on V. In ten tracks, the new album combines nostalgic electropop with an industrial aggression that mirrors The Horrors’ early-days abrasive aesthetic.

Of their experience with Depeche Mode, Hayward says, “We’ve played with them before, at the start it was scary. They’ll play a stadium, but you can’t fit everyone in the stadium. I’m not joking! There’s that many Depeche Mode fans. And Depeche Mode fans notoriously hate support bands, they just want Depeche Mode to play. They don’t want to hear you when they could be hearing more Depeche Mode songs. But people were really receptive; it was very surprising, and great fun to play.

“Also, our bassist Rhys [Webb] pointed out – I never realised this because I’d never listened to them that much – but I play guitar very similarly to how Martin [Gore, Depeche Mode’s guitarist] plays. It’s probably a geographical thing – they’re from Basildon, just up the road from us, but it’s weird when you realise that. You’ve developed [as a player] at different times, but have come to similar conclusions.”

He adds: “It was great watching them every night as well, because they’re a band that have just done whatever they wanted, the whole of their career, and they’ve just got tonnes of great songs out of it!”

Doing whatever they want underscores the approach The Horrors take to their own songwriting. Always astute with their choice of lead singles, Hayward agrees that the mechanical, majestic rock of Machine epitomises the mindset of V. “We wanted things to be a bit rawer, and we felt that Machine perfectly encapsulated that sound.

We were using modular synthesisers with rhythmic elements, [we] processed the drums in an extreme way, stuff like that – that’s what we’ve been doing on this record, so Machine was a good introduction.

“We’ve always kind of followed the same mindset; we’ve always tried to be happy with the record ourselves. And I guess that’s meant we’ve always changed because we always want to try

October 2017

new things.” Hayward pauses. “We just love that we’ve been doing it this long, because most people don’t get afforded that opportunity.”

Inevitably for a group whose first two albums, in particular, are markedly different to their newer output, V will likely be passed over by those Horrors fans who like the old stuff better than their new stuff. Hayward seems unfazed by this possibility. “That’s the thing with records,” he muses. “We make them, and they’re very personal to us. The minute you release it, it’s not your record anymore.

It becomes everyone’s record, and it means different things to different people. Some people will hear this, other people will hear that, and it’s so specific to each person and their experience.”

Of the genre-pigeonholing that accompanies most new releases, you can almost hear Hayward’s eye-roll down the phone. “Here’s a weird one, some people have come back and said ‘oh, so now you’re this gothic metal band?’ It was like, what?! What are you on about?” he laughs. “Who are our peers in the ‘gothic metal’ scene? You’ve just made up some words!”

The discussion then turns to Primal Scream, a band who Hayward declares “are great” – and a group with a similar reputation for refining their sound from album to album. “It is a tricky one. I don’t think we’ve ever sat down and thought ‘let’s have a career trajectory like Primal Scream.’ I don’t think anything has ever been that planned out. But their personality really comes through on every record, and if you can do that on your records, then you can diversify things and you can try different things.”

Crafting new sounds is nothing new for Hayward. The guitarist, who happens to have a

first-class honours degree in physics, designs and builds his own guitar effects units and pedals, and he explains that the new album has enabled him to delve even deeper into that technical aspect of music making. He reveals that he was “writing computer programs” during the recording process for V – which, he laughs “is probably not a normal thing for a guitarist to do.

“ We’ve always tried to be happy with the record ourselves.

And I guess that’s meant we’ve always changed because we always want to try new things” Joshua Hayward

“I’m in a weird position where I play guitar in a band where we’re not particularly interested in how guitars traditionally sound,” he explains.

“Which is good, because it keeps it interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever been that kind of [traditional] musician – I don’t think any of us are. I don’t think that’s how we see things.”

Given that Hayward has been fielding questions from back-to-back interviews all morning, we throw in a final curve-ball. It’s late July when our interview takes place, and The Horrors have recently popped up on Instagram with a freshlyminted account. What made them finally cave-in to the social media juggernaut? Hayward groans.

“I’ll level with you. I am the wrong person to ask about this. I don’t have any social media. I don’t understand any of it. I find it very confusing. It’s fun when people show you things, funny clips or a nice picture of your friends…” he trails off.

How has he managed to resist the online world for so long, we push? “I have to phone people,” he laughs. “You do miss out on things.

I had an embarrassing one recently. My friend was having a big birthday and he had arranged for everyone to go for a Sunday roast. He had emailed everyone – I got that, because I do have email. I got there on Sunday and everyone else was really hungover. I was like ‘what did everyone do last night?!’ and they’d had a massive surprise birthday party!” he laughs. “They’d invited everyone on Facebook. So I’d missed it, basically. Everyone kept saying ‘oh, I wondered where you were, we thought you were in the studio or something’. I guess that’s the price you pay if you don’t phone people up a lot,” he chuckles. There’s a definite sense of the old and the new colliding in Hayward’s world; much like The Horror’s latest album, it’s a refreshingly unique point of view.

The Horrors play Queen Margaret Union (QMU), Glasgow, 19 Oct V is out now via Wolf Tone / Caroline International thehorrors.co.uk

Credit: Wolf Tone Records

W

Interview: Claire Francis

Music

Feature

11

Trouble + Me We speak to Obaro Ejimiwe, aka Ghostpoet, about his latest record Dark Days + Canapés

Photo: Steve Gullick

Interview: Alexander Smail

O

baro Ejimiwe, aka Ghostpoet, has been a reliable voice of anxiety throughout his career. Since his debut, Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam, he has quietly been providing forlorn social observations via his trademark drawl and, on new album Dark Days + Canapés, it seems the world has finally caught up with him.

It’s fearless; a visceral yet universal critique of issues such as consumerism, immigration, and warfare. It’s the rare contemporary commentary that neither patronises nor alienates. Just don’t call it a political statement. “[That’s] not really what the record is about,” interjects the London-native when broached about the subject, “it’s political with a small ‘p’. It’s more a social commentary, a social awareness.” On first thought the difference may seem negligible, but it’s true – Ejimiwe uses these larger issues as a blueprint to instead tell smaller, more relatable stories. He has an innate talent for condensing knotty subject matter into sympathetic, digestible chunks; whether telling the story of a refugee drowning on a perilous journey, or simply condemning conflict and bloodshed, he has a knack for getting under your skin through unexpected routes.

Even the title itself – Dark Days + Canapés – evokes dread and anguish the longer you reflect upon it, though it similarly resists definitive interpretation. Are the canapés symbolic of the social elites? “That’s one way of looking at it,” Ejimiwe starts, before trailing off. “It’s just kind of a reflection of the world, I guess. We’re going through relative dark times, you know, the haves and the have-nots.” Much like the album itself, Ejimiwe says the title is whatever you make of it. “It’s a mixture of things, I write titles as a means of entry. Everyone will have his or her own interpretation.”

It may seem something of a paradox, but Ghostpoet’s most narratively ambitious album yet is also a deeply personal one, though he stresses that it’s not overtly biographical: “It’s not about me, I’m writing about other people, the world that I’m living in. If I want people to relate to my music I feel the best way to do that is to write songs that

12

Feature

anyone can put themselves into, rather than be exclusively about myself.”

While moments on the album seem to come from a place of true desperation and disillusionment with our society, Ejimiwe explains his intentions were more muted. “I’m just giving a voice to the voiceless, that’s always my modus operandi, so it’s really for people going through certain issues, feeling a certain way, to give them a voice.”

If there’s one thing Ejimiwe is clear on, it’s that he doesn’t view the album as a grand political statement, but rather as a series of – admittedly bleak – vignettes connected by our brave new world.

“ If I want people to relate to my music I feel the best way to do that is to write songs that anyone can put themselves into” Obaro Ejimiwe

In between breaths of societal musings and harrowing ruminations, Ejimiwe finds rare moments of introspection, such as on beautifully pensive cut Trouble + Me, though he’s adamant that they’re not the point of the album: “I don’t feel the need to write about [myself] exclusively. I may write a line or two in there but I don’t feel the need to write a track solely about me.” It’s true, the album contains many moments of reflection from Ejimiwe – mostly melancholic – but they’re a reaction to the world around him.

And, on a more personal scale, the world around him has shifted massively. Late last year Ejimiwe moved home, swapping out the hustleand-bustle of London for the relative serenity of coastal town Margate. As for whether the change has affected his songwriting, is a moot point, as he hasn’t been working on new music since the move. “I’m not an everyday writing person,” he tells us, “I try to gather up experiences, then try to write again.” In the meantime, he’s happy taking music off his mind and simply living in the moment, doing “life shit” and taking those experiences as they come.

“You can’t be consumed by one thing,” he says.

Dark Days continues Ejimiwe’s exploration of a more alt-rock tinged direction, casting aside the airy electronic beats of his early material. It’s quite the dramatic shift, but he seems to have found gratification in the transformation. “I feel quite comfortable where I am right now,” he states coolly, “wherever it goes it goes.” Ejimiwe is decidedly more relaxed when it comes to his songwriting approach than his stressful subject matter.

As an extension, there’s no one specific reaction he anticipates evoking out of the listener, but rather is happy for them to take whatever they take from Dark Days.

The album marks Ejimiwe’s first time allowing another producer to take on a greater role, recruiting Brian Eno and Paul Simon collaborator Leo Abrahams. “I wanted to just take my hands off the reins a bit, when in the past I’ve always wanted to be in relative total control.” He sees the collaborative experience as a decidedly positive one. “You learn from everything you do, every experience that you face, regardless of whether it’s musical or not, hopefully you learn something.”

Given Abrahams’ long career as a session musician and film composer, it’s no surprise Ejimiwe saw him as a natural fit for the operatic yet intimate stories he tells on Dark Days: “Leo just felt like the right person to work with, he got what I was trying to do.” Unsurprisingly, one of the bigger contributions Abrahams made was the

Music

strings: “Working with someone like Leo really helped [them] along, he did the string arrangements off the back of my demos. It’s something I felt like doing for this particular record.”

While Ejimiwe is steadfast that Dark Days is as much a Ghostpoet album as his past releases have been compositionally, Abrahams seems to have had a profound influence on the mixing. The instrumentals are loud and operatic, at points threatening to drown Ejimiwe’s vocals beneath them – a conscious decision, he reveals. Beyond this, though, there’s a definite synergy between the lyrical content of the album and the compositions themselves On tracks like Karoshi (meaning ‘death from overworking’ in Japanese), and the crushing Immigrant Boogie, the instrumentals are almost apocalyptic, echoing and invigorating the sombre lyrics. “I like the music to reflect the subject matter,” he tells us, and it makes sense as the whole album abides by this philosophy; it’s a lyrically bleak album, made that much bleaker by its cold and tumultuous soundscapes.

Dark Days + Canapés is a strange beast of an album – a blend of intimate narratives, pensive meditation, and greater ruminations about our society as a whole – a fact that, after spending time talking to Ejimiwe, seems a conscious decision: “It’s always been a mixture of things to me. I just kind of write about everything, be it personal, be it external, emotional, human condition. I just let it flow from there.” And what are his thoughts on all of these disparate elements coalescing, about the contrast between his distinctly individual approach to songwriting and production, the intention of an entirely personal response from the listener, and the universally sympathetic stories he’s telling? “Human beings are very complex.”

He certainly is.

Dark Days + Canapés is out now via Play It Again Sam Ghostpoet plays Stereo, Glasgow, 28 Oct ghostpoet.co.uk

THE SKINNY

October 2017

DEVIANCE

Feature

13

THE MAIDS Dundee Rep Ensemble presents

By Jean Genet

17 Oct - 4 Nov

In a translation by

Box Office:

Martin Crimp

01382 223 530 Director Eve Jamieson dundeerep.co.uk

14

THE SKINNY

Witch Side Are You On? In a world of Sexy Scientist costumes and whitewashed Geisha get-ups, the witch has prevailed as a feminist fallback for socially conscious trick-or-treaters. And, er, we’re about to ruin that for you too...

A

Black Magic African traditional and diasporic spiritualities are practised by approximately 100 million people, making it the 8th largest religion practised globally.

African spirituality takes many different forms, including Louisiana Hoodoo, Haitian Vodou (often westernised as Voodoo), Brujeria, Santeria, Obeah, JuJu and many more. These derive from West African religions, and have withstood travel, diaspora and the slave trade to evolve in new environments.

These spiritualities are often stereotyped in The Halloween Witch a specific way. For instance ‘Voodoo’ is well known, When we think about Halloween a very specific type and calls to mind clichés of sticking pins in dolls, of witch comes to mind, with green skin, a hooked potions and sacrifices. The reality is musical and nose, and pointed hat. However, many historians spiritual, with shared deities (Orishas) also found are agreed on the fact that the origins of this witch in West African traditions. The reason for the stigma costume are steeped in anti-semitism. Jewish around common conceptions of Vodou and other people in Europe since the 1200s have been pertypes of African spirituality can be linked to white secuted and discriminated against via their appear- supremacy. In the wake of the Haitian revolution, ance and dress; forced to wear special garments where the slaves revolted and freed themselves – badges, belts and hats – that were implemented from French colonial rule, white slaveowners in the over time and form the basis of the witch costume US aggressively vilified Haitian spiritual practices we know today. as barbaric in order to prevent them from similarly The anti-semitic stereotype of hooked empowering enslaved black people, for fear of noses became synonymous with witchcraft, uprisings on US plantations. The Haitian uprising and Jewish people were often cited as stealing is credited to a secret Vodou ceremony on the children and poisoning people. The iconic witch night of 14 August 1791, where slaves gathered is therefore built from a mixture of symbolic and ‘slit the throat of a large black creole pig and items meant to demonise Jewish people, which distributed its blood to the revolutionaries, who have now to some extent detached from their swore to kill the blancs – white settlers – as they original purpose. drank it’. The myths surrounding Vodou today It’s difficult to determine the appropriate have their roots in subsequent fears of this response to this problem. Should the costume empowering religion, a ‘rival power base’ to the be discarded altogether, or is it sufficiently far slave-owning Christian church. removed from its origins that it can no longer be However, in modern-day times these spiriconsidered representative of contemporary anti- tualities are being given a new platform. Artists semitism? This is an ongoing debate, but regardlike Princess Nokia showcase contemporary less, if you are dressing up as a witch this Brujeria among young Afro-Latinx people in her Halloween it is better to be informed about the song Brujas, which establishes a sisterhood and roots of your costume. community tied to ancient Yoruba tradition,

s Halloween draws near and witch costumes begin to fly off the shelves, it seems a fitting time to examine what the witch is, and what she once was. I don’t practice any form of spirituality, but as a child I was very interested in the less commonly practised spirituality of Jamaica – obeah magic. With that in mind, I can’t claim to be expert in any of the spiritualities, but I can guide you through some of the modern-day manifestations of witchcraft.

October 2017

but which is still relevant to the contemporary diasporic condition.

Similarly, Beyoncé made references to Yoruba spirituality in the imagery of Lemonade, through her deliberate embodiments of the Orisha Oshun – the yellow dress in Hold Up alludes to the garments of the goddess of fertility and love. The revival and mainstreaming of African and diasporic spirituality through pop-culture is largely being treated as trendy, but it must be noted that this accessibility is based on cherry picking the most palatable parts of the tradition. We’ve been taking the herbs, the crystals, the deities and the solidarity while leaving the sacrificial chickens in the closet.

“ It’s difficult to determine the appropriate response to this problem.

Should the costume be discarded altogether?”

The Cool Witch Part of the sanitising of witchcraft has been held within the commercialisation of the practice. The trendy, accessible kind of witchcraft is noticeably white. It looks like Urban Outfitters selling candles, sage incense bundles, white YouTubers like Harmony Nice, celebrities like Lena Dunham and Adele swearing to crystals’ healing and

INTERSECTIONS

Words: Rianna Walcott Illustration: Terri Po protective powers, and Gwyneth Paltrow telling us to put jade eggs up our vaginas. This type of witchcraft is revolted by the gorier parts of spirituality, tending towards a pastiche of rituals and practices with origins from all over the world.

It’s appropriation, whitewashing and in some cases capitalistic exploitation of black spiritualities for which black people have been persecuted throughout time.

The problem with mainstreaming the cultural capital of witchcraft and spirituality is how often we get it wrong and become offensive to what is, after all, a widely practised religion. Amalgamating different practices of spirituality has the effect of further marginalising the practices that are less publicly acceptable, and the people for whom it is more than a trend.

The resurgence of modern day witchcraft is not always capitalistic, but is sometimes tied to feminism: the witch is political. The rebooting of 90s witchy feminism – the autonomous and powerful women of shows like Buffy – is especially timely in the current political climate. Political witchcraft is appealing, an act of power in a moment where the freedoms of women, people of colour and LGBTQ+ people are under threat. The gathering of Brookyln witches who came together to hex Donald Trump is a prime example of witchcraft allowing for a reclamation of personal autonomy.

So which witch are you this Halloween? Making the effort to distinguish the lazy stereotype from the consumerist trendy witch who just wants to smell like rosewater, and the political aesthetic from the historical spiritual practice may seem heavy for an annual holiday that lasts an evening.

But paying attention to the rising visibility of witchcraft and spirituality in the modern day might be worth your time. After all, if she catches you trivialising her culture this Halloween she may just hex you.

Lifestyle

15

High Voltage Farmer We talk to Glasgow’s Robbie Thomson about his ambitious Tesla coilfuelled XFRMR ahead of its appearance at this year’s Sonica festival Interview: Tallah Brash

W

hen The Skinny contact Robbie Thomson to talk about his electrifying XFRMR project, set to appear at this year’s Sonica festival in Glasgow, he’s at the Mexican Centre for Music and Sonic Art in Morelia. “We’re just here for a couple of weeks making some new work… [for] another show called Infinite Lives that’s going to be at Sonica,” he tells us.

At the core of all of Thomson’s work for Sonica is his fascination with science. For Infinite Lives he’ll be working with robotics and microscopes on stage to challenge the limits of perception; with XFRMR, he’s found a way to harness the power of the Tesla coil to make music. We’re fascinated too.

Early on in our chat, we confess that for weeks in the lead up to seeing XFRMR performed as part of the Edinburgh Fringe this year, we’d been pronouncing it ‘ex-farmer’, and that it wasn’t until we were told “the house is now open for ‘Transformer’” that we even realised our embarrassing faux pas.

“I know, it’s a stupid name,” Thomson says with a laugh. “It’s totally unpronounceable so it’s fair enough… just whatever works.”

The Tesla coil, invented in 1891 by Nikola Tesla, is an electrical resonant transformer (there it is!) circuit. It’s used to produce high voltage, low current, high frequency alternating current electricity, and it makes electricity visible, which is pretty cool. “Tesla as a figure is pretty interesting in his own right,” Thomson says when we ask what sparked his interest in the coil. “He’s got all this mythology around him, and all this weird conspiracy theory type stuff that goes with that territory.

So I think he’s just a really interesting character.

“I’d seen the Tesla coil used in classic science fiction horror type stuff,” he continues before excitedly remembering, “Actually, I think it was in Coffee and Cigarettes, The White Stripes have got one… So anyway, I knew about it… I knew you were able to tune it, and I’d seen people online that had made them play [the theme to] Super Mario Bros. and stuff like this. But it was always quite a monotonal, flat sound that they were getting out of it, so it was interesting to see if it would be possible to make it a bit more musical and expressive as an instrument.”

“ I’ve had people at customs opening it up and getting really worried and calling for back-up” Robbie Thomson

Live, paired with impressive projected visuals, Thomson manipulates the Tesla coil to create otherworldly soundscapes which, at times, are cosmically ethereal but can also be overwhelmingly punishing, but it’s the perfect dancefloor beats and bleeps he creates that are most impressive. “In terms of being able to control it, it’s pretty easy. You’ve just got an audio interface so you can

Culture Station

send it any audio signal you want and it’ll convert it into a signal that it basically understands, so it starts interrupting the frequency of the bursts and the frequency of the sparks, and that’s where you get the different tones. You can hook your synths up to it, or laptop or whatever.”

While the coil itself is quite small – “it does run off a normal socket in the wall… like a kettle” – the sound it makes is quite the opposite and it’s an ultimately powerful instrument, requiring to be housed in a Faraday cage “to prevent electromagnetic interference getting out.” Thomson also tells us, “[It] creates ozone and some other gases as a byproduct of the sparks – so yeah, there are a few health risks with it.” It’ll therefore come as no surprise that the show comes with a ‘may interfere with pacemakers’ warning, but Thomson assures us, “it would be very unlikely that anybody would be affected to be honest, but you know you’ve got to play it on the safe side.”

As well as the UK, Thomson has also toured XFRMR around the world and tells us about travelling with the Tesla coil: “If you had to draw a cartoon of what a bomb looks like, then that’s kind of what it looks like. I’ve had people at customs opening it

up and getting really worried and panicking and running around and calling for back-up,” he laughs.

“It’s covered in high voltage stickers so it just looks really dodgy, and you can’t exactly turn it on to prove it’s safe ‘cause it’s definitely not safe,” he laughs again, “so I have to show people videos.”

Thomson’s XFRMR performance at Sonica will be the coil’s first public outing in Glasgow since its appearance at Sub Club for Optimo in 2015, and promises to be an exhilarating and, quite literally, electrifying night. We ask Thomson if he’ll ever put out a physical release as XFRMR? “I’d really like to,” he starts. “The thing with the Tesla coil is that I don’t know how well it translates when it’s just recorded and it’s not a live thing and you can’t see the sparks... I think when you hear the recordings and then you actually experience it physically, it’s really different.” We joke that maybe he needs to put out a visual album like Beyoncé’s Lemonade? Laughing, he responds: “R’n’B bangers, the whole record. Nice!” You heard it here first!

XFRMR will be performed at Tramway, Glasgow, 1 Nov Infinite Lives will be performed at Tramway, Glasgow, 26-28 Oct Sonica 2017 runs from 26 Oct - 5 Nov, more info at sonic-a.co.uk

Ravish the Senses For Sonica 2017, Cryptic have assembled internationally renowned sound, performance, video and installation artists from across the world. Cryptic founder Cathie Boyd and associate artist Mark Lyken walk us through some of the vast programme Interview: Adam Benmakhlouf Aquasonic

S

ince the last Sonica in 2015, the Cryptic team have put together another programme of sound, performance and video art that will take place across Glasgow from Thursday 26 October to Sunday 5 November. Cryptic’s Founder and Artistic Director Cathie Boyd walks us through some of the different strands of the line-up and the different ways they “ravish the senses” per the original Cryptic motto. One of the associate artists, Mark Lyken, also gives us a sense of his work which will be exhibited in Glasgow Sculpture Studios.

Boyd describes the “big opener” Aquasonic

by Denmark’s Between Music, which is the first event on the schedule. For years, “people were phoning me and telling me about it, saying I had to see it.” The artists perform underwater on a specially made audio set-up and bespoke instruments. “They had deep sea diving training so they don’t use any kind of breathing. You can hear them coming to the surface and gulping for air.”

It’s coming out of nine years of development.

16

Feature

This touches on one of the reasons that Boyd decided to make Sonica a biennial festival: “it gives time to see work develop, and for research and travelling.” There’s the risk for Boyd that an annual event becomes “too much of a factory.”

This is especially important for the four Cryptic associate artists, some of whom have shown in the previous Sonica. While there are more than 40 artists who are new to the Sonica line-up, this handful of associate artists represent for Boyd the intention of Cryptic to provide ongoing support to Scotland-based artists.

One of these is Mark Lyken, who will be showing a new film work developed from a period of residency in Cove Park in Scotland and Taipei in Taiwan. Lyken describes the slow and significant departure from his earlier work, as he sought to create a sound work more intuitively on site without making a musical response or performance both more characteristic of past projects. Describing the associate artist position and any worry

about his changing work, Lyken says, “The amazing thing is that Cryptic absorbs it all.”

Another part of the programme involves partnerships with both Mexico and the Czech Republic.

One particular work from the Mexican artists Marcela Armas and Gilberto Esparza involved a great deal of negotiation and logistical skill: “For this, we’re loaning a meteorite from the British Museum, which fell in Australia in 1937.” After showing the work in Mexico City last year, they’re bringing the duo as exhibitors to the Glasgow Science Centre for Sonica 2017 from 5-29 October as representatives of some of the younger artists working in Mexico. The rock itself is ‘cradled in wooden sensor-limbs that “read” the meteorite and generate eerie, modulating music’.

From the Czech Republic, the duo Floex and Initi will be setting up their “interactive musical” experience in the University of Glasgow's memorial chapel. “Through sonic mapping the space comes alive visually and sonically.” The audience

ART / MUSIC

control laser pointers that trigger a tone or visual effects that interact with the architecture and painted walls. Titled Archifon IV, this is another instance of a work that Boyd has been following for several years before bringing to Glasgow.

Speaking of her curatorial strategy of showing existing works that haven’t been in Scotland rather than insisting on one-off new works, Boyd asks “why would we not want the artists to have as many performances as they can?”

The festival will also span a recent Matthew Barney filmwork, featuring the likes of Debbie Harry and Salman Rushdie, a clubnight at The Art School, and many, many more events, installations and performances by internationally renowned artists across all different kinds of venues throughout Glasgow.

Sonica 2017 takes place 26 Oct-5 Nov, full details and tickets available from sonic-a.co.uk

THE SKINNY

October 2017

17

Looking Back Siri Hustvedt’s collection of essays on art, sex and the mind is now out in paperback, so we catch up with this highly respected writer to engage with the key themes of A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women But, in terms of sexism, all of this came out of the idea of the female nude and the first person to really write well about this was John Berger, a man. Then, it was picked up by feminists and elaborated – hugely elaborated – so that the idea is that the painting itself assumes a male viewer rather than a female viewer and then the representation becomes the object of desire for this presumed fantasy spectator. Of course, women, especially heterosexual women, find themselves in a different position in relation to the nude. But it becomes pretty complicated because very often our cultural attitudes are to adopt the position of the fantasy spectator, especially women – women are much more flexible because we’ve had to be – and so, women just as easily fall into the position of the male protagonist or into a kind of male spectatorship.

We call it the male gaze but it doesn’t necessarily have to be a man doing the looking. It can be a woman looking but occupying the same problematic power relationship.

Absolutely! And then what does that mean?!

That’s complicated.

Photo: Marion Ettlinger

Many feminists have recently described a female gaze as a response to the male gaze.

How do you define the female gaze?

There are probably two things: one, that you haven’t learned to have the kind of mastery that assumes the male position, so you’re left out of the story; or, you automatically adopt the position that the painting implies, which is the male universal gaze. So, I think both of those things happen. And I guess a feminist position would be a position of ideally tremendous consciousness where you understand what you’re looking at.

S

iri Hustvedt has accomplished a rare thing.

A Man Booker nominated author with a PhD on Charles Dickens, Hustvedt nevertheless finds herself giving lectures to scientists and writing papers for journals on neuroscience. Over her 40-year career, Hustvedt has published a body of writing that spans novels, essays, non-fiction, papers and poetry. She has truly transcended the arbitrary boundary separating the humanities and sciences.

In her latest collection of essays, titled A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women, Hustvedt displays her spectacular range of knowledge with pieces covering the male gaze, Louise Bourgeois, hairdressing, suicide, psychoanalysis, and the mind/body conundrum. A consciously feminist writer, Hustvedt ponders the relationship between gender and art in her new collection. At the Edinburgh International Book Festival, she speaks to The Skinny about the complexity of a gendered gaze.

18

Feature

In A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women, you write about the relationship between the spectator and art. Why has this traditionally been a gendered relationship?

I’ve always thought about the relationship between the person watching and the object as an intersubjective rather than a person-thing relationship.

The work of art carries with it the traces of a human consciousness rather than an unconsciousness so that the way we treat art objects is not the way we treat a chair. Even if it’s a very beautiful chair, it still has a different function. Art is only to be looked at. The other part of this is that no one comes to a work of art completely neutral. The intersubjective relationship that is between a person and a ‘quasi’ person or thing is always necessarily loaded with our biases, our expectations – all of that becomes part of the scene. The only way to undo some of that is to spend a very long time in front of the art piece itself because some of this then starts to fall away.

“ We sexualise young women... you shouldn’t have to get old to be treated with some modicum of respect” Siri Hustvedt

Do you think then that consciousness and being aware that you’re under this universal male gaze is the way to subvert it?

So in the real world, just forgetting about paintings for a minute, the idea of young women as living life as an object of desire, of, you know, the male gaze… this is real. This is tough stuff. Every walk down the street becomes a performance – that’s a hard thing. I’m an old lady now. You sort of age out of this, you know, you’re in another zone. But for young women, negotiating that is extremely difficult.

So you think this is about age? Because we sexualise young women?

Yes, totally because we sexualise young women.

I confess, there’s a certain relief that arises with age because you’re no longer being defined in the same way: by your cuteness or lack of cuteness or overt cuteness. Whatever it is! I remember when I was first on book tour and I was in my 30s, so I wasn’t really young, but I wasn’t really old either, and every article that was written always reviewed my clothes. “She walked in, she sat down, she was a tall blonde wearing this or that.” People really

BOOKS

Interview: Katie Goh don’t review my clothes in the same way that they used to 12 books later. But it’s also because I’m old and that sexualisation has diminished. But you shouldn’t have to get old to be treated with some modicum of respect.

What you’re saying reminds me of the presidential election in the US and what happened to Hillary Clinton. And women journalists were doing it as well.

Women journalists participate. And that’s the other thing – you really can’t limit this to one sex or the other. We’re permeated by these ideas.

And they can’t help but go inside. It’s not as if the barriers are absolute, they’re not at all.

Do you think there’s a difference between the male gaze in visual art and literature?

First of all, in painting, it’s all there at once. It’s temporal and only in the sense that you can stand in front of a picture for a long time. So it’s temporal for you but the image is there all at once. Cinema is a temporal form. But literature is abstract in the way that language is always abstract. It’s little symbols. It’s little markings on a page that you have to learn to interpret. Of course we interpret visual art and cinema too. But nevertheless it’s using more than one sense: in painting it’s visual, in cinema it’s visual, auditory, and it’s temporal. It gives you the illusion of either visual or auditory reality. But literature is more abstract – you invent your own images… It takes place over a long time.

I think that every reader invents the book.

I once wrote in an essay ‘every painting is two paintings: one you see and one you remember.’ And this goes for novels too. I don’t remember novels word for word, none of us do, except those with exceptional gifts. You remember images, you remember feelings you had when you were reading the novel… cinema, painting, the novel – they all have conventions. We see the world through those conventions. Perception is about expectation. Our brains learn from the past and they go through a kind of automatic pilot. And that’s one of the problems with sexism, right?

Because biases are built into our perception of the world so we do not expect young, especially lovely but not just lovely, fertile women to be physicists. Our world does not make room for that. You need to reorient your vision.

Other than being self-aware of sexism, do you think there’s any way for women to take back that power of being the object of the male gaze?

You know I think there’s a couple of interesting things about this. I have a double position. In the US, and certainly in the UK, women weren’t given full suffrage until 1928. And before that, earlier there was a sort of partial suffrage for women. In the US it was 1920. So that means that we haven’t even been able to vote as full citizens of a country for a hundred years! A hundred years is one very long lifetime. And so in one sense that isn’t a very long time and we do vote. So there is genuine progress! And rights. Even until the 1970s, women needed a father or husband to approve a credit card. And that was true in many places in Europe as well. Now that’s way into my lifetime. I was a young woman. So this also gives you pause. No way that would happen now. But at the same time, there is the deep ongoing sense that a woman isn’t worth quite as much as a man. I don’t mean just in terms of payment for work but also just in general. And I don’t think that automatically gets better, I think people have to fight for it. And I think that there has to be a real cultural dialogue about what it means to do that.

A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women: Essays on Art, Sex and the Mind is out now in paperback, published by Hodder & Stoughton, RRP £9.99

THE SKINNY

Gazed & Confused Inspired by a conversation with author Siri Hustvedt and her current collection of essays, our writer takes a look at the gendered gaze in literature, discussing works such as Deborah Levy’s Hot Milk and Naomi Alderman’s The Power

‘M

en act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at’ – John Berger, Ways of Seeing.

John Berger’s famous explanation of the male gaze sums up the implicitly gendered power dynamic of spectatorship in art. Because men have historically been the painters, writers, filmmakers, and active agents behind art’s canon, the dominant cultural gaze has been established as the ‘universal’ male gaze.

The concept of the male gaze is nothing new.

Feminist film critics in the 70s expanded on Berger’s thesis by applying the male gaze to cinema. In her famous 1975 essay Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Laura Mulvey (interviewed overleaf) described the male gaze as scopophilic as male erotic pleasure is derived from voyeurism: ‘In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between the active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure.’ In a later essay, Mulvey pondered the relationship the female spectator has with culture’s ‘universal’ male gaze. How is a heterosexual woman supposed to relate to the eroticisation of the female body? When watching a movie like Transformers, is she playing the role of the fantasy male spectator when the camera pans over Megan Fox’s eroticised body?

The male gaze and the possibility of a subversive female gaze has long haunted feminist thinkers, artists and writers. When culture’s canon presumes both a male creator and viewer, how can the gendered politics of spectatorship be interrupted? In a collection of her essays appropriately titled, A Woman Looking at Men Looking at Women, Siri Hustvedt discusses these questions at great length. Hustvedt deliberates over the male gaze, the potential for a female gaze, and

October 2017

the relationship between subject and object on the page opposite.

The male gaze is easily spotted in visual art.

The female nude, for example, embodies the oneway relationship between art and spectator. But what about other art forms? Cinema, again a visual art form, explicitly depicts the relationship between the object appearing on screen, the filmmaker, and the audience member. The male gaze is found when the camera lingers over the female body for the pleasure of the spectator. But literature is an entirely different field. A literary male gaze becomes more complex, particularly if we are interpreting language through a narrator, an author, and the pretext of fiction. Take Lolita.

‘There my beauty lay down on her stomach, showing me, showing the thousand eyes wide open in my eyed blood, her slightly raised shoulder blades, and the bloom along the incurvation of her spine, and the swellings of her tense, narrow nates clothed in black, and the seaside of her schoolgirl thighs. Silently the seventh-grader enjoyed her green-red-blue comics.’

Humbert Humbert has the power to freely gaze at Lolita’s body while she remains silent and passive. His scopophilic narration is the literary equivalent of the camera lingering over Megan Fox’s body in Transformers or art’s female nude.

Is Vladimir Nabokov offering a critique of society’s sexualisation of young women or is he giving sympathetic voice to a child rapist? We can try to separate art from real life – Lolita is abused in the novel but she’s just a fictional creation – however, the boundary between fiction and reality has always been transgressed. In 1973, Stanley Kubrick withdrew A Clockwork Orange from British release after a series of copycat violent attacks were attributed to the film and famously stated, ‘Art consists of reshaping life, but it does not create life.’

Hustvedt shares a similar concern. Speaking about the real life influence of the cultural male gaze, she told us “forgetting about paintings for a minute, the idea of a young women living life as an object of desire, of the male gaze, is real. Every walk down the street becomes a performance.”

While Humbert’s ‘ageing ape eyes’ and the novel’s male gaze occurs in the pages of a novel, Hustvedt emphasises that in real life “we sexualise young women,” like Lolita. Art does not exist in a vacuum.

Is there then a female equivalent of the male gaze? In Deborah Levy’s 2016 Man Booker shortlisted novel Hot Milk the female gaze is likened to the Greek myth of the Medusa – the monstrous female so hideous that anyone who looked at her was turned to stone. Throughout the novel, the protagonist Sofia is watched by an anonymous peeping Tom who enters the novel at the end of nearly every chapter: ‘She saw me in the mirror on her wall. Her eyes flickered to the left, she put her hand over her mouth. She has no one to tell her to close the blinds.’ At the end of Hot Milk, this voyeur is revealed to be Ingrid, Sofia’s tumultuous lover as Sofia realises that Ingrid ‘was a voyeur. Of her own desire […] She had made of me the monster she felt herself to be. She had been lurking near me for a long time, watching, secretly observing.’

After being repeatedly stung by jellyfish (in Spain called medusas), and under Ingrid’s gaze, Sofia transforms from her mother’s passive nurse into a sexual being, enjoying passionate relationships with men and women throughout the novel.

Sofia’s desire is hers alone: she is not the object of masculine scopophilia but is the subject of her own sexuality. The male gaze’s demonisation of female sexuality is reappropriated by Sofia as she becomes violent, angry, a ‘sea monster.’ She becomes the modern female nude: ‘potent, fertile,

BOOKS

Words: Katie Goh Illustration: Xenia Latii

and potentially violent’ as Hustvedt describes Willem de Kooning’s Woman II. In Hot Milk, the gaze is not about biological gender but is about power. Because men have historically held more social, political, and economical power, the heterosexual male gaze has become culture’s dominant point of view. In Naomi Alderman’s Baileys Prize winning sci-fi novel The Power, this is inverted when women become physically stronger than men and society’s patriarchy becomes a matriarchy. But The Power’s matriarchy is no utopian Herland, as the women increasingly abuse their power. Hustvedt calls this type of female gaze an ‘automatic adopting of the position that the painting implies, which is the male universal gaze.’ When women adopt the position of the universal male gaze, they become complicit in its gendered power dynamics. Perhaps this is why so many white women voted for Trump in 2016’s Presidential Election. Power, even fictional power, is contagious.

How then can the male gaze be disrupted?

Hustvedt describes two types of female gazes: one that is complacent in the universal male gaze, but another that is subversive, feminist, a staring down of the historical gawking of the female form. She emphasises that this gaze is one of ‘tremendous consciousness’ – a long gaze back into the historical biases of culture.

At the end of Hot Milk, Sofia’s mother who, until this point has been viewed by her daughter as passive, paranoid, and sickly, sums up the potential power of the female gaze: ‘We know our gaze is powerful so we pretend not to look.’ But when they do, like the Medusa, they’ll turn anyone caught unaware to stone. theskinny.co.uk/books

Feature

19

20

THE SKINNY

Pub Fights Timothea Armour is one of this year’s selected participants in the mentorship programme Satellites, by Collective Gallery. She has structured a series of events and publications around different Edinburgh pubs and the precarity of these establishments

A

s one of the selected participants in the 2017 Satellites Programme, Timothea Armour has curated The Last Hour! Throughout this month and into November, she has devised a series of events and a newspaper to be distributed in pubs around Collective Gallery. Her proposal emerged from spending some time working in pubs since graduating, and beginning to observe some of the troubling trends of commercial pressure from big chains and difficult trading conditions for independents.

One of the most important pubs to Armour’s project is The Waverley. “That had a pretty special interior that had been unchanged since the 1960s, and it had been run by the same person for a long time. When he died, the future of that pub looked uncertain.” After some chats with a friend about whether they could buy it, eventually the Collective project replaced initial suggestions to become first-time pub-owners.

“ A flawed subjective methodology seemed appropriate to pubs” Timothea Armour

The shape of the project is loosely based on a Mass Observation study from 1938, titled The Pub and the People. Mass Observation has since fallen out of fashion as a research method, being considered as overly subjective. “Observers were almost undercover and would get involved in the situations they were observing. A flawed subjective methodology seemed appropriate to pubs.

There’s a lot of feeling there; a detached approach would have seemed inappropriate.”

As part of the Mass Observation exercises, there is an emphasis on listening and smells, creating a multisensory experience. A series of prompts will be given to participants as part of the Field Trip on 7 October at 3.30pm, when artists Lloyd and Wilson will guide participants to visit a series of pubs around Calton Hill – places are free, drinks not included.

Through the process of formulating the Satellites project, Armour gradually began to perceive the increasing precarity of the pub as we might know it. “If you have a pub that prioritises its sociability and hospitality over making money, a lot of them will struggle to survive. [Eventually] they’ll have to put up the price of pints and [so] exclude more people because they’re paying rent to a large company. [These companies] structure the industry and pubs that put ethos in front of profit are put at a disadvantage.”

Armour also realised at one point that many pubs that seemed to have persisted unchanged had in fact been absorbed into larger chains, without any obvious outward appearance of the change. “In Edinburgh, a lot of pubs that have been there for a long time and ostensibly haven’t changed that much are actually run by massive, but fairly hidden, property developers.” In these places, Armour admits they often have interesting decors and good pints, but there’s something missing, or a bit “uncanny” when there’s no personal touch. By contrast, Armour mentions the good vibes of the new pub Dreadnought, and the more established Jolly Judge by the castle.

As the final event, Armour presents Public House by Sarah Turner, which for her brings out some of the most important questions of the project. “What it means to be local and what sense agency does a community have that it uses when it’s under threat? It’s a nice note to end on, [as it tells the true story of] locals that were successful in buying a pub. It can be done, even in London.”

Laura Mulvey and Peter Wollen, Crystal Gazing, 1982

Put into Practice Renowned theorist and writer Laura Mulvey gives an insight into her and Peter Wollen’s collaborative film practice of the 70s and 80s Interview: Adam Benmakhlouf

T

hroughout early October, Dundee’s Cooper Art Gallery presents evening and weekend screenings of the experimental film work from the 70s and 80s of renowned critics Laura Mulvey and Peter Wollen. Laura Mulvey, widely known for writing the urtext on the male gaze, Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, discusses the pre-Thatcherite period that allowed for a looser demarcation of writers, filmmakers, theory and experimental film.

Mulvey locates these works as both a response to Hollywood cinematic conventions and as propelled by the experimental film movement that was arising during the late 1960s. She names some groups that were central to this moment, including the London Filmmakers’ Co-Op, the first British Independent Film Festival in Bristol, and also the Edinburgh Film Festival as a platform for experimental and avant garde film. The kind of work that was being made in these circles ranged from avant-garde purist modern work right through to agitprop documentary. “And we were in there somewhere,” Mulvey alludes to the idiosyncrasy of her and Wollen’s output, who were distinguished for their continuing interest in narrative, and inclusion of music and writing within their works.

The Last Hour!, Collective Gallery, Edinburgh, until 5 Nov, free

“ Young people have a great sense of political commitment”

The Last Hour! Curated by Timothea Armour, 2017

October 2017

Photo: Tom Nolan

Laura Mulvey

Mulvey and Wollen specifically chose to adapt narratives that were relevant to feminist thought.

“The first film was about the myth of the Amazons, the second film about the Sphinx and Oedipus, the next about Amy Johnson, the lone flyer.” Consider what might have been an idiosyncratic interest in narrative and myth within experimental film, Mulvey explains: “Our involvement with the cinema had been in the first instance as cinephiles, but as film fans that were also interested in politics.”

This in turn drew them both to theory.

Nevertheless, Mulvey identifies the wider

ART

trend of film being considered as “an essentially political medium” as the most important context, and one which was strengthened “by the impact of feminism”. There was as part of this an interest in critiquing films on the basis of their form, not only the content. For example, in one of their films Mulvey and Wollen instructed the “extraordinarily brilliant and skilled” cinematographer Diane Tammes to make their 1977 film Riddles of the Sphinx with 360 degree panning shots, so that important parts of the film would comprise of revolving tableaux.

Thinking of how relevant these films are now, Mulvey points towards both practical and sociopolitical changes that time-mark the films. As well as the importance of 16mm film to their making, Mulvey also thinks of their epoch “as a last preThatcherite moment, when there was a residue of optimism and utopianism that was shattered during the Thatcher period.”

With respect to the Hollywood cinema trends that were so important to Mulvey and Wollen’s theory and practice in the 70s and 80s, does Mulvey sense any change between then and now?

“It seems as though Hollywood is more mainstream than ever.” In particular, there’s a tendency for “falling back on repetition and brands. If you had asked me five years ago, I would have said nothing has changed, but I think there are inklings of change. There’s a strong sense within independent film that women need to be shown on the screen and for an increase in women writers and directors to be recognised.”

Mulvey sounds a more positive note when thinking about aspects of contemporary filmmaking. “I feel very strongly that feminism and the progressive principles that seemed to have vanished in the intermediate decade have now come back very strongly. Young people have a great sense of political commitment, not necessarily with the utopianism we had at that time.”

Thinking of the time period that the Cooper Gallery focus on with these screenings, Mulvey sees a nuanced uptake of some of the 70s and 80s ideals she remembers. “People are now looking back on that period without necessarily making direct parallels, finding it inspiring but not necessarily thinking it has to be the same now.”

Laura Mulvey and Peter Wollen, Urgency and Possibility: Counter-Cinema in the 70s and 80s, various times, until 7 Oct, Cooper Gallery, Dundee

Feature

21

Image courtesy of the artists and BFI

Interview: Adam Benmakhlouf

Anger and Including the Excluded Ahead of her tour arriving at Citizen’s Theatre, Sofie Hagen discusses her psychopathic step-grandfather, Made of Human podcast and social media trolls

Interview: Jenni Ajderian

hen you leverage a personal tragedy into sympathetic laughter over a one-hour arc, it’s sometimes known as a ‘Dead Dad Show’. You talk about how your dad was annoying and your relationship was frustrating at times, but now he’s gone, you realise how much he meant to you. Sofie Hagen’s latest show, Dead Baby Frog, is about her step-grandfather, and though she tells me it is about his death, she adds: “He’s not dead yet.”

It’s a brazen way to start the show: “If people aren’t on board then, they never will be.”

Since coming to the UK from Denmark a few years ago, Hagen has made her mark on the comedy scene in the form of award wins, podcast appearances and social media activism. The sexpositive, left-wing, obsessively inclusive message of her stand-up shines through whatever subject she tackles, all of which could form the illusion of her being constantly perky and all-accepting, but this is far from true. Hagen is angry. Angry at the alt-right, angry at the acceptance of bigotry, angry at certain members of her family, and mostly, she is angry at people telling her not to be angry.

Growing up, one of these people was her grandfather: part of the emotionally abusive behaviour he subjected her to in her formative years. “It is a dark show but I love it. I talk about trying to confront him, I talk about my upbringing and his abusive tactics, and I talk a lot about anger, and my little meetings with anger in my life.”

Taking control of the story by telling it on-stage night after night is one way of working through that anger, but it wasn’t something she could do straight away. “There are things that I don’t talk about yet, and my grandfather was one of them. It wasn’t because I didn’t want people to know, it was just before I could do this justice, some things had to happen. I don’t think I could see the funny in talking about a psychopathic narcissistic emotional abuser. There was nothing funny in that up until last November.”

What happened last November?

“I went to confront him about everything that he’s done.”

The result of that confrontation makes up the kernel of Dead Baby Frog, and it is no spoiler to reveal that the anger is still there. The show is not about forgiveness or about therapy: Hagen doesn’t find the stage therapeutic as such, but does find it helpful in recognising past trauma as just that. “For ten years I didn’t know that what was happening was wrong, and now every night I hear people gasp when I tell them, and they’re appalled by what happened. You don’t have to normalise it all as something that was meant to happen to you.”

Sustaining anger can be tiring, but so often that’s the only way to work through it and put things right. Hagen is aware that expanding this view to the world in general, it’d be all too easy to shrug her shoulders and accept the way things are, whether that’s austerity politics or the continued demonisation of certain groups of people.

“What’s really hard is allowing yourself to just be angry. I feel like it’s so easy to understand why people do things, if no one’s ever told them about empathy and scare tactics. But it’s just no use. I think The Fight needs people who are willing to have an open dialogue and blablabla, and then we need people like me who just really want these people to go away.”

Where someone would fit into The Fight is now a recurring question for Hagen’s guests in her podcast Made of Human. After an hour of talking about life, careers and how they think they’re

22

Feature

Photo: Karla Gowlett

W

doing at both, guests get to imagine whether they would be on the frontlines of an imagined resistance or looking after them and theirs. Answers are many and varied, just like the guests themselves.

“The most important thing is that I can’t ever not focus on diversity – I have very very few white straight cis-gendered men, and that is fully on purpose. It’s usually voices that won’t normally be heard in mainstream media.”

As well as comedians, Hagen has spoken with activists, actors and sex workers, and the line-up is a great cross-section of interesting perspectives.

The cheery surface persona plus the intimacy of a podcast can lead to false conclusions about a person, and that’s before you add in the highly personal nature of stand-up comedy.

“I just am quite honest, which is why it’s so strange when people try to make some kind of revelation. I made a comment on my Facebook page a few days ago and called a man trash, then these Danish trolls took a screenshot and put it out like ‘A-ha! We’ve revealed that she’s done this!

Sofie thinks all men are trash! We have screenshots and everything!’” She laughs, completely unruffled, “Yeah! That’s literally all I talk about, it’s not a secret! It’s almost as if the more honest and open I am about stuff, the more people want to reveal secrets: I don’t have secrets! That’s not the point!”

It’s easy to be drawn in towards a public figure if you consume so much of their work, and an hour of conversation every week being played

directly into your earholes can only increase the effect. “I wrote a piece about it recently where I said that I don’t want people to assume that I’m nice. They’ll get disappointed, because I’m not always nice – no one is always nice.”

“ The world is built for a certain type of person, and we have to do a lot of extra stuff to include people who aren’t usually included” Sofie Hagen

Besides, being nice isn’t the point: “I would rather that people don’t assume we could be best friends, but instead just loved my work and respected it.” Hagen is nice where it counts, though, putting in the effort to make her gigs as accessible

COMEDY

as possible, from gender-neutral toilets to anti-anxiety seating policies.

“I did it on my last tour as well: there were these people who needed to sit by the aisle, people who needed to sit by the exit, people who wanted to come in before the audience because they didn’t like being in big groups of people.

There was someone who wanted to know if I said specific words that would trigger them: It’s on an individual basis, and I would never change anything if it in any way jeopardised the show. I’ve had to put a trigger warning for this show, which feels weird, but I’ve had a few people who saw it before the trigger warning who said that they were taken aback, and they would have loved to know that that was what the show was about.”

This all sounds like a lot of effort on top of the normal trials and tribulations of creating a good, funny, interesting show, but Hagen insists that it is all worth it. “Long story short: the world is built for a certain type of person, and we have to do a lot of extra stuff to include people who aren’t usually included. I’m one of the people that the world isn’t built for. And it is hard work, and it is sometimes tiring, but we just have to. Someone just needs to start making those changes.”

Perhaps we need a politician who has that kind of mantra. Hagen agrees, “And then we need them to win.”

Sofie Hagen: Dead Baby Frog, Citizen’s Theatre, Glasgow, 21 Oct, 8pm, £8-12

THE SKINNY

October 2017

23

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Massaoke A

utumn is seen as the wise uncle of the seasons - thick jumpers and falling leaves and seasonal lattes and hunkering down for a long winter. Autumn was hygge before hygge tried to make £100 wooly socks a thing. Look, it’s nice, but it’s time to shake it up - Autumn needs to be wild, Summerhall is championing a rebrand.

Sound the HUGE PARTY KLAXON, the fringe’s favourite club-night Massaoke has a new monthly home in our Dissection Room, rocking up on 27th October with its uber-tight band in tow to get everyone singing along to the best bangers from the 80s, 90s, 00s and beyond. It does happen to be the last Friday before Halloween, so if you wanted to dress up, just...please no Donald Trump costumes? Let’s have a Trump-free Halloween. We can’t not let you in if you do decide to dress up as that, but nobody will be impressed.

Don’t judge us for mentioning the C word, but stalls for our Christmas Markets are now all confirmed for December. It’s an event that we run in true Summerhall style for you in the middle of the pre-chrimbo rush - inviting the best makers and creatives to get their woolly thinking caps on and offer up a range of gifts and presents that will keep you off your laptop ordering the same gift for your nan you did the last three years on the trot.

The Royal Dick (you know, the secret pub that’s not really a secret) has had a wee refresh - a post-fringe shake down and spruce up - and we’d love to invite you in for a bev and some yummy pub scran. If you want to let loose this October, just kick through leaves across the Meadows and we’ll be here for you all month.

What’s On in Summerhall in October

NEHH PRESENTS… TIM HECKER Wed 4 Oct, 8pm, £17, 16+ Few in the field of explorative ambient music have remained as questing and unclassifiable as Canadian composer Tim Hecker.

NEHH & BRAW GIGS PRESENT… VISIBLE CLOAKS + NOL Thu 5 Oct, 8pm, £10, 16+ Portland, Oregon-based duo of Spencer Doran and Ryan Carlile are the open-source musical entity known as Visible Cloaks, whose debut album Reassemblage beams to the world via RVNG in February 2017.

NEHH PRESENTS… JAMES YORKSTON/KRIS DREVER/ WITHERED HAND Fri 6 Oct, 8pm, £15, 16+ For this special performance, all three will be on-stage throughout, sharing and joining in on each other’s songs, having a laugh and a blether, performing two sets.

EDINBURGH CEILIDH CLUB Tue 10 Oct, 8pm, £6, 14+ Every Tuesday evening we have the best of Scottish ceilidh bands.

24

NEHH PRESENTS… IMAM BAILDI Thu 12 Oct, 8pm, £14, 16+ Forget folklore, and get ready for intense urban sounds straight from Athens Greece by a 7-piece band.

KITE & TRUMPET FESTIVAL Thu 12-Sun 22 Oct, All ages Festival of Polish Art for Children. Take part in creative workshops, admire beautifully illustrated Polish books, play with quality toys and games crafted in Poland and be inspired by fantastic theatre performances.

SCRATCH THAT! Thu 12 Oct, 7.30pm, Free (ticketed), 12+ An evening of new ideas for young audiences that are still in development. The programme will consist of four short, earlystage performances curated through an open call out.

BLANCHE & BUTCH Fri 13 Oct & Sat 14 Oct, 7.30pm, £14/£9, 16+ Blanche & Butch promises to be a night of outrageous unPCness, high quality campness and deeply touching stories of three men who span the generations.

BILLY FOG - KITE AND TRUMPET FESTIVAL Sat 14 Oct, 5pm, £5, 10+ A shadow theatre performance for everyone who is or used to be 10 years old, maybe lost their cat, hamster or parrot, would like to outsmart death and close it in a hermetic jar.

BIRDS OF PARADISE CABARET Sat 14 Oct, 9pm, £5/£3, 16+ Mature Content Stay with us after ‘Blanche & Butch’ on Saturday, 14th Oct and celebrate the final night of their tour with an inter-generational cabaret in partnership with Luminate.

KING MATT THE FIRST - KITE AND TRUMPET FESTIVAL Sun 15 Oct, 5pm, £5, 7+ Figure Theatre’s “King Matt the First” looks at entering into adulthood in today’s complicated world of many meanings, contexts and points of view.

EDINBURGH CEILIDH CLUB Tue 17 Oct, 8pm, £6, 14+ The Edinburgh Ceilidh Club bring you Edinburgh’s best regular ceilidhs.

TULILULI Wed 18 & Thu 19 Oct, 11am / 2pm / 4pm, £3, 0-4 Tuliluli is a fantastical theatrical installation made especially for the youngest audiences.

Tim Hecker

THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL - A LIVE RENDITION Thu 19 Oct, 8pm (Doors 6pm), £16, 16+ An exclusive group of London’s finest session musicians & stunning vocalists have come together on this project.

FOLK HORROR REVIVAL: THE UNSEELIE COURT Sat 21 Oct, Day event 10am-5pm / Evening event 7.30-11pm, £15, PG These special events will feature talks, film screenings and performances to explore themes of cultural rituals, earth mysteries, psychogeography and folklore.

EDINBURGH CEILIDH CLUB Tue 24 Oct, 8pm, £6, 14+ Every Tuesday evening we have the best of Scottish ceilidh bands.

80s, 90s, 00s and beyond; lyrics on a giant screen and a room full of party-goers singing and dancing their hearts out together.

FUNDRAISER FASHION SHOW: MY NAME IS HOPE Wed 25 Oct, 7.30pm, £25 / £35 (VIP ticket) / £23 (early bird), PG Bring your friends for some fizz and eight stunning fashion collections including Malawian fashion just in from Malawi’s Mzuzu fashion week.

EDINBURGH SHORT FILM FESTIVAL 2017 Sat 28 Oct, 7.30pm, £7/£6, 18+ Now in its seventh year, ESFF brings the best in contemporary short form cinema to Scotland’s ancient capital.

MASSAOKE CLUB LALA - HALLOWE’EN PARTY Fri 27 Oct, 9pm, £8, 18+ A brilliant live band smashing out the greatest anthems from the

DUVET DAY Sat 28 & Sun 29 Oct, 6pm, £5, PG Duvet Day is a dance theatre piece which portrays an intimate struggle with depression.

THE SKINNY

Photo: Emily Berl

EDINBURGH CEILIDH CLUB Tue 3 Oct, 8pm, 14+ Every Tuesday evening we have the best of Scottish ceilidh bands.

Lights Out Two years after a searing self-examination on her debut album, we speak to Julien Baker about the follow-up record, Turn Out the Lights

Interview: Joe Goggins

Photo: Nolan Knight

Why do we feel the way we feel? I used that to help me learn about myself by observing the dynamics between myself and those closest to me, and I realised that maybe not everything’s a cause and effect contained within myself. Maybe it’s not all my fault. Maybe I’m not the only person affected by certain events. I feel like my job now is just to be a conduit and observe and report on what’s going on as best I can, because thinking that the world revolves around you is a pretty boring way to live.”

Even though her move to Matador opened up new avenues for Baker when it came to the recording of Turn Out the Lights, she kept her inner circle a tight one. That said, she was never going to turn down the opportunity to cut the album at Memphis’ most famous studio – which, in a happy twist, is just around the corner from her house. “Making the record at Ardent was such a bizarre collision of familiarity and comfort; the engineer, Calvin Lauber, is one of my best friends, and we’ve played in bands together since we were thirteen. It felt like we were two kids in school after hours, having free run of that place; ‘Oh, check out this grand piano! Look at that B3 organ!’

That place is really indicative of what I love so much about Memphis – there isn’t a lot within the city that’s inaccessible because of its status. It really embodies the collaborative spirit of the town. At one point, we were sharing the studio with Young Dolph, a local rapper, and it was like, ‘OK, cool, everybody’s on the same level, and in the same world.’”

“I

think I wanted this record to not be so self-contained.”

Anybody who heard Sprained Ankle, Julien Baker’s intense debut album, will know that the above allusion is a decidedly mild one. It wasn’t just self-contained; it was incredibly introspective, sometimes to the point of self-excoriation.

The sparseness of its instrumentation and production left the listener with little room to hide from its often devastating lyrics – the title track opens with the line ‘Wish I could write songs about anything other than death.’ At points, it felt almost invasive – as Baker ran the gamut from depression and anxiety to drug use and religion, you could have been forgiven for being discomfited, for wondering whether you should be listening in on her darkest ruminations.

The thing is, it was difficult not to want to.

Baker’s honeyed vocals made for a thoroughly lovely combination when paired with her harmonic approach to the guitar, and crucially, she pulled off the deeply impressive feat of managing to write in a way that sometimes bordered on selfflagellation without ever coming across as properly melodramatic. There was a wry streak of humour running through Sprained Ankle, and that meant Baker wasn’t just relatable, not just empathetic, but genuinely likable, even as she was spilling her guts out for all to hear.

Not that she ever thought it would reach a wide audience. After all, Baker was a student at Middle Tennessee State University when she put the record out in 2015, and working thirty to forty hours a week in the institution’s AV department

October 2017

at the same time; it’s incredible that she ever made room in her schedule for music at all, and when she did, she was writing and recording more for herself than anybody else. She certainly didn’t foresee Sprained Ankle finding a fanbase that stretches right around the world. She didn’t think that this many strangers would hear her songs, but also form a deep and unyielding connection with them. Most of all, she’d have laughed you out of the room if you’d have told her that, by the time she came to make a follow-up, she’d have signed to legendary indie imprint Matador and be focusing on music full-time.

But here she is. Turn Out the Lights suggests that Baker has a keen idea of what it was about Sprained Ankle that reverberated so profoundly, and accordingly, she’s stuck pretty closely to its minimalist aesthetic, even though she realised a childhood dream by recording it at Ardent Studios in her hometown, an iconic Memphis outpost.

There are flourishes of indulgence, but no more than that tasteful interpolation of the studio’s grand piano, and subtle string flutters. For the most part, she is placing her words front and centre once again.

It’s there that her development is much more striking. It’s easy to forget, given her world-weary thematic approach, that she is really, really young – she won’t have long since turned 22 when Turn Out the Lights is released. If Sprained Ankle represented a focused beam of inwards reflection, its successor begins to gently roll its gaze outwards, tackling emotional turmoil with friends, family and fans all kept firmly in mind.

“When people began picking up on Sprained Ankle,” says Baker over the phone from her home in Memphis, “I was talking more and more about it in interviews, and that meant I was talking about music, and art, and its purpose. I really deconstructed and analysed what it meant to me, and I think I realised that over the last couple of years on the road, I saw myself shrink. When I was playing shows with my old bands Starkillers, or Forrister, we’d drive twelve hours to a gig in Pittsburgh, and people there would know all the words, and you’d feel the world getting that little bit smaller. When you have that happen again and again and again, for months on end, and the songs are really personal, you begin to realise that you’re not the most important part of the story. Every time some kid in Minnesota, or Billings, Montana, or Los Angeles told me how much they related to Sprained Ankle, I realised that it stopped being about me about a month after it came out.”

It’d be easy to describe Baker as self-effacing, if it weren’t for the fact that she specifically shoots down that particular tag of her own accord when she’s searching for the right description of the more world-facing approach she took to the writing of Turn Out the Lights. Instead, she settles on it being “as concerned with others as it is with myself,” which is something that cuts across every aspect of the album’s themes, from her faith to her sexuality to her mental health.

“The intricacies of human beings have always been fascinating to me, and they’re kind of the core of the record,” she explains. “What are people’s motivations? Why do they do the things they do?

Music

“ Thinking that the world revolves around you is a pretty boring way to live” Julien Baker

She’ll soon return to the road in support of Turn Out the Lights with another mammoth tour, with very few days off from October to December as she plays across North America and Europe.

This time, she’s broadened her live horizons slightly, bringing a keyboard with her as well as her guitar. Her friend Camille Faulkner, who masterminded the album’s strings, will also be in tow, on violin. She’s in a reflective mood as she talks about how seeing as much of the world as she has these past couple of years has helped to redefine not only herself, but her relationships – the same ones at the heart of the new album.

“A lot of the rapid change in my life has been down to how often I was home, or where I lived – which for a while was nowhere,” she says. “I’ve seen more of the globe than I ever thought I would have the money or means to get to, and that’s been a mixed blessing, because as beautiful as it is to experience a different microculture every day, it does demand quite a bit of distance from family and friends. I knew I needed to think about how I could tell them that I love them, that I value them, that they’re the greatest single resource I have.

I think this record is a good start.”

Turn Out the Lights is released via Matador on 27 Oct Julien Baker plays CCA, Glasgow, 8 Nov julienbaker.com

25

Love My Way I Am Love director Luca Guadagnino returns with Call Me by Your Name, one of the year’s finest films about the burgeoning romance between two young men over one Italian summer.

We discuss love, adapting a beloved novel, and his Suspiria remake (kinda)

“I

think about the unconscious.” Luca Guadagnino tells us over the phone. “I think my gaze goes where my desire wants to go. I don’t rationalise technique upon which I make my own films. I always try to be in the situation that makes me the most comfortable.”

We’re chatting with the Italian director Luca Guadagnino — in Milan at the time of our call — about his latest film, Call Me by Your Name, based on the beloved 2007 novel of the same name by André Aciman. The director is best known for features like I Am Love and A Bigger Splash, though his newest one doesn’t feature those films’ star, frequent collaborator Tilda Swinton.

She’ll be back soon enough, however, as Guadagnino’s next movie is already in post-production: a remake of Dario Argento’s fantasyhorror classic Suspiria, led by Dakota Johnson and co-starring Swinton, with Radiohead’s Thom Yorke composing the score.

Guadagnino’s already got prior remake form, with A Bigger Splash having been one of the 1969 film La Piscine, and the prospect of a filmmaker behind a string of vibrant, erotically charged movies reimagining one of cinema’s most visually and aurally distinctive horror films makes this one of the more exciting remake prospects in a while.

Unsurprisingly, though, Guadagnino’s a little tightlipped on that movie for now: “Well, we are in quite an early stage. I’m very happy with the movie, I can tell you.”

Back to the project we can properly discuss, and what a film it is. This year’s big festival darling, Call Me by Your Name has been met with passionate raves since bowing at both Sundance and Berlin within quick succession.

Adapting the majority of Aciman’s novel, it’s a sensual tale that’s an ode to the ecstasy and torturous pain of first love, set in sun-kissed northern Italy in the summer of 1983. It reminds this writer of various European coming-of-age classics, particularly Maurice Pialat’s À Nos Amours (coincidentally released in 1983), a film to which Guadagnino admits a great debt: “Oh yeah, of

26

Feature

course, that’s one of my favourite movies and you got it right. This is a sort of very earnest homage to that film.”

The idyllic summer break of 17-year-old American-Italian Elio (Timothée Chalamet, a revelation) mostly consists of transcribing and playing classical music, reading, and casually flirting with friend Marzia (Esther Garrel, daughter of director Phillippe Garrel). He lives in a 17thcentury villa with his family, including his translator mother (Amira Casar), who’ve provided the precocious young man with a means to luxuriate in various forms of high culture.

“ It’s about making everybody feel embraced in the best possible way so that they can embrace one another” Luca Guadagnino

Elio’s soon to be enamoured with a different subject, however. An all-American doctoral student, Oliver (Armie Hammer) comes to stay at the family palazzo as part of a six-week research engagement with Elio’s father (Michael Stuhlbarg), a professor of antiquities and Greco-Roman culture. Elio must surrender use of his usual bedroom to the guest, with Oliver slipping effortlessly into the intoxicating rhythm of the Italian summer – bike rides, dining alfresco, lots of swimming. Amid this setting and increased presence in each other’s company, Elio and Oliver both become consumed with awakening desire for one another and whether or not to act upon their feelings.

On that last point, there’s a scene in the film in which Elio’s mother translates a French romance where the hero must decide whether it is better to speak or to die, which relates to Elio’s own turmoil. Is it better to put oneself out there or suppress your feelings so as to avoid a certain form of pain, instead dying of longing, not knowing what could have been? We decide to ask Guadagnino of his own views on this question of love.

“I think,” he answers, “that there is a tendency of enjoying and indulging in the pleasures of ‘to die’ in longing, but definitely the act of speaking and finding a dialogue with the other [person] is the most powerful, brilliant, exciting revolutionary act. So, I would say that after the light indulgence in the act of longing, I would say to speak.”

Perhaps to accommodate the fluctuating reception quality of our call, Guadagnino keeps many of his answers short, though is audibly effusive when discussing his various collaborators on the film. “I would work with Armie Hammer in every kind of possible genre,” he says of his biggest name star. “I really, really love him. I think he’s a fantastic, fantastic actor.

“I think I had chemistry with them,” he continues on the subject of his actors. “So if I had chemistry with them, they had chemistry with one another, because it’s about making everybody feel embraced in the best possible way so that they can embrace one another.”

One particular collaborator elsewhere proved vital to making the film very different from its source material. Call Me by Your Name features new songs by American singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens, written specifically for the film. “I wanted to have a new voice,” Guadagnino says of Stevens. “The book is about Elio telling us the story of his life, so it’s a first-person, singleperson account. And I wanted to make it into a more present and not so retrospective film. I thought narration would have been coming from a different perspective.

“So I wanted not a typical voiceover, but a personality who could, through a different way of

FILM

Interview: Josh Slater-Williams expression, in this case the soundtrack, express a third point of view. And that’s why I invited this amazing artist that is Sufjan to contribute with his own voice; to give the movie another narrative as a narrator.”

Something else different from the book is a wealth of cultural signifiers peppered throughout the film. Most prominent is a recurring use of The Psychedelic Furs song Love My Way, which first plays at an outdoor disco as a dancing Oliver loses himself to the music, while Elio observes him from afar. Elsewhere, Elio wears a Talking Heads shirt for a good chunk of the film, while there are other period details like a Robert Mapplethorpe poster and discussion of the death of Luis Buñuel.

“The translation from book to film is something that has to deal with the imagery of the translator and also to the necessities of the building of a world,” the director tells us. “The book is more about the words; the movie is more about the images. For me it was really important to underline a kind of emotional nostalgia that I felt for a place in which I’d been in ’83, but to translate it into something present; not something retroactive and retrospective. And in my opinion, a guy, a boy like Elio at that moment of life, at that moment of history, would definitely be a Talking Heads fan. He would definitely have been given the [Mapplethorpe] poster by his parents. And he would listen to the songs that were a part of the moment in that generation. We wanted it to be really consistent with the idea of the present of that generation, which is my past, by the way.”

One final cultural reference informs discussion of the film’s emotional reach: “I don’t know if the intent was to be universal. There is a beautiful song by Prefab Sprout and the song goes ‘All the world loves lovers, all the world loves people in love.’ That is my position for this film. I wanted to make a movie about people in love, no matter who they love.”

Call Me by Your Name is released 27 Oct by Sony Pictures

THE SKINNY

October 2017

27

The Inkredibles Scotland Loves Anime returns with another stellar line-up of Japanese animations, which this year features tales of romance, horror, adventure and, erm, dragon dental hygiene

E

ach year, Scotland Loves Anime gives animation fans a chance to see an eclectic selection of Japanese fare on the big screen. This year marks the eighth instalment of the festival at Glasgow Film Theatre and Edinburgh’s Filmhouse, with tours across additional locations in Scotland to follow.

Though anime on the big screen in the UK is becoming more and more common thanks to the work of distributors like Anime Limited and National Amusements (both were behind box office hit Your Name, amongst others of late), many a notable feature slips through the gaps. As such, this year’s Scotland Loves Anime line-up is an appealing mix of wide-ranging titles for both hardcore enthusiasts and the anime novice; from European or UK premieres of new franchise entries to influential classics worth seeing big.

Among the retrospective highlights are spotlights on key industry figures. Firstly, there’s a focus on renowned production studio MADHOUSE, providing an opportunity to see a selection of the studio’s best works on the big screen. This includes Satoshi Kon’s warm Christmas-set comedy Tokyo Godfathers, bombastic horror Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, and Metropolis, based on a manga by illustrator legend Osamu Tezuka, itself based on Fritz Lang’s iconic silent-era sci-fi.

Director Masaaki Yuasa is also given the spotlight treatment. Filmhouse will screen his delirious head-trip Mind Game from 2004 (22 Oct), as well

as offering a repeat opportunity to see his more recent comedy The Night is Short, Walk on Girl (20 Oct), about one young woman whose night out grows increasingly strange. Both venues, meanwhile, will preview Yuasa’s latest film, Lu Over the Wall (14 Oct, GFT; 21 Oct, Filmhouse), ahead of its winter release in cinemas. Already a festival award-winner overseas, it’s a family-friendly adventure about a music-loving teen befriending a magical mermaid who wants a part in his band.

On the franchise front, Filmhouse will play two CG animations based on the Resident Evil video games: Resident Evil: Degeneration (18 Oct) and Resident Evil: Vendetta (19 Oct), films considerably more faithful to the source material than the live-action Hollywood takes. There’s also the UK premiere of the third part in the Kizumonogatari series (14 Oct, GFT; 22 Oct, Filmhouse), and the European premiere of Eureka Seven: Hi-Evolution Movie 1 (14 Oct, GFT; 20 Oct, Filmhouse). This first film in a planned series continues the popular Eureka Seven property for a new generation, and director Tomoki Kyouda will be in attendance at the GFT screening for a Q&A. Other debut highlights include the world premiere of the English dub version of drama A Silent Voice (17 Oct, Filmhouse) – the original Japanese version was released to much acclaim earlier in the year. Anime Limited acquisition Fireworks (15 Oct, GFT; 21 Oct, Filmhouse) receives

Words: Josh Slater-Williams

Lu Over the Wall

its European premiere at the festival; it’s a romance based on a story by Shunji Iwai, the writer-director of live-action cult hit All About Lily Chou-Chou.

Also receiving its UK premiere is The Dragon Dentist (15 Oct, GFT), which has one of the more intriguing fantasy premises we’ve encountered in a while. Its central character, Nonoko, is a dentist who protects a dragon from tooth cavity bacteria so that it can safely guard the land. This may not

actually be a metaphorical tale designed to remind viewers to always keep on top of their oral hygiene, but we’re nonetheless going to use it as an excuse for pun-based shenanigans: Scotland Loves Anime is truly the place to brush up on your animation knowledge.

Scotland Loves Anime returns for its 8th year: Glasgow, 13-15 Oct; Edinburgh, 16-22 Oct lovesanimation.com

Continental Shift Africa in Motion (AiM) returns for its twelfth year to once again shine a torch on great cinema, both old and new, from African filmmakers Words: Ross McIndoe

L

egendary film critic Roger Ebert said that movies are like machines that generate empathy: they let us see the world from another’s perspective, offering us a glimpse into the other lives playing out all around us, helping us to understand them.

Since 2006, the Africa in Motion film festival has dedicated itself to fighting back against the marginalisation of African cinema in our cultural conversations. Screening over 400 films for an audience amounting to some 40,000, it has allowed stories to be told that would otherwise have gone unheard.

Each festival features several thematic strands, each curating a series of films that hone in on a particular aspect of African cinema’s vast and varied landscape. Keeping things close to home, one of 2017’s focuses will be Reviving Scotland’s Black History. A stroll around Glasgow, once known as the ‘Second City of the Empire’, will lead you down street after street named for merchants who built fortunes on the backs of slaves. It will also lead you to the city’s university, where James McCune Smith became the first African American to attain a medical degree, and from which the first academic attacks on the slave trade emerged.

This deeply conflicted element of Glaswegian and Scottish history is one which we often allow to sit in the shadows. To bring it into the light, AiM assembled four aspiring filmmakers from different backgrounds and tasked them with programming a series of events to tackle the nation’s complex

28

Feature

racial history. The result is a rich and varied programme, from an in-depth scrutiny of the slave trade itself in The Transatlantic Slave Trade Acknowledged (1 Nov, St John’s Church, Edinburgh) to the livelier Kinning Park Cabaret (28 Oct, Kinning Park Complex, Glasgow), which will host a night of poetry and music drawn from across the African diaspora, with both events culminating in a screening of modern day Haitian fable, The Crying Conch.

This year’s festival will further focus on giving voice to the voiceless in films like West African road trip Frontières (5 Nov, Filmhouse, Edinburgh) as well as Afro-Latin (In)Visibility, which will look at the cultural politics of Nicaragua, Cuba and Colombia in films such as Robin J. Hayes’ award winning documentary Black and Cuba (1 Nov, The Rum Shack, Glasgow).

When discussions arise about cinema’s pantheon, the great auteurs who changed and defined the medium, African names seldom make the list.

In an attempt to remedy this, Africa in Motion 2017 will focus heavily on Africa’s Lost Classics, asserting firmly that African film must be acknowledged not only for the cultures and histories that it connects us to but also for the innovation and artistry with which it does so. Put aside race and nation and these are films that demand consideration on artistic merit alone.

Featuring many movies which have been censored, banned and never shown before in the

Soleil Ô

UK, this segment will allow film buffs across the country to take in African classics like Soleil Ô (29 Oct, GFT, Glasgow), Med Hondo’s tale of a Mauritanian man whose dream of finally living the good life in Paris is poisoned by the deeply embedded racism of the big city. Or Chadi Abdel Salam’s Al-Mumia: The Night of Counting the Years (1 Nov, Dominion, Edinburgh), recently restored and

FILM

regarded as one of the greatest Egyptian films of all time.

Many of the events at the 12th edition of Africa in Motion are free, and all of it is worth your time. [Ross McIndoe] Africa in Motion runs 27 Oct-5 Nov in various venues in Glasgow and Edinburgh. For full programme details, head to africa-in-motion.org.uk

THE SKINNY

Laughing Matters Armando Iannucci is back with the strange and brilliant The Death of Stalin. We talk to the director about navigating the line between comedy and tragedy, the film’s unplanned parallels to Donald Trump and the role of satire in today’s society

Interview: Benjamin Rabinovich

Armando Iannucci on set of The Death of Stalin

“W

hen you make a film you sort of become a dictator. Everyone is asking what you have decided.” Speaking to Armando Iannucci about his upcoming second feature film, The Death of Stalin, it’s hard to imagine anyone who resembles a dictator less. Diminutive and terribly polite, one struggles to picture him raising his voice, let alone inspiring terror on a film set. Then again, this is the mind that spawned the acid-spitting Malcolm Tucker in The Thick of It. Iannucci’s latest film is based on Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin’s graphic novel. The adaptation revolves around the chaos caused by Stalin’s death in 1953 and explores how members of the politburo, including Nikita Khrushchev and head of Stalin’s secret police Lavrentiy Beria (played respectivley in the film by Steve Buscemi and Simon Russell Beale), scrambled to get out of the political vacuum alive. It’s a strange, brilliant, hysterical feature that’s simultaneously vintage Iannucci and unlike anything he’s done before.

This duality stems from the fact that the line between comedy and tragedy is much more delicate here than it’s been in his previous work.

Iannucci was very conscious of The Death of Stalin’s historicity and significance. “We have to be very respectful of what actually happened,” says Iannucci. “We can’t cover it up or hide it or be funny about it in terms of shootings and death.

There’s always comedy and there’s always a sense of terror or unease. But they’re both there and neither of them capsizes the other.”

The comedy and tragedy are in such a constant conflict that they can sometimes occupy the same space in the film, making for a wonderfully unnerving experience. Watching Beria instruct his men on the specific ways dissidents should be executed is simultaneously hilarious, due to Russell Beale’s insouciant delivery, and terrifying because of the awareness that those orders, and thus dissidents, really were executed. “The comedy is what people are really getting up to inside the rooms, but we can see the consequences… a very real sense of how this actually affected people’s lives outside.”

What adds to the uncanniness of the film is the fact these real-life figures inside the rooms feel

October 2017

like quintessential Iannucci characters. Buscemi’s Khrushchev is an inconspicuous plotter; Beria is a Tucker-esque shark who keeps the autocrat regime running smoothly; Jeffrey Tambor’s Georgy Malenkov is a useless panjandrum similar to Veep’s Jonah – desperately craving power but crumbling the minute he has any.

Iannucci has always been drawn to characters with a strong sense of amorality. He gives a literary example: “Why I think John le Carré is so good is that he doesn’t have supervillains or superheroes, he just has people in different systems trying to navigate their way through.”

“ Freedom and democracy are not absolutes and they are not permanent.

They have to be continually managed and continually looked after” Armando Iannucci

Iannucci’s works are filled with characters in such systems, unfamiliar with concepts of good or evil, acting only on the instinct of survivalism. The redeeming quality of morally bankrupt characters – such as Ollie Reeder from The Thick of It or Veep’s Dan Egan – is that they have no redeeming qualities: you revel in seeing their darkest demons manifest because you didn’t believe they had better angels in the first place.

Even then, Iannucci points out, although Beria committed truly terrible acts, only some of which made it into the film (“he did far worse”), he was apparently loved by his employees. “He always

remembered their wedding anniversaries and birthdays. You know, that’s strange.”

While, in many ways, making a film in which a character casually schedules mass murder feels like a departure for Iannucci, it can also be argued to be the only logical step forward. After all, from the irrelevant DoSAC and PM rat races in The Thick of It, through UK-US relations in In the Loop, all the way to the US presidency in Veep, his recent work can be seen as charting a meteoric rise to power that could only ever really end with autocracy.

“That wasn’t planned!” Iannucci laughs. “When I was finishing Veep I was thinking I wanted to do something about dictators or autocrats, or populist figures like Le Pen or UKIP here. How do people just by their personality manage to captivate an entire country?” He was already considering these ideas when Yann Zenou and Laurent Zeitoun, the film’s producers approached him about the graphic novel, which hit those very beats.

Unpredictable demagogues captivating the hearts and minds of countries – this sounds familiar. It is easy to interpret The Death of Stalin – with its presentation of Janus-faced politicians operating in total fear of its petulant leader – as a blistering critique of Donald Trump and the chaos that he creates. However, Iannucci points out that he started working on the script three years ago, before the inexorable rise of Trump.

“I think Brexit happened in the middle of the shoot, but certainly not Donald Trump. So it’s only when we came out on the other side that we have these strange goings on in America that strangely parallel [the film].”

Iannucci points out that even though The Death of Stalin wasn’t influenced by Trump per se, the undeniable parallels stress the film’s core, timeless idea. “The underlying idea behind it, if you want to look for a serious message, is that freedom and democracy are not absolutes and they are not permanent,” he says. “They have to be continually managed and continually looked after.”

Iannucci observes how it’s comedians who are the ones stepping up to these responsibilities.

They aren’t treating Trump as a joke, he says.

“If you make Trump a comic figure, then you’ve reduced him to [something] safe. I find the come-

FILM

dians who are really hitting home about Trump are the ones who’ve become journalists in a way.”

Comedians uncovering facts, he says, gives people a chance to engage with “what’s really going on rather than reduce him to this comic clown.”

This seems a good opportunity to bring up Sean Spicer and the effectiveness of satire in today’s society. What does Iannucci think of Spicer’s Emmys appearance on a Segway – the very object that Melissa McCarthy used to ridicule him with on SNL? Does it enforce the idea that the role of satire is changing? That now it’s being appropriated by its targets, even being used as a rehabilitation tool?

“That’s what happens to politicians when they leave politics though,” he says. “They suddenly become much reduced versions of themselves.”

One can sense Iannucci’s frustration, however: “If you’ve made certain decisions and said certain things, you have to still be held to account for them.” This draws back to his reminder that democracy must be protected constantly. “It’s not like a big evil man came along. It’s a gradual thing and it’s a series of small incremental compromises.”

After all, he says incredulously, “This is someone who was paid to lie on the behalf of a white supremacist, so why is he here? Because they aren’t in political office, it doesn’t mean to say they’ve been let off the hook. We shouldn’t be making them popular entertainers.”

This assertion is a reminder of why Iannucci’s satire is so powerful. It never reduces people to harmless caricatures, focusing instead on what makes them human and therefore dangerous.

“Ultimately that lends itself to comedy a little bit more because comedy is about fragility and vulnerability, faults and failings,” he says.

Iannucci mentions an observation about a Stalin anecdote that serves well as a lesson of what happens when we abandon our democratic guard and dull comedy’s core essence. “Stalin made a speech and everyone stood up and applauded and the first person to stop applauding was then shot. Which you sort of think, ‘well logically that means they’re still applauding.’”

The Death of Stalin is released 20 Oct by Entertainment One Armando Iannucci comes to Glasgow Film Theatre on 11 Oct, 7pm to present a preview of The Death of Stalin, followed by a Q&A

Feature

29

Collective Power Downtown Boys’ Joey DeFrancesco and Victoria Ruiz give us a mid-tour report on pushing punk boundaries, funneling political frustrations, and fighting the powers that be

Photo: Farrah Skeiky

Interview: Katie Hawthorne

F

or Downtown Boys, there’s no such thing as opting out. We’re all in this fucked up global system together and either you’re working to dismantle systemic inequality, or you’re probably benefitting from it. Rolling Stone dubbed them “America’s Most Exciting Punk Band” back in 2015, but Downtown Boys have been leading the charge for far longer than that.

The Providence, Rhode Island band formed in 2012, just a year after co-founder Joey DeFrancesco became temporarily internet famous. Under the moniker Joey Quits, he publicly handed in his notice to a shady employer, backed up by a full brass band. Re-watch the video, and you’ll spot his now-bandmate Victoria Ruiz leaping delightedly amid the chaos. They met while working at the Renaissance Providence Hotel, where they discovered a shared politics as part of a movement towards unionisation among the hotel’s (poorly paid, poorly treated) employees.

This spirit of communal protest remains central to the band’s ethos: Downtown Boys continue to organise and galvanise against injustices in the United States, through their bilingual, queer, Latinx and eloquently urgent protest anthems, and through their choices. Ruiz explains: “It has always been really natural to integrate activism and fighting for social justice with everything that I’ve done in my professional life – because I believe in it, and I’m directly affected by it, and I’m directly participating in a lot of these structures just by being US American.”

The Skinny catches up with Ruiz and DeFrancesco while the band are in Seattle, the city home to their new label Sub Pop, and where they’ve just wrapped a session for legendary radio station KEXP. Alongside Mary Regalado (bass) and Joe DeGeorge (sax), they’re touring with new drummer Joey Doubek, who’s replacing co-founder Norlan Olivo. “Touring this much can be difficult for people’s schedules and personal lives,” explains DeFrancesco – the first of many reminders that operating a successful and politically outspoken, ethically sound punk band takes an emotional, physical and financial toll.

30

Feature

Although Downtown Boys have the trappings of indie-level success – a long international tour, a famous producer (Fugazi’s Guy Piccioto) and a deal with a famous label for their recent, critically acclaimed second album Cost of Living – they’re quick to stress that really, little has changed in comparison to working with DIY labels like Sister Polygon or Don Giovanni. DeFrancesco explains: “Sometimes people have these ideas about working with larger labels, particularly if you’re a band with a message like ours. But in our experience [Sub Pop] have just given us slightly more resources to do what we’ve already been doing – they’re able to get the distribution out there in a way that a smaller label maybe couldn’t. And, yeah, we had nine days to record, instead of three [for our previous album Full Communism]. But we still do everything ourselves. We manage ourselves, we drive ourselves everywhere, we advance every show ourselves. It’s not that different from anything we’ve ever done before, to be honest! But [it helps] to make this a sustainable thing for us to keep doing.”

Ruiz weighs in with a similar verdict: “None of us make enough money to survive off of music.

All of us are doing this because we believe in it, and because we feel the urgency to do it.” Their testimonies are similar to those by Emma Pollock, Law Holt, Sharleen Spiteri and Be Charlotte from our May cover feature: there’s little money left in music, and what little there is, it sure isn’t trickling down to the artists. “Trying to redistribute resources [in the music industry] is really, really, painfully hard,” Ruiz says, matter-of-fact.

The band have form in confronting heavyweight corporations in the industry. Conflicts with Coachella and SxSW – the former for owner Philip Anschutz’s financial support of anti-LGBT and far right groups, and the latter for contract terminology that had a sinister suggestion of targeted immigration enforcement and deportation – were well-publicised, and gained Downtown Boys plenty of fans, as well as some vocal enemies.

“We rarely get asked, ‘Do you wish you didn’t do it?’” sighs Ruiz. “Really, every day, I’m like oh man,

[maybe] we should have not made it a big thing, or told people about it. Maybe it would have been easier to keep my mouth shut. The cost of it is high, and that’s something that people don’t see.

There are a lot of haters out there, and I think I probably get the brunt of it. I mean, it makes sense.” Unfortunately, it kind of does; threatening a capitalist, white and patriarchal status quo is doubly tough if you’re a woman of colour.

“ It seems like there’s a global wave of these right wing politics, and a lot of people feel solidarity across countries in trying to fight this” Joey DeFrancesco

Both DeFrancesco and Ruiz remain politically engaged outside of the group, too – the pair co-founded a site called Spark Mag which connects radical musicians with like-minded fans, as well as pointing to protests and petitions instigated by the Demand Progress organisation, and Ruiz works for the Center for Popular Democracy.

It’s easy to describe an anti-establishment band as punk, and particularly easy when they play as fast and as furiously as Downtown Boys.

But since the word’s become a branding opportunity for IPA brews, and a lazy catch-all to describe a specific sound, it’s harder for a band like this to identify with it. “It’s wild!” Ruiz laughs. “In the punk scene we also have to deal with a lot of shitty power

Music

dynamics, and a lot of puritanical punk politics that actually feel more oppressive. But then, in the more corporate festival scene you’re dealing with being sponsored by big corporations…”

So, the band focus on what they do best: using an album or a show as a platform for discussion, as well as a moment for catharsis. Renowned for being explosive, joyful, frantic affairs with an emphasis on sax, spit and togetherness, a Downtown Boys gig isn’t for the faint of heart. That said, this is music designed to unite a room: Cost of Living is their most nuanced record yet, both lyrically and musically, but it’s crammed with catchy, confrontational singalongs.

The majority of the album was written well before Trump was sworn in, but it’s not hard to see why the album’s been received as a direct confrontation to his administration. The record’s title feels ever more prescient as the GrahamCassidy bill designed to replace Obamacare hangs in the balance, and the opening track’s chant ‘A wall is a wall! And nothing more at all’ is easily reconciled with certain Trumpian campaign promises.

Still, as DeFrancesco urges, it’s important to remember that these problems aren’t isolated to 2017. “With each consecutive record, people say ‘timely’ – and yeah, with Trump it’s an intensification of these things. But it’s a continuation of issues we’ve always had in the US, going back to the founding of the country based on the genocide of indigenous people. These things, and the kinds of resistance that we’re talking about, are very old.

“But yes, white supremacists see in Trump a way to realise their ideals – which we’ve already seen happen with so many of his policies,” he says, referring to the current threat to DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) – the programme which allows unauthorised young adult immigrants to stay in the US. “They want to deport people which is absolute insanity. So you see it in policy and in these demonstrations where you have Nazis driving and killing people in the streets.

“We were in Europe last year during election season, and I remember thinking, will people give us a lot of shit? Or ask us to explain what’s going on in our country? But it was more that people said, ‘Oh, yeah there’s a big conservative movement here as well’. It seems like there’s a global wave of these right wing politics, and a lot of people feel solidarity across countries in trying to fight this.”

On Cost of Living, there are two spoken word interludes – one from the late Aaron Swartz, an internet activist, and the other from a Providencebased poet named Vatic Kuumba, who writes: ‘We just need to live, keep breathing, and succeeding throughout the decades.’ It sounds a gentle respite in comparison to the rollercoaster ride of the rest of the record; is it a reminder to take time for personal self-care? Ruiz rejects this hypothesis: “Honestly, it’s hard to feel the space for that. So much of this is about figuring out a way to keep going – and I wouldn’t call that self-care, I would call it survival. It’s important to acknowledge our individual experiences, and then to find a collective power and a history in that.

“The world is really tough right now, and it’s about figuring out a way to integrate whatever it is you’re doing into a bigger context. It keeps you from sweating those smaller attacks to your ego – there are bigger things to put in our energy and heart. I could be doing anything for a job, and I feel I would be urged to be part of some kind of mobilising collective movement, because that’s where I feel the most empowered – when I’m with other people, working together.”

Cost of Living is out now via Sub Pop Downtown Boys play Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 13 Oct; Stereo, Glasgow, 14 Oct downtownboys.bandcamp.com

THE SKINNY

LI FE ST

No Laughing Matter

Y LE

We chat backlash and future plans with Jane Jacks, author of a contentious report describing bias against women in comedy reviews across the Fringe media; and to our own comedy editor Ben Venables about The Skinny’s ethos when it comes to critique

B

ack in late August, when The Skinny office was still held in the stressful grip of the Edinburgh Fringe, we received an email that managed to depress us and lift our spirits simultaneously. The email – forwarded onto us by The Skinny’s comedy editor Ben Venables – was from Jane Jacks, a comedy blogger at The Howl Sanctuary. It read: “I’ve just completed a piece of statistical research examining gender bias in awarding stars to comics at the Fringe. The Skinny came out as the only publication that shows a favourable bias towards female comics and I wondered if you had any comment on that?”

Did we have any comment? Beyond whoops of delight, a tickertape parade made out of our own archives and the office drenched in Prosecco?

Well, yes, actually. After reading Jacks’ thoughtful study and watching the Scottish media slowly lose their shit; after casting an eye over the data and feeling heartbroken about the BS that female comedians continually endure; after speaking to Jane Jacks and our own comedy editor about the whole damn sitch – yes. We’ve got one or two things to say.

The Story So Far Jane Jacks (who goes by Jay Jay) posted her findings on a blog post entitled Fringe Reviews: Research reveals gender bias across leading publications.

She’d collated data from 1530 comedy reviews across 12 publications: The Skinny, Fest, Broadway Baby, Ed Fest Mag, The Wee Review, The Scotsman, One 4 Review, Chortle, Fringe Guru, The List, The Telegraph and The Guardian. Jacks claimed The Wee Review showed a ‘strong bias towards men’; and that The Scotsman ‘demonstrates clear misogynistic gender bias in the awarding of stars’.

Though the rest of the publications were met with milder criticisms, none but The Skinny were spared the label of bias to the detriment of female comedians.

researched piece of work I would need access to an academic library, funding and the luxury of time to read theory/journals in order to back up quantitative claims – basically an MA funding project.”

Backlash Though Jacks maintains that the report was met with an “overwhelmingly positive” response, her methodology was a point of contention for some of the publications mentioned. The comment section soon filled with a mixture of praise and irked clap-backs. And, while Chortle compiled a measured response, The Wee Review responded with an impassioned breakdown of Jacks’ statistical failings, accusing her of hypocrisy, and referring to the article as “pseudo-scientific tosh”.

An Editor’s Responsibility Our own comedy editor, Ben Venables believes editors should monitor the distribution of one-star and five-star ratings. “If someone submits two or three of the more extreme ratings, I think there is a responsibility to say ‘are you sure?’, and sometimes ‘are you ok?’” Venables has other strategies in place to keep tabs on his section’s treatment of those who don’t identify as men. He sends out review guidance along with The Skinny’s style guide, and is in regular contact with reviewers.

“Giving people an idea of how many reviews per 100 would usually result in each rating is a helpful guide... It is important we try to make sure everyone is using the same criteria.”

Gender of reviewers Jacks deliberately avoided analysing the reviewers’ genders in her studies, claiming this to be a “red herring” and writing that “there’s no obligation for

women to support women, and women are just as subject to the patriarchy as men.” For Venables, matching reviewers to shows is “more to do with comedic taste than backgrounds.” In his opinion, a male and female comedy reviewer may have more in common with each other than others of their gender or background. “When it comes to political comedy, it might even be wise to send someone sceptical of the comedian’s views. Some would argue that if they still enjoy it then this is a very good test of how effective the show was.”

“To shout down the foundations laid out

by Jacks because of academic scripture is an act of elitism” Bias at The Skinny?

It’s worth mentioning that regardless of the fact The Skinny was shown to ‘favour’ female comedians, Venables questions the finding. “I’m quite convinced that any apparent upswing in our ratings towards female comedians may be due to chance, and if you break the reviews down by reviewer there really seems to be no evidence that anyone in the team was more predisposed to male or female performers.” He’s also of the opinion that The Skinny’s preference for platforming

Words: Kate Pasola Illustration: Jacky Sheridan up-and-coming ‘newcomer’ comics performing their first ‘Fringe hour’ might have had an impact on our outcome in Jacks’ study. “A review schedule is not a random sample of shows at the Fringe.

We attempt to pick the shows that seem most interesting to our readers... Inevitably this is an imperfect system, but we are creating a review schedule for a magazine rather than for a statistician, where a lottery system and controls would be put in place.”

Next Steps Jacks has grand ideas for those inspired by her piece. She has created a Facebook community for the discussion of Fringe ratings, but is interested in creating a hashtag for reporting bullying, sexism and abuse within the Fringe. She also wants to see pressure placed on the Fringe Society to extensively collate demographic data about performers at the Fringe, facilitating more detailed research into “issues of intersectionality, analysis of reviewers themselves, analysis of venues/slots, [and] bucket collections.”

The aftermath of Jacks’ study – the fury, the joy, the critique and the name-calling all demonstrate the urgency of this conversation. And though it’s crucial for journalists to fact-check and interrogate research before spreading news, it’s also our responsibility to find roots of truth in the unruly. There’s no smoke without fire, and this debate has blazed in the minds of feminists, comedians and critics for decades. To shout down the foundations laid out by Jacks because of academic scripture is an act of elitism; we should use these findings to collaborate, diagnose the problem, and work to fix it. After all, do we want to amplify calls for a fairer Fringe, or do we want silence? howlsanctuary.com

Fatal Flaws Jacks had combed through mountains of data – unpaid – and worked tirelessly to give feminist campaigners beautiful, shiny numbers to back up what we already know about comedy’s treatment of women. She’d admitted to issues in her methodology and written an empowering opinion piece which articulately called out the marginalisation of ‘women’s topics’ in comedy critique. But here’s the problem: her research wasn’t entirely. scientific. At least, not in the traditional sense.

When drawing conclusions from statistical research, there are a few hoops to hop in order to be taken seriously by the scientific community.

A major hoop? Sample sizes. Jacks’ seemed far too small to make defensible claims of bias for each individual publication.That brings us to our second hoop: the total pain-in-the-balls that is significance testing. It’s a laborious step in statistical analysis, but necessary. Without it, though, Jacks’ data seems to show patterns according to gender, there’s no way to tell whether it was all simply a coincidence.

“I think this critique is entirely justified,” Jacks responded when we reached out for comment. “It’s utterly fair for the publications who came out as ‘exceptions’ to now ask for academic rigour... I’ve since asked a professional statistician to look at the figures; her findings were that in many cases the sample sizes were too small to show a significant difference with a few notable exceptions.” She went on to explain that she regarded her article as an opinion piece, rather than academic research. “To perform a properly

October 2017

INTERSECTIONS

Lifestyle

31

Graphic Design Festival Scotland 2017

Credit: Team Thursday

Credit: Ines Cox

As part of Graphic Design Festival Scotland’s inspiring symposium of workshops, talks, panel discussions, exhibitions, live projects, competitions and music which runs between 20-26 October they will be hosting an International Poster Exhibition

32

SHOWCASE

THE SKINNY

Credit: Frankie Sharman Credit: Jonathan Castro Alejos

raphic Design Festival Scotland (GDFS) celebrates creativity, innovation, collaboration and challenges ways of thinking through a symposium of workshops, talks, discussions, exhibitions, competitions and music. The festival focuses on active participation, with more than 20 international guests running hands-on workshops across branding, illustration, photography, animation, type design, web design, web development, sign painting, public artwork and visual presentation.

The International Poster Exhibition will showcase contemporary posters from around the world between 21 October to 25 November. The exhibition celebrates the art of poster design and features work from designers from around the world. Posters offer a universal platform for communication and have been utilised for centuries to provoke, promote, celebrate, and stimulate.

Posters have provided a powerful framework for political agendas, war propaganda and the dissemination of public information, alongside being used as tools to sell commercial goods and ser-

October 2017

vices and highlight events and occasions. However outwith their functional existence, they provide a canvas for millions of designers around the world.

Guided tours and ‘Make a Statement’ postermaking workshops will be available and free to attend throughout November and details for these will be available online at gdfs.uk The posters exhibited are a curated shortlist of entries to GDFS 2017 International Poster Competition which took place between June and August 2017 and received 6095 entries from more than 80 countries.

The competition winners will be judged by Glasgow-based designers, Warriors Studio, Jamie McIntyre who recently left his post as senior art director of famed It’s Nice That, Jaemin Lee the director of South Korea-based Studio Fnt and last year’s competition winner, Netherlands-based final-year design student, Koos Breen.

Credit: Robert Radziejewski

G

The winners will be announced at the exhibition opening on 20 Oct gdfs.uk

SHOWCASE

33

Living in Beijing Fed up with disappointing elections in the West? Consider a move to the capital of the People’s Republic of China, where trivial matters like democracy won’t get in the way of you ganbei-ing your baijiu with newfound friends

C

haos co-existing with ancient history on the home turf of one of the world’s most domineering governments characterises Beijing. Full of speakeasies, constantly being demolished and rebuilt and essentially unsearchable on Western social media, getting in the know can be a challenge. But once you’ve figured out your way in, it becomes hard to ever leave.

Where to live Welcome to Beijing. It’s either blazing hot or freezing cold. You can’t read any of the signs – GCSE French won’t help you now, Toto. Where to set up digs? Prepare to meet your first, and soon-to-be favourite, Chinese word: mafan (roughly translates as hassle). House hunting in the incredibly overpopulated capital is downright unpleasant. Expect to be asked for an upfront payment of three months’ rent, agency fee, deposit and your first-born.

As a foreign 20-something you’ve basically got two choices – Dongcheng District or Chaoyang District. Some people are attracted to Dongcheng’s ancient, winding hutong alleys, which have existed in Beijing since the 13th century’s Yuan dynasty, and sometimes show it, with private toilet facilities not to be assumed. If you like tasting (fermented, occasionally sewage scented) history in the air, seeing Chinese grandpas play mahjong on the street corner and cycling between tiny dive bars, this is the spot for you. If locking eyes with a grandma doing her daily ablutions when you nip out for a wee mid-drinking session bothers you, then it probably isn’t. Chaoyang’s Sanlitun might be more your style, with its flash malls, cocktail bars, imported wine and trashy nightclubs.

Getting around A two-wheeled steed is indispensable in Beijing’s traffic-clogged streets, and as home to the ‘Uber of bicycles,’ Mobike, cycling in the capital couldn’t be easier. Simply locate a bike, scan the QR code and be on your way for the princely sum of 10 pence. Once you’ve arrived you can ditch the bike wherever you like, avoiding the docking station malarkey of Western bike share schemes and expediting your entry to the pub. If you want to

34

Feature

buy your own little piece of history, head to the Beixinqiao stolen bike market for a Flying Pigeon, the mass-produced bike synonymous with communism. And don’t worry about handling stolen goods – it’ll probably be nicked off you in a few months, relax; it’s the circle of bikes.

Mo mo money The economy is booming, and lucky for you, being a laowai (foreigner) is pretty much the equivalent of an MBA in Beijing – with the unpleasant truth that special honours are awarded if you’re white.

Use what your momma gave you and pick up a job as an English teacher for minimal hours and the kind of paycheck that only Canary Wharf suits can command in London.

If teaching isn’t your cup of cha jobs in media, marketing and business can all benefit from your native-level command of the Queen’s English.

Then there’s the leftfield side of employment as a foreigner: appear in a dentistry commercial, play saxophone at a mall opening, pretend to be a French classical music expert and show up to a symphony – seriously, all actual jobs actual friends of mine have been paid actual renminbi for.

Nightlife The capital’s expat population hits that sweet spot where there’s enough laowai [lit: very foreign] to warrant Foreigner Friendly bars, events and communities, but not so many that people lose the friendly desperation of newbies. Beijing is transient, and the constant cycle of goodbye parties means almost everyone’s open to meeting new friends.

KTV (karaoke) is pretty much a national sport and a great way to make some local mates so dust off your vocal chords and practise some Chinese ballads. And if singing isn’t your jam then you better like post-rock bands, because Beijing is crawling with them. The scene leans towards the DIY, with local live music, craft beer and bar-crawling the nightlife mainstays – although swanky cocktail bars are multiplying in well-heeled Sanlitun.

Dirty bar street manages to creak on, slicked in its own sticky mess of tequila shots and pop hits from the noughties, while the Gongti clubs are there for when you need a night out full of

free ‘vodka’, memory loss and the taste of regret.

Electronic artists of note occasionally pass through Dada, Lantern and Modernsky, but the real joy of Beijing’s nightlife is being able to have a few too many beers at dinner, cycle around some bars that will stay open until the last drinkers stumble out and spontaneously turn up at the club with no ticket, no need to queue and no obtrusive security.

It’s spontaneous, it’s laid back and it’s cheap.

The Great Firewall of China Even cyberspace isn’t safe from Party intervention, with censorship blocking all the good stuff.

Download a VPN before you leave home, and prepare to spend much less time aimlessly scrolling through your Facebook newsfeed. While total Insta-addicts might find The Great Firewall a struggle, being forcibly liberated from Lisa and Tom’s daily baby updates is a different kind of freedom, and at first you will feel giddy with the possibilities of so much free time.

That is until you figure out the ins and outs of WeChat. WeChat is like social media, texting, banking and work all rolled into one. You can buy dinner, pay your phone bill, negotiate a new job, maintain your stock portfolio, count your steps, post self-satisfied photos of your trip to Thailand, sell a couch, read the news – the list goes on.

WeChat isn’t an app, it’s a way of life, and it will come to dominate yours in a way that makes Western social media look unobtrusively benign.

One thing WeChat can’t replace, though, is Google. You don’t appreciate just how good Google’s algorithms are until you Bing ‘Fat Girl Noodles Beijing’ (a popular – and excellent – spicy noodle joint) and get offered ‘Fat Jew in a Hot Tub Full of Ramen NSFW.’ Don’t forget that VPN. The Munchies I hope you’re hungry because eating in China is far more than a method of refueling your fleshy form; it’s a transcendental experience. The Chinese love food so much that instead of our ubiquitous “you alright?” rhetorical greeting, they will hail you with the phrase “Ni chi la ma” (have you eaten?) A typical night on the tiles in the PRC revolves around rocking up to a restaurant, ordering so much

TRAVEL

Words: Amber De La Haye

food that dishes have to be piled on top of each other and staying there the whole evening, plowing through five kuai (50 pence) beers or even a bottle of baijiu (lethally strong and cheap rice liquor).

Getting invited to join a table of rowdy red-nosed men who speak no English and will communicate solely through smiles, ganbei (cheers/finish your glass) and their generous insistence on paying for your meal is a common occurrence.

The Chinese food you’ll find in Beijing bears little resemblance to your local takeaway, which is a version of Cantonese food that established itself in the 1970s and never left. Instead, expect chuan’r (anything barbequed on a stick – often eaten late at night from street side stalls), jiaozi (dumplings), donkey burgers, lamb spine hotpot and jianbing (breakfast pancakes stuffed with egg, crispy dough, salad and fermented soy bean sauce).

Being the capital, food from all over China (and the world) is ubiquitous, dead cheap and top notch. You will get fat. When you can order a feast for three of twice fried pork, sweet and spicy dumplings dripping in sesame sauce, pork minced spicy noodles and spinach swimming in garlic for under £7, the idea of salad goes out the window.

Safety Beijing is safe. Really safe. An authoritarian regime tends to have that effect on crime. On the flipside of being able to unthinkingly wobble home alone down unlit alleys after a night knocking back the baijiu are the biannual bar raids. A few times a year the police get a bee in their bonnet and descend unexpectedly upon laowai hotspots to check your papers and test your piss. Probably best avoiding the bar scene if there’s anything naughty in your wee.

Pollution The air. The elephant in the room that I haven’t mentioned yet because you can barely see it through the smog. If you’ve only heard one thing about Beijing, it’s probably that it’s polluted. I’m not going to lie, the smog is a drag. Buy a mask, pick up a cheap air filter and wait for the days when the wind changes, the skies finally clear and the whole city dances.

THE SKINNY

Super Markets From farmers’ markets to indoor street food fiestas, we take a look at some of Scotland’s best regular food and drink markets Words: Peter Simpson

S

eeing as The Skinny doesn’t currently operate a weather service, it falls upon the Food & Drink section to point out the fact that it is presently getting a lot colder and darker outside. The summer’s gone, winter’s inbound; the leaves are falling and the squirrels are eating everything in sight. Don’t leave your sandwiches out folks, they’ll have ‘em.

Of course, the fact that it’ll be pitch-black at 4pm within a few weeks doesn’t mean that Scotland’s food scene is going into hibernation.

Nope, there are still food and drink markets a-plenty to check out in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Here’s a guide to some of our favourites, and what to expect to find at each of them.

Edinburgh Farmers’ Market An excellent selection of farm-fresh goodies awaits at Edinburgh’s Farmers’ Market. Specifically, you’ll find more locally-produced cheese and meat than you can wave a stick at, as well as a small selection of sweets and savouries to help you power through your day out (the tiny game pies have our seal of approval). Plus, you get to pick up your shopping in the shadow of one of the country’s most iconic buildings rather than under flourescent strip lights, which is a win in and of itself. Saturdays, 10am-2pm, Castle Terrace, edinburghfarmersmarket.co.uk Glasgow Farmers’ Markets That’s right, plural! Glasgow’s primary farm-to-folk interface runs in a pair of locations – Queens Park in the Southside on the first and third Saturday of the month, and Mansfield Park in Partick on the second and fourth. At both you’ll find a great mix of produce by farmers, bakers, cheesemongers and other artisanal types from across Glasgow and beyond. Saturdays, 10am-2pm, 520 Langside Rd and Mansfield Park, twitter.com/GlasgowMarkets Stockbridge Market, Edinburgh A Sunday institution, Stockbridge Market is packed with producers of everything from artisanal bread to craft beer, eco-friendly soap to organic sausages.

There’s a regular rotation of food vendors knocking out great lunch options – Harajuku Kitchen and Pizza Geeks are regular sights – and the Steampunk Coffee van is a near-weekly fixture. We were being serious when we said ‘packed’, as the market’s popularity has somewhat outgrown its playgroundsized footprint; throw in the children and dogs marauding around the place (it is Stockbridge on a Sunday after all) and you’ll need to keep your head on a swivel. We recommend grabbing a flat white, waiting for a gap in the crowds and trying to get all your purchases done in one fell swoop.

Sundays, 10am-5pm, 1 Saunders St, stockbridgemarket.com/stockbridge Grassmarket Market, Edinburgh The market so good they (sort of) named it twice, the Grassmarket Market brings together a motley crew of stallholders every week. It’s the Grassmarket on a Saturday, so the background vibe can be a bit lively, but when there’s an intriguing range of delicacies to get stuck into it’s a small price to pay. Expect enormous pans of paella, good bread, and a load of bric-a-brac at the top end by Victoria Street. Saturdays, 10am-5pm, Grassmarket, stockbridgemarket.com/grassmarket

October 2017

Leith Market Down by the water, things take on a distinctly foodie flavour with a number of Skinny favourites making regular appearances at Leith Market. You can regularly grab great coffee from The Bearded Barista, amazing corn bread arepas from Orinoco, and excellent French bread from Au Gourmand amongst a host of others. As an added bonus, Leith Market hosts Vegan Quarter – where at least one in every four stalls is fully animal-free – on the first Saturday of every month. Saturdays, 10am-5pm, Dock Place, stockbridgemarket.com/leith The Pitt, Leith Speaking of food markets in Leith, no discussion of eating outside in Scotland could be complete without mentioning the all-conquering street food sensation that is The Pitt. OK, it can get very, very busy, but that’s just the side effect of putting a whole host of the country’s very best food vans and stalls together in one place. The upside is that the food selection is hard to top, and the market’s grown and grown while maintaining a friendly community feel. Traders change from week to week, but we guarantee you’ll find two or three dishes to fight over with your pals, and if you’re in town their Food & Flea outpost features a selection of vendors and a weekly flea market. Saturdays, 12-10pm, Pitt St, thepitt.co.uk Big Feed, Glasgow In an enormous warehouse on Govan Road, the Big Feed pitches itself as Scotland’s biggest indoor street food market. Inside, you’ll find more than a dozen street food vans and trucks from across Scotland, alongside beer from local brewing dons WEST and various bits of live entertainment over the course of the day. The set-up reminds us a lot of Copenhagen Street Food, the street food warehouse on Paper Island in the heart of town. That is one of our favourite places in the world so Big Feed, is on the right track. Next markets 14 & 15 Oct, 12-7pm, 540 Govan Road, bigfeedstreetfood.com Urban Market, Glasgow The kind of market you hit up when you want something a bit different, or you don’t need any more small-batch charcuterie. Urban Market at Drygate offers up a host of crafts, contemporary design and homewares, but we’re all about the regular incursions onto arty territory from bakers, hot sauce impressarios and other fringe foodie types. Plus, the whole thing is hosted in Drygate, so delicious beer is literally a stone’s throw away (please don’t go to Drygate and start throwing stones around). First Sunday of the month, 12-5pm, 85 Drygate, urbanmarket.scot Ross Street Market, Glasgow Another market straddling the boundary of art and food, the new venture from Many Studios and street food facilitators strEAT combines designled products and art with a selection of street food traders. Get some art, grab your lunch, go home happy; sounds like a good deal to us.

Next market 7 Oct, 11am-5pm, 3 Ross St, manystudios.co.uk theskinny.co.uk/food

Edinburgh Farmers Market

Vote in The Skinny Food and Drink Survey!

Voting is underway in this year’s Food and Drink Survey – here’s a reminder of what we’re looking for in your favourite venues Best Restaurant This is a nice catch-all category for you to start with – which of Scotland’s many many restaurants is your favourite? Last year’s winners spanned continents, styles and set-ups from hole-in-the-wall taco joints to swanky restaurants with nice wooden tables, so don’t limit yourselves.

Best Cafe Are you a ‘flat white and moustache’ kind of cafe lover, or do you prefer your local to be more ‘flowers and lovely ornamental cakes’?

Maybe you just like somewhere to get a cup of tea and a bacon roll, or take the dog when neither of you can face a pint. Whichever’s your favourite cafe, let us know.

Best Pub/Bar When the time comes for a pint/cocktail/lovely glass of wine, where do you like to go? Simple.

FOOD AND DRINK

Best Food & Drink Shop From off-licences to speciality grocers to hot sauce emporia, Scotland’s indie food and drink shops are great places to find inspiration and genuinely helpful advice. Let us know which of them is your fave.

Best Takeaway & Street Food Seeing as the rest of this page is taken up with outdoor food chat, you’ll be familiar with the concept. But which street food truck, takeaway or otherwise on-the-go is your first choice when you need food immediately?

Best Newcomer Over the page, you’ll find a host of brand-new spots to try out, but for now just tell us your favourite new place which opened its doors in 2017.

Vote in The Skinny Food & Drink Survey at: theskinny.co.uk/food

Feature

35

Food & Drink News Cocktails, coffee and questionable naming choices feature in this month’s food and drink round-up e kick off this month with the Edinburgh Cocktail Weekend. The set-up is pleasantly straightforward – buy a £6 wristband, and you’ll be able to grab a specially-designed signature cocktail in any of the Weekend’s participating bars for just £4. Having quickly run the numbers, we reckon this works out as a Pretty Good Deal, so get ready for a weekend of bar-hopping. 6-8 Oct, various venues across Edinburgh, full line-up at edinburghcocktailweekend.com Over in Glasgow, food anthropologists Küche return with From Nigeria to Brazil, Yoruba Flavours Across the Atlantic. A three-course look at AfroBrazilian cuisine and culture, the night will be the chance to explore the ways in which the Yoruba traditions of West Africa interacted with those in Brazil when the two met as a result of the slave trade. 12 Oct, 7.30pm, African Arts Centre, 286 Broomloan Rd, £15, tickets via tabl.com/kuche Next, one for Edinburgh-based fans of delicious American beers and retro arcade gaming.

Brooklyn Throws Switches is a pop-up arcade presented by the lovely folk behind the Games Are For Everyone video game events series, with the boozy element of proceedings covered by the always-excellent Brooklyn Brewery. Plus it’s all taking place in the charming Edinburgh outpost of Stonehaven brewery Six Degrees North, so gold stars all round. 12 Oct, 4pm-midnight, facebook.com/sixdnorthedin The Edinburgh Coffee Festival returns this month to its somewhat cavernous new home at the Corn Exchange. Still, more space means more stuff, so you’ll find more than 40 stalls from roasters, cafes and suppliers, plus a host of demonstrations and chats for those of you keen to get

into the flat white game yourselves. 14 Oct, 10am-6pm, £10, edinburghcoffeefestival.co.uk He loves to pass judgment and his hair has more than a little of the biblical about it; now Observer food critic Jay Rayner is leaning into that well-curated image in touring his new book The Ten (Food) Commandments. Expect interesting advice on what you should be eating and how you should be going about it; don’t expect complex religious doctrine, although there is a Q&A portion of the event so you never know what might happen.

19 Oct, 7.30pm, Assembly Roxy, £15.50-17.50, assemblyroxy.com

October wouldn’t be October without the eponymous German beer festival, and Barras Art and Design Centre in Glasgow may have the pick of this year’s Oktoberfest celebrations. For one thing, they have the requisite half-indoor, halfoutdoor courtyard that’s central to Bavarians’ enjoyment of the festival – there’s just something very liberating about knowing that you have a good amount of headroom but still won’t get rained on – as well as a host of German beers and food to get stuck into. There are also two-pint steins of Jägermeister and ginger beer on the menu, so good luck to everyone involved. 19-22 Oct, various

times, tickets from £15, baadglasgow.com Now, a slightly awkward one to get through – there is a new food and music festival popping up in Edinburgh this month. It’s a celebration of barbecue and other smoky comfort foods, and of excellent local craft beers and cocktails, with an eclectic decade-hopping soundtrack. The only problem is it’s called the Meats & Beats Festival and to be honest lads we aren’t entirely sure about that name. Still, if you can shuffle past that, an intriguing evening awaits. 20-22 Oct, various times, tickets from £5, meatsandbeatsedinburgh. eventbrite.co.uk

Meats & Beats Festival

New in Food

Flavours from around the world feature in our latest food and drink round-up, from fried chicken in Glasgow to Vietnamese and Caribbean in Edinburgh

Dixie Chick Chicken – it’s delicious, it’s versatile, it’s the best.

The gourmet chicken shop does seem to be one of the year’s developing trends, and Dixie Chick (above Vodka Wodka in Glasgow’s West End) is the latest iteration to make its debut. The menu’s straightforward – pick the bit of the chicken you want, and which hot sauce to go with it, and you’re pretty much done. The prices are decent, the branding is eye-catching, and it’s right in the heart of everything if you want to go straight from a full-scale poultry binge into an evening of partying. To each their own, we suppose. 31 Ashton Ln, Glasgow.

The Herbivore Kitchen After starting life with supper clubs and a converted police box, The Herbivore Kitchen is a more permanent outpost from the vegan aces. The menu is full of great breakfast and lunch options, with a focus on pancakes (which we’re on board with) and deli-style sandwiches (again, good shout).

Another excellent choice for the non-carnivores of Edinburgh’s southside. 65 Clerk St, Edinburgh.

In Bloom In Bloom’s teal frontage and highly familiar font will put a certain 90s grunge band in mind straight away. Yes, that one; the one with the famous drummer and the very tall fella on the bass. Anyway, once you get inside In Bloom is a 100% vegan, “crueltyfree” cafe serving up an eclectic mix of cafe classics both savoury and sweet, but with all the animal stuff taken out. 48 Clarendon Pl, Glasgow.

36

Lifestyle

The Upside Down

Trenchtown

Mamasan’s One of the latest in a string of new spots to open down by the Shore, Mamasan’s is yet another excellent addition to Edinburgh’s cocktail scene.

Inventive and exciting Asian-inspired drinks in a cool space, right next to lots of other cool and interesting food and drink? That’s us sold, and we trust you feel the same. 7 Bernard St, Edinburgh.

the street, isn’t at those hype levels yet, so we recommend heading down as soon as possible.

Because with delicious Vietnamese soups and curries, a pleasing rework of Caravan’s interior look and outlandishly good prices, we reckon it’ll be packed out constantly by the end of the year. 20 Teviot Pl, Edinburgh.

Saboteur Ting Thai Caravan has been one of your favourite restaurants ever since it opened its doors in 2013.

In fact, there’s still queues outside on a daily basis, which suggests that it’s the sort of thing Edinburgh people are in to. Saboteur, the new Vietnamese joint from the same team just down

Trenchtown Trenchtown has a lot going for it; a great location right opposite the Kings Theatre on the edge of Tollcross and Bruntsfield, a really strong look (teal is back, people), and it’s offering up a cuisine that has been hitherto underrepresented in Edinburgh’s food and drink scene. Luckily, early

FOOD AND DRINK

reports are that the food is equally impressive, with the extensive range of jerk meats, small plates and Caribbean curries all packing a healthy spice punch. 4-8 Lochrin Buildings, Edinburgh.

The Upside Down They’ve worked their boozy magic on the Game of Thrones and Walking Dead stories, and now the Pop Up Geeks are back with their latest venture, the Stranger Things-inspired The Upside Down. Head beneath stairs at the already-excellent Six Degrees North and cocktails, boozy ice cream floats, loads of fairy lights and plenty of borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties awaits. Sunday to Friday, until 31 Oct; 24 Howe St, Edinburgh.

THE SKINNY

Photo: David Anderson

W

Words: Peter Simpson

Join our team!

We’re looking for a new Books editor to lead the way in Scotland.

Head to theskinny.co.uk/jobs to find out more. @theskinnymag /TheSkinnyMag

October 2017

Illustration: Luis Pinto

Are you: Passionate about books?

Fully versed in the Scottish literary scene?

Looking for an opportunity to share your ideas and enthusiasm with a diverse audience?

37

38

THE SKINNY

RE V IE

Windows Into Conversations

W

Kathryn Joseph and James Graham introduce their new community-inspired collaboration, Out Lines

Kathryn Joseph, Marcus Mackay, and James Graham

“A

few people listened to the record and said, ‘it’s quite dark’ – well, what the fuck were you expecting?”

It’s fair to say, The Twilight Sad’s James Graham has an idea of the kind of music he makes, and how it’s going to make people feel. The melancholic timbre of his voice, at its lowest drone and fiercest wail, has helped the band gain a near evangelical following. For this new project, Out Lines – a collaboration between himself, 2015 Scottish Album of the Year Award winner Kathryn Joseph, and producer Marcus Mackay, whose credits read like a who’s who of Scottish music – that melancholy remains, but there is light coming through the cracks.

Out Lines was born out of a commission from Alun Woodward, formerly of The Delgados and now music programmer at Glasgow arts-hub and community centre Platform, as part of Outskirts Festival and the Easterhouse Conversations Project. He approached Graham to ask if he wanted to write music based on conversations with members of the Easterhouse community, and those who use Platform in their day-to-day lives. Being a fan of Joseph’s Bones You Have Thrown Me, and Blood I Have Spilled record, Graham approached her to collaborate, despite the two never having met before.

“When Alun suggested the project I said I’d like to work with Kathryn. Usually I’d go for the safety blanket of knowing someone in the first place – which would be less daunting – but for some reason on that day I thought I’d reach out to somebody who I’d not met before, which was pretty out of character.”

Joseph shared these initial reservations – her only previous collaborative work having been with RM Hubbert – only coming round to the project when she found out The Twilight Sad frontman had specifically asked to work with her: “Up until then the thought of writing with someone else was a nightmare for me,” she tells us. On the first day they met, they were thrown straight into the deep end, conducting

October 2017

interviews with people from the community.

“You have a responsibility to their stories,” Joseph says, “the things you don’t want to expose about them. The way we write isn’t obvious, so you’re able to write about these people without it being literal.” True enough, there is an obliqueness to the record, which is not to say that it’s inaccessible. The stories in the songs don’t play out in an A to B fashion, instead it’s more textural, darker, with individual lyrics and elements of spoken word jumping out at you, like windows into conversations.

And, yes, the stories they were told were, at times, brutal. People who’ve dealt with substance abuse, incarceration, grief, displacement. People from vulnerable backgrounds, in vulnerable positions now. During the interview process, both Graham and Joseph were really affected by not only the content of what they were being told, but the manner in which it was coming to them – the matter-of-factness, or stoicism, that these people had. “There was no woe-is-me, everyone was so positive,” Graham tells us, “people that maybe haven’t had privileged backgrounds, who have such an amazing outlook on life. That was a real therapeutic thing for me too in a way.”

There was a sense that for those being interviewed, the conversations were reward enough.

“It wasn’t like they’d come to the gig,” says Joseph.

“These were people who were happy to be involved but didn’t care what the outcome was.” Graham adds, “I quite like that. We came in, we had that moment with each other, we made the record, maybe they don’t need to see the other side of it?”

There’s a shared DNA too with some other Scottish records and projects of the past few years, that take this storytelling tradition that feels so rooted in folk music, and push it into new, utilising different sounds – things like Karine Polwart’s Wind Resistance, or Martin Green’s Flit, which also featured Aidan Moffat and Adam Holmes. In Graham’s words, “It’s all of the good elements of folk, with none of the shite bits. Just the songwriting and storytelling element and

none of the twee shite.” Kathryn adds, “I hear it as much harsher than [what] I think of as folk music.

I worry about whether it’s too nice, when I’m writing, and James is very good at taking that and not making it twee. He made my songs so much stronger.”

“I just think ‘should I be making this nice, or am I just miserable as fuck?’” Graham chimes in, met with a swift “Thank God you’re miserable as fuck!” from Joseph.

“ I just think ‘should I be making this nice or am I just miserable as fuck?’”

James Graham

For two people who admittedly were hesitant about stepping into a collaborative project, the quality of the work is a testament not only to the talents of those involved, but also the instant chemistry the two had, and how organically they were able to weave their own influences together.

Much of that credit must go to producer Marcus, whom Joseph worked with previously on her SAY winning album.

“Going from the interviews, which were great, but intense, and exhausting, just being told so much about people’s lives, I was feeling a bit like ‘how do we do this?’” explains Joseph, “but Marcus started writing on the harmonium, then James immediately wrote a whole song, which made me want to go and write something.” Our Beloved Dead, the first track to emerge from this writing process, has a real drive to it – the heavy rasp of Graham’s vocal sitting in a tense accord with Joseph’s reedy, perfectly pitched harmony. It’s

Music

hard to anticipate how their voices would work together, but somehow they bring out the best in each other.

The Lines part of their collective name comes from the term Desire Lines, the name given to walkways caused by human erosion – dirt roads in the middle of green fields, direct routes from one place to another. Platform is built upon the old desire lines of Easterhouse, first known as Conflats (Out Lines’ album namesake), a name derived from the flat farmland where corn and wheat were grown – roads people would walk to schools, to the shops, incorporated directly into the architecture. The history of the location, directly imprinted into the earth, not hidden away, but embellished, highlighted, framed. This is what Graham, Joseph and Mackay have done with this collection of songs. They’ve looked at the roads we all take, maybe without even noticing we’re on them, and built around them.

For Graham, the experience of working so closely with Platform was eye-opening. At a time when the arts are struggling for funding across the country, to see somewhere work so tirelessly, and so successfully, at using the arts to engage and support an entire community, of all ages, is both heartening and frustrating. The Out part of the band’s name is a reference to the Outskirts festival that started them off, an annual celebration of art, collaboration, experimentation, and community that underscores Platform’s importance. “I hadn’t thought about it until going and doing this, but actually seeing and hearing people tell you exactly that, saying the place has helped turn their life around, shows you how important it is. If there’s a theme to the record, it’s that there’s always someone out there to talk to or listen to, no matter how bad it gets, and that’s what Platform is.”

Conflats is released on 27 Oct via Rock Action Out Lines play Òran Mór, Glasgow, 5 Nov outlinesmusic.com

Review

39

Photo: Colin Campbell

Interview: Harry Harris

Doing it Right We speak to Catholic Action frontman Chris McCrory about recording the Glasgow band’s debut album, In Memory Of e formed to play gigs for fun and just put out music on cassettes for our friends,” McCrory tells us while taking a break from preparing for the band’s first headline tour of central Europe. “But then managers and agents started getting in touch and very quickly we were dragged from Glasgow to do things up and down the country and were told our songs could be on national radio. It was strange to go from recording songs in your bedroom to a situation like that.”

McCrory formed Catholic Action in 2014 with old pals Jamie Dubber on bass and drummer Ryan Clark, with Andrew Macpherson joining later on lead guitar. Fast forward three years and they’re rubbing shoulders with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Seymour Stein. “That was pretty fucking mental,” McCrory laughs. “He told us how he had signed Aztec Camera and Belle & Sebastian. He was being very modest just to mention those two bands... It was the second

time we’d been out to the States this year, having played SxSW before. The other time we went back to LA and were talking to publishers and whatnot. We were rehearsing in the same building as the Foo Fighters.”

McCrory tells this story not to name-drop, or show off his well-used passport, but as a means of illustrating how a fiercely determined band from Greater Glasgow can take on a global industry on their own terms. “To me, the real achievement is when I can pick up the singles we’ve put out, or the test pressing of the album, and think: ‘we fucking did this, we’re here!’ That’s what matters.

And to know there are people out there who enjoy this just as much as we do.”

Catholic Action at their poppiest – like album opener and live favourite L.U.V – make it sound all effortless, but in reality it’s the result of hard work. McCrory earned his live chops playing drums in cult act Casual Sex (2013’s Bastard Beat EP is required listening for fans of the Glasgow scene) and is a respected producer in his own right – among his recent credits is Siobhan Wilson’s There Are No Saints. But knowing your way around a mixing desk doesn’t necessarily make it easier to record your own music.

of view, enjoy the production, but underneath all of that there is still a pop song. That’s what I want to do with Catholic Action, to enjoy it from both sides.”

When The Skinny last spoke to the band in 2015, the frontman was already talking about having the LP in the bag, so why has it taken this long? “I wanted to do a record, but I wanted to do it right,” McCrory says. Keen to get an outsider’s perspective, he enlisted the help of Margo Broom (Fat White Family) as co-producer on the album.

“I could have produced it myself, but the thing with Margo is she pushes us out of our comfort zone. I was literally in tears at points,” he tells us. “There were points where I thought I couldn’t continue with the record. But the reason I like working with her is she challenges you. We could have went into the studio and made a pretty standard guitar pop record. I could do that in my sleep. But Margo didn’t want us to do that, as there is so much of it out there and a lot of it is quite boring. So it was challenging but ultimately it was a rewarding experience, and we’re already working with her again on tracks that could end up on the second record.

“She made us less rigid... She wanted me to figure out where I wanted to take the band – which to me is to make music which can be played on the radio but also enjoyed as a record listener.

A lot of stuff on the record is quite trashy. Margo played me the radio A-list, and the idea of making stuff like that was soul-destroying. I would rather be a producer and work with other people than put my name on something I don’t like.

“Margo defines our relationship like a modernday version of Brian Eno and David Byrne. We sit and have long conversations about things and then go and try it in the studio the next day.

Music is so niche, and stuff on the radio is so fucking bland, that I think it’s important to tell people why they should listen to your band.

Guitar music needs to be more creative in general. Look at modern hip-hop production. Margo put the Kendrick Lamar record on and it blew my mind. It’s so creative but also incredibly popular.

There’s no reason bands with guitars can’t do that. That’s where my head is now.”

“ I was literally in tears at points.

There were points where I thought I couldn’t continue with the record” Chris McCrory

“I had to make the record on my own terms,” explains McCrory. “I would say I listen to experimental music. My favourite album of all time is Loveless. My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth and Pavement are my favourite groups. You might not necessarily be able to guess that listening to my band, but they all balance melody, pop structure and experimentation. Listen to an MBV record and you can get into it from a muso point

Do Not Miss

40

Preview

facebook.com/catholicactionband

EMA, Broadcast, Glasgow, 6 Oct In August Erika M. Anderson, aka EMA, released her third studio album, Exile in the Outer Ring, and it was our album of the month. Although it’s a challenging listen, both musically and lyrically – it deals with tough subject matters such as working class alienation, Middle America poverty, and rising anger at inequality and injustice – it’s utterly captivating from start to finish and we reckon this will make for one of your standout live shows of the year.

After a few years on the scene, London hip-hop duo Too Many T’s – aka Leon Rhymes and Ross Standaloft – dropped their debut album, South City, back in September. It’s easy to hear their influences coming through on the record – the golden-era hip-hop of Beastie Boys and Ugly Duckling being the most obvious. An ultimately fun record, it’s no surprise they’ve just been announced for forward-thinking French festival Trans Musicales at the end of the year. It’s only a matter of time before everyone knows Too Many T’s. Don’t miss them tonight.

MUSIC

Too Many T's

Bossy Love

Glad is 5, The Glad Cafe, Glasgow, 13 Oct

Photo: Too Many T's

Photo: Alicia Gordon

EMA

Photo: Mario Cruzado

Jonnie Common

Catholic Action play Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 6 Nov; Broadcast, Glasgow, 7 Nov

Too Many T’s, The Hug & Pint, Glasgow, 12 Oct

Jonnie Common, Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, 5 Oct As well as scoring new theatre piece You Can’t Go Back by poet and playwright Ross Sutherland, and working with Duncan Marquiss on a commission for the McManus Gallery in Dundee, Stirling-based Jonnie Common has a new single out this month and it’s bloody great! Restless is out 6 Oct via Song, by Toad and to celebrate its release, Common is going on a wee Scottish tour taking in Edinburgh tonight; he’s also at Tolbooth, Stirling (6 Oct), and Hug & Pint, Glasgow (7 Oct).

In Memory Of is released on 20 Oct via Modern Sky

It’s The Glad Cafe’s fifth birthday and guess what?

You’re invited! Well, it was actually their birthday in August but they’ve been holding out so they could “put together an appropriately dynamite party bill with our pals at GoldFlakePaint”. Tonight’s masterfully curated line-up features live sets from party starters Bossy Love, a solo set from Babe’s Gerard Black, and dream pop from Happy Spendy, who GFP describe as “one of [their] favourite new bands in Glasgow”.

THE SKINNY

Photo: Emily Wylde

“W

Interview: Chris McCall Photo: Kirsty Crawford

Independent Woman We speak to Katie Buchan, aka Best Girl Athlete, about her eponymous second record Interview: Jonathan Rimmer Photo: Gaelle Beri

I

n her short time releasing music, Katie Buchan – aka Best Girl Athlete – has toured America, supported the likes of Richard Hawley, been pushed by BBC Scotland and nominated for a Scottish Alternative Music Award off the back of her 2015 debut record, Carve Every Word. So when The Skinny meets the singer-songwriter ahead of the release of her eponymous second full album we have to pinch ourselves.

Having just moved from Aberdeen to Glasgow to study for a law degree, 18-year-old Buchan is in some ways what you’d expect based on her music: bright and affable but lacking in cynicism.

She talks enthusiastically about moving to a city where “so much music is going on.” But her own music displays another side: compositions are eclectic and well arranged, lyrics are touching and her voice is as mature and well developed as some of the artists she cites as influences.

She’s also not shy in praising others where she feels appropriate, such as her musician dad, Charley Buchan, the biggest inspiration of all.

Her debut featured mostly new or reworked versions of his material and they regularly perform together. When he decided to form Fitlike Records at the tail end of 2013, his daughter was one of the first artists brought on board.

“I actually get really nervous performing for my dad,” she says. “I don’t think I would be doing this now if not for my dad. It probably made things easier when Best Girl Athlete took off [as] right from the start he was known locally on the folk scene, so I’ve been around music and the music industry for a long time. But we only did the first album because it was fun, so it was really exciting when the album got noticed because I didn’t necessarily expect it.”

Both American and Scottish folk music continue to play a key part in Best Girl Athlete’s sound. The subtle arrangements that formed her first record are still present on her new self-titled offering, however, Buchan describes Best Girl Athlete as a “more poppy” album with synths, brass and electronic percussion, as well as contributions from rappers and funk singers.

“I love the idea of mixing traditional styles with more modern musical techniques,” she says.

“There are strings here again – in fact there’s

October 2017

Buchan’s voice certainly sometimes resembles Del Rey at her most mournful, but she cites lyricism as her key development, even if she comes across more bashful when asked about key themes: “Growing up I tended to just write songs about boys, as you do,” she says, “whereas now I write about situations more explicitly – relationships with people, places I’ve been.

It sounds silly but being with someone is such a focal point in most people’s lives. It’s on my mind the most. The silver lining to expressing how you feel about a shitty situation with a boy is it makes for a good song.

“I find some of the tracks I wrote when I was younger, especially ones that didn’t make the album, quite cringeworthy.” She continues, “But I think as I’ve grown older I’ve become more comfortable challenging myself. Now, I always have the same way of writing; I always visualise the instrumentation, the progression and the structure first.”

Buchan has undoubtedly gone through a different experience to many young Scottish artists.

work with in future, but I would say moving here has made me more keen to keep doing music.

“I suppose when it comes to aspirations, I still do music because it’s fun and I love doing it,” she adds. “Anything positive that happens is just a bonus. We’ve had a lot of opportunities so far, but we weren’t looking for recognition or anything. We put a lot of effort into this new album and there’s a lot of personal songs. I guess all I want is for people to have a listen and hopefully take something relatable from it.”

Although she grew up attending gigs in Aberdeen from an early age, she’s had a more prescribed group of musicians supporting her than most.

However, after performing solo for the first time, at the Edinburgh Fringe, she appears to be developing an independence that will help her develop in the long term.

“It’s quite hard to do the whole stripped back thing because there’s so much going on with the new album,” she says, “but I do like playing with a bassist and cellist best. I’ll need to get used to playing most shows [alone] here in Glasgow, though, because none of my band stay here. I think I’ll need to find a circle of music folk I can

Best Girl Athlete is released on 2 Oct via Fitlike Records bestgirlathlete.com

Zola Jesus, Saint Luke’s, Glasgow, 31 Oct

Sneaky Pete’s is bulging at the seams with top notch shows this October, this gig from Frankie Rose being one of them. An original member of Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls, Vivian Girls and Beverly, Frankie Rose released her fourth solo album Cage Tropical in August-and it’s a floaty, 80s-fuelled, dream-pop delight. It may be cold outside (it’s October after all), but Frankie Rose is sure to make you feel all warm and summery inside.

Nika Roza Danilova, better known by her stage name Zola Jesus, released her fifth studio album Okovi last month. Tackling life and death at its core – even during the album’s writing process, Danilova was struck by lightning – it’s no wonder the album feels like her most personal yet. If the standard Halloween party isn’t for you, then surely witnessing the ethereal soundscapes and beats of Zola Jesus live at Saint Luke’s on All Hallow’s Eve is the perfect alternative.

Frankie Rose

Pronto Mama

EH6 Festival, Leith, Edinburgh, 21-22 Oct

Photo: Ryan Johnston

Frankie Rose, Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 20 Oct

EH6 is a music, food and drink festival where one ticket gets you access to over 100 bands in over ten venues in Leith. A strong indie bent of days gone by will make for a nostalgic weekend, with sets from Space, Ben Ottewell of Gomez, Mark Morris of The Bluetones, John Power from Cast, and Barry Hyde of The Futureheads. There’s also a strong focus on local bands with Miracle Glass Company, Black Cat Bone, Blue Rose Code, Pronto Mama, Crash Club and Carly Connor all featuring.

MUSIC

Zola Jesus

Preview

41

Photo: Tim Saccenti

We first came across Dream Wife at Iceland Airwaves last November. The Brighton-formed punk three-piece, fronted by Icelandic singer Rakel Mjöll, instantly caught our attention with the catchy hook and handclaps of Hey Heartbreaker, and we found ourselves singing it for weeks. Seriously, it’s a banger. Anyways, they just released their second EP, Fire, at the end of September and they’re playing Tut’s tonight.

Katie Buchan

Photo: Erez Avissar

Dream Wife, King Tut’s, Glasgow, 13 Oct

“ The silver lining to expressing how you feel about a shitty situation with a boy is it makes for a good song”

Photo: Luke Hannaford

Dream Wife

even more than the last album – but also more beats and hooks. It’s just all worked out really well. The sound has evolved and taken on new elements. I took a lot of inspiration from Lana Del Rey and tried to really learn from her writing style. She has this amazing, versatile voice, but her arrangements are great too. She’s really heavy on strings and brass.”

Album of the Month St. Vincent

Masseduction [Loma Vista / Caroline International, 13 Oct]

rrrrr

Annie Clark’s celebrity status has elevated massively since her last album, 2014’s self-titled St Vincent: a direct result of the album’s success, her foray into directing, designing a signature line of guitars built for women and, of course, her high-profile relationship with and subsequent break-up from model Cara Delevingne.

Clark has always explored her sexuality in her music and she continues to do so here: “It’s about sex and drugs and sadness,” and these three topics are covered to great effect. It’s the most honest record we’ve heard from Clark yet, baring her soul more than she ever has before – on the album’s title track she sings ‘I can’t turn off what turns me on,’ and on Savior she sings about finding pleasure in sadomasochism.

Pills is unsurprisingly a track about selfmedicating, on which Delevingne features singing in an ironic nursery-rhyme fashion, ‘Pills to wake, pills to sleep / pills, pills, pills and a good stiff drink.’ There are certainly some clues scattered throughout about Clark’s relationship with Delevingne. Young Lover is the most obvious of these, with Clark recalling a time she found her lover in a bathtub after an overdose: ‘Oh, so what

Listen to: Masseduction, Sugarboy

Blue Rose Code

rrrrr

rrrrr

On their second album, Common Problem, The LaFontaines take aim at everything from Brexit to Scotland’s rubbish weather, and that’s just on opener Explosion. This makes for a much darker album than 2015’s debut, Class, their sharp lyricism twinned with a rock backing making for a surprisingly original sound.

Asleep describes the way much of the country has felt following recent events at home and across the world: ‘I’ve been asleep in a daze’, and ‘Everything they told me was wrong, fuck that!’

Accompanied by a subtle drumbeat that builds to a crashing climax, it’s one of many songs that will get the crowds going at The LaFontaines’ famed live shows.

It stops just short of being a concept album despite the band claiming it’s a reaction to touring the world and finding a common problem or, judging by the record, several common problems.

It’s a mature album that isn’t afraid to tackle the big issues even if it doesn’t always completely pull it off. Common Problem doesn’t let up from the first beat of Explosion until the last lyric of Asleep, making it an intense listen. The high production values courtesy of The Courteeners’ Joe Cross, also helps give the music the punch the lyrics deserve. [Eala Macalister] Listen to: Explosion, Common Problem, Asleep

Review

/ Your mother did a number / So I get gloves of rubber / To clean up the spill.’

There are still the same classic St. Vincent fuzzy guitars, electro beats and ambiguous lyrics, particularly on the disco-leaning Sugarboy and the epic Fear the Future but what sets it apart from Clark’s previous albums is the depth of the sadness. Happy Birthday, Johnny reintroduces us to the mysterious John who first appeared on the title track of her debut album Marry Me and who reappeared as Prince Johnny on St. Vincent. ‘Only you know the secrets, the swamp and the fear,’ she sings, recalling memories of an old friend and an old self with painful remorse.

On the closing track Smoking Section, Clark opens up about her depression and alludes to thoughts about contemplating suicide. It’s a powerful, brutal ballad that ends with a glimmer of hope, as Clark longingly sings ‘It’s not the end.’ The extremes of emotions are covered on Masseduction: the highs and lows of love, heartbreak and just general life. It is the closest we’ve ever been to Clark, and it’s probably the closest we’ll ever get. [Nadia Younes]

The LaFontaines

Common Problem [A Wolf at Your Door Records, 27 Oct]

42

rrrrr Brilliant rrrrr Life-changing

St. Vincent

Prides

The Water of Leith [Navigator Records, 27 Oct]

A Mind Like the Tide: Part One [Twin Music Inc / The Orchard, 27 Oct]

rrrrr

From tumultuous beginnings through loss, upheaval, addiction and recovery, Ross Wilson’s constant has been music, and The Water of Leith iss like a turning point. This record feels like the laying to rest of his troubles, with hope and faith in the future illuminating his ever more intricate and incredible songwriting. While his life has travelled rough roads, leading him through different cities and hard times, it’s stability, sobriety and optimism that has led Blue Rose Code home.

From the unabashed pop positivity of Ebb & Flow and Love Is...., the piano-driven politics of Sandaig, through the rich sax of Bluebell and jazz-cool gorgeousness of Nashville Blue, each song fuses a multitude of elements to produce breathtaking beauty. The percussion-led darkness, soaring strings and trad-folk of On the Hill Remains a Heart is as at home as the perfect pop swagger of Polaris. Wilson’s remarkable vocal is the project’s heart, but the impressive array of musicians and contributors he has assembled provides the album’s oxygen.

The Water of Leith is an ode to forgiveness, to letting go of the past and holding on to hope.

It’s the culmination of Wilson’s life so far – an astonishingly accomplished, pure and sincere record celebrating the next chapter, and the happiness and success that this ever-improving, undeniable talent rightfully deserves. [Susan Le May] Listen to: Bluebell, Sandaig, Polaris

You wait years for a Prides album then two come along almost at once. A Mind Like the Tide: Part One, with part two soon to follow, is well worth the wait for fans of the Glasgow synth-pop band.

Callum Wiseman and Stewart Brock have been in a self-imposed exile but are now ready to emerge with the new music they’ve been working on.

At just seven songs long it’s a short album, and this is likely why a second is in the pipeline.

Lead single Let’s Stay in Bed All Day dropped at

Best Girl Athlete

Best Girl Athlete [Fitlike Records, 2 Oct]

rrrrr

Two years on from releasing debut album Carve Every Word, Aberdeen-born singer-songwriter Katie Buchan, aka Best Girl Athlete, wrote most of her self-titled follow-up before turning 18. Born into a world where music is often consumed in short doses with individual tracks, Buchan’s vision for an album is one that’s constantly vying for the attention of the listener.

As such, Best Girl Athlete bursts at the seams with drama. Buchan often pushes the boundaries of the folk-pop foundations that it’s built upon, layering on vintage synths, the distinctive guitar

RECORDS

the beginning of September – it’s full of the kind of breezy hooks the band is known for, and both it and You’re the Drug are custom-built for the dancefloor. Showing there is much more to the duo than just pop bangers, I Know That I Can Change and Sweet Time show a more vulnerable and introspective side to their songwriting.

The tracks on A Mind Like the Tide may not quite match up to the punch of Out of the Blue or Messiah from 2015 debut The Way Back Up, but it’s an album fans in particular will love, and it certainly whets the appetite for part two in 2018. [Eala Macalister] Listen to: Let’s Stay in Bed All Day, I Know That I Can Change slides of Americana and, on In Your Head, soulful brass. When all the elements come together harmoniously, as on the cinematic, emotionally arresting Lucy, it can be heart-stopping.

Restraint isn’t exactly Buchan’s style though, and at times Best Girl Athlete can feel overwhelming. Baby Come Home is pretty, but its melodies take a sudden back seat to accommodate Jack Hughes’ rapping; Silver City’s intricate, cascading piano is slightly reminiscent of Tori Amos, but the keys are almost completely overshadowed by strings. Even the airiest of the tracks, such as Sometimes, still push themselves to the limit.

The sheer scale of Buchan’s ambition on Best Girl Athlete is admirable. Digesting everything it has to offer might be a task best undertaken in bitesize doses though. [Eugenie Johnson] Listen to: Lucy

THE SKINNY

Photo: Nedda Afsari

rrrrr Shite rrrrr Boring rrrrr Solid

Conflats [Rock Action, 27 Oct]

rrrrr

In Glasgow’s Easterhouse estate resides Platform, a multi-arts and community space that offers a year-round programme of performance, music and visual arts with participation at its heart. It was here that The Twilight Sad’s James Graham and SAY Award-winning songwriter Kathryn Joseph met with those who had utilised the facility. They gathered a series of interviews, crafting them into lyrics, accompanying music steered by producer and percussionist Marcus Mackay.

What emerged was a one-off performance for Platform’s Outskirts Festival, which has now been recorded as Conflats, an album that perfectly blends each musician’s strengths; traditional folk elements and harmonium combine with intense piano melodies and bass-laden synth pulses. This forms a foundation for the album’s greatest forte: its sensitive portrayal of humanity.

At times, Graham and Joseph speak of sorrow.

On Our Beloved Dead, there’s both an eerie warning of ‘I’ll take you down with me’ and an appeal of ‘I need your help please / So please help me,’ while on There is a Saved Place, Graham explains ‘Once a week I lock the doors and I draw the curtains’ in plain, forthright spoken word. The greatest gut-punch is saved for If You Love Me Will You Lie, a heartbreaking narrative surrounding a couple clinging on to a failed relationship. ‘You said that I was keeping score,’ Graham sings before almost pleading ‘Why can’t you accept that there’s no more.’

Through all this, Out Lines remain determined not to wallow in hardship. For every show of sadness, they balance the narrative with defiant statements like ‘I won’t cry’ and ‘I’m gone but not forgotten.’ Sometimes, a sense of resolve and solace is found in others, as on There is a Saved Place: ‘If it wasn’t for you, I’d be like this all the time.’

Ultimately, Conflats proves to be a powerful testament to the strength and beauty of the human spirit, even in the darkest of times. [Eugenie Johnson] Listen to: There is a Saved Place, If You Love Me Will You Lie

Out Lines

Catholic Action

In Memory Of [Modern Sky, 20 Oct]

rrrrr

There’s a video floating about online of Catholic Action performing their track The Shallows. Introducing the performance, frontman Chris McCrory shrugs, “It might be alright – you might like it, you might not. We don’t care.” It’s the kind of insouciance you’d expect from a group cheeky enough to call themselves Catholic Action, and the statement seemed to typify the group’s idiosyncratic approach to songwriting.

With their debut album a long time in the making, In Memory Of carried a hefty weight of expectation given Catholic Action’s reputation as a Glasgow band-of-the-moment. And this time around, you can sense that McCrory and co care very much about what you think.

Classic Catholic Action tracks such as Breakfast, L.U.V, and The Shallows appear, sandwiched between a clutch of new songs that glisten with some extremely polished production work. Say Nothing is the first hit of the newer material, an upbeat experimental pop piece layered with hand claps, wiggly guitar solos, and ‘wuh-oh’ vocals. Black and White follows, with downbeat lyrics – ‘Black and white / But mostly black / Another day, another drag’ – prettied up with a

Carla dal Forno

Julien Baker

Andrew Hung

Wolf Parade

Ducktails

rrrrr

rrrrr

rrrrr

rrrrr

rrrrr

The Garden EP [Blackest Ever Black, 6 Oct] Carla dal Forno personally recorded every note on her debut album, and she repeats this exercise on The Garden. Her sound is like a burning, medieval illness and there is a primitive intricacy in her arrangements.

The opening track, We Shouldn’t Have to Wait, is straightforward proto-punk; the guitar solo on Make Up Talk is made of simply a few caustic, dehydrated notes.

The title track is uniquely languid – it lurches forward like a B-movie zombie, but dal Forno’s voice is graceful. It’s the most interesting she gets, balancing esoteric aloofness with a confrontational death glare. Her presence on her own recordings has always been shadowy and stoic, but this time she seems bellicose and explicit, her voice central to the four ritualistic tracks. [Ross Devlin] Listen to: The Garden

October 2017

Turn Out the Lights [Matador, 27 Oct] Turn Out the Lights transcends Julien Baker’s own circumstances to create something universal in scope. Lead single Appointments is perhaps the most powerful song Baker has ever released – a frustrated description of seeking help, surrounded by those who don’t understand.

Unfortunately, it summates the lyrical and sonic mood, and every mantra repeated after can feel flat and cyclical.

The record becomes claustrophobic in its emotional and melodic range. Still, the moments that most connect come where Baker lets the flaws crack through, like the half laugh that escapes on Happy to Be Here, during a line about missing nicotine. The medicinal quality of being alone with Baker’s vocal will still captivate for many, but some may find it too familiar, too close to home. [Stephen Butchard] Listen to: Appointments, Televangelist

Realisationship [Lex Records, 6 Oct]

Cry Cry Cry [Sub Pop, 6 Oct]

After the radical discovery of a pop sensibility, the most surprising thing about Realisationship is Andrew Hung’s decision to sing for the first time in his career, revealing a remarkably Albarn-esque pseudo-cockney warble throughout. Sugar Pops is a nadir: ‘Sugar pops makes me hazy / Sugar pops makes me crazy / Sugar pops makes it all go away’ is hardly a deep and meaningful reflection on addiction or, indeed, cereal.

Animal is the clear standout here; tense synth riffs drive it forward and give it an energy absent from the rest of the album. It is that energy and immedicacy that makes Hung’s other project, Fuck Buttons, such an exhilarating listen, which is so sorely missed on Realisationship. [Corrie Innes]

Listen to: Animal, No I Won’t

After a much-needed hiatus, Wolf Parade are back with new album Cry Cry Cry, and their renewed sense of vigour is immediately palpable on joyous opener Lazarus Online. From there the album whizzes past like a hypothetical Wolf Parade best-of, including single You’re Dreaming, perhaps the band’s poppiest effort to date.

The album’s centre indulges in the band’s well-established proggy flourishes in two six-minute-plus voyages (Baby Blue / Weaponized), giving each of the dual-frontmen a moment to shine, immediately followed by punchier cuts Who Are Ya, and Am I an Alien Here. We may never get another album as breathtaking as Wolf Parade’s debut, but it’s great to have them firing on all cylinders once again. [Adam Turner-Heffer] Listen to: You’re Dreaming, Flies on the Sun, Am I an Alien Here

RECORDS

gently dancing bassline and McCrory’s ascending vocals.

What stands out most about In Memory Of is how markedly Catholic Action have moved away from the kind of loping grunge of their earlier songs and charismatic live shows. This collection of songs pulls together plenty of radio-friendly tracks but there’s an overall incohesiveness that extends to the mood and purpose of this debut.

In Memory Of abounds with plenty of sugar-coated shadow boxing, but leaves no definitive sucker punch. [Claire Francis] Listen to: The Shallows, Black and White, Stars and Stripes

Jersey Devil [New Images, 6 Oct] Jersey Devil feels initially like breezy easy-listening, but it turns out to be a shaded, more nuanced record than the clear-cut college rock of Matt Mondanile’s previous solo record, St. Catherine. Expect intimate details of awkward childhood encounters and an uneasy, dreamy nostalgia: Jersey Devil is a quiet, psychedelic trip through Mondanile’s inner workings, with the kind of brutal self-assessment that you can only access from revisiting a childhood home.

The record oscillates between earthly comforts (In the Hallway / Keeper of the Garden) and galactical ponderings (Map to the Stars), but Mannequin – a charming, disquieting simile for a claustrophobic relationship – best shows off Mondanile’s ambition to step out on his own terms. [Katie Hawthorne] Listen to: Mannequin, Wearing a Mask, Keeper of the Garden

And So I Watch You From Afar

The Endless Shimmering [Sargent House, 20 Oct]

rrrrr

ASIWYFA’s fifth album, The Endless Shimmering, exemplifies the phenomenal talent of the band. It’s filled with precise, punishing breakdowns and rapid-fire, disorienting changes in tempo and mood. Three Triangles opens the album with incomprehensible watery, submerged vocals (the only ones on the album), joined by a rifle crack snare with guitars screeching over the top, building towards a muscular breakdown. Complete with bewilderingly complex guitar riffs, it sets the tone.

The album’s final act reveals the band’s pop sensibilities, especially apparent in the guitar melody on Mulally, and joyous hooks on I’ll Share a Life. ASIWYFA haven’t reinvented the wheel with The Endless Shimmering, but it’s a worthy addition to an increasingly accomplished body of work. [Corrie Innes] Listen to: A Slow Unfolding of Wings, I’ll Share a Life

Review

43

Photo: Colin Campbell

Out Lines

Music is the Drug The Baron of Techno Dave Clarke opens up about his first album in 14 years

Photo: Marilyn Clark

Interview: Donald Shields

W

e’re lucky enough to catch Dave Clarke on the afternoon of his birthday, before he heads out to continue the celebrations. “I’m having a quiet dinner with friends today,” he says, “I’ve already been given some birthday cake and about 50 Belgian beers as well – it’s been a good day.”

With a career lasting over three decades – from emerging as a hip-hop DJ in the late 80s, to acid house, rave and then of course techno – Dave Clarke is a household name when it comes to dance music and has constantly been at the forefront of both emerging genres and technology. He is a DJ known for his accomplished techno sets at the likes of Glastonbury, Awakenings and

44

Review

Berghain, pioneering new music from up-andcoming producers on his weekly radio show, White Noise. Clarke also curates his own night at ADE and has released EPs and albums to critical acclaim, also working with some of the biggest names in electronic music including The Chemical Brothers, New Order, Depeche Mode, Moby, Leftfield and Underworld.

His forthcoming album The Desecration of Desire has been hotly anticipated and the first single release Charcoal Eyes (Glass Tears) has already garnered a lot of support. With the record being two and a half years in the making, and 14 years since his last, we ask Clarke about the

catalyst behind the album and his return to the studio. He muses, “it had to be the right time, I had to rebuild my life after leaving the UK, and build my own studio. Getting back into recording bit by bit and ensuring I had complete creative control meant I felt comfortable getting back to recording another album.”

Clarke uses his own custom-built, floating studio, which he says is “just a small little thing in Amsterdam,” and it's there that he harnessed the talents of many artists he enjoys and counts as friends. One of these contributors is Mark Lanegan, formerly of Queens of The Stone Age. Clarke elaborates, “Mark Lanegan – I’ve been a fan of him in his various different guises for many years, I just came up with the idea and it came around really quickly. I wrote the lyrics for Charcoal Eyes (Glass Tears) which he sang, and he wrote the lyrics for Monochrome Sun which he also sings on. We got on really well, really easily and it was a real pleasure having Mark in the studio.” He explains it can sometimes be hard working with artists when thrown together at a label’s request but when it came to The Desecration of Desire, “with everyone, I really enjoyed working with them, and hopefully they can say the same about me.”

The breadth of talent which peppers Clarke’s expertly-constructed electronica on the album enhances the diverse sounds throughout, showing a different perspective of the man with breakbeat, electro, house and even hip-hop elements making an appearance.

Clarke expands on the diverse themes, saying, “I’m just trying to be me, I didn’t want to second guess who I was or what people would expect from me. I just went along to the studio and sat down – sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t. I made this album under my own artistic control. Every track was made in the order that you hear it and I was enjoying that whole process. The album was about me being left to my own devices and it represents me.”

He adds: “Releases in the past, of singles and a few fillers on albums means that this feels, and I would go as far to say this, like my first true album.” An enlightened Dave Clarke may be coming into a point of musical self-realisation with his most recent work, which shies away from the techno that he is renowned for. Not to be mistaken for a different approach altogether, he has been quoted as saying “I live and breathe techno.”

Highlighting this fact, the conversation turns to the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) which is where Clarke has curated his night at the Melkweg for 13 years. As well as a host of talent such as Gary Beck, Boys Noize and a headlining set from himself, he also has an electro night called Whip It which is in its 3rd year with the likes of The Egyptian Lover. He details his contribution to ADE, “I’ve been a consultant for seven years now, [this year] I’ll be holding a panel on Brexit and having an interview with Gary Numan. It’s a very busy period that doesn’t just involve DJing. Last year I held a panel on international taxation. I think it’s a good thing to keep your mind busy doing other things. I tried to get the Brexit panel on last year but I don’t think a lot of Europeans felt it was real but this year there’s a lot more of an interest, and I want to find out people’s perspectives on Brexit. Most of us don’t want it.

Especially in the music industry.”

Being kept busy seems to be a habit of Clarke’s.

We ask, how exactly does the DJ relax in between a hectic schedule which involves travelling all over the world playing clubs and festivals? “I’m very good at cleaning, and I’m starting a few interesting hobbies. Ever since the car accident last year (Clarke was involved in a serious car accident after DJing at Exit Festival in Serbia) I

CLUBS

decided to take more time off for myself, so I don’t play every single weekend. Which has done me a lot of good health wise, I can feel it. I’ve been working every weekend for 20 years and it can be tough to relax sometimes.”

We’re interested to know his thoughts on current affairs within dance music and the role of social media within the industry, notably a story involving house DJ Jeremy Underground, whose agent’s leaked threat to ‘bite’ a promoter who wouldn’t agree to his demands prompted a swift backlash. “I don’t request a sauna that’s one thing.

I do think social media is very quick to judge now, and [most] people who are quick to judge wouldn’t be able to stand up to the same amount of scrutiny in some areas of their own life.”

“ Music was always my drug and I don’t know if I was growing up now I’d even give music the chance to be that drug because I’d be so distracted by everything that’s going on with social media” Dave Clarke

He continues, “One thing that I hate about social media, and we all do this, I go to concerts myself too and I’ve done it, we look at our phones.

What the fuck are we looking at our phones for?!

We’ve paid money to be there and we’re there filming it and we’re never going to watch it again but we feel we should be archiving this important information”.

Clarke touches on the point of a lot of people attending dance events purely for the right to proclaim, “I was there” with perhaps no heartfelt interest in the genre of music and the ethos that it encompasses. “We should just experience it, dance music was always about meeting someone that you might fall in love with, maybe for the night or maybe longer, if you’re lucky, and it’s about escaping the mundanity of general life. Unfortunately, drugs have that effect too. I don’t judge anyone who takes drugs but music was always my drug and I don’t know if I was growing up now I’d even give music the chance to be that drug because I’d be so distracted by everything that’s going on with social media. I don’t think I’d really be getting deep into stuff, which is a shame, people are losing the ability of escapism and replacing it with FOMO.” A theme which can be noted within the dance community of anti-phone and embracing the moment, it shows Clarke's finger is on the pulse.

Embracing the forward thinking and left-leaning views of the music community, Brexit talks by The Baron would be worthy of note if attending ADE this year. It’s important to keep your mind busy doing different things after all. We let an insightful Dave Clarke go to continue his birthday celebrations.

The Desecration of Desire is released 27 Oct via Skint Records

THE SKINNY

October 2017

45

46

THE SKINNY

Ten Questions with Midland Harry Agius aka Midland, aka the man behind FabricLive.

94, on the latest edition in the Fabriclive series, making clubbing more inclusive, and the perfect dinner party Interview: Claire Francis Your Fabric CD launched on 22 September – congratulations! How are you feeling about it right this moment?

I am writing this after the event, so I’m looking back on it with a hazy glow. It was an emotionally fraught day, one I had dreamt about for years, so at the time perhaps I wasn’t able to enjoy it as much as I wished, but to have all my friends in the club and to be able to open and close room 1 was a dream.

Which is your favourite Fabric mix to date and why?

This is a very tough question. I think I will have to choose the Jacques Lu Cont mix. There perhaps have been others I like more, but as one of the first mixes that introduced me to the series and club, it will always hold an immensely special place in my heart.

You had a birthday the same week as your FabricLive. 94 launch, how did you celebrate?

If I’m honest, as I get older I find birthdays more and more of a chore. I really don’t want for much, so much so that my husband and family say buying presents for me is really tough. I do enjoy the chance to see my friends (who I often miss, travelling so much) so we celebrated with a small group of friends, at a lovely restaurant near our house.

Surrender, on your ReGraded sublabel, is one of our favourite house tracks of the year. Gerd Janson’s Panorama Bar set was the initial inspiration behind the label – what do you particularly love about this new track and is there anywhere special you’ve played it, or heard it played?

For me, I love that the track constantly reveals little details to you over time. I think the key with this is that it seems simple, when in effect it’s quite com-

plex. Playing it at Panorama Bar at 7am on a Monday Morning or in front of 10,000 people at Lowlands Festival both stick out as special moments.

What’s on a typical Midland rider?

Tequila, coconut water, food, a fridge magnet from the local city.

When it comes to time in the studio, what is your routine? Do you have a preferred environment, equipment, or time of day when you’re creating music?

I make lunch for my husband and I at the beginning of the week, which I take to the studio with me – preferably something healthy and filling! I always make music between 10am-5pm, I am not a nighttime guy. Often the first few hours are just spent pottering, listening to tracks, I often find the main bulk of inspiration strikes in the digesting my lunch and morning music time. I always make music in my studio and only there. It has lots of plants, and nice smells, and studio slippers.

You’re hosting a dinner party – what would you cook and what would you serve to drink?

I would probably make ramen (something I am starting to get OK at) if it was four people or less.

Anything over that I would start with ceviche, and then move on to something like caramelised salmon, served with griddled purple sprouting broccoli and green quinoa with white port and tonic cocktails and a really crisp white.

What are the main things that need to happen to make clubbing spaces safer and more inclusive?

People need to actively intervene if someone is being made to feel unsafe, especially if it’s one of their friends making someone feel uncomfortable.

Clubs need to make it known that they will take

action if someone reports intimidating or untoward behaviour, not just pay lip service with safe space posters. And to some extent I think clubs should employ a door policy, not one that excludes lots of people, but enough that people who aren’t there for the right reason don’t come in.

You took A-level art and used to mock up album covers. Who are your favourite visual artists and which art movement appeals to you the most?

Abstract Expressionism, the idea of subverting

Clubbing Highlights Rum Shack Birthday: JD Twitch & Fergus Clark @ The Rum Shack, Glasgow, 6 Oct Rum Shack are celebrating their third birthday, and they’ve brought in two special guests in the form of Optimo’s JD Twitch and rising young talent Fergus Clark. Twitch will be playing Jamaican-inspired bangers from the 1960s to the present day, while 12th Isle associate Clark will be spinning a selection of rare 7"s spanning reggae, roots, dub and more.

Sulta Selects @ The Art School, Glasgow, 13 Oct This mega line-up brings together local favourite Denis Sulta, the much hyped Aussie talent Mall Grab, rising Bristolian Shanti Celeste and London’s NTS Radio host Moxie for what will be a huge night of house tunes at The Art School.

Nightvision presents Late Nite Tuff Guy x Prince Tribute @ The Bongo Club, Edinburgh, 13 Oct Edit king Late Nite Tuff Guy – aka Cam Bianchetti

October 2017

trends – but sometimes in a way that people don’t realise – has always appealed to me, like Jasper Johns’ flag compositions. Artists such as Rothko, De Kooning and Helen Frankenthaler are some of my favourites.

What’s one thing that you know now, that you wish you’d known when starting out as a DJ/producer?

Don’t worry about what other people think.

Midland plays Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh, 18 Nov

Halloween parties abound in our pick of October’s best club offerings Words: Claire Francis

– is an Australian dance music pioneer who is certainly no stranger to a good party. Tonight, he brings his Prince tribute show to the capital celebrating the life’s work of the late, great Purple One. Hybrid with Pulse @ The Abandoned Victorian Swimming Pool, Edinburgh, 14 Oct Ever wanted to rave in an abandoned swimming pool? Well, here’s your chance. Located off Great Junction Street, the disused Victorian swimming pool will be transformed into a club, thanks to techno guru Darrell Harding of Pulse, and the Hybrid residents. VJ Planet Arm will also be on hand to deliver a unique visual show.

Reckless Kettle: LAPS (Live) @ The Reading Rooms, Dundee, 19 Oct This don’t-miss affair in Dundee pairs Reckless Kettle’s Fergus Tibbs & Mikey Rodger with a live show from LAPS. LAPS is the project of Glaswegian duo Alicia Matthews and Cassie Ezeji of Golden Teacher, whose latest record has been picked up

by Ben UFO, no less.

Bigfoot’s Tea Party with Jayda G @ Sub Club, Glasgow, 20 Oct Jayda G’s Dekmantel Boiler Room show is a mustsee, and she was recently included in Resident Advisor’s top five performances from SustainRelease Festival. The Canadian DJ and producer brings her selecting skills to Sub Club this month for a special three-hour set.

Maximum Pressure Halloween 2017 @ SWG3, Glasgow, 27 Oct Slam’s new and improved party series, Maximum Pressure, kicks off with a seven-hour Halloween special. The massive line-up features the Slam duo themselves, plus Richie Hawtin, Rødhåd, Jasper James, IDA, a live set from DeepChord, and a four-hour set from Laurent Garnier.

Substance with Ben UFO @ The Bongo Club, Edinburgh, 27 Oct This double birthday celebrates 10 years of Hessle Audio and 11 years of Substance. Ben UFO, Pangaea, and Pearson Sound make up the triple-headline

CLUBS

bill, and there will be a 5am late license in place for the occasion.

Elrow Edinburgh – Halloween Haunted House @ Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 28 Oct Global party starters Elrow make their Edinburgh debut this month, bringing their Halloween Haunted House theme to Scotland for the first time. The line-up is yet to be revealed, but Elrow have promised “a full 11 hours of unmissable adventure.”

Denis Sulta’s Spooktacular Halloween @ Various Venues, Edinburgh, 31 Oct Capping off October’s Halloween parties is this mammoth 12 hour event curated by Denis Sulta and featuring Chaos in the CBD, Kornel Kovacs, Dixon Avenue Basement Jams and Big Miz (with further acts TBA). The fun will take place at The Old Haunted Leith Theatre by day, before continuing into the wee hours at The Liquid Room. theskinny.co.uk/clubs

Review

47

Bard is a Four-Letter Word Caroline Bird of Flint & Pitch introduces her new collection, and we look ahead at a month of poetry events across Scotland

C

aroline Bird arrives to talk about her latest book, In These Days Of Prohibition, on a rather grey Friday. She is open-faced and utterly edgeless – certainly not possessed of the kind of self-awareness that people might assume such a successful artist her age would naturally radiate. The youngest ever British poet to publish a full collection at 15 years old, this will be her fifth, and that’s not even counting the work she’s done for theatre and education.

She and Rachel McCrum are currently teaming up to perform double bills across the UK. “[Rachel] is brilliant. We’ve done all the hotspots – Sheffield, Bristol, Hebden Bridge, Edinburgh, Dundee…

Rachel’s first collection (The First Blast to Awaken Women Degenerates) is this amazingly raw, but hopeful kaleidoscope, and every time she performs I hear the poems as if they’re new. It’s been really lovely to perform together; it’s quite lonely up on stage, especially if you’re performing new material and doing long sets, so it’s nice to have a buddy.”

We go on to talk about her surrealist leanings. “The first poem I really read that gave me permission to think the way I think was when I was 13 years old and I picked up James Tate’s

The Last Man in Europe

By Dennis Glover

RRRRR

A book about the writing of a book, The Last Man in Europe is an unorthodox form of historical fiction which concentrates upon the life of George Orwell and in particular, the arduous process of wrangling 1984 from his tuberculosis-ridden mind and body. The first two parts of the book deal with Orwell’s politically formative years in Barcelona, Paris and London, while the latter two recount his race against his own mortality in transcribing his nightmarish vision to paper.

Much of the book consists of placing several scenes from Orwell’s most famous works in context; Glover meticulously sows the seeds of inspiration for easily recognisable chapters from his fiction into concrete scenes from the man’s life. While this is artfully done on occasion, it can come off as pat and clumsily tackled. For example, doublespeak’s derivation is similarly over-simplistic and improbable.

Stylistically, Glover writes in a fluid, easilydigestible prose and fans of Orwell will undoubtedly enjoy raising the curtain to peek behind the scenes at the famous author’s life. However, it can be hard to escape the feeling that he’s merely piggybacking on Orwell’s incredible success and furthermore, it’s often difficult to distinguish where factual events end and fictional interpretation begin. If, as Orwell believed, history is a tale told by the victors, Glover is winning all the way to the bank. [Jonny Sweet]

Words: Clare Mulley

selected poems, opened it on to a random page, and it was a poem called I Take Back All My Kisses.

The first line was ‘They got me because if a forest has no end I’ll go naked.’ I remember feeling like I understood what it meant, but I couldn’t tell you (out loud) what it meant. It was like a dream where you wake up thinking ‘OK that was crazy, but I understood why I dreamt it.’ It went straight for my subconscious.”

The new collection is her boldest yet, in that it is a more autobiographical exploration of how poetry can be used simultaneously as a tool for truth and subterfuge. “I actually wrote one of the poems in this collection ten years ago in my early 20s, in a rehab facility in the Arizona Desert. The first thing they do is give you a patient intake questionnaire, where they ask things like ‘Have you ever had suicidal thoughts or tried to commit suicide?’ So the first thing I did was go back to my room and translate my questionnaire into poetry, and it became: Do you think of waterfalls when lighting a match? Have you started to look at pigeons like they know something? Does your hair hurt?

“I told my counsellor I’d done this and he asked ‘What did you do that for?’ I said, ‘Well, you

know, I write surreal poetry – that’s kind of how I understand the world and everything.’ He said ‘Hmm yeah, but it also seems like you’re trying to evade answering or thinking about the questions.’

I told myself he was talking bollocks, whatever… and then it wasn’t til the last few years when I felt secure in myself enough to start thinking about that again and go ‘Well maybe there is an element of me using poetry to hide from myself.’ The first poem in the book is about whether or not, as poets, we also use poetry to hide from ourselves. When we’re ‘telling it slant,’ as it were, and dealing with the unspoken because that sings louder… how does that affect you as a person, when you are constantly dealing with the unspoken.”

The psychological journey covered by the book is in three sections, moving from the state of denial to acknowledgement, through to the realisation (triggered by Bird observing a child gleefully drumming on a manhole cover) that life continues and still has potential for beauty. It ends, rather perfectly, on the words ‘brum brum brum’. No-one with experience of depression, denial or keeping silent can fail to find a bit of themselves in its pages.

The Golden House

Abandon

By Salman Rushdie

By Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay, tr. Arunava Sinha

RRRRR

Events news Particular highlights this month, in association with the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival, are two amazing nights of poetry, song and more from Flint & Pitch (the Paisley Arts Centre on 18 Oct, the Bongo Club on 20 Oct), with acts responding creatively to the theme ‘Reclaim This Script’.

It’s also a busy month of talks, workshops and readings elsewhere. On 12 October, Jay Whittaker is launching her first collection Wristwatch at Summerhall. George Szirtes appears at the Scottish Poetry Library on 4 October, and Ron Butlin is in conversation at University Memorial Chapel, Glasgow on 9 October. In deference to Black History Month, Engender, the NUS Scotland Women's Campaign and the SPL will unite on 17 October for Black Women’s Voices: an evening of performance and discussion.

In These Days of Prohibition is out now, published by Carcanet Press, RRP £9.99 Tickets and more information regarding Scottish Poetry Library Events are available from their website scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk theskinny.co.uk/books

Grace

By Paul Lynch

RRRRR

RRRRR

The communal gardens shared by a group of New York apartments form a bubble in which young René is raised, fencing off a small part of the world for him to enjoy a protected, perfect childhood.

When the Golden family move in to the house opposite with names taken from Ancient Rome in place of a past they refuse to speak of, their story quickly becomes his obsession.

With Midnight’s Children, Rushdie married his now famous style perfectly to a historical moment - his magical retelling of the birth of modern India served as an enchanting take on the stories we shape and how they shape us. With The Golden House, he turns that same style to the age of Twitter, Trump and a whole new kind of identity questions.

The modern trappings fail to meld quite as well. Skim them off and what you’re left with is a story told with panache and humour by one of the greatest living storytellers – no one spins a yarn like Rushdie, and The Golden House’s tale of bastard sons, mysterious men and submerged pasts is, inevitably, hugely enjoyable. To say it’s ‘only’ hugely enjoyable seems kind of like the ‘only’ on a cheque for £1m. But, with the almost limitless creative wealth we know Rushdie has at his disposal, it’s hard not to feel like it could have been more. [Ross McIndoe] Out now, published by Vintage, RRP £18.99

A woman who is at heart a storyteller finds herself alone with her young son in an unfriendly city.

Her struggle for their survival is made ever more difficult by her son’s growing illness, while repeatedly coming into conflict with her own desire to live a meaningful life as an artist, an author.

Abandon, a novel by Bengali author Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay, skilfully presents its narrator’s two opposing personalities – ‘I’, the novelist, and ‘Ishwari’, the mother – in a neat depiction of the ways in which our contradictory desires pull us in directions so different as to be irreconcilable.

Yet the narrator’s constant self-criticism makes it hard for the reader to warm towards her. Even as we root for Ishwari’s survival in this harsh society, the frequent unlikability of the majority of the characters makes Abandon an occasionally unpalatable read.

What might have been a fairly simple plot gains complexity due to the narrator’s vocation as a novelist. The story is very self-consciously precisely that: a story, driven by narrative conventions as the ‘I’ understands them. At points this is remarkably effective, critiquing literature’s pretensions to social engagement as well as the need for conflict to drive plot forward. At other times, however, it feels overly laboured, weighing down Ishwari, the text and – with it – the reader.

[Annie Rutherford]

For the new novel from the award-winning Irish novelist Paul Lynch, imagine Cormac McCarthy’s All the Pretty Horses and L M Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables merged. The book follows the Odysseus-like journey of the eponymous Grace, forced out by her mother as the Great Famine starts to take its strong hold on Ireland. Grace’s hair is cut, her clothes are replaced and she enters the dark and dangerous starving world, as a boy.

What follows is a journey into the harsh unknown with her brother Colly, an epic discovery of adulthood and selfhood in the shadow of one of Ireland’s most arduous and distressing periods.

Although Grace has ‘strapped herself down and ragged herself shut’, this novel details the true resilience of a country on her knees, and a girl binding herself to survive it.

A Dickensian coming of age novel, Lynch brings darkness to light, showing signs of hope and personal perseverance in a time of great struggle and desperation. Using nightmarish and often hallucinatory imagery, Lynch blends the bleakness of the Irish potato famine with true grit, and a personal struggle against cruel nature, beastly patriarchy, and the odds.

Harsh and raw, Grace is a beautifully honest and frighteningly poignant tale of blight and fight. [Rosie Barron]

Out 6 Oct, published by Tilted Axis Press, RRP £8.99

Out now, published by Oneworld, RRP £12.99

Out now, published by Black Inc, RRP £10.99

48

Review

BOOKS

THE SKINNY

Mental Health Takes Centre Stage With Scotland’s only arts and mental health festival set to begin, The Skinny takes a look at the theatre arm of this year’s festival, and asks, has the topic of mental health finally become accepted by the wider arts community?

I

n August, mental health emerged as one of the stand-out themes of the 70th Edinburgh Festival Fringe. From talks at Fringe central about mental health in the arts, to listicles of the ‘best’ plays that tackled the subject, the stage was set and the message was clear: in theatre it’s OK to talk about mental health, but it’s even better when you put on a show about it.

But while the Fringe takes over Edinburgh for one month every year, the theme of mental health in the arts has been something of a familiar presence in Scotland for the last decade. Launched in 2007, and created to challenge popular perceptions of the subject, as well as to encourage participation and develop connections, the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival (SMHAF) is now in its 11th year. Recognised as one of the largest specialist festivals of its kind, it has grown to accommodate 300 events across Scotland and boasts 25,000 attendees every year.

This year’s theme is ‘reclaim’, and in events across the country, participants will be reclaiming their experiences of mental health by sharing them and helping develop a greater understanding of the topic. While the festival’s line-up is as diverse and exciting as ever, and promises to be the “biggest and most ambitious yet” according

to the festival’s manager, Gail Aldam, this year, the theatre arm appears to be particularly rich and challenging.

Featuring established names and companies alongside newer faces and festival first timers, the shows range from one handers to ensembles, each reclaiming the narrative of mental illness and recovery. Emerging Glasgow theatre company Wonder Fools examine the effect of pornography on mental health relatioships and sexual experiences in The Coolidge Effect, which looks at the correlation between the increasing access to pornography and society’s unwillingness to talk about it.

Meanwhile, Hysteria!, a ‘darkly comic political cabaret’ by AJ Taudevin, looks at the impact of sexism on mental health in a piece inspired by the 2016 US election and the Women’s March.

Elsewhere, Theatre’s Tonic The Village looks at the secrets held by a group of villagers and One Mississippi, a new piece of verbatim theatre, looks at how the childhood experiences of boys shape the lives of the men that they then become.

In Dingwall, Rob Gee stars in Forget Me Not: The Alzheimer’s Whodunnit, a one-man poetry comedy show looking at how we deal with people who have dementia, based on Gee’s experience

Living with the Lights On

of working on a Challenging Behaviour ward for people with late stage Alzheimer’s. While the Scottish premiere of Mark Lockyer’s Living With the Lights On tells the true story of his own mental health crisis and recovery, which began with an on-stage breakdown during a Royal Shakespeare Company production of Romeo and Juliet in 1995.

Many other companies and performers are set to appear at this year’s festival, each with their own stories and tales to tell. However, while each performance may vary in form, design and execution, the message of SMHAF and the work of the artists involved speak to an almost universal truth. When it comes to mental illness, there is life after diagnosis, and the road to recovery follows reclamation of the subject.

The Scottish Mental Heath Arts Festival runs from the 1029 Oct at venues across Scotland mhfestival.com

The Coolidge Effect

Well Read As Dundee Literary Festival announces a typically strong programme, we pick our personal highlights that combine the citiy’s literary history with big name authors such as Graeme Macrae Burnet and Andrew O’Hagan

A

fter celebrating its tenth anniversary last time around, Dundee Literary Festival is back this year with perhaps an even more momentous milestone in the crosshairs – the centenary of the city’s most famous book. On Growth and Form, D’Arcy Thompson’s influential tome on biomathematics and the natural world, was published in 1917 in that fair city. Though ostensibly a science textbook, the influence of Thompson’s landmark work has permeated a variety of other industries and disciplines, shaping the thoughts and actions of such luminaries as Claude Lévi Strauss, Alan Turing and Salvador Dalí.

To mark the book’s birthday, the good folks at Dundee Literary Festival have built this year’s event around On Growth and Form. Not only is there a three-day conference dedicated to uncovering the full scope of Thompson’s influence, there are also lectures by Matthew Jarron during the festival and later ones by Catherine Mason and Philip Ball after the event. There’s also an immersive exhibition entitled Harmonious Complexity which will run until mid-November and promises to investigate in detail the areas that Thompson’s ideas have infiltrated… but that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what’s on at this year’s edition.

Spotlight on Dundee With Dundee as the backdrop for the festivities, it’s only fitting that much of the programme should take inspiration from the city. For starters, there’s

October 2017

a peek behind the curtain at Dundee’s industrial past with a guided tour round Verdant Works, Dundee’s restored jute weaving mill. Meanwhile, two events scheduled for the same day explore the city’s past both temporally and spatially, as Think Local looks at the history of Dundee through the works published by the Abertay Historical Society, while Mapping the City will feature a talk from one of Scotland’s top cartography academics, Chris Fleet.

Elsewhere, there’s a look backwards at two of Dundee’s most influential publications, sadly now both out of print. First up is The People’s Journal, with an emphasis on the all-too-often overlooked tradition of newspaper poetry, while Jute, Jam & Jackie revisits Scotland’s first ever teen magazine with two of the magazine’s contributors recounting their experiences with Jackie.

Meanwhile, Arrest this Moment sees the launch of James Robertson’s extraordinary biography of Michael Marra. Otherwise known as the Bard of Dundee, Marra’s eventful story is brought to life through interviews with his friends and family, including both real and imagined dialogues with the man himself.

Modern Society Moving away from the city’s environs, there are a whole host of other highlights to whet the literary appetite – especially with regards to the state of affairs in today’s modern world. Andrew O’Hagan’s

free (but ticketed) event promises to be a fascinating insight into the work of one of Britain’s most cutting-edge chroniclers. Focusing on his latest book, The Secret Life, the talk will investigate the biography of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, the possible identity of the founder of Bitcoin and the increasingly blurred lines between the real world and cyberspace as O’Hagan forges a new identity online with the personal information of a dead man.

Other events focusing on the fragility and paranoia of the modern world include We Know All About You, a talk from Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones.

The Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Edinburgh gives his insight on the age of surveillance and whether or not George Orwell’s worst fears have come to pass in the UK and the USA. Meanwhile, later that same day a panel of writers (Cathy Rentzenbrink, Tim Robertson and Louise Welsh) will examine the role of literature in today’s fractious society with the hour-long event, In the Dark Times, Will There Also Be Singing?.

Authorial treats abound Of course, no book festival would be complete without some good, old-fashioned author cameos.

The headlines will be stolen by crime writer Graeme Macrae Burnet, who came out of nowhere to establish himself as one of the country’s most exciting literary talents with the Saltire Literary Awards’ fiction book of the year and a spot on last year’s

THEATRE / BOOKS

Words: Jonny Sweet

Man Booker shortlist. Burnet will be reading from his upcoming third novel, as he swaps notes with fellow writer Louise Welsh.

Other interesting items of note on the agenda include Hannah Berry’s introduction of her third graphic novel, Livestock, as the satirical writer and illustrator chews contemporary cud with Creative Scotland’s Sasha de Buyl. There’s an exciting event featuring three new writers (Gillian Best, Ever Dundas and Helen McClory) as they read from and chat about their debut works, while old hands Jonathan Swift, Edgar Allan Poe and Jean Rhys are all put under the spotlight in their own individual events as well.

For the little nippers, Jacqueline Wilson comes back to the place where it all begin in an informal afternoon session which comprises her only Scottish date of 2017. Alan Windram has another show for the rugrats entitled One Button Benny, in which youngsters are actively encouraged to participate, while there are several hosted events at Waterstones on the themes of Harry Potter, The Tiger Who Came to Tea and fairytales in general. With something for all ages and affiliations, the full programme holds many more treats than can possibly fit into this article. Check it out for yourself and start drawing up your own schedule right away.

Dundee Literary Festival takes place from 18-22 Oct literarydundee.co.uk

Review

49

Photo: Stephen Cummiskey

Words: Amy Taylor

In Cinemas Call Me by Your Name

Director: Luca Guadagnino Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel Released: 27 Oct Certificate: 15

rrrrr

With A Bigger Splash, director Luca Guadagnino used an Italian summer as the backdrop for a vibrant, erotically charged clash of personalities.

His latest effort, Call Me by Your Name, based on André Aciman’s beloved 2007 novel, features this same setting but a different tonal register. Here, the modes are pure heady romance and comingof-age tale, and it’s one of the most beautiful recent examples of both.

It’s 1983, and 17-year-old American-Italian Elio (a spellbinding Timothée Chalamet) becomes enamoured with Oliver (Armie Hammer), a 20something research student who’s working with Elio’s professor father (Michael Stuhlbarg) for the summer and boarding at the family’s Italian villa. The precocious Elio (sort of) has a girlfriend, Marzia (Esther Garrel), but is generally inexperienced in matters of the heart. As he and Oliver bond further, the choice between speaking up about one another’s feelings or keeping longings hidden only gets harder.

For the Euro film enthusiast, one can trace the DNA of the works of Eric Rohmer and Jean Renoir (filmmakers Guadagnino has openly expressed admiration for) in the film’s deeply humanist streak concerning romance and decency.

Additionally, Maurice Pialat’s coming-of-age classic À Nos Amours, itself a tale heavy on sexual discovery, seems to get an explicit homage in the opening scenes in the form of one of Marzia’s outfits.

But as influenced by certain filmmakers as Call Me by Your Name is, so much of its thrill comes from how Guadagnino, and James Ivory on script duty, manage to make the sensations and rapport between the characters feel as fresh and sweeping to the viewer as they do for those onscreen. Taking a chance on love is a great risk, and Guadagnino’s film – which has a comedic streak just as potent as its dramatic one – is a gorgeous depiction of the ecstasy and agony involved with taking the required leap of faith.

[Josh Slater-Williams] Released by Sony Pictures

The Death of Stalin

Director: Armando Iannucci Starring: Rupert Friend, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Steve Buscemi, Jason Isaacs, Jeffrey Tambor, Simon Russell Beale Released: 20 Oct Certificate: 15

rrrrr

From inept ministers at the insignificant DoSAC in The Thick of It to the US-UK relationship in In the Loop and the US presidency in Veep, Armando Iannucci’s work in the last 15 years comes across as a history lesson of how to rise to power. So it shouldn’t come as any suprise that his latest project is about a dictator The Death of Stalin, based on Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin’s graphic novels, focuses on (spoiler) Stalin’s death in 1953 and the power vacuum it creates among the members of the politburo.

And what a politburo it is. From Simon Russell Beale’s machiavellian head of NKVD, Lavrentiy Beria, and Jeffrey Tambor’s clueless panjadrum, Georgy Malenkov, to Steve Buscemi’s wily Nikita Khruschev, Iannucci has assembled the most left-field – yet spot-on – cast of players. Watching Jason Isaacs swagger around as a General Zhukov with a Yorkshire accent heavier than all of the Soviet Army’s artillery combined is a joy.

Iannucci long ago perfected the formula for

The Death of Stalin

characters who are involved in a mortal, pathetic tussle between desperately trying to survive but lacking any real ability to do so successfully, and he doesn’t tinker with it in The Death of Stalin.

Omnishambles is still the name of the game and characters are still as useless as a marzipan dildo.

However, that’s not to say The Death of Stalin is just The Thick of It: Mission to Moscow.

Far from it. It’s Iannucci’s darkest project yet: charged by the frisson of historicity, the film

The Ornithologist

Director: João Pedro Rodrigues Starring: Paul Hamy, Xelo Cagiao, João Pedro Rodrigues Released: 6 Oct Certificate: 18

rrrrr

Don’t be fooled by the elevator pitch: this story of a birdwatcher on a slow odyssey through Portugal’s Douro Valley whose journey begins to mimic the life of Saint Anthony of Padua is a million miles from sombre hagiography. Kinky, funny and frequently ridiculous, The Ornithologist is an irreverent queering of all that is rotten in the good book and its apocrypha.

Fernando is the titular twitcher, kayaking along in search of black storks when he’s overcome by rapids and his trip takes a turn for the weird. Played by a deadpan Paul Hamy, Fernando skulks around the stunning landscape half-naked and with the mannered brutishness of a domesticated animal adjusting to the wild. His off-piste adventures introduce him to a litany of oddballs, including two pilgrims who have strayed from the Camino de Santiago, a nubile goatherder named Jesus and a group of topless Amazons.

What all of The Ornithologist ’s narrative episodes really mean is not always clear, but it’s OK to be bewildered – Anthony is, after all, the patron saint of the lost. [Phil Kennedy] Released by Matchbox Films

straddles the line between comedy and tragedy much more delicately than his previous work.

The latter is almost retroactive. The characters are hysterical until their hysteria overwhelms them and bodies start to drop, forcing you to reassess the comedy you’ve been watching all along. It’s the Iannucci you know, but not like you’ve ever seen him before. [Benjamin Rabinovich] Released by Entertainment One

Access All Areas

Director: Bryn Higgins Starring: Ella Purnell, Edward Bluemel, Georgie Henley, Jordan Stephens, Nigel Lindsay, Jo Hartley, Jason Flemyng Released: 20 Oct Certificate: 15

rrrrr

Filmed at last year’s Bestival on the Isle of Wight, Access All Areas makes the most of the naturally cinematic spectacle of festival crowds plus a host of carnivalesque figures – actors as woodland creatures, fire-eaters and acrobats. Director Bryn Higgins tries to frame the festival as an escapist wonderland. It’s not necessarily an impossible feat but Higgins can’t manage it here, so the fairytale, dreamlike logic of the festival often feels contrived.

There are also problems with basic storytelling. Rules like ‘show don’t tell’ are often broken, and characterisation is slim to none, giving us little reason to feel invested in the story of Bristol teen Mia (Purnell) and her friends’ escapades at the festival.

Higgins’ film may achieve success among those too young to have gone to their first festival, as they should be wide-eyed enough as a result to forgive its faults, although it’ll surely struggle to find that audience given its sex and drug jokes, which are likely to go over the heads of tweeners. [Rachel Bowles] Independent release

The Party

I Am Not a Witch

rrrrr

rrrrr

Director: Sally Potter Starring: Patricia Clarkson, Bruno Ganz, Cherry Jones, Emily Mortimer, Cillian Murphy, Kristin Scott Thomas, Timothy Spall Released: 13 Oct Certificate: 15

The Party opens with a dishevelled Kristin Scott Thomas pointing a gun at the camera, so we know from the get-go that the get-together she’s hosting has gone very wrong. The surprise is how quickly it all falls apart.

Sally Potter’s film unfolds in something close to real time, and within 70 minutes these middle-class guests are at each other’s throats. Secrets are spilled, long-buried resentments surface, and that gun looms ominously in the background.

When it comes to shooting in a single location, Potter is no Fassbinder or Polanski – she keeps lurching into shaky close-ups – but her script is lively and funny, and she gets great work from her well-chosen cast. Cillian Murphy’s anxious, cocaine-fuelled banker is a highlight, while an acidic Patricia Clarkson steals most of the best one-liners: “Martha, you’re a firstrate lesbian and a second-rate thinker.”

The Party ultimately feels glib and hollow, a trifle that fails to maximise its potential; but at least the film, unlike these awful guests, doesn’t outstay its welcome. [Philip Concannon] Call Me by Your Name

50

Review

Released by Picturehouse

Director: Rungano Nyoni Starring: Margaret Mulubwa, Henry Phiri, Nancy Murilo, John Tembo Released: 20 Oct Certificate: 15 Zambia-born Welsh director Rungano Nyoni thoroughly impresses with her assured and original debut feature I Am Not a Witch, an elegant folktale of a film that understandably dazzled at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Nyoni grounds her tale in the weighty gaze of Shula, the orphaned young girl at the film’s centre, played by newcomer Margaret Mulubwa, who delivers a stunningly poised performance. Shula is accused of being a witch and is abruptly cast off to a ‘witch’ camp comprised largely – if unsurprisingly – of older women exploited for their labour. There our young hero finally finds community and acceptance, but she also finds herself vulnerable to the greed and prejudices of authority figures, like the camp’s supervisor (Tembo), an opportunistic Sembenian villain. What follows is a gracefully rendered portrait of a brave little life.

The comfortably ambiguous narrative foregoes moralising and easy answers, particularly at its conclusion, and instead plunges viewers into ultimately tragic satire tinged with humour and brimming with striking imagery. With such a masterful and haunting debut, Nyoni distinguishes herself as a director to watch. [Kelli Weston] Released by Curzon Artificial Eye

FILM

THE SKINNY

Blood Simple: Director's Cut

Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen Starring: Frances McDormand, John Getz, M. Emmet Walsh Released: 30 Oct Certificate: 18

rrrrr

Arguably every film the Coen brothers have made in their illustrious 33 year career has been a comedy of kinds, from the screwball antics of The Big Lebowski and O Brother Where Art Thou? to the descending shades of darkness in Fargo, Miller’s Crossing and No Country for Old Men. Their starting point, 1984’s Blood Simple, finds comedy in the vision of a tragedy played out with incompetence. This is an idea they would return to.

Blood Simple begins with a man and a woman driving off into the night along a deserted desert road. They talk about her husband, his boss, and how unhappy she is. Their conversation is terse and to the point. They spend the night in a motel together and wake up to a sinister phone call.

Having set up all the pieces for a cold, calculated noir, the film chooses instead to let us watch what happens when everyone makes the wrong move. The murder, the cover-up, the payback – every stage of the game is played out in perfect accordance with the rules of the genre but each move is motivated by misunderstanding. He guesses the wrong victim, she guesses the wrong killer, everyone ends up chasing the wrong person. The joke is that their actions don’t mean what they think they do. The punchline is that they mean nothing at all.

Shot with a cool eye and a minimal soundtrack, Blood Simple is made without the conviction or budget to realise the Coen vision as fully as their later efforts would, but it remains an accomplished debut and a slick, despairingly funny piece of noir.

Extras In its shiny new 4k restoration, the dark Texan landscapes and flickering neon have never looked better, and the extras house a host of interviews with Coens and cast looking back on the world’s introduction to two of its most revered filmmakers. [Ross McIndoe] Released by Studiocanal

The Howling

Director: Joe Dante Starring: Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Robert Picardo, Kevin McCarthy Released: 9 Oct Certificate: 18

rrrrr

For lycanthrope nuts, 1981 was a banner year.

American Werewolf in London is the high water mark, a funny, sexy, scary comic-horror-tragedy about an easy-going American hiker who gets mauled on the Yorkshire Moors and turns into a monster. Wolfen, a stylish New York thriller with Albert Finney as a cop investigating a spate of brutal murders that don’t quite add up, is more po-faced but is not without its charms.

Runt of 81’s wolfpack is Joe Dante’s The Howling, although what it lacks in budget it more than makes up for in wit and gross-out werewolf transformations (courtesy of Rob Bottin, the FX genius with the gooiest effects around).

The film begins with an LA anchorwoman (Wallace) being used as bait by her TV channel to catch a serial killer, and the trauma of the experience sends her into a tailspin. The station’s resident pop-psychiatrist (Macnee) suggest she recuperates up the coast at his patient retreat called ‘the colony’, although this remote haven proves less than relaxing. First, its residents are a bizarre bunch, a collection of hippie burnouts, gun nuts, suicidal geezers and a nymphomaniac who has the hots for the anchorwoman’s vegan husband. Second, she can’t get a wink of sleep for the strange animal noises she hears in the night.

Dante and scriptwriter John Sayles (who also wrote Dante’s exploitation riot Piranha) are two of the wiliest filmmakers in the business, and pack The Howling with loopy gags and visual puns galore (at one point we see a rookie reporter swotting up on werewolf lore by reading Allen Ginsberg’s Howl).

While it might seem obvious where the film is headed once we reach the colony, Dante has a wickedly subversive punchline up his sleeve suggesting that perhaps mankind had gone to the dogs long before werewolves were threatening to takeover.

Extras Some interesting interviews, particularly a chat with editor Mark Goldblatt, but disappointingly there’s no input from Dante or Sayles. [Jamie Dunn] Released by Studiocanal

RE-RELEASE:

Perfect Blue

Director: Satoshi Kon Starring: Junko Iwao, Rica Matsumoto, Shinpachi Tsuji, Masaaki Ôkura Released: 31 Oct Certificate: 18

rrrrr

After a perky final performance, budding J-pop star Mima announces to fans she’ll be leaving music behind to chase her dream of becoming an actor. Soon, she’s hung up her squeaky-clean, girl-band persona in favour of starring in a grim TV drama at the behest of her agent. But to some of her fans, this gradual loss of innocence is a heinous betrayal. The backlash begins to manifest in strange phone calls and faxes, shadowy lurkers, and an online diary in which someone is documenting her every move.

In Perfect Blue, director Satoshi Kon has created a hard-hitting psychological thriller that just happens to be animated. Its powerful visual style is a far cry from kawaii, and its disorienting, splintering sensibility is said to have influenced Darren Aronofsky and Christopher Nolan. Mima, whose name suggests both mimicry and mimesis, becomes increasingly unsure of her identity.

She is portrayed in reflections, distorting angles and invasive close-ups, sequestered in frames and dazzled in the glare of the spotlight.

Eventually, she is even haunted by a tittering apparition of her popstar alias, who dances against

October 2017

the backdrop of an oppressive concrete Tokyo.

Mima becomes trapped in this world of distorted reality, in which perception trumps truth, and she has no right to seek womanly agency above sexualised innocence. At the height of her troubles, lived moments repeat, rewind and dissolve into uncertainty, and the boundaries between her acting role and reality crumble. She is thoroughly passive, relying completely on others for affirmation, mainly men, who look on, discussing her as though she is a commodity. In today’s social media-reliant society, in which personas are cropped, filtered and otherwise masked to keep up appearances, Perfect Blue’s questions of selfhood, construct and celebrity hold more significance than ever before. [Kirsty Leckie-Palmer] Released by National Amusements

Perfect Blue

DVD

Review

51

Sound and Vision Entering its seventh year, Scotland’s digital arts festival North East of North returns to Dundee with a hoard of eclectic events Words: Ben Venables

A

digital arts festival seems an unlikely place for archaeology. After all, there isn’t much to dig when it comes to the digital. But North East of North (NEoN) is set to prove this assumption wrong. NEoN offers a fresh take on who future excavators might turn to as a way of seeing how we live now – namely, artists.

Today, our treasures tend not to be physical.

Our possessions are less likely to end up buried underground, instead uploaded onto a virtual cloud. Artists help record our information society and the festival’s highlights are a testament to this. Crossing space and time, sound and vision, the past and future, NEoN’s events bring local and international talent to Dundee.

Space and Time The space of Dundee Contemporary Arts gallery does not constrain Canadian artist Kelly Richardson’s debut exhibition in Scotland. The Weather Makers travels out to alien terrain, evoking the quest for life beyond Earth. Richardson deploys video and software from both the film and gaming industries, coupled with data gathered by NASA on its mission to Mars. This all creates a 12-metre panoramic view of a future Martian landscape. The exhibition also provokes questions about our carelessness towards Earth’s ecosystem today.

Over in West Ward Works, DC Thomson’s former print works, there’s a group exhibition featuring the work of British artist Verity Birt.

Birt’s Rites of the Zeitgeber comprises a multiscreen trove of found footage and text. The work of J.G. Ballard, Henri Bergson and Mina Loy arrive in fragments like lost treasures of yore from outmoded media into the here and now. It makes for an imaginative take on our recent past that pays attention to both the physical and the digital. It seems to come from a future perspective, and in disregarding time seems unfettered by a clock.

Also in the group show, VOID is a crew of Brussels-based artists. Their work Bruit Blanc revolves around the idea that sound waves leave an impression on each surface they have ever penetrated. Creating resin discs from ceilings, floors and walls, the discs play like vinyl records.

It’s a soundtrack which echoes history.

Install View

Kate Davis

Stills Gallery

rrrrR

Moreshin Allahyari, King Uthal

Meanwhile, New Yorker William Miller’s photojournalism addresses not only what we see but how a picture is also an object. Ruined Polaroids showcases images produced by a broken old Polaroid SX-70 camera. The ‘spoiled’ images have become strikingly abstract, suggesting more about the process of photography than the event the camera was trying to capture.

Entering Stills, it would be easy to look past one of the largest parts of Kate Davis’ Nudes Never Wear Glasses. Three new walls have been placed at points throughout the long exhibition space, looking deceivingly like the exposed brick of old features of the building – matching the usual polished concrete floors. Passing around them without question, potentially unperceived labours form or become unseen barriers.

These heavy interventions in the usual circulation of the space are a surprisingly large scale and spatial take on the kinds of invisible labour Davis questions throughout the different video, drawing and photographic works.

For example, a combined subversive wit and careful new presentation or reworking of existing materials takes place in the film works presented.

In Weight, one of the two films being shown, Davis offers a detailed revision of a 1961 BBC documentary script. The name of the original subject is not mentioned except in the credits (Barbara

Hepworth) and all instances of “this artist” are replaced with “this woman”. References to artistic tools and practice are variously substituted with cleaning, cooking and household utensils and shopping bags. Inserting such revisions into the older text rebounds between a dignifying of domestic labour, but also a side-eyeing of bombastic mystification of the artistic genius.

This practice of revising and editing is continued from the literal scratching away in two of the experimental photographic works included.

The first of these black-and-white images is of a tall sculpture of a nude woman and has had glasses scratched into it. This and its partner are on each side of the new brick wall, and the second sees a wartime monument to a male soldier defaced to have him holding a baby in blankets. Across the video and tampered-with photographs, these ostensibly small edits’ jangling humour combine to underscore the rigorous and pernicious habits and formalities that permeate the accepted canonical imagery and narrative conventions of art history. [Adam Benmakhlouf] Kate Davis, Nudes Never Wear Glasses, at Stills Gallery until 8 Oct

The Future of the Past Morehshin Allahyari is both an activist and artist.

Harnessing 3D modelling and printing to reconstruct 12 artefacts destroyed by ISIS, including Roman-era statues. Today’s printing technology becomes a tool for both resistance and historic preservation. Each 3D object also includes a flash drive and memory card within. It acts like an old glass bottle, buried long ago containing secrets from the past. The resconstructions act as guards to crucial information about the original artefacts.

The full programme of events is available at North East of North and takes place across Dundee during 7-12 Nov northeastofnorth.com Install View

Erica Eyres

Queens Park Railway Club

rrrrR

Bruit Blanc, VOID

52

Review

One top half of a finger, an anatomically rendered heart and a cleanly severed hand are some of the forms taken by Erica Eyres’ small ceramic sculptures in her Queens Park Railway Club exhibition, Alone and I. Over sculpture and video, Eyres sidesteps the abject shock response that might be expected to the severed feet and hand sculptures, or the video work’s verbal description of the exsanguination of her mother.

At points the smooth shine of her ceramics give way to a pumice surface. On the entrails that take up most of one the shelves, this roughness just at the tops of the pipe forms gives a twin sense of body horror melodrama and the dull disgust cum disappointment of dried out food.

In place of a gusty revulsion, there’s a hint at the fascination of gory form and the small irritations of icky kitchen cycles.

ART

Eyres also breaks the bright sleek shine of small, vivid blood drop sculptures, though instead of rough bubbled texture she draws into them.

Their frowns and wobbly grins begin to track a sense of nuanced anxiety or being ill-at-ease.

In the video itself, Eyres tells the story of having a mother who has had her blood taken 138 times. Delivered with pauses that switch between loaded suspense and time for making up the next turn of events, at different points she describes serious bodily harms and soapy romances between her mother and a handsome doctor. The setting is the mossy inside of the drained Govanhill Baths.

Like the rest of the show, suggestions of extreme bodily states or situations are delivered through cooler means, or in forms that are not usually used to perform overt trauma. Instead a surprisingly sinister tension is allowed to linger and permeate through the prosthetics and sometimes stagey ceramic props. [Adam Benmakhlouf] Erica Eyres, Alone and I, until 15 Oct, Queens Park Railway Club

THE SKINNY

Can Improv Make You a Better Person?

T

here’s an improv scene galvanising Edinburgh right now with the latest night Spontaneous Potter – inspired by a certain Boy Wizard – set to be as popular as the other monthly unscripted gigs. One of the key players is Will Naameh, who pens this month’s Comedians on Ethics column.

Can embracing the philosophy of improv also lead to a happier and healthier outlook?

I am standing in the shadows with five people I’ve never met before. We all speak different first languages and we’re about to perform an improvised show. Due to the language barrier, we’re without words and can’t all understand the audience to take one of their suggestions. Piano music starts playing, the lights come up. The crowd look at an empty stage. Heart pounding, my brain screams “STOP BEING SCARED. MAKE A CHOICE”.

My feet sprint me onstage, and, for lack of a better idea, I start waving my arms in a big circle.

Without pausing to think, the others have joined in and it makes my choice of waving my arms in a big circle look like a genius move. Before long we’ve built a rocket out of thin air.

The premise sounds like a nightmarish fever dream. It was the third night of the Sweden International Improv Festival. For the uninitiated, improv is the art of performing scenes, theatrical or comedic, with absolutely no script. The joyous way in which five complete strangers supported my lame choice may demonstrate why doing improv can make you a better person. In my thirteen years of improvising, I’ve heard one mantra repeated constantly: improv rules are life rules.

Improv teaches you how to ‘fail’. Indeed, failure is an inherent, unavoidable part of improv.

October 2017

Improv extraordinaire Will Naameh takes on our latest Comedians on Ethics column

You’d think throwing yourself into an environment where failure is inevitable would be stressful. But it teaches you to turn failures into opportunities.

I recall performing in an improvised James Bond show once. Bond wound up with a monkey companion for the entire show, purely due to me stumbling over a name, making Miss Moneypenny sound rather more simian. Instead of mocking or ignoring this verbal blunder as a failure, my fellow improvisers embraced it as a gift. This attitude transfers into life – the best improvisers I know become more positive, less anxious, and happier people. They are comfortable with failing. And there’s an incredible freedom to that – they know that failure is just a signpost to the next good thing.

Secondly, improv forces you to listen. You have to be as prepared to contribute your own idea as you are to immediately throw that idea away and explore someone else’s. Compare these two scenes: “Welcome to my ice cream shop.”

“Hello, yes, I’d like one scoop of vanilla in a cone please.”

Versus: “Welcome to my ice cream shop.”

“Arr, ‘tis good to be the captain of this pirate ship.”

One of those scenes is going to be fundamentally easier to perform, and to watch. This skill of active listening, responding, and building on what the other person is saying, is the principle behind joyful collaboration. It’s also how five people help build a rocket from one person waving their arms. Whether it is a transaction in a supermarket, a conversation with friends or participating in a board room meeting, it’s possible to make

people feel valued when listening and throwing away your own idea while adding to theirs. As in improv, as in life.

Finally, improv teaches empathy and emotional intelligence. Compelling scenes always have one key ingredient: emotion. I’ve seen heartbreaking improv shows that have made entire audiences weep. The playfulness and honesty that comes from improvising breeds emotional awareness and connection. I’ve made closer friendships from one emotionally-charged improv show than I have from years of sharing a flat with people.

And again, this is true for life: the best improvisers I know are all kind, caring and compassionate people. Emotional intelligence is undoubtedly learned onstage. Improv is now often used as an applied training tool for teachers, conflict managers, and even therapists. Because leading with emo-

COMEDY

tional honesty – onstage and offstage – creates empathy and trust.

So does doing improv inherently make you a better person? No. That would be silly. But its core principles of embracing failure, listening and responding, and emotional awareness, are all invaluable life skills. They provide a better outcome to standing alone and furiously waving your arms.

Follow @WillNaameh on Twitter Men with Coconuts, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 14 Oct, 8pm, £6/£8 Spontaneous Potter, Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, 5 Oct, 8.30pm, £5 Spontaneous Sherlock, Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, 12 & 26 Oct, 8.30pm, £5 TBC Improv, Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, Sundays, 7.30pm, £5

Review

53

Glasgow Music Sun 01 Oct

Tue 03 Oct

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:30, £23

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £20

JUDIE TZUKE

The English singer/songwriter showcases new songs alongside classics spanning a three-decade career.

MICK HARGAN (PANIC ANCHOR + KATEE KROSS)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

Glasgow singer-songwriter for whom no two shows are ever the same, depending on whether he plays a solo show with his loop pedal, a full band, or even as a string quartet.

SUNDARA KARMA

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £15

Sundara means ‘beautiful’ in Sanskrit, and this quartet live up to their blissful name with some epic and anthemic indie rock, gaining comparisons from Arcade Fire to Bruce Springsteen.

INHEAVEN

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £8

Favourites of The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas hailing from South East London, serving up rich and morose indie rock.

SWMRS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £9

Punk rock from Cali.

COURTNEY MARIE ANDREWS

ST LUKE’S, FROM 19:30, £12.50

Singer-songwriter hailing from Phoenix, Arizona, now touring latest album Honest Life.

ALL OUR EXES LIVE IN TEXAS

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 20:00, £10

All-female folk quartet comprising textured harmonies, accordion, guitar, uke and mandolin.

MEZCLA (STRATA)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5

Jazz / fusion collective blazing an improv trail.

THE HARA

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 14:00, £10

The Hara head out on their Only Young tour.

RAIN

SEC, FROM 19:00, £44 - £57

A concert celebrating 50 Years of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Mon 02 Oct COLD SPECKS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

Young Toronto singer-songwriter (aka Al Spx), spreading the doom soul vibe as only she knows how.

THE HAVANAS (EMU WAR + ALASTAIR TIBBS)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5

Indie, blues and rock’n’roll vibes.

LORDE

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £32.50

Kiwi megastar heading out on her Melodrama world tour.

ALLMAN BROWN

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £7

Allman Brown is a London-based singer-songwriter influenced by the likes of Bon Iver, James Vincent McMorrow and Sufjan Stevens.

CHARLIE SLOTH:THE PLUG TOUR (FEKKY + K KOKE) O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £15

DJ, producer and and grime boffin Charlie Sloth hits the O2 with his pals.

STATE OF THE UNION

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:30, £13

DJ SHADOW

Five years on from the goodtime crunk and tombola-plucked guests of 2007’s die-hard riling The Outsider, Josh Davis plays a set cherry-picked from new jukebox album, The Less You Know, The Better.

THE XCERTS

SAINT LUKE’S, FROM 19:00, £10

Hard-riffing Scottish trio, whose impressive sound has been honed to perfection (i.e. they sound bloody massive live).

TIM HECKER

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12

Few in the field of explorative ambient music have remained as questing and unclassifiable as Canadian composer Tim Hecker.

Across his 15-year career he has moved through shades of electronic noise, experiential sound design, and modern composition.

ALL THEM WITCHES

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

Thundering psychedelica from Nashville with an underbelly of bluesy soul and Southern rock.

NEIL DIAMOND

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £65 - £125

The American singer/songwriter brings the schmaltz.

DIZZEE RASCAL

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £25

Big lad Dizzee surfs the grime and garage wave.

SUSANNE SUNDFØR

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:00, £13.50

KIP MOORE O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £17.50

Nashville singer-songwriter (specialising in country music as you’d expect), who released his second album last year.

ISAAC GRACIE

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

Since touring with Michael Kiwanuka, Isaac Gracie’s broken hearts with his soulful, lo-fi, scratchy love songs. Get yours broken too!

THE ELUSIVE TREE ENSEMBLE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5 - £7

WORDS THAT BURN (CENTRILIA + TITAN BREED)

Irish alternative metallers hitting Scotland for the very first time in support of their album Regret is for the Dead.

An intimate and up close evening with the irrepressible Californian singer songwriter Steve Poltz and Scottish indie hero Beerjacket. Go join the mayhem.

BROADCAST, FROM 19:30, £5

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £8

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

SOFT RIOT (NAO KATAFUCHI + VIXXIONARY + CURRENT AFFAIRS)

The ‘singing synthwave octopus’ that is Soft Riot headlines a show at Broadcast.

GAY PANIC DEFENCE (SICK OF TALK + IDEAL) BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Radical queercore punks from Kirkcaldy bring their riotous cavalcade to Bloc+.

MICHAEL HEAD & THE RED PLASTIC BAND

Six-piece ensemble traversing a ‘variety of moods, energy levels, grooves and arrangement ideas’.

The soulful songwriter brings his musical offerings to Oran Mor.

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £6

Fri 06 Oct

BRUTUS (GUILLOTINE)

Belgian trio straddling post-rock, black metal and explosive punk.

OAKMAN (BAD LUCK + KEVIN WALLS)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Pop punk band hailing from Lyon.

MAGIC ISLAND + KELORA

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £7

Magic Islants’s first EP, Intoxicated Sunset, was an experimental daze between realms of dream and reality. The second EP followed, bringing a bittersweet, more existential realisation, delivering an eclectic assortment of songs.

Thu 05 Oct THE DRUMS

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, TBC

The former surfing enthusiasts return with their third album Encyclopedia as they try to make good on their early hype.

THY ART IS MURDER

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £18

NEVILLE STAPLE

AUDIO, FROM 19:00, £14 - £18

Neville's 2-Tone legacy is huge.

2-Tone fused traditional ska music with punk rock attitude, energy and musical elements. The movement helped to transcend and defuse racial tensions in Thatcherera Britain.

THE STRYPES

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £13

Young Irish R’n’B four-piece with a level of skill well beyond their years.

TORI AMOS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £25 - £60

The American singer-songwriter and her mesmerising arpeggios fill the O2, crafting new material around unpredictable selections from her rich back catalogue.

EMA

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £10

Susanne Sundfør released her eponymous debut album in 2007, and in the ten years since, has cemented her place as one of Norway’s premier singers, songwriters and producers.

Extreme metal four piece from Australia, dogged in their mission to remain controversial.

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £7

Fledgling Welsh rock foursome formed in 2014.

The South Wales-formed DIY metal group continue their ascension from the underground.

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 18:30, £10

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £8.50

TREVOR SENSOR

Illinois-born 22-year-old singersongwriter with timeless tunes and fresh melodies.

THE BUTCHER’S RODEO (OLD GUARD)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Five-piece French hardcore. Bring a nappy.

Wed 04 Oct DRAGONFORCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £17

London-based metal quintet led by Marc Hudson out and touring on the back of their latest LP. ANDY MCKEE

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £19.50

Acoustic guitar soloist with a dedicated online community of followers.

SHELLAC

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £20

More post-punk brutality from the perennial Primavera house band, featuring legendary producer Steve Albini.

DENAI MOORE

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £7.50

London-hailing singer/songwriter known for her captivating blend of folk and soul.

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 18:30, £14

PRETTY VICIOUS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £8

THE FRIDAYS (EMMA MARTIN)

Aka Erika Michelle Anderson, EMA is a South Dakotan maker of postindustrial, folk/rock tunes.

BRUTALITY WILL PREVAIL

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 18:30, £10

SACRED PAWS

The Fridays Band play at the Glad Cafe to raise money for musicALL, a charity that provides musical opportunities to children and young people with additional support needs.

Glasgow/London-straddling duo with a capriciously rough-edged take on highlife music, tigerstriped with spidery guitar hooks and overlapping vocal shouts.

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:00, £6

Teesside folk trio specialising in a cappella harmonies.

PEANESS

Chester indie-pop trio, Skinny favourites and all-round good eggs.

DERMOT KENNEDY

THE YOUNG’UNS

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £16.50

BIG BOY BLOATER AND THE LIMITS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

An evening of live music from singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy.

Big Boy Bloater is a British R’n’B and blues guitarist and front man who has toured the world.

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £8

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £7

JOE FOX

A$AP Rocky collaborator and soulful acoustic singer who was discovered by Rocky himself when he was homeless.

THE COAL PORTERS

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:30, £14

The Coal Porters – a band once described as the UK’s most inventive acoustic act – head to CCA.

AIR TRAFFIC

Bournemouth quartet celebrating a decade of album Fractured Life.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

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

THIS FEELING LIVE

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £10

Four emerging indie rock bands (The Shimmer Band, The Blinders, Bang Bang Romeo and Blackwaters) touring for the first time under the moniker of alive.

JARROD DICKENSON

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:30, £12.50

Combining the mercurial talents of English songwriting legend Boo Hewerdine and acclaimed American Blues guitarist and songwriter Brooks Williams, State of the Union create a magical, stripped back and enthralling musical atmosphere.

Storytelling is something of a Texas tradition. Tall hats and tall tales are woven into the fabric of the state, and singer-songwriter Jarrod Dickenson can spin a yarn with the best of them.

TOMMY SMITH QUARTET: EMBODYING THE LIGHT

Punk rock heavy on the melody.

WEBSTER’S THEATRE, FROM 19:30, £18

Internationally acclaimed saxophonist Tommy Smith leads his new group in a tribute to jazz icon John Coltrane.

54

Listings

STEVE POLTZ (BEERJACKET) THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £10

DUNCAN REID & THE BIG HEADS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £8

JAMES EDWYN & THE BORROWED BAND

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8

The Glasgow sextet play H&P as part of Glasgow Americana Fest.

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

STATIC SUNS (THE REBELLIONS + PSYCHE BABE + SCOTT ROBINSON)

The Ayrshire indie-rock four man hits Classic Grand.

SGÃIRAOKE

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 21:00, TBC

The phenomenal Sgà ire Wood lays out more opportunities for the and the romantic to sing their hearts out.

EASTERN PROMISE (PICTISH TRAIL) (MAKE A HOO + VISIBLE CLOAKS + MORE) PLATFORM, FROM 17:00, £7.50 - £15

Eastern Promise returns for its seventh outing, this year offering performance and visual art alongside live music.

MAP 71 ((DR. VZX MOIST + BAMYA + KAPIL SESHASAYEE))

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS , FROM 20:00, £6

Drum-triggered synths and punk primitive power poetry from Brighton’s Map 71.

Sat 07 Oct VESSELS

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £11.50

Impressive Leeds quintet who’ve traded in their siren guitars for pulsing techno.

LADY ANTEBELLUM

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £28.15 - £38.15

Nashville trio making their own brand of countrified pop, playing as part of their Own The Night world tour.

SANDI THOM

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £18

The Scottish singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and wannabe punk rocker plays an Oran Mor set.

JONNIE COMMON

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

Glasgow-based artist signed to Manchester's Red Deer Club label.

Jonnie's 2011 debut LP Master of None was championed by radio darlings Marc Riley, Lauren Laverne and Vic Galloway.

TRIGGERFINGER

KING WITCH (ZLATANERA + FIRST TEMPLE OF THE ATOM) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £6 - £8

Meaty 70s classic rock and metal collide in this Edinburgh band.

MARTHA FIELDS

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 15:30, £10

Martha Fields, Ags Connolly and Martha L. Healy bring an intriguing range of sounds embracing all that's good about Americana.

OH141 (PAN DAIJING) (SUE ZUKI + GARETH ROBERTS)

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 23:00, £7

Dark noise and cinematic atmospherics from Pan Daijing as she makes a Glasgow debut with supports.

EASTERN PROMISE (ACHILLES) (THE SEXUAL OBJECTS + RM HUBBERT + LEYLA JOSEPHINE’S HOPELESS + MORE) PLATFORM, FROM 17:00, £7.50 - £15

Eastern Promise returns for its seventh outing, this year offering performance and visual art alongside live music.

METROPOLIS LIVE (DMYTRO MORYKIT)

ROYAL CONSERVATOIRE OF SCOTLAND, 19:30–22:00, £12 - £15

Dmytro Morykit gives an incredible piano concert to complement Fritz Lang's iconic film, which is constantly voted amongst the top ten films of all time.

Sun 08 Oct ARCANE ROOTS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £13

Perfect combination of pop and rock that creates an awesome sound; hear it live.

GRIZZLY BEAR

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £22.50

The Brooklyn-based quartet break out the pulsing, shimmering oceans of sound, touring on the back of their latest LP, Shields.

NECK DEEP

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £19.50

Wrexham pop punks hitting the road for their biggest UK headline tour to date.

LUKE DANIELS

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £10

Singer and multi-instrumentalist coming from a background of folk and traditional music.

WILLIE AND THE BANDITS

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £14

Fiery Belgian rockers led by guitarist and vocalist Ruben Block.

Genre-spanning British ensemble mixing genres of blues, rock, Latin and folk.

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £18.50

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £8

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £15

SLEAFORD MODS

Punk electronics and spoken word hip-hop fusion from the Nottingham-hailing duo, touring in the wake of last year’s album, Key Markets – released on the Harbinger Sound label.

PAPA ROACH

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, FREE

The Californian rockers bring the nu-metal nostalgia, as bloody per – playing tracks offa their new LP, F.E.A.R. MARK OLSON (AGS CONNOLLY)

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 20:00, £14

One of the founding members of country crooners The Jayhawks, as well as a solo songwriter in his own right.

NORTH ATLAS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £5

Homegrown alternative rock fourman outfit.

BLACK DRAG

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7

Atmospheric rock four-piece from Glasgow’s East End. TOM GRENNAN

SAINT LUKE’S, FROM 19:00, £9

Bedford singer and Chase & Status collaborator.

NOT3S

Afro bashment from a rising London star.

SERPENT KINGS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

Doncaster-based hard rockers.

KRAUTWERK

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £12.50

Two pioneers of German electronic music Harald Grosskopf and Eberhard Kranemann present music from their new album, Krautwerk.

JAMES BREADNER + MICHAEL COOKE

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £8

Musical comedian James Breadner plays a headliner at Classic Grand.

Mon 09 Oct JOSH PYKE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £10

Young Australian singer-songwriter of the indie-pop variety.

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £22

John Darnielle, the face behind the Goats, brings his unique nasal quality and lyrical dexterity moving from acoustic-rock to barbershop folk.

ULRIKA SPACEK

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

JOLIE HOLLAND & SAMANTHA PARTON

The Berlin-formed experimental rock lot hit The Hug and Pint.

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:00, £16

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12

Fifteen years ago, Jolie Holland and Samantha Parton – of wildly popular group The Be Good Tanyas – first joined forces. Now they come together once again, with a worldwide tour and new studio album.

IAN MOSS (OPPERMAN BROWN)

The Cold Chisel guitar maestro performs his acclaimed solo acoustic show at Stereo.

SLOWDIVE

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £22

English rock unit formed in Reading in1989, now heading out with their a new album. The self-titled record – the first in 22 years earned them their very first UK Top 20 spot.

THE PICTUREBOOKS KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

The alt-rock / blues boys head out on their Home is a Heartache tour.

JEFFREY LEWIS & LOS BOLTS

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 20:00, £10

New Yorker Jeffrey Lewis is a comic book artist and indie-rock musician. His newest band incarnation features Mem Pahl (of Cat Tatt) on bass and Brent Cole (of The Moldy Peaches) on drums.

STRATA (KEVIN CAHILL)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Enter a world-blending minimalism, groove, and unhinged free improvisation.

MARTY STUART AND HIS FAMOUS SUPERLATIVES

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £28.50

Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and musician who’s living, breathing country-music history.

Tue 10 Oct GARY NUMAN

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £29.50

The electro-pop pioneer presents a selection of tracks new and old.

SUPERFOOD

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £10

Energetic Birmingham troupe riding along on youthful vocals and surging guitars.

SLEEPMAKESWAVES

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £11

The Australian post-rockers return to the UK now over a decade since forming. Where does the time go?

INGLORIOUS

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £12.50

The especially flaxen five-piece that is Inglorious hit Classic Grand with a dose of rock.

THE KENTUCKY HEADHUNTERS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £18.50

Grammy Award-winning veterans of Southern Rock with a musical legacy of nearly 50 years.

MANU LOUIS

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Electro-eccentric pop for fans of Beck.

FRENCH FOR RABBITS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £7

French for Rabbits hail from Waikuku Beach, a small settlement in New Zealand's South Island.

They play music that drifts on the edge of fragility, but expands out into washing layers of ethereal, nostalgic dream-pop.

SIVU + FENNE LILY + PAUL THOMAS SAUNDERS + SIV JAKOBSEN

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:00, £10

Folk act Fenne Lily, criticallyacclaimed pop-rocker Paul Thomas Saunders, distinctive singer Sivu and the atmospheric Siv Jakobson take to the CCA stage.

SLØTFACE

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, TBC

Norwegian band aiming to make moshing safe for women and create the most joyous punk ditties you've heard since the 90s.

ST. MARTIINS (BUBBATREES + LEYLA JOSEPHINE)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £5

Dundee-based indie duo who’ve drawn comparisons to Model Aeroplanes.

Wed 11 Oct FATHERSON

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £16

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

CATFISH KEITH

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £12.50

Cutting-edge blues singer, songwriter and slide guitarist Catfish Keith makes a welcome return to Edinburgh on his global tour.

NADINE SHAH

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £14

Whitburn singer, songwriter and musician who dropped an album just this summer.

JP COOPER

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £16

The Mancunian singer-songwriter continues his steady ascent.

MELVINS

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £24.50

The hugely influential sludge band formed in 1983 return to the UK, counting everyone from Nirvana to Soundgarden and Tool among their disciples.

DUA LIPA

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £18

Catchy pop from the 22-year old star, heading out on The Self-Titled Tour.

IN HEARTS WAKE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £10

ustralian metalcore band from Byron Bay who formed in 2006.

MOONCHILD

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £11

The LA trio bring a jazzy soul sound to the UK as they tour in support of their latest offering, Voyager.

FAKEAR

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £10

Young French producer and genreblender who takes his inspo from world music.

GOLDMOLD: BEARFOOT BEWARE

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Scrappy math-rock from Leeds.

BETH ROWLEY

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £9

English singer-songwriter championed by Jools Holland himself, touring after the release of GOTA FRIA in September 2017.

Thu 12 Oct FATHERSON

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £16

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

LAPALUX

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

More deconstructed pop soundscapes from the electronic music-maker (aka Stuart Howard), rich with the trademark Lapalux finish of infectious, lopsided swing and achingly deep texture.

MACKA B (ESPERANZA)

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £12.50

Influential reggae artist, with a career spanning two decades across the UK and Jamaica.

NICK MULVEY

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £17.50

The founding member of Portico Quartet does his solo singer/songwriter thing.

FICKLE FRIENDS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £9

80s synth-infused indie pop from Brighton, with frontwoman Natassja Shiner.

THE SKINNY

Sun 15 Oct THE CORONAS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12.50

Irish indie-rockers led by Danny O’Reilly, who started penning tunes at the tender age of 13.

THE BREEDERS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £20

Kim Deal’s revered alternative rockers are back together again for the first time in 20 years, touring their classic album, Last Splash.

HIPPO CAMPUS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £10

Minnesota indie rock four-piece, out on an international tour in support of debut album, Landmark.

BLACK SNAKE ROOTS

ORAN MOR, FROM 17:00, FREE

Ronnie and Olivia play tunes from their Classic Acoustic Songbook in the cosy bar.

CERA IMPALA THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, TBC

Cera Impala is a wild banjowielding mama from the USA who has toured internationally.

A magnetic songsmith, she has a voice both timeless and unique and her compositions and lyrics spin intimate yarns.

THE DEARS

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £15

Indie rockers from Montreal.

PROM QUEEN (SCUNNER + FERRI & THE FEVERS)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

Dark-surf and girl-group noir from Seattle’s Prom Queen.

CEILING DEMONS + ELI HERMIT

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Alternative hip-hop from northern England, taking influence from acts like The Streets and Tricky.

HOLLIE MCNISH: PLUM

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, TBC

Poet, spoken word artist, mother, feminist, World Slam finalist and published author (yes she’s basically superwoman) Hollie McNish tours new work Plum.

SCOTTISH ALTERNATIVE MUSIC AWARDS 2017

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 18:30–22:00, £7 - £10

Annual music awards bash, this year hosted by Jim Gellatly.

Fri 13 Oct STEPHEN KELLOGG

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £12

Singer-songwriter hailing from Massachusetts, playing an uplifting mix of Americana meets country rock.

JACE EVERETT (SHANNON MCNALLY)

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £13.50

Nashville singer/songwriter best known (by us, at least) for True Blood theme song, Bad Things.

HALF MAN HALF BISCUIT

O2 ABC, FROM 18:30, £20

Sardonic post punk veterans known for their relentless touring schedule and surrealist humour.

NICK HELM

ORAN MOR, FROM 20:00, £12

Nick Helm comes to Glasgow to deliver truths about life, love and being a living legend in a bod that don’t quit.

DREAM WIFE

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

London-based trio peddling poolside pop with a bite.

HMLTD (ROXY AGOGO)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £8

Stands for Happy Meal Ltd. (not to be confused with Happy Meals, that’s a whole ‘nother thing).

Expect a massive 80s glamrock live show experience.

LEGENDS LIVE 2017

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £45

The four iconic artistes join forces for a show at the Hydro.

LOW ISLAND

STEREO, FROM 23:00, £6

Woozy vocals and twitchy rhythms FFO Glass Animals, Alt-J and Lo-Fang.

FRANK IERO & THE PATIENCE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 18:30, £17

American rock band from Belleville, New Joiysey.

October 2017

FREAKENDER: THEE MVPS (SHREDD + FAT BLACK CATS) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £8

These most valuable players hit Freakender at Sleazy’s with their garage punk flavours.

EUTONY (KAS:ST) (VEE + MILLü + DENZEL) SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, TBC

Parisian techno partnership Manuel Sene and Karol Herse head up a party at SWG3’s Poetry Club.

THE GLAD CAFE 5TH BIRTHDAY (BOSSY LOVE + BABE (SOLO) + HAPPY SPENDY)

EMELI SANDÉ

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £39.50 - £55

The Scottish singer-songwriter plays a predictably sold-out set, riding high on her new album Long Live The Angels.

THE BY GODS (RAVENS)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £5

BLECCH Records signed rockers.

FLAT WORMS

BROADCAST, FROM 23:00, TBC

Three-piece punk band from LA.

Mon 16 Oct W.A.S.P.

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £22.50

A birthday bash in honour of The Gladdie's half-decade

W.A.S.P performs The Crimson Idol in full to celebrate the record’s 25th anniversary.

PLATFORM, FROM 17:00, FREE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £6

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £10 - £12

SWITCH 2017

SWITCH is an experimental and accessible gig, featuring disabled and non-disabled artists. The line up this year includes music from The Boys, The Sensatronics and headliner Akron/Family Miles Cooper Seaton.

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: FUSION REUNITE (THE GLASGOW GOSPEL CHOIR + AYAWARA WEST AFRICAN PERCUSSION + THE GROOVE BAND + TOM AND THE BRASSHOLES + SISTERS OF SOUL + SAMBA SENE + DJ FREDDIE MUCHIE) THE RUM SHACK, 19:00–01:00, £10

A fusion of African and Caribbean inspired music from a collaboration between Glasgow and Edinburgh African, soul and funk artists.

INSPIRE (KINIKO + FRAGILE X + MOVING WHEEL + AYAWARA + MAD PEYOTE)

KINNING PARK COMPLEX, FROM 17:00, TBC

An inspiring night of entertainment with guest speakers, film, poetry, art and music throughout.

Sat 14 Oct MICKEY 9S

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £8

Glaswegian foursome offering up a manic fusion of bass, beats, onstage bodypopping and ski masks (yes, really).

REVEREND AND THE MAKERS

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £15

Jon McClure and his band hit the road to showcase tracks from their new album.

FUTURE GLUE (THE PALE KIDS + FAT BLACK CATS)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6

Good old fashioned rock’n’roll offerings delivering a thundering wall of motor city noise as per, launching their new single on the night.

HOWIE PAYNE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

Singer-songwriter formerly of The Stands, who’s previously worked with the likes of Paul Weller, Noel Gallagher and Bill Ryder-Jones.

CLAY

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £7.50

Leeds export and serious up-andcomers Clay create a fusion of Factory Records-style indie with a falsetto groove.

DOWNTOWN BOYS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £8

This Rhode Island misogynist-baiting brass-backed punk five-piece have been labelled one of America’s most important acts in the Trump era. Their new record on Sub Pop was produced by Ian Mackaye of Fugazi.

FAKE LAUGH

London rock project influenced by The Beatles.

Tue 17 Oct

THOMAS TRUAX THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

Thomas Truax (pronounced trooaks) is an American singer/musician, inventor and multi-media artist.

DIET CIG (THE SPOOK SCHOOL)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £7.50

Diet Cig are here to have fun.

They're here to tear you away from the soul-sucking sanctity of your dumpster-fire life and replace it with pop-blessed punk jams about navigating adulthood when all you want is to have ice cream on your birthday.

ZARA LARSSON

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Swedish singer-songwriter who sky-rocketted to fame following her Sweden’s Got Talent victory of 2008.

(SANDY) ALEX G

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, FROM 19:00, £10

(Sandy) Alex G is a multi-instrumentalist from Philadelphia who plays CCA following the release of his album Rocket in May. QUEER THEORY: QUEER CABARET!

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

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

THE FLATLINERS

STEREO, FROM 18:30, £10

The Toronto rock four-man play a Stereo show.

BOPPIN’ AT THE BOX (THE BIKINI BOTTOMS)

BOX, FROM 21:00, FREE

The Glasgow rockabilly band bring two hours of live tunes to Box.

Thu 19 Oct THE HORRORS

QUEEN MARGARET UNION, FROM 19:00, £17.50

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £19.50

The resurgent krautrock-inspired Londoners return.

RATIONALE

Soul, jazz and funk outfit from The Midlands led by Neil Sheasby and Neil Jones.

SEETHER

South African alternative metal outfit formed in 1999, who went under the name Saron Gas until ditching it in 2002.

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £11

London-based singer and producer, celebrated for his emotive Tracey Chapman-esque vocals.

JAMES TW

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:00, £12

19 year-old singer-songwriter FFO John Mayer, Jamie Cullum and Bill Withers.

RIVIERA

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

French rock at the crossroads between Queens of the Stone Age, Foals and Arctic Monkeys.

FLING

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £6

Bradford's Fling provide the previously unsearched-for missing link between T-Rex and the Fat White Family, forging together glam rock, punk and psych with a solid sense of Northern irony and an ever-present aura of late night haziness.

Wed 18 Oct GABRIELLE APLIN

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £16.50

Experimental musician working her magic over the folk-pop template, all hints of choirs and twinkly noises.

BEVERLEY KNIGHT

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £27.50

Contemporary soul singer returning with a brand new album set for a spring release this year.

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £24

The acclaimed electronic music outfit perform their hit album, The Race For Space, in its entirety for the first time.

DAN OWEN

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £9

After Dan Owen’s dreams of becoming a guitar maker were tragically interrupted due to an accident in his workshop he became a singer-songwriter and prolific performer.

HELLO CREEPY SPIDER (FIGHTING CARAVANS)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

STONE FOUNDATION

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £15

STONE FOUNDATION

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £15

Soul, jazz and funk outfit from The Midlands led by Neil Sheasby and Neil Jones.

LITTLE MIX

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:30, £25 - £45

X-Factor 2011 winners, known for having the lowest-selling winner’s single since 2004. That said, Wings is an absolute banger. If you manage to resolve your conflicted opinions, here’s (yet) another chance to see them in Glasgow’s SSE Hydro.

GAZ BROOKFIELD

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £10

The solo acoustic Bristol singer/ songwriter does his gentle folk thing.

MARMOZETS

SAINT LUKE’S, FROM 19:00, £12

Cheeky young alternative math rock lot Marmozets take to the road alongside self described ‘epic rock’ foursome Lonely the Brave.

THE UNDERCOVER HIPPY

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £8

Billy Salisbury aka The Undercover Hippy brings more politics-infused, rootsy reggae folk-pop to Classic Grand.

PP ARNOLD

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £22.50

The soul legend (who originally came to the UK as an Ikette with the Ike and Tina Revue) swings back in time all the way to the sixties.

FIREBALL

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 18:00, £10

Inaugural tour showcasing some of the best live bands the international punk scene has to offer, celebrating punk rock, ska, reggae and roots music.

STONETHROWER (TERRAFRAID)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Dundee emo / punk with a peppering of screamo.

BREWBAND (MARC BREW COMPANY) PLATFORM, FROM 19:00, £4 - £8.50

Join Marc Brew Company for BREWBAND Scotlands new superband which blurs boundaries and challenges peoples perceptions of identity.

GRACE AND LEGEND (FOXES FOLLOW + FINDING ARGYLE) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £4 - £6

Edinburgh band serving hard rock, alt and metal noises.

CHRIS SIMMONS

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £8.50

An artist who commands comparisons to an ostensibly motley crew of musicians such as Brett Anderson, Neil Finn and Paul McCartney is bound to stop listeners in their tracks.

DECLAN HEGARTY

ORAN MOR, FROM 21:00, FREE

Fully trained folk harp player who also plays the guitar and sings, bringing his mult-instrumental talents to a regular Oran Mor crowd.

THE MUSICAL BOX: THE BLACK SHOW (TRESPASS, NURSERY CRYME, FOXTROT, SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND)

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, TBC

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Genesis at Usher Hall.

Fri 20 Oct TRAIN

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £29.50 - £35

The San Franciscoan pop-rockers do their Grammy Award-winning thing, showcasing new material alongside old faves.

NELL BRYDEN

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:30, £18

Singer-songwriter from Brooklyn, New York.

LIAM FRAY

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £20

The Courteerners frontman does his solo acoustic thing, staying true to his indie-rock roots.

THE ESKIES (THE STUMBLERS)

THE RUM SHACK, 19:00–22:30, £10

The Eskies have brought their unique brand of folk noir / gypsy jazz / sea shanty to ballrooms and booze houses far and wide. Music that meanders from sea soaked waltz to Italian tarantella, Brassy funeral march-esque lament to a klezmar knees up.

TOM ZANETTI

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £11

Leeds vocalist who started out with breakthrough clubnight Insomnia.

JASMINE MINKS (THE JAZZ BUTCHER)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £11

The British indie pop band hit Broadcast

JOCKROCK 20TH ANNIVERSARY SPECTACULAR (BALLBOY) (MITCHELL MUSEUM + STOOR + DAVID MACGREGOR) STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

The longest-running Scottish indie music website celebrates two decades online with live sets from some of its favourite acts from over the years.

ANNIE BOOTH (LAURENCE MADE ME CRY + JARED CELOSSE)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7

Young singer-songwriter based in Edinburgh. Performing her indierock tinged folk-pop throughout Scotland, she creates melancholic songs with infectious melodies.

ROYAL THIEVES: MOODY CHANTS + HIGH SNORE + FORREST CAN’T RUN

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £8

Alternative rock / punk unit, playing a set at Classic Grand.

PHOEBE BRIDGERS

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £10

The LA musician tours following the release of new record Killer.

Sat 21 Oct

HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF

ST LUKE’S, FROM 12:00, £13.50

Singer, songwriter and banjo player Alynda Lee Segarra brings her country folk outfit Hurray for the Riff Raff our way.

THE FRANK AND WALTERS

KONVICT KARTEL (AKON)

BUTTERFLY / OUT OF THE BAD

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £25

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £13

Irish alternative rock quartet, who’ve named themselves after two eccentric Cork characters.

BROKEN WITT REBELS

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12

Bluesy rock’n’rollers from Birmingham.

The guy who’s so sick of love songs / tears heads out on the Konvict Kartel tour, with a line-up including Tre Carter, OG Boo Dirty and Tone Tone.

A play which focuses on the effect the closure of the Caterpillar factory in Uddingston on those who worked in the factory and lived in the local community.

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £8.50

Thu 26 Oct

NOGA EREZ

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, TBC

Noga Erez throws out an expansive sound that has drawn comparisons to Björk, M.I.A. and FKA twigs.

DODIE

Tue 24 Oct

TAKEN

Irish pop trio who spent the summer opening for The Vamps.

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £14

Singer-songwriter of the YouTube stable, with a channel called ‘doddleoddle’ and a side channel called ‘doddlevloggle’. Mhm. CROSSMYLAFF COMEDY

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 20:00, £10

An evening of stand-up comedy featuring at The Glad Cafe.

JEHST+ YNR FAMILY

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £12

English rapper and YNR co-founder, also known as William G. Shields.

JACK LEE (LUSH PURR + THE BELLYBUTTONS)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £5

The Beef Jerk fella hits Sleazy’s.

BARBE ROUSSE (THE TROPCIANAS + QUICHE + DRUGSTORE GLAMOUR DJS) 13TH NOTE, 20:00–23:30, £5 - £6

A wee celebration to release the release of Barbe Rousse’s debut album Misc. Muses.

Sun 22 Oct

MANCHESTER ORCHESTRA

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £16.50

The Atlanta-based lot (aye, get over it, they’re not from Manchester) play a set of heavy rock.

CHANTEL MCGREGOR

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £14

Yorkshire singer/songwriter working her virtuoso guitar magic on the blues genre.

PENETRATION (REACTION)

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £15

Punk rock lot hailing from Country Durham, reformed back in 2001 with Pauline Murray still leading proceedings.

ROWAN ROSS

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 20:00, £10

The talented singer/songwriter and guitarist plays a live band set.

STARSAILOR

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £19.50

Greatest hits set from the turn of the Millennium indie tear duct botherers.

AJ TRACEY

SWG3 GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00, £12 - £15

J-Bone brings AJ Tracey to Glasgow on his much-anticipated Secure the Bag! tour.

LIGHTYEAR

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £12

A 20th anniversary tour from the British ska punk band.

WHITE WINE

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7

Experimental project started

by Jow Haege, influenced by the likes of Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys.

HILARY ROSIN COFFEE CONCERT

ROYAL CONSERVATOIRE OF SCOTLAND, FROM 11:30, £7.50 - £10

RCS’s highly regarded Hilary Rosin Coffee Concert series, featuring Russian chamber masterpieces, followed with coffees by Dear Green.

THE WATERBOYS

SEC, FROM 18:30, TBC

Longstanding Mike Stott-led ensemble, basing their sound on a mix of Celtic folk and rock.

MC LARS (SPOSE)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £7

MC Lars is the answer to the widespread (?) problem of having too few Edgar Allen Poe references in hip-hop making indie hip-hop with literary inspired lyrics.

SLOWCOACHES

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £7

A big bang of noisy-poppy-punk and grungey, riff laden slackerrock, with hooks and tunes aplenty.

WEEZER

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £39.50

Cult all-American alt-rock group, who string out their 90s/early 00s heyday with a new album out this year.

MØ

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £15

Denmark talent MØ embarks on her biggest headline tour to date. FFO Grimes and Twin Shadow.

JAKE CLEMONS

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £12

The American singer-songwriter, (and saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band) hits the O2.

MYCIAA (ANGELIC BOYS WHO WALK ON WATER)

BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB

BARROWLANDS, FROM 19:00, £25

The moody San Francisco rockers return to the UK for the first time in two years, affected cool and bluesy dirge still very much in place.

MAMMAL HANDS

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £10 - £13

Manchester outfit signed to Matthew Halsall’s Gondwana Records, fusing jazz, folk and electronica.

DECLAN MCKENNA

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £13.50

The fresh-faced winner of Glasto’s 2015 Emerging Talent Competition.

JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £22

The former Drive-By Truckers chap continues to tour solo after leaving the group in 2007.

LOUISE CONNELL AND A WHOLE BAND

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £6

Louise Connell refers to herself as ‘a musical act that looks mostly like Reverieme and sounds mostly like pop’.

FOGGY CITY ORPHAN

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

Hilariously named after the Chinese translation of Oliver Twist, FCO are band made up of two brothers, their cousin and an entirely unrelated drummer. Their catchy, lightweight indie rock has been tipped by Steve Lamacq and Tom Robinson.

WILDWOOD KIN

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

Award-winning alternative / indie / folk trio from Exeter.

MY SAD CAPTAINS

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 18:00, £50 - £85

French electro-punk.

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

Three years after their last album, Best of Times, London’s My Sad Captains light the way to fresh shores with their radiant fourth album.

Wed 25 Oct REV REV REV (THUS)

BLOC+, FROM 21:00, FREE

One for all the starry-headed dreamgazers and pedal-perv noiseniks alike.

CRAZY TOWN

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, TBC

American rap rockers known for 2000 single Butterfly.

BE CHARLOTTE

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £9

Be Charlotte’s songwriting prowess is beyond her years and has taken her on several Transatlantic journeys from her hometown of Dundee, Scotland. Her singing voice is delightful, but she’s also rapper, beatboxer and general badass.

JESSE DAYTON

STEREO, FROM 19:30, £13.50

The Texas-based chap brings some country and Americana to Glasgae.

METALLICA

Metallica set off on a mission to shake up Europe on their ‘WorldWired Tour’ in support of their new album Hardwired… To Self-Destruct.

WESLEY GONZALEZ (PASSION PUSHER)

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £7

Moshi Moshi indie act at the H&P. EMILY MAE WINTERS

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, £10 - £12

Emily Mae Winters' haunting folk songs are quickly permeating the folk and song writing scene. See ‘em live tonight.

SONICA: AQUASONIC

TRAMWAY, FROM 19:30, £9 - £18

An otherworldly underwater spectacular as part of Sonica Festival.

SONICA: INFINITE LIVES

TRAMWAY, FROM 21:45, £6 - £12

A live lab experiment set to electronic music in which bacteria react to their sonic environment.

Fri 27 Oct WEDNESDAY 13

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £15

Headliner show from US horror band Wednesday 13.

Mon 23 Oct ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE

BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £10

Kawabata Makoto and his band of sonic outlaws, mixing traditional melody with hyper-aggressive playing techniques and plenty of improvisation.

CARLA DAL FORNO (ELA ORLEANS + NEIN RODERE)

STEREO, FROM 20:00, £8

Synthy echoes, rattling rhythms and minimalist vocals from Carla dal Forno.

THE RAVEN AGE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £9

English heavy metal makers who came together in 2009.

Album launch from a band that play hard and fast, short and loud rock’n’roll.

Listings

55

ALBURN

SONICA: AQUASONIC

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £8

TRAMWAY, FROM 19:30, £9 - £18

Glasgow-based noisemakers creating an expansive yet forceful emo-post-rock fusion.

An otherworldly underwater spectacular as part of Sonica Festival.

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £14

A live lab experiment set to electronic music in which bacteria react to their sonic environment.

IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE

Mixing west-African funky seventies grooves with highlife guitar licks and deep synth electronica, Ibibio create a soulful gumbo that feels instantly familiar and yet also new and fresh.

GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £26

More in the way of experimental musical treats from the Montreal collective.

SIANAR

SONICA: INFINITE LIVES

TRAMWAY, FROM 21:45, £6 - £12

Sun 29 Oct AIMEE MANN

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £30

The US-of-A rock singer celebrates 20-odd years since her first solo release, pop savvy still all-well and in place.

TOM ROBINSON

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £20

Scottish sextet supergroup who’ve risen from the ashes of four disbanded outfits.

Arguably one of UK music’s most important figures brings his trio to the Music Room with the release of his first new album in twenty years.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £22.50

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £10

FINIFLEX (GK MACHINE)

BRANDY CLARK

The electronic music vanguards release their new single in a show at Sleazy’s.

Contemporary country and storytelling songs from Grammy Award nominee Brandy Clark.

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, FREE

ORAN MOR, FROM 17:00, FREE

FLARE VOYANT

MQS Records throw a launch party at The Hug and Pint with a trio of bands and a selection of DJs. JOURNEY TO THE WEST

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:30, TBC

The Village Storytelling Centre brings this event to The Glad as part of the Scottish International Storytelling Festival.

SONICA: AQUASONIC

TRAMWAY, FROM 19:30, £9 - £18

An otherworldly underwater spectacular as part of Sonica Festival.

SONICA: INFINITE LIVES

TRAMWAY, FROM 21:45, £6 - £12

A live lab experiment set to electronic music in which bacteria react to their sonic environment.

CAPTAIN ACCIDENT (CAPTAIN ACCIDENT)

THE RUM SHACK, 20:00–01:00, FREE

Clumsy reggae / ska / soul from sunny Cardiff.

Sat 28 Oct GHOSTPOET

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £15

Experimental hip-hop producer and one-time Mercury Prize nominee.

THE LITTLE KICKS (ULTRAS)

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS , FROM 19:30, £7

BLACK SNAKE ROOTS

Ronnie and Olivia play tunes from their Classic Acoustic Songbook in the cosy bar.

10 000 RUSSOS (BLACK DOLDRUMS + ACID CABBIBALS) NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 19:30, £6

10,000 Russos hail from Porto, Portugal. Expect elements of rock’n’roll, changed up to create something totally new.

THE SUNDAY SERIES: IOLANTA

THEATRE ROYAL, FROM 15:00, £14 - £28

Scottish Opera perform Tchaikovsky’s rare Russian treat; a work about a young blind girl.

HILARY ROSIN COFFEE CONCERT

ROYAL CONSERVATOIRE OF SCOTLAND, FROM 11:30, £7.50 - £10

RCS’s highly regarded Hilary Rosin Coffee Concert series, featuring Russian chamber masterpieces, followed with coffees by Dear Green.

Mon 30 Oct DED RABBIT

THE HUG AND PINT, FROM 19:30, £6

Band of brothers Ded Rabbit are influenced by the likes of The Beatles, Gang of Four, Interpol, The Libertines and Sonic Youth. See ‘em live at H&P. MOUNT KIMBIE

More upbeat and catchy tunes from the Scottish four-piece, peddling their own chirpy brand of indiedisco-pop.

Minimal electronic duo, made up of Dominic Maker and Kai Campos.

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, TBC

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £22.50

PETE MACLEOD

Scottish singer-songwriter with a knack for thoughtful, melodic music. Raised in the small mining town of Coatbridge, Scotland, MacLeod was heavily influenced by the music of Buddy Holly, The Beatles, John Lennon and The Rolling Stones.

WORRIEDABOUTSATAN (LUCY CLAIRE)

THE GLAD CAFE, FROM 19:00, £6

An evening of ambient electronica and techno from Yorkshire and Winchester.

LITTLE EYE & VAMA

O2 ABC, FROM 19:00, £11

One of Romanian’s have rock bands with almost a decade’s experience under their guitar strap.

FRANCOBOLLO

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7

The Swedish indie rock band play the Wah Wah Hut.

CLUB NOIR: THE BEAUTIFUL AND THE DAMNED

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, £20

Club Noir waves goodbye after 13 years in the game. Not ones to leave quietly, Club Noir will be throwing two final parties for Halloween and New Year to send them out with a bang. Expect lots of glitter, showstopping performances and more.

A SLEAZY SAMHAIN: LUMINOUS BODIES (CUTTY’S GYM + SLIME CITY + SICK OF TALK + HITS FROM HELL)

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 18:45, £6

Get scary at Sleazy’s Samhain celebration starring racket-makers Luminous Bodies.

CONTROL SOCIAL CLUB: HALLOWEEN SPECIAL (BAD BREEDING) (TRANSFIGURE + HAUSFRAU + ROXY AGOGO + FUTURE GLUE + BLUEBIRDS + FAT BLACK CATS + OBJECTIFIED) BROADCAST, FROM 19:00, £6

A late night Hallow’s eve showcase featuring Stevenage anarcho-band Bad Breeding.

56

Listings

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 19:00, £15

PETER PERRETT

The former Only Ones front man and some-time pal of The Libertines heads out on tour.

MUTATION

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £12.50

Brainchild of Ginger Wildheart which is self-described “ridiculously extreme, obnoxious and hostile” and “an exorcism, a venting, an uproarious vomiting of malevolent spirits and mental exhaustion”.

Omg, we get it.

Tue 31 Oct GOLDFRAPP

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £28.50

After a run of 2017 festival performances and an acclaimed top 10 album, Goldfrapp are back with the UK leg of their Silver Eye tour.

Edinburgh Music Sun 01 Oct

CIRQUE DU SOUL (HOLY GOOD + WEAVER BROS. + RUSS RYAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

Cirque Du Soul is a travelling collective energy of colour, magic and dance.

DEAD PRETTIES (PINK KINK + LUCIA)

Dead Pretties are deranged; wild-eyed with an unpredictable presence. Magnetic, unhinged and chaotic.

TRUE SOUL WEEKENDER (TONY SMITH + DARREN SYKES + PEPSI + SUE BRICK)

WEE RED BAR, 20:00–03:00, £30

Another soul music rendezvous in the capital featuring the above plus John Hosley, Dave Hazelgrave, Pete Hollander and Keith Whitson.

ALLMAN BROWN

LA BELLE ANGELE, FROM 19:00, £7

Allman Brown is a London-based singer-songwriter influenced by the likes of Bon Iver, James Vincent McMorrow and Sufjan Stevens.

BOO HEWERDINE AND BROOKS WILLIAMS: STATE OF THE UNION

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £13

Brooks is an ultra-sophisticated bluesman from Georgia and Boo is an indie veteran from the suburbs of North London. Their music is about the meeting of those two worlds.

THE POLICE STING SHOW

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 14:30–01:00, £10

A fresh take these great songs; stripped back and reworked with creative arrangements and delivered with power and passion.

ANNETTE AND CALLUM CHAPMAN

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 21:00–01:00, £4

After a break from writing and performing as a duo while undertaking other projects, Annette and Callum Chapman are back with new material, a new approach to writing and a new, slightly more idiosyncratically Scottish style of performance.

BBC SCOTTISH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: TCHAIKOVSKY’S ‘PATHETIQUE’ SYMPHONY

USHER HALL, FROM 15:00, £15 - £30

Passions run high in the BBC SSO's first Edinburgh Sunday afty concert of the season.

Mon 02 Oct ELECTRIC PYRAMID

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £6

London rockers makijng an Edinburgh debut.

MARTHA FIELDS TRIO

TRAVERSE THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £11

Rootsy goodness in an emotionallycharged southern gothic gig.

Tue 03 Oct

DUCKTAILS (DUCKTAILS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £9

Unfurling out of LA comes St. Catherine, Matt Mondanile’s fifth outing as Ducktails, following his previous work as guitarist for Real Estate.

Wed 04 Oct THE VIEW

LA BELLE ANGELE, FROM 19:00, £18.50

THE AMAZONS

Dance-punk outfit from Sacramento, pronounced ‘chk chk chk’ (for those that don’t speak exclamation mark.)

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.

KING TUT’S, FROM 20:30, £7.50

Thu 05 Oct

Indie Rock band from Phoenix, Arizona comprising Jared Kolesar, Michael Carter, Larry Gast III, Chuck Morriss III, Josh Morin, Gabe HallRodrigues.

STRANGER MASSAOKE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 20:00, £7

spooky full band karaoke, weird and wild dresscode CHRIS ISAAK

SEC, FROM 18:30, £42 - £54

The American rock musician known for such hits as Wicked Game and Somebody’s Crying (and occasional actor) plays to an SEC crowd.

DANCING ON TABLES (THE OPERA COMIC)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Five-piece indie-pop band from Dunfermline. Officially formed in a school cupboard, the boys have spent their last teenage years earning plaudits for their dreamy melodies wrapped up in luring harmonies.

OAKMAN

WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

Pop punk band hailing from Lyon.

THE SCHIZOPHONICS

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £6 - £8

Psychedelic fuzz rock from the USA. SKJØR (BE LIKE PABLO + HALF FORMED THINGS + HAPPY ACCIDENT)

THE CAVES, 19:30–22:00, £8

Indie, funk and alternative trio SKJÔR headline an STV Children’s Appeal Fundraiser at The Caves.

VISIBLE CLOAKS (NOL)

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £10

Portland, Oregon-based duo of Spencer Doran and Ryan Carlile are the open-source musical entity known as Visible Cloaks, whose debut album Reassemblage was released in February of this year.

MAP 71 (DR VZX MOIST + BAMYA)

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 20:00, £6

Drum-triggered synths and punk primitive power poetry from Brighton’s Map 71.

BUCKLEY AND PALS

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Chris Buckley, singer-songwriter and super dude, hits The Mousetrap every Thursday to serenade us into the weekend - joined by various pals from the local music scene week to week.

BUCKLEY AND PALS

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Chris Buckley, singer-songwriter and super dude, hits The Mousetrap every Thursday to serenade us into the weekend - joined by various pals from the local music scene week to week.

Fri 06 Oct SLEAFORD MODS

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £18.50

Punk electronics and spoken word hip-hop fusion from the Nottingham-hailing duo, touring in the wake of last year’s album, Key Markets – released on the Harbinger Sound label.

STAR ROVER (ANIMAL MOTHERS + THE TROPICANAS)

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:00, £10 - £14.50

TIM HECKER

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £12

JARED & THE MILL

Tom Hickox is a serious talent for serious times, and his music inspires strong reactions in those who experience it.

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £17

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £13.50

!!!

THE VOODOO ROOMS, FROM 19:30, £9.50

The fuzzy power pop troupe play the Wee Red.

Experimental musician and songwriter Nika Rosa Danilova (aka Zola Jesus) plays a trademark gothic electronic set, bringing summat nicely dark for Halloween gig-goers.

ST LUKE’S, FROM 19:00, £13.50

TOM HICKOX

Proper Scottish rockers returning to La Belle. We predict a riot (haha, geddit).

Few in the field of explorative ambient music have remained as questing and unclassifiable as Canadian composer Tim Hecker.

Across his 15-year career he has moved through shades of electronic noise, experiential sound design, and modern composition.

ZOLA JESUS

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £12.50 - £14

ALTER BRIDGE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £41.25 - £49.50

The hard rock titans slam into Usher Hall for the night.

JONNIE COMMON

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £10

Glasgow-based artist signed to Manchester's Red Deer Club label.

Jonnie's 2011 debut LP Master of None was championed by radio darlings Marc Riley, Lauren Laverne and Vic Galloway.

WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

SKREAM

British electronic artist Skream (aka Oliver Dene Jones) swings by The Liquid Rooms.

TEMPLE OF THE DEAD MOTH

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:00–01:00, £5

Alternative country rock band founded by Edinburgh-based musician Andrew John Cairns.

RETRO VIDEO CLUB (RETRO VIDEO CLUB + CHEAP TEETH + ALTIUS + SCOTT ALEXANDER)

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £6

RSNO SEASON OPENER: OUNDJIAN AND BENEDETTI USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £41

Peter Oundjian, Nicola Benedetti and the RSNO join musical forces for a recital of Elgar's Violin Concerto, Stravinsky’s The rite of spring and more.

JAMES YORKSTON / KRIS DREVER / WITHERED HAND

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £15

Three magnificent artists, on-stage throughout, sharing and joining in one other’s songs.

Sat 07 Oct PLACEBO

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £41.25

With six studio albums and more than 12 million records sales, Brian Molko and his band of alternative rockers return.

TEA ‘N’ TEASE

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 14:00–01:00, FREE

Hosted by the Grand Dame of Scottish burlesque Gypsy Charms, this show presents classic glamour at its finest.

THE ALARM

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £22.50

Welsh new wave rock quartet, heavily influenced by Welsh language and culture.

STEAL THE SUN (PAYBACK PROJECT + LAGUNA WAVES + INDIGO SIXTEEN) CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 18:45, £6

PEANESS (MT. DOUBT + TONGUE TRAP)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 20:00–23:30, £4 - £28

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

Wed 11 Oct NICK MULVEY

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £17.50

The founding member of Portico Quartet does his solo singer/songwriter thing.

HANG MASSIVE

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £20

Unique musical project which shot to fame (and a global tour) after their first online video and music release went viral.

STRANGER SYNTHS: ARCADE TAPE MACHINE 004 (DUSTY HAYES + CAMSHACHLE + HOSTEL FREAKS)

THE SAFARI LOUNGE, 20:00–23:59, £5 - £6

Stranger Things themed Party with live synth acts, remixes, covers and bespoke visuals.

Sun 08 Oct

MARILYN CARINO (SACRE NOIR)

THE SAFARI LOUNGE, FROM 19:30, £5

New-york based singer-songwriter Marilyn Carino performs at Edinburgh’s Safari Lounge with support from Sacre Noir.

ORPHEUS COLLECTIVE (BAD PROTAGONIST CLUB + NASARI + AVU + TAPE DECK GHOST) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £4

Class line-up of some the city’s very best up-andcoming acts across genres. All ones to watch for very different reasons.

RADIO SALTIRE FUNDRAISER (THE JOKERS + SHAKLED)

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:00, £6 - £8

Rock fundraiser hosted by Radio Saltire.

BASEL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA WITH SOL GABETTA

USHER HALL, FROM 15:00, £12.50 - £34

High-octane musical gymnastics from Argentinian cello genius Sol Gabetta FRENCH FOR RABBITS

French for Rabbits hail from Waikuku Beach, a small settlement in New Zealand's South Island.

They play music that drifts on the edge of fragility, but expands out into washing layers of ethereal, nostalgic dream-pop.

SLØTFACE

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Norwegian band aiming to make moshing safe for women and create the most joyous punk ditties you’ve heard since the 90s.

Thu 19 Oct

RSNO BEETHOVEN AND SIBELIUS

QUEEN MARGARET UNIVERSITY, FROM 19:00, £11

The fuzzed-up rock duo return to Edinburgh.

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £41

OXJAM

THE AMERICAN HITMEN (GOTHZILLA)

FRANK IERO AND THE PATIENCE

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £17

THERAPY?

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £17 - £20

AMBER RUN

Rising young Nottingham quintet of the soft folk-rock variety.

IMAM BAILDI

SUMMERHALL, 20:00–23:00, £14

Forget folklore, get ready for intense urban sounds straight from Athens via this seven-piece band which comprises two brothers, a soaring female vocalist, a badass MC and three virtuosi on the bouzouki, saxophone and electric guitar.

THE FIRRENES

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £8

New five-piece band from Edinburgh, drawing on influences from folk, soul, 70s rock and classical.

WONDERBOY (SPYLAW + WHY NO?)

WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

Edinburgh four-piece who like to think of their music as ‘aesthetically pleasing’. Makes sense.

ORPHEUS CALEDONIUS: L'AVVENTURA WITH OLD BLIND DOGS AND SIOBHAN MILLER

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £17.50

A concert at Queen’s Hall investigating and celebrating the popularity of Scottish tunes in eighteenth-century Britain.

SCO: DVORÁK SYMPHONY NO 8

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £34

Robin Ticciati conducts the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in an evening of Berlioz, Mozart and Dvoràk.

Fri 13 Oct

PETE MACLEOD (SCOTT DOUGLAS)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £10

Scottish singer-songwriter with a knack for thoughtful, melodic music. Raised in the small mining town of Coatbridge, Scotland, MacLeod was heavily influenced by the music of Buddy Holly, The Beatles, John Lennon and The Rolling Stones.

LAKYOTO (MACHU)

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £5

Local bands. Good music. Happy days.

DOWNTOWN BOYS (BIG JOANIE + BRAINGLUE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

This Rhode Island misogynist-baiting brass-backed punk five-piece have been labelled one of America’s most important acts in the Trump era. Their new record on Sub Pop was produced by Ian Mackaye of Fugazi.

The Courteerners frontman does his solo acoustic thing, staying true to his indie-rock roots.

THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £21.50 - £23

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £8

REACHES

Reaches is the name given to solo Chicagoan act Justin Randel, who plays ‘introspective party music’.

ANOTHER EVENING OF THE GRATEFUL DEAD

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £6 - £8

LIAM FRAY

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £20

WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £10

The USA rockers are back after a successful show in 2016.

The resurgent krautrock-inspired Londoners return.

Musical retelling of the songwriting partnership’s stellar career, told using both original photos and film footage.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, FREE

ZERVAS AND PEPPER

Zervas and Pepper are fast becoming a recognised sound on radio with their sweeping harmony arrangements.

THE HORRORS

Charity show featuring a top lineup of some the city’s very best upcoming acts.

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £12

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £13

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7

Art, glamour and banter, a unique multi-arts celebration of burlesque, cabaret, visual art, acrobacy and physical theatre, with extravagant costumes, a fashion catwalk, prizes and much more.

Cutting-edge blues singer, songwriter and slide guitarist Catfish Keith makes a welcome return to Edinburgh on his global tour.

THE DRIFT

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 19:00, £4 - £5

THE HOLWING LORDS (JACK RABBIT SLAMS)

Praised by the likes of Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Nile is a musician that Bannermans themselves have pinned as unmissable.

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

Sat 14 Oct

CATFISH KEITH

Intimate unplugged show from Ireland’s legendary trio.

Polish funky and proggy rock band from Aberdeen, formed in 2009.

Alternative hip-hop from northern England, taking influence from acts like The Streets and Tricky.

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £15

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

Chester indie-pop trio, Skinny favourites and all-round good eggs.

WILLE NILE (PAUL BRAND) BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £15

Tue 10 Oct

Thu 12 Oct

Indie rock from local turf.

THE CEILING DEMONS WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

Edward Gardner conducts the RSNO in a concert featuring John Adams’ The Chairman dances; Beethoven’s Violin concerto and Sibelius’ Symphony no. 2.

OPIUM, FROM 19:00, £7

LOST IN VANCOUVER

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

SERENDIPITY EXTRAVAGANZA

SOUNDHOUSE: LEVERET

TRAVERSE THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £11

Leveret features three of fine folk musicians in an exciting new collaboration. Andy Cutting, Sam Sweeney and Rob Harbron are each regarded as masters of their instrument and are involved in numerous collaborations with a huge range of artists.

The former rhythm guitarist and back-up vocalist for My Chemical Romance and Leathermouth brings his solo punk project to the stage.

Mon 09 Oct

Bradford's Fling provide the previously unsearched-for missing link between T-Rex and the Fat White Family, forging together glam rock, punk and psych with a solid sense of Northern irony and an ever-present aura of late night haziness.

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £12 - £15

The southern rock legends perform three separate killer sets.

A variety of live music, from country, to alternative rock, jazz to funk.

Scottish indie at its finest.

FLING (FLING + GUESTS)

WARNER E HODGES (WEBB WILDER + ERIC AMBEL)

THOMAS TRUAX

Thomas Truax (pronounced troo-aks) is an American singer/ musician, inventor and multi-media artist.

ANNIE BOOTH

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

After the success of An Evening of The Grateful Dead back in April, The Workingman’s Dead have decided to band together again and bring another night of cosmic, blissed out Dead songs to Edinburgh.

Young singer-songwriter based in Edinburgh. Performing her indierock tinged folk-pop throughout Scotland, she creates melancholic songs with infectious melodies.

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £0 - £5

Soulful folk and seductive jazz.

COLT 48 (RUMRUNNERS)

Two-piece rock outfit with killer hooks.

SCRUFF OF THE NECK: WHITEHILL GROVE

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £6

Tasty guitar riffs to get your feet tapping.

A TWISTED CIRCUS 2.0: GYPSY HILL (THE LANGAN BAND) LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £10

Following the principles of Buddhism, clairvoyance and economics, Twisted Circus return. Expect bigger bands, production, new circus performances, visuals and décor for a more immersive experience.

Sun 15 Oct

MARTHA HILL

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: SCHUMANN PIANO CONCERTO

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £34

Robin Ticciati conducts SCO in a performance of JS Bach, Schumann and Haydn.

THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL

SUMMERHALL, 18:00–23:30, £16

An exclusive group of London's finest session musicians and vocalists come together for a live musical rendition of one of the greatest albums of all time.

Fri 20 Oct FRANKIE ROSE

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

The Hotel California hit-makers touch down in Edinburgh.

Brooklyn-based vocalist, songwriter and musician – formerly a member of acclaimed garage rock acts Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls and the Vivian Girls.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £8

ULTIMATE EAGLES

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £24.50

GLASS CAVES (RAZZ +THE SOCIAL ORDER)

Scruff of the Neck and Fortune bring “word of mouth phenomenon” Glass Caves to Sneaky’s.

Mon 16 Oct JOHN SMITH

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £15

John Smith brings his uniquely intimate take on love, loss or even murder (?!), combined with his innovative guitar work to the Caves.

SOUNDHOUSE: FRONT COUNTRY

TRAVERSE THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £11

This is no ordinary bluegrass band; they play big, brave, invigorating music that is seldom encountered.

Last year, they were flown over from their base in San Francisco to headline Didmarton Bluegrass Festival.

Tue 17 Oct RICHARD THOMPSON

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, TBC

High-octane musical gymnastics from Argentinian cello genius Sol Gabetta

KINGDOM OF GIANTS (KINGDOM OF GIANTS + OUR HOLLOW + OUR HOME + CREATE TO INSPIRE + BEARERS OF THE DIVIDE) OPIUM, 19:00–22:00, £8 - £10

Six-piece metalcore band from Northern CA. DIET CIG (THE SPOOK SCHOOL)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7.50

Diet Cig are here to have fun.

They’re here to tear you away from the soul-sucking sanctity of your dumpster-fire life and replace it with pop-blessed punk jams about navigating adulthood when all you want is to have ice cream on your birthday.

Wed 18 Oct ARCANE ROOTS

CONTROL (TOP DOG + NO THRILLS + PANIC ATTAK + HALF CHARGE)

Oi street punk at its best.

EDINBURGH BLUES CLUB (WITH SPECIAL GUESTS ELLES BAILEY, LOGANS CLOSE)

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £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 and surrounding areas do not miss out on quality touring blues acts.

PP ARNOLD

PLEASANCE THEATRE, FROM 19:30, £22.50

The soul legend (who originally came to the UK as an Ikette with the Ike and Tina Revue) swings back in time all the way to the sixties.

FLINT & PITCH: RECLAIM THIS SCRIPT (JANICE GALLOWAY + VONNY LECLERC + MARC ROONEY + MAUD THE MOTH + ROSS MCFARLANE)

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 19:00, £5 - £6

Flint & Pitch rustle up another beauteous eve of poetry and music for your delectation. Hosted by Sian Bevan & Jenny Lindsay.

VIC GODDARD & THE SUBWAY SECT (THE SEXUAL OBJECTS) WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £12

The legendary songwriter and his band play a rare one at the Wee Red. RSNO MENDELSSOHN PIANI CONCERTO NO1

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £12.50 - £41

Sir Roger Norrington conducts RSNO in a truly refreshing take on the romance of Schumann.

THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL

SUMMERHALL, FROM 20:00, £16

An exclusive group of London's finest session musicians and vocalists come together for a live musical rendition of one of the greatest albums of all time.

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £12

Perfect combination of pop and rock that creates an awesome sound; hear it live.

THE SKINNY

GRACE & LEGEND (HOUSE OF HATCHETS + NEW HORIZONS & COBALT) OPIUM, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Four-piece Scottish hard rock band from Edinburgh, fronted by Bekah Mhairi Comrie and her captivating vocals.

LUSH PURR + JACK LEE + MIKE GEIST

LEITH DEPOT, FROM 20:00, £4 - £5

Glaswegian lo-fi fuzz-pop, Australian slacker sounds as Lush Purr play Edinburgh before touring France together.

Sat 21 Oct

ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £10

Kawabata Makoto and his band of sonic outlaws, mixing traditional melody with hyper-aggressive playing techniques and plenty of improvisation.

GALLUS COOPER

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £10 - £12

Shock horror tribute with a stunning stage show.

AJ TRACEY

Tue 24 Oct LONDON GRAMMAR

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, TBC

Indie-pop trio, fronted by the majestic vocals of Hannah Reid.

TRUDY AND THE ROMANCE (MUMMY'S BOY + LUV DOT GOV) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £7

Somewhere among the daydreamers and heartbreakers, beauty queens and jock teens, Trudy and the Romance are looking to lure you into their suitably skewed, cinematic world.

Wed 25 Oct TIGERCUB

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £7.50

In a world where we can often feel like everything is spiraling out of control, is there any wonder that bands like Tigercub are emerging, pissed-off and confused, from the remnants of our ex-industrial towns?

GUTTER DEMONS

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £8 - £10

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £12 - £15

Canadian psychobilly heavyweights.

DMS

MUSIC MATTERS (ADAM STAFFORD + THE EASTERN SWELL + JONATHAN PENNINGTON-TWIST)

J-Bone brings AJ Tracey to Glasgow on his much-anticipated Secure the Bag! tour.

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £7

Self-proclaimed super cool basement party from indie project DMS. USURPER

COLLECTIVE GALLERY, FROM 19:30, FREE

Edinburgh duo formed by Giant Tank cassette label founder Ali Robertson and cartoonist Malcy Duff.

Expect playful, electro-acoustic sounds. Please note this gig takes place at The Waverley Bar. THE MUSICAL BOX: THE BLACK SHOW

USHER HALL, FROM 20:00, TBC

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Genesis at Usher Hall.

TOPANGO AFTERGLOW

WEE RED BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

Scottish indie-rock band once described as ‘frantic, romantic and riddled with riffs’.

UTE LEMPER: LAST TANGO IN BERLIN - THE BEST OF UTE THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £25 - £45

World renowned artist Ute Lemper makes a welcome return to the UK stage, with a show that traverses Brecht and Weill, Brel, Piaf and onwards.

COCK SPARRER + GIMP FEST + FIRE EXIT (ROYAL OI + BAR STOOL PREACHERS)

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 16:30, £23

The Cock Sparrer hooligans bring a dose of punk to The Liquid Rooms.

LION ON TIGER (FOXES FOLLOW + BELLAROSE + TWENTYTWENTY)

OPIUM, 19:00–22:00, £5 - £7

Loud Scottish Rock with energetic performances.

Sun 22 Oct RALPH MCTELL

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 20:00, £25 - £27.50

Known for his virtuoso guitar style, Ralph McTell is best known for his hit Streets of London, but is a prolific and gifted songwriter.

WILL JOSEPH COOK

THE MASH HOUSE, FROM 19:00, £9

Fresh-faced Tunbridge Wells singer-songwriter.

NIGHT MUSIC: DAEDELUS (GLASSMASTERER)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £8

Sneaky’s first Night Music series show in while, featuring a man who has dedicated his musical career to the war against cliché RAM (HOSTILE + ANAXOR)

Thu 26 Oct

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:00–01:00, £10

SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: SCHUMANN REQUIEM

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £11 - £34

Richard Egarr conducts a quartet of distinguished soloists in a perfomance of Brahms and Schumann.

THE NINTH WAVE

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00, £6

Noise-pop Four-piece influenced by 80s new wave and goth pop.

Fri 27 Oct BLANCMANGE

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £18 - £76

The 80s superstars are coming to Edinburgh don’t panic, just get down.

JOEY BADA$$

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £20

Brooklyn prodigy now a full-on blown-up success story.

HEY

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 20:00, £25

Polish rock band founded in Szczecin in 1991 by guitarist Piotr Banach and lead singer Kasia Nosowska.

CHOOSE RUDE: THE BEGBIES (NICKAJACK + THE DUNTS + THE CALM FIASCOS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £5

The Begbies bring you Vol. 3 of their very own CHOOSE RUDE live music event. They’ll be hitting up Sneaky Pete’s, joined by the huge sounds of The Nickajack Men, The Dunts and The Calm Fiasco.

PULVIS ET UMBRA (IRON ALTAR + DOLOUR)

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £5

Metal from Italy for ya.

ALL THE BEST TAPES + BEAR MAKES NINJA (MADAM PALM)

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 19:00, £5

Stoke’s thrash jazz pioneers All The Best Tapes play Henry’s.

THE LUKE LA VOLPE BAND

THE CAVES, 19:00–22:00, £9

USHER HALL, FROM 19:30, £19 - £42

Mon 23 Oct PAUL LEWIS

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:45, £12 - £22

Lewis makes a welcome return with a new recital featuring works

by Haydn, Beethoven, Brahms and Haydn.

SOUNDHOUSE: SESSION A9

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £10

A band formed through informal music sessions up and down the arterial Scottish road, the A9.

October 2017

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £9 - £11

Be Charlotte’s songwriting prowess is beyond her years and has taken her on several Transatlantic journeys from her hometown of Dundee, Scotland. Her singing voice is delightful, but she’s also rapper, beatboxer and general badass.

10,000 RUSSOS

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00, £6

RSNO AT THE MOVIES: PSYCHO LIVE

Rock band reaching out with their life stories to take you on an intense musical journey.

Sun 29 Oct THE BLOCKHEADS

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–01:00, £25

BURY TOMORROW

THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00, £18 - £20

DUNEDIN CONSORT: BACH MASSES

THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 16:00, £8 - £22

John Butt directs Dunedin Consort in a performance of Bach’s Mass in G Major BWV 234.

Mass in A Major BWV 235, and his Concerto for 2 oboes and bassoon.

ST PETERSBURG SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA WITH PETER DONOHOE

USHER HALL, FROM 17:30, £12.50 - £34

For their Usher Hall performance, the St Petersburg Orchestra delight with an all-Russian programme that includes two of Tchaikovsky's enduringly popular works.

Mon 30 Oct

KUSANAGI (THREE DAYS FROM RETIREMENT + BLANKET)

THE SAFARI LOUNGE, FROM 19:30, £7

Instrumental rockers from Liverpool.

STEVE RODGERS

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:15–01:00, £9

Steve Rodgers, singer songwriter, has just completed recording his much anticipated first album, due for release this year. His songs reflect his passion for life’s depth, mystery and wonder, and recorded with his band of like-minded JAY JOHNSON (KELLY MCGRATH)

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £10 - £12

The Skinny Molly guitarist brings a solo show to Bannermans SAM OUTLAW (WITH BAND)

THE CAVES, 19:30–22:30, £15

LA-based modern country artists who’s has recently released a new album entitled Tenderheart. Aw. SOUNDHOUSE: PHILIP CLOUTS QUARTET

TRAVERSE THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £11

Pianist-composer Philip Clouts’s South African roots have inspired a voyage of musical discovery that has led to a style incorporating wide-ranging inspirations from world music and jazz into a joyous sound.

Squeeze swing by Usher Hall as part of their Join the Dots tour.

THE PHANTOMS (THE JACOBINS + BLACK DOG D)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 19:00, £8

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

CERTAIN DEATH (DOG TIRED + GET SOME + DEFACER)

BANNERMANS, FROM 20:00, £5

Halloween extravaganza from the metal masters.

JOHN CRAIGIE

CLARKS ON LINDSAY STREET, FROM 19:00, £10

Singer-songwriter who’s said to sound like the lovechild of John Prine and Mitch Hedberg.

Fri 06 Oct

GAY PANIC DEFERENCE (DRIVE BY KILLER +BRATAKUS + DEFACER)

CONROY’S BASEMENT, FROM 19:30, £5

Sun 08 Oct

TRAVELLER (MEGAN BLACK)

Sat 28 Oct London-based singer/songwriter known for his guitar playing, which involves rhythmically tapping and hitting his guitar’s body.

Scottish punk rock at BGD.

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, TBC

Tue 31 Oct

NEWTON FAULKNER

SKIDS

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 20:00, £25

Radical queercore punks from Kirkcaldy bring their cavalcade to Conroy's.

The RSNO play Bernard Herrmann’s scintillating score to Hitchcock’s Psycho, live at Usher Hall.

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 19:00, £22

Thu 05 Oct

10,000 Russos hail from Porto, Portugal. Expect elements of rock’n’roll, changed up to create something totally new.

The UK metalcore heavyweights Bury Tomorrow headline The Mash House.

Psychedelic legends returning for another hallucinogenic evening.

SOUNDHOUSE: LANKUM

TRAVERSE THEATRE, FROM 20:00, £11

BE CHARLOTTE

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £15 - £18

HAWKLORDS

Dundee Music

CHARITY SOUL NIGHT

CORN EXCHANGE, FROM 19:30, £10

The Corn Exchange hosts a night of soul music in aid of Marie Curie Hospice in Fairmilehead.

The Blockheads (once known as Ian Dury And The Blockheads) are now fronted by one of Ian Dury’s best friends, Derek ‘The Draw’, the band’s vocalist and wordsmith.

The Bathgate acoustic folk act play with support from Mark Sharp.

Lankum, formerly known as Lynched, is a four-piece traditional folk group from Dublin, Ireland, who combine distinctive four-part vocal harmonies with arrangements of uilleann pipes, concertina, Russian accordion, fiddle and guitar.

Stage musical actress known for iconic roles in Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, Grease, Evita and Cats.

Edinburgh Carers Council presents: Music Matters, an annual fundraising event. This fundraiser is part of their programme of events to raise awareness and funds for mental health carers.

BANNERMANS, FROM 19:30, £5

A night of metal at Bannermans.

ELAINE PAIGE THE QUEEN’S HALL, FROM 19:30, £30 - £75

SQUEEZE

USHER HALL, FROM 19:00, £32.50 - £47.50

PLACEBO

CAIRD HALL, FROM 19:00, £36 - £50

With six studio albums and more than 12 million records sales, Brian Molko and his band of alternative rockers return.

Wed 11 Oct CABBAGE

CHURCH, FROM 19:00, TBC

Problematic post-punk band from Manchester.

MALCOLM BRUCE

CLARKS ON LINDSAY STREET, FROM 19:00, £10 - £12

Singer-songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Bruce hits Clarks for a set.

Sat 14 Oct

MEDICINE MEN (MERCURIALS + CATCH)

CHURCH, FROM 18:30, TBC

A sound with roots in the early 90s with added psychedelic stomp aimed at the dancefloor. Sure to appeal to the Parka wearing crowd and beyond.

Sun 15 Oct ALBAMA 3

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 20:00, £15

Legendary Brixton collective who combine techno beats with country instruments.

Thu 19 Oct CHINA CRISIS

CLARKS ON LINDSAY STREET, FROM 20:00, £17

The new wave faves play a show in Dundee.

Sat 21 Oct THE NINTH WAVE

CHURCH, 18:30, £6

Noise-pop Four-piece influenced by 80s new wave and goth pop.

Sun 22 Oct ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE

CONROY’S BASEMENT, FROM 19:00, £10

Glasgow Clubs Sun 01 Oct SESH

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

Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes thorough the night.

NULL / VOID

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

Industrial goth rock disco.

MILK POP PUNK KARAOKE HALLOWEEN PARTY

O2 ABC, 22:00–04:00, £8

A Halloween extravaganza with a live band and a host of special guests singing their favourite pop punk hits.

Tue 03 Oct KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic Tuesday nighter 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 drunk-eyed existence.

PERMOCULTURE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

A celebration of dance culture through the ages.

Wed 04 Oct WRAP-IT

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.

GHOST GIRLS

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

Expect the unexpected, your 90s nostalgic dance classics, your 00s R’n’B and more.

FRIDAY NIGHTS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

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

LT #1 (RIBEKA + NOCTURNE)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Ribeka steps out with a new partyfirst invite goes out to Liberation Technologies affiliate, Nocturne.

LAYTON GIORDANI (STEPHAN WOODS + LUCA DE-SANTO + CRAIG HUGHES)

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, TBC

Drumcodes finest and techno talent Layton Giordani plays SWG3.

LEE WEBSTER

STEREO, FROM 23:00, TBC

The Barcelona-based DJ, producer and I Used to Sleep at Night label owner comes to town.

THE YOUNG ‘UNS

ORAN MOR, FROM 23:00, £16.50

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £12

LIGHTS OUT (JOSE PERMO)

Italo disco, funky house and detroit techno.

FOUNDRY (SCARBO-HYBRID MODULAR SET, ADAM RUTHERFORD)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Electronic DJ and promoter collective Foundry begin their monthly residency at La Cheetah.

Thu 05 Oct 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.

LEFTFIELD

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £12

Dance your face off with a dose of prog house, electronica, and trip-hop at Subbie.

ELEMENT

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Fri 27 Oct

Cathouse’s Thursday night rock, metal and punk mashup.

UNHOLY

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

ALL NIGHT PASSION

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Dundee’s Punktoberfest heads to new venue Church for the very first time.

Head inside the Al Night Passion discotheque where they’ll take you on a journey through disco, love and magic.

CONROY’S BASEMENT, FROM 19:00, £6

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

10,000 RUSSOS

FRESH BEAT

DJ Craig cures your Wednesday woes at The Garage.

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

CHURCH, FROM 19:00, TBC

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

Teesside's triumphant trio The Young-uns are current holders of BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards coveted Best Group title two years running!

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

Kawabata Makoto and his band of sonic outlaws, mixing traditional melody with hyper-aggressive playing techniques and plenty of improvisation.

PUNCTOBERFEST FRIDAY (CONTROL + ON FILE + DELINQUENTS + MALFUNCTION + DRIVE BY KILLER)

GLITTERBANG NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

FIRST DATES (BOAB RAMMY)

I AM X SUB CLUB (EROL ALKAN)

PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £4

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

Sat 07 Oct NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

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.

HARSH TUG

Discotheque provocateurs SYS take you higher in a night at Broadcast.

Yep, you read it right. Tinchy’s back.

And, er, playing Dundee this month?

Fri 06 Oct

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, FROM 13:00, £10

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

PUNKTOBERFEST

Dundee’s Punktoberfest heads to new venue Church for the very first time.

OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

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

TRIBAL PULSE: BOOM MERCHANT - TRIP009 STEREO, FROM 23:00, TBC

Tribal Pulse host their third outing, bringing in fresh house/electro chappie Boom Merchant for an all-nighter.

I AM A RAVER IBIZA (GARY MCF + DJ RANKIN OFFICIAL + DJ BAD BOY + DJ CAMMY + DJ ZITKUS + SEAN CLIENS + DJ DEEKAY) CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 21:00, TBC

Gary McF takes the reins in an I Am a Raver Ibiza special.

SUBCULTURE (MOVE D + TELFORD)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10 - £12

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft’ joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

ANIMAL FARM (DVS1)

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 23:00, £12 - £15

Animal Farm give techno powerhouse DVS1 (Hush / Klockworks) three whole hours to show The Art School what he’s made of.

SYMBIOSIS (LO PROFILE) (LD50 + HEX + CALACO JACK + ALCANE)

AUDIO, FROM 23:00, FREE

Sun 08 Oct

Rum Shack’s third Birthday party with two special sets from JD Twitch and Fergus Clark. Expect rare as hen’s teeth roots, digi, dub and more.

Glasgow garage and psych weekend with psych legends Kaleidoscope UK.

CHURCH, FROM 18:30, £5

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, £19

King of the edit’ Late Nite Tuff Guy takes a journey back to celebrate the life’s work of one of the greatest showmen, producers and songwriters to ever grace a stage.

THE RUM SHACK, 21:00–01:00, £7

RUM SHACK 3RD BIRTHDAY (JD TWITCH + FERGUS CLARK)

Sat 28 Oct TINCHY STRYDER

PRINCE + LATE NITE TUFF GUY

Resident young guns Beta & Kappa play the usual fine mix of electronica and bass, with a special guest or two oft in tow.

Post-everything indie disco with free entry.

BROADCAST, FROM 22:00, £4 - £16

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.

A mainstay of the Aberdeen scene, Lo Profile has been found on the decks at Jungle Nation, Liquid Sessions, Transit and various other events around the granite city and further afield.

10,000 Russos hail from Porto, Portugal. Expect elements of rock’n’roll, changed up to create something totally new.

DOUBLE SIGHT 2017

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

SESH

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

Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes thorough the night.

Tue 10 Oct KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

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

DOOR 24

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

Psych rock’n’roll, garage and krautrock.

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? #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 drunk-eyed existence.

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £3

Wed 11 Oct

SHOOT YOUR SHOT

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

Hip-hop and rap brought to you by Notorious B.A.G and pals.

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, £5

MONSTER HOSPITAL

Botch meets Beyonce DJ smash in a club night like no other.

LEZURE (LNS)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £8

Rising Vancouver star and Sex Tags / Wania affiliate LNS brings her unique and masterful blend of electro and dreamy techno to the La Cheetah basement.

WRAP-IT

DJ Craig cures your Wednesday woes at The Garage.

DON’T BE GUTTED

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, FREE

100% enjoyable house.

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 mashup.

ELECTRIC SALSA (SLEEPARCHIVE + NICK MORROW & BISSET)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

Sleeparchive’s first Glasgow show since 2008.

SHOW (JORIS VOORN)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £15

The Show troupe hit Subbie with Dutch DJ Joris Voorn.

Fri 13 Oct OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

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

PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £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.

DEATHKILL 4000

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

Ultra-cutting edge dark electro, hip-hop and post punk.

RETURN TO MONO (PARANOID LONDON) (EDIT SELECT)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £12

Monthly night from Soma Records, this time playing host to a guest set from Paranoid London.

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.

NIGHTWAVE

NICE ‘N’ SLEAZY, FROM 23:30, £4

Danchall, dub and Junglista Legend Nightwave aka Maya Medvesek takes to the booth at Sleazy’s.

FRESH! FRIDAY AT THE CLUB ROOM

ORAN MOR, FROM 23:00, £0 - £6

Resident John McLean stirs up a fresh night of tunes for your delectation.

FRIDAY NIGHTS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

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

LA CHEETAH CLUB 8TH BIRTHDAY PT.1 (JOY ORBISON + JON K)

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

Part one of La Cheetah’s 8th Birthday celebrations sees good pals Joy Orbison and Jon k take control for the entire night.

LOW ISLAND & FRIENDS

STEREO, FROM 23:00, £6

The Oxford quartet hit the road following the release of their first EPs Just About Somwhere and In This Room.

PRE-HALLOWS BALL (GALLUS COOPER + UPSHOT)

CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 19:00, £13 - £15

Can’t wait til the end of the month to celebrate Hallowe’en? Get involved a little earlier (Friday 13th do ya?) at Classic Grand’s Pre-Hallows Ball.

SULTA SELECTS: (MALL GRAB) (DENIS SULTA + SHANTI CELESTE + MOXIE) THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 23:00, £15

Dennis Sulta bring his Sulta Selects tour with house music’s hottest prospects.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

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

JELLY BABY

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

Thu 12 Oct HIP HOP THURSDAYS

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R’n’B and hip-hop.

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

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

Sat 14 Oct NU SKOOL

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Indie rock’n’roll from the 60s to 00s with resident tune-picker DJ Jopez.

Listings

57

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.

WE SHOULD HANG OUT MORE (YOULEANCE)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

Leaves might be falling but WSHOM plan to keep the tempo high and spirits higher as they welcome French party duo Youleance to La Cheets!Â

LOOSEN UP (FERGUS CLARK + CHARLIE MCCANN + DAVID BARBAROSSA) THE RUM SHACK, 21:00–01:00, £3

Tropical, Afro, disco party with three of the best record collections in the UK. I LOVE GARAGE

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

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.

DAMMIT ALL TO HELL

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

New Bloc+ clubnight, dishing out po-punk, emo, indie, rock and pop.

CLUBLAND XTREME HARDCORE (HIXXY + SCOTT BROWN + ALEX PROSPECT + CALLUM HIGHBY + MC STORM + JPS & BAIRDY) CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 21:00, TBC

Intenzifi and twisted take a Classic Grand crowd on a tour of the past, present and future of Hardcore.

SUBCULTURE (MORITZ VON OSWALD) (HARRI + DOMENIC)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10 - £12

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft’ joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

Sun 15 Oct SESH

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

Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes thorough the night.

KEEP IT ROLLING: CARNIVAL SPECIAL

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

The Berkeley Suite is transformed into a carnival-themed paradise!

Expect reggae, drum and bass and everything in between.

Tue 17 Oct KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic Tuesday nighter 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 drunk-eyed existence.

Wed 18 Oct WRAP-IT

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

DJ Craig cures your Wednesday woes at The Garage.

PALA

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

STEREOTONE (LEON B2B WHEELMAN MAVEEN)

RUBADUB X ALLEN & HEATH (RYAN + BECKY + MARK + DAN + ALEKS)

I LOVE GARAGE

Allen & Heath have a brand new mixer called the PX5. Rubadub dum-dums dae the dex all night long.

Lone makes his way back to Glasgow for the first time in a wee while to join Nightwave in the booth.

ELEMENT

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

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 mashup.

Fri 20 Oct OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

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

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.

ENJOYABLE MOMENT

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

Cosmic Dead curated avanteelectro psyche-out DJs. 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.

FRESH! FRIDAY AT THE CLUB ROOM

ORAN MOR, FROM 23:00, £0 - £6

Resident John McLean stirs up a fresh night of tunes for your delectation.

FRIDAY NIGHTS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

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

PARTIAL’S 3RD BIRTHDAY PT. 2 (ZALTAN)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £8

For the second and final part of Partial’s birthday celebrations they invite Antinote boss Zaltan over for an extended all-nighter, to journey through the depths of his record collection.

A CELEBRATION OF KANYE & FRIENDS

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, £8 - £10

D’you like the new Kanye? D’you miss the old Kanye? D’you love Kanye as much as Kanye loves Kanye? Prove it.

BIGFOOT’S TEA PARTY (JAYDA G)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10

The Nomadic techno and techhouse night makes its regular(ish) trip to Subbie’s basement, this time with Canadian producer and Freakout Cult founder Jayda G. PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

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

Sat 21 Oct NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

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

Thu 19 Oct BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

HIP HOP THURSDAYS

NIGHTRAVE (LONE + NIGHTWAVE)

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

A couple of local selectors that have both been a long time coming at Stereotone: Leon of the Lezure crew and newcomer Maveen.

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

Pala residents in control all night.

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £5 - £7

LOVE MUSIC

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.

SUPER HANS

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 22:00, £14

The Peep Show hero, the one and only Super Hans, goes on a music tour. Expect things to get weird.

MOJO WORKIN (FELONIOUS MUNK + CARNABY PATON)

THE RUM SHACK, 21:00–01:00, £3

60s R’n’B, Northern Soul, motown and more.

DAVE ANGEL + JUSTIN ROBERTSON

O2 ABC, FROM 23:00, £15

Another Lets Go Back, this time featuring Londoner Dave Angekl and Manchester talent Justin Robertson.

SPECTACULAR SPECTACULAR (DEBAY DE LUX + C-SECTION + MARKEE DE SAW + GLASGOW SWING DANCE SOCIETY + THE THREE GENTLEMEN) CLASSIC GRAND, FROM 22:00, £8 - £10

Think Moulin Rouge meets Studio 54 and you’re halfway there.

Hosted by John Celestus.

SUBCULTURE (OCTO OCTA) (TELFORD) SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft’ joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

I LOVE ACID GLASGOW: LUKE VIBERT, POSTHUMAN & ROY OF THE RAVERS

THE ART SCHOOL, FROM 23:00, £8 - £12

Yet another showcase of squelchy house from prolific label I Love Acid.

Sun 22 Oct SESH

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

Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes thorough the night.

Tue 24 Oct KILLER KITSCH

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Eclectic Tuesday nighter 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 drunk-eyed existence.

ELDERBROOK

STEREO, FROM 19:00, £10

Elderbrook is the solo project of Alexander Kotz, who brings his sonic wares to Stereo tonight.

I AM (SCUBA + OR:LA)

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £6

Resident young guns Beta & Kappa play the usual fine mix of electronica and bass, with a special guest or two oft in tow.

Wed 25 Oct WRAP-IT

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

DJ Craig cures your Wednesday woes at The Garage.

Thu 26 Oct HIP HOP THURSDAYS

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Incoherent madness for those with a deathwish. The worst clubnight in the world.

Cream returns to Scotland as part of the 25th anniversary tour.

OLD SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

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

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.

SHAKE APPEAL

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

Six decades of rock’n’roll on under one roof, hosted by the ultimate DJ Trivium.

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.

FRESH! FRIDAY AT THE CLUB ROOM

ORAN MOR, FROM 23:00, £0 - £6

Resident John McLean stirs up a fresh night of tunes for your delectation.

FRIDAY NIGHTS

SHED, 22:30–03:00, £4 - £6

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

HARDSTYLE SUPERHEROES HALLOWEEN PARTY

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, FROM 21:00, FREE

All the best in hardstyle with a touch of Halloweeny goodness.

4 YEARS OF EZUP (PAUL JOHNSON) LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £10

Ezup mark their fourth birthday with a rare intimate party bringing in legend of dance music and Chicago house pioneer Paul Johnson.

PROPAGANDA

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £4

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

MAXIMUM PRESSURE (SLAM) (RICHIE HAWTIN + RøDHäD + LAURENT GARNIER + DEEPCHORD)

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 19:00, £30 - £35

A trio of banging DJs whipping up some pre-Halloween madness.

Sat 28 Oct NU SKOOL

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £6 - £7

ELEMENT

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

Sun 29 Oct SESH

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

COALITION (BELIEVE + FRIENDS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Believe presents the best in bass DJs from Edinburgh at his weekly Sunday communion.

SUNDAY 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 02 Oct

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £3

Back again, one of the DJ producers who is closest to Sneaks’ heart.

DJ show.

MIXED UP

Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes thorough the night.

Monday-brightening mix of hip-hop, R’n’B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £8 - £10

Tue 03 Oct

HOT FOOTIN’ (DIXON AVENUE BASEMENT JAMS) (DEXTER)

Klakson bossman Dexter steps in for part five of DABJ’s 2017 residency.

DON’T DROP HALLOWEEN (RYAN ELLIOT) (RJAY MURPHY + MCEWAN & TORRANCE) SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10 - £12

Berghain / Panorama Bar and Ostgut Ton’s Ryan Elliott throws a spookster at Subbie as Don’t Drop kick off their eight-week season.

Mon 30 Oct MILK HALLOWEEN

O2 ABC, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

FOOL’S GOLD

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

New weekly, bringing the best in hip-hop, funk and soul.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

MIDNIGHT BASS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £4

Soul Jam celebrate their 8th year of sweaty Tuesday night funk tests with pals Barbarossa and Gav Sutherland

#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 drunk-eyed existence.

Wed 04 Oct COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + GUISED)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

LOCO KAMANCHI

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

GROOVERS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

Ibiza residents Sesentayuno and Keith Fortune whip up the tastiest groove-ingused techno and underground house.

HI-SOCIETY

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

ROGUE DISCO

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.

House, techno and disco, every Thursday at La Belle. You’re welcome.

MAGGIE MAY’S, 22:00–03:00, £3 - £5

Fri 06 Oct

LOVE MUSIC

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect.

O2 ABC, FROM 23:00, £5

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.

Cathouse’s Thursday night rock, metal and punk mashup.

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

BSR

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Gluten-free musical nibbles. Boss, steppas, regga, bas, funk, northern, soul, acid, fusion, jungle, house, disco and techno.

Sat 07 Oct MUMBO JUMBO

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £7

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 VOODOO ROOMS, 20:30–01:00, £9

Scotland’s award-winning retro club night presents an evening of cocktails and cool, show-girls and swing, roulette and romance with DJs Frankie Sumatra, Bugsy Seagull, plus Nikki Nevada and The Vegas Showgirls.

RHYTHM MACHINE

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 23:00, £6

Rhythm Machine returns after several months of nomadic pilgrimages, setting up camp for good at Liquid Room’s Warehouse. Welcome, RM. VITALIC

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £15

Pascal Arbez-Nicolas is often credited with having redefined techno, drawing from his native French sensibility. See for yourself.

FIRECRACKER RECORDINGS: HEAL YOURSELF AND MOVE (JOHNNY NASH + HOUSE OF TRAPS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £7

WEE RED BAR, FROM 20:00, £5

JUICE (AMI K + DAN)

CATHOUSE, 22:30–03:00, £5 - £6

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

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Global Roots sees the long-awaited return of its creator, Italo disco aficionado Andrea Montalto. He will be joined by Soulsville and new boogie and electro night Onde’s Cameron Mason. Expect afrobeat, world music and a large dose of disco and funk.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, R’n’B and urban in the back room.

THE ROCK SHOP

GLOBAL ROOTS (ANDREA MONTALTO) (CAM MASON)

Thu 05 Oct

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft’ joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

CATHOUSE SATURDAYS

WEE RED BAR, FROM 23:00, £5

In case you didn’t know, Edinburgh Uni’s hosting a Grace Jones symposium this month. Kinda pricey though, so maybe just head to this afterparty instead?

Edinburgh-based label Firecracker Recordings have international reach and acclaim, specialising in oddball house, techno and electronics.

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

SUBCULTURE (HARRI)

GRACE JONES CLUB NIGHT (FRANCIS DOSOO)

VEGAS!

Tue 31 Oct Eclectic Tuesday nighter playing the best in house, techno and electronic – or, in their words ‘casually ignoring shite requests since 2005’.

All drums, all the time, all night. Lord of Sneakytown Nick and special guests bring drum tracks to the club from across genres. ALL proceeds go to Shelter.

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £3

SOUL JAM: 8TH BIRTHDAY (DAVID BARBAROSSA + LUTHER VAN DANSIG + PERCY MAIN + TUESDAY GONZALEZ)

KILLER KITSCH

PARADISE VINYL (CAMERON COCHRANE) PARADISE PALMS, 18:00–22:00, FREE

Funk, soul, beats and bumps from the Mumbo Jumbo regulars and pals.

Hip-hop and R’n’B karaoke with everything from Nelly and Kelly to Ludacris to Craig David to TLC.

BUFF CLUB, 23:00–03:00, £3 - £5

NICKS DRUM WORKSHOP (NICK + SPECIAL GUESTS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

Brand new weekly Bongo night by Electrikal Sound System, dishing out drum and bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage.

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10 - £12

UNHOLY

Listings

DIVINE! (ANDREW DIVINE)

THE RUM SHACK, 20:00–01:00, FREE

The long running club comes to the Southside of Glasgow. Funk, soul, latin, psyche and more.

Sun 01 Oct

Dan and Ami K make weird waves through house and techno.

CATHOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £4

58

SWG3 GLASGOW, FROM 20:00, £32.70

Edinburgh Clubs

Nick Peacock spins a Saturdayready selection of vintage disco, soul and funk.

O2 ABC, 23:00–03:00, £5

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

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

Fri 27 Oct

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

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

FANTASTIC MAN

SUB CLUB, FROM 23:00, £10

The Show troupe hit Subbie with house and techno duo Solardo in tow.

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R’n’B and hip-hop.

JELLY BABY

BLOC+, FROM 23:00, FREE

Indie disco bringing in all things MTV2 and 120 Minutes with guests Wayne and Garth.

CREAM: 25TH ANNIVERSARY (DJ ANTHONY PROBYN + BERG + GIUSEPPE OTTAVIANI + IAIN BONEY CLARK + JON MANCINI + OFFICIAL + JULIAN JORDAN + K-KLASS + N-JOI + PAUL BLEASDALE + THIRD PARTY)

SHOW (SOLARDO)

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

Euan Neilson plays the best in classic R’n’B and hip-hop.

JELLY BABY

LA CHEETAH CLUB, 23:00–03:00, FREE

GONZO WAYNE’S WORLD HALLOWEEN SPECIAL (CLUB NIGHT)

MAD 71 (DR. VZX MOIST) (BAMYA)

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 20:00, TBC

Brighton musical improv/poetry duo Mad 71 headline Henry’s.

FLIP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, £0 - £3

FLY (JASPER JAMES)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 23:00, £10

The Fly Clubbers hand over the decks to bright young Glasgow house music talent Jasper James for the evening.

ELECTRIKAL: BASHMENT CARNIVAL

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £5 - £10

Soundsystem party-starters, part of a music and art collective specialising in all things bass.

CUTS AND STRINGS

After a self-imposed hiatus, these musical veterans unite to shake things up at the Wee Red.

NIGHTVISION X ELECTRIKAL: MY NU LENG (DREAD MC)

LA BELLE ANGELE, 22:00–03:00, £16

Two of Edinburgh’s club aficionadios go head-to-head. My Nu Leng blend everything from bass through to house. Best known for their blistering sets and dark, smouldering vibe. Heavy on the mood but always compulsively danceable.

Percy Main and pals showcase their favourite picks from the Paradise Palms in-house record store Paradise Vinyl.

SUNDAY 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 09 Oct

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £3

Back again, one of the DJ producers who is closest to Sneaks’ heart.

DJ show.

MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hip-hop, R’n’B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

Tue 10 Oct FOOL’S GOLD

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

New weekly, bringing the best in hip-hop, funk and soul.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

MIDNIGHT BASS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £4

Brand new weekly Bongo night by Electrikal Sound System, dishing out drum and bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage.

Wed 11 Oct COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

LOCO KAMANCHI

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

GROOVERS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

Ibiza residents Sesentayuno and Keith Fortune whip up the tastiest groove-ingused techno and underground house.

WITNESS (BENJI B) (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + GUISED) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £9

One of the UK’s most respected broadcasters and DJs, Radio 1 institution Benji B touches down in the Witness booth.

Thu 12 Oct JUICE (AMI K + DAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Dan and Ami K 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.

RITUAL

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, TBC

Ritual returns with another midweek night of the best disco, deep and soulful house music.

COMMUNITY RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion plus sensual positivity Jacuzzi General. Exploring music from around the world. What it was, what it is, what it shall be. Plus special guests.

RETURN OF THE WHACK

Artwork all night on proper party form - Full decor in effect with the venue dressed as Artwork’s front room.

JACUZZI GENERAL (IDEAL MEXICO)

Take a dip into Jacuzzi General's pleasure tub in his monthly immersion of what's hot. Glasgow based DIY events collective Ideal Mexico will be joining JG in this month's edition of aural and full body refreshment.

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Where mysterious girls, backstreet boys and common people come to get their freak on. Edinburgh’s baddest 90s party featuring resident DJ Missus Boombastic.

Sun 08 Oct

COALITION (BELIEVE + FRIENDS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Believe presents the best in bass DJs from Edinburgh at his weekly Sunday communion.

ARTWORK: ARTS HOUSE

THE CAVES, 23:00–03:00, £8

ROGUE DISCO

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

House, techno and disco, every Thursday at La Belle. You’re welcome.

Fri 13 Oct 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, FROM 23:00, £5

The popular queer night returns to the Wee Red.

THE SKINNY

NIGHTVISION: LATE NITE TUFF GUY X PRINCE TRIBUTE THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 22:00, £12.50 - £16.50

King of the edit’ Late Nite Tuff Guy takes a journey back to celebrate the life’s work of one of the greatest showmen, producers and songwriters to ever grace a stage.

BIGFOOT'S TEA PARTY (POWDER)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £7

With releases on ESP / Cocktail d’Amore, a brilliant RA feature and parties with Mood Hut, Powder has established herself as both an intriguing and crucial new artist from Japan.

THE FRIDAY NIGHT BEAT LAUNDRY (GARY MAC + KEV WRIGHT) PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Disco-jocks Gary Mac and Kev Wright return once again to The Palms with their laundry basket overflowing with acid house, groovy tracks and Balearic bliss.

LA LA LAND (HORSE MEAT DISCO)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 23:00, £10

La La invite the rapscallions at HMD to spin some discs.

THE POUND

MIDNIGHT BASS THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £4

Brand new weekly Bongo night by Electrikal Sound System, dishing out drum and bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage.

SOUL JAM: APHID (PERCY MAIN + TUESDAY GONZALEZ)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Aphid of Miss World joins Soul Jam, your weekly no holds barred funk fest.

Wed 18 Oct COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

Sat 21 Oct BUBBLEGUM

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

SOULSVILLE

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

Raw, high energy R’n’B at Bongo.

WASABI DISCO (KRIS WASABI)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

Mutant Disco and Sleazy Electro Throbbers spun ‘til late in a trashy boozer.

PERCY MAIN SOCIAL CLUB (TWO GUYS)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

House, garage and bass adventures with Blackwax and Faultlines.

A monthly social with Percy Main and pals spinning shakin’ disco, balearic boogie, gareish gospel and hermetic haus. Bring your friends, your mum and your dancing boots.

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

LA BELLE ANGELE, 19:00–22:00, £2 - £5

WITNESS (ROSS BLACKWAX + FAULT LINES + SKILLIS + GUISED)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

LOCO KAMANCHI

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

GROOVERS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

DECADE: 90S V 00S PARTY

Throwback to a time when life was simpler, when Kappa was cool and Brian Harvey hadn’t yet run himself over. Pop punk ‘til you drop.

BRING IT ALL BACK

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, TBC

Hip-hop night with a host of DJs, MCs and vocalists, brought to you by DJ Beef and pals.

Ibiza residents Sesentayuno and Keith Fortune whip up the tastiest groove-ingused techno and underground house.

Shit gets nostalgic at The Liquid Room, with noughties, nineties and throwbacks galore.

Sat 14 Oct

Thu 19 Oct

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

THE HIVE, 21:00–03:00, £0 - £4

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

BUBBLEGUM

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

ASYLUM

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Housey disco techno vibes REWIND

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £5 - £7

Monthly party night that celebrating the best in soul, disco, rock and pop with music from the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s and current bangers.

JUICE (AMI K + DAN)

Sun 22 Oct

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

HI-SOCIETY

Early weekend-welcoming (y’know, for students) chart anthems, bolstered by hip-hop, R’n’B and urban in the back room.

COMMUNITY RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

Manchester’s very best, with sweet and sour treats for the all you can eat mind buffet.

HENRY’S CELLAR BAR, FROM 20:00, £5 - £6

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £6

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, TBC

DR NO’S SKA CLUB

Baz and Dave spin out some belters under a strictly vinyl-only policy.

THE EGG

WEE RED BAR, FROM 23:00, £3 - £5

A salad of genres: sixties garage and soul plus 70s punk and new wave, peppered with psych and indie for good measure.

BIG N BASHY (PROC FISKAL)

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

Mighty mix of reggae, grime, dubstep and jungle played by inimitable residents Brother Most Righteous, Skillis, Era and Deburgh.

OTHER THUMPERS (Z LOVECRAFT) (DONALD DUST) PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Other Thumpers welcomes rising South London tour-de-force Z Lovecraft to Paradise Palms for a night of experimental rhythmics, polytimbres, rollers and a shit tonne of bongos.

Sun 15 Oct

COALITION (BELIEVE + FRIENDS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Believe presents the best in bass DJs from Edinburgh at his weekly Sunday communion.

SUNDAY 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 16 Oct MINDSET

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £3

Back again, one of the DJ producers who is closest to Sneaks’ heart.

DJ show.

MOTHERSHIP CONNECTION

The Mothership returns to Bongo.

In the main room, catch a history of funk. And upstairs? An exploration of the influence of funk on techno, and their shared links to Afrofuturism.

Of course.

ROGUE DISCO

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

House, techno and disco, every Thursday at La Belle. You’re welcome.

Fri 20 Oct BALKANARAMA

THE CAVES, 22:00–03:00, TBC

Balkanarama, Scotland’s own riotous night of all things Balkan hits Summerhall. OPA! PASS THE VIBES

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Pass The Vibes resident DJ Fusion brings you awww the bangers from 90s Hip Hop right through to Dubstep and all the guilty pleasures in between.

FLIP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, £0 - £3

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect.

HEADSET: OLD SCHOOL GARAGE SPECIAL

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £6

Fledgling night mixed up by a selection of Edinburgh DJs, including the chaps behind the Witness, Coalition and Big ‘n’ Bashy nights.

ATTESA (C-SHAMAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £5

A classified expedition through the realms of music let us dance.

F.O.N.O (PELOTON AND OC)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Tue 17 Oct

FoNo (For One Night Only) is the new offering from DJs Peloton and OC. The pair have been brining themselves in all things music for 20-odd years and the pickling juice is oh so sweet. Expect all things soulful, funky, deep and dark.

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 23:00, £10

MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hip-hop, R’n’B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

FOOL’S GOLD

New weekly, bringing the best in hip-hop, funk and soul.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

October 2017

Breakbeat. R’n’B. Hip-hop. Grime.

Bouncy fun for everyone.

Dan and Ami K make weird waves through house and techno.

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion plus sensual positivity Jacuzzi General. Exploring music from around the world. What it was, what it is, what it shall be. Plus special guests.

TEESH (RUF DUG)

DROWZEE + HYPNO + SKANKY B

FLY (TRANCE WAX)

The Fly Clubbers hand over the decks to PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £4

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

COALITION (BELIEVE + FRIENDS)

Believe presents the best in bass DJs from Edinburgh at his weekly Sunday communion.

SUNDAY 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 23 Oct

MINDSET (GARETH SOMMERVILLE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Back again, one of the DJ producers who is closest to Sneaks’ heart.

DJ show.

MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

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.

COMMUNITY RADIO (JACUZZI GENERAL)

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–23:00, FREE

Weekly radio show presented by Palms resident and purveyor of passion plus sensual positivity Jacuzzi General. Exploring music from around the world. What it was, what it is, what it shall be. Plus special guests.

ROGUE DISCO

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

House, techno and disco, every Thursday at La Belle. You’re welcome.

Fri 27 Oct FLY (THEO KOTTIS)

CABARET VOLTAIRE, FROM 23:00, £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.

LIONOIL INDUSTRIES

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £7

Edinburgh label crew Lionoil Industries bring very special guests along for another round.

NIKNAK

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Nik and Nak are back for their lastFridayofeverymonth take over.

Expect boogalo, humpers, star funk, pumpers, discotechno, Italo fudge, pop, electroniqueefa, wild dance moves and possibly a special guest or two.

SOUL TRAIN

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Welcome aboard The Night Train, taking you on an uplifting journey filled with funk, soul, disco and motown classics.

11 YEARS OF SUBSTANCE & 10 YEARS OF HESSLE AUDIO (BEN UFO + PEARSON SOUND + PANGAEA + GAVIN RICHARDSON+ DOMMM + VELOCITY FUNK) THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £15 - £22.50

Monday-brightening mix of hip-hop, R’n’B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

A triple headlining bill of epic proportions in aid of two big birthdays.

Tue 24 Oct

Hip-hop night with a host of DJs, MCs and vocalists, brought to you by DJ Beef and pals.

FOOL’S GOLD

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

New weekly, bringing the best in hip-hop, funk and soul.

TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

MIDNIGHT BASS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £4

Brand new weekly Bongo night by Electrikal Sound System, dishing out drum and bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage.

Wed 25 Oct COOKIE

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Resident midweek student rammy of chart, club and electro hits.

LOCO KAMANCHI

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, £4 - £5

Hella fun midweek throwdown playing soul, funk, jazz, ska, disco and more.

GROOVERS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £4 - £5

Ibiza residents Sesentayuno and Keith Fortune whip up the tastiest groove-ingused techno and underground house.

HOTFLUSH ON THE ROAD (SCUBA & OR:LA) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, TBC

Hotflush on the road 2017 sees label head Scuba play with Hotflush labelmates in around the UK. For the Edinburgh leg, Or:la comes to town.

DISCO BISCUIT

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £4

Disco Biskit returns. After their sell out in March, the Get Down residents are back to offer up the finest selection of disco, funk and soul records imaginable. This one is guaranteed to go off.

Thu 26 Oct JUICE (AMI K + DAN)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

Dan and Ami K make weird waves through house and techno.

Sun 29 Oct

COALITION (BELIEVE + FRIENDS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, FREE

Believe presents the best in bass DJs from Edinburgh at his weekly Sunday communion.

BOMBSKARE: SKALLOWEEN

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 20:00, £10

Your friendly neighbourhood nineskulled-skanktastrophe return from the dead to serve up their annual Skalloween party.

SUNDAY 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: DJ MRS MAGOO

LA BELLE ANGELE, 14:00–16:30, £6 - £8

Family fun for the post-rave generation of parents; helping parents be responsibly irresponsible since 2013.

Mon 30 Oct

MINDSET (JACQUES GREENE)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £3

Back again, one of the DJ producers who is closest to Sneaks’ heart.

DJ show.

MIXED UP

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Monday-brightening mix of hip-hop, R’n’B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

Tue 31 Oct TRASH

THE HIVE, 22:00–03:00, FREE

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherrypicked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

MIDNIGHT BASS

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £4

Brand new weekly Bongo night by Electrikal Sound System, dishing out drum and bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage.

SOUL JAM: HALLOWEEN (PERCY MAIN + TUESDAY GONZALEZ) SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £2

No ghouls barred funk fest terrifying Wednesday mornings since 2009.

HEADSET HALLOWEEN

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00, £2 - £5

Headset get spooky, filling Room 1 with garage, techno and house, and Room 2 with hip-hop, R’n’B and funk.

Costumes compulsory.

THE POUND

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

PROPAGANDA

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £4

Dundee Clubs

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

Fri 06 Oct

Sat 28 Oct

All Good get stuck into a night of prog house, electronica and trip-hop with Leftfield.

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 (LAUREL FACALL + CHECK CHECK CHECK)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00, £0 - £5

Live fast die yung, Ride gals do it well.

Teacha El and CheckyerStrides play 00s R’n’B and 90s hip-hop and put their lighters up.

MADCHESTER

THE LIQUID ROOM, FROM 22:30, £5 - £7

Established in 1994, Madchester’s a long running Edinburgh club night celebrating the baggiest beats from the late 80s and early 90s.

MESSENGER

THE BONGO CLUB, FROM 23:00, £3 - £6

Conscious roots and dub reggae rockin’ from the usual beefy Messenger Sound System.

NIGHTVISION: ELROW AFTER PARTY

LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00, TBC

ALL GOOD (LEFTFIELD)

READING ROOMS, FROM 22:00, £14

Sat 07 Oct

THE NEXT CHAPTER OF KAGE

CONROY’S BASEMENT, FROM 23:00, TBC

Departed club Kage is resurrected at Conroy’s Basement.

Sat 14 Oct

SULTA SELECTS (DENIS SULTS + BIG MIZ)

READING ROOMS, FROM 23:00, £10

Dennis Sulta bring his Sulta Selects tour with house music’s hottest prospects.

Sun 15 Oct

SUNDAY MASS (OVERFLOW + BAXTER + GLYN) READING ROOMS, 22:30–02:30, TBC

A holy, holy night. (Of techno.)

Thu 26 Oct LOOSE JOINTS

READING ROOMS, 22:30–03:00, £0 - £5

The official after-party for a huge Halloween extravaganza.

Loose Joints take up the reigns as residents in their launch night at Reading Rooms.

PARADISE PALMS, 21:00–01:00, FREE

Fri 27 Oct

FINITRIBE (TIMOTHY CLERKIN)

Davie Millar and Timothy "Heretic" Clerkin take to the booth at PP. EL ROW EDINBURGH

ROYAL HIGHLAND CENTRE, FROM 12:00, TBC

Nightvision team up with the mighty El Row to bring to stir up Halloweeny trouble in Edinburgh.

KENT DISCO

THE MOUSETRAP, 21:00–01:00, FREE

An evening of fine rhythm selections taking in disco, synth, soul, star funk, cosmic and electro. Expect stone cold classics and blatant belters.

MUNGO’S HI-FI SOUND SYSTEM

READING ROOMS, 21:30–03:00, TBC

The majestic Mungo’s Hi-Fi Sound System return to Dundee’s Reading Rooms for a mighty one.

Sat 28 Oct

BOOK CLUB: SPOOK CLUB HALLOWEEN PARTY

READING ROOMS, FROM 22:00, £10 - £12

Spook Club haunts the Reading Rooms once more for a terror of a gig.

Theatre Glasgow Theatre CCA: Centre for Contemporary Art TRICKY HAT: THE FLAMES

4-4 OCT, TIMES VARY, £2.50 - £5

Combining performance and original music with striking visual design, The Flames take inspiration from everyday life making the extraordinary, out of the ordinary.

Part of Luminate Festival.

BUZZCUT DOUBLE THRILLS: STACY MAKISHI

11 OCT, 7:00PM, £7 - £18

Double Thrills returns, bringing another monthly helping of the wildest artists at the edges of form from Scotland, the UK and beyond. For their first event they invite Stacy Makishi’s to perform Vesper Time, with support from other local artists.

Citizens Theatre

FAITHFUL RUSLAN: THE STORY OF A GUARD DOG

UNTIL 7 OCT, 7:30PM, £12.50 - £23

A satire on the Stalinist regime in Russia seen through the eyes of a guard dog which has been described as a modern Animal Farm for the world of Trump, May and Putin.

Oran Mor

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: LOVE AND DEATH IN GOVAN AND HYNDLAND

2-7 OCT, 1:00PM, £10 - £14

Ivan is a writer with a deadline but he’s blocked. Ten years ago to the day his mother passed and a phone call from his brother has him reliving the last chaotic months of her life. He reviews his own journey from Govan to the privileged West End. A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: HYSTERIA!

9-14 OCT, 1:00PM, £10 - £14

In April this year, Julia Taudevin and Dr Iris Elliott began exploring the impact of sexism on mental health.

This is a darkly comic political cabaret for our times, partly inspired by the 2016 US election and the 2017 global women's marches.

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: THE BURTON TAYLOR AFFAIR

30 OCT-4 NOV, 1:00PM, £10 - £14

A new play by Welsh writer Steven Elliot exploring the affair between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton that caused a sensation.

Platform HEADSPACE

13 OCT, 12:00PM, FREE

Platform's annual celebration and contribution to the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival, Headspace, features a unique blend of quality theatre, music and visual arts delivered by contemporary artists and participants from the local community.

THE SUNSHINE GHOST

20 OCT, 7:00PM, £4 - £8.50

A new musical from Richard Ferguson and Andy Cannon, telling the tale of an acquisition of Castle MacKinnon by a love-struck billionaire and property tycoon.

WELCOME MY SON

5-9 OCT, 7:00PM, £4 - £8.50

A unique interpretation of Frankenstein; as told through the Monster's eyes. The piece explores themes of isolation, loneliness, conformity and prejudice, themes that are just as culturally and politically relevant as they were 200 years ago.

THE STORY OF THE LITTLE GENTLEMAN

10 OCT, 2:00PM, £4 - £8.50

The Little Gentleman thinks he will live a sad and lonely life forever, until one day he is woken up by a curious dog who just wants to play.

SPROG ROCK 21 OCT, 2:00PM – 3:00PM, £4 - £8.50

Sprog Rock has toured throughout Scotland, creating music and gigs for children and adults to enjoy together. The Sprog Rock gig will be celebratory, inventive, playful; an interactive experience for all to enjoy.

OLD BOY

25-28 OCT, TIMES VARY, £4 - £8.50

A brand new show featuring the real relationships of males of various ages from Glasgow in an attempt to explore the love that is shared between men in families and the legacy passed down through generations.

LOVE SONG TO LAVENDER MENACE

29 OCT, 2:00PM, £4 - £8.50

It's 1987 and Paul and David are preparing for the 5th anniversary of Lavendar Menace, Scotland’s foremost lesbian, gay, feminist bookshop. A testimony to the passion it takes to make something happen and the loss felt when you let it go.

Tramway

V/DA WITH PROJECT X: GRIN

13 OCT, 7:00PM, £7 - £10

Directed and choreographed by Mele Broomes, Grin inverts the continued colonial narratives of black bodies and the exoticising and sexualising of Caribbean dance styles.

THEO CLINKARD COMPANY: THIS BRIGHT FIELD

13-14 OCT, 7:15PM, £11 - £15

A two-part commission from Theo Clinkard featuring triking lighting design, bold costumes and music performed live by James Keane.

SHARE MY TABLE: I HEAR THE IMAGE MOVING

20-21 OCT, 6:30PM, £6 - £8

The culmination of a series of creative workshops exploring the media portrayal and public perceptions of refugees and asylum-seekers by a participatory multi-artform group led by Tramway and the Scottish Refugee Council.

ADITI MANGALDAS DANCE COMPANY; INTER_RUPTED

20-21 OCT, 7:30PM, £11 - £15

A high-octane fusion of the ancient art of Kathak with 21st century sound, rhythm and light, from maverick dance maker Aditi Mangaldas.

Royal Theatre Conservatoire of Tron ONE MISSISSIPPI 10-14 OCT, 8:00PM, PRICES VARY Scotland THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF DISSOCIA

31 OCT, 7:30PM, £5 - £15.50

Lisa Jones has been feeling off lately – turns out, she has lost an hour of her life. She travels to the surreal land of Dissocia to get it back, and finds a host of funny, brutal and strangely familiar characters along the way. Anthony Neilson’s bold and brilliant play is a raucous and wild adventure through the underbelly of one woman’s mind.

The King’s Theatre

A new hard-hitting verbatim play that explores how the impact of childhood experiences shape men’s adult lives, and the journey it takes them on.

BROTHERS KARAMAZOV

12-28 OCT, 7:45PM, PRICES VARY

In a society where ‘everything is permitted’ for a chosen few, what do the iconic Karamazov brothers have to say to the world today? Faynia Williams directs this Dostoyevsky masterpiece.

FOUR CITIES POETRY SLAM

15 OCT, 2:00PM, £8

17-21 OCT, 7:30PM, £12 - £51.90

Robin Cairns comperes a live poetry competition between Glasgow, Inverness, Edinburgh and St Andrews.

THAT’LL BE THE DAY

Edinburgh Theatre

CRAZY FOR YOU

The all-singing, all-dancing Gerschwin musical is given a new lease of life by Strictly Come Dancing winners Tom Chambers and Caroline Flack.

22 OCT, 7:30PM, £25.90 - £27.90

Rock’n’roll variety show crammed with musical favourites from the 50s, 60s and 70s (i.e. you WILL sing along to Buddy Holly).

THE STEAMIE

23 OCT-11 NOV, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Special edition of Tony Roper’s washhouse comedy, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the muchloved play.

HAIRSPRAY

2-7 OCT, 7:30PM, £20.50 - £62.50

Toe-tapping musical based on the film by John Waters, following the tale of a girl with big hair and an even bigger heart.

THE SENSATIONAL 60S EXPERIENCE

8-10 OCT, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Mike Pender, Chris Farlowe, Herman’s Hermits, The Fortunes and New Amen Corner come together to perform 60s pop classics.

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

10-14 OCT, 7:30PM, £20.90 - £57.90

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.

Theatre Royal SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN

31 OCT-4 NOV, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Brill choreo, and iconic songs and a fistful of much-loved comedy routines, dance numbers and love songs.

SCOTTISH BALLET: AUTUMN 2017

Festival Theatre HEDDA GABLER

17-21 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Henrik Ibsen’s classic drama of passion and desperation, following a dangerously irresistible woman as she rushes headlong towards a disaster that will embrace all those around her.

SCOTTISH BALLET DANCES: STRAVINSKY

11-13 OCT, 7:30PM, £25 - £30

Scotland’s national dance company returns with a programme inspired by the music of one of the most distinctive and influential composers of the 20th Century, Igor Stravinsky, performed by the Scottish Ballet Orchestra.

King’s Theatre Edinburgh THE KITE RUNNER

9-14 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Khaled Hosseini’s bestselling novel is adapted for stage, telling the tale of Hassan and Amir, two children whose lives are shattered by a terrible, unforseen incident...

A STREET CAR NAMED DESIRE

3-7 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Tennessee Williams’ classic drama presents haunting portrayals of the tempestuous relationships between aristocratic Blanche Dubois, her sister Stella and Stella’s brutish husband, Stanley Kowlaski.

6-7 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

Royal Lyceum Theatre

SCOTTISH OPERA: LA TRAVIATA

6-28 OCT, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Experience the bold, sensual power of Igor Stravinsky’s scores, performed by the Scottish Ballet.

19 OCT-2 DEC, 7:15PM, £11.50 - £84.40

Scottish Opera revisit La traviata – Sir David McVicar’s flamboyant and passionate masterpiece – after performing its Scottish premiere in 2008.

COCKPIT

Bridget Boldand’s immersive play, set in Germany in 1945 within a provincial playhouse being used as a transit camp for displaced people across the continent.

Listings

59

LOVE SONG TO LAVENDER MENACE 12-21 OCT, 8:00PM, £10 - £15

An LGBT History Month Scotland Cultural Commission, exploring ‘the love and passion it takes to make something happen and the loss that is felt when you have to let it go’.

Scottish Storytelling Centre ANTIGONE

2-4 OCT, 8:00PM, £7.50 - £10

Oxygen House celebrate their 30th anniversary with this powerful production of Sophocles’ tragedy.

STORIES ON THE WAY

6 OCT, 7:30PM, £5.50 - £8

Inspired by the season shift and the nights drawing in, apprentice storytellers present an evening of stories in the Netherbow Theatre.

Summerhall BLANCHE & BUTCH

4-13 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

The witty story of the lives, loves and losses of three disabled men who used to be the sensational Heelz n Wheelz.

BIRDS OF PARADISE CABARET

14 OCT, 9:00PM – 10:30PM, £3 - £5

Stick around after Blanche & Butch and for an inter-generational cabaret in partnership with Luminate. Showcasing LBGTQI+/disabled performers – local starlets and international stars – you’re assured an evening of sparkles and sequins.

BILLY FOG

14 OCT, 5:00PM – 6:00PM, £5

Mateusz Przylecki’s shadow theatre performance for everyone who is or used to be 10 years old, maybe lost their cat, hamster or parrot, would like to outsmart death and close it in a hermetic jar.

Based on Guillaume Bianco’s comic book Billy Fog. KING MATT THE FIRST

15 OCT, 5:00PM – 6:00PM, £5

King Matt the First serves the role to tellvall about a complicated world of many meanings, contexts and points of view.

TULILULI

19 OCT, 11:00AM, £3

Theatrical installation with a script written for the youngest viewers.

Soft, fluffy space, the play of lights, and oval shapes aid the child’s sense of security, stimulate their creativity and their desire to explore the world. Dancing and elements of pantomime make the surrounding space more comfortable. Shows at 11am, 2pm and 4pm.

The Edinburgh Playhouse THE MAGIC OF MOTOWN

14 OCT, 7:30PM, £29.90 - £30.90

In praise of the finest sounds to come out of Detroit and beyond in the Motown period.

THE SENSATIONAL 60S EXPERIENCE

8-10 OCT, 7:30PM, PRICES VARY

Mike Pender, Chris Farlowe, Herman’s Hermits, The Fortunes and New Amen Corner come together to perform 60s pop classics.

THE ELO EXPERIENCE

11 OCT, 7:30PM, £25

ELO tribute act.

THE CARPENTERS STORY

10 OCT, 7:30PM, £26.40 - £27.90

A musical dedication to the life and times of The Carpenters.

SUNSET BOULEVARD

3-7 OCT, 7:30PM, £18 - £57

Musical adaptation of the Oscarwinning film, following a struggling scriptwriter and his chance meeting with silent screen star Norma Desmond. Matinee performances also available.

MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET

24-28 OCT, 7:30PM, £19.90 - £45.50

A ma-hoo-sive musical inspired by the famed recording session which united Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins for the first (and last) time.

Matinees available.

JACKSON

20 OCT, 7:30PM, £22.50 - £26.50

Long-time MJ fan Ben recreates the Michael Jackson experience with his stunning rendition of all his favourite songs.

60

Listings

MIDGE URE + THE CHRISTIANS + ALTERED IMAGES 22 OCT, 7:30PM, £33.65 - £36.15

The former Ultravox bassist and Live Aid man revisits his back catalogue.

Traverse Theatre JURY PLAY

3-7 OCT, 7:30PM, £11-22

Grid Iron's immersive play where The Trav becomes a courtroom; and the audience, the jury.

OUR FATHERS

21-28 OCT, 7:30PM, £13.50

Comedy Glasgow Comedy Sun 01 Oct

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE

A new play inspired by Father and Son Our Fathers is Edmund Gosse’s Victorian memoir about growing up in an evangelical Christian family.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £1 - £6

3-6 OCT, TIMES VARY, £13.50

YESBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: PLEADING

Freya and Michael have been travelling around the world, and everything was going well until they were arrested at customs.

Three weeks later, still in prison, a defence barrister advises them of the choices they face; pleading guilty or innocent.

THRAWN CRAWS: A BRIEF ARCHAEOLOGY OF LOVE

4 OCT, 8:00PM, £7

Thrawn Craws presents important stories about the many facets of love in contemporary Scotland.

Enjoy an evening of vibrant new short plays, read script-in-hand by a crack cast of four.

ONE MISSISSIPPI

10-14 OCT, 8:00PM, PRICES VARY

A new hard-hitting verbatim play that explores how the impact of childhood experiences shape men’s adult lives, and the journey it takes them on.

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: LOVE AND DEATH IN GOVAN AND HYNDLAND

10-14 OCT, TIMES VARY, £13.50

Ivan is a writer with a deadline but he’s blocked. Ten years ago to the day his mother passed and a phone call from his brother has him reliving the last chaotic months of her life. He reviews his own journey from Govan to the privileged West End. MAN TO MAN

11-14 OCT, 7:30PM, £11 - £22

Maggie Bain delivers a tour de force performance in this acclaimed new adaptation of Manfred Karge’s Man to Man which tells the story of Ella; a woman forced to adopt the identity of her dead husband in order to survive in Nazi Germany.

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: HYSTERIA!

17-21 OCT, TIMES VARY, £13.50

In April this year, Julia Taudevin and Dr Iris Elliott began exploring the impact of sexism on mental health.

This is a darkly comic political cabaret for our times, partly inspired by the 2016 US election and the 2017 global women’s marches.

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: FROM THE AIR

24-28 OCT, TIMES VARY, £13.50

Claire’s kids have fled the nest.

The hole this leaves in her life brings on a crippling fear of flying.

Her husband Pete works on the rigs and is due to retire soon. He thinks Claire’s been dealing with her phobia. She’s promised him this time she has.

THE MISS ANNABEL SINGS SHOW EPISODE 2

29 OCT, 4:00PM, £5 - £7

Dive’s chief weirdo and queen of queer cabaret is feeling fruity and sending a woof to all you lusty lovers to join her for an evening of comedy and romance, as Dive plunges the murky swamps of dating with their very own version of Blind Date.

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

SHELBY BOND: ONE MAN ROMEO & JULIET

THE STAND GLASGOW, 14:30–16:00, £4

Shelby Bond is Willy Nilly, performing an unforgettable and hilarious one man Romeo & Juliet, in which Shakespeare’s classic is condensed to six characters in 45 minutes for non-stop comedy and interactive fun.

Mon 02 Oct MONDAY NIGHT IMPROV

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £4 - £6

Two teams of comics battle it out for the biggest laughs under the watchful eye of ‘Improv Warlord’ Billy Kirkwood.

KOMEDY

YESBAR, FROM 20:30, £3

From the people who brought you CHUNKS comes a night of actual komedy.

Tue 03 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

GLASGOW HAROLD NIGHT

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

One hilarious show, completely improvised by two teams, based off an audience suggestion.

GLASGOW HAROLD NIGHT

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

One hilarious show, completely improvised by two teams, based off an audience suggestion.

Wed 04 Oct

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

COMEDIAN RAP BATTLES

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £4 - £6

Ro Cambell and The Wee Man’s comedian rap battle-off, where a select batch of comics compete to see who’s got the most swagger when it comes to hippity-hop wit.

Thu 05 Oct

THE THURSDAY SHOW (MICHAEL FABBRI + ASHLEY STORRIE + RUSSELL HICKS + DONALD ALEXANDER + BRUCE DEVLIN) THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

THE MAIDS

17 OCT-4 NOV, 7:30PM, £9 - £12

A re-telling of Jean Genet’s seminal psychological thriller.

BLANCHE & BUTCH

4-13 OCT, TIMES VARY, PRICES VARY

The witty story of the lives, loves and losses of three disabled men who used to be the sensational Heelz n Wheelz.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

IMPRACTICAL JOKERS: WHERE’S LARRY

THE SSE HYDRO, FROM 20:00, £30 - £55

The American comedy goofs behind TV Show Impractical Jokers, The Tenderloins, bring Where’s Larry? to Scottish shores.

Sat 07 Oct

THE SATURDAY SHOW (MICHAEL FABBRI + ASHLEY STORRIE + RUSSELL HICKS + DONALD ALEXANDER + BRUCE DEVLIN) THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sun 08 Oct

YESBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

SUSIE MCCABE: LET’S GET PHYSICAL

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £8 - £10

Susie McCabe is determined to get the nation pumpin’ with her new show for 2017. Gone are the takeaways and cigarettes, instead it’s all bandanas and bananas as she sets her sights on the body beautiful.

Mon 09 Oct

IMPROV KILLED MY MONDAY

YESBAR, FROM 19:30, £2 - £3

An evening of unscripted comedy for fans of Comedy Bang Bang, Whose Line is it Anyway etc. With hosts Improv Killed My Dog and special guests.

IMPROV KILLED MY MONDAY

YESBAR, FROM 19:30, £2 - £3

An evening of unscripted comedy for fans of Comedy Bang Bang, Whose Line is it Anyway etc. With hosts Improv Killed My Dog and special guests.

Tue 10 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

LIGHT BULB SHOW

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Alternative comedy showcase – a brand new night of stand up comedy.

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

SIMON AMSTELL: WHAT IS THIS?

TRAMWAY, FROM 20:00, £23

Dundee Rep

THE FRIDAY SHOW (MICHAEL FABBRI + ASHLEY STORRIE + RUSSELL HICKS + DONALD ALEXANDER + BRUCE DEVLIN)

Alternative comedy showcase – a brand new night of stand up comedy.

YESBAR VIRGINS

Dundee Theatre

Fri 06 Oct

The toustle-haired comic returns with his fifth stand-up tour in the UK, sharing deeply personal tales of freedom, sex and love.

LIGHT BULB SHOW

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

LIGHT BULB SHOW

BLACKFRIARS BASEMENT, 20:00–22:00, FREE

Alternative comedy showcase – a brand new night of stand up comedy.

Wed 11 Oct

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

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

BENEFIT IN AID OF SUPPORT IN MIND (GARY LITTLE + CHRIS FORBES + ASHLEY STORRIE + DONALD ALEXANDER + BILLY KIRKWOOD) THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £10

Fri 20 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (PHIL NICHOL + GEORGE EGG + STUART MITCHELL + WIS JANTARANSORN + JOJO SUTHERLAND)

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Mon 02 Oct

THE LATE SHOW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £3

LAUGHTER EIGHT

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Support in Mind Scotland is a national mental health charity working to improve the quality of life for people affected by mental illness.

Join in a night of comedy in support of their valuable work.

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £6 - £12

Thu 12 Oct

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

Another signature party with jokes from Luisa Omielan, following her unprecedentedly successful debut stand-up show, What Would Beyoncé Do?!

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Sat 28 Oct

THE THURSDAY SHOW (IMRAN YUSUF + MIKE MILLIGAN + JAY LAFFERTY + PAUL MCDANIEL + SCOTT AGNEW)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 13 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (IMRAN YUSUF + MIKE MILLIGAN + JAY LAFFERTY + PAUL MCDANIEL + SCOTT AGNEW)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

THE LATE SHOW

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sat 21 Oct

THE SATURDAY SHOW (PHIL NICHOL + GEORGE EGG + STUART MITCHELL + WIS JANTARANSORN + JOJO SUTHERLAND) THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

JIMMY CARR: THE BEST OF, ULTIMATE, GOLD, GREATEST HITS TOUR

SEC, FROM 20:00, TBC

The divisive comic tours his latest solo show, packed with oneliners, stories and smug musings on the human condition.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Sun 22 Oct

Late night lols at Yesbar.

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE

Sat 14 Oct

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £1 - £6

THE LATE SHOW

THE SATURDAY SHOW (IMRAN YUSUF + MIKE MILLIGAN + JAY LAFFERTY + PAUL MCDANIEL + SCOTT AGNEW)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

Sun 15 Oct

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

YESBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

CHRIS HENRY: BALLOONATICS

THE STAND GLASGOW, 14:30–16:00, £7 - £8

A show the whole family will love, Balloonatics promises to be a chaos-filled, nonsense-packed hour of balloons, laughs and excitement.

MICHAEL REDMOND’S SUNDAY SERVICE

Tue 24 Oct

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £1 - £6

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £3

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

YESBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

Tue 17 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Wed 18 Oct

NEW MATERIAL NIGHT (JULIA SUTHERLAND )

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Resident host Julia Sutherland introduces a variety of stand-up comedians from the Scottish circuit delivering all new material.

Thu 19 Oct

THE THURSDAY SHOW (PHIL NICHOL + GEORGE EGG + STUART MITCHELL + WIS JANTARANSORN + JOJO SUTHERLAND) THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

RED RAW

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Wed 25 Oct

GIGGLE FOR GLEN: BENEFIT IN AID OF THE BUTTERFLY TRUST AND QUEEN ELIZABETH HOSPITAL (JOE HEENAN + JAY LAFFERTY + KEIR MCALLISTER)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £8 - £10

Victoria Glen made it her life’s work to help and support people living with Cystic Fibrosis and life-limiting illness. Join a line-up of comics in a show raising funds for The Butterfly Trust.

LUISA OMIELAN: AM I RIGHT LADIES?

ORAN MOR, FROM 19:00, £14

THE SATURDAY SHOW (BRUCE MORTON + JOHN HASTINGS + KIMI LOUGHTON + MARTIN MOR)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

LAUGHTER EIGHT

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £10

Yesbar lols at – aye – 8pm.

THE LATE SHOW

YESBAR, FROM 22:15, £10

Late night lols at Yesbar.

GHOST-BUSKER

THE STAND GLASGOW, 14:30–16:00, £4

Mr Fibbers presents GhostBusker!, a spooktacular special, filled with funny songs, magic, and all round daftness. Fancy dress is very much encouraged.

Sun 29 Oct

YESBAR VIRGINS: COMEDY SUNDAY SCHOOL

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

A selection of five fledgling comedians do their best to win over the audience and graduate Vespbar’s ‘Comedy Sunday School’.

Mon 30 Oct CHUNKS

MCPHABBS, FROM 20:30, FREE

CHUNKS is a big night out entirely comprised of variety acts, sketches, monologues, character bits, animations, inanimations, contemporary dance, readings, or just anything silly, alternative and funny.

Tue 31 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Edinburgh Comedy Sun 01 Oct

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 12:30–15:00, FREE

Legendary free Sunday afternoon improv show. Marvel as resident duo Stu & Garry weave comedy magic from your 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.

THE NOISE NEXT DOOR: UPROAR

Thu 26 Oct

THE THURSDAY SHOW (BRUCE MORTON + JOHN HASTINGS + KIMI LOUGHTON + MARTIN MOR)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

YESBAR VIRGINS

YESBAR, FROM 20:00, £3

Graham Barrie introduces a selection of fledgling comedy talent handpicked fae Scotland.

Fri 27 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (BRUCE MORTON + JOHN HASTINGS + KIMI LOUGHTON + MARTIN MOR)

THE STAND GLASGOW, 19:30–23:00, £6 - £12

Prime stand-up from the Scottish and international circuit, hosted by a rotating selection of Stand stalwarts.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £12

The Noise Next Door cause a commotion with their fourth nationwide tour – an anarchic evening of side-splitting jokes, jaw-dropping characters and mind-blowing songs.

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (ABSOLUTE IMPROV) MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–20:30, £0 - £5

Five-star, four-time Edinburgh Fringe sell-out improv theatre company, presenting a fast-paced show at Monkey Barrel.

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (INVITED IMPROV) MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:45–21:45, £0 - £5

Two guest acts take the stage for a night of improvised fun.

RED RAW

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 03 Oct 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. THE STAND SPOTLIGHT: ANIMALS

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5

Up-and-coming comedians shine a light on a topic chosen to suit each week’s charitable theme.

Wed 04 Oct VIVA LA SHAMBLES

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £4 - £5

The Stand hosts a monthly evening of total joke-pandemonium as Edinburgh’s top comics join forces.

TOP BANANA

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

NEV: JOKE (PHIL OSHEA + PATRICK MULHOLLAD + JAMES MCINTOSH + DANIEL BESTER)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:00, £4

Six years into his stand-up career Nev is tired of being pigenholed as an cult weirdo. It ain’t paying well and he’s got a baby to feed. He can do proper jokes. So get ready for jokes.

Thu 05 Oct

THE THURSDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + PHIL DIFFER + KIRSTY MORRISON + CHRIS FORBES)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

SPONTANEOUS POTTER

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 19:00, £5

A brand new Harry Potter play from some of Edinburgh’s most top notch improv wizards.

Fri 06 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + PHIL DIFFER + KIRSTY MORRISON + CHRIS FORBES)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £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 07 Oct

THE SATURDAY SHOW (PAUL TONKINSON + PHIL DIFFER + KIRSTY MORRISON + CHRIS FORBES)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £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 08 Oct

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 12:30–15:00, FREE

Legendary free Sunday afternoon improv show. Marvel as resident duo Stu & Garry weave comedy magic from your 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.

THE SKINNY

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (SMOKY MONKEYS) MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–20:30, £0 - £5

Melodies and madness in the Monkey’s brand new narrative show.

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (ME PLUS ONE)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:45–21:45, £0 - £5

Mark Craig (TBC Improv) and a special guest improviser, create an entirely new and unique twoperson comedy show.

Mon 09 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £3

THE BIG SHOW

THE BIG SHOW

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city PUNCHLINE COMEDY NIGHT (FELICITY WARD) (CHRIS BETTS + JAMIE MACDONALD) CENTRAL HALL, FROM 20:00, £18.50

Get some lols under your belt with the Punchline Comedy Gala, hosted by the effortlessly hilarious Nish Kumar and featuring the acclaimed and utterly essential Felicity Ward.

MEN WITH COCONUTS & FRIENDS

SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE, FROM 20:00, £5.50 - £8

Tue 10 Oct

The award-winning musical improv comedy troupe are joined by new and established improvisers and sketch comedians as they present two hours of off-the-cuff scenes and original sketch comedy.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £6

Sun 15 Oct

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

BONA FIDE

Brand new material especially written for the theme of the night delivered by some of Scotland’s 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.

NEV: JOKE (RICHARD BROWN + SANDY BOUTTELL + PAUL MCDANIEL)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:00, £4

Six years into his stand-up career Nev is tired of being pigenholed as an cult weirdo. It ain’t paying well and he’s got a baby to feed. He can do proper jokes. So get ready for jokes.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 12:30–15:00, FREE

Legendary free Sunday afternoon improv show. Marvel as resident duo Stu & Garry weave comedy magic from your 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 16 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Wed 11 Oct

Tue 17 Oct

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £3

TOP BANANA

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

Thu 12 Oct

PROJECT X

All-new student night themed around the film of the same name, Project X.

THE THURSDAY SHOW (ADDY VAN DER BORGH + FELICITY WARD + JIM PARK + BRYAN GHOSH + BILLY KIRKWOOD)

Wed 18 Oct

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Radical satire from Keir McAllister, Vladimir McTavish, Stu Murphy and Mark Nelson.

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.

GREG DAVIES: YOU MAGNIFICENT BEAST

THE EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE, FROM 20:00, £31.65

The BAFTA-nominated star of The Inbetweeners, Cuckoo and Man Down returns with a new stand-up show.

PETER PANCAKES’S COMEDY EXTRAVAGANZA!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 19:00, FREE

Phil O’Shea brings a handpicked selection of riotous lols to Monkey Barrel.

Fri 13 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (ADDY VAN DER BORGH + FELICITY WARD + JIM PARK + BRYAN GHOSH + BILLY KIRKWOOD)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £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 14 Oct

THE SATURDAY SHOW (ADDY VAN DER BORGH + FELICITY WARD + JIM PARK + BRYAN GHOSH + BILLY KIRKWOOD)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

October 2017

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Sun 22 Oct

THE SUNDAY NIGHT LAUGH-IN

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £1 - £6

Chilled Sunday night laughs to see the weekend out.

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 12:30–15:00, FREE

Legendary free Sunday afternoon improv show. Marvel as resident duo Stu & Garry weave comedy magic from your suggestions.

PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

THE THURSDAY SHOW (CARL HUTCHINSON + JESSICA FOSTEKEW + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + MATTHEW MCALOONE + JOE HEENAN) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £10

Weekend-welcoming selection of handpicked headline acts and newcomers over a two-hour showcase.

SPONTANEOUS POTTER

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 19:00, £5

A brand new Harry Potter play from some of Edinburgh’s most top notch improv wizards.

Fri 20 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (WITH CARL HUTCHINSON + JESSICA FOSTEKEW + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + MATTHEW MCALOONE + JOE HEENAN) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £6 - £12

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 24 Oct 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 GORGIE CITY FARM

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5

Gorgie City Farm is a very special place; a free entry community farm that supports youngsters and adults with additional support needs while educating the public about food production. Support it at this fundraising event.

Wed 25 Oct TOP BANANA

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

THE THURSDAY SHOW (CAREY MARX + MATT GREEN + SUSAN MORRISON)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £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 27 Oct

THE FRIDAY SHOW (CAREY MARX + MATT GREEN + SUSAN MORRISON) THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £6 - £12

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £17.50

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 17:00–18:30, £4 - £5

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

It’s a fanny-filled world. Susan teaches you how to spot and avoid them, if she can remember.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:45–21:45, £0 - £5

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (THE CUTTING ROOM)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–20:30, £0 - £5

With time and place no obstacle, this improvised comedy is guaranteed to go where it has never gone before.

Mon 30 Oct RED RAW

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £3

Open mic-style beginners showcase, plus some old hands dropping by to road test new material.

Tue 31 Oct BRIGHT CLUB

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5

A selection of comedic academics do a stint of stand-up for your entertainment and enlightenment. Laughs and learning in one neat package = tick.

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.

SAHEJ RAHAL: BARRICADIA

Since July, Rahal has been developing a new body of work on residency at Cove Park to be presented in CCA’s gallery spaces as his first solo project in Scotland. Rahal works with a range of media including performance, video, installation and sculpture to explore the imagined destruction of the world as we know it. His work draws upon sources ranging from local folk legends, political events and science fiction – which are brought into dialogue with one another in the space – creating an elaborate and absurd mythology of imagined futures. Using discarded objects found in present day Scotland, Rahal creates artefacts which act as portals to a multitude of different times and spaces.

DAVID ROEDER: IDEALS FOR A FUTURE LIVIN’

1-20 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

Investigating aesthetic, spiritual and literary manoeuvres that we use in order to reconcile ourselves with the perpetual dread that lurks in our houses and homes, our walks to work and our wayward minds. Ten paintings, ten writings and something to listen to.

REBECCA HOWARD: THERE IS NO VISIBLE ROUTE TO THE VANISHING POINT

28 OCT-18 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition centred around a science-fiction film which explores the occurrence of metaphysical events induced by a series of everyday objects.

Cass Art STILL GOOD TYPE

16-31 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

Dundee Comedy Sat 28 Oct

AIDAN GOATLEY: THE JOYS OF RETAIL (AND HOW TO SURVIVE THEM)

DUNDEE REP, FROM 21:30, £10

Aidan Goatley shows the delights and horrors of the retail world, from insane area managers to delightful customers, and how you might escape them.

Glasgow-based lifestyle brand Navarah are host an exhibition showcasng the hand lettering/ typography work of Glasgow based graphic designers, who will be displaying w ​ ork for show and sale​.​

Compass Gallery JOHN MACFARLANE: AT THE EDGE OF THE WINGS

5-28 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

The artist and stage / set / costume designer and artist presents his first Scottish Solo exhibition since graduating from Glasgow School of Art in 1970.

David Dale Gallery and Studios CHRISTOPHER MACINNES

5-21 OCT, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

A new exhibition from Christopher MacInnes, forming the latest stage in David Dale Gallery’s 2017 exhibitions programme, entitled Annex.

Sat 28 Oct

5-21 OCT, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:00–23:00, £17.50

Glasgow Print Studio

THE SATURDAY SHOW (CAREY MARX + MATT GREEN + SUSAN MORRISON)

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

THE SATURDAY SHOW (WITH CARL HUTCHINSON + JESSICA FOSTEKEW + CHRISTOPHER MACARTHUR-BOYD + MATTHEW MCALOONE + JOE HEENAN)

Glasgow Art

JOJO SUTHERLAND AND SUSAN MORRISON: FANNY’S AHOY!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £12

Sat 21 Oct

Art

CCA: Centre for Contemporary Art

THE BIG SHOW

Packed Saturday evening bill of stand-up headliners and resident comperes to jolly along your weekend.

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

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

PROGRESS!

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, FROM 20:30, £5

Two guest acts take the stage for a night of improvised fun.

RED RAW

Thu 26 Oct

Thu 19 Oct

Legendary free Sunday afternoon improv show. Marvel as resident duo Stu & Garry weave comedy magic from your suggestions.

Mon 23 Oct

TOPICAL STORM

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 12:30–15:00, FREE

THE TBC IMPROV THEATRE (INVITED IMPROV)

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 19:30–23:00, £5 - £7

TOP BANANA

STU & GARRY’S FREE IMPROV SHOW

Monkey Barrel’s rising comedy star showcase; swing by and catch the stars of tomorrow.

Monkey Barrel’s comedy competition for new folk on the scene.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY CLUB, 20:30–22:50, £0 - £2

Sun 29 Oct

THE BIG SHOW

A great night of premier stand-up right in the heart of the city COMEDY KIDS

THE STAND COMEDY CLUB, 13:30–15:00, £5

Eight brave mini comedians hit the iconic Stand stage to reduce you to tears with hilarious sketches and pint sized stand up routines. Age ain’t nothing but a number. Best suited for 8-12’s.

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

SPORES OF LOVE

A new exhibition from Christopher MacInnes at David Dale Gallery.

LOUISE BOURGEOIS: ETCHINGS

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A South Bank touring exhibition from Louise Bourgeois.

SARA ALONSO: KID WONDER

1 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of Sara Alonso’s illustrated book, created in response to a song of the same name by Scottish songwriter Marcus Doo.

Glasgow School of Art PIONEERS OF POST-WAR PATTERN

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A showcase of new products created by the GSA’s Centre for Advanced Textiles inspired by the work of mid-20th century female designers who are represented in the GSA’s Archives and Collections including .

Silvia Chalmers, Dorothy Smith and Margaret Stewart. Also in the show will be work by Lucienne Day. EAST AND WEST WALK FORWARD

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A major exchange exhibition of work by 35 artists who also teach at the GSA’s partner institute in China, the Luxun Academy of Fine Arts (LAFA).

Among the featured works are piece by some of China’s leading artists including LI Xiangqun (President of LAFA) and WEI Ershen ( Former President of LAFA).

PROSTHETIC GREAVES

14-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

When Jeroen Blom discovered the lack of aesthetic options for those with amputated limbs, he teamed up with researchers, artisans and amputees to come up with a range of shin covers, which are referred to as ‘greaves’. See the fruits of this labour at GSA

GoMA POLYGRAPHS

1 OCT-20 MAY 18, 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.

MARLIE MUL: THIS EXHIBITION IS CANCELLED

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

Artist Marlie Mul has cancelled her first exhibition in Scotland. Until 29 Oct, the gallery will lie empty. To use the gallery for your own activities, speak to a member to staff onsite or download a proposal form from the website.

TASTE!

1 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

GoMA exhibits artworks from Glasgow Museums’ collection, displayed along with material from their own archive. Features works

by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Beryl Cook, Fischli/Weiss, Sarah Forrest, Andy Goldsworthy, Douglas Gordon,+ David Hockney, Eduardo Paolozzi, David Shirgley, Stanley Spencer, Andy Warhol and Lawrence Weiner.

STEPHEN SUTCLIFFE: WORK FROM THE COLLECTION

1 OCT-21 JAN 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

Glasgow-based artist Stephen Sutcliffe brings a solo exhibition to GoMA, featuring works which draw upon a large personal archive of broadcast materials and printed ephemera. These new works focus on anxiety, self-doubt and the creative process.

Hunterian Art Gallery

ART OF POWER: MASTERPIECES FROM THE BUTE COLLECTION

1 OCT-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.

NEIL CLEMENTS: ELECTRIC EYE

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

The Hunterian showcases new paintings and sculptures by Glasgow-based artist Neil Clements, whose work concerns tends to take the form of monochromatic paintings, shaped canvases and geometric sculptures.

THE TRUEST MIRROR OF LIFE

1 OCT-21 JAN 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

A display of 19th century French caricatures showcasing work by some of its greatest exponents, including Honoré Daumier and Gavarni.

Mary Mary

SARA BARKER: THE FACES OF OLDER IMAGES

4-28 OCT, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

Glasgow-based artist Sara Barker brings a group of four wall based relief works which traverse the line between painting, drawing and sculpture.

CHOZUMAKI 26 OCT-6 JAN 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

Sonica Artist in Residence, Japan’s Nelo Akamatsu, presents this intricate installation of glass and water, which uses magnetic energy to produce a spiralling vortex of curious sounds.

Platform

The Modern Institute

1 OCT-19 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

2 OCT-4 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

COLIN JAMES TENNANT: PAINT IT RED

A contemporary portrait of Easterhouse – the culmination of a year-long photography project.

Six Foot Gallery TRADESTON – A TALE OF ABANDONMENT

3-5 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A hotch potch of abandoned tenements, burnt out wastelands, low rise 1970’s industrial units, a testament to decades of poor planning and congenital mismanagement.

This exhibition is a photographic journey though the condemned and abandoned area so close to Glasgow city centre.

ANNE-MARIE PINKERTON: BEYOND LIGHT

6 OCT-16 NOV, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Pinkerton aims to explore symbolically, both the outer political, social and cultural landscapes of our time, as well as the inner landscapes of the human psyche.

Street Level Photoworks

ALEKSANDRA VAJD & MARKÉTA OTHOVÁ: WHAT IS LIFE?

1 OCT-18 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

The first joint exhibition from Markéta Othová (1968, Prague) and Aleksandra Vajd (1971, Maribor, Slovenia), two eminent figures in Central and East European photography in a show which highlights the universal quality of the photographic medium.

The Briggait AUTUMN/WINTER 2017

1-27 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An installation of new work by Beagles and Ramsay. New sculptures for Autumn/Winter 2017 include a selection of oversized statement handbags from the Fused Polyvinyl Chloride Collection. This display is supplemented by Bones in every available colour along with curated highlights from the Molar Lump & Lumps. A new medley of prints will also be exhibited, including both the Compulsory Chirper Range and Hits & Misses Redux.

The Common Guild

MARIA FUSCO: RADICAL DIALECT

3 OCT-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.

SLOW OBJECTS

14 OCT-16 DEC, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition bringing together the works of artists Vanessa Billy, Edith Dekyndt and Erin Shirreff, all of whom share an interest in both natural and pseudo-scientific processes, alchemy and labour.

The Lighthouse KCD

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of work from KCD, an family company founded by Krisztina MucCulloch, which designs eco-friendly interiors inspired by the renowned architecture of Glasgow and Paisley.

LINES OF THOUGHT

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

Curated and organised by the Alexander Thomson Society, this exhibition celebrates the bicentenary of architect Alexander Thomson in a selection of pen and ink measured studies, detailed digital renderings, precision models, journals, sketches, film and the more abstract work of artists.

MARTIN BOYCE: LIGHT YEARS

The Scottish sculptor brings a new exhibition to Modern Institute’s Osborne Street location.

Tramway

LUIZ ROQUE: HEAVEN

1-15 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

The European premier of Luiz Roque’s intense film set in 2080, when the the Epstein-Barr virus has mutated into something more aggressive. The cast comprises transgender people in a plot which illustrates the health and sociopolitical implications of this virus for trans people.

STUART MIDDLETON: BEAT

1-12 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition exploring various tensions between life and stock, featuring stop-frame animation, animated dead material and large sculptures. Beat was originally commissioned by the ICA, London and has been reconfigured for Tramway’s main gallery.

MEGAN ROONEY: OTHERS GOT WINGS FOR FLYING

28 OCT-10 DEC, TIMES VARY, FREE

A major new Tramway cocommission, curated by Louise Briggs for independent on and offline publisher and producer MAP. Megan Rooney’s work includes painting, performance, written and spoken word, sculpture and installation.

The commission and exhibition will conclude with a performance by Andrew Graham and Megan Rooney, a continuation of a performance previously presented by Rooney at Cove Park in September.

Transmission Gallery

FIELDS OF WHEAT: MEMBER’S SHOW 2017 1-14 OCT, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Transmission present their annual members’ show for your delectation.

iota @ Unlimited Studios

LAURA ANNE HUNTER: MAKING LIGHT OF THINGS

13-31 OCT, 12:00PM – 5:00PM, FREE

The nights are fair drawin’ in... so what do we do now? Well, for starters, Iota open a show on Friday the 13th till Hallowe’en… With some black humour and an eye for beauty, especially in dark times and places, Laura Hunter explores ways and means.

Edinburgh Art &Gallery TIME & PLACE

7 OCT-1 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of painting and printmaking currently referring to the tension between the natural and urban environment.

City Art Centre EDINBURGH ALPHABET

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An A-Z of Edinburgh’s collections, Edinburgh Alphabet takes place across four gallery floors and features over 300 objects from paintings to tapestries, ceramics to silver. Each letter of the alphabet has been given a theme around which objects have been grouped.

HIDDEN GEMS

7 OCT-13 MAY 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

The City Art Centre showcases ‘unsung and unusual’ hidden gems from its collection of fine art.

A RIBBON IN SPACE

1 OCT-30 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

A series of eight astutely captured images recalling the radical compositions of Zaha Hadid’s hero from the world of 20th century art, Kazimir Malevich.

Listings

61

Win tickets to Nell Bryden in Glasgow!

Coburg House Art Studios

Royal Scottish Academy RSA

14-21 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

1 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

OTHERING

An exhibition of boundary pushing female art, including work from Ally Kay, Hari MacMillan, Heather Andersen Ower, Katriona MacLeod, Lucie Rachel, Kirsten Mae Wallace, Lotte Hardeman and Lucy Wayman.

Collective Gallery THE LAST HOUR!

1 OCT-5 NOV, 10:00AM – 4:00PM, FREE

An exhibition curated by Timothea Armour which engages with the topic of the public house – its contemporary state and potential future.

Dovecot Studios BUILT IN TAPESTRY: DOVECOT TAPESTRIES AND ARCHITECTURE

2 OCT-17 MAR 18, 10:30AM – 5:30PM, FREE

A balcony-based exhibition at Dovecot highlighting projects from the studio’s history, featuring innovative and bold projects from commissions new and past.

DAUGHTERS OF PENELOPE

2 OCT-20 JAN 18, 10:30AM – 5:30PM, FREE

N

ell Bryden is a singer-songwriter, New Yorker, adopted Brit, beloved album artist, Radio 2 favourite and broadcaster, and now wife and mother. In every sense, she's come a long way to get to where she is – no wonder her eagerly awaited fifth album, released early 2017, is titled Bloom.

Those who've been lucky enough to hear the whole record before its release, made in London with producers Andy Wright and Gavin Goldberg and full of elegant songs of mature reflection, call it a new creative peak.

Bryden plays Òran Mór, Glasgow, on 20 October, and we have three pairs of tickets to give

away. To be in with a chance of winning, simply head to theskinny.co.uk/competitions and answer the following question: What is the name of Nell Bryden's fifth album?

Dovecot tells a tale of women’s work in the textile industry and within textile art in a group exhibition of work fro those who have contributed to the gallery’s history and present.

Features Caroline Dear, Linder, Sonia Delaunay, Hanna Tuulikki and more.

Edinburgh Printmakers NEW EDITION

3-21 OCT, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

a) Blossom b) Flower c) Bloom Competition closes midnight Mon 16 Oct. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 24 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

Group exhibition displaying newly commissioned printed works by Museums Press, Poster Club and Emer Tumilty, curated by Sarah Lowndes. The title of the exhibition underlines the generational group of all of the exhibiting artists, who were born between the late 1960s and the early 1980s, and represent the current wave of Scotland-based artists working with print.

HOLD ON ON HOLD

1-8 OCT, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

A group show by recent Scottish graduates Adam Benmakhlouf, Ed Twaddle, Tamara MacArthur and Zoë Griffin. The show comprises flat sculptures, a re-angled screen, and variously hand/machine-made cutouts around a falling-down paper theatre.

1-29 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Exhibition presenting new, commissioned and existing work by Laura Aldridge, Charlie Billingham, Bobby Niven, Oliver Osborne and Ben Rivers; celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Botanics’ iconic modernist glasshouses.

Jupiter Artland LIZ MAGIC LAER: PRIMAL SPEECH

1 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Artist Liz Magic Laser responds to Brexit and Trump with a video and room dedicated to the primal scream technique, encouraging audiences to let out their frustrations.

MARCO GIORDANO: SELF-FULFILLING EGO

1 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

hich Edinburgh-based author will be W opening the Fair?

An exhibition of new watercolours alongside early carvings and casts, in the Academicians’ Gallery at the RSA Building on The Mound.

Scottish National Gallery A MEETING OF TWO MASTERPIECES

1 OCT-25 MAR 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

Six-footer British masterpiece Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows (1831) by John Constable, displayed alongside another celebrated landscape painting, William McTaggart’s The Storm (1890).

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art 20TH CENTURY: MASTERPIECES OF SCOTTISH AND EUROPEAN ART

1 OCT-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.

SURREALISM AND THE MARVELLOUS

1-31 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Focusing on artworks by Dalí, Ernst, Magritte and many other Surrealist artists, this exhibtion uncovers the unconscious, the irrational, the absurd and the marvellous within surrealism. There are also African and Oceanic sculptures on display alongside a cabinet of curiosities.

1 OCT-29 APR 18, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Embassy presents its graduate show with four artists selected from across the Scottish degree shows.

To be in with a chance of winning, simply head to theskinny.co.uk/competitions and answer the following question:

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

1-8 OCT, 12:00PM – 6:00PM, FREE

PLANT SCENERY OF THE WORLD

his year's Edinburgh Art Fair runs from 17 to 19 November at the Corn Exchange, offering art fans the chance to browse and buy work from over 60 galleries at Scotland's longest running modern and contemporary art fair. And what's more, the private opening on Thursday 16 November will be opened by celebrated author Ian Rankin.

We've teamed up with the Fair to offer 25 pairs of tickets to the prestigious preview evening on 16 November, giving you and a friend the opportunity to see the art before the show opens to the general public.

GARETH FISHER RSA

ARTIST ROOMS: MUSIC FROM THE BALCONIES - ED RUSCHA AND LOS ANGELES

Inverleith House

T

Exhibition of small works sourced by open submission from artists across Scotland, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, prints and photographs – all available to buy – from around 400 different artists. Expect the usual pick’n’mix wonderland.

Embassy Gallery EMBASSY GRADUATE SHOW 2017

Win tickets to the Edinburgh Art Fair Preview!

RSA OPEN 2017

Glasgow-based Italian artist Marco Giordano presents this year’s Temporary commission for Emerging Artists in the Outdoors at EAF. The new work draws interest from Le Cento Fontane and historic stonework set around the Jupiter estate, creating an avenue of sculptures that emit a mist of water, ‘blessing’ each visitor.

a) Alexander McCall Smith b) Irvine Welsh c) Ian Rankin Competition closes midnight Sun 29 Oct. Winners will be notified via email within two working days of closing and will be required to respond within 24 hours or the prize will be offered to another entrant. Our Ts&Cs can be found at theskinny.co.uk/about/terms

A display highlighting the ways in which Ed Ruscha (b.1937, Nebraska, USA) draws upon urban landscape and architecture, cinema, brands, car culture and language that refer and relate to LA and Hollywood to create works about the American Dream.

TRUE TO LIFE

1-29 OCT, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, £8 - £10

Comprising more than 80 paintings, this exhibition recognises an almost forgotten generation of artists and explores British realist painting in the 1920s and 1930s.

NOW

28 OCT-18 FEB 18, 10:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

A second edition of the Scottish National Gallery’s dynamic exhibition series NOW, this time focussing on storytelling and showcasing the work of Turner Prize-winning artist Susan Philipsz, along with pieces by Michael Armitage, Yto Barrada, Kate Davis, Hiwa K and Sarah Rose.

A PERFECT CHEMISTRY

KITE AND TRUMPET

1 OCT, TIMES VARY, £9 - £10

13 OCT-22 NOV, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

GRAHAM FAGEN: THE SLAVE’S LAMENT

Talbot Rice Gallery

A showcase of photographs by two Scots, Octavius Hill (1802-1870) and Robert Adamson (1821-1848) who mastered the medium four short years after its invention. The images featured have been said to be among the first examples of social documentary in the history of photography.

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

Graham Fagen presents a ‘soundclash’ in which Robert Burns’ The Slave’s Lament is performed by the Scottish Ensemble and Reggae singer Ghetto Priest, and produced by legendary On-U-Sound founder Adrian Sherwood.

GRAHAM MACINDOE: COMING CLEAN

1 OCT-5 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

Since recovering from years of his life as a heroin addict, Graham MacIndoe uses this body of selfportraits as a means of opening up conversations about dependency and recovery.

HEROES AND HEROINES

1 OCT-31 MAY 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

A re-examination of major Scottish figures which questions our habit of framing history around individuals and idols.

LOOKING GOOD - THE MALE GAZE FROM VAN DYCK TO LUCIAN FREUD

1 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A selection of portraits, from the National Galleries of Scotland and National Portrait Gallery, London collections illustrating elaborate fashions and grooming of courtiers and cavaliers in the 16th and 16th centuries, the 18th century dandy, the rise of the celebrity, and representations of gender and sexuality.

DOUGLAS GORDON: BLACK BURNS

1-29 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A specially commissioned installation created in response to John Flaxman’s full-length marble statue of poet Robert Burns, which stands in The Great Hall of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

WHEN WE WERE YOUNG: PHOTOGRAPHS OF CHILDHOOD

14 OCT-15 APR 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

Part of Luminate 2017, this exhibition documents the experience and representation of childhood to coincide with Scotland’s Year of the Young Person 2018. Photographs from the permanent collection of the NGS are used to explore how the experience of childhood has changed over the years, and how the portrayal of children has shifted too.

Scottish Storytelling Centre

THE WINNER TAKES IT ALL: EXHIBITION

6 OCT-24 NOV, 10:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Michael Kerins in conjunction with Russian schoolchildren present paintings and chalk drawings based on the poems of the late Emma Scullion, who had a diagnosis of cancer as a toddler and died aged 25. All children whose work is exhibited are blind, they have captured the spirit and wit of her poems.

Scottish National Portrait Gallery Stills SCOTS IN ITALY 1 OCT-5 MAR 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

A showcase of the Scottish experience of Italy in the eighteenth century, a time when artistic, entrepreneurial and aristocratic fascination with the country was reaching boiling point.

THE MODERN PORTRAIT

1 OCT-27 OCT 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

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.

REFORMATION TO REVOLUTION

1 OCT-1 APR 19, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition examining the cultural consequences of the national religion becoming Protestantism in sixteenth century Scotland.

KATE DAVIS: NUDES NEVER WEAR GLASSES

1-8 OCT, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

The debut solo exhibition in Scotland from Kate Davis, which comprises a new photographic series with drawings and recent moving image works.

This exhibition included the first gallery presentation of Davis’ Margaret Tait Award film Charity (2017).

Summerhall CAPTURED STATE

7 OCT-30 NOV, 11:00AM – 6:00PM, FREE

Captured State brings together six artists from the Republic of Macedonia to exhibit in Scotland for the first time. Whilst contemporary art from Macedonia has not enjoyed a high profile up unto this point, the artists chosen, through their work in installation, video, and performance, address some of the key questions concerning artists across Europe at the present time, and address issues that have a provocative relevance in Scottish culture and politics.

Features Ephemerki, Verica Kovacevska, OPA (obsessive possessive aggression) and Igor Toshevski.

Kite and Trumpet Festival of Polish Art for Children is a celebration of the best of Polish modern art and design for children. Illustrators, performers and designers living in Scotland and invited from Poland will team up in a programme of interactive, contemporary visual theatre, storytelling, design and workshops.

JOHN AKOMFRAH: VERTIGO SEA

21 OCT-27 JAN 18, TIMES VARY, FREE

The Talbot Rice showcase Vertigo Sea and At The Graveside Of Tarkovsky, two installations by acclaimed and award-winning filmmaker John Akomfrah.

The Fruitmarket Gallery JAC LEIRNER: ADD IT UP

1-22 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A Scotland debut from Brazilian artist Jac Leirner, who makes sculptures from a limited range of everyday materials which engage with notions of repetition, obsession and addiction.

Dundee Art Cooper Gallery URGENCY AND POSSIBILITY: COUNTER-CINEMA IN THE 70S AND 80S

2-7 OCT, 11:00AM – 5:00PM, FREE

Cooper Gallery presents a two-week screening programme of the collaborative film works by influential film theorists and filmmakers Laura Mulvey and Peter Wollen. The programme, selected with Laura Mulvey, includes the pair’s experimental shorts, features and documentary, which instigated Counter-Cinema in the 1970s. These works will be shown in a series of evening and weekend screenings.

DCA: Dundee Contemporary Arts THE WEATHER MAKERS

1 OCT-26 NOV, TIMES VARY, FREE

Canadian artist Kelly Richardson’s first solo exhibition in Scotland, programmed in partnership with Discovery Film Festival. Via three large-scale video works and a new print series, The Weather Maker asks the viewer to consider what the future might hold if we do not alter our use of the planet’s resources.

The McManus

A SENSE OF PLACE: TWENTIETH CENTURY SCOTTISH PAINTING

1-31 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An exhibition of primarily landscape paintings, including work from the Glasgow Boys, the Scottish Colourists, James McIntosh Patrick and Joan Eardley.

FIRE AND STONE

1-8 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

An continuation of the NMS and British Museum’s Reflections on Celts spotlight tour, featuring a replica of the Monifieth II Pictish stone which has been commissioned from stone carver David McGovern.

MUSEOGRAPHY: CALUM COLVIN REFLECTS ON THE MCMANUS COLLECTIONS

1-31 OCT, TIMES VARY, FREE

A major new exhibition from Calum Colvin which showcases a series of strategically placed interventions of photographic artworks throughout the permanent galleries at The McManus.

artedinburgh.com

62

Listings

COMPETITIONS

THE SKINNY

Beyond Pattern In the second part of our regular column mapping the Scottish design landscape, our Local Heroes curator takes a closer look at textile design

Words: Stacey Hunter

Laura Spring

Bespoke Atelier

urface pattern design is a sector where Scotland’s designers excel, and one that we were keen to turn our eye to in our ongoing tour of Scottish design. We’ve selected six designers who epitomise the aspects we love to celebrate in Scottish design: eclecticism, Scotland’s international reach and an embracing of highly original and innovative methods whether in terms of an approach to printing, designing or manufacturing.

Our country’s expertise in textile design was vividly brought to life earlier this year with Sample, an exhibition at the Lighthouse where Collect Scotland shone a light under an industry where designers are not always credited for commercial work.

Two of the founding members of Collect Scotland are Marion Parola and Yvonne Elliott-Kellighan, also the designers behind the ambitious, bold and highly experimental, Bespoke Atelier – Scotland’s most exciting surface pattern studio. The duo recently translated the northern seaside nostalgia of a lido in Morecambe into a contemporary and chic Art Parc with an explosion of nuanced colour palettes rendered in graphic forms. Working at architectural scales, Bespoke Atelier recently designed patterns rendered in concrete that are integrated into exterior entrances at Woodside Health Centre. Their ‘stained glass’ wallpaper explores the relationship between the garden greenhouse and urban architecture and is an innately feminine masterpiece.

Welcome Home at CCA is a key place to find high quality Scottish textile design – its owner (another co-founder of Collect) Mhari McMullan consciously selects bold prints and colours from mainly Scottish designers with a contemporary rather than traditional style. She says “Geometrics are always popular prints but we’ve had a lot more painterly textiles with a hand done or illustrative feel recently in the shop.”

Among the Welcome Home cohort is Isabella Bunnell whose illustrations mix contrasting textures and bright colours with a sense of humour.

Applied to fabric, her work can be enjoyed in the

October 2017

Karen Mabon

Photo: David Anderson

S

form of a cushion featuring a reclining nude.

While with Vajournal, an interactive diary for feminists, the designer provides an exquisitely illustrated canvas on which to explore feminist rage.

Thought-provoking activities ask readers to list all the people they have ever slept with, describe their worst and best sexual experiences, and to relay their hopes and dreams, feelings about their bodies, and experiences of everyday sexism.

In the capital, designer Karen Mabon has a similar preoccupation with describing people in her thoughtful, and sometimes surreal drawings that are translated into silk scarves. Her depth of historical knowledge about who and what has come before her in art and design terms distinguishes her work from an Instagram/Pinterest generation of designers trapped in a circular sourcebook. Mabon’s SS18 swimwear and silk sleepwear collection launches at Premier Classe in Paris this month, exploring themes that include Lucid Dreaming and The Zodiac. This combined with her recent move towards homewares with Lily Pond and Swan Lake cushions brings her contribution to elegant boudoirs full circle.

The patterns created by Hazel Dunn have a dynamic 70s feel to them – which, inspired as the designer is by Soviet-era children’s books and the natural world, isn’t so surprising. Dunn, a Glasgow based illustrator, works diversely across formats from fashion and interior textiles to colourful visual identity creation for clients like RSPB and enigmatic monochromatic moving image.

Exploring her work feels like a walk through an enchanted forest.

Laura Spring’s highly distinctive work takes an original approach to colour blocked screen printing while paying attention to textile design heavyweights of the 60s like Finland’s Marimekko.

Spring’s designs dance and fizz with energy and colour and she applies them to a carefully curated range of accessories for the body and the home with precision. Each zipper features a hand-stamped leather puller, made less than a mile from her studio in Glasgow by “a master leather craftsman called Colin.” This attention to detail and a healthy appetite for travel has resulted in her most mesmerising collection to date – The Good Life inspired by a Finnish form of weaving called Täkänä and exhibited at Helsinki Design Week and Design Junction in London this year.

We didn’t have room to tell you about Susan Castillo; Jemima and Alice Dansey-Wright; Rachel Duckhouse; Niki Fulton; Fun Makes Good; Lyndsay Mackie; C F McEwan; Primary Press; Natasha Samasuwo, The Store Hus, and Rebecca Torres; follow us on Twitter and Instagram to hear more about surface pattern designers and for the latest in contemporary Scottish design.

Next month join us for an Autumnal column looking at Scotland's most exciting contemporary knitted and woven textile designers instagram.com/localheroesdesign

Last Word

63